Together...my 4 boys!

Christmas Village

He are some pics of today's preschool fieldtrip at Ogden's Christmas Village. It was just a tad bit nippy (IT WAS FREEZING). Ellie of course made fun of me because I wasn't wearing a coat, but at least my feet were warm and cozy. Our 2 boys had a great time. They are quite the little cheezers.

It's my Blog and I'll Complain (another word actually would fit better) if I WANT TO!!!!!!!!!

O.K. So this is my blog right?! I can post anything thing that I want right!!! Well here goes.........The last 4 weeks have (for the most part) SUCKED!!!! Let's begin with a small but overwhelming list:

1. My ankle got "DORKED" Up!!! (Soccer induced)

2. My #2 "DORKED" Up his knee. Needed 2 different types of x-rays PLUS a MRI to figure out what the heck was wrong with it. (Soccer induced)

3. My husband blew-out his knee (ACL) see pic above. He had surgery last week.

(Motorcycle MX induced)

4. Ripped off my toe nail (see pic above) Not completely, but as you can see it's barely hanging on. The top/middle left side is the only part that is completely intact. I've tried to super glue it, but that doesn't seem to be working.

(Soccer induced)

5. I got elbowed right in the nose during a game a week or two ago. Pretty sure the girl broke some cartilage in my nose! I can't itch my nose without pain.....niiiicccee!!!

6. Last night was yet another trip to urgent care. My #1 broke my #2's nose........yeah........what the hell!!!!!

7. Oh can I add that I made them get Flu shots while we were at the doctors?

8. How about my laptop having issues. It's seems to be fine now, but I'm just waiting for the hammer to fall!!! i..e. Check out Ellie's Blog, holy cow I would go into a coma

if that happened to me!!!!

O.K. let's try to look on the bright side of things.

1. My ankle is about 90 percent!!!

2. #2's knee is completely fine.

3. My husbands knee is on the mend and the Doc says he is recovering fabulously. It's not normal how well he is doing.......whatever......that wouldn't happen to

me if I had just had reconstructive knee surgery!!

4. My toenail...........now that's a different story!!! I haven't played soccer on it yet. The true test will be tomorrow!!! I'm gonna wrap the dang thing in tape, band aids and gauze.

Plus I'm gonna wear a toe cap. Let's hope for the best.

5. My nose still hurts when I itch it. So I've just decided not to itch it LOL!!

6. #2's nose hhmmmmm that's still in the works.....

7. and 8. Flu shots went fine (other than #4 had a flip out and my computer is still o.k.)

Oh and something is up with blogger that won't let me edit my posts the way I want. Good Grief!!! I can't get the spacing to work right! I can't figure it out in the "compose" and/or "Edit Html"...whatever this is just par for the course.

I did have a FAB B-day though!!!!!!

December Birthday.......

I honestly have the greatest friends EVER!!!! We had such a fab time on Friday attending GOOD THINGS UTAH!!! How wonderful it is to have so many of my friends celebrate my b-day with me. I honestly love you guys!!!

Anyway.....enough with the mushy stuff.

We were kinda of a giggly, rowdy, outspoken and obnoxious bunch a girls. But we wouldn't have it any other way. One of the hosts from the show (Neisha) said (and I quote) "You must have to be hot to be in this group of friends!" (she said after we got our picture with her and the other hosts) "your the best group we've ever had".

Yeah.....we know!

Anyway...moving on.

What a great day of Good Things Utah, shopping, lunch then more shopping. Exactly what I needed on my b-day. Thanks to Ellie, Katie, Natalie, Amy, Jodie, Jenny and Rachel

P.S. I'm still closer to 30 than I am 40!! (Whew)

P.P.S. I wish all of my friends could of made it :( maybe next time. Who's b-day is coming up next!?!?

P.P.P.S. Hey, I TIVO'ed the show if anybody wants to watch LOL!!!!

Christmas Tree Tag....

There is alot of tagging going on. I'm just a little slow with the "tag your it" part. Anyway here is how this one goes.......Take a picture of your Christmas Tree, and post it for all to see!

I took a pic of our main tree. It's nice, short and slender, plus it's very easy to decorate. The other is of the boys tree. It has a soccer/school ornament/Star Wars/Sponge Bob thing going on. They can put the ornaments on it anyway way they want. I don't go back after they are finished and rearrange. You see what you get.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I tag my 2 new blog buddies Jenny and Holly. Plus Natalie, McKell, JeNeal and my Dad.

5 things tag.....

5 THINGS I WAS DOING 10 YEARS AGO:

1. I just found out I was pregnant with my #2. I remember finding out right before my birthday.
2. I had a handsome brown haired, browned eyed, 2 1/2 year old little boy. He was the light of my life.
3. Preparing to graduate from college.
4. Living in our little, old, newly remodeled house.
5. Still in my early 20's......... :(

5 THINGS ON MY TO DO LIST TODAY:

1. Laundry
2. Pay bills
3. Finish decorating the house for Christmas
4. Final touches on Christmas Cards
5. Try and figure out what the hell is wrong with my freakin LAPTOP!!!!!!!!

5 SNACKS I ENJOY:

1. I love licorice. Any color, kind, flavor or brand.
2. I love nuts. Especially almonds and cashews.
3. Cheese please
4. Chips and Salsa
5. Pumpkin Seeds

5 THINGS I WOULD DO IF I WERE A MILLIONAIRE:

1. Well I definitely wouldn't invest my money in the stock market. Been there, done that!!!!!
2. I'm a big donater. ie. Utah Food Bank, fast offerings ect. I feel that if I am blessed enough to have a comfortable life then it's my duty to try and help those who are less fortunate.
3. Maybe start my own business.
4. TRAVEL-TRAVEL-TRAVEL
5. College Fund for my boys.

5 PLACES I HAVE LIVED:

1. First apartment in Logan (USU)
2. Second apartment in Logan.
3. Third apartment in Logan
4. Our little, old, newly remodeled house (our first home we bought)
5. Our current house

5 JOBS I HAVE HAD:

1. Counter girl and waitress at the Oaks.
2. Blain Downs Photography
3. Matrixx Marketing
4. JCPenney
5. North Ogden City

(oh yeah I worked at a gas station in Green River, Utah one summer)

hhhmmmmmmmm I tag:

Natalie, Mckell, Jeneal and my dad. Have fun it's kinda a long tag, but fun to think about and remember.

Random Pics......

It's about time....

Finally someone other than my Ellie has started a blog. None of my friends have blogs. I'm not quite sure on their reasoning, but alas my poking and prodding is for not.........but wait.......we finally have a taker!!! Natalie finally started a blog yesterday. It's super cute too! I helped with the start up, but she is well on her way to becoming an avid blogger. If only she had photoshop, then she'd really be in business. I couldn't stand that she didn't have a cute header. I had to remedy the situation.

So anyway.....congrats Nat.........welcome to the big wide world of blogging!!!!

Thanksgiving in Dixie

It all my 30+ years I have never traveled out of town for Thanksgiving. I've gone to aunts and uncles, grandmas and grandpas....but never 5 hours away from home. Wow, they don't lie when they talk about holiday travel/travelers. ANYWAY.....

We celebrated Thanksgiving this year at our Hurricane house. My mom and I even prepared the Thanksgiving meal. No, I'm not kidding, I'm telling the truth. The slide show below will show the proof. It was actually quite yummy. We served nine people in all. My dad, mom, little bro, 4 boys and a mom plus the dad.

My #2 also had a soccer tournament in St.George over the weekend as well. What a fun tournament to watch. The team did an awesome job and took first place. Good Job La Roca!!!!

We threw in a little hiking, sight seeing and of course another showing of Twilight!! I just couldn't resist.

Happy Thanksgiving......

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving!

Thankful.....

My life (at least in my point of view) seems to have the "when it rains it pours" syndrome, or the "bad things happen in 3's" syndrome. Problem is.....these syndromes seem to happen quite often. Anyway........today was a prime example.

I don't really want to go into specifics.......(I'm not in the mood to type).......but everything is going to turn out o.k.

I just want to post about how thankful I am for my children. I completely love and cherish them with all of my heart. I am thankful for there health, strength, varying personalities, quirks, weaknesses, love, frustrations ect.......They are 4 wonderful, amazing and overwhelming boys. And I wouldn't have it any other way!

P.S. (Merry Christmas early to me.......4 brand new tires for my car........good grief, STUPID run flat tires!)

I think I'm gonna cry....(Part 2)

I honestly do not care to know anyone else's opinion and/or critique of the Twilight movie. The only opinion that matters to me belongs to the one wearing the hat in the pic above (my Ells Bells). When the opening scene began I said to Ellie "I think I'm gonna cry"......Pretty sure we were in complete agreeance!

I liked the movie. I even liked Edward. His eyes were very "DREAMY"!!! Bella was beautiful (just as she should be). The story was rushed a bit, but that's how all movies are that are based off of novels. Bella and Edward had the most heartfelt connection. Edward makes most husbands, boyfriends ect. PALE (LOL) in comparison. I can't wait for the next movie. I've heard that they have already written the script.

You know....honestly I went into this movie without the highest of expectations. It could have been the worst movie in world history, but that would not have mattered. I loved the Twilight series (novels) because of the love story. I was definitely intrigued to see how it could be portrayed on the big screen. I think it was well done.

Anyway.......Katie hasn't read any of the books YET, Natalie has only read Twilight. I think the movie has inspired them. Thanks to my buds for a night of shopping, dinner, more shopping, then finally the movie! We all had a wonderful time.

A-N-K-L-E update: So the ankle isn't the happiest ankle. It will allow me to walk on it, but not much else. I had a game last night after our (Twilight Girls Night). I haven't played since it was injured last week. Yeeeeeaaaaahhhh.....it was not thrilled with playing soccer. I settled into playing goalie for the game. Honestly, I didn't suck.....so I guess it's progress. Good thing I have Thanksgiving Weekend to recover a bit more.

(Hey Ellie, let's honestly consider renaming our womens indoor soccer team. Instead of Team X-treme.......let's name it Team Edward......yeah baby!!! (FYI I'm serious)

Hmmmmm I'm not quite sure....

So about a month ago or so my cute little neighbor Anne convinced me to join Facebook. What the heck is it anyway? I'm not quite sure of its purpose. It's definitely not near as fun as blogger. So in all honesty (really) I was going to post today on the uselessness of this so called Facebook. But low and behold I got my first friend today. She was actually one of my bridesmaids at my wedding. My friend Paula from high school. WOW....maybe I misjudged! I haven't seen or heard from Paula in years.

So what am I getting at one might ask...........well maybe this Facebook thing does have some small purpose. It got me back in touch with a great high school friend. Hopefully there will be more to come. Who knows......maybe, maybe not. Is Facebook like a popularity contest? The more friends you have the more popular you are? (I'm not too worried..LOL...LOL!!!!!!!)

If I can't get my really good friends to start a blog, why in heavens name would they join Facebook. I would love all of my friends to be more computer savvy....but to no avail. They just enjoy my blog......at least that's what they tell me.

Anyway.......Maybe I'll see more of a purpose for this Facebook thing. So far (other than Paula) I find it kinda dumb. But whatever......

P.S. Don't get me started on Myspace

P.P.S. If I'm not the most popular on Facebook, I'm definitely making up for it on my Meez. I have lots of virtual meezers that want to be my friend....LOL!

Figures....

So a couple of posts ago I reported that I regained a bit of confidence in my local law enforcement........yeah, not so much. The police had ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with the arrest of the "GIRL" that had possession of my SS card and drivers' license. It was basically a case of "Stumbling upon the Evidence."

So here's the story. The "girl" got drunk. The "girl" passed out. The "girl" lay on the ground in someones back yard. The ambulance was called. My SS card and driver's license found in the "girls" purse.

NO police involvement. Just random, dumb luck. It's good luck for me though. Soooooo anyway......I can pick up my cards this week from my local CSI. That ought to be interesting.

I think I'm gonna cry......

So I play soccer at least 3 times a week. I play on two coed teams and a one women's team. I love soccer! It's wonderful for frustration elimination. The bonus is that it is GREAT exercise. I started playing about 3 years ago. I'm not the best technical player, but I can keep up physically. I can definitely hold my own with the men I play against in coed. I rarely, if ever, back down to a man.

So anyway......I can honestly only think of one or two times I've had to come off the field because of an injury. The one that sticks in my mind is when I was kicked with the ball directly in my upper gut region. I got the wind knocked out of me, it was beyond painful. And yes I started to cry. But I WILL NEVER lay on the field and wait it out. I get off my butt, walk to the box, and deal with the pain then.

Last night I was playing on my coed team (Bells and Whistles). We are a pretty solid team. The team we were playing against was more than solid. The guys were beyond good. Two of their guys had played for Weber State at one time. Anyway.....they shouldn't be playing on a lower level league. But whatever.......the picture above is my souvenir from last nights game.

I totally got my ankles kicked out from under me. YES I cried, but NO I didn't linger on the field. I got my butt up and let one of the guys from my team carry me off. Then I cried more in the box. I'm not gonna have everyone looking at me when I writhing in pain.

O.K. here's the real reason for this post.......I will cry even more if there is something seriously wrong with my ankle. I'm a little worried that there might very well be. I can't be out. Not even for a week. Let's all cross our fingers!!!!! I would go into to total withdrawal without my soccer.

One would think that I have enough soccer already with all of my boys playing.......believe me I don't, I love it!

Stitches.....

Ouch......So my #2 and #3 had a bit of minor surgery. Nothing serious, just a mole and a birthmark needed to be removed. My Bugman (#3) would not be thrilled that I am blogging about his "near the butt stitches", but geez take a look at it. There is at least 10 or more stitches. He had a nickel sized birthmark removed. It started to fade (or disappear) on its own, which isn't necessarily a good thing. So instead of waiting to see what would happen, the decision was made to cut it out. CeCe (#2) had a mole between his toes removed as well. His we could have just watched, but since Bugman was having his birthmark removed we decided to get #2's removed the same day. He only has 2 or 3 stitches.

I will say this.......I don't mind these types of stitches. It's the ones that involve the EMERGENCY ROOM I despise.......knock on wood!

Stop, it's the Police......

So my confidence level for my local law enforcement went up a notch or two today. If you recall my lovely car (which I love so) was broken into last July. BaSTArdS!!!! My car window broke. My fav orange purse stolen. My identity and bank accounts in jeopardy!!!

Since the incident I have honestly not heard one word from the police. I chalked it up to "low-man-on-the-totem-pole" syndrome. I mean I talked to the police. A report was filed ect. How many purses are stolen each year? Come on, I wasn't really a priority........right?

Well I got a letter from the county attorneys office today stating they have an individual in custody. The hearing was today. I didn't make it. But let tell ya if I had......this person would rue the day he/she broke into my car. I'm pretty sure I would have dropped a few bombs.

One must understand I am still dealing with the aftermath of this whole incident. I still get phone calls from my bank about accounts that have been closed since July. Honestly this has been a nightmare.

So anyway.........I'm glad to know that this person isn't out on the streets doing this sort of thing to someone else. I'll never recover the money stolen (lots of money). The time spent on the phone (HOURS!!!!!!) Time spent at the bank, SS office, DMV ect. I'll always worry about my credit, identity ect.

BUT WHATEVER!!!!!

Tag....I'm It!

I've been tagged by my Ellie. The tag rules are as such. Go to the pictures folder of your computer. Open up your 4th folder and go to the 4th picture. Then simply post that pic. Ellie's was a cell phone pic of her boy at the dinosaur park (nice). Mine really isn't that much better. It's a pic of my boys last year on Christmas Eve.

I tag my Dad. If you need to fudge the rules a bit that's o.k.

The Hunger Games.....yeah baby!

I write this post only because I have NO choice...... Ellie don't be mad, I finished the book.

I've been wanting to find a "Good Read" for a while now. I heard about the book "The Hunger Games" from the Stephenie Meyer website/blog and it caught my interest. Geez....I think that was 2 months ago or so. Anyway Ellie decided to order "The Hunger Games" online. She called 3 or 4 different bookstores to see if they had it, but to no avail. That's why she ended up ordering it.

Anyway I decided to see if Barnes and Noble had it in stock, and yes they did. That was Saturday night. I didn't start reading the darn thing until Sunday night. As of yesterday Ellie still had not received her copy. The deal was we were to read it together. I KINDA, SORTA didn't stick to the deal. I'm sorry..........

I tried to call my Ellie today to see if she had received her book yet (SHE DID NOT ANSWER) So I just kept on reading, and yes I finished it.

The purpose of this long-drawn-out post is..........I LOVED THE BOOK! It's honestly no wonder why Stephenie Meyer suggested this book on her website. It is right up her ally. I can totally see Stephenie writing a book similar to this. Anyway its a good dang read!


P.S. Thanks Ellie for pushing me to buy the book to begin with.

P.P.S. This is the first novel of a projected trilogy. The word trilogy is music to my ears........

We had a great Halloween this year. We kinda had a Batman theme. My little bro Tee Tee was the Joker Nurse, my #1 was Two Face, and my #2 was the Joker. I was in charge of curling and styling the wigs (among other things). My #3 was Hellboy, and don't forget my cute little Ninja.

AAAAaaahhhh the face painting..........enough said!

My mom and I made a fab Halloween Feast. Soup, broomsticks, hot apple cider, ghost blondies, edible eyeballs, peanut butter spiders, mummy pizzas, monster toes ect. Thanks mom....everything turned out great.

Yardwork :(

These 2 pics completely tell the story as to why I haven't been to the gym this past week. Let me preface that with saying "I HATE YARDWORK!!!! I filled our dump trailer with massive amounts of dead headed plants, trees, grasses, flowers, tomatoes, peppers ect. all from my yard. It's an ugly job, but somebody has got to do it. The crappy reality is I'm still not finished. I have at least 1/3 of the my yard yet to do UUUUGGGGHHHHH!!!!

(Why go to the gym when you can get a workout at home?)

It wouldn't be Fall/Halloween without visiting a pumpkin patch, corn maze or haunted house. I took the kids (along with my parents) to Punkinaze in West Haven. I've been meaning to all month, but somehow I can never find the time.......Anyway we had a great time.

My dad mentioned that I haven't had a post for awhile. I know, I know I just hate to post if it isn't something worth posting. But when it rains it pours......I could have easily posted three times today, but I'll try and stretch them out over the weekend.

I did it all on my own ELLIE-BO-BELLIE!!!!!! LOL, inside joke!

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  Ever heard of 4 weddings and a funeral ? How about a baptism, soccer game and a funeral. Yep those 3 took up my whole Saturday. My Aunt's funeral was today (FAB WEATHER let me tell ya). My cousin Atley was baptized and I had a coed soccer game to top it off. If I could of I would have made it to my #2's championship soccer game (The President's Cup Tournament), but I can't be everywhere at once. His team won the tournament championship, good job, BUDDY!
  
  For some reason we didn't take any pics at the funeral. These pics were at Atley's baptism. They include various family members. My grandpas sister and her daughter flew out from Kentucky to attend the funeral. I've never met them before, they were wonderful.
  
  It's been an exhausting week. Glad to finally bring it to an end. I am grateful for seeing so many family members I haven't seen in awhile. The funeral was beautiful. The amount of people that attended was amazing. My Aunt Fairy was a remarkable woman.
  
  
  
  

Some desperately needed humor.....

Only He knows our TRUE heart......

While we are mourning the loss of a mother, grandmother, daughter, wife, sister, aunt, friend, others celebrate her arrival on the other side of the veil. For a brief moment one may be envious of this. How peaceful and beautiful.

I can only imagine......

Life is a gift to us given from God. Individual trials, tribulations, joys, sorrows, happiness, sadness, mistakes, achievements, vary among each of us. Some may seem to have been given a more difficult path.........All that matters (in my opinion) is ones heart. God knows who we are. He knows the "trueness" of our hearts.

As we grapple to understand our loved ones death. As we struggle to understand why. I know in MY HEART that she is in a better place. I know she is at peace. I know that our Heavenly Father knows her HEART. He knows (without a doubt) what a wonderful woman she was. He is her judge. Not me or anyone else. I have no doubt that many things that happen on this earth, happen for a reason.

Learning from a tragedy, such as this, is crucial. Understanding what truly really matters in this life is essential. Knowing that we have a loving, caring, peace giving, forgiving Heavenly Father is wonderful.

I wish I could better convey the feelings of my heart. I can only be comforted by the Plan of Salvation. I know that there is life after death. The spirit world dwells on this Earth, just in a different state. A different dimension, if you will. I know that there are spirits around us continually.

I know that my Aunt Fairy is finally with her mother. She is with all her loved ones that passed on before her. They welcomed her home. I have always, as long as I can remember, wanted to meet my Grandmother Lois. She passed away when Fairy was only 4 and my mom was 8. I honestly feel like she is around me. I think that I am alot like she was. I honestly miss her, yet I don't even know her. She is a part of my life, yet she has never been here.

How wonderful for Fairy to be with all of her loved ones, especially her mother. I take solice in that......I pray for the ones that were left behind. I pray for comfort and understanding. I hope they can learn from this loss. Understand the meaning behind it.

Frequently, death comes as an intruder. It is an enemy that suddenly appears in the midst of life’s feast, putting out its lights and gaiety. Death lays its heavy hand upon those dearest to us and at times leaves us baffled and wondering. In certain situations, as in great suffering and illness, death comes as an angel of mercy. But for the most part we think of it as the enemy of human happiness......

Happy Birthday......Nana Dawnie!

We celebrated my grandmas 86th birthday today. She is doing great and still going strong. I've kinda always said I hope by the time I'm in my mid 80's I'll hang up my coat and leave this earthly existence for good. BUT.........if I'm doing as good as she is then maybe we will shoot for 90!?

2 facts that I should mention about old age:
-Your ears and nose never quit growing. Why do you think every little old man has big ears and an even bigger nose. (i.e. Rewatch General Conference)
-People shrink as they age.

I just mention these because I look like a giant compared to my grandma. She doesn't have a big nose or ears per say, it was just worth mentioning. But either I've turned into a giant, or she has shrunk in her golden years. Let's go with the latter....

Anyway, Happy Birthday Nana Dawnie......

Big Rock Clothing.....a new guilty indulgence!

So I've been meaning to check out Big Rock Clothing since mid summer, but I just haven't found the time. PROBLEM SOLVED!!!! I found the time, which probably in retrospect, isn't such a good thing. The best way to describe Big Rock is.......Buckle in a warehouse (wholesale) Everyone knows my love affair with Buckle, so can you imagine how I feel about this store?!

Big Rock has lots of high end denim, that Buckle doesn't even carry. Stuff that I've only seen online. You know your in trouble when you go in the dressing room with 8 different pair of jeans and the first 3 you try on FIT PERFECT!!!!! So how does one solve that dilemma, they take the 3 and run.........as fast as one can......and try to forget about the other 5 left behind!

Anyway, good thing its in Salt Lake, any closer and I'd be in trouble. Soooooo....if you want to check out Big Rock Clothing here is a link with their address ect........have fun.

http://www.bigrockclothing.com

4 Motocross Zombies.....baby!

It's hard having 4 boys...let me tell ya! Very rarely do they concede to let me take their picture, let alone apply Halloween make-up before hand. But as always I somehow managed (I promised I'd take them to UPChuck-a-Rama for dinner). Anyway this isn't officially what they are being for Halloween, it was just an idea I had for a cute blog header.

I had to wait until they were completely finished riding for the day before I could begin. Once the make-up was applied (that took forever) I was only allowed a certain number of pictures I could take. Which seems asinine, because it took forever to get them ready. They should of let me have a little more time for pic taking....but whatever! Like I said it's hard having 4 boys........

My youngest insisted on having more after more make-up applied. "More scars Mommy".......O.K. just one more.........."More stitches Mommy"......O.K. just a few more........You get the picture.

Anyway I'll take some pics on Halloween of their real costumes........too be continued.