Easter and a smart child

So, I've toyed before with the idea of just telling the kids that I am Santa Clause and the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny. I just hate all the hiding and lying and sneaking around. But I haven't because I don't want to kill the innocence and excitement. I figured they'll find out soon enough. And I was right. The girls and their cousins were at the table on Saturday eating lunch. I was in the kitchen cutting up fruit for them, listening. Sure enough, one of the older boys said, "You don't still believe in the Easter Bunny, do you?" I kept my back to them, waiting to hear how the rest of the conversation went. Eliza didn't say anything, probably not wanting to look like a "baby" in front of her older cousin (he can be a teaser).

I could have jumped in and stopped him, but I didn't. He quickly said, "It's just your parents." And I waited for the reaction, with my back to them, so I couldn't see her reaction. I didn't want her to see my face. The next thing I heard, they were running outside to play.

But it caught up with me later. I was helping the girls brush their teeth before bed. Lydia left the bathroom but Eliza stayed behind. I started brushing my teeth, Eliza asked, "Mom, are you really the Easter Bunny?" Yes, it's me and Dad. She just nodded her head, then I could see she was putting more puzzle pieces together..."Santa Clause...?" I nodded and smiled. She gave me a half-smile and I hugged her and asked her to not tell her sister. She agreed, then stopped. "Does this mean I don't get any more presents?" :) Always thinking.

So, the inevitable happened, and she seems ok with it, and I didn't have to be the one to kill the innocence. I was about her age when my brother told me about Santa Clause, and I turned
out OK. I still have a few more years before Lydia finds out...

One December Morning...

...I woke up and it was 50 degrees outside!?!

So, winter in Utah isn't much different than winter in (southeast) Idaho, except there tends to be more snow in the mountains...mostly. That, and snow storms (or even the mention of them) will shut down entire communities...mostly :)

L said to me the other day: Mom, if you want me to do that, then you have to give me a sucker first, or I won't be your little helper. Does that make you sad?

Yes, yes it does.

The other day, I asked Jordan to do something. He responded, "Oh, I thought you said ..."

Um...okay...I guess he's 10...

E refused to help L put away her laundry the other day because "she (L) hates me (E)."

And so it begins.

So, as you can see, our little ones are growing up. L is trying desperately to forge her place in our family, determined to no longer be "the baby." Even though she's the youngest, she will NOT be bossed around. And I'm learning that I can't just "tell her" to do something; it needs to be "her idea." She is soo her father's daughter :)

E is to the point in her little life where social connections, to her, make all the difference between a "good day" vs. an "awful day." That, my friends, is a daily struggle, trying to un-teach her what the world tries every day to shove in her face. And she's only eight. Sigh, one day at a time.

J, bless his heart, is the best big brother in two families. He can be so sweet and helpful and so patient with the girls. And then, he can be, well, an older brother. But, he's quick to apologize. This step-parent thing is awkward sometimes, but he has a big heart.

D has been keeping busy the last few months, driving truck for a company out of Logan. They send him all over the western states. Right now, he's on his way home from Phoenix, AZ. He's gone most of the week, but he usually gets to be home for the weekends and holidays. Nice. After we moved into our new place, before he went back to work, he was able to put up shelves in our garage. Just in time for the first snow, we were able to park BOTH cars in the garage! Yeah for no scraping windows!! :)

I've been keeping busy with laundry, baking, homework, work, and oh yeah! I'm the new Daisy and Brownie Girl Scout Troop Leader! :) Yup, they sucked me in...and it is so much fun! Yes, it's one more thing, but after our first meeting (it's at E's school), one of the Kindergarten girls (a Daisy) came up, gave me a hug and said, "You'll make the best leader." It was all I could do to not start bawling right there! Can you tell that to my daughter and her friends, please?? Thanks!
So, that's pretty much our life right now, a snap-shot into our daily lives as we know them today. I hope this note finds you all happy, healthy and enjoying the season of celebration of the birth of Our Saviour. Because of him, we have what we need.

All our Love and Joy to you,
The Peay Family

PS: Get Ready for GS Cookies!!

There is much with which to be Grateful...

Yes, the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Yesterday I compiled the grocery list for the upcoming week and festivities. Know what my first thought was after finishing? Honestly. I looked over the list and realized most of this food was going to be consumed by the end of the week, and it was twice as much food as I normally would buy in a week! :)

Even so, this brings me to my point. I am so very thankful that I have the means to acquire these things and share them with my family and extended family. It's not a lot, not extravagant by any means, but we will not be hungry this week. After a few rough years, you have no idea what that means to me.

And with that spirit of gratitude, we will be having the children help us with service projects this week with our ward. We have extra to share this year, so we will be paying forward what has been done for us in the past. Because, you can't have thanks without giving. And I want my children to understand that. I want everyone to understand that!

The very first Thanksgiving Day, the settlers were simply grateful to be alive, to have survived the year so far after loosing more that half the people who traveled with them. They were grateful for their new friends, who helped them survive. And thus started Americans love affair with food and celebration :)

This year, I am grateful I can pay it forward, however small and meager, to give someone else hope... And then work together to make a difference. These experiences will be what teach my children more than I ever could.

Be happy Giving Thanks, everyone! :)

What ever happened to...

I think, next Sunday, I will put together a "Countdown to Christmas" calendar. I'm just so excited for the Holiday Season to get started! But, since I've had time to think about it, I don't want our Christmas countdown to overshadow Thanksgiving.

I feel bad for Thanksgiving; it gets completely and consumerly bypassed. Yes, I just created a new word : consumerly. And, since I created it, it IS spelled correctly and I AM ignoring the red underline.

Anyway, my point. Eliza asked me today when Santa became a part of Christmas. We talked about what Santa represents, serving others. And what happens when we serve others? And I pray my children will learn this through our struggles... Gratefulness. Simple gratitude. When we do things for other people, we learn to be grateful for what we have.

But why do retailers completely bypass this holiday? Because consumers don't buy presents for it? I guess we could start... :) Hey, Bro, here's a bronzed cornucopia for your display. Enjoy! :) Yeah, probably not. BUT, that doesn't mean I have to bypass it and just completely JUMP to the crazy part of the holiday season. I cherish the slow-down before the frenzied crayz of the end of the year. November truly slows down; time even moves back an hour :)

So, here I am, slowing down, counting my blessings and trying to bring my children along to realize those same blessings. Thus, The Annual Count Your Blessing Month. Join me! And pray I have hair left to style :)

Well, why not?

I guess I can shoot for once a month, right? Eh... sure, why not!

I guess I can at least post once a month :)

I'm just super glad Halloween is behind me and I can move on to the Holiday Season! :) I've never really liked Halloween...don't like painting my face (just makes it itch)...never liked getting dressed up (thinking of costumes gives me head aches)...and all that walking, in the cold, just to beg for candy that will eventually make me sick?!? Naw. I can live with out it, and I don't like dragging the kids through it, even though, yes I'm sure they have fun... but it's a ton of effort on my part that I'm not terribly excited about.

However, I don't want to pass my prejudices onto my children, so I participate in the obligatory Halloween holiday activities. Much to my dislike, we usually carve just one pumpkin. This year, for some reason, I was feeling spirited and we carved two :) Then, I even roasted the seeds! Never done that (don't know why) but maybe that will help ease the carving burden because they were fantastic! As for costumes, yes, I buy costumes. Well, expect this year. E wanted to be a witch again, and since I saved her costume from last year (which was about 2 sizes too big!), score! Then, I talked L into being a ghost :) Bring out the white sheet! 2 for Mom!

As for the whole begging-for-candy thing, we went to the ward Chili Cook-Off (to which I brought potato soup because I figured my children weren't the only children who don't like chili). There was to be a Trunk-or-Treat to follow, but the downpour brought it inside the church :) Ghouls and Goblins Trick-or-Treating inside a Church...hehehe. Anyway, because of the cold and rain it didn't take much convincing of the children to stay home and enjoy the spoils while watching a movie with popcorn and hot chocolate. 3 for the lazy Halloween Mom :)

And now, I can start counting all my blessing, because this is the annual Count Your Blessing Month. Or so I will name it. For now, I'm grateful my husband has found another job, with a reputable company. He'll be gone a lot, but it will be worth it in the long run.

TTFN...

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My Birthday with Fireworks

We were able to take E's good friend with us to the Stadium of Fire for E's birthday. We all had a fun time. L fell asleep toward the end, but was able to wake up in time for the fireworks :)

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Oops, I Did It Again...

Father's Day! Yes, Father's Day! D made my Mother's Day so sweet, I wanted to do something fun for him, get him the best Father's Day present ever! So, I do all that, and I have the kids actually make their own cards for him and we have a great day with a BBQ at his parent's house. THEN, not only do I not mention any kind of nice bloggy tribute about Fathers here (as if there's some unwritten rule that bloggers have to blog on/about holidays), I forget to call my own Father! Did I mention I didn't even send him a card?? Yeah, that's me, Daughter of the Year. Well, I didn't want my mother to feel left out since I didn't send her a card, either...

By the way, why is it completely acceptable to buy power tools for Father's Day but is totally taboo to buy house-anything for Mother's Day?? D, just so you know, I would love a new vacuum!! Whatever the occasion.

Valentine's Day

Yes, 5 years ago today, my then-boyfriend propsed his love for me and asked me to be by his side forever :) .... or something along those lines. Actually, when he finally pulled out the ring, I was so taken aback, not expecting it At All...I then had a momental flash of our evening but you'll want to read the rest of that story here because I don't want to type it all again. Besides, it's D's version of the story :) Fun stuff.

Anyhooo, I am in total agreement with how comerciallized this, and every other, holiday is becoming. Don't get me wrong, flowers are beautiful and I love having them around the house, but seriously? If all you bring home on V-Day is a vase of flowers -- or especially Roses!! Can we get anymore gineric? -- you WILL be in the doghouse. At least be freakin' original, okay?? Put some thought into it.

Don't get me wrong, I love D and he will do anything for me or anyone else that needs something. He has a huge heart...but, as with most men, can forget/procrastinate a bit... You know I love you, babe :) Plus, he hasn't been feeling well a lot lately. Sooooo, I thought I'd help him along. We don't go out much on "real" dates, so I figured this is a good excuse to get out. I wanted to make things managable for him so he doesn't stress out, and though flowers are well-intended, I'd rather he spend the money on something else (like really good chocolate, as opposed to Russel Stover).

So I made a list... went something like this:

Dear D: These are the chocolates I want in dark; go here to get them. I want to go see this movie at a matine (every little savings counts). I don't care where we go to eat; it'll just be nice to have more than 60 minutes together. You pick the movie time and eatery and arrange the babysitter, but don't give me the chocolates until Sunday morning. I bought little boxes of chocolates for the kids to put out for them at the breakfast table, so you can put mine there in the morning, too. Thanks, Babe! Love R~

I know he loves me. I don't need a holiday for him to express it. He does that every day. I'm lucky. I know what I have. Sometimes I take it for granted, okay a lot of times, but it's still fun to be reminded... :) xoxox

We Welcome February With Open Arms

Yes, what would our world be with out Valentine's Day? Hold on, let me change my Pandora station. It was playing something Britney Spears, but to chat about Valentine's Day, I need some Jim Brickman!

Okay, thanks for waiting. That's better. Now...what were we discussing? Oh, yes, Valentine's Day. I was thinking more along the lines of Chocolate and it's role in this scrumptious holiday, but truffles are beside the point.

How has Valentine's Day changed our world?

Or has it?

I know personally some people who are completely opposed to setting aside a specific day for an outpouring of affection toward someone. This group of people think it ridiculous that there has to be one day dedicated to Love. "I show love every day," or "No one needs to tell me how to show love," etc. Well, actually, (scoff), apparently some people do need a bit of education...Hello, Reality TV!

I digress. Interestingly enough, Wikipedia has a topic on it :) and, wouldn't we know it, started from remembering religious martyrs who, in the early centuries, were given the name Valentine... and somewhere along the line romantic notes started being exchanged in the Middle ages... hummm... martyr = sentimental love... Wow. That could be another post entirely!

Anyway, regardless how interestingly our version of Valentine's Day has come about, is it really all that bad to have a visual reminder??

Bring It On

Glad I'm not there, but it looks cool, huh? :)

So, the end of 2009 brings not only the end of another year, but the end of yet another decade in my life. Hard to believe that the last end of a decade was actually the end of a Century as well! Holy crap, has it really been 10 years? But I still remember what I was doing this day, 10 years ago!

Not terribly exciting, though. I was in the first few months of my mission in Switzerland. So, as you can imagine, New Year's Eve as a missionary isn't too crazy, but our ward was having a party to bring in the New Year, fire works and everything! Dang, those Mormon Swiss really know how to party! And of course there was excellent food, as always (the chocolate is just for the tourists...and me).

And who remembers the Y2K scare? Um, yeah, that was embarrassing, wasn't it. Not much came out of that except the realization that mass media has the ability to put fear into the hearts of men. And to that I say, "No one expects a Spanish Inquisition!" (all hale Monte Python)

So, tonight we celebrate J's 10th birthday (that was really yesterday, but because of visitation schedules he is ours today and the rest of the weekend...) at Chuck-E-Cheese with an insane amount of other people, I'm sure, then let the kids watch the East Coast version of Rock'n New Year's Eve (because it's over at 10pm) and all go to bed happy. Then we'll wake up to a new year, more new snow and a warm breakfast. Maybe I'll trick them and cook oatmeal :)

Good Bye, 2009. You will be a great memory but I look forward with great anticipation!! xoxox

Merry Christmas to All...2009

And now it's on to a New Year!

I'm sitting here, on my couch, on a snowy, lazy day, watching the girls color and paint and draw. Hot chocolate anyone?

So, instead of thinking what to do for dinner, because we've been snacking all day, I wanted to put our year down in review so that I may have better records in order to make better choices next year.

In January, we found ourselves in a fun little apartment on campus with a spectacular view of the Salt Lake valley. I enjoyed living so close to work and the children enjoyed the close play area. We had lots of mingling and really enjoyed our University Ward.

The summer was a fun adventure. We took the family to Yellowstone and the children were such troopers with all the trails and hikes. It was beautiful to see the vegetation growing back after the fire 20 years ago. We also had a fun camping trip to Redfish Lake with Nannie and Grandpa Bartschi in August. We love visiting there and have fun going back every summer

D needed to take a break with school, so since he wasn't going to school, we had to move away from our spectacular view. It was a sad day :) But we found the coziest apartment in American Fork, just around the corner from D's parents. It has been so great being so close to family again. We've really missed it and have realized the blessings of family.

With all the moving around, I haven't been able to get the girls back into piano or other activities. And now that I no longer have a piano (you're welcome, my Sister), we are either looking at obtaining a keyboard or maybe something else entirely. I asked E the other day if she'd like to take violin lessons. Sure, she's up to anything until it comes down to practice time. We'll see how it goes. I still haven't decided.

J is still gaining in Karate skills and goes every week with his mom and other half-sister. He's showing greater confidence and enjoys showing his moves and skills with his sisters, all of them :) He is in 4th grade this year and is also a great reader and mathematician, not to mention helper, dishwasher and vacuumer. Of course, when he comes for our visits the children all play and bicker like regular brother and sisters, but he's an enjoyable part of our family.

E has been enjoying school and making friends. Every day she has another story from the playground. Good heavens, if I recorded them all, what a fantastically silly book that would be! She's become quite an artist as well. Her portraits are amazingly accurate. She can even portray emotions on the faces of her subjects! We'll need to get a full sized portfolio soon to keep track of all her pieces. She's in 2nd grade now and doing well. She's our social butterfly, and a butterfly is her favorite image/decoration as well.

L turned 3 over the summer but I didn't feel she was ready for pre-school as of September. Now, almost January, she's starting to show more coordination with her scribbling and drawing. She loves to copy E, but was able to put together a recognizable face (circle, eyes, nose and mouth) all in the right general places! I was so excited and called my mother to brag! Even just today she drew a simple flower with petals. It's amazing how quickly the little ones progress! One day they are scribbling and the next? Making faces and connecting squares! She loves anything Princess or Barbie and to dress up and dance. She also loves to sing along to songs on the radio. She's also a great helper and loves to be with her brother and sister. Good thing for D she's still takes a nap, occasionally.

D's health has been okay this year. His cancer is still staying away, but he found a few other things wrong with his liver, Hemochromatosis mainly. Between that and trying to control his blood sugar, he's been pretty tired. But now that he's managing them both better, we hope to both pick things up this next year.

I'm still working in the Neuro Operating Room and loving it, or just loving the people I work with. Either way, it works out for a good work week. I've also been called to be the Beehive Advisor in our new ward. This is my first experience in YW since I left. It's been great so far, and so much fun! Also, in my minimal spare time I've taken up knitting (a baby blanket, scarves and hats for the kids, now working on a scarf for myself) and it's been so fun to be creative with my hands while commuting! Most of my knitting time is on the train to and from work. I really do enjoy that 45 minutes up to the hospital, all to myself and my ipod, on the train three times a week.

We had a wonderful Christmas, even being able to spend a part of it up in Idaho with my family for a few days. Those days in Idaho always go by too fast and we never get as much done as we want to do! I sure do miss seeing them often. Nevertheless, with a trip to Temple Square and special FHE events, we were able to have many conversations about the true meaning of Christmas. We are so grateful to have those meanings and explanations in our lives, as well as the knowledge that our Savior lives, loves us, and wants us to be happy in the knowledge of the Gospel. May you all enjoy everything a New Year has to offer, and here's wishing we find even more happiness (and a plane ticket to Hawaii) in the months to come!!

Love, the Peay Family

To Tell or Not To Tell

...and so begins the Holiday Season, stores become transformed into Holiday Wonder-Shopping-Lands and the center of the Mall becomes a child's magical toy fantasy! Who wouldn't want to believe in the Magical Guy (aka Santa Clause) after seeing all that? Not to mention the stories...

Over the last month or so, I've been trying to get out of the kids their most wanted desire to have under the tree on Christmas morning. Of course the 3-year old wants everything she sees, so I have to remind her what it is she really wants (and what I already have for her). Now she's saying it regularly and wants to go back and remind Santa. E has changed her mind a few times too, so I waited to make sure she had decided. Then I found the perfect basic art easel that will give her hours of drawing pleasure and yards of paper. Luckily she's sticking with that for now. She may need a gentle reminder, too, though. :)

Now, J, our 10 year old son, as far as I can tell, still wants to believe...but I think he may be catching on. The other night the children were looking at the presents under the tree, finding theirs, rearranging...then began a verbal Christmas Wish List from J and E. I didn't want them to get their hopes too high, so I jumped in. "Listen, guys. It's been a rough year for everyone with money and jobs. Santa will only be giving each child one gift, and with so many children in the world, let's not be greedy, okay?" I was hoping that would be a good enough excuse to move their thoughts to other things...

J looks confused at me, "I thought Santa's bag was magic."

Who wants cookies!!

When she called...

...I realized it had been months since I'd talked with my own Grandmother! Wow, how does that happen? We even work in the same hospital :) different days, though, but still! That's no excuse. Sorry, Grandma :)

We chatted for a bit, and she made me realize that there may be a few other people who check up on this blog, just for kicks and giggles. So, even though I feel in a rut, I need to write something before time gets too far away from me and before I know it, it's Christmas!

I've been taking pictures with the intent of using this or that picture in a post...but I haven't gotten around to it yet. I keep waiting for life to slow down...but it hasn't yet. I think, "After this then I will be able to..." or "Just get through this next week and things will..."

Yeah, No. And that's the hard part. We can't just wait around for stuff; at least I can't. I just keep going and going and doing and washing and cooking and cleaning and putting things back together...and wake up and do it all over again

Except, today I put off doing laundry and took E with me to go to a Holiday Boutique and bought myself some extra Christmas presents :) (Thanks Lori, Brook and Lina!!). Then she and I went to lunch where I made her try dipping her bread in the roasted garlic and olive oil deliciousness, and guess what? Much to her surprise, she loved it! Imagine that. Next, we went to find the perfect present for L and to find a few things for our bare tree. We made out like bandits! All the presents under the tree are driving the kids nuts! I'm considering putting them all away so they aren't tempted to unwrap them!

But there is something comforting about seeing the lit Christmas tree, even sparsely decorated, with presents underneath. It's almost like I can look at that and know things are okay. We are okay. We have food in our cupboards and in our fridge, the furnace is blowing, no one is coughing today, and the children will have something to open on Christmas. That means a lot considering the last few years. Two years ago, some generous people gave us presents, things we couldn't even give ourselves. Not that this year is extravagant by any means, but it's a good thing the kids are still young and we can get away with small gifts still!! :)

So, I guess, until life slows down, my camera will fill up with pictures :) and I'll relish times like tonight when, after I put the girls in bed, I turn on music instead of the TV and relax in the quiet and the soothing lights that are Christmas.

Here It Comes!

I couldn't help myself...I put up a small, humble Christmas tree the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.

I know, I know. This coming from the person who was complaining about Thanksgiving being lost between Halloween and Christmas...but for some reason, I just couldn't restrain myself! Then, once the girls saw what I was doing, they were so excited to help!

As I was getting the decorations out, I realized just how much I had downsized! The poor tree :) Even my candles became miss-shapen from the heat of the summer storage. We'll have to make some paper chains to fill in the gaps. Maybe I'll even get crafty and make popcorn balls to hang...a snack that lasts all season long! Thanks also to my Mother-in-Law for some fun additions for the kids.

As I was setting out the few Nativity sets I had kept, I told E where and why I had each one. She seemed genuinely interested; L just wanted to play with them. Glad we still have the Fisher Price Nativity so they can leave mine alone. One of the few tree decorations I kept were some ice cycles given to me by my Grandmother, from her Grandmother. I simply love family traditions.

Let the Season Begin!

Happy Thanksgiving To All...

...and to all -- Good Eats!

Setting aside all the wonderfully yummy food, I absolutely love this time of year and especially this holiday of all holidays. This is a time of reflection, thanksgiving, sharing, caring, giving, donating, serving...

Every year, sheesh -- every day! -- there is so much to be grateful for! Just the fact that I live in a country where I can have my own opinion is such a blessing. But this year, I am so very grateful for the health of my family. The economy could be better, but I still have a job and we have a warm home and food in our cupboards. The children are growing well and D is keeping up as best as his immune system will allow. Our apartment is small, but that means less to keep clean. We don't have a dishwasher, but -- for now -- J and E fight over washing them. There is only one bathroom, but it has warm running water and everything is in good working order. Our TV is old and heavy, but we can turn it on and watch movies as a family. I have to work late nights, but my husband is in bed with me when I get home and my children are with me to eat breakfast in the morning.

So many things to remember this Thanksgiving Day, but most of all,

take nothing for granted. Enjoy!

Places to Visit This Week

Kmart & Robert's Crafts

Thanks, guys!!

I WILL get a Pilgrim in my house or so Help Me!!!

:)

The Holiday Retail Forgot

My Harvest/Thanksgiving decorations are seriously lacking. At our old house, for a few years I was leaving the Christmas tree up year-round and decorating it simply for each of the holidays. I no longer have that tree, or any other tree, so with it went most of my decorations.

Now that we've down-sized, I take the kids to the Dollar Store to each pick out something for the particular holiday. Mostly we end up with window clings, which is find with me! They don't take up space in our tiny place and the kids have fun decorating the windows. So, since my Thanksgiving decorations are sparse, I was looking forward to doing it again after Halloween.

Boy was I wrong!! Not only can I not find any Thanksgiving decor, Christmas stuff was out before Halloween was taken down! And not just at the Dollar Store. I've been to several large stores in the area and all I can find of Harvest is kitchen ware (table decor, dishes, etc).

I'm quite frustrated. Anyone know where I can find decent Harvest decor??? I'd hate to have Thanksgiving and the month of November feel left out :)

Never Too Old

I've never really gotten into Halloween. Never really liked to get dressed up; just didn't want to put energy into it. I tried doing masks because the face make-up would make my face itch.

I've had a few fun costumes. The Vampire was always fun, but again, I got tired of the face paint. One year I was The Headless Horseman, using my Dad's trench coat and a pillow on top of my shoulders. It was brilliant until I got to the Halloween party and realized how HOT it was, trying to breath from a button hole, but hey! No make up :)

My most favorite: a black T-shirt (or any color would work, doesn't matter really), jeans, no make-up necessary, small boxes of cereal, plastic knives, red nail polish. Put the knives through the boxes, secure if necessary. Add red nail polish to boxes where knives enter/exit. Pin the boxes to your shirt. That's it!!

Other than waring my work clothes and adding a stethoscope, I've rarely dressed up for Halloween (some people think that doesn't count...). So, when I made arrangements to visit my family in Idaho whilst my cousin and her family were coming from Michigan, they all decided to have a Costume Party. Whatever, I just wanted to visit. If they wanted to add food, so be it.

Mom wanted us (she, myself and my sisters) to go as witches "Wouldn't that be so fun??" Can't I just bring my stethoscope? "No." Okay.

We found some fun hats and capes and false eyelashes, added some make-up and wallah!!

I didn't have my camera, of course, so I'm waiting for my cousin to email me other pictures of us together. It was a riot! Mom even won Best Costume, but I think they gave it to her because she's the oldest :) sshhh But she did look awesome! I was channeling SJP in Hocus Pocus

"Amuc, amuc, amuc..." If only you could have seen the curls bounce :)

Days of '47

Here's to re-living our heratage, and getting a paid day off :) Thanks, Pioneers :)

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"I Have A Dream..."

The new year always brings thoughts of change, renew, goals, fresh starts or start-overs. I'm GREAT at setting goals; not so great at following through (in a timely manor, I might add). For the last year or so, my sister has been working on writing a novel. I don't know how far into it she is, but she updates me every so often. I've read the first few chapters and loved it, but apparently she's changed some things with that, too. :) Anyway, my point is: she's had that dream and she's following through with it. Another friend of mine also is an aspiring writer and will have something published later this next year, a dream for her.

All this has had me pondering...do I have any dreams or aspirations? Do I need to? Is it okay to just BE, or should I be doing something else for ME in the meantime?

Do I want that?

If I don't, am I lazy?

Things I've pondered and didn't want to answer until the other night when I was listening to the "Mama Mia" cd in my car, singing to every song. Then, the second to last song, "I have a Dream" started and I pictured Eliza singing it in a High School play and thought it would be a very fitting graduation song...

And I realized...I want to take voice lessons (but that takes money) and I want to sing "Oh Holy Night" solo sometime. I sing with Celine Dion all the time, but that's a song I'd love to conquer. That, and a beautiful version of "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing." So much to do, so little time. I should stick with ward choir and my yearly goal of loosing weight, which I'm doing better at each day (despite the Holiday set-back). Happy New Year!!