life in general

pumpkin patch // a photo story

 

It was a most lovely day at the pumpkin patch.  With all of our travels this month I had exactly one afternoon available to squeeze in a trip to the pumpkin patch.  Looking ahead on the calendar I hoped and prayed that it would be a good-weather day.  Plan B was to ditch the patch and pick out a Safeway pumpkin -- not nearly as fun..  But, you can see the autumn sunshine that we were blessed with!  Gorgeous!  I feel like a lot of my tender mercies lately have come in the form of good weather at precisely the right moment.  {sigh}

And now those pumpkins are sitting on our front porch, freshly painted. Yep, we opted for painting them this year instead of carving.  I think everyone loved the project.

Halloween costumes and accessories are prepared and laid out for tonight's festivities.  Anna and I are going to pick up a jack-o-lantern pizza from Papa Murphy's soon.  And we are so thankful that the school was smart enough to plan one of it's Professional Development days for tomorrow -- no school! 

Have a Happy Halloween!

And you need to watch this:  The Zombie Song  

It's super catchy.

6 months and counting

So I am on a major Spark high today.  The last few days I've hopped around the blogs of my Spark Sisters, re-living the event as they display their own photos and recount their feelings on what was an amazing weekend.  The excitement and spark is still there and we can all start dreaming of Spark No. 4!

But first . . . .

6 months from today (yes today!) I will be in California at my mom's spring event!  Have you noticed my little button down there on the left?

Last year I was able to go with a few of my friends (roadtrip!) and we had such a fabulous time.  The whole day we kept saying it felt like something straight out of an Anne of Green Gables book.  So pampered, so lovely, so girly.

(click on collage to see it larger)

This year she & her friends are making it even bigger.  The theme is Vintage Spring Sorbet.  Mindy Gledhill is coming to perform!  Hello?!  That is reason enough to go.  They're planning a delicious lunch with the most darling details.  There will be mini-classes.  And of course a plentiful supply of sorbet.  The list of vendors is growing.  And as with everything my mom touches it will be pure beauty.

Here's my mom (Teresa) and her cute friends Ruth & Sandy . . . the event organizers.  Out on a fun girls' weekend.

What's awesome about this event is, they don't do it for profit or making money.  They simply do it for the love of a good party and the desire for women to get together and share their talents.  (Read the story behind the creation of the spring event.)  

This is the first year that they are actually charging admission -- for the sole purpose of covering some lunch & concert costs.  But it's cheap.  $30 for a lunch, concert, and day with your friends?  That's a steal. There is an attendee limit . . . I think their RSVP list hovers around 150 right now.

I'm going.  If you're interested, check out the spring event blog:  Vintage Spring Sorbet.  If nothing else, visit the blog just to enjoy her inspiring posts and ideas.

Okay, gotta go now.  There are piles of laundry, a halloween costume to be created, and Scott is home (hooray for Nevada Day!).  

Like I said, I was feeling the Spark-high today and just wanted to share my next creative thing.  Have a great day!

i might be converted

So when it comes time to declare "My favorite season is . . ." a lot of people (at least a lot of people I know) emphatically say Fall.  Hmm.  I've always said summer - the warm sun, the carefree days . . . that works for me. 

But I might be converted.  

This autumn season is hitting me something fierce! . . . the fall colors, the golden sunlight, the crisp mornings, apple harvests, pumpkin picking, the beauty of it all  . . . I am simply in awe everyday, and at times find myself overwhelmed with the beauty of God's creations.

What is up?!

I think I know.  The realization that this is our last Oregon fall is hitting me hard.  A Nevada fall won't be quite the same.

So, my eyes have been opened to the changes all around me and I'm taking more time to pay attention and soak it in.

I get a lovely dose of fall each morning when I drive the kids to and from school.  I love the golden sunrises, the rolling hills dotted with bright red foliage here and there, the glistening dew (or frost, which was the case this morning), the cows in the fields . . . everything feels just a little more spectacular, yet quiet at the same time.  I love that this is the way I get to start my day.

Now that I'm home from Vegas and Utah I finally pulled down my box of sweaters from the top of the closet.  I'm not sure how much wear they will get in future years (and Scott keeps reminding me - don't buy anymore jackets).  So for now I am going to enjoy my cozy sweaters, warm up a few extra mugs of hot chocolate, bake more pumpkin desserts, and take in the autumn beauty while it is still around me.

from a little spark

Beauty.  Inspiration.  Creativity.  Friendship.  Shared passion.  Art.  Warm smiles.  Open minds.  Spark.

I just had the most unique and wonderful opportunity this weekend to be a part of an event that encompasses all of these things.

Spark No. 3

In a word it was . . . . amazing.  And I’m not using that word lightly.  Every aspect from the decorations, to the classes, to the talented instructors, to the gifts & swag, to the warmth & love & humor from the wonderful event coordinator Margie, to the gorgeous fall sunshine . . . all amazing.

Imagine 200 creative women gathered together for 2 days, learning from each other, challenging themselves, keeping their minds open with new art/craft media placed in front of them and creating space for creativity to come in, sharing the things they love . . . . 

I found myself over and over again tearing up as I thought on all the beauty and inspiration that I got to be a part of. I felt so so blessed and lucky.  It was an amazing thing to be surrounded by creatively minded women who were willing and happy to share their Spark.  The teachers shared their hearts and passion with us -- 

• a cute single woman who tried out a simple idea, people (and celebrities) loved it, and it turned into a successful business
• a beautiful mom from Hurricane, UT who just loves to create and beautify everything around her without a blog / FB / or any type of social media to promote herself
• a mother of 7 who, after the tragic death of her father (major goosebumps just thinking about it), was inspired to get back into art and is seriously rocking it
• an Aussie mother  with dreads (a.k.a. Mother Earth) who shared her soothing style of creativity

Such a diverse group, women from literally all across the country, and even a group that made their way from Japan.  Margie let us know that we were all Spark Sisters now.  And it’s true -- there was definitely a sense of connection and camaraderie there.  It almost felt like girls camp!  (I half expected there to be a testimony meeting on saturday night!)  The love was flowing and it was good.

From the moment we pulled into the parking lot we knew this was going to be something special.

And I say "we" because I was accompanied by my dear friend, Jenn.

You can't tell, but her top sparkles.  She got lots of compliments on that, even getting called out of the crowd by Margie during the morning announcements.

The main hall was chock full of whimsical, vintage, creative awesome-ness.

Those floating orbs?  Paper lanterns covered with sewing pattern tissue paper, and plumbers tubing wrapped in fabric.

Ribbon and yarn and pom poms strung from the rafters, tickets and die cut papers sewn into garlands . . . 

And then the tables - a large jar decopauged with paper doilies & the number 3, tissue paper flowers, a roll of tickets, a small cake stand with a ball of yarn, and a stack of books stamped with "spark."

Waiting at our tables were special journals and memory keepers from Paper Coterie.  Two or 3 times a day we were gifted with products from sponsors and yummy treats (the cake bites from Sweet Tooth Fairy are to die for!).  Talk about spoiled.

It's all the little touches that made this so special.  Like . . . 200 nametags, each one a totally unique handmade collage of flowers, buttons, ticket stubs, and ephemera.  And . . . class supplies packaged in brown paper bags with a paper doily.  Just because.  And little tote bags filled with a few goodies, cute on its own, but they took the time to sew a length of ruffled fabric across the top and embellish with funky ribbons & fibers.  These are my kind of people.

And I haven't even gotten to the classes!  This is where coming with an open mind, willing to go with the flow, and as Donna Downey taught us "keeping forward motion" really pays off toward having a good, stress-free experience.  Come, enjoy, and just soak it all in.

I have to admit I was a little worried about the art classes.  I'm not an art person.  My brain likes structure & rules but I tried to keep myself open.  After a serious mental block for the first chunk of class I finally let go and was able to create this with pan pastels.

One of my favorite classes was a mixed media art project -- I loved the end result that came from this creative mess.

{ she had a creative soul }

I also learned how carve my own stamps (so fun!), I used reverse applique to create a cute spark t-shirt, we embellished and tore apart old books to make a junk journal, I learned how to make felted soap with merino wool, and I made bird nest jewelry.

7 highly creative projects in just 2 days.  That's a winner.

Oh, and I can't forget the concert saturday night by Sarah Sample.  I'm loving listening to her mellow folk music.

On Friday morning we had a creative workshop taught by Mindy Gledhill.  She asked us to answer this question in our journals:  What do you want to get out of this weekend?

I wrote:  rejuvenation.  creative morsels.  see how others create.  test myself.  practice being open to opportunities & experiences.

I think I was able to accomplish just that.  And spend some pre-move de-stressing time with a good friend (but we are not "kiss on the lips kind of friends" -- Margie has one of those).  ;)  I am more than ready to jump back into my creative life and family life fueled with motivation, desire, and purpose.

Thank you Spark.  I hope that we will meet again.

pajama glam party - fun

Anna could hardly stand it waiting for her friends to arrive!  And when she gets excited, she gets silly.

Once everyone arrived we (my party assistant Caylin and I) gave the girls glitter toes while they watched a bit of Tangled.  Anna and I love doing glitter toes from time to time.  It's just 3 simple steps.  1) paint your toes, 2) while the polish is still wet sprinkle a fine glitter all over (Martha Stewart glitter is the best) and shake/blow/brush off the excess, 3) finish with a clear top coat.

Then is was time for dinner breakfast!  We served cinnamon rolls, sausage, powdered donuts, berries with whipped cream, and chocolate milk.  I think everyone was stuffed!

After food it was time for games.  We played Wake Sleeping Beauty, Hot Potato (Pillow), and went on a Diamond Hunt using their little flashlights to find hidden jewels.  As you can see, Anna really got into the games.

The party was structured just enough to keep everyone entertained, but not so much that the girls couldn't come up with a little fun all their own.  They played ring-a-round the rosie and started a happy birthday / cha-cha-cha congo line that wound around the house.

There were presents, which Anna loved.  In fact, while I was preparing the invitations she came to me in a panic and said, "Mom, we need to make sure we tell them to bring presents!"  

We sang happy birthday and tried to eat cupcakes, but everyone was still too full from breakfast.  Instead, we brought out the karaoke machine and the girls sang to Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, and songs from Tangled.

 I think they enjoyed it, but it is a little tricky to share 2 microphones among 5 girls.  Especially when one of those girls is on a birthday high and thinks she deserves to have her own microphone the whole time and has a small meltdown when the CD comes to one of her favorite songs and she just can't handle it anymore.  (That would be Anna).  But she made it pretty far into the evening, 6:50pm, before deciding to lose it.  We had a little pep talk in the bathroom because she needed to get herself together before parents started arriving in just minutes.  It worked, and the girls layed around the couch with their pillows, watching a little more of Tangled while they waited to go.

Everyone was a little tired at the end.  I think it was perfect though:  we got prettied up, we ate, we played, and then we wound down and sent everyone home in their pajamas, ready for bed and a good night's sleep.

pajama glam party - invites and favors

I forgot 2 of the most important things!  Invitations and party favors!

The invitations were a printable included in the kit I purchased at One Charming Party.  I dipped the edges in Elmer's glue and then in silver glitter to give it a bit of glam.  This was another tip from the party kit -- yet again, I didn't have to think to create something cute!  Inside the envelopes I also included a couple white feathers for fun.

For her 6 year old birthday she could invite 6 guests.  This rule seems to work really well for us.  For Conner's 9th birthday he invited 9 friends.  For the 12th and 16th birthdays we may have to alter the plan a bit, but for now it works.

Party favors . . . these were so fun to put together!  I put everything in pink treat tubs from Bake It Pretty.  They were the perfect size.

The contents: toothbrush and sleeping mask from the Dollar Tree, pink whoppers, jewels, a mini flashlight (found for cheap at the Grocery Outlet), a mini zippered purse, and antibacterial hand wash from Bath & Body Works.  The "Sweet Dreams" note and poem was part of the OCP party kit.

I think the girls loved all their little goodies.

house hunters - part 1

I'm back from Vegas and a 5-day house hunting trip.

I know you're dying to ask . . . Did you find a house?!

The answer is, no.

But . . . we did narrow down our search to a few select areas.  I got a feel for what Vegas homes are all about -- definitely a different style than we have here, something I'm trying to get used to.  And I got to spend 5 kid-free days with Scott which, even if we didn't find "the house", made the trip totally worth it.

We walked through 7 houses, visited 3 wards, and racked up 200 miles on Scott's disposable car (which deserves a post all its own) as we explored the area.

We are both optimistic that the right house will come up.  Hopefully sooner rather than later.  But we want to be patient so we find the right house and don't settle on something because we're in a hurry.  In the meantime I'm online checking new house listings daily and Scott will visit homes that peak our interest. 

So, because several friends & family members are interested, here is our house hunting search -- Part 1.

House #1 - 

Pretty nice looking house.  It would definitely need all the carpet replaced and a new paint job inside, but it had beautiful kitchen cabinets . . . 

and a beautiful pool and casita in the backyard.

The problem -- we felt a little iffy about the neighborhood.  And the middle & high schools in the area have a 5 or 6 rating out of 10.  It's kind of sad, because I feel like the house would have worked for us and had lots of great features, but I knew that if we signed on a house in this area I would always have an uneasy feeling.

House #2 --

Huge house inside with 6 bedrooms, 5 baths, and 4300 sqft.  Like almost every house for sale in the area it, too, was a short sale (and missing several large, custom appliances from the kitchen).  We discovered that the power had been turned off so we had to tour the house using the light on Scott's phone.  This was Scott's second walk through and the first time he made a video for me, so I had a basic idea of what it looked like.

The problem -- it also falls into those bad school boundaries.

House #3 --

Gorgeous home, gorgeous pool . . . I would steal this house in a second for the backyard alone.

But -- it's priced too high.  We don't know if the owners are on crack or what, because their house is priced $120,000 higher than a house just across the street that has the exact same floor plan, similar upgrades, also has a pool . . . its lot is just a smidge smaller.  On crack, I tell ya.

House #4 --

We both liked this house.  Nice inside, move-in ready, great master suite, roomy kitchen & dining, pool in the backyard, on a really quiet street.  In fact the culdesac backs up to the desert.  It's as far south as you can get -- the edge of civilization!  Which means . . . a longer commute for Scott.  25-30 minutes.  We had hoped in this move to find a place that would significantly cut down on the 35 minute commute he has had for the last 10 years.

House #5 -- 

This house had several things that didn't work for us -- it got cut pretty quickly.  But we had fun discovering all the unique decorative features the owners put into this home.  Much of it with a Santa Fe feel.  Can you picture me in a Santa Fe style house?  I think not!

And how is this for the ultimate time-out spot?!

House #6 --

The smallest of all the houses we looked at (2800 sqft), and it felt it after walking through houses with large entryways and vaulted ceilings.  This had neither.  But, it did have a cute kitchen with white cabinets.  I love white cabinets.  :)  I liked this house overall -- it was clean, well kept, and cute -- but it felt too cramped for my 6-foot Scott.

House #7 --

Another gorgeous house.  Another one over our budget.  But we still went looking anyway.  This house has been remodeled and upgraded from top to bottom -- no expense spared, every detail addressed, and it looks brand new inside.  It falls in the ward boundaries for one of our favorite wards we visited on Sunday.  We may submit an offer (with a number that is in our budget), because, hey, what do we have to lose? They can always just say no.  Plus, their asking price is $60,000 above it's value on Zillow right now.  

So that was our house-hunting trip.  It was fun, but tiring.  Exciting, but frustrating.  The master bedroom closets were amazing and the astro-turf looked so real.  We'll see how Part 2 of our house hunters search goes.  Cross your fingers and hope we find the perfect house!

pajama glam party - details

The 6th birthday is a party year for us (we throw parties for ages 6, 9, 12 or 13, and 16) so Anna needed a party!

And I had a lot going on in our lives so I needed help!  Enter One Charming Party and Pinterest!  One Charming Party was perfect for me . . . I purchased their Pajama Glam party guide (a 50 page PDF) and I was good to go.  It includes beautiful photography with ideas, recipes, & instructions for decorations, party games, food, party favors, photo ops, etc.  Everything you would need to put together an awesome party.  And it also included printable invitations, cupcake toppers, thank you cards, place cards, and a cute note/poem for the favor.  I was able to throw together a great party without thinking too hard which is exactly what I needed.

The theme for this party was Pajama Glam.  Basically it's a mock pajama party where you have all the fun of a sleepover (games, pajamas, breakfast, etc.), but everyone goes home for the night.  It was very girly and fun.  I think it would work for almost all ages of girls.  

To get things started on the right foot I made a tissue flower wreath to put on the front door.  I always love hanging something special on the door for parties.  It helps to set the tone.

The table set-up . . . roses picked from my yard, white feathers, and acrylic jewels garnished the table.

The place-setting . . . a white doily placed beneath a glass plate (idea via pinterest) to give the meal a delicate and special feeling.  The name cards came from the OCP (I added the jewel).  See the cup of blueberries on the left -- later we topped those off with whipped cream.  I found these cups in a 6-pack at the the Dollar Tree.  They were so cute!

Cupcake toppers from OCP - again, I added a jewel.  I baked yellow cupcakes with a cream cheese frosting and finally pulled out my Pampered Chef Easy Accent Decorator to make the frosting look pretty.  Both the pink and polka dot cupcake liners came from Bake It Pretty.  Such a fun shop.

I also served mini powdered donut in cupcake liners -- a super cute and simple idea I found on pinterest.

In the family room I made and hung tissue paper pom poms and a balloon garland from the ceiling.  Relatively easy, super cheap, and it gives a great impact.  I got the balloon garland idea from pinterest -- in this pin they threaded a needle with thread through the nubbies of the balloon.  I simply got some twine and tied it around each one, trying to evenly space them out.  It didn't take very long at all.

That's all for now . . . a post on the party festivities coming next!

bellissima

Today Scott is jumping in as guest writer on this blog.  Because he does a great job of telling stories and he has the clearest recollection of the following story.  And it will serve double-duty as he includes it in an assignment for his negotiations class. 

******************************

After our nice dinner at Mon Ami Gabi... we started back to our car.  Since there is a mini-mall in every casino, we were walking by several stores one of which was a big perfume cologne store.  To back up a bit, with me in Las Vegas all week every week, and in school every other weekend, Shannon had a pretty fail birthday.  I had been able to ship to her one actual physical birthday present, and the rest of the boxes were filled with "I.O.U's" for things that were either still en route, or that we would go out and do/buy later.  One of these I.O.U's was for a new bottle of perfume so this was the perfect opportunity for me to pay up.

Being a perfume store, there were about 300 to choose from.  The store was attended by a twenty something metro-sexual who could have been from Spain or another similar country with enough of an accent to be cool.  He approached us as we started smelling and took Shannon's hand and said.  "My apologies for bothering you, but you are such a beautiful woman,when you are done I have to ask you something, and I want to show you something, and when I do, even though I am bothering you you are going to want to give me a hug."  We continued smelling and every once in a while he would return to have us smell something else, he would again compliment Shannon, and move on.

Apparently he finally could hold it in no longer...he came over again and the conversation went something like this:

Sales-dude: I apologize for bothering you, but I have to ask you this question right now....you are such a beautiful woman, what makeup do you wear.  

Shannon, who was at this point pretty embarrassed timidly answers "Maybelline"

Sales-dude, reaches out and lightly takes Shannon's hand, slaps her hand and says...."Shame on you...Maybelline...Shame on you"  Come with me.

He pulls her across the room and sits her in a chair and spends the next 15 minutes lecturing her on the damage that she is doing to her skin with her ghetto makeup and at the same time gets her to allow him to do her half of her face with new makeup.  Also during this time he tells her about the different famous people for whom he has done make-up.  Celine Dion and someone who I can't remember and tells her how they all use this same make-up now.

As you can imagine, at this point I am pretty thoroughly entertained, it feels kind of like the "Bellissima" sketches on Saturday Night Live, with this guy occasionally tossing back-fisted compliments to me because of how gorgeous  Shannon is, and how in the world did I end up with her? And then returning to the task at hand which was pretty aggressively working over the left side of her face.

Well, the short story is the makeup was pretty amazing, he had Shannon do the right side of her face by herself so she could see how easy it was.

With the makeup done, he now shifts into "salesman mode" and of course there are no price tags on anything...he tells us the retail price for the makeup, and then tells us the deal he is going to give us.  Of course I have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA what makeup should cost so I try to get some input from Shannon on exactly how much this guy is going to steal from us.  It turns out that he only took us for about $10 more than what we could have bought it for online...which means that this guy was a great performer... but thankfully not a pirate... seeing Shannon as happy as she clearly was meant that my checkbook was out and this guy had all the power to fill in the amount....and apparently, while my back was turned, he also got his hug....grrrrrr...

Shannon also found perfume that was perfectly named "Be Delicious" and after seeing the Jersey Boys last night, I think she will have to agree that her birthday wasn't really "fail" at all.

************************

No fail.  This birthday was absolutely a winner!  Thanks for writing this up . . . you know that bits and pieces were a blur to me.

anna at 6

I wanted to do a blog post about this girl's personality . . . because she is full of it.  I thought that giving a little photo tour of her bedroom, at least to begin with, would open a window into what she is all about.

First off, at age 6 she is 48 inches tall and weighs 49 pounds.  Yes, she's a tall one.

She is constantly decorating and rearranging things in her room.  I love the vase of flowers.

When we take the time to set out her school clothes the night before she always takes meticulous care to arrange them on the floor, looking just like a person.  I love the socks in the shoes.  And of course an outfit is not complete without a headband!

She loves to draw and draw and draw.  We have stacks and stacks of notebooks filled with her creations.  In some of these notebooks she has created scrapbooks with photos she scrounged from my stash (or trash), magazine cut-outs, cards she received in the mail, notes from friends, and miscellaneous ephemera from around the house.  They are so so cute.

Again, she loves to draw and tapes some of her pictures to her bedroom wall.  This one is so cute . . . a surfing princess!

More items that she found and decided to embellish.  She'll tell you that she is an artist.

The top of her bookshelf is an ever changing display of things she loves, collects, and uses.  At any given time there are no fewer than 20 items here.  Her pack rat-nature can be a little frustrating at times, but I do enjoy peeking in and watching her meticulously and thoughtfully arranging the things in her room.

A while back ago one of her baby-sitters taught her a simple tune on the piano.  Since then, she tinkers on the keys daily.  She creates "songs" and asks me, "wasn't it so beautiful?"  On this particular day Payton was trying to teach her how to play Old MacDonald and she was a very attentive student.

 

One of her quiet scrapbooking sessions.  She got her own scrapbooking kit for Christmas last year.

One day I picked her up from school and from the back of the van she said, "Mom, you better not cry about this. . . . I got student of the week!" as she whipped out her certificate from her backpack.  Later, she gave the same line to Scott.  I think she knew that we would be pretty proud of her.  

I've heard through the grapevine that she kissed her friend, Jaren, on the cheek at school.  When asked why she replied, "because I'm going to marry him."  This girl is a little bit obsessed with the boys and marriage.  All spring and summer long she would hound Scott with statements like, "I want to marry you" and when we told her no, we're already married she'd keep going with "but why can't I marry you?  you're so cute, etc. etc. etc." over and over and over again.  At our family beach retreat in May she was infatuated with Uncle Denver and wanted to marry him.

Missing her 2 bottom teeth.

 

We have a fun little ritual from the movie Tangled:  Me, "I love you."  Anna, "I love you more."  Me, "I love you the most."  

 At school she is known as Anna B.  Because there is another Anna in the class.  She says that she doesn't like being called Anna B.  But I think she secretly likes the extra attention.

Whenever Scott is gone she sleeps in my bed.  She loves this special privilege.  But after she kicked me in the face 3 times one night, she was banned from my room for a while.

She talks in her sleep quite often and most of this year she had frequent night terrors (3-4 times a month or more).  But it's been a month or two since we've had to deal with one of those, so I hope they are fading away.

She's been learning some vocabulary words at school like: glimmer, comfort, fleet, and expression.  One night she got out of bed and said to me, "Can I have a quick bed-night drink?  I'll be fleet!"

I recently read that October 5th is the most common birthdate and September is the busiest month in hospitals.  That was so funny to read because October 5th was Anna's due date!  She arrived all on her own a few days earlier.  I think September birthdays are pretty special.  ;)

There is so much more I could share about this girl.  She has a great personality and enriches our home on so many levels.  We just adore her and couldn't ask for a more wonderful daughter.  I love you the most.

celebrating 6

Our little girl turned 6 a few weeks ago.  She counted down for days, reminded me that I need to buy her presents, and in the end had a fabulous birthday.

I greeted her at kindergarten pick-up with a van full of pink balloons . . . 

A new outfit was definitely in order . . . 

She got fun new toys like, an American Girl doll . . . 

And a sewing kit . . . 

She is also very much in love with her Rapunzel Barbie, Squinkies, and Littlest Pet Shop friends.

Her birthday was actually a very busy day as we ran from school, to soccer practice, to super quick dinner (grilled cheese and broccoli - her choice) and opening presents, to Cub Scout Pack Meeting (the raingutter regatta), to blowing out candles and eating cake at home.  It was a whirlwind!

The following week I brought cookies to her classroom on the designated day for celebrating september birthdays (she was the only one!).  So not only is she clearly the tallest in her class (I have to smile at pick-up everyday as she towers over her classmates), she's also the oldest.  

From there I took her on a girls' birthday date while the boys were at school.

We ate lunch at Subway, she got her nails painted at the nail salon, and we visited three different stores so she could spend her $10 of birthday money bit by bit.  She declared it "the best day ever!"

 (she looks a little unsure in this photo, because it was a totally new experience.  But inside she was beaming)

She loooved her fingers.  And we loooove our 6 year old.

 

a look at soccer season

 Soccer season is more than halfway over.  The boys have 4 more weeks.  Anna has 3.

Back in May when I left the highschool following soccer sign-ups I asked myself, "what the heck am I thinking?!"  Three kids in soccer means 3 games every Saturday and 6 practices every week in different locations.  And I knew Scott would miss half the games which meant the handling of all the uniforms, shin guards, cleats, water bottles, chairs, umbrellas, cold, rain, and mud would rest solely on me.

So I tried to lower everyone's expectations for the season . . . I helped the kids understand that they might have to take turns missing a game because I can't be 3 places at once, and decided overall that we would be content doing what we could do.

But I have been pleasantly surprised at how smoothly things have gone.  When I received all 3 game schedules and mapped it out I found that through the entire 9 week season we only had 2 little hiccups.  It has worked out to be doable.  A little hectic, but doable.  I breathed a happy sigh when I realized it would work out . . . I consider that a tender mercy.  And the weather has treated us well (knock on wood) so far.  We've only had to bring out our umbrellas once at game-time.  Another blessing.  

This is Anna's first year playing soccer.  Since age 1 she has spent every September and October on a soccer field watching her brothers practice and play games.  During the games she would occupy herself by kicking around a ball.  For a long time we have known that she would love playing this game.  

She is so much fun to watch on the field.  First of all, she always has a huge smile on her face and she is always laughing and giggling.  Just so entertaining.  No melt-down, tired, grumpy, or frustrated moments on the field whatsoever.  She is pure soccer joy!  She also does a great job of running hard, keeping up with the ball, and I think she has scored a goal at nearly every game so far.

Payton - year number 4

In past years Payton could easily be voted as the soccer player who is "mostly likely to chase butterflies on the field."  He moves a little bit slower, and doesn't have a whole lot of competitive drive when it comes to sports.  Which is fine.  I'm the same way.  He often spends more time entertaining his teammates and getting them to laugh with his silly antics, rather than focusing on the game.  But this year we have seen a little more energy and intensity emerge.  

He started the season with a bang when at his first game he scored 2 goals!!  Scott and I were so so proud, excited, and happy for him.  Cheering, whooting, and clapping . . . it even brought tears to my eyes.  Especially after all these years of encouragement, coaching, and practice . . . to see him succeed and his face light up like that was just priceless. We were both a bit choked up, witnessing our little P find a piece of success.  And it was on my birthday!  I couldn't have asked for a better birthday present.  

He has done a good job this season of knowing and playing his position, being a team player, and anticipating where the ball is going to be and getting there.

 

Conner - year number 6

Conner loves loves loves soccer.  Loves it.  And on several occasions has shared with me his aspirations of playing soccer for BYU.  He also wants to be a professional football player for the Oakland Raiders.  And be an engineer.  And a chemist.  And . . . .

Wanting to give him a reality check without totally dashing his dreams, tonight I told him about intramural sports at BYU and how fun it is to gather a group of friends and roommates to form your own team.  Then you can just play for fun and have a good time and not worry about all the time and work that it takes to be on BYU's official soccer team.  He really liked that idea, so I may have (sneakily) won him over.  :)  That's what moms do, right?  Carefully plant ideas/options so that the kids eventually think that it was their own idea and everyone is happy.

Anyways, back to Conner in soccer . . . . he has a lot of fun with his team.  They really get along and have a fun time playing together.  They have just had a really tough season so far.  1 - 3.  Two of those losses came from a top-notch team that plays year round and you can tell they've been playing together for a few years.  Conner's team has been playing together since late August. 

But they've had a good attitude and try their best.  Conner is doing a good job this year of being a little more aggressive, getting in position, working with his team, and pushing himself.  We have been very proud of his effort at every game.

I typically bring my camera to just one game each season and I was so happy that the game I happened to photograph was a winner.  His team was all smiles coming off the field at the end of the game.  The parents were too.

And here are my 3 soccer players all together:

Pretty cute bunch, eh?  And Payton's epic head of hair . . . don't worry, I took care of it last sunday.  He looks a lot less werewolf-ish.

ten on tuesday: october 4th

"Got a case of the Mondays?"  Well, that was us yesterday.  In a drowsy state I turned off both of my alarms and finally awoke an hour past my usual time.  Thankfully, my usual time is pretty early.  But still.  We were in a rush.  And it was picture day which meant I needed to bathe Anna so I could fix her hair. (Usually she takes a bath at night and we just try to manage her bedhead the next day.)  As I'm doing her hair Conner comes to me, "Um . . . mom.  Um . . I uh, . . . kinda dropped the mayonnaise on the floor and, um, the lid broke."  Perfect.  

Eventually everyone got picture ready, the mayonnaise was cleaned up (and the lid replaced with saran wrap and a rubber band), and I dropped them off at school right on time.  I came home, enjoyed a long shower and ate a Lindor truffle for breakfast.

Today we are back on track.  Yay!  So for my ten on tuesday I thought I'd write about some of our morning happenings:

1.  "It's hard work to make the best breakfast ever."  Overheard as Conner cooks himself some scrambled eggs and his oatmeal warms up in the microwave.  I taught him how to make scrambled eggs earlier this year and now he makes them all by himself nearly everyday.  And then he always has a bowl of cereal or oatmeal to go along with it.  He's a hungry, growing boy for sure.

2.  Payton and Anna's breakfast - 5 day old birthday cake.  Thankfully, they finished off the last 2 pieces.

3.  I found this on the counter-top and smiled at my creative little Payton . . . 

He decided he is going to wear our Harry Potter Quidditch robe for Halloween.  And of course, he is going to need a golden snitch.  So this is what he created with plans to paint it gold.  Love that kid.  :)

4.  The boys pack their own lunches with a few guidelines from me (must have a fruit or vegetable) and my help when cutting/slicing is needed.  But Payton doesn't like sandwiches most of the time.  And he has a small appetite.  So his lunches are usually pretty interesting.  Today it included chunks of cheddar cheese, go-gurt, carrots, an assortment of blueberry mini wheats, cocoa puffs, & golden grahams, and M&M's.

5.  Conner was so excited about getting to have his usual turkey, mayonnaise, and mustard sandwich on a hot dog bun.  In fact, he made two of them.

6.  The boys practiced the piano and finished up their theory.  Piano lessons are today.

7.  Anna sat at the table and wrote 5 notes for various friends at school.

8.  I'm wearing my new Toms wedges around the house all morning, trying to break them in.  They are a bit snug but all of the online reviews tell me they will stretch a bit.  Good, because they are super cute!

9.  The kids were on the ball getting ready today so they got 10-15 minutes of tv before we were out the door.  Usually we don't turn the tv on at all before school.

10.  The rest of my day . . . finish this blog post, edit some pictures, pay bills, clean the playroom, clean the laundry room, teach piano lessons, help Anna write thank you notes for her birthday gifts, mail/deliver my thank you notes. 

p.s.  I have so much to blog about . . . we had a very eventful weekend with 3 parties/gatherings, soccer games, Anna's birthday, and everyday life on top of that . . . I'll try to crank some of it out this week.