Happy Birthday Cal!

Today is Cal's birthday, so I thought I would do this tag about him. I am so grateful for him and what a fun and devoted father and husband he is! I love you!



1. He's sitting in front of the TV. What's on the screen?
It would most likely be a football game, or some kind of sports show

2. You are out to eat. What dressing does he get on his salad?
Bleu Cheese

3. What's one food he doesn't like?
I honestly don't think he's ever turned anything down, lol...he eats anything!

4. You go out to a bar. What does he drink first?
We don't go to bars very often, ha ha...(YES MOM I AM JOKING!)...he likes all kinds of drinks

5. Where did he go to high school?
Star Valley High

6. If he were to collect anything, what would it be?
Any sort of hunting/fishing gear

7. What shoe size does he wear?
11

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich?
I would have to say a big juicy burger

9. What would he eat every day if he could?
Prime Rib..his dad's way (his dad is a butcher)

10. What would he never wear?
a pink shirt...anything pink or lavender

11. What is his favorite sports team?
He likes the Broncos

12. What is something you do that he wishes you didn't do so much?
Complain about my body

13. How many states has he lived in?
Six: Utah, Arizona, South Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi, Wyoming and went to India on his mission too

14. What is his heritage?
Norweigan

15. You bake him a cake for his birthday. What kind of cake would it be?
Brownies...today was his birthday and I made Ghiradelli brownies with chocolate chips. YUMM!!

16. Did he play sports in high school?
All-state all conference in football and basketball

17. What could he spend hours doing?
Hunting, hiking, biking, snowmobiling, snowboarding & fishing...anything outdoors!!

Mind Over Matter

As some of you know, I have been training for my first half-marathon. And I must say it has been such a positive experience so far! I have a good friend, Marie Schwab, who is a "runner" and has quite the track record (she is still a record holder at SVHS), and she seemed optimistic about my being capable of training for a half marathon in 10 weeks. I have never run before, at least not to speak of, so I was doubtful to say the least! We're on week 8 and up to 11 miles this week and I've become pretty addicted to running, lol! Since the race is 13 miles, I would love to run 15 before, because we're training on an indoor track which I'm sure is much easier than running outside. But it's too cold here to run outside! I'm hoping the elevation and warmer temps in St. George will make it easier though! We've been waking up at 5:30am every day and it has been so nice to have such a dedicated partner! We'll see how it goes and hopefully I'll be able to run a full marathon in November 09 in New York!

I think I got it right this time...

I tried to make an e-card this year for Christmas instead of sending ones out in the mail...but the first one I did was all messed up and I didn't realize it until after I emailed it to some people...oops! I just fixed it and decided to post it on here instead (see below)...Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!

Merry Christmas!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

HO HO HO!

My cute husband loves to play Santa, and I must say he's really good at it! He does the staff party for the bank and on Christmas Eve, he goes around to houses of friends and family. It's quite exciting for Will! He thinks it's so cool that he's in on the secret that it's not the 'real' Santa. But Anna is scared of him, lol. She says, "Take it off!!" Just like she did when I was the witch for Halloween!

The Tree

We decided to take the kids again this year to chop down a tree. We headed to the south end of the valley and as we drove, I was searching for the 'perfect' tree. I kept telling Cal to slow down so that I could have more time to look through each patch of pines off the road. We finally saw a large patch of good ones, so he pulled over. Of course, the 'good ones' were across the river and of course we had to tromp through the willows (the kind that whip you in the face) with the kids. Cal luckily had his fishing waders in the truck so he was able to carry each of us across the river. When we finally got to the patch, we were OF COURSE disappointed with the trees, because they were mostly 2 trees that were growing together to form what looked like a really full, nice pine. We finally found our poor little siamese twins tree, and decided to chop them (yes our tree is a 'them') down. The trunk starts out as one and then splits into 2. So we just wired the top of them together and VOILA!! It was a fun experience though, and the kids loved it!

The Finished Product

When the Dog Bites! When the Bee Stings...

Blessings come to each of us every day. Of course I know that my greatest blessings are my children, husband, family, and the gospel. But that's not what this posting is about. This posting is about material THINGS, literally. Not people, experiences or things that REALLY matter in life. I have decided to share some of my favorite things as the gift-giving season approaches. Some of them are practical as gifts and some aren't. Of course, it's not as elaborate as Oprah's Favorite Things, ha ha... but here are some of mine!

The Toilet

Kohler Toilet/Bidet Combo

This isn't just a pleasant potty experience. It's a downright treat when ya gotta do your business. Complete with a heated seat, remote control, sprayers that clean from back to front, front to back with pulsating or oscillating warm water that is quite lovely. There is also warm air that dries you off and then an automatic deodorizer and a light. Cal and I love this thing! It's perfect for him especially for those of you who know the way he learned to 'go' and 'wipe' on his mission in India! Haha!

Fortune Delight

http://www.sunrider.com/

This herbal tea comes in Lemon, Peach and Raspberry flavors and is yummy hot or cold. It is full of immune boosters, anti-oxidants and natural appetite suppressants that also fight against the absorption of sugars. I love the taste and like it first thing in the morning.

(sorry no picture of the tea)

Pride and Prejudice

A&E Films

Although nothing beats the actual book by Jane Austen, I love the older A&E version of the film. There is something so authentic about the setting and the cast. I love the movie enough to watch it at least once a year (it's 5 hours long). I don't think the new version, with Keira Knightly is nearly as good as the A&E one!

Skin Medica

http://www.skinmedica.com/

My skin was breaking out and it seemed like I couldn't get a handle on it for awhile. Until my cousin gave me some Skin Medica products. It is amazing how much softer and smoother my skin is after 6 weeks of using this! The Retinol Complex is amazing, and I love the Foaming Acne Wash too. I will be using it for a very long time!

Citizens of Humanity Jeans

MR, Nordstrom or stores that sell designer jeans usually have them. I also got a pair for $20 bucks on Ebay!

Most of you know, I have a slight obsession with jeans. I love how these jeans fit! They are low rise, but come up a little bit in the back to help hide "stuff" when you have to bend over. I love the softness and how they stretch to the shape of your body. I have a 'skinny' pair to wear with tall boots and a boot cut pair. Love them! Good jeans are hard to find!! Thanks Miss for turning me onto Citizens!

M.A.C. Mineral Make Up

I switched to mineral makeup years ago, and used Bare Minerals for a few years. I ran out of it and decided to try something new, and really like the M.A.C. Mineral Powder Foundation. It goes on very lightly and seems to last all day. I also was surprised that it costs no more, maybe even less than Bare Minerals.

Swiffer SweeperVac

Goodbye broom and dustpan! My sis-in-law had one of these and I couldn't get over how great it is! It's small, swivels into small spaces, and the double action of the swiffer pad and vac really clean nicely! I love it because it has a canister that empties easily and since I have a lot of wood flooring, it's so helpful. I highly recommend it! It's about $25.00...

The Perfume

Jivago 24K

This stuff smells heavenly...I've had some friends and family ask me about my perfume and I must say, the reason I bought this is because my aunt wore it and I always thought she smelled so nice. I've been wearing it for about 5 or 6 years now and love it. It's hard to find but if you do a google search, you should be able to get it online. If you want to smell it before you buy it, smell me! Ha Ha!!

Jewelry Armoire

I love this because it keeps everything hanging and well organized. I hated having to dig through everything and half the time my necklaces were so tangled I didn't take the time to wear them. I love how it is an almost-full length mirror when closed. And it has a lock so that kids can't open it! Thanks mom!! Where did you get this anyway???

Dusting Slippers

by Jillie Willie

The soles of these slippers are dusters for your floor, and they velcro off so that you can throw them in the laundry to wash! And as an added bonus, they're super cute :) Thanks Suni!!

Nike Plus

http://www.nike.com/ or http://www.amazon.com/

All I can say is...if you are a runner at all, and don't have one of these...it's a MUST HAVE!!!-Transforms your iPod nano into a personal workout coach--nano can provide real-time, spoken feedback that alerts you to workout milestones-Lets your iPod nano track your running time, distance, pace, and calories burned-Sync your iPod nano to transfer your workout data to iTunes and nikeplus.com for your performance history and more

Halloween Madness

Here are some pictures from Halloween for those of you who aren't on Facebook and haven't seen them. We had a fun time! The party at Dain & Marie's was so fun!!

Breaking in the House

This past weekend, my brothers, Matt and Ben brought their families up from Utah to visit. Ben recently moved to Highland, and Matt lives in Kaysville. We had a really nice time other than Ben, Wendy, and their 6 year old Jared, getting the stomach flu! Will woke up this morning not feeling well, and it seems to have caught him too. Yuck! Hopefully the rest of us don't get it..


My parents have been building a house up here in the valley for about 14 months, and lo and behold! They finally moved in last week and their house turned out beautiful! They got so sick of the building process that by the time it was finished, they hated the place ( I know the feeling!!!), but hopefully as time goes on, they'll love it. Their home is located on 35 gorgeous acres, in the narrows, between Afton and Thayne. Mom and dad did all of the picking and choosing themselves and as you'll see, they have great taste. The house will be a fun family retreat for many years to come! The other day, we watched a family of elk wander the property, and there are always moose, deer, and elk to be seen. Mom and dad even saw a mountain lion not far from their property. Scary!! But some of you have requested pictures, and since Steve and Marissa are in Texas and weren't able to make it up, I decided to post this. I only have a few, and didn't get any of tha bathrooms, guest bedrooms, etc. But I think Ben took more and he will probably post them. The pictures obviously don't do it justice though, so you'll all have to come for a visit to see it!

Master Bedroom
The Basement
The basement
more basement
more basement
Front entrance that faces the mountain. The back is really pretty, but I don't have a picture of it.
Family room
Cal & Anna
Family room

Kitchen

I've Been Tagged

Brooke, my friend from college, was tagged and now she's passed on the privilege to yours truly. I loved reading her response though, because it's been so long since I've 'hung out' with her or been in touch with her. And reading about her quirks made me miss her! So Brooke, this is for you ;o) Here are 6 quirks about myself:

1. I am a fanatic about being on time! I don't like the thought of people waiting around for me, so I always try to be 2-3 minutes early to everything.

2. I have to wear earrings everyday. It doesn't look right to me if I don't have at least small studs in my ears. I feel naked without them.

3. I get way too emotionally involved in movies! When Cal and I are watching a movie, I get physically ill if something horrible is happening, or overjoyed if something good happens. I cry, I laugh and then I keep thinking about it long after it's over. Drives my husband crazy sometimes.

4. I have an obsession with accessories. Period.

5. I love to sing opera at the top of my lungs when I'm home.

6. I can't start a 'project' without completely finishing it. If I don't think I can finish something right away, without interruption, I don't start it.

And the list could go on and on, lol!..

Now, it's your turn. I tag Marissa, Jamie, Dionne, Heidi, Marie and Amy

Blast from the Past!! Yikes...

Anna in 1982

Will in 1968






This is Cal in 1980..not too far of a stretch from his 1993 yearbook photo, sad to say



This is me, in 1978, the year I was born...don't ya think I can pull off the AFRO?

Will's First Day of School

Will started 1st grade this year, and he is so excited. He loves his teacher, and he loves that he gets to play with his friends from last year at recess. He went on a field trip to Bear World last week with the first grade in Rigby, ID, and they had a blast. He does his homework right after school, and loves to read! Here are a few pictures from his first day, just as he's getting ready to go. I can't believe how fast he's growing! Before I know it, he'll be driving himself to school. I just hope he stays as sweet and kind hearted as he is now. I'm sure he will, just like his dad :)

Bye Bye!! His backpack is humungous!

Muffin Top Anyone?

Ok, so we've all seen it for the past 6-8 years, and I think the fashion world has finally had ENOUGH of the infamous muffin top! At least they have figured out that women will buy low-rise jeans no matter what the size! In reality, the worst muffin top is the BARE muffin top as seen in the photo to the left. I mean, seriously! At least wear a long cami underneath, lol! I'm not sure what is going through the minds of the women (and teens more and more) who enter the dressing room, see the overhang of fat, and then say to themselves, "perfect fit, I'm buying!"

I especially like the pink polka-dot 'belt'..I mean, it brings your eye right there to the culprit, and more importantly, it keeps her jeans on nice and snug. I don't believe that muffin top can ONLY be avoided by losing weight. It's all about the clothing choices and sizing. I don't want to sound like I'm bashing people who need to lose weight. Most people, myself included, have wanted to lose weight at one point or another. This is not about weight loss! It's about covering up!

The GOOD news, is that the new trend for fall is high-waisted pants! Although, high-waisted pants are controversial, I think they will at least offer another option to chubby American women.

But the sad thing is, even thin people walk around with muffin top too, it's just more noticeable and mind boggling when it's an overweight person. It's like a size 12 girl doesn't want to admit she's a 12, because 2 years ago she was an 8, so as long as she can squeeze into those 8's, she's buying! But maybe there's hope after all, and although at first I thought the high-waisted look was a bit ummm, ugly...it's starting to grow on me now, and it may be something I try out this fall! I remember when skinny jeans started, I was thinking, yuck! But now I think they're really cute, and come in handy when you want to wear tall boots!

Let's just hope that the 'muffin toppers' agree so that we can finally put an end to this fashion nightmare! To all you low rise wearing people without muffin top...continue as before but try the high waisted look too! Might be a nice change of scenery!
I'm curious as to what you all think of the high-waisted look, and if you're sick of the muffin top too!