tonight as isaac, dennis, & i settled in to watch american idol, the opening showed views of miami. isaac says, "is it australia or san diego?" dennis replied, "it's miami." then we hear ryan seacrest say, "welcome to miami." isaac then says, "that guy says it's his ami, too."
my good friend shelby sent this to me to fill out & send back to her. she & i used to teach together at a christian school here in las vegas. her husband actually worked there with us too. anyway, she was hired at the end of my first year of teaching & i didn't say a word to her until she finally said something to me a few weeks after she started work. what a dork i can be! now i count her as one of my closest friends & miss her dearly because, like so many others, she moved away!
1.)Q. Can you cook? yes, i like to think so
2.)Q. What was your dream growing up? to be own a shoe store
3.)Q. What talent do you wish you had? to be a great singer
4.)Q. If I bought you a drink what would it be? coke or a margarita sounds good right now
5.)Q. Favorite vegetable? hmm...i'll go with broccoli
6.)Q. What was the last book you read? in the fall (snooze!)
7.)Q. What zodiac sign are you? gemini
8.)Q. Any Tattoos and/or Piercings? my ears pierced
9.)Q. Worst Habit? my indecisiveness
10.)Q. If you saw me walking down the street would you offer me a ride? of course!
11.)Q. What is your favorite sport? to play~volleyball to watch~college basketball
12.)Q. Negative or Optimistic attitude? negative...yikes!
13.)Q. What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator with me? sing silly songs
14.)Q. Worst thing to ever happen to you? death of family members
15.)Q. Tell me one weird fact about you. i like big butts & i cannot lie...j/k...when i buy a bag of licorice, i open it up & let it sit out for awhile before i eat it
16.)Q. Do you have any pets? yes, my maxie
17.)Q. What if i showed up at your house unexpectedly? i'd apologize for the mess after inviting you in
18.)Q. What was your first impression of me? wow, someone else my age is going to work here. will i ever say anything to her?
19.)Q. Do you think clowns are cute or scary? neither, i choose to remain neutral
20.)Q. If you could change one thing about how you look, what would it be? i've always wanted really long, beautiful hair, like angelina or jlo
21.)Q. Would you be my crime partner or my conscience? with you shelby, it would be both
22.)Q. What color eyes do you have? green & someone told me today they are beautiful
23.)Q. Ever been arrested? nope
24.)Q. Bottle or can pop? i'd prefer bottle
25.)Q. If you won $10,000 dollars today, what would you do with it? pay bills!!
26.)Q. If you could, would you date me? yes, how fun would we be at karaoke??
27.)Q. What 's your favorite place to hang at? home or i love to wander around borders or b&k but don't do it very often
28.)Q. Do you believe in ghosts? no
29.)Q. Favorite thing to do in your spare time? watch tv & read & blog
30.)Q. Do you swear a lot? no
31.)Q. Biggest pet peeve? man, i always have a few, but when asked i can't think of them!
32.)Q. In one word, how would you describe yourself? sincere
33.)Q. Do you believe/appreciate romance? i do but i'm practical & realize it doesn't happen every day, or even every other day...i guess that makes special!
34.)Q. If you could spend 12 hours with me and ask/do anything you like, what would it be? we'd start with a volleyball game, then go to starbucks, then we'd get ready to go shopping, then out to eat, go to a movie, then go have a drink
35)Q. Do you believe in God? yes, i love my savior!
36.)Q. Will you repost this so I can fill it out and do the same for you? yes
My good friend Stacia e-mailed this to me the other day, & I thought it was worthy of posting.
An Angel says, "Never borrow from the future. If you worry about what may happen tomorrow and it doesn't happen, you have worried in vain. Even if it does happen, you have to worry twice."
1. Pray.
2. Go to bed on time.
3. Get up on time so you can start the day unrushed.
4. Say "No" to projects that won't fit into your time schedule, or that will compromise your mental health.
5. Delegate tasks to capable others.
6. Simplify and un-clutter your life.
7. Less is more. (Although one is often not enough, two are often too many.)
8. Allow extra time to do things and to get to places.
9. Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together.
10. Take one day at a time.
11. Separate worries from concerns. If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you do and let go of the anxiety. If you can't do anything about a situation, forget it!
12. Live within your budget; don't use credit cards for ordinary purchases.
13. Have backups; an extra car key in your wallet, an extra house key buried in the garden, extra stamps, etc.
14. K.M.S. (Keep Mouth Shut). This single piece of advice can prevent an enormous amount of trouble.
15. Do something for the Kid in You everyday.
16. Carry a Bible with you to read while waiting in line.
17. Get enough rest.
18. Eat right.
19. Get organized so everything has its place.
20. Listen to a cd while driving that can help improve your quality of life.
21. Write down thoughts and inspirations.
22. Every day, find time to be alone.
23. Having problems? Talk to God on the spot. Try to nip small problems in the bud. Don't wait until it's time to go to bed to try and pray.
24. Make friends with Godly people.
25. Keep a folder of favorite scriptures on hand.
26. Remember that the shortest bridge between despair and hope is often a good "Thank you, Lord."
27. Laugh.
28. Laugh some more!
29. Take your work seriously, but not yourself at all.
30. Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can).
31. Be kind to unkind people (they probably need it the most).
32. Sit on your ego.
33. Talk less; listen more.
34. Slow down.
35. Remind yourself that you are not the general manager of the universe.
36. Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before.
GOD HAS A WAY OF TURNING THINGS AROUND FOR YOU.
"If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31)
For me, #8 is a challenge with 2 young kids. I really need to focus on this one since half of the time, we are 5 minutes late to getting to our destinations!
Just in case you didn't already have a New Year's resolution, here are 36 great ideas for you to try. Or like in my case, be really good at for 4 weeks, then forget about it...
:)
it's been nearly 3 weeks since i took down all of my christmas decor, excluding the cards & pictures. today i finally decided that it was time to take them down & pack them away also. as i did this, i fondly looked back at each & every card & picture that we received. i truly enjoyed each & every one of them. during the holiday season, i must say that getting holiday cards in the mail rates right up there in my top 5 holiday favorites. seriously, i feel dejected on those days that there is not 1 card from family or a friend. and of course, there are the days when you hit the jackpot & there are many cards at once. so, to honor these cards~letters~pictures, i've decided to give some awards.
first picture & card received:
and the award goes to: the abuegs who live in las vegas ~ where it's nice & warm...
coldest looking picture:
and the award goes to: the fitzpatrick who just HAD to move back to the frozen tundra of ND!
most creative:
and the award goes to: my aunt & uncle ~ ron & ang (live in ND) ~ aren't they cute? i've always thought so! & they're also super cool!
card most fitting for sender:
and the award goes to: the whittakers ~ they live here but he is from maine (notice the lighthouse) & she is from san diego (notice the palm tree) ~ how clever!
picture that traveled the farthest:
and the award goes to: the belmonts from new york. dennis & ryan went to high school together & were best friends.
picture that came from my friend i've had the longest:
and the award goes to: my girlfriend vickie & her family. we went to school together (k-12) & she & her family live in nd.
funniest picture:
and the award goes to: tessa & jason with their dog lucky
picture that reminds me how old i am:
and the award goes to: christensons whose kids i babysat when they were cute, itty~bitty babies!!
funniest letter:
and the award goes to: my grandma ~ because this above is how she started her letter & below is the finished product ~ 2 pages, single spaced. love you grandma!!
most versatile card:
and the award goes to: the blumanthals ~ dennis' cousin krista who sends lauryn so many of chloe's stylish clothes ~ the card had a bookmark to take off & use.
hottest looking card:
and the award goes to: jenny & paul who live in las vegas & sent this card ~ one of my all-time faves!
smartest letter:
and the award goes to: jerolyn & family for their comparison of their family to running a business.
most sarcastic letter:
and the award goes to: my cousin amie & her husband who are so fun to visit with because they are quick~witted & sooo smart
card from friend i've had the shortest amount of time:
and the award goes to: the hersh family ~ friends we've made from church
last card received:
and the award goes to: dennis' sister in nebraska ~ her husband is hawaiian ~ they moved FROM hawaii TO nebraska last year ~ maybe i should rename this award to most insane... ;)
now i bet you are saying to yourself, "wow, these photos are really poor quality." yes, because i have NO scanner & had to take the pictures of the pictures with my camera. we had a scanner for years & used it only a handful of times. then it broke, & we felt no need to replace it. then i started blogging, and every now & then i think hmmm...a scanner would sure come in handy here.
hope you enjoyed the awards ceremony!
our weekend was jam-packed full of fun!
friday evening i went to a movie with susan & some of her friends. we went to the chick flick "27 dresses". 
it was a really cute movie. predictable, of course, but a lot of fun. as i was watching the movie, i realized that the leading lady, katherine heigl, bares a remarkable resemblance to my friend jerolyn's oldest daughter, kaitlyn. take a look...
saturday started out with lauryn & i and dennis & isaac going to each of the nevada caucuses. now that it's over, i don't have to hear anymore of the newspeople discussing the correct way to pronounce the name of our state!
it was a great feeling to play our part in such an historic election. even more interesting will be finding out who each party will choose as it's candidate. right now, it seems so up in the air on both sides!
then, early afternoon we were off to kaylee's 2nd birthday party. kaylee is the little girl i watch 2 days a week. we had a great time there! we hadn't met most of the people there before, but they were a really nice, relaxed bunch. the kids had a blast playing with the other kids there, and, of course, someone else's toys.
next stop after kaylee's party was a birthday party for my friend terri from my book club. our friend jenny hosted the party. our entire book club & their families attended, along with a few of terri's co-workers. we had such a good time & the food & company were both WONDERFUL!
today, it was off to church, 5 min. late as usual. isaac got a nice surprise when he was told he could move into the kindergarten sunday school room with his buddy aiden. he was very excited about this but will be sure to miss a.j. & carson from the other sunday school room. lauryn loves the nursery at church (which is super nice for us!) ~ her favorite part is getting a piece of candy when we pick her up. 
after lunch, everyone took a nap AT THE SAME TIME! how perfect is that??? we watched football, knowing the patriots were 99.9% sure to win. the giant/packers game ~ wow! what a great game! i was just glad to be home watching on my couch, cuddled up in my blanket ~ not at all like this poor guy:
he did this & HIS TEAM LOST! as cold as he was, i'm sure he could still feel his heart breaking, as i'm sure our friends dave & kristin's were also.
then, to top off the weekend, we got to watch the finale of my favorite show the amazing race. 
going into the finale, i would have been happy with any of the final 3 teams winning, since i really liked them all. but when tk & rachel won, i was really glad they pulled it off since they remained cool, calm, & collected the entire race. they never said a bad word about another team & were a perfect team, never getting mad at each other, always staying positive.
so...that was our weekend in a BIG nutshell. how was yours???
just some recent things of the kids:
1. last week we were able to go to a wranglers hockey game, our local minor league team. isaac eats it up! for half of the game (i may be UNDERestimating here) he is yelling at the top of his lungs, "let's go wrang-a-lers!" here is our sports nut at the game: 
now here's lauryn at the game:
can you tell she "enjoys being a girl"???
2. when lauryn wakes up in the morning she's got this wild mass of hair that needs to be "domesticated". :) here are her before & after pictures.
3. last, but not least, i all of a sudden realize that my 4 yr. old will soon turn 5, & me being a TEACHER, should probably do something about him reading. i am SOOOO PROUD to announce that he read a book today. here it is:
Cat.
Rat.
Cat can tap Rat.
Cat ran.
Rat ran. Cat ran.
WAP! (in case you don't know this book :), cat just ran into a tree)
Rat sat on Cat.
he can't wait to start kindergarten...
tonight we have a party to go to that is potluck. i grabbed the rachael ray cookbook to read as we were running errands this morning because dennis knew there were some good meatball recipes in there. as dennis was driving, i read the recipes to him so that we could decide what we wanted to make for the party. one of the ingredients was sesame seeds. isaac pipes up from the backseat, "i guess we'll have to go somewhere to get a cheeseburger to get some sesame seeds." i love the way a child's mind works, don't you???
i've had it with these diapers!!
3 times this week i've had to strip lauryn's bedding to wash it all because she's woke up wet. and i remind you she sleeps in a queen size bed now, not a little toddler bed. i thought i loved luvs, but i've had it with them!! i was a pampers girl with isaac, but when lauryn came along & i started to stay home, i wanted to save a buck or 2. i tried some generic diapers that i didn't like. so next was huggies for awhile, which i was really happy with, but, again, i wanted to save a few cents. so luvs was the one i settled for ~ the cheaper brand name. well, i decided after this morning that i'm going back to huggies. so here is my message to you luvs:
Adios
Sayanara
Auf Wiedersehen
Ciao
Au Revoir
Hasta la Vista, BABY!!!!
this morning while dennis was getting lauryn dressed, she noticed "something" (that rhymes w/ ripple) on his chest. she said, "what that, a button?"
this year we went out with friends jake & kelli to the rocks lounge at red rock. there were 12 of us in the group, a super FUN bunch of people! jake & kelli made it easy for us because we just brought our kids over to their house for the evening to hang out with their 2 kids & 4 others that were staying there. jake's dad, his 15 year old daughter, & another 15 year old were there to babysit all 8 kids. at the rock's lounge, we also hooked up with our friend mike & his girlfriend malinda & their group of friends. we had sooooo much fun! what a stress reliever!
i realize some of you may not want the hassle of playing the "smilebox" year in review below this post. this option may be better for you!
DENNIS' HIGHLIGHTS:
1. visit from dennis' mom this may
2. trip to germany in july
3. father's day
4. trip to wales
5. dennis' 35th b'day
6. he's survived putting up with me for 10 years!
7. volunteering for the water of life ministry
8. having friends come to the lake for a weekend & golfing w/ buddies
9. playing catch on the beach with isaac
JEN'S HIGHLIGHTS:
1. getting my new bike for mother's day
2. hiking on mt. charleston with nate & dee
3. mom & dad's visit this november
4. participating in the living christmas tree
5. my birthday
6. going out with dennis to mamma mia
7. getting my childhood piano from my mom
8. playing in the sand with lauryn at the beach
9. lounging with my kids at susan's on easter
ISAAC'S HIGHLIGHTS: 
1. getting his bike for his 4th b'day
2. playing t-ball with his buddy kole
3. preschool graduation
4. going to the circus with malaya & kole
5. meeting mickey mouse at disneyland
6. hanging out at the lake
7. tim
8. kid's choir
9. his new bed
10. tennis lessons
11. holyland adventure
12. shared b'day party with kole
13. sea world
14. fun at the beach
15. ND state fair with cousin jonis
16. an afternoon of fishing with g'pa johnson
LAURYN'S HIGHLIGHTS:
1. tea party with g'ma & isaac at the lake
2. first haircut
3. new crocs
4. cupcakes
5. playing with friend avary
6. bike rides
7. "it's a small world" at disneyland
8. ND state fair
9. playing with friends ellie & kaylee
10. new play shoes for 2nd b'day
11. pooping in the toilet
12. tim
13. helping mommy
14. rose petal cottage
15. big bed
16. swimming
BIGGEST BLESSING OF THE YEAR:
HEAVENLY LILIA!
