Life with the Boys

january, summarized.

2012-01-23T21:47:00.003-07:00

I've started this post half a dozen times but always stop myself, because really, there's nothing too exciting to report. Little bit of this, little bit of that...

Had my annual physical and OBgyn appts a couple of weeks go; got to have my first mammogram. All the while thinking, "How old am I??" My doc's office suggests the baseline mamm for ages 35-40. I'm all about the preventative. If it'll save a life, I'm all for it. That cancer is a horrible thing. Too many I know are struggling now or recently lost their struggle with cancer. Get tested, get checked, get your physicals, friends.

School started last week and is as crazy as always. We had literally one lab day (in which we didn't even enter the lab) and this week we are back into the hospital setting for clinicals once-twice a week until May. Get ready for me, here I come! I also have a pre-test and a real test this week. Gonna be a busy one.

Pinterest has completely sucked me in, but on a positive note, I've made a dozen new dishes/dinners/desserts from the site in the past month as well as several homemade gifts for friends...go me!

Our garden is doing well. I'm not exaggerating one bit when I say my dear hubby talks and coddles the veggies daily. We have tomatoes just about ripe for the picking and green peppers, carrots, and green onions we've been harvesting for weeks. Good stuff! Methinks he is a much better gardener than I...and I'm OK with that.

Sean's busy with his afterschool work on the season's school play "Beauty and the Beast", as well as Scouts/Young Men's each week. He's gone to the temple twice already to perform baptisms (once with us and once with the youth), very cool.

Cameron and Dan are enjoying Scouts--Cameron already got his Bear and numerous arrows and belt loops of course, but we are now working on his Faith in God so he can earn his Religious Knot. Dan's awesome at staying on top of the requirements needed for each kiddo. It's fun to see him excited about a calling for once. (Recall, he was our ward librarian for over 6 1/2 years in our last ward!)

Ethan is...well, Ethan is just lucky he's cute. He's such a turkey sometimes. He's a major follower ("Why did you do such-and-such?" "Because so-and-so told me to!"), but is my best helper at home. Each of the boys is responsible for two large chores at home, and he is the best at not only doing it quickly the first time I ask, but doing it well. He'll take 5 minutes just to clean the inside of a toilet because he wants to do a thorough job! I'll take it. He dislikes reading, but he's getting better at it finally. This year, we started something different with our Nightly Scripture Reading--each of the boys reads an entire column--and that has helped both him and Cameron with their outloud reading.

Dan's taking one last pre-req class, a specialized Pharmacology that summarizes the pharm we have in the 2nd Block of Nursing School. When that finishes in March, he'll start the Bridge program through Mesa Comm. College 2-3 days a week. It's going to be crazy around here. Between his and my schedules, we'll have anywhere from 1-4 clinicals a week in April! (and for you unaware, those are 12-hour days plus travel, so it's a lot of time away from home--however, it's nothing different from what actual work as a nurse will be like.)

With all this business, the something-that's-gotta-give is usually social time with friends. Our get-togethers are way too few and far between, but that just makes each one that much more special. Miss you, friends! Thank heavens I have Facebook now to keep up on your lives *ironic eyeroll*.

So, and if you've made it this far, to sum up, we are definitely keeping afloat. We are healthy and blessed in many ways.

Now, if you'll excuse me, the Skillet Toffee I made this afternoon (a la Pinterest!) is calling my name.

kitchen makeover

2012-01-11T10:22:00.001-07:00

Approximately a year ago, I started this project thinking I could knock it out in the six weeks before school started.

Then school started.

Bwaha ha ha!

My project was totally put on hiatus.

To be fair, 90% of it was done by January 2011. . . the hard part, the painting of the cabinets and walls. But we hadn't yet found the right table for the new kitchen, made a kitchen valance, or decided yet what to do on the wall nearest the table.

(That wall is still blank, but I have a plan.)

As for the rest of it, it's done!

Wanna see some pictures?

Here's the BEFORE. . . remember my complaints of the dated wallpaper border and the oaky oak and the brassy brass that I was sicktodeath of?!

Here's some DURING. :)

And now the AFTER!

What do you think? It's like a breath of fresh air to me!

My awesome friend and personal interior designer Christy made me the curtain/valance without a pattern. Yes, she is that kind of awesome. :)

Is that not the cutest thing you've ever seen on a window? When she showed me the finished project I squealed that I wanted to wear it, it's so cute! Christy, we owe you big. Dinner's on me.

Past projects you've seen already:

The chandelier makeover.

The door knobs makeover.

Some of the embellishments.

I'd still really love to paint the countertops black as seen on this blog, but I'm not brave enough as yet. Last week we went to Lowe's to price countertops, and even for cheapie ol' formica it was going to cost over $500. That is so not happening. Not sure what to do, because I think the darker color would contrast so much better.

Anyway, it was a huge project, not one I'm sure to repeat any time soon (especially since school starts again in a week), but I sure love the result!

new favorite song "new york" by snow patrol

2012-01-08T09:47:00.001-07:00

Love! Love the music initially and then the words, love love love!

If you were here beside me instead of in New York
If the curve of you was curved on me
I'd tell you that I loved you before I ever knew you
Because I loved the simple thought of you

If our hearts are never broken then there's no joy in the mending
There's so much this hurt can teach us both
Though there's distance and there's silence your words have never left me
They're the prayer that I say every day

Come on
Come out
Come here
Come here

The long neon nights and the eek of the ocean
And the fire that was starting to spark
I miss it all from the love to the lightning
And the lack of it snaps me in two

If you were here beside me instead of in New York
In the arms you said you'd never leave
I'd tell you that it's simple and it was only ever thus
There is nowhere else that I belong

Come on
Come out
Come here
Come here

The long neon nights and the eek of the ocean
And the fire that was starting to spark
I miss it all from the love to the lightning
And the lack of it snaps me in two

Just give me a sign there's an end and a beginning
To the quiet chaos driving me mad
The long neon nights and the want of the ocean
And the fire that is starting to go out

start 2012 with a blast

2012-01-04T00:01:00.000-07:00

A blast is what we always have when we're together with our friends!

Chris hosted this year and made tons of food (tamales, yumm) and we were in charge of games. The weather was nice, the music was perfect, we had a nice little group show up and the kids behaved so what more can you ask?

Wanna see some pics?

Here's our peeps on New Year's Eve. (If I'd been on the ball I would have gotten family pictures too)

And darnnit I never did get Christine and DJ. She had to work and showed up late and we got too busy socializing. Jessica's sister and parents were there and I never got official pictures of them either, but you'll see them later. They were very good sports during the games!

Our first game (all minute-to-winnit games!) was Stack Attack! 1 minute to stack 28-cups with one hand.

Next we did NutStacker (like NutCracker, get it?). 1 minute to stack 8 nuts using a candy cane.

Next up was my favorite! Nose Dive! 1 minute to transfer as many cottonballs as possible from one bowl to another using vaseline on your nose!

It was so funny! Sophie was the dominator of this one!

Spoon Frog was a lot of fun (and noisy). Catapult/flip one spoon using another into the cup. Most in one minute wins. James got 6 during our very first round. Winner!

Lastly, the High Roller game. I think this was the hardest one of all! Holding a popsicle stick between your teeth, stack 6 dice on top of each other. As hard as it was, we still had four who were able to do it, Chris, Jessica, Danny, and Abby!

We hung out a bit, talking, laughing, eating, jumping, and posing.

Next, pinata time! I love the looks of determination on everyone's faces, especially Caden's and Chris's!

(Caden and Chris both celebrated their birthdays at midnight New Year's Day incidentally! Happy birthday to you two!)

Then we had some fun with sparklers. Got some really fun shots too!

And then some fireworks until it was time for Martinelli's Sparkling Cider and the Countdown (and kisses) at midnight!

It was, I think, our best New Year's Eve party ever! So much fun and so grateful for the friends we were able to spend it with. Love you guys!

And Happy New Year to you all!

thankgiving barbecue

2012-01-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know.

It's January.

And I'm still blogging about November.

I kinda sorta forgot I hadn't done anything with these pictures yet, which is a shame because we had such a good time.

So, for those of you keeping track, my kids have 3 grandmas and 3 great-grandmas still alive, which is awesome! We've seen each and every one of them in the past 8 weeks! :)

'Round Thanksgiving time, when we were visiting Dan's family in California, we were able to spend an afternoon at Grandma Lewis' place out on the farm. Ranch? In the country? It's farmland out there, pretty mellow and a lot quieter than city life. She has a huge piece of property which lent itself to a fun afternoon for a bunch of cousins, etc and some barbeque.

As I am lazier than dirt right now, you get more collages.

Above, you see Dan's Dad and step-Mom, Sean with his favorite kind of pooch, the twins in all their cuteness, Danny having a full-on conversation in Spanish with a 3rd cousin (?) who is currently in full-immersion Spanish elementary school (1st grade and completely bilingual!), and a blip of a rousing game of tetherball.

Here you see cousins cousins cousins and the start of our barbecue. Little Kyler was our newest baby cousin at that point, but he's already lost the newest-born status to Kilani who was born a couple of weeks ago. The family keeps on growing!

Time for s'mores! (Incidentally, a couple of weeks ago we had a fabulous evening with our friends the Davis family who introduced us to a new way of making s'mores--chocolate covered graham crackers with marshmellows. SO good)

Oops, how did that shot get in there?

This pic is missing a couple of people/families, but it was still a great day. We had a fabulous time with you Great-Grandma Lewis!

book butterfly - december

2012-01-02T00:01:00.000-07:00

Quite enjoying the chance to do something other than study with my free time.

Are you assuming I'm referring to reading? Bah hah hah. No.

Pinterest has sucked me in. Easy to get lost in the pretty things, tasty looking meals, funny quotes, quirky pictures, and amazing projects. And then I discovered the GEEK section, and all bets were off. Love that site. Officially.

I did get to a few more books last month though, when I could pull my eyes away from my PinBoard.

"Silence" ("Hush Hush" series #3) by Becca Fitzpatrick)

I think I would mark these books higher if they just concluded already! There are so many series out right now, they start to blend together for me if I do not read them back-to-back.

This third installment of Hush, Hush is good, kinda different from the other two in relation to plot. Nora's lost her memory and has to relearn who all the good and bad guys are and has to rediscover Patch and fall in love with him all over again.

This series has been likened a lot to the Twilight series and this book follows that trend. *spoiler* Example: The bad guy uses Nora's mom to get her to agree to his wishes (a la Twilight). Example: There is a semi-love triangle which almost ends with Boy #2 having to leave at the end after a big dramatic kiss (a la Eclipse). Example: Nora gets changed into one of the paranormal creatures (a la Breaking Dawn). And in the next book, there is to be a Big War (also seen in Breaking Dawn).

Even so, it is still very creative and well written...I just kind of wish the stories would conclude and wrap up nicely so I don't have to try to retain this plot until the next book is published in the Fall of 2012.

"The Death Cure" (Maze Runner #3) by James Dashner

This wasn't the best series in the world--I like a little more closure to my books, even within a series--but it was interesting enough to keep me reading. In fact I may have liked 3 better because I read it as opposed to listening to the other two on audio. Plus, I read it just about all in one day, so that's always better.

I could totally see this being made into a movie (or a trilogy? ugh). I'd watch it.

"Lone Survivor" by Marcus Luttrell

This is an autobiographical tale of a US Navy SEAL--the story takes the reader initially through his training, and that right there is jaw-dropping. I had no idea how incredibly difficult it was to become a SEAL. After going through what they do, it's amazing that any of them make it out of their 'boot camp', and then understandable that they can pretty much withstand anything. The second part of the book is about the true event that happened in 2005 in the middle East when 4 Navy SEALs went behind enemy lines to capture one of the leading forces behind Al Queda. After an ambush, the author describes the next several days in which they were hunted down and repeatedly shot and injured, until only Marcus Luttrell lives, in hiding, with the eventual aid of a Pashtun village.

It is a simply remarkable story, very exciting, yet completely awful. It reminds me to be so grateful for our freedoms and luxuries here in the United States, and to be so proud and thankful for the men and women who put their life on the line for us over seas. I highly recommend this book.

"Sizzling Sixteen" (Stephanie Plum #16) by Janet Evanovich

We're losing our patience with these books...our main complaint is that the story/characters never seem to progress. It's the same challenges/issues/situations book after book. Evanovich writes these pretty much so you could pick up any book at any time and not need any of the others for background. The same few things happen: Stephanie is going to be a bad bounty hunter and continue to make ridiculous mistakes (like leave her FTA in the back of her car while she goes into the quick-E mart for a lotto ticket, only to find him gone when she returns), she's going to have constant hem-hawing over the Morelli/Ranger issue, Lula's going to eat chicken and donuts and nearly pop out of her clothes, and Stephanie's going to blow up car after car. Nothing changes, so we are losing interest.

However, at this point, there are only 2 more to go in the series. Reading others' reviews, I find that most fans have the same opinion, so the author is bound to change something at some point. If she decides to quit the series, she'll hopefully have Stephanie finally pick a guy, which would be the payoff I guess.

This has been our least favorite so far. Having just finished it, I'm still not really sure who the bad guy was and why, which guy she ended up with, or who her FTAs were and if they were caught. That's not the mark of a good book.

"Saving CeeCee Honeycutt" by Beth Hoffman

This was a really sweet, sometime-tear-inducing story about a young 11 year old gal who had to suffer through a mother's mental illness and ultimate death. Her father can not take care of her and basically abandons her (in her best interests) with a great-aunt in Savannah.

The ensuing story is of development for Cee-Cee, forgiveness of her father, growth and bravery and change, and learning who she is and that she does not have to follow in her mother's footprints.

The made very sweet relationships with her great-aunt, the african-american cook, and all of their older Steel Magnolia-type lady friends. My only complaint is that though she makes beautiful relationships and has lovely life-learning experiences, all of her friendships are with 80-some-year old women, and I would have liked there to be more of a Normal Childhood Experience for this poor gal who had to grow up too early. A new friendship with a schoolmate is hinted at towards the end, but I was disappointed that the bulk of the story kept Cee-Cee way too old and grown up as opposed to developing any kind of childhood memories.

"Winter Garden" by Kristin Hannah

This was a really amazing story, a story within a story, which I don't usually like, but hooked me from early on. It's about a Russian mother and her two daughters in their late 30's. Daughters never really got to know Mom--she is standoffish, does not smile, does not talk, in fact does not seem to love them or want anything to do with them, even when they were children. As 80-year old Dad lays dying, he challenges them to get to know Mom by listening to her Fairy Tale stories she occasionally told them as children. As they coerce Mom to finish the fairy tale, they learn the stories are about Her, their mom, growing up in Leningrad during Stalin's tyrade in Russia, about all she had to suffer as her family was taken one by one, by war or by hardship. It is a heartbreaking story that had me bawling more than once. Very well written and very well worth the read.

Beware of some strong language mature content.

"Smokin' Seventeen" (Stephanie Plum #17) by Janet Evanovich

Coming off of the failure that was Book 16, this one was much better. A much more interesting plot premise, more romance, and Stephanie and Lula actually capture their escapees several times. I guessed the bad guy early on, but it was still enjoyable.

On a side note, went to reserve the next (and last) Evanovich book, only to find there are something like 150 people on the wait list before me, so it'll be a while til we get to that one. Have coerced hubby into starting the Harry Potter series, which he already admits he surprisingly likes (did not like the movies).

What are you reading?

christmas quickies

2011-12-30T08:45:00.001-07:00

We were freezing in southern Utah for Christmas this year -- no it did not snow, and during the day it was actually quite lovely, but as soon as the sun went down, brrrr!

We had a nice time, once the kids calmed down a bit that is. They get so excited to see Grandma, their favorite person!

Before we even got there with our presents, the tree was loaded with presents for the boys. Not only that, but my mom had prepared daily presents ON the tree that the boys could hunt down and open. Can we say ~~spoiled~~ loved?

Dan asked for a bunch of tools this year, I got him a new stereo for his truck, my parents got us mummy bags for camping (so cozy!) and his grandpa built him a bird feeder. In the middle there, you see him starting us out with the annual reading of Luke II from the Bible, from when Jesus was born. It's good to remember that Christmas isn't all about presents! :)

I got a lot more than this but didn't think to hand the camera over. Lots of red kitchen supplies! Toaster, skillet, and blender. I'm so practical, I know! Also, a hand-knitted scarf from my mom, a nice new cookie sheet, and lots of other little items.

Sean wanted just money this year because he is saving up for something electronic, but the boys collectively got a Wii. I think we're the last people in the universe to get one, ha! The boys have been on it ever since.

Santa brought the boys these fun silly goggle straws! Cameron also asked for a drafting kit, craft supplies, a computer game, and games for the Wii.

Ethan asked for new pajamas, so all the boys got a new set. He also got a Book of Mormon Scene It?! Game, some Wii supplies, legos, and other goodies from Grandma.

We got my parents a digital picture frame (love those things)! They also got a bunch of gift cards and a vacation from my brothers!

Mom kept us well fed and well entertained. While there, we went to Sacrament Meeting on Sunday, went out for Chinese food one day, saw the "Puss in Boots" movie, ate pizza, built legos, read books, went for walks, drove around to look at Christmas lights, went after-Christmas shopping, watched movies on the big screen TV, and had an EXCELLENT Christmas Dinner.

It was another great visit. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for everything, and thanks for making it a Merry Christmas! :)

just a glimpse

2011-12-29T08:15:00.002-07:00

Back from our trip.

We're all unpacked.

Laundry is being done.

New presents and toys have found their place.

The Christmas decos are all down (except for the trees and the outside lights, we'll leave those for another week or so).

Will go grocery shopping today.

Kids are living on the new Wii.

Pretty soon I need to start studying again as there are something like 17 new chapters due the first day of school. I shudder to think about it.

Must download 8,000 pictures from my camera.

Have plans to do something crafty today.

It's a lovely day on Christmas Break!

"the three little pigs" as written by shakespeare

2011-12-23T09:46:00.002-07:00

I laughed so much watching this.

change for a dollar -- amazing and touching video

2011-12-21T00:01:00.000-07:00

Please watch, well worth your time.

our saturday

2011-12-20T00:01:00.000-07:00

I kid you not, I did not leave my bed until about 11 a.m. It was splendid.

Dan's on shift, we all slept in, then the kids came into my room to watch Pokemon movies on my computer. I just put the pillow over my head and fell back asleep. Bliss.

Then, Cam lost a tooth and gained a new hole in his head.

He has a really hard time taking pictures, period, but outside, even on a cloudy day, fuggetaboutit. It took us eighteen tries to get this almost-non-squinty one.

Then, off to the baseball fields for Ethan's last game of the season. (whoo-hoo! No more practice and no more Saturday games!)

This favorite moment is what he was waiting for all season, getting his trophy. Good job, E!

Then, Chitlins and I made a snowflake garland (as per our Advent Calendar Stocking's suggestion) and read The Night the Grinch Stole Christmas.

Saw this on Lorie's site this past week, as taken from the Nifty Thrifty Things blog.

As much as I love it, it does take some time. We made about 18 snowflakes (well, I made probably a dozen and the kids started their half) in a little over an hour. We used scratch paper because we didn't have a lot of plain white paper to be wasted.

I think it's cute.

a little bit of christmas happy

2011-12-19T00:01:00.002-07:00

First of all, I can't believe that I am half-way done with nursing school! Finished up my semester with an A which is stinking awesome! Very happy about the whole experience. Had one rough day there in the first few weeks when I just couldn't get a skill down correctly, but other than that, pure awesomeness. So now I enjoy 4-5 weeks off. Loving it!

Here is a quick pic of our tree at night without the flash and then using the night settings on my camera.

95% of what's on it was hand-made by my mom or my mother-in-law. We do home-made Christmas around here and love it!

A couple of weeks ago, we lasted just long enough at our ward Christmas party to get pics with Santa--then unfortunately my children's behavior required me to vacate them off the premises and put them to bed STAT so this is all we got:

We were very sad to leave, but I had to follow through on my threat to leave unless they started to behave themselves.

I've made something like 20+ loaves of this orange cranberry bread to hand out to teachers, neighbors, etc. It's so very good (and so easy) and is a definite favorite recipe of ours!

My friend Chris invited us to their ward Christmas party last week--assuming we wanted the chance to try again! I reminded them that if they didn't have good behavior we would leave, and they were pretty darn good! Instead of Santa, their ward had "the three wise men" (which I think were the three members of their Bishopric? kinda cute idea).

We're really enjoying the season, and a big part of that is music. Sean and I are in the ward choir (under the direction of the infamous Mary Lou Klippel) and are learning lots. Yesterday we performed in a really neat program! Our family is again doing our Countdown Advent that my friend Courtney gave us 2 years ago. We've danced and sang to Christmas music, made Christmas cookies, had a picnic for dinner, went out for ice cream, decorated our tree, went out to look at lights, written letters to Santa, and more. The kids have one more week of school and then we're off to Utah for a quick trip over Christmas.

How are you making Christmas meaningful this year?

grrrrr! cameron earns his bear patch

2011-12-16T21:58:00.002-07:00

Dan is his den leader now, and he is awarding Cameron his Bear patch and one gold arrow to add to all the ones he got as a Wolf.

Here is Cameron 'pinning' me. Good work, Cam!

free living scriptures dvd

2011-12-15T06:21:00.001-07:00

We ordered this last night--got through on the first time, no gimmicks, no tax or shipping, and you get two DVDs, Christmas and Easter. Good luck!

To get your free Animated Nativity DVD call 1-800-574-0050 M–F 9am -8pm MST with offer code FKB. *One per household, must give valid info, while supplies last.

officially half a nurse!

2011-12-13T13:34:00.003-07:00

So the big fat final was yesterday, and aside from the computers all slowing down and stopping and kicking us out of our tests (oy the torture!) it went just fine.

I ended up with a 96% on the final and a 95% in the class.

Super excited about that! I got a 91% last semester, which in nursing school is a B, so my entire goal this year was to work just that much harder and get the A, which I did.

Relief! Joy! Excitement! Can't believe it's half over already. Block three starts in a little over a month, so I have a much needed break...and I'm going to enjoy it!

2011 family photo shoot

2011-12-11T09:38:00.000-07:00

Here is our latest photo shoot with the wondrous and great Christine Cuglietta! I love them all, can't decide exactly which to put up in the wall and/or send to Grandparents. :) For your own spectacular photoshoot with Christine, contact her by email or visit her blog.

my talented talented boy

2011-12-10T08:44:00.001-07:00

Sean performed at the school variety show this past week, participating in a very ill-miked rendition of Bye Bye Birdie's "Telephone Song" and then a short fun monologue. Check him out!

He also played clarinet at his Winter Band Concert last week. He did a short "Angels We Have Heard on High" with a gal (who I swear he is going to grow up and marry some day, they are so alike) and then did "Jingle Bell Rock" with the band. A few days later they also performed for the school district governing board. Kinda cool. :)

Thanks for watching!

music video for nursing school project!

2011-12-05T11:40:00.004-07:00

I have been very excited to share this!

At school we were assigned partners and topics for a 15 minute presentation--mine was Incident Reporting. My partner, Brandee, and I put together this video to follow our powerpoint. Enjoy!

"I Know What To Do" (Adele cover) Nursing School project for Incident Reporting at Estrella Mountain Community College.

(PS, I wrote the lyrics and sang the vocals, Brandee is the nurse in our video, and music is by Adele)

book butterfly reviews -- november

2011-12-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

I have Thanksgiving vacation photos to ~~force upon you~~ share, but the editing of 266 pictures and videos has just not happened. I swear it is coming, because we did some really fun things I want to show you. It's just going to take time.

Our schedule right now is insane. Fortunately, some of the business is coming to a close soon. I purposefully only allow one of my kiddos to participate in sports at a time (because 1: who can afford more than that? and 2: I just can't stretch myself that thin, to be at 2+ practices a week plus 2+ games a week on top of everything that goes on), but Ethan's baseball combined with Sean and Cameron in scouts on two different nights--which I thought was going to be a blessing but in turn, really only means we're busy two nights instead of one--as well as Sean doing afterschool practice 2-3 times a week for his upcoming variety show has really kept our weeks and days packed! I look at my calendar and I sigh! This is a busy time of year anyway, without all that, but then you add a couple of doctors and dentist appts, a family baptism, and studying for the HESI in 3 days and the Final (can you believe it?) in 10. . . well you're bound to have a crack here and there. <----- and that was all within the first week, no lie!

So we all cracked a little bit last night as I had to pull the fam from the ward party early due to bad behavior. There were some tears and temper tantrums (from me as well as the kids) but hopefully some good learning opportunities came out of the fact that Mom is gonna follow through on her threats! We all calmed down afterwards and enjoyed a quiet night at home. did some more Christmas decorating inside.

So books for November? Not much. I have high hopes for December. I'll be done with my semester in 9 days, and then, get this: I'll be half-way done with Nursing School. Is that going crazy wicked fast or what??

"The Summoning" (Darkest Powers Trilogy #1) by Kelley Armstrong

This was a fun paranormal story that was a little bit scary...probably my limit as far as scariness to be honest (I don't much like being scared, even in fun)...but still enjoyable. It's a trilogy and I look forward to the next installment of the story.

"Finger Lickin' Fifteen" (Stephanie Plum #15) by Janet Evanovich

Lula was the best part of this one. Very funny. :)

I have a couple others I've been working on, but {see above schedule} things have been a bit nuts it's taking me some time to get through them.

What have you been reading?

happy thanksgiving to you

2011-11-23T20:56:00.002-07:00

Happy eating tomorrow, everyone! Enjoy time with your family!

a long over due "mommy and the boys' day of FUN!"

2011-11-21T00:01:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry I'm so bad at this! As expected, since I joined Facebook, all my little mini updates have ended up over there, and it seems silly to double up!

Life is good. . . really good. I'm so happy with school, with my family, with life. I have friends going through some serious struggles right now, and I just count my blessings and thank my Heavenly Father that we are whole, healthy, and happy. We've had a difficult year with just the sacrifices of both of us being in school, Dan working as much as he is able, and losing all but each other in regards to social life. To my friends, I miss you! I cherish every Girls Night Out! It is soothing to my soul! Our ward split a month or so ago, so there have been some big changes as far as church, being the Newbies and getting to know new people while missing the old. Change is inevitable. And it's OK, too.

It doesn't hurt that I just saw Breaking Dawn twice and have happy Edward & Bella feelings as I remember the books! So fun to live in fiction for a couple hours at a time!

So, onward. A couple of weeks ago, the boys and I all had Veteran's Day off, so we decided to have a long overdue Mommy and the Boys' Day of Fun! Remember those!? See our past installments (blogger isn't letting me link up right):

http://amiedanny.blogspot.com/2009/01/mommy-and-boys-day-of-fun.html

It had been a while! As usual, this one was mostly about eating yummy treats!

We actually started the night before with homemade hot chocolate and a fun campfire in the backyard, and then we slept on the trampoline. We sure love doing that!

Some of these pics look crazy because I was using the night setting on my camera--I'm still not very good at it, you have to hold the camera super still and I just do not possess that talent yet!

It was warm and cozy--'specially because I was between Dan and Sean and eventually everyone kinda sank in around me! Nice night.

The next morning, Dad was off to work and the boys and I started our day. We took our wheels to the church parking lot and had some fun.

Little bit of yummies to go along with our play.

Yes, please!

Then it was off to the duck pond--the same one that claimed my phone last year. I made sure all keys, phones, and devices were a safe distance away from the water this time! Each kiddo got a loaf of bread.

From there we picked up some McDonald's (bleh) and drove to the cheapie theatre to watch. . . sadly. . . The Smurf movie. Ugh. Oh well, NPH made it watchable.

From there we went back home and created some nice Happy Veteran's Day/Thank you For Your Service cards for our neighbor who used to be a marine and is now a Sheriff's officer. We left them on his patrol car. :)

It was such a fun (and busy) day! Love my kids, and love the chances to spend extra time with them. I'm also so grateful for the reason for this past holiday, those men and women who serve our country and bless us with their bravery. We appreciate your sacrifice, past and present!

a synopsis of life

2011-11-16T21:23:00.005-07:00

You can sure tell I'm nearing the end of my semester, right? My posts have gotten fewer and farther between...

One good thing about it is that man, time flies! I have another 5-ish weeks of school and then I'm half-way done with Nursing School! How crazy is that? I hate to brag, but I'm doing really well this semester (currently a 94ish %, which is pretty crazy cool), and I loved my clinical experience, so life is good. Four more tests to go (2 module tests, the HESI, and the final).

We have some fun plans for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, so we have some really great times to look forward to. My house is a disaster right now--tidy, but not necessarily clean, you know?--and my husband has completely taken over the garden which is both cute and awesome! We have green onions and bell peppers ready for eating, carrots and tomatoes getting really close and a couple others I forget.

We're enjoying the new ward, getting used to new faces and names and callings. I'm the full-time ward organist (which is ok, except for the weeks that Dan's on shift and my two youngest are sitting by themselves making a ruckus) and Dan is the Bear's Den Co-leader. He's enjoying it!

The kids are doing great, making good friendships (for the first time, Ethan has friends close enough to go play with during the day, and Cameron has friends from our ward within walking distance!) and are busy with Scouts, friends, after school activities, the Gifted Program (for both Sean and Cameron!) and Baseball. Life goes on!

I've had allergies/cold/whatever for 3 weeks now and today it totally got 100% worse so who knows what I have now? I'm taking Nyquil in about ten minutes, then getting up early for a study session, lunch with all three kids at school, four visiting teaching appointments, packing for Sean's campout the next day, and then staying up half the night for the Breaking Dawn midnight release.

Yeah...if I'm not sick now, I will be by the time the next 36 hours passes!

And my diet? Holy toledo, I eat anything not nailed down. It's really disgusting to be honest. I just can't get control over that one part of my life. Sigh. Ready for the next big fad. *giggle*

So other than being fat and mucousy (lol) I'm good! Loving that the radio stations are playing Christmas music already and loving that the first house in our neighborhood just put up their Christmas lights. I'm ready to join them!

Laterz...

play ball!

2011-11-07T00:01:00.000-07:00

Ethan is playing coach-pitch baseball this season, the first time in a couple of years, and he has been so very excited! For weeks he would ask when he was to start, and then once he got his uniform, he wore it every chance he could (three times last week!)

Most of the team is a lot more experienced than he is, but there are several kids who are just his size, so he doesn't seem like the littlest rookie out there.

He got to sample a few positions on Saturday, his first game.

And he got up to bat three times, striking out once, but hitting the ball the other two times.

He never quite made it on base, but it's all good practice.

What he really enjoyed were his opportunities to be the catcher (twice).

He is so cute out there, and the equipment is by far too big for him.

But I think he really likes this position because it gives him more chances to catch the ball. 'Course he only really caught it maybe 3 times, but again, it's experience.

Every time I looked at him he had a huge smile on his face. Let's hope that lasts!

He was probably happiest about running the bases at the end.

The team won, something like 8-2. Originally the coach named the team the Smurfs, but none of the parents could stomach cheering for them by that name. So for right now, they are "Blue--" and nameless.

Good job, team, and great first game Ethan!

book butterfly reviews -- october

2011-11-04T00:01:00.000-07:00

Oh Books, how I miss you!

Your escape! Your chilling prose! Your unpredictable characters! Your endless possibilities!

I've been busy with these monsters:

Amazon claims the Med-Surg book is only 6.5 lbs, but I swear it's closer to 15! And the Pharm? Zzzzzzzz. A real snoozer. I give it Negative 3 stars but just because it has a pretty purple cover. Oy.

So, fun stuff I did read? Not much!

"Twenties Girl" by Sophie Kinsella

It took me nearly a month to read this--not because I didn't like it, but because I was only reading a chapter every other day or so due to lack of time. It's about a gal who's 105 yr old great-aunt has passed, and then come back as a ghost looking for a long lost necklace. It's funny and engaging and easy to read. There's some light mystery and light romance.

One thing I will ask about British authors and British books in general: are curse words just not-so-cursey in foreign countries? Because there weren't any light curse words, no damns or hells, but there were about a dozen F-bombs that just seemed completely out of place and unnecessary in this book.

"Fearless Fourteen" (a Stephanie Plum novel) by Janet Evanovich

Giggles all around. Is it crazy that Dan and I have read fourteen of these? (almost done!)

"The Seventeen Second Miracle" by Jason F. Wright

I feel like this book took me seventeen years to read! It's good and has plenty goosebump-worthy moments, but it wasn't great enough to pull me from my nursing books.

I have to say, though, I spent most of the book in a state of puzzlement. It's one of those stories where the reader has no clue what is going on or why, and I don't feel that my questions were necessarily answered, so that bothers me. But, it IS a sweet book with a good positive uplifting message, so in the end, I'll say it's All Right for a Once Over.

Aaaaand, Scene! That's it. There are only 5 or 6 more weeks of school left and then I hope to read to my heart's content! What have you been reading?

my three ghouls

2011-11-01T21:02:00.001-07:00

Halloween was nice and uneventful this year; as usual we attended the ward Trunk or Treat (which was really well done for the short amount of planning time and had a great turnout!) and were actually invited to two others, but we decided the kids already had enough candy.

There were some really fun decorated trunks and some great costumes! Here are my kids this year:

Not a lot of effort went into these (who has time?) but they were happy.

After our kiddos went trick or treating here on Halloween night, we invited friends over for our usual after-trick-or-treating "Goonies" showing.

Love that movie!

That's Ethan's AND Cameron's collection there. And a cavity waiting to happen.

Gotta love that binging candy/ice cream face.

I had the kids pick candy from their buckets to mix in with the ice cream. Just as tasty as Cold Stone without the $6 price tag.

I love this shot. . .looks like she's about to take flight!

And here, Abby is imitating Chunk's throw-up story. Classic.

As usual, Halloween, "Goonies", and friends (and ice cream!) are a great combo. 'Till next year!

character counts!

2011-10-28T21:18:00.001-07:00

Today was one of those days where I went from thing to thing to thing. From the second I was abruptly startled out of my nightmare by my alarm (rough way to wake up!) to now, it's been go go go. Thankfully I got a lot accomplished, got in several hours of study group time, there are groceries in the house, and I was able to attend a fun ward Trunk or Treat party. (pics to come)

This morning, the chiclets (nope, thought that was gonna work, sounds too girly) were honored at a school event for honor roll and perfect attendance. It was packed, the parking was attrocious, and I never did make eye contact with Ethan, but at least I have the pics to prove I was there. :)

Good work, guys!

Yeah, it's upside down. I find that very ironic and funny. :)

walk to defeat ALS

2011-10-24T21:26:00.001-07:00

This past weekend, Sean and I participated in a benefit: "Walk to Defeat ALS".

Some of my classmates put together a team (Estrella Mountain Nursing Students) with the goal of raising $1000 for ALS research.

We dressed in green to honor the father of one of our classmates who passed away from ALS just before the semester started.

We surpassed our goal of $1000 and walked the 2.5 miles together with what seemed like a thousand other people.

It was a pretty neat event, and we felt fortunate to be included in the cause.

I know people personally affected with this disease (and it's sister disease, Multiple Sclerosis), so I was happy to help out.

I was proud of Sean for being willing to participate with me.

And our group had a really fun time together.

hybrid adventure games

2011-10-18T19:54:00.000-07:00

So, have I mentioned recently how much of a big buff stud my manly man Dan is?

Cuz he so is. :)

Last weekend he participated in Scottsdale's Hybrid Adventure Games out in the deserty desert of the Fountain Hills area. He ran 6 miles out in the mountains/hills, performed in the obstacle course, turned over tractor tires, tossed big ol' kegs, and all in all worked his butt off out in the 100 degree AZ heat!

It was a crazy event, made crazier by those who dressed up, were big fans of the Games, or even toured from city to city to participate. Sean and I went to support him and cheer him on.

And get sunburnt.

Seriously, AZ, enough with the heat already!

Danny said it was the hardest thing he's ever done, but he'd do it again in a heartbeat. Already looking forward to the next one in Temecula, CA next May.

Great job, Babe! You made us proud!

an afternoon at the circus

2011-10-10T00:01:00.000-07:00

So, like a thousand years ago (3 weeks), our friends the Haughts gave us some tickets to the circus out in Scottsdale! It was a fun spur-of-the-moment trip on the heals of Dan and Sean coming back from Slide Rock with the Boy Scouts. I was worried they'd be too exhausted, but they were all for it!

I took tons of pictures and videos, but the videos take too long to upload with my high-def camera (not complaining!) so here are some of our favorite acts.

Big ol' cats are always impressive! These even jumped through a ring of fire at one point.

The Tight Rope act was pretty cool.they jumped rope and balanced on chairs and even had a nearly fatal (scripted?) fall, but all in all very entertaining!

Lots of girls doing acrobats and gymnastics, wire work and feats of daring do'. Ethan was quick to point out that most of them were dressed quite inappropriately!

We saw bears performing tricks. . .

. . . fire jugglers. . .

. . . more death-defying acts of bravery. . .

This guy blew my mind. With every chair I felt certain he was going to plummet to his death. And then a handstand on top of them all! Wow! (I didn't even get a picture of the end result because I was in such awe)

Brave boys and girls on the flying trapeze, and yes, someone's flossing!

Followed by. . . a Lady Gaga impersonator's act?

These two were my favorite, and thus I will upload one video to show you. I was so impressed by their strength and beauty--all the while flying through the air sometimes with only one another's grips to save them. Amazing.

And we round it all off with elephants, who were very entertaining!

Their pooper scooper was quite entertaining too. These big guys dropped a load about every 45 seconds.

Such a fun first circus experience for our family!

book butterfly reviews -- september

2011-10-05T00:01:00.000-07:00

I was totally surprised that I completed this many, because it sure doesn't feel like I had any time to read last month. I'll quit whining about how Nursing School is a Time-Suck-o-Rama, just know that I miss my library books. The other day, I had 6 sitting up on a shelf, just begging for me to open them, but I knew I'd never get to them before they were due back. So I took them back. Unread. *gasp!*

Here are some of the books (all series) I partook of last month:

"I am Number Four" by Pittacus Lore

I really enjoyed this movie so I am pleased that I equally loved the book. Have been on the waiting list for-e-ver for the next book, very interested to see how it plays out and/if they'll make a movie about it.

*edited to add, the sequel was one of the ones I had on my shelf just three days ago and considered taking back. . .but it took me so dang long to get it from the library, I haven't had the heart to return it yet. I have 2 others I need to get through first, so I'm hoping against hope that I have time to tackle it, but it's really not likely*

"Twelve Sharp" (Stephanie Plum series) by Janet Evanovich

This one was really a lot of fun...not only did we get to learn a ton about Ranger and his past, but there were some good angsty parts between him and Morelli. The love triangle continues to develop. :)

*edited to add, my mom got the first book of the series out of the library a couple of weeks ago and promptly returned it. These books are not for every one!*

"Lean Mean Thirteen" (Stephanie Plum series) by Janet Evanovich

This one was all right, nothing too exciting.

"Forever" (Wolves of Mercy Falls series) by Maggie Stiefvater

I really ended up liking this series, such a fun fastastical story. I know the poetry and lyrics bothered some, but I really felt that it added to this story. I found the passages the author chose simply beautiful. They really added to the writer's own style and prose.

Really loved the last several chapters, very exciting! Highly recommended. :)

What are you reading?

fine. i gave in already.

2011-10-04T05:47:00.003-07:00

Around 2 1/2 years ago, I posted this, an adamant refusal to join Facebook.

I thought it was a time-sucking trend that would go the way of MySpace.

Well, 2 1/2 years later, it is only bigger and more popular and quickly becoming the only way to communicate with people! Let's face it, facebook is here to stay! At least until the next big thing, but I can't imagine that happening for a while.

After countless episodes of being the last to know things, missing out on news from friends, study groups at school, and just plain old coolness, I threw in my towel and joined the masses.

I am determined never to Farm. I will monitor my time. I will not let hours go by as I surf status updates. *pinky swear!*

However I look forward to being included again in my friends' lives! Heck, even the church facebooks nowadays!

I have no idea what I'm doing on there. I'm afraid that every comment I make is made visible to a million people. I'm still not sure who can see what on my Wall? I tried to join a group yesterday and couldn't even find it. LOL If any one wants to share their top 10 FB tips for a beginner, I'd appreciate it!

And join/follow/friend ?? me at www.facebook.com/amiedanny

treading water!

2011-09-25T20:40:00.003-07:00

No, I haven't disappeared, but as I'm sure you all understand, school is dominating my time. :)

Last week's SIM experiences were awesome--you may or may not remember that last semester's SIM week was my worst of the entire semester, so I was a bit anxious about going through it again. Nothing to fear, it went fantastically and was even kinda fun.

We start clinicals this week down at GoodSam hospital (6:30am to 6:30pm with an hour drive to and fro...yikes!), which means I'll be doing a careplan a week again (bleh!), have our next big test next Monday, and have a 3-5 page paper to write in October. In the meantime, chapters and chapters of reading are due each week along with online assignments and so on and so forth. Not to mention studying the past material for upcoming tests.

No surprise that when I allow myself a break I immediately *guiltily* grab a book or turn on the tube to catch up on my favorite sit-coms. But even that comes last place!

I do have some fun pictures and videos to share from last weekend, but it may be another couple of days before I have the time to edit and upload them. Youtube is very slow.

Enjoy the week everybody!

fuh-reezing at slide rock

2011-09-20T00:01:00.000-07:00

Dan shared with me some pictures he took on his camera phone this weekend, so you get one more post about Slide Rock.

We love Sedona, but being that it's a couple hours north of us, it can get pretty cold, especially the water, straight from the winter's snowfall. Yes, even in the middle of the summer, example, it's 110 down here, but was 64 degrees when my men got to Sedona with the Boy Scouts. It took a bit of convincing, but Dan, Sean, and all the kids that went in our carpool eventually got in. Here are some pics of the freezing participants.

tossin' around the ol' pigskin

2011-09-19T00:01:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a whirlwind of a day, beginning bright at early at 5:30 for Sean and Dan. They went up to Sedona with the Boy Scouts and played at Slide Rock. The water was something like 50 degrees! They had fun, but they said it was soooo cold!

Cameron's football game was first up for us back home. Their team actually lost, but the pictures I'm about to post are from the week previous, in which they won.

Cam usually ends up being a lineman, and hasn't pulled any flags yet this year. Last year, he was so good at it, so I don't know if he just hasn't had the opportunity, hasn't been in the right position, or isn't putting himself out there as much. I know *this much* about football, so I'm really not sure. He just doesn't seem to be having as much fun. Hopefully it'll get better for him.

Dan and the boys were back by 1-ish, so they quick showered and changed clothes and then we were off for our next adventure of the day--which I'll save for another blog because I have something like 250 pictures to edit! Needless to say it was a great and unexpected time. :) Til then!

little bits of life

2011-09-16T00:01:00.001-07:00

Just a couple of things I've been thinking of lately that I thought to add to the blog.

Had a really good week school-wise. We had an awesome wound & ostomy lecture from the Wound Team at Banner Thunderbird. Saw all sorts of gruesome pictures. Cracked me up how very 'into' her job the gal was...she was very amusing. It was gross, but also cool. Next week are our of-the-devil SIM clinical simulations (which is what gave me my nervous breakdown last semester, so I'm not looking forward to them!) and then the week following we start our clinicals at Good Sam downtown. At that point, the semester will feel half-over, although it's not, really.

I mentioned previously I'd been walking/biking/running in the mornings. Well I've stepped things up. After we came back from Labor Day camping I started running every morning. Crazy, right? Me? The Loather-of-all-things-running-related! I run 6 days a week for 30 minutes straight and have done as much as 2.3 miles. Ok so that's super slow, right? Something like a 13 or 14 minute mile. But I'm running it, which is more than I've ever done in my life. Ever. I still don't love it, and no, Christy, I'm still waiting for those endorphins to show up, but every morning, I'm out there at 5:30ish, huffing and puffing and burning calories. Never thought I'd see the day.

Last night just for fun I started speaking in a *really bad* English accent. The kids thought it was hilarious. Ethan can barely control himself once I start. It's pretty funny. I'm really not great at accents, but you'd think I was doing stand-up comedy he laughs so hard. Easily amused.

Our dryer's still broken. So I'm drying things in the back yard. It stinks. We don't have the budget to buy new and I'm afraid to go Craigslist, so I'm waiting for the magical dryer fairy to visit me. Or at least for someone to know someone who knows someone who's selling. :) In the meantime, our clothes are crunchy and wrinkled looking and I hate ironing!

I started back up with the ward choir last Sunday. Our numbers are super few, so we need new voices! You altos in the ward, I know who you are and I'm not afraid to come after you personally. It would be awesome to have 4 or 5 of us next week. That would just about double our choir. Ha.

I've been in the middle of three books for weeks. *sad sigh* I miss my fiction.

Going to the temple today with Dan (that means Chipotle for lunch, yay!) and then our ward's Progressive Dinner for couples at night. How cool will that be?! Like an entire day of date time with my hubby. It'll be nice since he just came off a 48-hour shift. Poor guy...don't know how he does it.

Tomorrow Sean and Dan are going up to Slide Rock with the Boy Scouts all day. Cameron has a flag football game back here at home, and at night the city is showing "Rio" at the stadium. Should be fun. Should have pictures to share. Should hopefully not take a week to post them. *grin*

Happy weekend everybody!

twenty-sixteen??

2011-09-14T00:01:00.000-07:00

I celebrated my birthday yesterday. :)

It was low key...I was at school for half the day, but feeling pretty good about it because I'd done decently on our first test the day before. Last week, well, last week was a different story. Last week I'd rather just forget, but this week went OK. Plus, I came out of school to find my van decorated thusly:

It was funny to drive around and have the balloons falling off one by one! The inside was full of balloons too, nice surprise from my sweetie!

I got a pretty little ID badge holder to attach to my uniform--it matches perfectly!

Cute huh? It's the only thing I asked for. :) But I also scored with Abba's Hits for SingStar. (thanks Babe!!) How fun is that?! Karaoke at my house!!!

So I came home from school and Dan and I had to hit up Denny's for my free Grand Slam Breakfast. Yummm. Did some studying in the afternoon, got the kids home and homework done, and then we went out to Buca di Beppo for a big ol' gettogether with 22 people. It was craziness, but the chicken carbonara was so good! Love my friends and the chance to get together. It's been way too long, seriously...I can't even remember when we got together last. How sad!

*I had to stop at gas stations twice on the way home* LOL Way too much eating for me yesterday!

But what a fun day!

4 days in the wilderness -- our most recent camping adventure

2011-09-10T22:23:00.001-07:00

I guess technically it was 2 full days, one night, and one morning. Any way you slice it, I was making pishy in the woods from Friday to Monday, so, go me!

Our favorite spot was taken *note to selves, leave a little bit earlier on holiday weekends*, so it took us until about 8 or 8:30pm to find a camping site. We even looked in the campground (FULL) and eventually found a perfect piece of land off some dirt roads in the woods.

I have something like 200 pictures, but I decided to just post my Top 10 favorite moments:

Moment #1: Cam & Ethan find the biggest stump of wood and roll/push/prod it over to our firewood pile. We didn't burn it actually, we used it to hold our water cooler. :)

Moment #2: some pretty decent pics with the kids actually looking at the camera. I tried more, this time around, to get the kids to stop what they were doing and look at me, as opposed to my just taking random photos. Notice how Cameron buttons his shirt collars all the way up. . . even while camping.

Moment #3: It is a pain and a half getting the boat and trailer down the boat launch backwards, and even more of a pain finding parking on a holiday weekend. But once we got the boat in the water and all of our occupants safely on board, it was Bliss.

Moment #4: mud bank!! The kids were a little tentative at first. But it didn't take long for them to dive right in! This was their favorite part of the whole weekend, by the way.

Moment #5 I didn't get a picture of. If we're up there camping for more than 2-3 days, we like to buy one meal at the little Cafe they have up near the Reservoir. It's just a little mom n' pop place, but the eating is good! I had a tuna melt, Dan had a bacon cheese burger, Cameron had a hotdog, Ethan had fish sticks, and Sean had a cheese burger. It gave us a chance to use a real bathroom and wash our hands really well too. :)

Moment #6: Game nights. Didn't get too many great pictures--I was too busy losing--but it was fun!

Moment #7: Dan learned how to make a hammock out of an old blanket. So Sunday morning when we were chilling and relaxing, he built this little hammock and we all took turns ~~destroying it~~ sitting in it. It was actually pretty cool.

Moment #8: blowpop break. 'Nuff said.

Moment #9: Sunday afternoon's weather. Just in time for the heat of the day, a storm came through and lightly drip-dropped on us, lowering the temp about 15 degrees, providing some much needed shade, and a perfect opportunity for me to read/take a nap in the tent. For 3 hours. Niiiiice.

Moment #10: the boys build a fort. They did this while I was napping. They put every single rock there--with Dad's help of course. Kept them occupied for hours.

We were off by 9:30 the next morning, came home, showered, and did 3 loads of laundry, frying our dryer. {PS anyone trying to sell a used one? We're in the market!!} You should have seen the state of the bathtubs afterwards! That's the mark of a good time, right? *grin*

it's coming . . .

2011-09-08T07:56:00.004-07:00

OK so pictures from the weekend are coming, I promise. I just haven't had time to do any editing and school is kicking my tail this week. I hope to have things updated by the weekend.

I'll tease you with this. :)

book butterfly -- august

2011-09-06T00:01:00.000-07:00

Things definitely slowed down in the reading department for me this month, not only because of the start of school, but because I started it out reading a bear of a book. That took up some time! In the end, I'm just happy to get in the reading I did. Next month will look quite different I am sure!

"The Count of Monte Cristo" by Alexander Dumas

In the words of Ramona Quimby, age 8: "I can't believe I read the whole thing!" This is one bohemoth of a book at just under 1500 pages. Perhaps 10% of the book was made into the movie many years ago (one of my favorites, Jim Caviezel...yum) and even that 10% was radically different from the book version.

The book has so much more to do with Edmond Dantes' life after escaping prison (about 1200 pages worth!) and his setting up the deaths and failures of those four men who took his life, love, and family away by deceit just hours before his wedding at age 20.

There are many subplots and many many MANY characters--so many so that I felt I should be keeping notes as I was reading. Most of the characters end up related or interconnected in some way, so that gets a bit confusing at times too. It was pretty quick-moving for such a large book, not wordy at all, just full of lots of dialogue and story.

One thing that made me laugh: the ability of women to faint when and wherever they felt apt to. One of my favorite lines from the book went something like "...she tried valiantly to faint, but finding this impossible, she gave up and..." Were women's constitutions just weaker back in the 1800s?
One thing that kind of bothered me: the Count's omniscience. He seemed to know everything about everyone, including their past and histories, their financial and geneological records... all after spending 14 years in prison. It wasn't really explained how he knew these things (other than he had access to LARGE sums of money?), or for example, how he knew a set of horses were going to spook and take off, endangering the lives of the carriage-riders, so he'd be in a position to save them. I know the book was translated from its initial french, so perhaps some things were lost in translation.

In the end, I am highly impressed with Dumas' book (don't even ask how my husband finds amusement in the last name), at the complicated and amazing tale he wrote, and recommend it to anyone with 2 weeks of free time on their hands. :)

So there you go, a mammoth review for a mammoth book.

"Ten Big Ones" (Stephanie Plum series) by Janet Evanovich

Again, we read this out loud. The fun part about this book is that Stephanie, in evading the gang member contract killer, finds one of Ranger's haunts and lives in it secretly while he is out of town. That was both funny and exciting, because you knew at any moment he could come home and find her squatting in his pent house suite.

"The Hiding Place" by Corrie Ten Boom

Not only is it absolutely amazing and inspiring what the Ten Booms did for Jews during the 30s and 40s (and beyond), but they were so completely faithful while doing it, never losing sight of a loving Heavenly Father who only wanted the best for his children--all of them, even the German soldiers. It's hard to read biographical works such as this; sometimes its just so hard to believe one group of people could actually treat another in such a revolting way. Thank heavens there were people like Corrie Ten Boom to make things a little easier for those in need, all the while willing to suffer right along with them.

"Phantom" by Susan Kay

Well I had really high hopes for this one, since I love the story of Phantom, the music, the play, the movie, etc. I was really interested to read about Phantom's back story on how he became such an amazing musican, magician, architect, and engineer. However, the story took a long time to get anywhere and I found myself skimming a lot.

"Hush Hush #1" by Becca Fitpatrick

Another great YA fantasy; nearly read this all in one night, which means I really liked it. I heard from so many people that this was a Twilight rip-off, but you know what? I don't see it. Pretty much the only similarity I see is that teenage girl falls for paranormal boy who protects her over and over--oh and that they meet in Biology class and she looks him up on the internet. Other than that, it's very much its own plot and story. I look forward to the next one.

"Bumped #1" by Megan McCafferty

This was a tough one...I was appalled from the start about the premise (dystopian society, teenagers are the only ones who can get pregnant, so they are basically pimped out as surrogates to the highest bidder), but I was also curious about it and really hoped there'd be a good message in the end.

The fact that the story was intriguing enough to cause me to read it all in one day should earn it more stars. However, not only was the subject matter rather coarse, what happens to most of the characters is pretty awful, and, like "Pretties" and "Uglies", this dystopian society has it's own language that just grates. on. my. nerves. so. much.

I also didn't like that from the start, the 'crazy' one was the morally upright churchy girl who wanted to wait for marriage, whereas her twin was the 'normal' pimped out ready-to-breed for money character. You can just guess how those two's stories played out.

This one 90% wrapped up, but I can kind of see how there could be another. I really doubt I'll pick it up.

"Eleven on Top" (Stephanie Plum series) by Janet Evanovich

The thing that made this installment different (and fun) is that Stephanie quits work at the Bounty Hunter office and starts and quits/is fired from job after job, and eventually ends up working with Ranger which I LOVE and hope (but doubt) the author will continue on in the next book.

"Crescendo (Hush Hush #2)" by Becca Fitzpatrick

This kept me pretty engaged and flummoxed 'til the end regarding who the bad guy truly was. It did get a wee bit confusing at the end. You know me, I'm ok with one or two fantastical elements but when every single character ends up being something other worldly, well, I lose interest. Also, the first one wrapped up neatly...this one ends on a cliff hanger. Urg!!

Now I've heard a lot of comparisons to Twilight with this series...there were a couple of similarities in the first book, but I was willing to overlook them. But when within the first 50 pages of the second book, Nora and Patch had broken up and she was doing Dangerous things in order to keep him in her life, well, I have to concede that those basic plot-lines definitely follow the Twilight/New Moon story arc! However, having said that, the rest of the story is very original and well done, and I still recommend it. :)

OH, and PS: can anyone explain to why these are named Hush,Hush and Crescendo? Is it just me or these really lame titles?

"The Iron King #1" by Julie Kagawa

Gave up, it just wasn't grabbing me. And then at the first mention of Faeries, I was outta there. I just don't care for books with faeries, I can't explain it. Yawn-fest.

So, that one doesn't really count. . . read 8, gave up on the 9th. What have you been reading? Recommend anything good?

where the highs are about 80 degrees. . .

2011-09-01T21:37:00.001-07:00

We'll be off the grid for a few days enjoying the weekend, will share some fun pictures when we return.

Happy 3-day weekend everybody!

i can see clearly now

2011-08-30T00:01:00.000-07:00

So yes, my two oldest 'flunked' their eye tests during their last pediatrician appointments, and thus optometrist visits were scheduled. Sean has something like 70/20 and Cam has 60/20, just a bit near-sighted for both.

{FYI Dan is also near-sighted but got the Lasic surgery several years ago, I've always had 20/20, and Ethan 'aced' his test at 20/15 during his test}

Just cuz they're my kids and I think they're so cute, here are a bunch more pics in their new glasses.

*giggle* these last two were Cameron's idea. Such a nut.

well , this is something new

2011-08-26T00:11:00.001-07:00

More details and hopefully better pictures to come during the daylight.

more of my life in a nutshell

2011-08-19T08:28:00.010-07:00

Once again, my blog has gotten a little boring and scant and void of personality.

I've, uh, gotten completely addicted to Buffy the Vampire Slayer (I watch for Angel yumminess) so I admit that's sucked some of my creativity away. I have had stuff to say, just no pictures to go with (Google Images to the rescue!), and I firmly believe in pictures with posts! Who wants to just read words...and stuff...and more words?

However, words I have!

Here's the latest--Dan and I just finished our Pathophysiology class online. It was easy. Too easy. So easy, I got a 99% and didn't learn a thing! Ha. Just way too easy to find all the answers online and not have to put any work into it. Oh well, at least we got the credit...and an 8lb book to fill up our ever-growing bookcase.

Things have gone well with the boys now ending their second week at school for the year. We've already settled into a nice rhythm, reading afterschool and doing homework before we play (myself included!), and so far, I think they're happy with their teachers and thus so am I.

For 3-4 weeks now, I've been exercising again, but not eating well at all, so I feel like the Pillsburg Doughboy. I alternate between running one mile (and that I've had to work up to, ugh!), walking 2 miles (or whatever 30 minutes gets me) or biking 4-5 miles, again shooting for 30 minutes. I enjoy the walking. Not so much the sweating. The biking is actually more difficult than I thought it'd be. I'd never realized it before, but most of our streets around here have some kind of incline going on. In several of my routes I've found entire miles uphill--it's slight elevation, but on a bike using just developing muscles, well...OUCH. Plus, my hands go numb as I ride, so I'm constantly shaking them out and trying to adjust to relieve the pressure on my palms. And don't get me started on how much I do NOT like the run. Buuuut I'm doing it.

Anyway, I go at 5:30 each morning and wake up on my own usually, so I guess I'm used to it. Dan's such a good example to me. He's been running every other morning for just about a year. He goes far though--something like 3-4 miles each time plus stopping for 300 pushups along the way. No thanks.

I start school this coming Monday! Block 2 of Nursing School, here I come. I'm excited, but scared-nervous-anxious as always. The last couple of weeks I've been reviewing my Block 1 information, just to refresh my mind. I think it'll be good.

Along those lines, yesterday, Danny had some Continuing Education to do at a hospital lecture for work. He said it was about pregnancy and jokingly asked if I wanted to come along since they served breakfast. Well, yes! Considering that Labor & Delivery is what I'm most interested in working at this point, I'd love to attend the lecture. We got to the hospital and found out that the nurses on site were doing a drill in which they simulated a bunch of bomb explosion victims come in. Dan decided he wanted to help out with that instead, so I stayed upstairs and listened to the lecture. It was very interesting, I totally loved it. I was sitting there with all these paramedics and firefighters (and no one knew who I was) but I was eating good and learning. All good things.

I've been using Stephanie O'Dea's "Totally Together: Shortcuts To an Organized Life" to help plan my chores and jobs throughout the days and weeks. For example, it tells you when to clean your remote controls, change your bedsheets, dust your windowsills, etc. It's kept me focused and busy since the boys have been back to school. I do a chore, then I watch a Buffy episode *giggle* then I'll study for a bit, then do a chore, etc. (Thanks, Steph, for the book!)

Dan and I have been extremely blessed to be able to attend the temple twice in the past two weeks as well. We sure love our Day Dates! It takes us about an hour to get out there, so we look forward to when the Phoenix temple will be up and running in two years or so.

So there you have it, lots of this, that, and the other. I've also been reading as many books for fun that I could fit in, knowing that my reading rate will seriously decline once I'm back in school. Sigh. It's been a great summer for reading. It's been a great summer all around!

court of honor -- 1st and 2nd class

2011-08-15T08:41:00.005-07:00

Sean had amazing Boy Scout leaders this past year (actually every year they're awesome, but we were particularly impressed this year!) and thus Sean was able to earn his 1st and 2nd Class rank by the time he turned 12.

Here he is receiving his awards and pinning me.

let's see if we can keep this one alive

2011-08-12T00:01:00.000-07:00

Meet our new pet: Shadow.

Otherwise known as Golden Shadow.

Or as I like to call him, Golden Percival Shadow, making his initials GPS. :)

Best wishes on a long and happy life, buddy.

another first day at school -- 2011

2011-08-10T00:01:00.000-07:00

I was actually a little sad to watch my big boys climb onto the bus Monday morning. We joke that back-to-school-time is the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, but truth is, we had a good lazy summer. Plus, with my guys going back to school comes the inevitable start of my own semester, so I haven't really been too eager for it to come.

I don't get weepy or sad when my kids start school, in general. The day my oldest, Sean, went to kindergarten for the first time I did cry off and on all day. But since then, I've been completely OK with my children going off to get educated, leaving me at home do. . . whatever. However, today, I did have a bit of a lump in my throat watching the school bus drive off. I came back home to find the house was quiet, too quiet.

Not to say I didn't get a bunch done--I did, I kicked butt, really--but I missed them. Big kids, 2nd, 4th, and 7th graders now!

I told Cameron as long as he smiled and looked at the camera, he could do any pose he wanted. So I got half a dozen of these goofy ones. I do have one formal nice one (for posterity sake), but these are cuter. ;)

In two more weeks it'll be back-to-school for me too! Good luck on the new school year, everybody!

backstage tour: let the show go on!

2011-08-08T00:01:00.000-07:00

(credit, ASU's website)

Sean and I had the awesome opportunity to go to our favorite theatre house, Gammage out in Tempe on ASU's campus, and do a back stage tour. For those of you unaware, this is where we've seen all the Broadway shows we've been to in the past years (Wicked, Les Miz, Phantom, Shrek, Beauty & the Beast, etc).

We took several pics of Sean on the stage--a place he'd like to spend some serious time in the future. :)

Looking at Stage Right from Stage Left.

On the rising/lowering orchestra pit.

Maybe some day, Buddy!

From the perspective of the catwalk where all the sets and backdrops are, well, dropped.

Done using hydraulics, but also by manpower if the electronics short out.

Each show leaves their Mark on a backstage wall.

A literal firewall that can be dropped in seconds in case of emergency.

Dressing rooms.

I think I see a celebrity!!

Our tour group loved Sean and his cute little personality. I'm so glad we got this chance. . . it was pretty cool!

The following is about a minute long video of us in the bottom of the orchestra pit being lifted up. I just thought it was a pretty neat contraption they had going on, either allowing for the height of the conductor or allowing for another 3 rows of seats if the orchestra was not needed. Gammage is an awesome place, designed way back when by Frank Lloyd Wright, and it is indeed impressive!

day trippin: lake pleasant

2011-08-05T00:01:00.000-07:00

We absolutely love having a teeny tiny boat to call our own on hot summery days as these. A few days ago we were able to spend the whole day out at the lake without any rush or commitments to return home to. It's nice having something so close (40 minutes or so) and generally cheap ($10 to enter). We packed in a lunch, our sunblock, and the innertube and got down to some serious fun.

The boys all took turns driving the boat and did pretty good jobs of it. I, however, am lousy at it. It's one of those things where you turn the opposite direction that you want to go . . . well, my brain just can't master that. Ethan was a superstar though! He drove the boat from halfway out in the lake all the way to the boatlaunch with hardly any help from Dan. He looked so cool and casual steering the boat . . . wish I'd had more room on my camera's memory card to video it.

The water temp was completely comfortable and perfect and still refreshing. I recall thinking as I was floating along in the innertube, kicking my feet behind me, that this was the perfect ending to the summer.

book butterfly reviews -- july

2011-08-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

Sadly, summer is coming to a close, and with it, all the yummy reading I've been able to do. Soon enough, the only reading I'll be doing is from my boring Med-Surg book for class. The thing weighs like 800 lbs, I swear.

Here's what I read last month:

"Linger" by Maggie Siefvater

I didn't like this one near as much as the first, but it was still a good story. The last 30 pages is the best. I'm now really looking forward to getting the 3rd one from the library so I can see how everything gets tied up. This is a fun fantasy series.

"Sisterhood Everlasting" (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series #5) by Ann Brashares

I wasn't so sure about this one at first...it takes place something like 12 years after the last book ends (the girls are all 30) and almost immediately there is a huge tragedy, so much of the book is spent in sadness. It has a very very different feel from the others, but in the end I liked it about as much as the rest of the series and like how it ended up.

"Seven Up" (Stephanie Plum series) by Janet Evanovich

I just giggle so much reading these. Totally fun.

"If I Stay" by Gayle Forman

1/2

I felt a close connection with this book because the plot is about a young gal that gets thrown out of a car and ends up in a coma in the ICU. There were so many similarities between what the character went through and what Danny went thru in 2001, it was scary. Many of the same injuries, surgeries, and treatments.

The story is told from her 1st person perspective--as a ghost of sorts outside of her body--as she watches all the comings and goings around her, deciding if there's enough of a life left for her to stay behind or if she should let herself pass and join the rest of her family in the afterlife.

Last chapter had me in tears. It was a good one.

"Bossypants" by Tina Fey

This was really funny and made me appreciate Tina Fey (and most comedians) more, but holy toledo, does she have a potty mouth! It's just not necessary. Her stuff is funny without all the bad language.

"Twilight" (the Mediator Series #6) by Meg Cabot

This was a cute ending (I assume?) to this series. Suze wasn't nearly as annoying with the "I mean"s and the plot was an original one. I recommend the series; the books are light, very easy to read, somewhat PG rated due to language.

"Hard Eight" (Stephanie Plum series) by Janet Evanovich

This was kind of a weird one...it was kind of a boring story and plot--the main person she was after wasn't even an FTA (Failure to Appear), and the FTA situation she WAS after had a really weird ending. I liked the addition of Kloughn in this one--he's kind of endearing in a Pillsbury DoughBoy kind of way, and I DID like the romantic parts of this book, but have to admit I'm getting kind of tired of all the teasing between Stephanie, Joe, and Ranger. 8 books in, is she finally picking one of them? I think not, cuz there's another 10 books ahead of me with the same complication.

"Dearly Departed" (A Secret Sisters Mystery series #2) by Tristi Pinkston

The author was sweet enough to give me a copy of this book (I won it on her blog). This was a really cute light mystery, starring a bunch of LDS Relief Society sisters out to find a murderer. It's the second in a series--it made me want to read the first one! :)

(Incidentally, Tristi has about 2 weeks worth of giveaways going on her blog right now to promote her third book in this series, "Hang 'Em High". Go enter!)

"Juliet" by Anne Fortier

Easily the best book I read all month!

Totally enthralling storyline and characters (and 3 Diet Cokes since noon) kept me up reading this until 3 in the morning. I read just about all of it in one day and absolutely loved it! This follows a 14th Century Romeo & Juliet as well as a modern-day one, combined with the mystery and excitement a la The DaVinci Code. There were a lot of characters in this book (told from both time periods) so sometimes I had a hard time keeping track of who was who, but in the end, I found it very enjoyable.

"Where She Went" (If I Stay series #2) by Gayle Forman

I think I liked this better than its prequel (for obvious reasons--I was no longer reading about and reliving my husband's 5 weeks in the hospital) and I really liked the narration from the angsty boyfriend in this second book. Beware of bad language, but definitely pick this one up (after you read the first one).

"Wings" by Aprilynne Pike

I liked the first half of this a lot more than the second half. I'm just not into fairy stories I suppose, and the more into the book I got, the more fantastical it got, and the less interested I got. IE I fell asleep a few times.
Not interested in picking up the next book. :(

"To The Nines" (Stephanie Plum series) By Janet Evanovich

I'd even give this one 3 1/2 stars...I like that there was a change of scenery and a lot of the action took place in Vegas. And I like that Stephanie didn't have ONE car demolished in this one (3 in the last book I think)--that was getting kind of old.

Lula on a diet was pretty funny.

I'm also 75% done with a mammoth 1500 page book I started about a week ago, never believing I'd get all the way through it, but heck if I'm not almost done. :) A lot of just good books in there, one highly recommended in "Juliet" and the "If I Stay" series was definitely interesting.

What are you reading?

"i got that uh, gala. . .it's a uh, regatta gala"

2011-08-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

*10 points if you can name that sit-com reference*

Cub Scouts sponsored a Regatta-themed Luau this weekend in which all the boys had an opportunity to sail their home-made regatta boat.

We started Cameron's the night before the event. (ahem)*slackers!*(ahem)

Sooo Cam didn't win any of his heats, but the races were fun, the hawaiian haystacks were yummy, and the Cub Scout committee put on one heckuva luau.

Why is there always that one kid that can't take a straight picture, why?

Aloha!

return to fossil springs

2011-07-29T00:01:00.000-07:00

Last year we made the trip to Fossil Creek/Fossil Springs in a camping adventure that I wasn't too keen on repeating. There was a death-defying drive to the spot which was hot, dry, and deserty (no pine trees) and to top it all off, fires were unallowed.

The creek and the swimming, diving, and rope-swinging were awesome though.

This week, Dan and Sean went back with some of Dan's work friends just for a day trip. They took a back road in which seemed to be slightly less terrifying as they tell it, and the 1 1/2 mile hike to the falls was an easy one.

Totally worth it for this:

The waterfall had its share of visitors that day, and to hear them tell it, that launch off the cliff was pretty scary, but they had a really great time.

Gotta love the hidden treasures in Arizona. :)

sean's 12th birthday bash

2011-07-25T00:01:00.000-07:00

It's been a couple of days since I've written because we've been quite busy. We had family in town from last Friday until Tuesday and then more birthday stuff and then catching up stuff and before you know it, a week and a half has gone by.

The main stuff? I now have a 12 year old. :)

Sean turned 12, which means he got the Aaronic Priesthood and was ordained to the office of a deacon at church. One of his main duties will be to pass the sacrament each week; kind of surreal that we have a child that old.

We were surprised that all the grandparents planned to come into town for the ordination, but pleased of course to have so much family all together to support Sean.

It doesn't seem that long ago that all those same people got together to witness his baptism at age 8, or even his blessing as a newborn. My, time does fly.

He's a great kid, and very talented. I'm so proud of his musical abilities, his fearlessness to get up in front of a crowd, his uncanny love for attention.

I took hundreds of pictures of course, but instead of displaying all those this blog post, I'm just going to make it about Sean and my love for him. He's growing up so very fast.

Big thanks to all our family members who came and made his weekend special. We love you all!

Happy birthday Sean! We love you so much!

day 3, pismo beach and a birthday

2011-07-15T00:01:00.000-07:00

About 3 hours west of my in-laws, one can find this:

Well, minus the three cute kiddos that is.

And down the Pismo Beach Boardwalk you can find this.

And these.

Blech.

I'd prefer this, where I wasn't brave enough to order seafood (I got a turkey sandwich) but I did sample the clam chowder which was really super creamy and caloric and delicious.

Waiting for our table.

Chowing down.

Out on the pier. I dare you to find one picture in which Cameron is actively looking and smiling at the camera. He just can't do it.

The water was stinking COLD. Dan was the only one brave enough to go past his ankles. He actually body surfed for a half hour or so and had a grand time.

Meanwhile, I played in the sand.

The clean, soft, dry, warm sand.

Everyone takes that shot, right?

The boys played in the sand a bit too.

I'd like to claim that it's the distortion of the water that makes my toes look funky in this picture, but you all know that is not the case.

Look at the camera, Cameron!

Sigh. Although I detect a new wallpaper for my desktop.

I enjoyed the view from the sand. :)

The sand castle ended up pretty big.

My first time seeing a jellyfish. Dead. Is it gross that I post this? I was fascinated by it's jelly-like consistency.

And then the lifeguard came and hauled it away. See how big it is??

So we played and layed out, relaxed and soaked up the sun, enjoying the frigid cold Pacific Ocean. (AZ wimp, here) Then it was back to the house for Kyle's birthday party with all the cousins.

Hello there Jordan! (I think)

The grandkids always love "Rock 'em"!" with Grandma and Grandpa!

So cute. These guys are serious camera hogs!

And hello Joey! (I think!)

Happy 11th birthday to Kyle--with some seriously delicious cake.

And, oh, why not, some more swimming, as if we hadn't had enough of that yet this vacation. :)

Our birthday present to Kyle, ha.

Such a great day! Wish I lived 3 hours from the coast!

The next day (4) of our vacation, we relaxed. We swam (what else?!) layed out and read books by the pool, watched a movie on the couch, and had a perfect vacation day before it was our time to head on home on Day 5. As always, this trip was full of fun and cool memories. We love our family and wish they were closer so we could hang out more! It's fun having so many cousins here there and everywhere. We love you guys!

day 2, annual family summer olympics

2011-07-13T00:01:00.000-07:00

A few years ago around this time, Great Grandpa (Dan's Grandpa) hosted the H-------- Family Summer Olympics, and it is truly one of my favorite memories of all time. We were so excited that it was planned for the week we visited this time around. {looking at the pictures from both years, I realize Sean is wearing the same swimming suit. . . 3 years later. Hmm, might be time to buy him a new one!}

Though there were other things planned, it was really really hot outside, so we stopped after the water portion. It was fine, the kids (minus Cameron) were happy to just do the swimming events and stay cool that way. Unfortunately, Cameron was really looking forward to pulling into the lead during the other competitions, and he never got his chance. Those California kids are all swimmers! Some have had lessons, many of them have pools, and lots of the competitors were just plain older and taller, so my kids didn't win anything this year. But it was still a blast.

We start with some laps and relay races

Spectators!

He won just about every race!

Sean did his best, but his competition was older and faster.

McKay was awesome in his age group.

Brianna was the all around winner! She is learning sign language because she has a deaf friend at church. We had many conversations during the week about signs and using signs. She's doing great!

Supporting the cousins.

Too stinking cute!

Creative dives.

They did this for hours, it seems!

The giant score board!

Finally, time to eat!

Some great weather moving in.

The three in charge of all the games, (cousin Lindsay, Grandpa, and cousin Kristelle) great job you guys! A lot of planning and organizing went into this.

Ethan receiving his ribbon.

Good job kisses from Dad!

This isn't even all the great-grandkids, but it's a good portion of them. What a fun group!

I finally made it into a photo.

Sean got Bronze for his age group.

Then Grandpa took us on a tour of the property to see the things he'd built for the kids. First up, the Zoomer, as he called it, or the Zip Line.

Isn't it awesome?!

Only for kids 75lbs and below or I would have totally tried it.

Then he showed us a couple of the tree swings he'd built.

And an awesome treehouse!

Crow's nest and everything. Too cool!

I love this guy! He is such an awesome Grandpa (and Great-Grandpa). My favorite part of this trip (I think, there were so many great times) was this last 30 minutes when I got to sit and talk with him. He shared some wisdom with us, and I have to say, out of everyone I know, this is one guy who's pretty much got it all figured out. I love him!

That night, just as we started the day, the kids ended up back in Grandma's pool. So they'd been swimming at least 3 times by this point! You can certainly see it in Ethan's and Cameron's eyes too. . . and this is the good picture! It was a really fun and busy day. We were so happy to participate in such a fun family event.

summer showers

2011-07-11T22:02:00.005-07:00

It is pouring right now outside...I love hearing the beat of the raindrops against my large bedroom window.

The miserable stifling windless heat that we've been suffering through the last several weeks gets a small reprieve in a gusty summer shower.

I love summer storms--warm enough to run out and play in and not get chilled, warm enough to not need a jacket, to just open up your arms and twirl around in the cool wet downpour.

The smell. Just can't beat the smell of rain. I absolutely love it, as long as I am home, nice and safe, my loved ones gathered around me.

Like a little gift from God: "Here you go, Arizona! I haven't forgotten about you. Have a drink."

day 1, the baptism and pool party

2011-07-11T00:01:00.000-07:00

While we missed the 119 degree weather back home, it was still hot hot hot in Cali. As I said, anything over 100 degrees is just hot.

Our first stop was the church for Kylie's baptism. Aren't they a cute little family?

Afterwards, a bit of fun dessert.

Next up some cousin time!

On to dinner and the pool party.

Couldn't you just eat them up with a spoon?! Remember when we went to their baby blessing last September? They have grown so much!

There's the birthday boy!

The baptism was a sweet experience (we're proud of you Kylie!) and all the grandkids sang a cute version of "I Know that My Savior Loves Me". We enjoyed catching up with everybody at Heather's home and even had a quick "Happy Birthday" cupcake for Kyle.

Fun first day. :)

california vacay -- the highlights

2011-07-08T21:29:00.001-07:00

Pardon me as I take a few days to recoup from our July 4th whirlwind vacation to visit Dan's family in central California.

We had a most excellent time, but now that we're back, it's back to laundry and cleaning, homework and heat heat heat.

Some highlights from our trip, you ask? Here you go:

baptism of our niece Kylie followed by yummy dinner and pool party at her home
the annual H--------- Family Summer Olympics up in Squaw Valley as hosted by Great-Grandpa
meeting and re-meeting all the clan, cousins, aunts and uncles, and oh-so-many 2nds and 3rds and greats
two words: zip line
awesome one-on-one talks with Grandpa
super yummy food, and keeping to my diet
low-key fireworks in the street
chillin' and relaxin' on Pismo Beach
clam chowd-ah
ahhhhh. . . (sorry, still thinking about Pismo Beach. . . and the clam chowder)
11th birthday party for nephew Kyle, complete with to-die-for carrot cake infused with pineapple, almonds, and raisins
playing with twin babies now almost one year old and so stinkin' cute it almost makes me want another baby
swimming three times a day; no kidding!
reading next to the pool in the 100+ weather
not shaving my legs for 6 days (it's ok, I have really blonde hair and it grows slow)
finishing 2 books
no car problems
keeping up on homework while there but not hatin' it
pretty good behavior from the boys

Each day was so wonderful, and I am so glad I have the 511 pictures to document it. You'll get to see a few of those in the days to come.

How did you celebrate the 4th?

book butterfly reviews: june

2011-07-01T07:48:00.001-07:00

I had a pretty good reading month; among camping trip and day trips, lounging by the pool, having one class end (and another class start already), I had plenty of time for some good (and not so good) books. 15 in all! I don't even know how that's possible.

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

I would give this 3.5 stars if I could, because I did really like it, but I didn't love it. The idea that some kind of magic exists allowing one to read-to-life characters from story books is really fun and exciting, great concept for this novel. However, I don't like that it ends slightly different than the movie (not all the characters get happy endings) but there are two more books to the series, so I suppose their stories are tied up eventually. I liked this enough to continue on in the series.

Girls in Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares

Another cute one. And Bee continues to be my favorite of the four girls. I wish I was a bit more high-spirited and reckless like her on occasion!

Forever in Blue: The Fourth Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares

I read this 384 pg book all in one day...not because it was particularly good (it was good enough, I enjoyed it), but because it was a fantastic distraction. I'd been working on (and silently cursing) my online Chemistry class all day, getting frustrated at the mistakes in the text and online lesson (yes, seriously, I've found a dozen mistakes--it is so annoying and upsetting) and not hearing back once regarding the three emails I'd sent my professor about questions and inconsistencies on the assignment.

Add to that I'm dieting and starving and my weight loss has stalled 4 straight days in a row...picture me, walking into the kitchen to eat ANYTHING, looking from one thing to another, but knowing that I couldn't and that I'd only regret it in the morning. So. I shut the fridge, left the kitchen with a Diet Pepsi with Lime, and took to my room where I painted my toenails, listed crap on craigslist, and read for almost 4 straight hours.

The book: I've really come to like these four characters. If you remember it was tough for me to get into; felt so juvenile. Well, this book definitely was not juvenile. Sadly it was a little too risque in my opinion for a YA book about teenagers, for teenagers, but sadly that is the way of the world. Having said that, I did like most of the plot, liked the character development (always love Bee's stories and her enthusiasm, and I was so glad Carmen was not the whiny brat she was in the past 3 books) and thought if this is the way the series is ended, it was done in a good way.

I recommend it, but the whole series needs a bit of caution when it comes to letting your teenage daughters read it.

**edit, just saw that there's a 5th book due out in a week. Guess the series is not done. :)

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

I was really intrigued when I picked this up, because from the many friends of mine who have read this, it got ratings of 1 star all the way up to 5. I was very interested to see where I'd fair as I read it.

Have you ever wondered just why exactly a classic is a classic? Read Of Mice and Men, and you'll see what I mean. I was shocked to find out it was a mere 105 pages for starters. My average lately has been around 400 or so, so 105 pages seems hardly able to develop characters and plot, let alone come to climax and conclusion.

I'd known the basics of this story...a couple of guys in the 30s go from town to town as hired hands, kinda running from trouble. They have their dreams of owning their own ranch some day. One of them is the brains, and the other, the brawn. Brawn is also pretty much mentally deficient, shall we say. He does whatever his buddy tells him to do, is huge, and in fact, dangerous in his innocence, but he's a hard worker.

There are plenty of interesting characters in this, and even though there are only 105 pgs in the book, character development definitely occurred. Similes and foreshadowing are also evident. I was horror-struck by the ending.

Would I recommend it? Nah. It's full of bad language and is a rather sad story. Literary aficionados could certainly argue their points for why this is classic, but it's not my cup of tea.

Firelight (Firelight #1) by Sophie Jordan

I really liked this! This is the kind of fantasy I enjoy, plus light romance as a bonus. I hope there are lots more of these because I really enjoyed the storyline about the girl and her tribe descended from dragons. I guessed the twist quite early on, but that didn't ruin it for me.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

It's strange, I was totally diggin' on this book for pretty much the entire thing. I felt it was such an original concept going along with the dystopian society thing. People have become so offended at this and that, that pretty much all creativity and imagination and thought is gone, unallowed, and banned on screen, in print, or in action. Firemen are trained to start fires, to burn books, and to rid the world of any evidence of original thought.

It was pretty creepy, but enjoyable. The climax and ending worked well.
But then, The Afterword by the author.

In which he feels the unnecessary need to pretty much restate the philosophy of his whole book by citing personal examples of how 'book burning' and censorship are going on today. I was really turned off by these few pages (of course his few bits on Mormons didn't help his case either...some time in the past he must have been slighted or censored by one). You know how if you have to explain a joke, it ceases to be funny? Well that's what The Afterword did for me for the whole book. Had he left it alone and let his story speak for itself, I think I would have been much more impressed.

The Crimson Rooms by Katharine McMahon

This is a tough one to critique. It was very slow-moving for me at first; I really didn't get into it until well past pg 150. It's about a woman lawyer, Evelyn, in the 1920's after the Great World War, a time when women were just starting to enter the law and the workforce in general.

There are many subplots going at the same time, plots that make one wonder how and if they are all connected? There is the issue of the mysterious baby-momma who shows up 6 yrs after Dear Brother has died wanting shelter and income. There is the issue of one of the cases Evelyn is working on--an 'unfit' mother who gave up her children to an orphanage, only to find she was unable to bring them home again once she got sober. Then there is the murder mystery. There is also a subplot of romance, which was enjoyable. To be honest, I wasn't sure which was the main story.

The name "Crimson Rooms" is mentioned only once, as a place that wounded solders see in their dreams when they are near to death, only to be brought back. Didn't really get the significance of this nor why it became the novel's name.

Slight spoiler:

About half-way thru, I got an inkling on whodunnit...from that point on, I was hooked. Now I won't tell you regarding if I was correct or not, but I will tell you that the ending fell rather flat. Evelyn is still not really her own person by the end of the book. She is not a very good daughter, friend, lawyer, or lover.

I think the ending could have been tied up much nicer than it was, and for that I am disappointed. However, the story did keep me up at night, wondering and pondering if my predictions would turn true. The writing was well-done and the characters were interesting. It IS slow-going, and I didn't care for the ending, but I will say that it was good enough to merit the 3 stars.

Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt

This is one of the strangest books I've ever read. It had a lot of promise, really--16 yr old girl gets lost in the wood, meets Death, tells him the beginning of a story with the promise of returning the next night to be his bride if he'll give her just one more day in the real world. They make the deal that if she can find her true love in one day, she doesn't have to be claimed by Death that night. She kind of continues to trick him night after night with promises of the ending to this story as she continues to search for her one true love. So, great premise, right?

However, the characters were all really flat. We really don't get to know Keturah at all. And while this was written for YA, the writing was actually quite lame. I hoped for so much more. The ending is just bizzare. As a reader, you generally have a pull one way or another towards a character and/or how you want the story to end up, but the ending of this book left me with a "What?!" taste in my mouth. Just weird.

The Alchemist's Daughter by Katharine McMahon

Another tough one to review. This author frustrates me so much! The story is very good and very well written about a young woman in the 1700s, raised in all the learnings of her scientist father. It did take a while for me to get into it, but I enjoyed the story of her development, elopement, and transformation from the alchemist's daughter to something more along the lines of what her new husband wanted.

Spoiler!

Like her other book "The Crimson Room", the bad guy gets away scott-free. I hate that! The main character spent her whole marriage being pretty much sexually abused because she didn't know any better, and you keep hoping that he's going to die a tragic death or get lost at sea or smashed by an anvil or something, but, nope. He goes on living his happy oblivious life, stomping on people, and having a complete lack of care of humanity in general. And as far as the romance, you THINK she gets together with her True Love at the end, but it doesn't literally say so.

I finished these two books feeling unsatisfied! I don't think I'll pick up another from this author.

Inkspell (Inkheart #2) by Cornelia Funke

I gave up on this one...it wasn't bad necessarily, it just wasn't holding my interest. I got to page 65, and there were almost 600 to go. I decided it wasn't for me. At this stage of the Inkheart story, Dustfinger has been read back into the book, and we see a lot from his point of view. With all the faeries and magical creatures, it had a very Fablehaven feel to it, which just isn't interesting to me.

Shiver (Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Steifvater

I really really liked this one! Call me a sucker for cheesy teenage romance, but I ate it up with a giant spoon. :) I'd even go so far as giving it 4.5 stars--I reserve my 5 star ratings for books that I would purchase for myself and read over and over again. This didn't quite hit that status, but I did really enjoy this story about a boy who is a werewolf during the cold months and human during the warm ones, and the girl who falls in love with him.

Normally I don't care for books that have poems and 'songs' and random lyrics thrown in, but it actually worked for me in this case. The fact that those lyrics came from a teenage boy's mind is slightly unbelievable, but it was good nonetheless.

High Five (Stephanie Plum #5) by Janet Evanovich

These books seriously amuse us. Already have the next two ready to read out loud. Enjoying the development of Stephanie's (and supporting cast's) character. The development of romance with Ranger was fun too. Glad there's so many in the series! (17? 18?)

The Scorch Trials (Maze Runner #2) by James Dashner

Ummm...hmmm... I'm still pretty confused. *giggle*
I mean it was good, and kept me reading (listening on CD), and I couldn't wait to hear what happened next, but I didn't really understand it. Still don't quite get it. I would have rated it higher if there were just more ends tied up, more answers given.

I'm starting to feel like these are the book equivalent of "Lost" episodes...and we all know I quit that show 3 seasons in. :p

Anyone else have this problem?

Room by Emma Donogue

I read this nearly all in one day; it was completely captivating. It's about a woman who is kidnapped and kept in a converted shed for 7 years by her abductor, never seeing the outside. In the meantime she has a son (fathered by the abductor)--and the story is told from the son's perspective. It's a completely horrific story about their completely contained life inside this Room.

On one hand, it's very creatively done. Writing a five-year old's perspective is ingenious and difficult and gives the reader a completely different perception of this kind of life, one in which he knows no other. On the other hand, no 5 year old I know talks this way...and his manner of speaking did become tiresome after a while.

Although it's an awful story, it was very well done and worth the read.

Hot Six (Stephanie Plum #6) by Janet Evanovich

3 1/2 even! Dan and I had a lot of fun reading this one. With the addition of Bob the dog and Grandma Mazur moving in with her, plus new characters in Dougie and Mooner, there was plenty of laughs. My kids happened to be in the car when we read about the dog poop and they were dying laughing.

So, to sum up, one dud (Inkheart #2), a few strongly recommended (Firelight, Shiver, and Room--if you can handle it) and a couple of 'Whaa--?" (Maze Runner 2, Keturah and Lord Death). All in all, not a bad month of reading. We'll be in the car a lot over the next week, so I hope to get a few knocked out pretty quick.

Although my Pathophysiology class just started and each week I have something like 4-5 chapters due, so then again, maybe not.

What have you been reading?