Fun in Italy...Part One

We are home! Our trip to Italy was amazing! I loved having 9 glorious days alone with my husband in a country that truly took my breath away. Here is the very, very abbreviated travel log. If you are itching for more, please come see our 254 digital pictures or 4 hours of video!

Day 1: We got up at 4:30 a.m. in order to arrive at the airport by 5:30 a.m. so that we could catch our 7:00 a.m. flight to Rome, Italy. We flew through Chicago and then on to Rome where we arrived at 11:30 p.m. our time but 7:30 a.m. Rome time. Our plan was to push through the day in Rome and then catch a night train to Sicily that evening. While it all sounded smooth on paper, it got to be pretty brutal at a couple points during the day. I couldn't look at the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel without swaying and feeling a little dizzy. I cat napped at some pretty impressive fountains and then cried over my gnocchi at dinner that night from sheer exhaustion. But in between the cat naps and tears, we saw some AMAZING things! Vatican museum, Pantheon, Spanish steps, Trevi fountain, other beautiful fountains and piazzas whose names I can't remember, tall towers, old buildings, a million scooters, charming apartment buildings with gardens on the roof or on the balconies...I just had to stop and close my eyes and take it all in. It was beautiful and charming and unbelievable that we were there!



Our visit to the Vatican museum. We saw mummies, lots of naked statues with fig leaves covering their privates, and the amazing, breath taking Sistine Chapel.


We averaged 2 gelato stops a day. There is NOTHING in this world to compare with Italian gelato. You could spend a year in Italy eating gelato 2 times a day and never taste all the intriguing, exotic flavors. We did our best though!


The beautiful Trevi fountain. Notice the bags starting to form under our eyes.

That night, we caught a sleeper train that whisked us through the night down to the island of Sicily. The train ride was about 12 hours but we slept through most of it. I had never slept on a train before so it all sounded rather intriguing and "Orient Express" like...we had bunk beds, a little sink, and plenty of pillows. The only down side was having to lurch down the train in the middle of the night to reach the potty. All part of a great memory!





Day 2: After our night on the train where we even crossed ocean on a ferry, we transferred to another train that whisked us to a beautiful sea-side city called Cefalu. We walked from the train station through the old town to our quaint bed and breakfast. It is a beautiful city! Our little room was perfect and after examining the view from the balcony, I crawled in to bed and slept for 4 hours! Perfect.

After waking up, we went out to explore the town. The ocean is an unreal color! It was clear and the most amazing shade of blue. We just took our time that day and enjoyed the town, explored the magnificent cathedral, climbed the mountain to look out over the whole view, and ate a delicious dinner followed by amazing gelato. It was a perfect day!

Twilight Trailer

I really thought I was over this little obsession. Guess not. Mark your calendars...December 12, 2008 is the opening. Does anyone else feel like you might not make it til then?

Twilight Movie Trailer


Or check this out for more fun:
More Twilight Fun

Good-Bye U.S.A

Well, these 2 parents are leaving those 3 sweet faces for NINE glorious days while we explore southern Italy. We will try to post pictures and travel reports when we can so check back if you are interested in seeing how 2 adults survive on their own for the first time in a LONG time! We are headed for Rome tomorrow and then down south to Sicily. C. served his mission there so I'm excited to go see this significant part of his past! Plus he speaks the language which means we don't have to look totally lost and American.

Thank you to ALL the wonderful family and friends who are watching the kids! You are making this possible and we are SO grateful to you. It is hard to believe how many people it takes for 2 parents to leave 3 children...my fear is the kids are going to dread us coming back!

So...Ciao!

Classic Moment

My favorite moment today happened on a jaunt through Wal-Mart with ALL 3 kids (which by the way, is totally against my personal creed to take children shopping, let alone shopping in the "Petri Dish" store.) Anyway, we were looking at some Band-Aids when H. noticed a box with a picture of blood on it. Since she has a strange love/hate relationship with blood, she asked me what it was. It was a box of "finger pokers" (sorry for my severe ignorance) used to test your blood. Thus ensued a pretty intense conversation about diabetes and why you have to poke your finger and test your blood and taking insulin and such. M. asked, "So Mom, what happens if people don't take their insulin?" I explained that they could get very sick or even go into a coma. M. asked, "What is a coma?" I told him it was when you go in to a deep sleep and people can't wake you up. M. was thoughtful for a moment and then said, "Hey Mom. Maybe Sleeping Beauty had diabetes!"

I had a good chuckle.

Let The Fun Begin...

So, my friend calls and asks if I can watch her kids tomorrow. I say, "Sure. What time?" She tells me and then asks, "Do you want to check your calendar?" I grudgingly get up and wander into my bedroom but I know this woman knows me really well and that I have a tendency to do what I like to call "living in the moment" which is really a much nicer way of saying that my memory isn't what it used to be. So I check the calendar and then I have to laugh. "Uh, I guess I can't watch your kids tomorrow. I'm going to be on T.V. at that time." Yeah. I forgot I'm going to be on T.V. That is a scary "living in the moment" event to forget although it means I haven't lost much sleep wondering what I'm going to wear or how dumb I'm going to sound. But I guess this means I better start thinking about it.

So...let the fun begin. I've been asked to do a book segment (in conjunction with my book column with Wastach Woman magazine) on Studio 5 tomorrow (WEDNESDAY, April 9th) at 11:00 a.m. on channel 5. Don't know what I'll be wearing, not sure which books I'll be sharing but there I'll be, in all my chubby glory! Tune in!

(And if anyone else out there knows of somewhere I'm supposed to be at a certain time, drop me a line. Apparently I'm not checking my calendar very well!)

No More Dinner Stress

I really hate dinner. I hate trying to think of something to cook, trying to muster up the energy to cook, trying to convince the kids to let me cook, and I really, really don't like grocery shopping. We might as well sit around and eat dollar bills! You hand over hard earned money for stuff that you are just going to eat and then poop. I don't mean to be graphic but really...when put in that context, doesn't eating dinner with all the shopping, prep, creativity, etc. just seem like a waste of time? Well, today I found the website that just might change my life. It sends you a meal plan every single week...healthy, nutritious, fresh ingredient meals...easy to prepare (prep time around 20 minutes) and gives you the whole grocery list (organized in to the different sections of the grocery store) and prints out all the easy recipes for you to follow. If you don't like one of the recipes for the week then you remove it and add another one. In 10 minutes I'd planned all the dinners for the next week, printed my little grocery list, add a couple additional things I needed, shopped, and voila...we had a fairly decent dinner tonight! So...just thought I'd share. I still had to go to the store, buy the stuff with money, fix it and will have to poop it later but having someone else do some of the work sure made it seem a lot more pleasant.

The Six O'Clock Scramble

Daily Grind

I think about blogging all the time. When funny or sad or weird or profound things happen I compose it all in my mind in to a splendid blog but alas, the daily grind triumphs and in the end I always choose sleeping over composing. My days are filled with wonderful things though. I am so grateful for a life filled with so much that brings me joy. I love my work at my children's school. I help in the library but my favorite time is working with the kids in the classroom. On Fridays, I go in and H. and I read to J.'s class. We take "special lunch" with us and H. gets to sit in a "big kid" desk to eat while I read out loud. I choose the books to read so they get a wide variety...poetry, non-fiction, picture books, etc. After each book I let the kids vote and we record their scores on the board. I don't know why the voting is so meaningful but I do think they like having their opinion asked!

I love writing my book column. It takes to me to all sorts of fascinating literature and pushes my mind in a direction that isn't always comfortable but feels good as I learn to stretch and grow in a new craft. I've been asked to write 2 additional articles for the magazine...one on charter schools and the other on the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival. This will present whole new opportunities and challenges and I love having that to look forward to.

I love working out with my friend Tonya. We have been walking and lifting 3 days a week since November and it has not only done my body good, but done my soul even better. With every lap of the track, I laugh and talk and get free therapy...and I forget I'm exercising. Doesn't get any better than that!

I love my 2 book groups. Each book group is comprised of a different set of people, friends from such important phases of my life. And I love that my life moves forward with these amazing women taking such significant part. We call it a book group but my husband sometimes chuckles at how much "book" discussion actually happens. We always read the books and we always devote time to what we have read but it is the real life drama and shared experiences that uplift and motivate and fill my inner teacup the most!

I love belonging to the CLAU organization. I love promoting children's literature all over the state and standing for values that I feel so passionate about. I love working with so many different types of people that have truly educated me and blessed my life. I love being exposed to so many different types of literature and learning to give a voice to the things I think. I still stutter and stumble but it has opened avenues I didn't know were a possibility.

I love my family. I am constantly overwhelmed by the daily challenges of raising 3 little children and trying to find balance in the world but again, I love the physical, emotional, spiritual opportunities for growth that it brings. I have stopped hoping for the day that I will wake up and not be overwhelmed by being a mother...it isn't going to happen. Instead, I wake up praying for the wisdom and strength to be what they need and to set an example for them that will lead them to embrace what I hope will be happiness in their lives. A big charge...one I don't take lightly although I'm not always very good at it. I want my children to love learning and reading and talking and playing and imagining and listening and adventures and quiet time and scripture reading and prayer...I want them to love people in all their varieties. I want them to be loved and appreciated for who they are and what they bring to this world. Sigh.

And a significant part of that family is my husband...I love my husband. The longer I am married, the more convinced I am that I have been given a rare and wonderful gift in finding this man who wipes bums, watches kids, sweeps floors, cleans bathrooms, grows gardens, plays endless games with his kids and uses his amazing talents to bless the lives of others both in his professional career and personal life. He is thoughtful, funny, kind, compassionate, loyal and dedicated in all aspects of his life. I love holding his hand and kissing him and being with him. He is such a joy and strength and constant in my life.

So there you have it...my daily grind. Sometimes it is hard. Sometimes all these great experiences collide and I feel stressed but most of the time it provides a rhythm and balance that soothe and feed my spirit in wonderful ways. Moderation in all things...I'm learning that. And I'm trying to learn to say "no"...I'm good at that mentally but struggling to say it out loud. Life is grand. Opportunities are around every corner. Share what you love with your kids. Don't think of your interests and hobbies as being exclusively yours. Find ways to invite your children in to what you love and cherish. Not only do you give them grand experiences to enjoy and explore, but you have more time to do those things yourself. Get out, explore your neighborhood, volunteer to do something you didn't know how to do, don't be afraid to take your kids with you and remember that however hard one phase of life seems, it will end and joy can be found in the strangest places.

Ah, ain't life grand?!

Winter Thrills

Just lots more fun with the new toy...

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

Weekend O' Fun

Having lots of fun with this new toy! Best part about the whole thing is that it takes less than 5 minutes, I send it to Costco to be printed out and TA-DAH...pictures not just sitting on the camera. yeah, I'm liking this.

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

An Experiment

A friend recommended this website to me so I've just been playing. I do have to say...it makes "scrapbooking" not only bearable but actually kind of interesting. These are just some random pictures but everything I just did was free on this website. Anyhow...like I said, just an experiment.

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

Oh What Do You Do In the Wintertime?

So help me, if it snows one more time I'm going to pull out all my hair and run naked around the neighborhood...just for something new to do. I'm so, so, so tired of beautiful, soft falling, gentle snow. It was so charming the first 300 times it snowed and now it just weighs on me like a giant avalanche. I'm trapped in my house, I haven't left this little area/neighborhood for over a month, a mystery dog has taken to pooping on the front sidewalk every morning, and my snow pants are getting tighter and tighter from all that Stephen's hot chocolate we've been drinking. Where oh where is blessed spring?

The good news in our family this week is that J. got a speaking part in his school's first drama production. He will be playing the illustrious role of Demon Bear #2 (you KNOW I'm not making this up...who could even make up a part like that?) They are doing a play called "Sunlight, Moonlight" which apparently is a Tibetean (?) fairy tale. Now seeing that we are only a very poor charter school, they chose a script that was free and could be downloaded off the internet. The writing is not exactly Tony Award winning and there are demon bears in the play but we couldn't be more proud of our little thespian! The play was opened for kids K-8th grade so I was shocked J. wasn't shy about trying out. Matter of fact, when the drama lady asked the kids to show her their best "demon bear" growls, my friend leaned over and asked, "Uh, is J. OK? I almost expect to see him foaming from the mouth." I assured her that any one of my children could summon their "demon" sides without much effort...we just need to work on the bear part! Anyway, if any of you are in town toward the end of March and are curious as to what demon bears do, please let us know. I'm sure we could muster up a few extra tickets!

Other news...hmmm. Not much happens when you are stuck in your house. My parents are on a 2 week trip to the Holy Land, my good friend just took her family to Disneyland for the week, and I'm actually looking forward to our trip to University Mall on Tuesday...you know, get out of town for a little while! Things aren't so bad. I have a warm house to live in, way too much food to eat, a fleece "leisure" suit that is getting quite a workout this winter (it has pretty much become a uniform item for me), 3 hilarious kids to keep me entertained (H. danced around with a pull-up on her head the other night and I really thought I was going to pass out from laughing so hard...cheap thrills!), and a husband with patience and a sense of humor that might just pull me through the winter dol-drums. (Is that a word?)

If you are in town, stop by for a cup of hot chocolate and a chat. I'm the one melding into the blue leather chair in the front room with the dirty fleece leisure suit! (Yikes...that was SUCH an unappealing image to put in your head!)

Did You Know?

Did you know...
That Wal-Mart offers lasik surgery? I'm a little disturbed that I can now go to my local ghetto department store and get a pedicure from a Vietnamese man, pick up a Happy Meal from the Hispanic crew, grab my tolietries, prescriptions, groceries, and household items from the toothless, pregnant, flannel pajama wearing cashier and then stop by the eye center for a little zap to my corneas. And the lasik surgery is only $439/per eye. I mean seriously...would you EVER let ANYONE at Wal-Mart put a laser to your eyeball?

Did you know...
At our local rec. center, downstairs in the weight room, there is a machine that will strengthen and tone your crotch? Don't believe me? There is a intricate drawing on the machine showing the generic human body in black and white with the crotch highlighted in red. With all my stress about my hips and thighs, I never once considered that my crotch might be flabby! Will the body image stress ever end??

Did you know...
My 3-year old can fix a scrumptious "pig in a blanket" all by herself? She helped mix the biscuit dough, rolled it out on the counter, cut strips, rolled the hot dog inside and laid the whole affair on the cookie sheet. I just stood aside and took pictures. It makes watching Barney tomorrow seem a little "remedial" for her. Barney is just tackling colors, shapes and feelings and my 3-year old is ready for recipes, pre-heated ovens, and culinary design.

Did you know...
The nutrition label on the bag of chicken nuggets sitting in my freezer indicates that my children will die of high cholesterol, heart attack, and stroke by the time they are 12 years old if I continue feeding them this crap? (Pipe down...some of us parental units figure things out a little slower than the rest.)

Did you know...
They just announced the Caldecott and Newbury Award winners? The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Seltzer won for the Caldecott (AMAZING book! I love, love, love it. Reading it to J. right now and we can't get enough!) and a book I've never heard of won the Newbury. Go check it out. (C'mon people...just GOOGLE it.)

Did you know...
That when we were sitting at my 6-year old son's basketball clinic today listening to a group of 50 boys yell "DEFENSE" and stomp their feet that my poor 5-year old came up and asked me why all the basketball boys were yelling "Jesus!" When a bunch of boys shout "defense" really loud in an echoy gym, it does sound just like they are praising the Lord.

Did you know...
An iPod nano will make ANY circumstance and/or situation better? Jogging, cleaning house, entertaining children, doing my daughter's hair, going potty (I watched an episode of Scrubs on my iPod nano yesterday while using the "facilities". Never enjoyed myself more. M. kept banging on the door asking why I was laughing and why I was taking so long.)

Did you know...
The T.V. show Pushing Daisies is the most entertaining, clever, creative, funny show on the television right now? I dare say I am enjoying it more than The Office, 30 Rock, Scrubs, and Amazing Race. (Funny...I was just telling a friend today how I really don't watch T.V. anymore. Hmmm...) Actually, I don't watch ANY of these shows on T.V. because that is so "YESTERDAY" to sit around watching T.V. I just download them on my iPod nano and watch them while hiding in the bathroom. So much more sophisticated. (And I have the nerve to make fun of people wearing flannel pajama bottoms to work at Wal-Mart? My poor hypocritic life...)

Did you know...
I got an iPod nano for Christmas?

Did you know...
Pluto is NOT considered a "real" planet anymore? It got demoted last year.

Did you know...
you can't ever count to the end of numbers because it goes to infinity and beyond? That makes me crazy and gives me a headache every time I think about it.

Did you know...
Old Navy is having a HUGE sale right now where everything in the store is so dirt cheap that I almost felt like they should be paying ME to carry all those bags of dirt cheap clothes out to my car?

Did you know...
my husband is AWESOME. (And really cute?)

That's it. Just wondered if you knew...

My T.V. Debuts

I have had my 30 seconds of fame...which actually happened so early in the morning that I'm not sure anyone was really awake. On December 14th, my friend and I appeared on Good Things Utah, a local "girly" morning show on ABC4. I did the set-up for our segment and my friend actually appeared on the show to represent the Children's Literature Association of Utah (CLAU), the organization I am board member of. We talked about using books as great gifts and the basis for creating long-lasting memories. If I might be so bold, you should go check out our link at CLAU website (look at the top and click "Gift Ideas")

Well, one of the hosts that day is also a morning reporter for the station and she called me a couple days later and asked if we would be interested in appearing on their early morning show "Book" segment. She wanted both my friend and I to appear on the show and asked if I knew where we could find some kids to appear on the show as well. As luck would have it, I have 3 hams and my friend has 6 hams! We were well-stocked. So on January 2nd, at 5:45 a.m., my little family showed up at the Salt Lake City Main Library to film our segment. (Are you doing the math? That means we were up at 4:30 a.m. so we could leave by 5:00 a.m. Scary stuff.) We got everything set-up and ready to shoot and as they went to shoot the teaser, they discovered some technical difficulties with the equipment. They tried and tried to get it too work (it was supposed to be a live feed) and finally the station told her to get the segment shot and drive it in as fast as she could. So we shot the whole 3 minutes in one take and she took off. It was supposed to be 2 different 4 minute segments...I was really disappointed at first. Especially because we were in Salt Lake City at 6:30 a.m. But we redeemed the morning with a huge breakfast at IHOP and watched the sun rise as we stuffed our mouths full of eggs, bacon and pancakes. It was a really fun experience...M. got lots of air time. I'm going to try and post the link. TV Debut.

Christmas Happy

Here is sincerely hoping that your holiday is filled with lots of silly, wonderful, memorable moments!
Love,
Amy

Another Major Award!

J. is having a lucky streak right now! Last month the local library held a "scary story contest" and J. decided to enter! He wrote the funniest story that actually has some plot and character development...I was a little shocked. I typed it for him but he did every bit of the writing and editing. We turned in it and crossed our fingers.

Last Monday night we went to the library to hear the winners of the contest announced and guess what?? J. won "honorable mention" for his story in the 6-8 year old category. This honorable mention came with a certificate and $5.00 cash! He thought he had hit the jackpot. So I present to you now, first time award winning author, Big J. and his scary Halloween story....

Once there was a Halloween house. It was scarier than the one you saw on the cover. If you went inside, there was no way out. If you ever tried to get out, you would need one million flashlights. It was because of the Dracula, the mummy, the witch, the ghost, and the bat that lived there. They liked to break the light switch anytime someone came near. Whenever kids came trick or treating, as soon as the kids heard the footsteps coming to the door, they ran away. The footsteps sounded spooky.
The monsters always knew they were nice. One Halloween, they witch said, “We are nice monsters. Why do kids run away from us when they come trick or treating? Is it because of our footsteps? We need to make sure that no kids hear our footsteps this Halloween.”
On Halloween night when kids came trick or treating, they rang the doorbell but they didn’t hear any footsteps so they thought no one lived there anymore. They just walked away.
The next Halloween, the mummy said, “Last Halloween kids rang the doorbell but they didn’t stay for treats. Is it because of the looks outside our house?” On Halloween night, the monsters put made their footsteps sound like human footsteps and made the outside of their house not look so spooky. But the outside of their house did not have enough Halloween decorations so when kids came trick or treating, they thought the monsters weren’t celebrating Halloween. They walked around to the back but the back of the house looked the exact same. So the kids just left.
Next Halloween, the bat said, “Last Halloween kids didn’t come trick or treating. They didn’t even ring our doorbell! Maybe it’s because the doorbell sound is too scary.” So that Halloween night, they made their footsteps sound like humans, decorated their house like anyone else would decorate for Halloween, and made the doorbell sound like a bunch of bats flying out. (It usually sounded like a million monsters growling.) When kids came trick or treating, they rang the doorbell and all they heard was a bunch of bats flying and they got really scared and ran away (a million miles per hour!).
On the next Halloween, Dracula said, “I heard kids ring the doorbell last Halloween but when I answered the door, I didn’t see anyone there! Maybe it is because of the yard, all dirty and trashy.” That Halloween night, they made their footsteps sound like humans, decorated their house like anyone else would decorate for Halloween, made the doorbell sound like a regular doorbell and cleaned up the yard (but they made it look like a bunch of monsters were coming out of the ground). When the kids came trick or treating and they saw the yard, they tried not to think it was real but there was too much stuff and thought it was definitely real so they walked away quietly.
The following Halloween, the ghost said, “Last Halloween I didn’t even hear the doorbell ring. Is it because of the way we look? Dress up like humans everybody!” So that Halloween night, they made their footsteps sound like humans, decorated their house like anyone else would decorate for Halloween, made the doorbell sound like a regular doorbell, cleaned up the yard, and dressed up in human costumes. When kids came trick or treating and they rang the doorbell and the mummy answered the door all dressed up like a human, the kids said, “Trick or Treat!” and took a piece of candy. For all the rest of the Halloweens, the monsters were happy because kids came trick or treating.

THE END.

Halloween 2007...Let The Games Begin

J. and M. dressed up for Halloween parties at school. J. is a "roman citizen" and M. is Peter Pan.

Our neighbors had a friend visiting them from Norway who had brought his little 5-year old boy along. They were here over Halloween and this little boy thought he had won the lottery. He just couldn't get over the fact that in America they have a holiday where you go around and people give out free candy...as much as you want. My friend said that every time someone dropped a piece of candy in his bucket, he would just stare at it with a really stunned, delighted expression. And really...can you beat Halloween? I am delightfully full of Reese's Peanut Butter cups, Mound bars, and Butterfingers. I've met my quota and feel like I can face this year with renewed energy and enthusiasm. So here is how we spent our day o' indulgence...

At J.'s charter school they made all the kids write a report on a historical character they wanted to be in order to get permission to dress up. They keep it all very educational and a little over the edge but J. didn't seem to mind. He decided he wanted to be a "roman citizen" (not a roman soldier, not Caesar, just a roman citizen...not sure where the idea came from!) so he wrote what I thought was a very intelligent report and got permission for his costume. Chris made an amazing toga like contraption out of a white sheet and fashioned a real laurel leaf wreath for his head. I thought J. looked rather sophisticated and "romanesque"! The kids and I went over to his school for the Halloween assembly where J. marched in the costume parade and then won an award for his report that he wrote! We were so, so, so proud! A major award! :>)

J. marching in his Halloween parade at school.





J. receiving his award during the assembly.




When we got home, M. was disturbed that I hadn't carved a pumpkin yet. Now I have to admit something here...please don't think that I'm unpatriotic or un-American but I really don't like carving pumpkins (or dyeing easter eggs for that matter). I find it slimy and messy and I don't have a lick of artistic talent so my pumpkins never look very interesting. Chris always carves pumpkins with the kids and I am always THERE but just not sticking my hand or knife in to any pumpkins. So in order to put my son's mind at ease, I went and got our box of Mr. and Mrs. Potato accessories and went to town on the pumpkins outside and I have to say, I was rather pleased by the results. I may have found my pumpkin niche!






























That afternoon we did a little costume changing and headed over to Chris' work for some pre-trick or treating. It was fabulous! People were handing premium candy and I literally ate my way silly through the experience! The kids walked out with pounds and pounds of candy and I was ready to just sit on the couch rubbing my buddha belly and watch a scary movie but the kids were not to be deterred from their real Halloween experience. So...we got home, emptied all the buckets from round 1 and prepared for round 2. J. had chosen to be Spiderman for Halloween, H. was Snow White, and M. went through a different costume every time we had an occasion to dress up. At one party he was a knight, the next party he was Peter Pan, school party he was a dragon, and on Halloween Eve he walked out as a vampire. (We do have an impressive dress-up box if you ever want to come and play!) Like I said, H. was a beautiful Snow White until moments before we were supposed to go out trick or treating and instead of wearing her amazing Snow White dress with the ruffle socks, black patent leather mary janes, and gorgeous golden curls tied in a charming red bow, she took it all off and decided she wanted to wear the dirty, dingy, matted purple fur unicorn costume that I bought at DI and can't quite get that funky smell out of. (Serves me right for buying a purple unicorn costume...it just seemed like such a good idea at the time! I hate unicorns!) After a meltdown, a temper tantrum, and a battle out on the front porch, Chris managed to convince her to be Snow White and the kids took off with their father and grandfather for some trick or treating.










The kids ready for some trick or treating!










The kids with their grandpa...I'm starting to see where my husband gets his artistic talent!


Todd and Carrie (Elvis)...isn't she fabulous?

I stayed behind with grandma and Elvis (Carrie) to fix a fall feast. We had acorn squash filled with a long grain, wild rice mixture, pasta alfredo with hot dogs cut on top to look like an octopus (for the kids), assorted veggies and dip, salsa and chips, gummy worm ice-cubes floating in the drink and a lovely apple-caramel cake for dessert. I was proud of the feast. I don't do feasts very often.

Well, the kids were out LOTS longer than I thought they would be. Chris commented that once you kind of find your trick-or-treating groove, it is hard to stop. They came back with tons more candy and deliriously happy grins. We ate, we purged, we ate some more. Everything you could ever want from a holiday...

It was a delightful day. I love Halloween...not so much the actual holiday but the arrival of autumn. The crisp weather, the gorgeous leaves, the decorations and chunky sweaters and new jeans. It is my favorite time of year.







P.S. If you are an Oscarson or suffer from mild to severe OCD then you will appreciate this postscript. M. came home from trick or treating and immediately organized all his candy in to specific piles and groups. He then placed each pile in an individual snack size baggie and rearranged them back in to his spider container. I couldn't have been more proud!

Carrie Ann Birthday QUIZ

It is time for some blogging fun! We are going to see how well our bloggers know are beloved birthday girl Carrie Ann. If you would like to play the Birthday Girl Quiz Show Game, then EMAIL me the answers to the following questions. There will be a legitimate prize sent to your home if you answer the most correctly.

1) How old is Carrie Ann?
2) List 2 majors Carrie Ann had while in college.
3) What year did she get married?
4) What year did Carrie Ann graduate from college?
5) What LDS mission did she serve in?
6) Name Carrie's 3 chickens. (2 of them have recently passed away but we will include this questions in memory of them!)
7) What is Carrie Ann's favorite color?
8) What is your favorite dish that Carrie fixes?
9) List 3 countries Carrie has visited since graduating from college.
10) What is one of your FAVORITE things about Carrie Ann?

(Consequently, I will make sure Carrie Ann gets a copy of your responses so she can have warm, delicious feelings about herself anytime she needs it! :>)

Do not delay! Email the answers right away! (If you need my email address, leave a comment and I will get it to you!)

The Birthday Kids

This month we have celebrated 2 birthday kids! Carrie Ann Rhodes and my own sweet MCC. Carrie Ann is turning 25 again and MC just turned 5 years old...which is hard to believe because I swear he was just turning 2! We had a little joint birthday party for them at Mo and Papa's house a couple of weeks ago complete with 2 wonderful Great-grandparents, stunning birthday crowns, a delicious snake cake made by my artistic husband, a delicious, traditional Sunday dinner provided by the parental units, lots of Swedish "hurrahing", and some beautiful singing around the piano. It was wonderful. For those of you who were not able to attend, here are the highlights.

MC about to enjoy a present from Mo and Papa.

So you take a bunt cake pan, pour in the batter, cook, cut in half, and make a snake. Now, I assure you I've looked at that pan a dozen times and never seen a snake. The artistic mind is a true wonder to me.

Enjoying the birthday song in two languages with lots of shouting at the end!

You are welcome to come party at our get-togethers any time but just be warned...they aren't always "sanitary" affairs. Here are my little darlings whipping the candles out of the cake, licking them clean, and then if you are 2 years old, sticking them back in the cake. Yum...serve me a slice of licked cake!

Chip and ML's family gave MC the cutest "chef's outfit" complete with hat, apron, and little hot pads just his size. He asked me all day when it was time to cook dinner and he was right in the thick of things the whole time. Thank you for such a fabulous gift!

Happy birthday sweet birthday people...now get geared up for Mo's on the 23rd!

Family Adventures

I have to clarify something right from the start...going somewhere with 3 little children can most definitely be classifed as an "adventure" but I'm not sure I would call it a "vacation". In my mind, a vacation involves lots of stress-free leisure with a fruity, slushy drink in one hand, a good book in the other hand, and my whole body resting on some kind of floating device in water. I didn't drink, read or float on this trip so it definitely classifies as a grand adventure! (And really if that is my definition of a "vacation" then I'm not sure I've ever really been on one. But I'm a big dreamer!)

We decided to squeeze one last trip out of our annual Disneyland pass and thought we would be clever by going at the beginning of October when surely no one else would be skipping school to go to Disneyland. We left bright and early Saturday morning and headed for Las Vegas to start our adventure with Abby, James and Caleb. It was truly a glorious 2 days! Their house is beautiful and tasteful and classy, Betty's cookies are amazing, the meals unbelievable, the company divine, and the purple sofa thingy heavenly to sit on. I truly loved every minute of being with my sister and her sweet family. Unfortunately, it was not well documented photographically. I will need you to zip on over to Abby's website for the one snapshot that was taken. Sunday evening we headed for California. After a bizarre traffic jam in the middle of nowhere, we arrived at the Taylor's home. Chris' sister and her sweet family have endured us 3 times in the last year and I'm certain they are very grateful that this annual pass is expiring! The next morning, bright and early, we headed for the happiest place on earth.

Now as I mentioned, I fully expected the park to be empty...what other irresponsible parents would pull their school age children out of school for a week to go to Disneyland? Well, we were in very good company. It wasn't summertime packed but it was definitely more crowded than I expected. Still...we started the day off hanging out with Buzz Lightyear! Great guy...lots of laughs. We then proceeded to ride as many rides as we could before the lines got too long.


This time of year Disneyland is DECKED out in full Halloween gear and I love it! My favorite ride is the Haunted Mansion which has been converted in to "The Nightmare Before Christmas" in honor of the season. It is spectacular! This is a picture of one of the "holiday wreaths" at the Haunted Mansion and J. preparing his best fright face for the experience!






























J., H., and I spent some quality time at Woody's Halloween Round-Up in the petting zoo. Why does it seem like we spend lots of time petting goats in our family? Everywhere we go there seems to be goat petting zoos. Not that it is bothersome, just a little strange. I wouldn't mind petting a sheep or pony or other furry animal sometime.

There was the most amazing pumpkin sculptor. He had just sculpted a Davy Jones pumpkin and an Alice In Wonderland pumpkin. How would you like to sculpt pumpkins at Disneyland for a living? Doesn't sound like a bad plan to me...except I don't sculpt.




This is J. and M. playing on the "skulls and bones" playset on Pirate's Cove Island (formerally known as Tom Sawyer's Island).










If there is anything to climb, hang from, explore or touch, M. will have it done in no time flat. I really don't know where this child gets his amazing energy!









J. with his first prom date. I'll have you know he set this picture up himself.










M. taking his turn with J.'s prom date. They seriously thought they were so, so, so funny! And they were.










As we were wondering around toward the end of the first day, we looked over and H. had climbed on a bench and was "resting". Nothing like a day being dragged around Disneyland on 2-year old legs. We did have a stroller but who wants to be strapped in when there are a million things to touch?




We truly had a fantastic time at Disneyland. Here is the "must have" photo in front of the Pumpkin Mickey on Main Street. Should have specified to the photographer that we wanted more than Mickey's lips in the shot!





On Day 2 of Disneyland, we celebrated M.'s 5th birthday! C.'s sister presented M. with a pumpkin cake for breakfast on his birthday. She had even dribbled his name and age out of white chocolate to put on the top. She is truly the master homemaker! M. thought it was tremendous fun to have cake for breakfast...and his favorite gift that morning was a pack of gum he received. I love 5 year olds!















The birthday breakfast ended with a rousing game of "use paper plates to make Dumbo ears and sing weird songs". I'm so glad these 2 boys have each other.






One of the strangest parts of Disneyland is Mickey's house. In order to actually meet Mickey Mouse, you have to walk through his house, garden and out back to his movie studio where you then wait in line FOREVER and are finally ushered a few at a time in to a room where he is standing and you awkwardly shake his hand and have a one-sided conversation and feel like an idiot at a peepshow. M. had written him a letter which he presented and H. had written Minnie Mouse a letter so when Mickey tried to take her letter, we had a little temper tantrum. Thus the picture where M. looks very solemn and H. is gripping her Minnie letter for dear life so the weird big mouse doesn't steal it from her. It was all a little surreal.

Speaking of surreal, try Mr. Incredible in tights with a huge plastic head.











Favorite moment from the entire adventure...we were resting on a bench inside California Adventure, when they started a "block party"with music and character's from the movie "High School Musical 2". The music was blaring over the loud speaker but we had already seen the show so we just continued our sitting. Well, M. heard that music start and threw off his shoes and headed out to the middle of the walkway for some serious dancing. Pretty soon H. and J. went out to join him. It was so hilarious! M. was seriously out there just being carried away by the music and nothing was going to interrupt his moment. Pretty soon, we had our own little group of vendors that had gathered to watch our show and they were very validating with their clapping and smiles! Our children had zero inhibition and it made C. and I laugh for a good 20 minutes. It was quite a show!

Disneyland was wonderful but after 2 days, I was ready to go. My feet, legs, arms...entire body hurt from pounding the pavement for 2 long days. So on Wednesday morning we said good-bye to Anaheim and headed for San Diego to visit C.'s brother and his family. It was divine!

We spent our day with them on the beach and had a great time! H. loved the sand, M. headed out for some boogey boarding, and J. alternated between serious sand building and wave crashing. It was the perfect afternoon!













































It was a great trip! We arrived home exhausted but really grateful for the time we had together and with family without all the interruptions of daily life! Thank you to the 3 families who cleaned their homes, baked cookies and cakes, and entertained us on our way! Our favorite moments with definitely spending time with aunts and uncles and cousins! So now that our passes are expired...who wants to host us next??