GO COUGS!

Thanks Jon for the great tickets, we were about on the 30 yard line 19 rows up.

I must admit that I am married to the biggest BYU football fan. We left for Utah at about 3 pm PST Friday, had breakfast with Gma & Gpa Stewart, went to the game, saw Gma & Gpa Nielson, and headed back to California. We did stop in St. George for the night but we were back in time on Sunday for Dad to go to church. Of course, we did stop at Cafe Rio in St. George on the way there for dinner. Dad has decided that he might want their Salmon Tacos as a last meal.

The boys stayed with Bryan's parents so they wouldn't have to endure the many hours of driving that we drove within about 2 days. They went to McDonald's for lunch when they left us, "helped" Papa with the leaves, watched Bee Movie and had 2 buckets of popcorn on Saturday, had baths in the "hot tub" (according to Big A), went to church, watched Corpse Bride about 7 times, and they got to sleep in Nannie & Papa Brown's room. I think they were spoiled but that is what grandparents do.

This is the fourth quarter, the family next to us left so we called Sam & DJ to come and sit with us. It was a little hard to get them all to look at the camera (they didn't want to take their eyes off the field or off the jumbo TV for the replays).Bryan is the photographer of the following photos, notice what is being photographed (not his loving wife). He also took video clips.


This was taken during halftime, it looked a lot better in person.

Disney Halloween

We went to Disneyland for Halloween and had a great time. I have decided that I cannot go that long between Disney trips again. It felt like it had been forever since we had been there and the boys were really content just hanging out in front of the castle. We didn't go on many rides but we had to eat and the boys (well one in particular) had to go to "Mickey House" so we spent some time in Toon Town (I think I have gone one other time with the boys). Ga & Papa met us at the Mexican Food place in Frontier Land and I made everyone go on Nemo. By the time we got off Nemo the park had been "closed" for over 20 minutes. It was a late night but a fun day with Beebe, C-rad, Kevin & Brian Durr, Amy Mendoza, and Ga & Papa. Oh, Brian Durr bought the 3 little boys Mickey light swords and they still are having a great time with them. THANKS BRIAN! I LOVE Disneyland on Halloween!

This was the BEST part of Toon Town. The boys thought this was the FUNNIEST thing. This is inside Mickey's Barn just before you get to the line to wait to meet Mickey- we opted out and took an early exit.

A Ward Halloween Party

We went to my parents' ward Halloween party last weekend with
Beebe, Tyler, C-rad, Papa and Mike (Matt was doing the Spook Alley with his friends). The boys had a great time Trunk-Or-Treating and eating
cupcakes while running in the church courtyard.
Lil A shouts "TREAT!" instead of "Trick-or-Treat," and Big A only
says it if I make him (well that is how it was when I was with him).

Power Wheel and Craziness with Katie

This is the saddest looking power wheel EVER! One of the wheels is broken, it has no motor and adult boys ride on it. My boys liked being pushed up and down the sidewalk in it.

Lil A brought 2 tennis shoes to Katie, when she came down to go shopping at Ikea with us a couple of weeks ago. They were 2 different shoes for the same foot but she put them on him anyway and he thought it was the best!
Big A thought I was crazy because I kept chasing Lil A around trying to take a picture of his shoes. Katie gave him this shirt, "it is bluue, that my favorite."

Fire Party and other things that kept us busy

There have been a few requests about our "fire party" so here is a little more explanation. *As I type this there are planes and helicopters flying overhead and have been flying for as long as I can remember.
My boys were getting a little antsy with being stuck inside for several days and my friend Abby has an active 2yo boy too. We were talking and I suggested we have a fire party to help our kids' (and our) antsy-ness. Abby lives in a house so she had it at her house and we were all suppose to bring our favorite comfort food. She made Mac & Cheese for the kids. The kids played and the moms talked with the news about the fire on mute (and then when we wanted an update we would un-mute). Really not anything exciting but it got us out and I like being able to go somewhere without really going somewhere and my boys love playing with Noah.

The next day we tried to go to the mall for the indoor playplace. The schools were out and the mall, including the playplace were packed. I did find 2 church shirts for the boys on sale at Baby Gap and then our friends went to lunch together - but since one of my boys was throwing a huge tantrum in the car, we decided to go get Bryan and have lunch with him. Then it wasn't me wrestling 2 boys- it was me sitting next to the messy one.
Friday, we went to Target and to finish getting the boys' costume stuff. I am lucky I have found someone that likes to go to Target and not really wander but not go in and out in 2 seconds either. Then we headed to Ga & Papa's house, their ward Halloween party was Friday and we wanted to spend time with Beebe, Tyler & C-rad (and since the football game was postponed we needed something to do on Saturday). I will do a separate post with photos from the Halloween party, our ward is having one on Tuesday- so I will have to post about that one too.

Sorry their are no photos with this post, I even took my camera to the Fire Party but of course I did not pull it out once. And I have not been able to go to Disneyland yet! But I am going on Wednesday, I have to- it is a tradition! (See Brandy I am trying)

Smoke, Fire, Ash

Southern California has been on fire for a few days now and it is taking its toll on my patience. The boys fight more and tug on me more and whine more and get hurt more. The hurt more is because they get bored and they wrestle more and get out all the energy that they normally get out outdoors. We are pretty much stuck indoors because of the smoke and if we get evacuated I would like to be pretty close to home to grab the important stuff. We went to a Fire Party yesterday and that made me feel better about being a stuck-at-home-mom, but last night BigA woke up and stayed up for a few hours, so we will be napping today. My friend Kelly put a map on her blog of where the fire has been but I don't know how to do that, so I will link to a map that is great. It shows us pretty close the fire, we are the closest to the most southern pink thumbtack. I also wanted Bryan to take some photos at night for me but last night he said he couldn't see any flames on his way home so I think we lost our chance. Hopefully we can get to Disneyland tomorrow.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY C-RAD!

Sunday was C-rad's 2nd birthday and he had a football cake, which he was very excited about. He got to stay up late (9pm) so he could have cake with Ga & Papa, who came home from China that night. For his birthday dinner, he requested smoked brisket from Uncle Bryan, with the power out for part of the night and most of the day, it was good but it could have been better- DANG WIND! (it just goes to show how spoiled and snobby I have become about meat, and I thought I was picky before). I left C's present at home and then planned on going to Disneyland on Monday, so I could give it to him then, but since all of Southern California is on fire, we postponed on trip. Hopefully I will see them before they head home, so I can give him his gift.

magic mtn

Saturday we went to Six Flags Magic Mtn (for those of you following the fire news in Southern California, the fire in Stevenson Ranch is called the "Magic Fire" because it is so close to Magic Mtn) with Bryan's parents and sister, Kim, and her family. My brother Mike came with us and went on all the kiddie rides and only ONE roller coaster- Tatsu, which I hear is pretty good. I stayed in kiddie land almost the day except when we went on Log Jammer (where I got soaked!) and up to Ninja but the boys were too short to ride so we (Kim, Bryan's sister, and the younger kids) walked all around the park to get some funnel cake and then back to kiddie land. The train, carousel, and truck ride were the biggest hits. Hannah liked the rides so much that sometimes she would ride them by herself or with random people (I wish I had gotten a photo of her on the Tea Cups with the random people) and she is the blonde in the middle on the Pounce & Bounce ride. The older boys (even though they weren't really allowed because they are taller than 42 in) really enjoyed the ball place. It was pretty windy and it was not fun getting to the car, luckily Mike ran ahead and met us part way with the car. On our way home, we stopped at El Torito for dinner (18 people in our party- CRAZY!). The boys were exhausted and fell asleep within minutes of being in the car. Beebe, Tyler, and C-rad pulled up right before we did but we got the boys into bed before C-rad saw them and they stayed asleep (wahoo!).

Parties! (?)

Last night we had an Enrichment Night that was all about parties. I wish I had taken my camera so you can see what people brought to display their topic. One sister spoke on invitations, 2 on decorations/table settings, one on gift wrapping, one on games, one on party favors and one on food. It was pretty interesting to see some of things people enjoy doing. I personally cannot spend hours every few days redecorating- I am lucky if I decorate anything these days.

The invites were along my lines and she had cute suggestions for invites (i.e, New Year's Eve Party: put invite in balloon- then the person pops the balloon to get invite and have 'Bang of a Time' on invite, I don't like balloons so I would not want to give that or receive it but I thought for others who aren't terrified of popping balloons, it was a cute idea).

One of the decorators had my feelings about it, she does it once for the holiday/season and she is done. Right now, all of my stuff is in storage and I really don't have anywhere to put stuff. I have a lighted pumpkin that Bryan's mom gave us on the TV stand, but that is it unless I have it on the floor or on the limited amount of kitchen space. Maybe once I get my stuff and have bookshelves again or no children around to drag them everywhere by the cord.

I like to wrap Christmas gifts, but I turn on a movie and wrap, her husband wraps all of their gifts at Christmas and he wrapped presents for her to show- he is quite creative and pretty good. I was REALLY surprised that he wrapped the gifts, they looked way better than any present I have ever wrapped- not that I am great.

I thought the party favors were a good idea for VT gifts but I think I am really informal. I think the party is the gift and I don't feel I know everyone invited to the party well enough to get gifts that aren't going to be re-gifted or trashed.

The games were fun! I can email anyone the games sheet if you are interested. Some games are for FHE and some are for Family Reunions, Girls' Camp (large groups of people).

The food was really good (she had "samples" for us to try). She had the recipes and everything I tried was good and EASY. She also had suggestions on how to make your guests feel comfortable.


For those of you that remember me from my glory days in Waco, I love a get-together and this Enrichment Night made me want to have one so bad. But it is hard when you don't really have a good location (our apartment is smaller here than there) and I don't think it is as necessary as it was there. I NEEDED to have an excuse for Bryan to study at home while I did "girl" things. And we don't have people over for dinner anymore- shocking I know- but Bryan gets home later than most people eat dinner (okay most people are putting their kids to bed when we are eating dinner) or we go out of town. I have been helping with playgroup activities and Girls' Movie Night and I went to Girls' Night Out. I am trying to get out there and find others like me- and I think I have found a few that will go along with my crazy ideas.

Tag- Consider Yourself Tagged Too!

About My Husband…

What is his name? Bryan
How long have you been together? 8 years
How long did you date? a year and a half
How old is he? 29 (ALMOST 30!)
Who eats more? He does in one sitting, but I eat throughout the day and night
Who said I love you first? I don't remember and neither does he
Who is taller? He is
Who sings better? I do
Who is smarter? Book smart- he is. Street smart- I am.
Whose temper is worse? They are different but I wouldn't say one is better than the other.
Who does the laundry? I do.
Who does the dishes? I do.
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do.
Who pays the bills? I do.
Who mows the lawn? what lawn?
Who cooks dinner? depends on the night, sometimes me, sometimes him, sometimes In-N-Out or Sam's/CostCo
Who drives when you are together? Depends, but usually him
Who is more stubborn? equal
Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? I do.
Whose parents do you see the most? family, mine because my sisters and mom come to us
Who kissed who first? he did
Who asked who out? I did
Who proposed? He did
Who is more sensitive? I am
Who has more friends? I do
Who has more siblings? I do
Who wears the pants in the family? depends on what it is about

Details about our CO trip

*WARNING: A lot of photos.

We went to visit our friends in Colorado Springs last weekend, well an extended weekend. We picked Bryan up from work Thursday at 1pm and headed for the airport. We got to their house about 9pm (maybe 9:30), that made for a pretty long day for me but it did not keep me from staying up to talk. Breakfast was made EVERY day, I reminded Bryan not to get used to it. I wanted to go to Wal-Mart or Target while we were there to get a feel for the people who live there, we went on Friday. The Wal-Mart was nicer than mine, so that sealed the deal for me. We (my little family) went to Sam's to pick up a few things and get a couple pizzas for lunch. After our pizza (and the mommas' naps) we went to Garden of the Gods, which is beautiful. There are red rock formations and trees and the weather was perfect. Big A LOVED it there. Little A showed our friends how he can pout and wait for Daddy to go back to get him.

Saturday we went through Woodland Park (I could live there and have Bryan do the commute, so beautiful and not crowded) on our way to the Spill Way (I can't really remember what it is really called and I don't think we went all the way to the Spill Way). We had a picnic lunch and a ton of fun with cattails and the boys had a great time throwing rocks.

Sunday we "watched" Gen. Conference (with 4 happy kids it was a little hard at times to hear everything), had yummy spaghetti and meatballs (Janel's homemade) and then went to Dave's parents' house to drop some stuff off. His mom came with the moms to look at nice neighborhoods. The dads had the kids in the van and left us part way to put kids to bed.

Monday, MaLaan came down with her boys and we went to America the Beautiful Park. Janel, being the wonderful person she is, got the kids dinner and made cornflake chicken- delicious (for the adults) while Dave and Bryan went to the store and I spent time sick (I know I don't get sick, I think it was Sonic Onion Rings).

Tuesday, we woke up at 4 AM!!! to get to the airport. Our flight was fine but no rest for me (sitting next to 2 boys who did not want to fall asleep). By the time we got on the freeway to take Bryan to work, the boys, who had already told me "no nap!," were asleep. They stayed asleep after we got home and I was able to nap too. The only venturing out we have done was with Katie on Wednesday to In-N-Out and the grocery store but we need to go out today for milk (man, I really would just rather stay home- does that make me a hermit?)

Sometimes I wonder if I want to move to Colorado because of the financial reasons and raising our kids out of California or if it because I know I could watch kids while Janel cooks. Thanks again for having us and showing us the great things of Colorado Springs.

Together Again

This photo captures their relationship, it doesn't matter what it looks like to anyone else, they like being around each other, to tease each other and to help each other. One of my favorite memories about them from Waco is they went to the store together to get a few things for dinner, they had one shopping cart and saw some fellow classmates- they rode to school together in Dave's truck, took classes together, studied together, ate lunch together, were PC partners- so we can only imagine what those classmates thought. It just makes me giggle.

Playgroup Disney

Wednesday afternoon a few moms from playgroup went to Disneyland with the hopes that our husbands would meet us there after work. We went to California Adventure and got sourdough bread and tortillas first, of course. We did some things in C.A. and then headed over to Disneyland. When we went on Haunted Mansion, one little boy hit his head (for the full account see Abby's posting). She borrowed my "mommy instinct" and didn't rush him to the ER, I called Jill and she asked me what I would do and what would the doctor do if they took him- very wise advice.
Here is our friend N after seeing the Disney RN. We loved his band-aid because his wound was so small and the band-aid is so HUGE.

With much convincing, Bryan showed up while we were on Pirates. My birthday present (yes I know it is late) came while we were at Disneyland and he went home to not have it out on the porch (which is one reason it took some convincing for him to come). But to my surprise, he brought it with him. Something I have been wanting for a long time.

Here are a few photos from the line of and on Nemo. Don't you want to go to Disneyland with me!

When Mom's Away...

**I started this post several days ago but since the camera was in the car, I decided it needed the photo to have the full effect of last Friday's happenings.

Friday night was Fantastic Friday for Relief Society (a HUGE craft night for Enrichment Night) and it was scheduled for 5-10pm. At 6:45pm I checked my phone and saw that I had a few missed calls (really I am not that popular), the first one was from Bryan at 5:45 (just 45 minutes after I had left home). I called to see if he still needed something- I took the car with the car seats, I just took the boys out and left. He told me how BigA hit his head on the concrete on the patio, how he comforted him, he was fine and then he went out to on the patio to play again. A few minutes later he fell again and hit his head on the concrete in the same place! When I got home after 10pm, I went in the boys' room to check on them (of course, they were still awake). The bump on BigA's head was bigger than a golf ball! I felt so bad for him.

Photo taken shortly after the second fall.

Needless to say, we had a rough night. We think he hit his head on the wall which, of course, woke him up screaming. He got in bed with us but then LittleA woke up later and saw brother was gone and started screaming. So BigA went back to his bed and LittleA took his place in our bed but when LittleA is in bed with us, he rolls all over me and kicks me and puts his head in Bryan's side- it is not a restful sleep.
We were still able to function enough to get up and ready to go to my parents' house to watch the game (Thank you Kevin for letting us run your TV from hundreds of miles away) and have BBQ turkey by Bryan, grilled chicken by Mike, potato pearls by Jill- it was great because I just helped set and clear the table- that was it!
We prepared our talks, with finishing up in the morning before church but arrived at church to learn that there was another speaker, so the 9 pages of outline Bryan had planned would need to be condensed. I, on the other hand, had planned perfectly but still am not the most confident speaker and it shows. I really wish Jill would have taken my offer to give my talk for me, maybe next time. But the Bishop came into Nursery and I hinted we were done for a while and he smiled and said, "with our ward being the biggest in the stake, you are looking at 3 years." That is probably the best news I had heard at church. But honestly, I can count on one hand how many times I have given a talk as an adult, so I am not that worried about giving another talk (it just doesn't happen for me and I love it that way).

**I also found this article interesting on why women worry more than men.

I wonder if Bryan would take this quiz?

I feel loved when...

The Five Love Languages

My Primary Love Language is Quality Time

My Detailed Results:
Quality Time:	12
Physical Touch:	7
Acts of Service:	6
Words of Affirmation:	4
Receiving Gifts:	1

About this quiz

Unhappiness in relationships is often due to the fact that we speak different love languages. It can be helpful to know what language you speak and what language those around you speak.

Tag 3 people so they can find out what their love language is.

Take the Quiz!
Check out the Book

Whoa!

I am grateful I have "normal sized" babies and only 2 (so far). I guess it could be worse, I could be like this Russian woman. Just something to think about.

LittleA Watching Football

LittleA has enjoyed watching football, ever since we went to the BYU-UCLA game. If he sees football on TV, he starts screaming and yelling- it is happy and excited but still, older people with no kids in Carino's don't want to hear a toddler screaming at the TV across the restaurant.
I know it is dark but it is the best I could do, the lighting in our place is horrible and I don't put football on during the day.

Productive and I Know Why

Yesterday I was a cleaning, laundry machine. I cleaned, I laundred, I put the laundry away, I showered, I fed the boys (several times), I fed myself, all before 2pm. My mom came for a visit, after BigA showed her everything we own (including things she has given them), we ventured to BB&B for a new kitchen rug and kitchen towels for her. It was about time for dinner, so we called Bryan and told him to meet us at Carino's (right up the street from his office). After dinner, it was pretty late so mom headed home and we got the boys ready for bed. We had them down about 8:30. I thought we were doing pretty good. I was wrong.
LittleA had a hard time falling asleep, which helped BigA to stay awake. Once they were asleep, I thought it was over. I was wrong.

About 11pm BigA was screaming. Bryan helped him to the bathroom. That seemed to help and he went back to bed. He got up screaming (I think he was still asleep) too many times to count. I finally moved him into our bed because I didn't want LittleA woken up by the screaming. He went in with Bryan, calmed down and then started screaming again. I took him out to the couch to calm him down, because Bryan does need to be able to function during the day (and I am used to being tired, no point in us both being worthless). He finally told me he needed to go the bathroom (AGAIN!- this kid as a bladder of steel, I was confused but took him anyway) and I was surprised. I thought that was it and put him back in bed with Bryan. I did this 2 more times. Then I gave him some Benadryl because he has a stuffy nose and told (screamed) he couldn't breathe. I thought I could finally get some sleep. I was wrong.

He wanted to sleep in his bed. I told him the only way he could sleep in his bed was if he promised not to scream because LittleA was asleep and didn't need to be woken up. He agreed and he went right to sleep. At about 3:30am, SCREAMING. This time 2 boys. Bryan went in and brought BigA to the couch and tried to calm LittleA down. I tried talking to BigA. No luck he was asleep. Then Bryan went back to bed. I went in with LittleA and put him on BigA's bed and laid with him. But I was getting cold and he doesn't share his blanket, so I went out to get a blanket for me. I checked on BigA who was whimpering on the couch. I gave him his bear which had been lost in all the moving of locations and told him I would be out in a minute but he needed to be quiet so LittleA could fall asleep. He was asleep before I was in their room. I went back to LittleA but didn't lie down, I just sat next to him until he fell asleep. I went back to my bed at 4:30am.
Luckily, the boys woke up close to 10am. I asked BigA this morning why he woke up last night and he said "I took a nap on the couch and I wanted to watch TV." I think he was talking about this morning because I tried to have him watch Oprah with me one of the times when he got up but he didn't want to.
Hopefully we will have a nice nap.

*That is why I was productive yesterday.

I am MORE addicted than Misty

75%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Free Online Dating from JustSayHi

Tired

We went to Bakersfield this weekend so Bryan could go to his parents' house to help put down a wood floor. I took the camera with the plans of taking photos of the boys swimming and of BigA going down the slide all by himself, of them playing with some cousins and Snowy, their dog that LittleA LOVES and she is really the best dog- she lets the one-year-old attack her, pull at her eyelids, ears, tail and climb all over her. Bryan left Kim's a little before 7am, we were still sleeping, and he took off with my Nursery stuff and camera- the things I had planned on working on while I was there with the boys completely entertained. That is one reason for the lame posting, sorry.
Yesterday was my first Sunday as Nursery Leader and I was less than satisfied with the way things turned out. I had these great plans of how it was going to work and the kids would respond fabulously to the changes (minor changes but changes nonetheless). Of course, my kid had to be the one to throw a major tantrum which helped me feel a little more chaotic. I was planning on taking the kids photos for a check-in thing but after the tantrum, I forgot about it. In the end, it wasn't bad and I did get the letters to the parents. Hopefully more, or should I say different, kids will be there next Sunday so all 30-something of the eligible Nursery-aged children will get the letter for their parents. I need to split the class for the lesson, so the same kids have the lesson together each week and I need to make a schedule for who is giving the lesson but someone else is giving the lesson, so that is a relief.
I thought about taking pictures of the piles of things that need to be put away but decided not to have proof of how tired I am. I clean but have just been moving the piles. I put things on the table to vacuum and put them back on the floor when it is time to eat. I have piles of mail in random places (but I know what is in what pile- pretty good huh). I just don't have the energy to do more than necessary right now. My insomnia has been horrible. I watch TV until I am almost asleep, then drag myself to bed where I lie for about an hour before I fall asleep. Then I wake up with the boys and try to nap (but that never happens, I just lie down until I can't stand it anymore). So my posting will be far and few from what you are used to and probably nothing exciting- since I am too tired to do anything fun. Unless you want me to post about laundry, dishes, or piles of mail. Oh and more trips to Disneyland, of course.
**If anyone has any suggestions for falling asleep without medication (I've tired that but then I can't function with the boys the next day or in the middle of the night), I am more than willing to try ANYTHING.

I am going to try to lay down while the boys are quiet and separate. Wish me luck.

Disney- AGAIN

We went to Disneyland again. I remembered to take my camera into the park but forgot to take pictures while we were inside the park, so here a couple from the parking garage after the boys put on their pajamas.

We met up with some new friends who recently moved into our ward, I am her VT and they recently got annual passes. We picked Bryan up on our way there and hit some traffic due to a 5-car accident. But we made it just in time to go to California Adventure to get our tortillas and sourdough bread, we ended up going to the bakery next door and buying a round loaf of the bread (to have with our late, "romantic" dinner). We took the boys on Matterhorn for their first time. LittleA was a little scared- I only know because he rode with me and was holding on tightly. But we asked BigA on the way home what his favorite ride was tonight and he said "Matterhorn." We, of course, went on Jungle Cruise, Pirates, and Buzz, which BigA asked for. The boys fell asleep on the way home, which is always nice. I LOVE having APs.
You can almost see LittleA. He actually got his highest score yet. I guess it is hard to get a very high score when you can't see out of the car or don't know what to shoot at. Bryan got a pretty high score too, I think it was around 430,000 (probably more but since my score is always so much lower than his I try to forget what he actually got).

Football Game

On my birthday, we went to the BYU-UCLA game in Pasadena. We arrived early and most of these photos were taken before the game started. It was great to go with so many adults. Matt entertained LittleA with his hat for a while. Jill had the boys for a good portion of the first half and Bryan's mom took BigA to get a pretzel but ended up being gone for about half an hour because they found a wallet and took it to security. LittleA fell asleep about half time, slept for 30-40 minutes, but then the guy behind us was stomping his foot on our bench, which woke him up. It was a great game and the boys are still talking about it. I just wish we would have won- I guess we still have the rest of the season. We are probably going to go to the San Diego game, if anyone wants to go (Jill?).
After the game, we slowly got out of the "parking lot" (we parked on the golf course) and went to Round Table Pizza with the Brown side. They brought cupcakes and candles. My boys blew out the candle. They also blew out my candle on my Rainbow Cake (I think Jill has photos from that so I will post about that later).
*I need to brag about my photo taking, I took the photo of Kim's boys- no editing because I don't take the time to do that*

I Did It!

I am now as cool as everyone else. I did encounter some problems when switching to this cool background. It would only let me keep my blog archive. I had my "about me" on there but it wasn't showing up. It wouldn't let me fit my links up either. Now I just need to get my camera out of the car so I can do a real post, instead of this boring post. If any of you computer savvy people know how to make it so I have more room in my side bar, I will owe you BIG TIME!

Copy Cat

Misty posted hers, so I had to post mine.

No Camera AGAIN!

I took the boys to Disneyland for playgroup yesterday. I had everything planned perfectly. I had snacks & water and more diapers & wipes than I could possibly think of using. I realized after being in the park for several hours that I didn't have my camera. I had remembered packing in the car, so I was really hoping I had left it in the car, instead of someone stealing out of my stroller. I was a little bummed because I made a goal with myself to take more pictures with my camera of the things that we do. I thought this was the perfect occasion. I, also, thought we would go and spend the morning and early afternoon and be on the freeway by 3pm. I noticed the time at 3:20 and all the kids were still acting great. I informed the other moms I wasn't going to leave now until, at the earliest, 6pm (to avoid traffic). They all decided the same thing. We tried to convince our husbands to come too but none of them did.

I have never done so many things before. We went on rides we had never been on and we went to Turtle Talk in California Adventure, which was pretty neat. We went on Nemo, the first few minutes are pretty boring but then it is AWESOME and it was a long ride. We went on Winnie the Pooh ride and Monster's Inc ride, the boys liked both of those. Haunted Mansion was closed but we went on all of our usual rides. Overall it was a great day and I got to know some ladies (and their kids) a little bit better.

*Oh when I got home Bryan had started dinner, which I was grateful for because I hadn't really eaten any real food all day. The boys went to bed very nicely, which was different from the night before when they were both still awake (in bed) after 11PM! And then they woke up a little after 7am yesterday and around 9:30 this morning. I love Disneyland for that reason.

GIVEAWAY

Heather is giving away towels. I love everything she makes and because of a "happy mistake" she is giving away towels. Just leave a comment and you are entered into the drawing for these wonderful towels. Just click here to see details.

Busy but not really

BigA cutting Bryan's hair

BigA took LittleA's picture after haircuts

We have been "busy" the past few days. Thursday we did haircuts (the ONLY thing I have pictures of, sorry). Friday we went to my parents' house, to get ready for the game on Saturday: buy brisket and start cooking it around midnight, upgrade Dish package to be able to watch game, borrow truck and Mike, leave boys with Papa, Matt, &Katie to go get freezer from Temecula. Stayed late on Saturday, unloaded the freezer and had a "fun" time getting it where I wanted it, next to the dryer. We moved the dryer at least 3 times, the washer, we moved and put back, and the freezer too many to count- but it is in and working and Grandpa's beef is in it! Sunday, we went to church (after a little earthquake, that Bryan barely felt but I felt it) where I took over as the Nursery Leader (not just a follower) and then rushed home to change clothes and head over to the Clark's to go to a park, eat dinner and enjoy lovely conversation with the Hales and Clarks. Dinner was great and I made the brownies Ann suggested, which I thought were pretty good but messy for a warm evening at a park. The boys had a fabulous time playing with the kids - and Kathy- and getting dirty. Monday, we headed to my parents' house to return the truck and to hang out. After Bryan took the boys swimming, the "men" went to Cal State to play games, BigA went and played Playhouse Disney while they played their shot-em up games. LittleA went with Mom & me to Kinko's and Home Depot. Ate dinner, Matt gave a wonderful FHE lesson on the prophet, played Settlers while the boys watched Shrek 2 and then home late again. Today, we had playgroup come here to swim. I LOVE that BigA will swim now and LittleA will choo-choo around the pool. I have been meaning to take photos of that but always seem to forget my camera. I also forgot my camera when we went to the park with Heather, I am hoping she will send me all the photos that were taken (hint, hint). Tomorrow, the cable guy is coming to "fix" the tiling and Mom is coming for lunch. Thursday, a few of us from playgroup are going to Disneyland. And then football on Saturday. So I hope I can clean and rest a little this week. I will try to be better about the camera- because I know ya'll are dying to see what we are doing.

So IT Begins...

In honor of the start of the season, I thought I would add a photo to the header. Not only will our Saturdays and Thursday be filled with college football games, we will be enjoying BBQ as well. Tomorrow we will be eating brisket. We stopped by Frank's Meats in downtown San Berdo for it. Bryan will start the BBQing process in about 20 minutes. He has already looked up a rub recipe online and mixed it up. We (Jill & I) look forward to football season for BBQ. My job is taking care of everything but the meat, so I am always on the look out for great, EASY and inexpensive sides. I haven't really decided what sides to have yet. Any suggestions?

On Sunday, we are meeting Heather and her family at a park near her folks house (which I think is relatively close to Bryan's office). I am to bring a dessert and again, my mind is blank. So any suggestions for an EASY but YUMMY dessert, I am more than willing to take suggestions. I have been having issues lately on deciding what to eat. Then when I can't come up with anything, I eat junk. As I type this, I realized I haven't even been eating my back-up second dinner lately- which is a PB&J. I always have crackers in the pantry and fruit, so that is what I have been eating. Oh and those real fruit roll-ups. And, of course, those yummy Swiss Miss Fudge Bars but I blame those on the heat. What are some things you have been eating/craving lately?