This is amazing. It CAN be done! And by kids to boot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guKs6X-pa5M&feature=related

Someone may have noticed by now that I've been a total blog slacker. Facebook is sucking my life away. Hahaha! But really, I have to limit the time I spend there.

For those of you who aren't on Facebook, here's a big Hi! and Happy Holidays!! to you.

My latest project, besides the never-ending cleaning and organizing of the house, is to build an igloo for my kids. They help some, but it would be oh so much easier if I lived on an ice field, had a ice cutter and a bunch of man-labor or at least a few days in a row with just above freezing temps.

Such as it is, I think we're doing a fine job.


To see the process in action by the pros many, many years ago (really!) click on this link, fast forward to 1 min. and watch for 17 seconds. :-)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pia4i5sr0o0

*Uh-oh! I just watched it again and I think our slope might be a bit too steep.

Austenland by Shannon Hale

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
More, more, MORE!!!!!
View all my reviews.


My favorite line...This is spoiler if you haven't read the book yet.
(To see it, just highlight the blank space below with your cursor. Magic!)
"She believed now in earnest that fantasy is not practice for what is real--fantasy is the opiate of women."
TAKE THAT Twilight fans!!!!!!!!

Gone crazy...

...and temporarily public! Sometimes we just have to face our fears. :-)
*If you have a blog update feature, you'll need to remove me, then add me again.

Ode to Thanksgiving

These are a few of my favorite things...

Silly children who giggle
And when tickled, wriggle.
Small hands in mine,
Big eyes that shine.

Strong arms to hug
When heart strings are tugged.
Keen ears to hear
Sweet voices I hold dear.

A quiet place to read;
Rejuvenation that I need.
A cushiony sleep
When I ne'er hear a peep.

Clear eyes to see
A world full of beauty.
All God's creations,
The freedom of our nation.

Love taken and given.
Errors long ago forgiven.
Laughing with good friends
To heal and to mend.

~Cecilia Carter 2008

Reflections Victory!!!...and a Time Loop.

Julian placed 2nd in the 3-D Art category! And her little animals were selected to go on to Council Level!

On a different note...I'm relieved to finally arrive at Friday. Most days this week, as I left work, I felt an overwhelming "Friday" feeling. I was trapped in a time loop that didn't provide satisfaction until today. Whew! I'm glad I made it. And next week should prove fabulous.
I think I'll lay down for a bit before making dinner.

Analogies that make you say hmm...

http://www.funny2.com/questionableanalogies.htm
Hey, Peggy! Maybe you could borrow these for some of your writing. Hehe.

Two Weeks Old! Tired little tike!

One year old!

What a happy little guy!

Two years old -

November 11, 2003

Diagnosed with Leukemia

Three years old!

Thinks he's The Hulk.

Four years old!

Gettin' some sisterly love!

Almost five years old. Central nervous system relapse.




Six years old!
First day of Kindergarten!




Seven years old! Still with us
and we are ever so grateful!!!

WE LOVE YOU, LOGAN!!!

TODAY IS A BIG DAY FOR US!!!

And when I say big, I mean ...

GI-FREAK-I-NORMOUS!!!

(More to come.)

It's looking good!

Reflection contest entries were due today. According to the rules Julian entered hers in the form of digital pictures on a CD.

Just before school was over, I got a call from the woman in charge. She said she thought Julian's 3-D Art was so adorable, she wanted to pick up the actual project so the judges could see it in real life! She was amazed when she saw the penny in one of the pictures and realized how small they are. Very encouraging, don't you think? Julian was ecstatic to hear it.

They are pictured here perched on an 18 count egg carton. In the statement section she wrote: "I love small things, animals and creating. I put them together and Voila!"

Hmmm...which is better?

Before Halloween...

On Halloween!

The Sitch' in CA! Hahaha!

My sister lives in California. Here is a photo she took of her husband while he was standing at a busy intersection waving a sign for 3 hours.

Deputy McLovin: Par for the Course

I always love it when Deputy McLovin comes home in the evening, walks into the kitchen while still in his uniform and tells me about his day. Last night was one of these evenings.

I knew that earlier he'd been called out to pick up some sheep that had gotten loose in a neighborhood, so I, of course, planned to make a timely and clever comment about Bo Peep. I made it and it was clever (thanks Melissa) , but not so much timely as I immediately became riveted in his story-telling. He started off by telling me how much I would have laughed if I'd been there.

Unbeknownst to him at the time, on the other side of the main road, obscured by urbanization was a golfer on a golf course.Can you guess where this is going?After feeling the sting on the back of his head (yes, for real!) he heard a voice far off in the distance... "Sorry!"

Well, he did finally succeed at getting the sheep into the trailer, but only after pulling on them with a dog pole until they choked out, then reviving them (for the sake of the neighbors) and pulling them a few more yards and repeating this process with the "dang - why can't they just come with me - sheep" several times.

Now, if you can't see the humor in that?...there's something wrong with you!

Perfect Timing!

A few months ago I started reading Brandon Sanderson. FAN-TA-BU-LOUS!!!! Words cannot describe! So I requested the 3rd book in his MISTBORN series and asked if I could be the first to check it out. Voila! I got the email from the library today. Of course, like lightening, I drove down to get it. It couldn't be better timing because this week is Fall Break. No school for a few days and lots of reading time. Ahahahah! I'm bursting!!!

Testimonials anyone??

What exactly IS Facebook? I have an account now, because I figure if my parents have one, then it must be okay, but now I'm wondering what it's all about. How safe is it? Is it basically an email slash photo album slash chatroom? Sounds convenient. What's your take on it?

BRAGGIN' TIME!

Witches, Ghosts, Weirdos...and Bats!!!

Did you see this on the news?
http://www.abc4.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=70da706b-a4e7-45da-8670-f3f4a6774217
Luckily this guy's neighbor was an Animal Control Officer who convinced him to have the bat tested for rabies. Apparently he was only curious about what type of bat had bitten him.
Deputy McLovin says the new treatment for rabies is IV's in your extremities. Yuck!

What a Catch!!

Know any motivated, active, single guys???
My sister, Melissa, is on the prowl. (hee hee)


She donated her hair to Locks of Love this weekend and doesn't she look gorgeous!?












She's successful, fun, fit and a fabulous person to boot!
We love her SO much!

Could this be any more AWESOME!?

My goodly parents have been called to serve a mission in Montevideo, Uruguay. The amazing thing is that this is the exact location of my Papa's first mission as a 19-yr-old!! If you know anything about my parents (many of you have met my angel mother) then you know they are going to be fabulous with the help of Heavenly Father and be a blessing to the people of Montevideo.

A CAT STORY

Deputy McLovin experienced Halloween a little early this year when he was dispatched to a woman's house one recent morning. Here's about how he tells it.

I got called out to this lady's house because she had a feral cat in her yard.
She showed me the cat and then started moving toward the cat saying, "I'll help you get it." The cat stood up on its hind legs and started hissing at her. I thought, "Oh, no! Lady, what are you doing?!#@" I jumped between her and the cat as the cat sprang forward. It latched onto my finger and wouldn't let go. After a struggle, I finally choked it out with my other hand and it released my finger.
The lady said, "Are you okay?"
I answered (with clenched teeth), "No. I'm not okay."
The lady, "Can I help you? I'm so sorry!"
"I'll take care of it." (Translation: Just leave me alone, lady!)
I took the cat to my truck, leaving a blood trail on the ground behind me, and put it in a cage. I wanted to take it out to the desert right then and show it how I felt about it, but I took it in. We cut off its head and sent it to the lab to check if it had rabies.

Don't miss this video. Just push the play button.

She's MY girl!!!

Julian is the adventurous partner I've been looking for for years!!! This was our second time on the Twightlight Zone Tower of Terror, a free-fall type ride where your rear end is either off your seat completely or threatening to bond with it forever. There we are in the back on the left.Maybe she's a little too brave for me. I was so scare the first time on the Orange Stinger that I couldn't open my eyes or let go long enough to snap a picture. The second time I pretended to be Julian and was fine.
Julian also loved Space Mountain, one of my childhood favorites. Now, though, it's SO much better. The technological effects are incredible! If you can't tell, we're in the front. :-)

It took a lot of effort, but...

It took a lot of effort, but I finally took some pictures! When Jarid and I came back after having some fun......we had to chase down the kids and put them back in their place!

Logan's first roller coaster ride was the Go-Go-Gadget Go-Coaster! He loved it so much we rode it twice. Well, not me. I forgot to take dramamine, so once was enough.In our kitchenette, Logan practices his map skills with a cheeto in his mouth. He loves the Disneyland map!

Pictures? Are You Kidding Me?

WHO THINKS ABOUT TAKING PICTURES WHEN YOU'RE ON THE FUNNEST RIDES EVER??? Well...I guess I thought about it a few times, but it's hard to capture the experience with a fish-eye's view photo. At the end of this week, I'll make sure I get the kids on or in front of their favs, but for now...

As we went over the 5-story waterfall on Splash Mountain, a camera takes a picture you can view on a screen when you get off the ride. I stole that one. Julian and I are in the back, so we didn't get too wet and, boy, we were glad!
Pictures are really hard to get on the 'dark rides' because if you use a flash it's just not the same. Maybe Tammy's fancy camera could do it, but the best I could do was a slow shot to let the light in, so you can tell it's not a 'still' shot. We rode this BUZZ LIGHTYEAR ride twice before the Parade last night. It's a virtual video game. You have a joystick to turn and spin your car and a laser gun to score points against Zurg.

Where we slept last night!

This place is FANTASTIC!!! (Thanks Shiralea!) It's been re-modeled over the last 3 months. Down comforters, beautiful cabinetry, granite counter tops, two large flatscreen TVs, and they had a room available with 2 queens, so no sleeping on a sofa!!! (although I had been looking forward to Jarid and I having one night of privacy...heehee.)
Julian woke up sick yesterday, but was a real trooper on the road trip. I hope she's well enough to have fun today! Logan is bursting!

The GROVE

One of my favorite pictures! I'm standing under some branches of a deciduous tree in the Redwood forests of Fenton, CA. We walked the trails this summer and saw some 'amazing large' and 'amazingly old' trees!
The center of this one burned out decades ago, but it's still alive and growing!YIKES!!!