Alright, for those of you who are wondering what happened to me in blog world, the reason I haven't posted anything here since December of last year is because I have a new blog address.

And you guys just thought I was a big blog slacker. Nonesense. I can waste time, brag about my kids, and post random stuff just as good as the next person. Well maybe not as good as some, but I am definatly not 4 months behind.

Just CLICK HERE to keep up on what's happening.

See you all on the cool side.

Merry Christmas!

And for being so good this year, your present is this wonderful link below...

OPEN ME!!

I know, I know....I didn't have to. Well, you can thank me later.

sometimes i wonder where he comes up with it all...

So, I was in my room the other morning cleaning my closet up a little when in walks Milo, carrying a toy fishing pole, very proud of himself.

Milo: Mommy look, the fishing pole was broken but I fixed it! You know how I could fix it?

Me: How Milo?

Milo: Because I'm a boy and boys can fix things.

Me: Oh really? Well what can girls do?

(after a short pause which seemed to either be a choose-your-words-wisely pause, or a i-can't-think-of-an-answer pause)

Milo: Girls can do dishes.

Yep. Milo. One of a kind that kid.

random and more random

i was asked to share 6 random things in a tag recently. my only problem? i am way more random than can be shared with only 6 little thoughts. so here are a few - but don't you worry, these aren't nearly all (or as strange as they get).

1: i am allergic to my own dog. Yes, you heard that right. Every time I pet, am touched by, or bathe my dog I break out in a hive-type rash. As long as I don't itch it at all it usually goes away in about a half hour or so. Its fun.

2: i choose crunchy peanut butter over smooth any day.

3: allowing kids to stir things like oatmeal or mac and cheese make me cringe. i don't like when the stuff on the side doesn't get fully stirred in with everything else.

4: i love fonts. i never like using normal ones. my blog is always the same only because it makes me crazy to think that i can't install and use one of my own choosing so i have to completely avoid the situation all together.

5: situps are one of my favorite things to do. pushups i never do.

6: i hope one day to own an old FJ Cruiser - but fix it up with a sweet lift and totally wicked wheels.

I would like to request Katie, Deeanna & Carine do this because I think you guys would have some good random things I'd like to find out.

I am thankful for...

I know I'm late - but I just don't care - because I wanted to share some things (among many things) that I feel thankful for.

I'm thankful for my helper.

And my comic relief.

Oh, and of course Thanksgiving dinner (ALL of it) because its pretty much one of my favorite things to eat.

and for my dad...

-



48-24. i think that about says it all.



-

Viva la Vida!

So, how was your Saturday evening? Mine, well it was pretty good. I spent the evening rocking out & singing at the top of my lungs along with Coldplay! Ok, so it was a little better than pretty good. It was excellent, fabulous, awesome, best night in a long time...

And of course, because we all enjoy the visual, here's a few photos from the night...

I know this photo may not really capture it, but Katie was excited as well.

Opening song

For a moment the band disapeared - only to reappear climbing up the stairs to perform a song right in the middle of the audience!

One of the last songs played and they dropped all these paper butterflys onto the crowd - very cool.

So there you have it, I updated my blog - happy now (you know who you are, complainers)? And thanks Katie for inviting me to tag along with you to the concert (and share your chocolate cake)...don't forget to wear your T-shirt next time we hang out.

It's Official!

As of about 2 am MST I officially became a registered, class attending, homework procrastinating, test cramming student.

Please join me in feeling a few of the emotions present when I think about this...

this one's for you manda

So I have this friend who I've been thinking about doing a post on for a while now. I've never had a real clever reason to do one, until now. But last week I went out with some friends I've know pretty much ever since I went to Utah. This dinner outing resulted in Amanda doing a fabulous post on not only the evening, but adding some wonderful pictures of our past as well. And since within this post she asked me for a few lovely pictures of my own, I figure what better time than now to not only reminisce of embarrassing pictures of the past, but also share a little about this great friend I like to call Manda.

6th grade - the begining. And although they are not present in this picture, I totally remember us having one of those best friend necklaces where its a heart split in half.

High School Graduation

Roasting marshmallows with candles in our dorm room - one of the less strange things we did as roommates.

Our second round as roommates - manda, I use this pic because I know you will appreciate the memories associated with the other two we shared the apartment with.

And here we are at dinner a few nights ago.

I love Amanda, and here are just some of the reasons why...

She has the funniest posts (see here and here for some of my favorite examples) and a very random blog that I can wholy identify with (except team britney, sorry to let you down).

She never likes being called Mandy, hence the reason I choose Manda as my choice nickname.

There has never, ever, been I time when we have run out of things to discuss and chat about - useless to society or random as they may be.

We share a love for mashed potatos & sarcasm.

Sometimes she lets me use her for her dozen or so degrees and certificates she has, and gives me advice like any wonderful therapist would normally do for money.

The fact that we chose to be roommies not once but twice - this says a lot about how well we get along I think.

so manda panda...hope you feel special that you are my first person post ever! and you better enjoy the pictures because it took some extra special time within my very busy day to look for and scan them into my computer just for you.

Trick or Treat!

Well, I've been feeling a bit left out of the blogging world since I have yet to add my own Halloween pictures. So in an effort to keep up with my fellow olympic-style bloggers, here's a little glimps of what Halloween held in store for our family this year...

Here's a pic from the first Halloween party I attended. My costume wasn't quite available so I ended up pulling stuff from my (and Stacie's) closets to come up with this...only to learn that my friend Emily also picked to dress the same way. Ha!

This year we decided to go with a theme. Milo picked to be a dragon once he saw the costume and after showing Mason, he had the idea to be a knight to match. What a clever kid! So after figuring we have the trusty steed (Duke of course) I figured the only thing left was the princess. Mason and Milo were so excited about our theme they would give anyone and everyone the rundown of what our whole family was going to be.

And this would be Halloween party #2, and my favorite costumes of the night! In case you can't tell, this is Heather and Jordan - both sporting the most awesome wigs ever.

Now we turn to party #3. Here's one of the games we played, bobbing for apples.


After the kids took turns, we added some extra water and ice - and a new rule: No stems. But in case you didn't know, I don't like to lose...so princess or not, I was getting an apple.

And of course the night was filled with some trick-or-treating, which the boys have been endulging in every chance they get (and sharing a little with me too).

fabulous friday fun

Bored are you? You must be if you are reading my blog on Friday night. Or maybe you are just extra cool like me and love to sit at home and spend hours on end staring at the computer screen. Either way, to add a little extra time to your nightly clicking fun I present you with this wonderful link -

Number One

And I'd let you look up my birthday to give you even more fun stuff to do, but I'll just tell you now... I LOVE ROCK 'N ROLL!

Ok, now that I've shared - I expect you to do the same...

(and thanks to Deena for the link)

oh those monkeys

So I woke up the other day to Mason and Milo talking in my closet. The problem with this noise is that I had spend the last three days trying to get Milo to help pick up ALL my shirts he had decided to pull off and throw on the closet floor. So my first comment was for them to not play in my closet...The response I got?

"Just a minute Mom, we're trying to make you something."

Well of course, I'm still a mom, so I will gladly agree to let them hang out in my closet if in return I will get to enjoy some child-made gift.

Here is what they made for me...

In case you aren't proficient on creative handmade boy gifts, these are flowers for me - made from their monkeys...what a bunch of sillies I have!

baby food anyone?

Today I was reading the Sunday paper (yes a little late I know) and I came across a recipe. As I was glancing at exactly what it was I started reading the ingredients. Then I came across the best ingredient ever, banana baby food. I read over the ad and recipe again, and again. For some reason I thought maybe I would come across the part about it being a recipe for the little ones. No such information to be found. And although baby food initial sounds so gross, I tried to have the thought that maybe banana just wasn't that bad. But then I thought - what's so hard about buying a real banana and mushing it up?

happy thoughts

You know, some have said that I can be random. I think that's just fine, obviously - since I would say the same thing about myself more often than not. So to keep up with my own self-professed randomness title here's a few things I'd like to share...

A brief clip of the dinner conversation yesterday:

Mason: Are we having green beans?
Me: yes. (with stress in my voice of a mother who expects a moan to follow her answer)
Mason: Yummy! I love green beans!
Me (in my head): wow that was easier than I thought.

Then later in the eating process...

Mason: I think I might just have green beans for dessert!
Me (in my head): don't wake up yet...

I thought that was one of the funniest things I've heard in a long time, especially considering that I didn't even think the green beans turned out that well - but you know, if the kids eat them I figure let them. What a nice mom I am.


So, not random enough for you? Wait, there's more...

While checking out all my favorite blogs I found this wonderful link to win a free purse. And I am a girl, so I love them, and I would think winning one for free is even better than buying one (plus I'm a total sucker for entering contests). Fingers crossed!

Milo, Milo, Milo...

Sometimes I feel bad for Milo. It seems like he's always getting the short end of the stick. From the day he was born he was stuck with hand-me-down blanket, clothing & toys. And it doesn't just end with using Mason's old stuff...Mason always has had his solo time (like the date we went on) or he gets to pick things first and Milo ends up getting talked into the other option. I explain this because once again I feel like he's been left a little behind. The problem (or lack of) is that he has never cared. Because that is Milo.

See, Milo celebrated his birthday September 9th. And yes, I know - most parents have big long blogs when their children have a birthday. Well, this year Milo's birthday happened to be the day before my trip. So I never really got the chance to sit down and write my Milo tribute. But in not writing it on time I almost feel like that makes it all the more Milo. Because Milo is one of the happiest, most unconcerned silly little boys I know. Everywhere he goes, everyone he meets, it seems like I hear comments about how funny he is and how much everyone loves him. I try to pin down what he does that makes him so loveable sometimes but it's hard to figure exactly what it is. He is goofy. He is messy. He is random. Erik used to say he was a little on the ditzy side. No matter what he does he seems to always be making someone laugh. Just within the last week Milo has done the following things: asked me why animals make different noises and why do we talk different than them, while in the middle of class at preschool he took off his shoes and started dancing to the music his teacher had put on, he told me (after I said he needed to hurry and eat lunch before he left for school) that he had to feed Jack "or else he will get hungry while I'm at school" and sat down and introduced himself to a random couple at an ice cream place. The best thing about all these examples is that each and every time he is so serious. He never seems to think anything he does is out of the ordinary.

So yes, this blog may be a little slow coming - but so is Milo anytime you try to walk somewhere with him. Happy fourth year Milo!

Milo being Milo, of course!

Mason showing Milo the present he got him...

...a new monkey!

And Mason being the helpful big brother.

and for the other half

So obviously I should be blogging more frequently, but I just am not good at it. Random is the best word. Well, better late than never right?

And off to the good stuff...

Tuesday we went to a place called Bath, named so because at some point the Romans lived there and built this big structure for the public baths. It is also a really cool place to visit just for all the architecture. After our tour of that baths came the best part of Tuesday..."afternoon tea." Fancy little sandwiches, scones (with my favorite topping again) and desserts all served on fancy tiered silver trays. The only thing more fun and girly than that? On our walk to the Fashion Museum we noticed a hat shop and decided to stop inside. A shop full of fancy hats loaded with ribbons, feathers and fluff!

Then we come to Wednesday. There had been an original forecast of rain, so we made it a day that we could be mostly inside. We went shopping. Shopping in London is the most crazy thing ever. The most crazy of all was a store called Primark. It's pretty much the cheapest store - like $4 for shirts and stuff like that. It was like going shopping the day after Thanksgiving + the day after Christmas + Disneyland (the lines not the rides). We ended the day by attending Wicked at the West End. And as true for my whole trip - no rain after all!

We planned Thursday to be a rest day from the late night Wednesday - and to prepare us for Friday. So we slept in and took it easy, then headed for a city close by - to visit a Primark that was not in London, therefore not as busy. This time I would say it was maybe just Thanksgiving.

Friday was the big tourist day. Our first stop, the London Eye. This has the idea of a ferris wheel - but instead of seats they were more like glass rooms - I'd say about 15-20 people fitting comfortably. Then it went around really slow, taking about 30 minutes to get around, to allow a most magnificent view of all of London. After we looked at everything from above, we then went by foot - taking in all the sites up close. We walked all over the city. No matter where I went I felt like I could take a picture in any direction and have a beautiful shot.

Bored yet? Well, stay strong - only a couple more days to go!

Saturday was the planned day for Paris - which I was very, very excited about. But as all things can't be perfect - we weren't actually able to go. The day I flew into England there was a fire in the Eurostar tunnel. We had hoped that things would be better if we waited to go towards the end of my visit. Then it came down to the end and the news was still not so good. We read it was several hours between trains, they said they would try to accommodate ticket holders (which sounded like maybe you wouldn't get on a train at all) and travel times once on the train were much longer than normal. They basically said only if you really have to should you take the train. So instead of the train we chose a relaxing day out in a boat on the River Thames -followed by lunch on the river's edge. For dinner my most famous meal of the trip - fish and chips with mushy peas. The fish was excellent - served in a fancy box and eaten with a funny fork (it looked like those wooden spoons you used to get with the little ice cream cups, but with two prongs). The fries were excellent as well. Then there were the peas. Basically they were mashed potatoes made with peas. Green mashed potatoes just weren't very appetizing looking to me, but I gave them a go anyway. I will say this...good fish and chips...

And for the grand finale...Sunday being Sunday wasn't overly eventful, but very fun nonetheless. I attended church with my friend. It also turned out to be the same one as some of her family. It was a good week to come because they had their much heard about "munch 'n mingle". This was started because new church memebers were having a hard time meeting others because everyone would just attend church and go home. So instead of going straight home everyone brings a little snack to share (the munch) and then the chatting begins (the mingle). Then after church my friend Miriam invited over some of her family and made us all what she said is a traditional Sunday dinner - roast chicken with mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, veggies and stuffing. Very yummy.

And then my trip was done. Monday morning I woke up early and got on a plane back to real life. And how lovely it is - crazy kids and all.

So thanks again to Taylor who helped me out with my flight (and helped me out getting the fancy treatment on the plane), thanks to all the grandparents who put up with my crazy monkeys for almost two weeks, and thanks to Miriam - because without her my trip would still be a dream in my head.

Alright, here I am - almost halfway through my journey. Kind-of sad to think really, although no matter what I know that someday I have to come home and face reality - so, might as well make it next week. So far I've had the best time. There is so much to see here - everywhere I turn it seems there are giant castles, magnificent gardens, beautiful architecture. I think to stop and take a picture, then I realize that there is so much if I tried taking pictures of all of it I might end up all day walking down just a few streets - no time for that!

Anyway, I would think that maybe one of two of those reading would like to know what I've done so far - something I could write on forever and ever about. So I will try to made this as brief as possible, and sorry but there will be no visual stimulation this blog as my laptop does not seem to like the British internet connection available to it. For the tourist-y things: First day I landed and was going off about 4-5 hours of sleep in two days (time zones differing 7 hours). I was actually so excited I didn't feel too tired at all...until I got to my friend Miriam's house and totally had a crash moment. So I opted for the smart choice and took a "quick" nap, which turned out to be a couple of hours. So by this time it was evening and so we just went to the town near her house and had dinner and looked for an outlet converter (brought all my chargers and such - but totally forgot about the whole UK outlet difference).

Then next day (since my phone couldn't be charged I had no way to set an alarm) I ended up sleeping in until noon! I figure my body must have really needed to rest up. So after getting up and ready we headed out and visited Hampton Court Palace - where Henry VIII lived. Exciting points of the day for me: being rushed up a stairway because they were trying to film a BBC movie and we were in the background & having a scone with jam and clotted cream (my new most favorite thing).

Saturday we visited Windsor Castle - said to be the most famous castle, and one that the royal family still lives in on occasion. We toured the castle, walked around the shops in Windsor and then off to Eaton - where they have Eaton College, famous for teaching Prince Henry and Prince William.

Sunday we took the train to London to attend church. I would compare London to New York except London has more wonderfully old buildings. After church we walked through Hyde Park and stopped to eat our lunch while listening to a concert in the background. Apparently they were having a birthday party for Andrew Lloyd Webber so there was a concert in the park where all these famous people were singing his songs. From there we mosied around London a little more before catching our train back home.

And that would bring us to today...We visited the town of Wimbledon. We did some shopping, went sightseeing at a stately house surrounded by parks and gardens and ended with a lovely meal at a place called Giraffe (which I wish they had in the states). The highlight of today, besides the shopping of course, would have to be the dessert I had. It was called Banana Waffle Split - and I love it. Back in my college days, living at the dorms, we used to have all-day access to a waffle machine in the cafeteria. It soon came to my attention that the most delicious way to eat said waffles was with the soft ice cream located just beside the machine. I normally went one step further by adding sliced bananas or strawberries to it. So you see, when I saw this dessert on the menu I just had to try it - never before had I actually seen anyone else do this combination. And it was delicious - the most gourmet tasting waffle topped with slightly cooked bananas, very yummy vanilla ice cream & topped off with a little chocolate drizzle. Oh, and I finally found myself a outlet converter...

crossing the pond

Some of you may know that recently inside my head have been thoughts of taking a trip to the UK. What most of you may not know - until now - is that Saturday I received my passport, and yesterday (thanks to Taylor, my new favorite cousin) I booked my flight. I am more excited than I can even describe.

If you will take a memory trip back with me a few (ok, seven) years...I lived at a little apartment complex near BYU called King Henry. During my summer months there I had the pleasure of having two lovely British girls as my roommates. I have not only kept in contact with them ever since, I have also dreamed of the day when I could visit them in England. And Wednesday my journey to fulfilling that dream will begin.

So did I mention how excited I am?

awww....

In case no one knew, I just love my boys. Growing up I was a totally girly-girl, so boys weren't really my first pick - but I'm so glad I have them. If I had girls I'd have no one to go on dates with and no one to open all my doors (Mason even opens my car door for me when I get out of the car). And not that I need more reasons, but I recently got a few pictures to show just a glimpse of why I do...

First, here's Milo being Milo. Oftentimes I am driving, listening to the radio and whatnot - and I suddenly tune into the back seat. There's Milo quietly talking away to whatever he happens to have brought along for the ride that day. This day I turned around and saw what is pictured below. I love it for one because of his funny stuffed animal - a ferret he immediatly named Jack (why I'm not quite sure). The other reason is because Jack is buckled up in the middle seat belt. His animals always ride safely - more often than not they are actually buckled up in his seatbelt with him. And to top it all off, he has his little arm around his pal. All this I saw when I turned around - what a silly kid.


Then a couple of days later I go into Mason's room to get his PJ's out and I find what is pictured below in the middle of his floor. Well, he does love cars so I figure this is just pretty funny. Then after he gets out of the shower and comes downstairs I inquire about it. After asking if he made it he responds, with a big smile, "Yes, its a heart, I made it for you because I love you." Oh man - what would I do if I didn't have such a sweetie around to say nice things and compliment me all the time? Yes, he also gives compliments. He tells me frequently how much he loves me and how I'm the best mommy ever (i've tricked him well). He also told me the other night that he wants to marry me when he gets older - and although that will obviously not work, I've always heard about kids saying stuff like that so I figure with that phrase my life is pretty much complete.

And there you have it. Silliness and compliments - who doesn't love that?