Happy Holidays Times Four!

I thought I was doing so much better. It's been over a month and I haven't posted a thing. Well, I suppose some days are better than others. There are times I feel like I am getting this new family life of mine and then there are days I feel completely lost.

Things have been a little crazy. We had Thanksgiving, Matthew's birthday and then Christmas to prepare for. We've been running like mad. But, it has all been pretty great.

One of my favorite Christmas memories was decorating the Christmas tree. Chloe has always found this somewhat boring in the past. I can't say I blame her. It's just not as much fun when you are the only kid. This year she had some company. The decorating was fun and it went fast and I will always remember our first year decorating the tree all together.

Some Semblance of Success...

We have achieved a small measure of success this past weekend. Everyone in our home is adjusting to big changes. Some of us have moved, some of us have new house-mates. Some of us don't get as much time with our parents. Some of us have to eat different food than we are used to. Some of us don't get to exercise as much as we'd like. There are lots of changes and, all in all, we are slowly getting there. I don't think I can tell you exactly where "there" is, but I think I will know it when I see it.

We have the Wii and the weekend before last we broke it out for the first time since the wedding. It was total chaos, contention and arguing. The kids had some fun but there was way more fighting than frivolity. This most recent weekend, we tried a new strategy. We broke them up into teams, we created a chart so that teams and "first-player" would rotate. And you know what, the strangest thing happened... It actually worked.

Playing the Wii was fun. There was a little bickering but mostly laughing, cheers and encouragement. Score one for the parents!!!

So this is love...

Happy One-Month Anniversary Sweetheart!

Exactly one month ago today, I married my best friend, tennis partner, hiking buddy and the absolute love of my life. Earl is an amazing man who is strong, gentle, intelligent, wise, deeply spiritual and very fun. As you can see, he is also very handsome and I am so happy!



I have known Earl since February 2007. We met in an institute class and became friends. We found we had several common interests and we both had interest in one another. But, it wasn't the right time. I was involved with someone and he just wasn't ready. We dated a bit in the spring of that year and then hung out as friends. The following spring, I became available again and there was Earl. We began dating again in March and quickly fell in love. It was as if we had both been perfectly molded to be a part of each others lives.

Our wedding day was PERFECT!!!! There's no other word to describe it. We were the stereotypical bride and groom... Completely oblivious to anything but our moment. It was magical! It's a day I will never forget.



One of our earliest activities together was dancing. In fact, one of my favorite Earl stories happened at a dance. We had been out a few times, in 2007, and didn't know each other extremely well. Earl, Kerry, Cheryl and I decided to try a singles dance. While dancing with Earl, I looked up at him and exclaimed, "I love to twirl!" He heard, "I love you Earl!" He looked a little confused and said, "Did you just say, I love you Earl?" I burst out laughing and, in turn, said "Why haven't you turned and run screaming from the building?" The misheard phrase was corrected and we had a great chuckle about it. Now, I truly do love to twirl with Earl. Silly!


The day would not have been complete if we were not able to share it with the four most important people in our lives, our wonderful children. They were great! They all participated and did a great job. They were quite pleased with themselves, as you see. They had been "pressuring" us for months to get hitched and they were obviously quite pleased with the results. Job well done kids! Perhaps we can get you to negotiate raises for your mom and dad!

Boo Times = Good Times

Before I blog about our "spooktacular" Halloween festivities I should mention a few things that have taken place since July. (I have promised myself I am going to actually become a blogger and post something at least once a week.) Since July I have:

1) Fallen head over heels in love.
2) Accepted the most amazing mans proposal.
3) Planned a wedding.
4) My daughter was baptized.
5) I got married!
6) I've become a mother to 3 amazing boys.

Whew! It's been a whirlwind! There hasn't been much time to sit at a computer, but winter is coming, things are settling down and I am recommitting.

So... Halloween was very different at our house this year. We had so many more people to share it with. One of my favorite traditions is carving pumpkins. Chloe loves it too! With a whole new family to share it with, it was even better.

Here are all the kids with their spooky creations.

Here's Jacob's pumpkin. He did this all by himself, without any help.
It turned out soooo.... awesome!

Here are Chloe and Matthew at work. We sure made a mess.

Ben worked really hard on his too!

It was great.

Earl, my sweet husband, was our photographer and his did a great job. We stayed up way too late but we had a blast!

Where did June go?

So, I found time to start a blog... Typed up my first entry... Posted it and thought I was well on my way... Where did June go?

June was extraordinarily busy. In fact, since I have been divorced, my summers have been full of fun and excitement. There never seems to be a dull moment.

Here are some of the highlights from the lovely month of June:

1) I hiked down a mountain in the dark with 4 children under the age of 9, 1 grown man and 1 flash light. All children were up past their bed time and most were afraid of the dark. SpongeBob Squarepants songs saved the day.
2) I went to dinner with some of my best friends - Bobby, Sherri and Earl. Afterwards I attended my first interactive Mystery Theater - totally fun! (It helped that I was cast as a hussy... It's true...)
3) I attended Singles Conference in Orem, Utah. It's times like these that I sure am glad I am "eligible" to attend. All kidding aside, there were some very inspirational work shops and I was able to spend the whole weekend with another of my favorites, Gina!
4) I have started falling head over heels for a special someone. I can't seem to stop myself and I don't seem to mind. I am just enjoying it. How refreshing! And, I think he's falling for me too!
5) I hosted a huge party at my house, 20 or so adults and about 20 or so children filled up my house to overflowing but everyone had a great time.

July is almost half-way over and it's shaping up to be more of the same. Let the good times roll!

Why today and why now?

I have considered starting a blog for several months now and haven't ventured out of my comfort zone to do it. So, I wonder what is so different about today and more specifically now...

Well, my daughter is gleefully occupied. I only have one child and I am her only other play mate at home so I don't often get much time to do this type of thing. Today, she has a friend over and they are blissfully playing at the park on a very beautiful May day.

Also, I have just been reading blogs. When I read blogs, I always ask myself why I am not doing this? So, here I am.

And, on a more cheesy note, I have been overwhelmed with gratitude today for the little things and think this would be a great forum for me to express my thanks.

While life has little ups and downs and it's fair share of sharp inclines and drastic falls, it really does just keep getting better. Today I am on the incline and I am enjoying the ride!