WANTED

WANTED

The Laundry Fairy

If anyone knows of her whereabouts, I would appreciate you sending her my way.  I am in desperate need of her.

Reward:  Chocolate

You know the laundry is bad when your daughter says, "Mom, I don't know what keeps happening!  I put my clothes in the dirty clothes basket and then they disappear!"

I found this song to be my theme song as of late:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1Yj5Zykg9I

Oh.....will I ever get caught up?!?

Happy Birthday Dave

Friday was Dave's birthday!  Wahoo!  He finally caught me in age!  There is a disadvantage to being 5 months older.....he reminds me all of the time that he's younger than me.

Because of work and busy lives, we really haven't had time to celebrate.  So, the cake has been baked today and is cooling on the counter in anticipation of the frosting.  All three girls mixed the ingredients together to make the cake even more special.  I am starting to drool over it already!  It's a Devil's Food Cake and will have chocolate cream cheese frosting on top.  The house smells wonderful!  We will also be having his favorite dinner tonight which is lasagna soup and homemade bread sticks.

Dave and I were even able to get a date night in last night.  There were eight of us that went to the Copper Mill Restaurant for dinner to celebrate his birthday.  Thanks Grandma Peterson for letting the girls hang out with you and enjoy dinner, a movie and popcorn.

He's at work right now.  Hmmm....should have been home at 2 p.m.  He must have gotten busy.  We will patiently wait for him to arrive and then the cooking will begin!  This is the life in Law Enforcement.  The job doesn't end at a certain time.  It ends when the work is done.

We are so lucky to have Dave in our lives.  He is a wonderful husband and an amazing Dad.  He is dedicated to his family and to his work.  He does a great job providing for our family.

Happy Birthday Dad!

9/11 Memorial Wall

Dave had the priveledge last Wednesday (Sept 14) of escorting the 9/11 Memorial Wall into Cache Valley to the fair grounds.  This is one of the perkes to being a motorcycle cop.

Wednesday turned into a really crazy day.  Dave had to work that morning from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. then be in Ogden by 3:45 p.m. on his motorcycle to start brining the wall to the valley.  I had a meeting in Salt Lake from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and then had to return to the valley to start the TaVaci classes.....one at 4 p.m. and the other at 4:50 p.m.  I then needed to pull Ashley from her class at 5:30 (usually ends at 5:45) and head her off to her soccer game that started at 5:30 in River Heights.  Oh yea.....and I needed to hook up with Grandma Peterson somewhere so she could take Hannah to her piano lesson in Mendon at 5:30.

In my mind I was thinking there was no way I was going to be able to see Dave come in with the Memorial Wall.  However, on my way back into the valley, I swung to Mendon to change my clothes and grab the camera because I had figured out in my head that I could possibly make it work.  I would pick Nicole up from TaVaci at 4:45 and drop Ashley off.  Then Nicole and I would find somewhere along the highway on the south end of town to pull off and watch them drive by, which we did.  We sat at the south end Grist Mill.

I had been coordinating Hannah with my mom and they decided they were going to go sit at the park and ride in Wellsville and watch them come out of the canyon.  We had calculated that they should enter the valley around 5 p.m.

Everything was working perfect.  Nicole and I were in place.  I called my mom after dropping off Ashley and her and Hannah were watching the motorcade come out of the canyon.  Sweet!  We totally figured it out.  Plus, I knew in my mind they were going to have to come right up main street.  Especially because 1000 West is under construction. 

I'm talking to my mom on the phone and she's telling me how awesome it is.  There's tons of motorcycles both regular and police and a bunch of other cop cars.  It's probably about a mile long in length.  I'm ready.  The camera is on and here they come.   Then......Hannah calls and tells me that I'm going to miss them.  They are turning off the highway and going on 600 West.  Really?  You've got to be kidding me?

I quickly load Nicole into the van and off we go toward the fair grounds.  I get to 400 south and 100 west and see Dave's motorcycle partner.  Crap!  I missed it.  My mom and Hannah were following the motorcade because Hannah thought it was amazing to see her Dad.

Well, I made it to the Aquatic Center (across from the fairgounds) right as the trailer carrying the Memorial Wall was entering the gates.  Dave is already inside at this point and has parked his motorcycle.  Hannah and I ran inside to catch a couple of photos and to tell Dave we were there.

That's Dave standing in the middle back on the left hand side.

There's nothing like seeing a line of police motorcycles in a row!

The grass area was full of flags in perfect rows.  It was so pretty to see.

After a few pictures we were off.  Hannah and Grandma headed off to Mendon and Nicole and I headed off to grab Ashley from TaVaci.  I'm not sure how it happened but all of us ended up in River Heights to Ashley's game.  Yeah!!

Time Out for Women Weekend

This past weekend, September 16 & 17, was Time Out for Women in Logan.  Wahoo!

I look forward to this event all year long.  We order the tickets in May and it's marked on the calendar.  Dave knows that I don't ask for much time to do things on my own but when it comes to Time Out for Women weekend he's all over making sure the girls are taken care of so I can enjoy my Time Out.  He's awesome!

It is such a wonderful weekend where you can listen to others regarding life and life experiences and realize that you're not alone and that your normal.  It's okay to feel like you can't keep up and that you're treading water trying to barely stay above ground.  It's okay that there's those "moments" that your kids are driving you crazy but you still love them.

It's a weekend where one minute you're laughing and the next minute you're crying and then your looking at this person on the stage and in awe of how amazing they are.

It is a weekend that totally fills my cup, helps me put life back into perspective and to realize that I can do it and right now I'm doing the best I can and my Heavenly Father knows it, he's cheering me on and he loves me.

One of the presenters this year was a mother/daughter team - Linda J Eyre and Shawni Eyre Pothier.  They spoke on Motherhood.  Once again....it was a subject I needed to hear and to realize to find those crazy moments and try to bring in a little more holiness to make it through.  The daughter's example was to tell her kids that she loved them as she was buckling them in their car seats instead of the craziness of yelling to get buckled.  Oh....if I could remember that in the mornings!

Shawni has a blog called 71toes.com.  I have linked it on the sidebar of my blog.  For this past week, I have read her posts and have really been enjoying her insight on motherhood.  So, I wanted to share her blog address with everyone so you too can check it out and find some inspiration in raising your children or maybe your kids are gone from your home but I still think you'd enjoy reading her blog.  Plus, she's an amazing photographer and her pictures are beautiful.

As I was reading Shawni's post for today, it sent me to another blog where she actually posted her thoughts.  I was looking at the sidebar on this blog and found this saying from Marjorie Pay Hinkley.  I loved it and so I thought I'd better include it on my blog because I can totally relate.

I'm already looking forward to next year's Time Out for Women Event.  It's marked on the calendar and the tickets will be purchased in May!  If you need a Time Out, you're more than welcome to join me.  The more the merrier!

Nicole's First Day of Preschool

I was disappointed in August when I sent in Nicole's preschool registration and they called me saying that the preschool was full and that there was a waiting list.  This is the same preschool that Hannah and Ashley attended and I never had any problems with them enrolling so I was a bit shocked.

After talking with the director, I decided it was okay to place her on the waiting list because in all reality she's only three and will be able to do preschool next year before heading off to kindergarten.  They put her on the list and she was number five.  By being this far down, I figured we'd be able to get her started around January after Christmas break.

Then came a phone call the Wednesday before preschool was to start that they actually had a spot for Nicole.  There had been that much movement with the students that they were able to make it all of the way down to number five. 

This phone call came the same day that she started TaVaci class and so after an amazing time at TaVaci, we went to the open house for preschool.  She was so cute.  While walking into TaVace she saw the red balloons and the red path into the building and she looked up at me and said, "I'm so excited!"  We went to the preschool open house while Ashley was at TaVaci and it was time to go and what does she say? "Mom, I just need two more minutes to play and then I can go.  Can I please have two more minutes?"  I think she'll do just fine in both places.

On Tuesday, September 6, 2011, Nicole started preschool.  Hannah and Ashley were exited to be able to be in the car as we dropped her off for the first time and Teacher Jackie came to the car to take her in. 

Side note:  This is why I like this preschool.  You pull in the circular drive, they come to the car and get the kids and walk them inside.  Then for pick up, you pull into the circular drive, show you number, and they bring the child out to your car and buckle them in.  Totally worth the price!

Nicole is such an outgoing and infectious child.  She loves people and has no hesitation in walking up to make friends.  She has the ability to suck people in and they walk away loving her.  What a joy she is to have in our home.

Here she is on that first morning!

It's not complete without the funny face! 

Frog Heaven

Living in Mendon means that my girls are in frog heaven.  We are loaded with frogs and wouldn't you know it.....my girls aren't scared of them.  In fact, they love catching them.
We started out the summer with tons of little frogs.  I'm not sure what brought them out one evening but Dave walked out the front door to let a frog go that he caught in the garage and found probably 50 little frogs on our driveway.  He called me outside and it was one of the weirdest things I'd ever seen.  Hannah was actually awake so we let her come outside to see them.  Dave walked through our front grass and you should have seen them all jumping.  They were everywhere!

Here is a frog Nicole found while riding on the lawn mower with Dave.  She came inside and got Hannah and they went outside to catch him.  Oh don't worry.....they eventually let them go......against Nicole's wishes!

Nicole's Photo Shoot

Dave took these pictures of Nicole the same morning Hannah and Ashley started school.  They cracked me up as I was flipping through them and so I needed to put them on the blog.  I am not sure if she can get her beautiful brown eyes any bigger!  She must be watching Hannah and Ashley and not paying attention to the camera!  I think we're in trouble when she's older!!!!

And then.....the finale! 

Hannah & Ashley's First Day of School

School started on Monday, August 22, 2011.  Who in their right mind starts school on a Monday?  In my short 37 years, I have never been apart of this!  School always either starts on Wednesday or Thursday.  Oh well!  This year school ends on May 27, which means no going back to school after the Memorial Day weekend.  Nice!

The weekend before school started we were camping at Twin Lakes.  I needed to make sure we left early enough that we could get everything pulled together (backpacks and such) and get to bed early enough to start the new school routine.

Hannah is a 4th grader this year.  She is growing up so fast.  She is a very responsible child.  It is so nice to know that you can give her the run down of the day and she'll stick to it.  Now the homework part.....well....this needs a little work.  She would rather play than take the time to sit down and do her homework.  She can do it......when you duct tape her to the kitchen chair!

She loves her teacher this year.  She is a new teacher to the school and Hannah is striving to make her happy.  So far this year they have two field trips planned for September.  One to Guinnavah Camp Ground up Logan Canyon and the other to The Great Salt Lake and Antelope Island.  Fun!!!

My cute little Ashley is a First Grader!  Oh....to have more kids like her.  It's music to a mom's ears to hear, "I love school because you get to do math."  "I love reading!  Can I please read more?"  Just typing this brings tears to my eyes.

Ashley is such a cute, soft spoken little girls.  She loves going to school each morning and never gives me any flack about it.  She is enjoying hot lunches.  I give her a ton of credit for trying new foods.  However, maybe it's because she hasn't figured out the Muncher's Menu yet.  I'm sure it will come in time.

Ashley is a bit of a free spirit, which can be good and bad.  Hmmm.....it is interesting to see the differences between her and Hannah when it comes to being responsible for your items.  More than once last year Ashley's jacket ended up in the lost and found.

They can take cute pictures together when they want!

And don't forget Nicole!







Blog Marathon

I am a blogger slacker! Life seems to be getting away from me and finding the time to blog happens to be on the very bottom of the list. I'm trying to keep up with work, school, soccer, home, girls, laundry, church calling and everything else. I feel as though I'm sinking!
I was looking through the pictures on the camera and thought I'd better get them on the blog for future documentation. So here comes a bunch of posts!

Logan's July 24 Parade

So....how old were you when you were in your first parade?  I'm really not sure but I'm sure I was older than three!

The TaVaci kids rode in the 24th of July Parade in Logan.  Nicole was signed up to start TaVaci in August and so she was invited to ride in the trailer.  She was stoked!  There was no way she was going to let Hannah and Ashley go without her.

Hannah did great!  She walked most of the parade route and carried the sign at the end.

Look at their poor little red faces.  It was a really hot day.

Now That's an Imagination

Dave and I should probably feel bad that our girls don't have a pet.  We were at my mom's having dinner one Sunday afternoon and the girls were outside playing.  We went outside to get everyone loaded in the car and found this......

I guess we really should reconsider not getting them a pet.  However, I give them credit for using their imaginations!

Hannah's Piano Recital

June 29, 2011, brough Hannah's second piano recital.  I know I'm the mom but I think she did a great job.  We were a little worried because she played her piece so fast but she slowed done and played it great!

Here's all the students taking piano lessons from Karina.

Here's Hannah performing 

Here's Hannah receiving her certificate 

Hannah's Hard Lesson Learned

This summer Hannah had quite the learning experience that totally brought a childhood experience back to me.  All three girls were outside riding the 4-wheeler; Hannah driving.  Dave and I were inside preparing dinner because we had Grandma Welker, Grandma Welker, Grandma Peterson, and Aunt Wendy coming.  Hannah comes through the back door and with a sad face tells us that she ran over a tree.  Now let me say that we did our yard last year so these trees aren't very big.  In fact, it was one year ago now that we purchased the trees for the yard.

Dave asked Hannah how bad the tree was hurt.  She said it's laying down.  I have to say I was quite impressed with Dave.  He didn't get mad at Hannah.  He just asked her if she was driving too fast.  She said she wasn't but he told her that she must have been in order to not have missed the tree.

When Dave went outside to check the damage to the tree, he returned and informed me that she did a doozer.  The tree was unsalvagable.  She broke it off at the bottom.  Come to find out, Hannah had her head turned backward talking to the other girls as she was driving forward slowly and ran over the tree.  Oops!

This totally reminded me of the time when   I was little that I was outside driving the lawn mower.  Yes, I was driving the lawn mower.  We didn't have a cool 4-wheeler at the time.  I was on the side of our house in Smithfield and was going in reverse when I ran into the chain link fence.  I was so devastated because it bent the fence.  I remember my Dad was at work and I knew I was going to be in so much trouble when her returned.  I asked my mom if she would call my uncle to come up and fix the fence before my Dad got home.  Then I told my dad a dog ran into the fence and left some blood on it.  Do you think he ever figured out that the red was the paint from the lawn mower and not from a dog?

After everyone left from dinner, Hannah wasn't happy but we made her hold the tree so we could get some pictures for posterity sake.  In a few years the story will be funny.  For now......we're saving up to purchase a new tree!  Hannah is worried we'll make her pay for it but we were more impressed that she took ownership of the situation and came to us with the truth instead of trying to hide it.  Can you punish a kid for that?  Hopefully this is a good lesson to her that she can come and talk to us about anything.  I think it's better to keep the door open for communication than worry about replacing the tree.

A little Update...We're Still Alive

We returned home this evening from another fun camping weekend.  These weekends are winding down quickly.  We only have one more scheduled for this year.  This go round we camped at Wellsville Dam.  Yes, that's right.  Wellsville has a Dam and we really did camp 8 minutes from home.  It was great!  For us camping isn't about where you go, it's about who you go with.  As long as the girls are happy and having a great time, it doesn't matter where we are.

We pulled into camp Friday night about 7:30 and enjoyed a yummy polish sausage and got everything settled.  Saturday brought me, Dave, Hannah and Nicole heading to Nibley to can applesauce.  Ashley stayed behind to be with Taylor.  These two become inseparable on the camping trips.  Saturday turned into a long day.  We canned 175 quart jars and 10 pint jars of applesauce.  We then left and headed back to camp to make dinner for everyone.  I love how we do the meals camping.  Each family is in charge of cooking & clean up of one meal.  The other meals you get to relax.  It's also nice on the grocery shopping.  You only have to prepare for one meal and your snacks.  Nice!  Saturday night we watched "Rio" on the big screen and went to bed exhausted.

Sunday morning we got up early and headed home for showers and church.  It was nice being so close to home.  We didn't have to find anyone to fill in for us with our church callings.  We were back in camp by 1:00 and enjoyed the afternoon and evening.  The only thing I would change would be how hot it got in the afternoon but once the sun went down it cooled off quickly.

Today we went to the Wellsville parade.  Dave actually had to work the parade on his motorcycle so once again it was convenient to be in Wellsville.  He brought his motorcycle to the campground Sunday after church and was able to be with us until he had to head off to work.  This was the first time I have seen the Wellsville parade and I must say it was an interesting one.  Not one that I'm really dying to see again.  Lots of guns and shooting.  I'm sure they were blanks but they sure were loud.  The cowboys and Indians were interesting too.  I guess you have to see it to understand what I'm talking about.

It was 6:30 before we got home tonight and had the trailer dumped and a few errands run in town.  The girls were in bed by 8 o'clock.  Everyone is exhausted but sure had a fun time!

Bring on the week....I think.  I just filled in our schedule on our back whiteboard and wow!  It's a busy week.  Soccer starts this week for Hannah and Ashley.  The nice thing....they both have practice on Thursday which is the only night during the week that we're actually home.  I guess we're not now!  They'll be practicing in Wellsville.  Each of them have a game on Saturday.  It's six weeks of sacrifice.  I sure hope they appreciate it!

Nicole gets to start preschool tomorrow.  She started TaVaci last week and was so cute!  She has been flying around the house tonight because she gets to start school tomorrow.  Oh man!  She's almost 4 going on 14.

Until later!