I'm Thankful For . . .

One month I forgot my visiting teachers were coming and I was still in my robe when they arrived (it was before noon, so it's likely to happen here). They didn't care. We sat together and had a great discussion and a lesson.

I actually remembered that my visiting teachers were coming today. I glanced at the clock in my boys' room and saw that it was ten minutes to eleven. They would be here any minute. I was already dressed. I told Utah Dad they were coming at eleven and he reminded me that I hadn't changed the boys' clock yet--it was just ten. I still had an hour. Then, right at ten the doorbell rang. One of my visiting teachers "M" and her two darling children were on my doorstep. I welcomed her inside, we laughed that we had messed up the time. I was sure that "J" had emailed me that they would be coming at eleven.

M and I sat upstairs in the loft (it's too cold downstairs now) to visit while our children played and waited for "J" to come in an hour. We always have plenty to talk about. We talked and talked and then when my children started complaining about being hungry, I discovered that it was now noon. I knew "J" wouldn't have forgotten. She's very reliable and she set up the appointment. "M" gathered up her own hungry/tired children and she got ready to go home. While I was saying goodbye to "M" we saw "J" crossing the street with her children. Hadn't I read her email (I had responded after all) that changed the time to 12:30? I know I read the email but apparently my brain didn't actually process the time change. "J"'s children ran upstairs to play with my kids who were delighted to have more friends to play with and then "J" and I sat upstairs in the loft (it really is way too cold downstairs) and visited. We always have plenty to talk about.

I adore my visiting teachers. They come every month. They watch my kids if I'm in a pinch. They bring me dinner on Mother's Day. They plan and share thoughtful lessons. They are genuinely concerned about me and my family. They are also my very good friends. I don't really deserve them since I am no where near as good at visiting teaching--although I am trying to improve.

Today, I am very grateful for two fabulous visiting teachers.

They're both cute too and (haha!) I have pictures of them to share because I've had the privilege to photograph them too. :)

I'm Thankful For . . .

My in-laws came by this afternoon with take-out. I say "came by" so casually, but it really takes them an hour in good traffic to get to my house. The fish and chips were delicious but it was especially nice not to have to cook tonight. (All moms know the value of this. Am I right?) They also brought Utah Dad Volumes Four and Five of The Children of Promise series so I don't have to listen to him whine about having to wait.

I have fabulous in-laws. They're always doing such sweet and thoughtful things for us. My children ADORE them. I've known that I was especially blessed ever since I first started dating Utah Dad and met them. Next year they will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. They are examples to me of overcoming difficulties and focusing on the positive to succeed. I also value their friendship.

I love them both and I am so very grateful for my mother and father-in-law.

I'm Thankful For . . .

I'm starting to feel like a human again today so I've been working on pictures from one of my weekend sessions. I've had a little "helper". Molly pulls another chair over to my computer desk and stands on the chair next to me while I work. Only occasionally does she try to grab the mouse or push the button that locks my computer. If there are typos in this text, I blame them on her. I was tempted to leave them, but I'm afraid the entire thing would be illegible. Her naughty laugh is quite cute though.

Molly is growing up so quickly lately and it's really breaking my heart. I love to watch her discover new things and fight for her independence. Man, his kid is strong willed--in scarier moments I've been experiencing some deja vu from Amberly's crazy toddler years. Even though I think I've hid all the markers she manages to find them. Her artwork now decorates numerous walls, Lilly's bed and the boys' dresser. She is always sticky.

Molly loves her baby doll, her lamb and playing with/bugging her older siblings. She loves to anywhere. If I even mention leaving, she'll meet me at the door with her shoes in her hands. "Go!" she says. She loves to take baths which is a good thing because she requires one nearly every day. She loves all food. The other kids laugh because she will eat anything. When we have ice cream, she quickly devours her own and then moves from person to person begging additional bites. Don't leave the table if you're not done eating because Molly will confiscate your food and eat it before you get back.

I love that she sings along to the radio in the car. I love that she gives big hugs and kisses. I love that she calls for her daddy if she wakes up in the middle of the night. I love that she will still cuddle with me for a few minutes. I just love her.

I snapped this picture of her this morning just after her bath while she was still clean. Now she has some sticky sweet cinnamon roll residue on her cheeks and pink marker scribbles on her shirt.

Today, I am very very thankful for my littlest baby girl -- Molly.

The Privileges - Book Review

In The Privileges : A Novel by Jonathan Dee, Cynthia and Adam get married young but none of their friends are concerned because clearly they are meant for each other and everyone knows that together they will do great things. The story of the Moreys is divided into four sections. The first section is their wedding. The second deals with their lives as young parents. Their children are teenagers in the third section and then have moved out on their own in the fourth.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed The Privileges. The writing is flawless. Dee recognizes and exposes human nature perfectly as he recounts the upward movement of this privileged family. The children are very much a part of the "entitlement era" and react differently to the fact that because of the immense wealth created by their parents they can have anything their hearts desire. Meanwhile Cynthia and Adam, deeply in love with each other, live by their own set of values and morals.

The book is a social commentary without Dee giving anything away but the details of the members of the family's lives. I especially felt like he honestly captured the mother's horror, grief and psychosis after her children are separated from her on a subway. I think every mother understands the fear she must have felt.

Dee is witty, ironic and occasionally sympathetic but always honest. Other than the over-use of crude language, I really enjoyed this book. It definitely left me pondering.


I won a copy of The Privileges from Goodreads.com. The opinions in this review are my own and I received no compensation.

I'm Thankful For . . .

This cold has got me tight in it's grip today. We woke early this morning thanks to the time change and I thought maybe if I took some DayQuil I might actually be able to function today--maybe even make it to church. So I took it, but instead of feeling better, I crashed. My legs felt like jelly and I could barely open my eyes. At noon, Utah Dad practically pushed me out of bed so I made my way downstairs where I curled into a ball on the couch and went back to sleep. The kids and Utah Dad watched The Sound of Music and the video-biography of President Monson so I think I was out for quite awhile. Clearly, the non-drowsy formula doesn't work for me.

When I have a cold the thing I love most, other than the excuse to sit and read when I'm awake, is my mom's concoction of honey, vinegar and hot water. I think she started giving it to me in my bottle when I was a baby (in the days when they didn't know not to give babies honey). My cousins like it too, so I assume that my grandmother gave it to my mom when she was sick as a child too.

Utah Dad and my kids can't stand honey and vinegar. Utah Dad forbids me to come near him while I'm drinking it. But it just makes me feel better. And it makes me think of my mom, who is really very fantastic. She amazes me. 

So today I'm just very very thankful for my mom.

And I'm thankful for my grandma too. Isn't she so cute?!

I'm Thankful For . . .

Not long after we moved into our home, my parents bought themselves a baby grand piano and they had their old piano shipped to us. We were delighted and very grateful. Even though it's old and a bit out of tune, it's the piano I played on as a child and the keys are so familiar to me. We bought some beginnger piano books for Neal with the idea that I would teach him how to play. That didn't really work very well but armed with the books, Neal taught himself the basics. He played all the time and was making pretty good progress. He'd make up his own songs or play from some of the more simplified piano books I had. And then he just stopped. He wouldn't play the piano for a few years. Absolutely refused to touch it.

Utah Dad and I were distressed because we really wanted him to continue with his talent and Amberly was getting to the age where we really wanted her to be able to learn too. We discussed it this summer and reworked our budget (we had to tighten our belts a little, but heaven knows we could use some of that) to include money for piano lessons for both Neal and Amberly. Neal threw a fit. He did not want to take piano lessons. Amberly wanted to learn to play the violin or the guitar. We insisted and since we're the parents we won.

They started taking lessons from a woman in our neighborhood when school started. We've created a piano-playing monster in Neal. We love to hear him play and we are so thrilled but there are times when we almost have to beg him to stop just so we can hear ourselves think. He plays for several hours a day and is improving rapidly. Amberly, starting from scratch, is progressing slowly. I have to fight to get her to sit down and practice.

This morning they both performed in their first piano recital. I'm posting the video mostly for the sake of their grandparents who couldn't come. The kids enjoyed themselves and I think they were both inspired by some of the other performers to continue to work and practice (I hope).

There wasn't really an earthquake during Neal's performance--Lilly and Molly were both climbing on me while I was trying to film. You can hear them giggling.

I'm so thankful for music and how it touches and blesses our lives. I'm thankful that my parents gave me years of piano lessons (I never did get very good) and voice lessons. I even pretended to play the flute for several years in middle school and junior high. I'm thankful that Neal and Amberly have the opportunity to learn the piano and I'm thankful for their dedicated and very cool teacher.

I'm Thankful For . . .

I had a photo shoot this afternoon and I took Neal with me. The shoot involved a family of four--the parents and one-year-old twin boys. When I told Neal that I would need him to help to get the babies to look at me. He surprised me by responding, "I love to help little kids." I suppose I hadn't really noticed this about him but then I started to think about how sweet he is with Molly and even Lilly. He regularly invites them to snuggle with him on the couch while they watch a movie and he talks to them in a sweet little voice. He often reads books to them. They both adore him.

After the photo shoot, Neal and I went to see Toy Story 3 at the theater. Sadly, this is only the second movie Neal has seen in a theater. We took him to Madagascar when he was just three. He remembers the experience as "the longest movie ever". We enjoyed this movie. He ate popcorn. I sucked on cough drops. He's finally at an age to really just sit and watch the movie without making comments and he only wiggled a little at the end when he clearly needed a bathroom break. I imagine we'll have to start going to the movies more often.

When the movie was over and we'd stopped at the restroom, we went to the new frozen yogurt place in Provo--EarthFruits Frozen Yogurt. I won a few gift certificates the other day from The Mom Nerd Blog and so we enjoyed it tonight. Neal loaded his chocolate yogurt up with sprinkles and crushed Butterfinger. I opted for a smaller portion of the blueberry acai yogurt sans toppings. They were both really good.

All the way home, Neal told me the story of the third Percy Jackson book in detail. In fact, he laughed at himself and replied, "you don't need to read that book now." He pretty much talked non-stop about school, this year's Knowledge Bowl, his friends, the books he's reading, future vacations we need to take, the dog, and the family. It's not often that I get a lot of one-on-one time with Neal so I really enjoyed listening to him tonight.

Tonight, I'm thankful for my oldest son.

He's growing up to be a really sweet, sometimes mischevious, piano-playing, whiz kid.

The Call of the Wild - Book Review

I started reading The Call of the Wild by Jack London with my kids in the evening back in September. We didn't finish and then my evenings in October were so busy, I rarely got a chance to read to the kids. We only had one chapter left, so this week we finished it.

The Call of the Wild tells the story of Buck, a half shepherd/half St. Bernard enjoying his easy life in a small town in California. Then, he is kidnapped, transported and sold to gold prospectors in Alaska. Buck's life drastically changes. He must fight off rival dogs, withstand the blows from his master's club, and survive the treacherous frozen wilderness. Buck grows strong and cunning, eventually heeding "the call of the wild".

I found the story fascinating and rich. I was impressed with London's ability to write believably from within the mind of a dog. It was definitely a unique view of the world. The book is full of adventure and is never dull.

The vocabulary is intensive and we did have to stop several times each evening to discuss the meanings of words and the basics of plot. Neal enjoyed the story, but even he had to ask a lot of questions about plot and meanings of words. I think he might have been able to grasp it better if he had simply read it by himself. My smaller children were completely lost. They asked each night to read, but I think it was simply to prolong bedtime and because they do like to listen to me read. This particular book was definitely beyond their understanding.

I'm Thankful For . . .

The clock on the microwave said 1:23 this morning when I busted through the front door (the door knob is broken so you really have to push hard with your knee to get the door to open). Surprisingly, I didn't wake anyone up. After checking my email, Facebook and taking out my contacts, I climbed into bed next to snoring Utah Dad, who rolled over and mumbled, "Good grief. What time is it?" before immediately falling back asleep. He is used to it, after all.

As soon as I laid down, my head filled up with this lovely head cold and I spent the night coughing, sniffling and not sleeping. I couldn't stop thinking about the really great women that I get to visit with each month at Book Club. I've known and loved some of them for a few years now but others have just started coming or recently moved into our neighborhood and I'm enjoying getting to know them better too. (Every woman in our neighborhood is welcome, by the way. The more the merrier.)

It's a great place. Book Club. I really feel like it's a judgement free place. The women don't care if I refuse to iron my husband's shirts. They really don't. We can open up and be ourselves, which I believe is a very rare situation regarding groups of women. Sometimes we share more personal information and that's safe too. We respect each other. We're opinionated but certainly don't mean to offend. We discuss our worries about motherhood, extended families and the world. Together we've analyzed every aspect of our local school/principal/teachers/classmates/activities. We're strangely intrigued/disgusted by polygamists. I usually have at least one political tantrum. They smile at me and nod their heads to placate me and wait for it to pass. They know me, after all. 

We might not actually talk about the book we've read that month. But we will talk about books. We all read for different reasons and we like various types of books. We do all love books.

We eat. Every woman there can make a wicked good cookie.

And we just talk and talk. One night at midnight we got up to leave and go to our homes. We stood for another hour at the door as we continued the conversation. In the morning, I usually have a serious head ache that we've lovingly begun to refer to as our "Book Club Hangover". But it's worth it. I'm already looking forward to next month.

Today, even though I'm sleep-deprived and stuffy headed, I am thankful for Book Club. 

I'm Thankful for . . .

Sunday morning while I was getting ready for church a thought popped into my head: "The entire family is healthy. It's been awhile since we've been sick." Amberly complained of a sore throat and an ear ache two weeks ago and Utah Dad stayed home from church with her. She rallied quickly and went back to school the next morning. Other than that, it's been quite awhile since we've had sickness in our home.

Knock on wood.

By the time we sat down on a pew at church, Lilly was complaining that her "nose was bugging her". By the time we got home from church she had a runny nose and has been stuffy and yucky and extremely whiney since. I woke up with a sore throat this morning.

I do hate the common cold. They're just plain miserable. However, it could be a lot worse. Today, that scratching feeling in the back of my throat is reminding me that I am basically healthy. We are a generally healthy family. And I'm very grateful.

Today, I'm thankful for my health.

Moonlight in Odessa - Book Review

Moonlight in Odessa by Janet Skeslien Charles begins in Odessa, Ukraine. Daria, who has a degree in mechanical engineering is working in the only job she could find as a secretary to a leering, harassing man. Daria lives with her grandmother in the cramped one room apartment and dreams of love with a faithful man, unlike her grandfather and father who left and disappeared. To supplement their meager income and build more security, Daria begins a second job with "Soviet Unions" which sets up American men with Odessan women. Daria, who speaks flawless English works as a translator but is soon swept up in the ideas and dreams of America. She begins writing to her own American who eventually whisks her away to California to begin the perfect life.

Having just finished a book that I loved, I didn't expect to be impressed by Moonlight in Odesssa. However, I found the story to be immediately engaging. The character of Daria was very well developed and likable. She is a smart girl trying to survive and improve her situation in the rough years of transition following the fall of the Soviet Union. She uses her brains to outwit the lecherous men yet her heart is tender and she dreams of being loved and having a family.

The city of Odessa on the coast of the Black Sea is an interesting setting. The Soviet Union and communism have crumbled leaving the pensioners nearly penniless and the government corrupt. Electricity, water and telephone service are less than reliable and the mobsters run the city. The economy is crumbling. Even so, the city is beautiful. The people are cultured and educated. This setting is fascinating.

The scenes in America cause some embarrassment because they are resoundingly real. Daria is amazed at the casualness of Americans, the sloppy language and the indifference to geography--most people in the small town where she lives continue to think she is Russian and constantly mispronounce her name.

This story is delightful and painful and sweet. It's enlightening and tender. It's well written and clearly the author understands both cultures and is in tune with human nature and desires. There are only a few instances of crude language and sexual situations. Over all it is very good.


I won a copy of Moonlight in Odessa on goodreads.com back in September and I just got around to reading it this week. The opinions expressed are my own and no other compensation was given for this review.

I'm Thankful For . . .

Now that Halloween is out of the way, we can focus on my favorite holiday of the year. I love Thanksgiving.  I love the food. I love hanging out with my family. I love the chill in the air. And I really do love the reminder to be grateful.

President Gordon B. Hinckley's writes in his book Way to Be!:

Your very attitude toward life can be evidence of whether or not you are truly grateful for life, for the blessings you have, for the comforts and privileges and opportunities you enjoy, for the talents you have been given, for everything.

Let a spirit of thanksgiving guide and bless your days and nights. Work at it. You will find that it will yield wonderful results (p.21).

So, this month, I'm going to make an extra effort to be thankful--for the usual and maybe even the not so obvious. I had intended to do a daily post during the month of November highlighting something that I am truly thankful for. I missed a day but I'll start it today anyway.

Today I am especially thankful for the freedoms and blessings of being a citizen of and living in the United States of America and I am grateful that I could exercise my right to vote today. I hope you did too.

Go Vote!

I'll admit that I'm not thrilled with any of the choices. But, even so, I'll be there this morning or maybe this afternoon -- VOTING.

GO VOTE!

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Book Review

Are you ready for another book review already? I hope so, because I just cannot wait to write my review. Don't be alarmed, but it will be full of gushy praise.

I've had The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows on my wish list since I read the early reviews a few years ago. It sounded wonderful. The other day in my fit of amazon.com passion, I ordered a copy. It arrived and then had to sit on my to-read shelf directly in my line of view while I sat on my bed reading a few lackluster novels. I was antsy. I had a hard time concentrating on the other books when I knew that it was just sitting there, waiting for me. (Yes, I'm obsessed. I admit it.)

On Friday I finally finished Enna Burning for my book club and I allowed myself to ignore the five other books that are waiting to be read and reviewed and begin The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (aren't you immediately intrigued by the long title?). Fortunately, Utah Dad is currently smack dab in the middle of a fabulous book (Volume 2 of The Children of Promise Series by Dean Hughes) and didn't bother me with suggestions to watch a movie instead of reading this weekend. Both of us debated staying up all night to read (our fatigue ultimately won out) and jokingly wondered if it could possibly be appropriate to take our books to nursery this morning. Fortunately, we chose to leave our books at home and didn't neglect the nursery babies. I finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society just a bit ago. Utah Dad is still on the couch reading with just a few more pages to go.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is a uniquely written novel. It is written as a series of letters to and from Juliet Ashton, the witty writer of a published collection of anecdotes of her experiences in London during World War II. The war is recently over and Juliet is trying to rebuild her life and looking for a new subject to write about. She receives a letter from Dawsey, a pig farmer on the island of Guernsey. He has obtained a book that once belonged to her and is curious about obtaining more books by the same author. The island state of Guernsey was occupied by the Germans for the length of the war. The people of Guernsey have been cut off from news, nearly starved to death and in a spontaneous moment formed the literary society as a ruse to allow themselves to gather regularly without trouble from the Germans. What began as a ruse becomes a real love of literature for many of the members. In her correspondence with the members of the society, Juliet makes new friends and discovers a deeply moving story about mankind's desire to not only survive but to thrive even in perilous times.

I was amazed that through letters the story could be told so thoroughly emotionally and that the characters could be so deeply developed. In the late 1940's, letter writing was really the only way to communicate with people at great distances (phones being not nearly so reliable and convenient--especially right after war). Juliet's wit, thoughtfulness and her insecurities come out in her letters to her friends. This style was really rather ingenious and I ended up liking it a great deal. It was much more personal. It was as if I had just discovered a packet of letters carefully saved and wrapped in a ribbon in my grandmother's trunk.

The story reads so smoothly. There is not a single flaw in the writing or the story. I now want to move to Guernsey and live in a little cottage by the ocean and let my kids run bare foot across the fields and milk cows and feed little piglets (Lilly would love that). I wonder if they have good Internet on the island. Anyone want to buy my house?

P.S. Utah Dad just finished his book. At least he has Volume Three. What in the world should I read now?

Enna Burning - Book Review

Two years ago, a dear friend and I decided to form a book club in our neighborhood. We both loved reading books and we loved talking about books. We knew there were at least a few other women who also loved books (other than Twilight) and so we invited them to meet at my house on the first Wednesday of November 2008. We talked about the book, our children, our husbands, and everything else. We ate delicious treats and realized that we had been sitting around my kitchen table for hours. It was already eleven pm.

Before long the book club expanded to include many more members (basically anyone who wants to come is welcome and you really don't have to read the book although it is encouraged), we began to meet regularly at my friend's home and our visits stretched later and later into the wee hours of the morning (much to Utah Dad's chagrin). We've read great books, mediocre books and some that we loathed. We've read books that I wouldn't necessarily have chosen for myself but have been ultimately grateful for the introduction. Sometimes we actually talk about the books. Mostly we talk about the things that really matter to us and I love that I've had this chance to make close friendships with some very amazing and unique women. 

This past month we've been reading Enna Burning by Shannon Hale. We read Goose Girl as our second book two years ago and most of us enjoyed it. I did. I thought it was a fun representation of the original Goose Girl fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. Hale creates an imaginative world of Bayern where Isi, the heroine, has the gift/ability to speak with the wind and the birds. As it is written and intended for a young audience, I also appreciated that it was free of offensive material.

Enna Burning is equally as clean and is a creative and inventive story of Isi's friend Enna who learns how to speak to fire. The land of Bayern is now at war and Enna believes that her new skills can help save her homeland. Enna has a mighty adventure as she learns how to control the fire and not let it control her. The writing is simple but that is appropriate for the audience and I believe that my Amberly will enjoy this series in a few years.

Easy Halloween Costumes - Again

While I admire those who go all out and create fabulous costumes for their children, you know I prefer to keep it simple. I'm not a real lover of the holiday and with Christmas looming, I cringe to spend too much money for Halloween. Bah Hum Bug, I know.

Anyway, here's a quick review of my kids and their costumes this year.

Neal the Skeleton

We cheated on his costume and bought the entire thing at Target. It was on sale but I still spent more than I wanted. Neal was insisting on being something "scary" and he finally decided what to wear earlier this week. The skeleton was a compromise. It was just scary enough to be cool in the fifth grade but not too scary to bother his mom.

Amberly the Corpse Bride

Amberly has been planning her costume since last year. She adores dressing up for Halloween and we have a thing for Tim Burton's The Corpse Bride. She had a bit of a melt down in Target when I refused to buy the pre-made wedding dress costume. First, it was too expensive and secondly it was immodest. As if I'm going to let my daughter wear an immodest wedding dress--even for Halloween. I don't think so. I think the costume I threw together this week made it up to her though. The tutu and veil were easy. And I sewed lace around the neck and sleeves of an old shirt from Old Navy. It's pretty simple but I'm still impressed by myself since my sewing machine rarely every comes out.

She's pretty spooky though. Since they couldn't wear face paint to school yesterday, she went as an alive bride. Apparently she croaked sometime last night.

Thomas the Ghost

Thomas had definite ideas about what he wanted to be for Halloween. He's been telling us for months that he wanted to be a ghost. Here's our conversation:

Thomas: I'll just put a sheet over my head.

Me: How will you tell where you're going?

Thomas: I'll just feel my way.

Me: You'll get hit by a car.

Thomas: No, I stop and I'll listen for cars and then I'll feel the wind of the car as it goes by. Then I'll cross the street.

Me: I don't think we'll put a sheet over your head.

My friend loaned me a toga-like costume but Thomas refused to wear that, so I just bought him a white shirt. We painted his face and sprayed his hear white. Voila. A spooky ghost.

And Thomas is a pretty picky candy eater. He only likes the chocolate. I tried teaching him the polite thing to say: "no thankyou" but his versions turned out more like: "Ewww. I hate suckers. Why does everyone give out suckers?" I apologize for his rudeness.

Lilly the Care Bear

Earlier this month I was at my sister-in-law's house and she pulled out this Care Bear costume that her daughter wore a few years ago. She asked if Lilly would like it and I knew immediately that she would. First, it's purple and Lilly loves purple. Second, it's a Care Bear and Lilly loves Care Bears. When I brought it home Lilly was so excited to try it on.

She looks less than thrilled in the picture but that's more that she was overwhelmed by the crowds at our house. She suddenly gets shy and quiet around crowds. Lilly loved trick-r-treating tonight and even though it was raining like crazy, she was nice and warm as she ran from house to house. She's so cute. I could just eat her up.

Molly the Tiger

Poor Molly got to be the tiger this year because she's too little to complain and because I already had the costume in storage (both Neal and Thomas were tigers and they both looked as miserable).

Molly perked up while we were trick-r-treating when she figured out that people were giving her candy. She had no intentions of putting the good stuff in the bag and wanted to keep it all in her chubby little hands. She is a bonafide chocoholic and she did the funniest "happy dance" when we got home and pulled out the KitKats. She ate way too much candy and was so hyper.

I don't dress up. You know this. I did spray glitter in my hair. One of my sister-in-law's took this picture today and of course I doctored it up in Photoshop (just a little honesty, there).

This afternoon, before the rain, a lot of my family gathered for a little party at my house. My parents drove out for the weekend and 15 of the 20 grand kids were here in their costumes. We attempted to take a picture of all the kids with my parents. It was pretty dang funny.

Hope you all had a Happy Halloween.

Update

I have now added "Plumber" to my resume.

Lesson learned: just like potato peels, butternut squash peels should not be put down the disposal.

Yesterday, we were drowning in dirty laundry and wet towels thanks to my plumbing experience.

This morning, all the clothes and towels are washed, folded, and put away. I might make my kids wear their jammies all day. Heck, I might stay in my jammies all day. Again.

Last week, I was WAY more social than usual. I sent Utah Dad out fishing on Friday so that I could keep justifying all my "Girls' Nights/Days Out". I had a great time visiting with new and old friends and I even dressed up for Halloween (in my very casual way).

People never stop by AFTER I do the dishes.

I had my first period in 28 months. I know you wanted to know that.

Neal is excited for the ski season to begin. I drank a warm, yummy chocolate coconut steamer to celebrate the snow and am looking forward to many more.

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

I only have one more Halloween costume to make. Somehow, I need to turn Amberly into the Corpse Bride by Friday. I probably should get dressed and head to the store for tulle. 

I've had lots of fun photo shoots with lots of fun families and I'm looking forward to some more.

Last night, I spontaneously, with the urging of my mom, planned a family Halloween party at my house. Bring on the costumed toddlers. I'll be ready.

Molly just woke up wet. Looks like I'll be washing some sheets today. So much for being caught up on the laundry.

Christmas Cards - Check

I know that we haven't even gotten to Halloween yet and it might seem a little early to bring up Christmas. Last year, I let the season slip away and I didn't get Christmas cards sent out to my dear far-away friends and family and I didn't even take gifts to my dear neighbors. I'm determined to fix that this year, so I've got to get busy and start checking things off my Christmas to do list--NOW. (Don't remind me that three of my children don't have their Halloween costumes yet. Can we just skip Halloween this year?)

This year, I'm planning to create and order my Christmas cards from Shutterfly--early. I just spent some time this morning perusing their designs and I am so impressed. They are beautiful and stylish. I love cards that include family pictures--especially from my friends that live far away. I don't get to see their children on a regular basis and I'm always amazed how much they grow up and change each year.

Shutterfly has so many picture card options for the season--from religious Christmas cards to story cards. Personally, I don't send out newsletters. I figure if you read my blog, you're already tired of hearing about us/me. But I do enjoy getting newsletters from my non-blogging friends. That said, I have to admit a fondness for Shutterfly's story cards. They're really cute. You can easily fill in a few of your exciting yearly events without writing an autobiography.

I also really like that some of the card designs allow for multiple pictures. I hope **HOPE** to get a family picture taken this season, but I can't guarantee that it will actually happen. If I don't, I like that there are card designs that I could easily put an individual picture of each of my children.

I've printed my snapshots at Shutterfly before and I've been happy with the quality. The colors are highly saturated and the paper is good. I always get my prints delivered so quickly too.

It really isn't too early to think about Christmas cards. Right now, Shutterfly is offering 20% off all holiday cards. Don't miss out on that deal.


**For posting my honest opinion about Shutterfly Holiday cards, I will get 50 free cards from Shutterfly. Look for one in the mail from me this Christmas season. No other compensation was given.

The Mistress of Abha - Book Review

I have a stack of books that I've won from FirstReads on GoodReads.com that I need to get reading so I decided that I'd start with the one that has been sitting there the longest.

The Mistress of Abha is written by William Newton, who died earlier this year. Newton spent his professional career as a doctor and started writing novels in his retirement. The Mistress of Abha is his second published novel.

This novel is set in 1930's Arabia. Ivor Willoughby has decided to search for his long lost father. He knows that his father left his mother shortly after his birth to serve with the British in Arabia. He returned for one brief visit when Ivor was a teenager and then disappeared again. Ivor is now an adult and ready to solve the mystery of his father.

The book begins slowly as it builds momentum for Ivor's adventure in Arabia but it does hold the promise of eventual thrills. I read an article by a reader who explained that she always gave a boring book fifty pages before deciding to put it down, and it seemed that in this case right at page fifty the book suddenly got interesting and exciting.

While in Arabia, Ivor meets with great danger, hears stories of tribal battles, the slave trade, love and intrigue amidst the harems, and eventually uncovers the mystery surrounding the tales of his father--Ullobi. Arabia is definitely not a dull place. Newton writes historical detail and plot well. However, what the book lacks is passion. Overall, I enjoyed The Mistress of Abha and stayed up late to finish it last night.

Support Childhelp

Several years ago when I was just a brand new mother, I met a fascinating woman in my ward. At the time she was the mother of eight handsome sons. She was amazing and I was in awe of her. She always looked fabulous. Her boys were well behaved and talented. For Halloween she made them all themed costumes. One year they came as various characters from The Lord of the Rings. She helped at the elementary school--teaching Spanish in the classes. She's also brilliant and a great public speaker. I'm not naive enough to think that things were always perfect, but I was and am pretty impressed. Since then, she and her husband have also been blessed with two little girls and we both moved away from that neighborhood.

Utah Dad and I ran into her at Costco last week and she invited us to the Childhelp Wasatch Front Utah Chapter's Kick-off Fundraiser dinner at Noah's Ark. She serves on the committee, helped sponsor the event, spoke about the joys and challenges of being a mother and created the amazing cake. Needless to say, I am still in awe of her.

I had never heard of the Childhelp organization before. I did a little research before the event and I was especially impressed by the amazing women who founded the organization years ago and spoke briefly last night. Sara O'Meara and Yvonne Fedderson were actresses entertaining the troops with the USO in the late 1950's when they came upon a group of small children who were living on the streets of Tokyo. They learned that they were Amerasian children and were unwelcome at the local orphanages. Together these women organized orphanages and homes for these unwanted children and eventually the mixed children born during the Vietnam War. The foundation was then called International Orphans, Inc. but became Childhelp when they began to focus on helping the young victims of child abuse here in the United States.

The theme for the new Wasatch Front Utah Chapter is "Rescue the Future" and they plan to help abused children by creating and donating "Art in a Bag" which will help children heal and gain self-confidence by developing their individual creativity. They believe that "together we can turn impossible situations into endless possibilities".

The event was organized with art in mind and several local artists set up a gallery. Utah Dad and I enjoyed the incredible art and local talent. We especially loved the paintings of trees by Douglas Aagard. We also enjoyed the music and were delighted to see and hear our favorite violinist who was once just a little girl in our ward's primary.

Besides my friend Deborah Fletcher, the founders of Childhelp, Ruth Van Buren-Stevens and Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff spoke during dinner. They were inspiring and reminded us again of the value of our children and the importance to protect them and keep them safe.

You can help Childhelp help the abused and neglected children by becoming a member of Childhelp or donating directly to the foundation.