Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Mother's Day

I am about to write a post on something that is sure to get me shunned out of every play group, PTA board, and Scout organization I belong to.

I am going to write about Mother's Day.

"What?" I hear you saying. "Why would we shun you for writing a post about something as wonderful as Mother's Day?"

And here is why...oh, gentle-but-soon-to-be-shocked-silly-readers...

I HATE MOTHERS DAY!!!

There...I said it. Let the shunning begin.

But wait!! BEFORE you grab your pitchforks and torches...let me defend myself.

See, I LOVE being a MOM. Being a MOM is completely different than my feelings about Mothers Day. I love each of my children as wonderful, amazing individuals. I love being part of a ever-diminishing breed...one of the very lucky, if slightly nutty, woman that are blessed to stay home and raise my kids. I love play groups, and PTA, and Scouts, and even playing chauffeur and doing grocery shopping (coupons and all).

But in spite of all that...I really, really, really hate Mothers Day.

I can hear horrified mothers all over the world audibly gasping "Why?!?"

There are two reasons...

ONE is because of my husband...and before you all start calling him ungrateful, and a cad, and a chauvinistic swine (or whatever else you can think of)...even though he is one of the reasons I hate Mothers Day...it's still not his fault.

I hate Mothers Day because Mothers Day is the single biggest money-making day in the restaurant business, and, as you know, my husband is the General Manager of a $10 million dollar hugely successful restaurant that does KILLER business on Mothers Day. Which means that he is there from 7am until midnight.

So I hate Mothers Day because all the world takes THEIR mothers out to dinner, keeping MY family separated and me at home, where I will be making my own dinner...just like every other day of the year.

The second reason I hate Mother's Day is because Mother's Day is always on a Sunday, which means I go to church. Now - I love church...and it spiritually centers my very chaotic life. But on Mother's Day, they always have some sort of Mother's Day program, in which well-meaning people get up and give talks with titles like: "What Makes a Perfect Mother", or "My Mother, The Saint", or "Inspirational Mothers from the Scriptures". All these talks, instead of making me feel special and inspired, make me feel like a great big LOSER.

I in NO WAY measure up to divine qualifications apparently needed for motherhood. In fact, there are some days I'm surprised my children are alive and fairly healthy. Depending on the day, I'm pretty sure my home meets all the requirements to be declared a federal disaster area, and I've already started trusts in my childrens names to help pay for the therapy they'll need to overcome the emotional scarring that I've undoubtedly caused.

People tell me that the mothers personified in the talks and poems and scriptures shared on Sundays are just ideals, and that they were undoubtedly as human as me. But I'm not sure...because I know several women who defy explanation in their ability to personify every whit of the person "Mother".

Just to add insult to injury, a member of the bishopric accosted me just this past Sunday and assigned me...me...ME of all people to give the talk on "Inspirational Mother Figures from the Scriptures".

Oh, joy.

Oh, rapture.

Oh, bloody hell.

There is, however, a BEAUTIFUL bright side to all this angst about Mothers Day. And that is that this year, I decided that just because I am miserable and crabby...not EVERYONE should be. Many of you have husbands home to worship you for the day, and your children behave in church, and you don't have to stand in front of 150 people and be a hypocrite when you talk about how grateful you are for Mothers Day. That is MY curse.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW ENDED. FINISHED. FINITE. WINNERS WILL BE POSTED TOMORROW, MAY 6, IN THE A.M. WHEN I AM BRIGHT-EYED AND BUSHY-TAILED!! GOOD LUCK!!

For you - I have a gift. I am giving away TWO $25 gift cards for Godiva Chocolate. For FREEEEEEEE (if you've seen Bedtime Stories, you can do the appropriate sound effects on the word "FREEEEEE").

All you have to do is leave a comment on my blog about your favorite part of Mothers Day (to help inspire me to change my outlook). Don't forget to leave your e-mail address so I have a way to contact you if you've won!!

You can get an additional entry by signing up to "follow" my blog. Send me an entirely separate e-mail letting me know that you're a "follower".

Lastly, you can blog about this giveaway on YOUR blog, e-mail me AGAIN (separate e-mails for separate entries), along with the link to your post (so I can check up on you!!), and I will give you a THIRD entry!!

I WILL STRICTLY ENFORCE THREE ENTRIES PER PERSON.

The contest will end one week from today...Tuesday May 5, at 8pm Eastern time. I will let the Random. org integer generator pick TWO lucky, lucky winners, who will get to spend $25 dollars each on luscious, divine, sinfully delicious Godiva chocolate (or give it away to YOUR mother, if you're the selfless type).

Now, this is my VERY FIRST giveaway people...so be kind while I work out the kinks!!

Good luck!!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Earth Week (Day)...Hurray!!!


I remember when we celebrated the Earth one day a year.

Now we celebrate it for a week.

Now, I lean pretty far right when it comes to my political associations. But there are quite a few things that I am decidedly liberal on...and one of those issues is the one regarding our environment. I support organizations like The Surfrider Foundation, and the World Wildlife Fund (also here). For a long time, I contributed to Greenpeace and The Sierra Club. As I've gotten older, I've realized that all things require compromise...for example, I am for offshore drilling...but only with the strictest environmental regulations permittable.

My family recycles. We try to remember to turn off lights, and turn off the water when we brush our teeth, and I am a REALLY MEAN MOM and make my kids ride their bikes to school...which helps reduce our gas consumption AND gives them valuable outdoor time and exercise. I also REALLY TRY to buy products made in the USA or from local organic farmers.

(It's too bad that those products are SO DARN EXPENSIVE...or I might be able to do more. But it's pretty hard to stand on that particular soapbox when you're feeding 7 people. Full bellies come before natural, pesticide/herbicide free, locally grown tomatoes. Sorry - but it's true.)

But, more importantly than ALL these things, is that my kids and I ENJOY NATURE...we GET OUTSIDE...to EXPLORE and DISCOVER.

It makes me crazy to hear all this chatter about "going green", because if you're gonna take care of the Earth, you should at least know a little bit about her!! It's not about hoping on a bandwagon and waving a flag...I mean, I'm glad so many other people are aware...but I am sick of the hypocrisy...

The world is a magical, beautiful, glorious place...and a lot of people plant their butts in front of TVs and computers and video games and never get out to see it.

You'll love your world a lot more if it's not just something that you see in photographs.

So, go hiking.



Observe wildlife.






Explore a nature preserve.


Catch a sunrise...


...Or a sunset.




Get involved.


Don't just spout off about how you're "going green"...go out and actually live like you love what you've been blessed with. It doesn't have to cost money. A walk with your kids around your neighborhood would be a great start.


And have a happy Earth Day (Week).

Love - Shannan

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Viva Las Vegas!!!

We didn't always live in the Jungle. We used to live in the Plains. And before that we lived in the Valley. And once, we lived in the Desert. And not just ANY desert...the raw, beautiful, and rugged desert known as Las Vegas.
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Not Henderson. Not Summerlin. Not Aliante.
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Las Vegas proper. Right off Pecos and Bonanaza.
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Just a couple miles south of the temple. Just a few miles East of Nellis Air Force base.
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Straight smack in the middle of the barrio. Seriously.
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We didn't know that when we bought the house. We were moving from Chicago to Las Vegas, and totally freaked out about the rising costs of Vegas home prices (this is back when that whole "housing bubble" thing was gaining momentum), and every time we went on-line to look at homes, it seemed they had gone up another $10,000.
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Then, the day before we left for out house-hunting trip, my oven busted. The heating element inside it actually CAUGHT ON FIRE. Since it was an electric oven, I guess it was a pretty serious possibility that the fire would race right back through the wiring and into the wall or something. I didn't know that, though. I saw all the flames in my oven, and thought: "Hmmm...I probably shouldn't open that," so I left my mom (who had traveled all the way out from California to babysit my 4 oldest kids while Jason and I and 4-month-old Nicolette were out of town) to walk five houses down to my neighbor, Mike Johnson (no relation), who was a firefighter. I explained the issue...as I spoke his eyes got wider and he looked at me more and more like he doubted my mental capabilities...and he yelled at his wife, Lisa, to : "CALL 9-1-1!!!", grabbed a fire extinguisher, and bolted back to my house, cursing and muttering under his breath about me leaving my kids in a house with a fire.
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(Hey - in my defense...I figured it was contained. I had no idea about the whole wiring thing.)
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By time I got home (he was faster than me), he had already kicked the kids outside and was surveying the damage. He decided that it would be better to wait for the Fire Department than risk opening the oven and battling the blaze with just an extinguisher. He didn't have to wait long, as the fire department pulled up, sirens screaming (to the absolute DELIGHT of my children), 30 seconds later. I HAD turned the oven off (contrary to his beliefs, I wasn't a COMPLETE idiot), and after a few moments, the fire had lost enough steam that the department was able to open it, use Mike's extinguisher to put it out, and then three very manly firefighters pulled it out from the wall and took it to the curb (there was no saving it).
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So now I was faced with leaving my mother in a strange house in a strange place with four very little and very hungry grandchildren for three days with NOTHING to cook for them on (the stove was attached to the oven, and we didn't own a microwave back then). Crap.
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I stood in the front yard, contemplating my dilemma, and ignoring the shouts of the firefighters who were trying to get my kids to climb down off the fire trucks (hey - it was a big jungle gym to them). Suddenly, a light bulb went off...hey - let's call my Relief Society President!! Isn't that what they're for? Maybe she could arrange to have some meals brought in!!!
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I called my dear RS Pres, a spunky lady named Becky Dastrup, and instead of offering meals, she said: "Well - I've got a great big electric skillet. Can you use that?"
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It wasn't exactly what I had in mind...but, hey...it worked.
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So I drove out to Becky's (like living here in South Florida, our ward boundaries were HUGE), and while I was in her house, she said: "Ya know, Shan, I've been thinking. Mike (her hubby) has an uncle who is or used to be a Bishop out there. I'm not sure where...but maybe he could help you look for houses?" (It was no secret that Jason and I were struggling with our on-line house hunt, and we didn't even know WHERE to start looking in such a big town).
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I agreed to let her call him, and went home with my borrowed skillet.
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The next day, on the way to the airport, Jason's cell phone rang. It was an older gentleman who identified himself as Bishop Dastrup. He was the Bishop of the Coronado Hills Ward, and he apparently really wanted us to move in his ward (I can NOT imagine why, or WHAT Becky said to him). He also mentioned that his Relief Society President was getting ready to sell her home.
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The next day in Vegas, we went out with our very spunky real estate agent, and looked at house after house after house...each one dumpier than the next. We were totally discouraged. I decided to try calling the Relief Society President that Bishop Dastrup had mentioned (her name was Nita).
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She was VERY surprised over our call. Apparently, they hadn't officially decided to move yet, and had only confided in the Bishop that they were CONSIDERING it. But she agreed to let us see her house.
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It was late at night when we went to see the house. It was close to the Strip, a plus for Jason's commute, and in an older part of the neighborhood. The house itself was old, but in much better condition than anything we'd seen so far that day. It had some really great things, like fabulous custom cabinets (her husband was a master cabinet maker); and some really crappy things, like two ANCIENT air conditioners that barely puttered along. It was only 1,700 square feet, but compared to our 1,057 square feet in Chicago (yes...that's right...7 people in 1,000 square feet sharing a single bathroom), it felt palatial.
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But Nita was thinking of asking for almost $20,000 more than we had. We explained our situation, thanked her for her time, and went back to our hotel devastated.
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The next morning, she called. She (like us) had spent a long time on her knees, and decided that if we sold it between us, and didn't use real estate agents, she could sell it for less (since she wouldn't be paying a commission). She felt inspired that we were the people who needed to buy her home. We were floored.
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So, we bought her home. We went back in the daylight, and saw that we might be the only white people in the area (good training for Miami...and there was nothing better than coming home at night and smelling all that authentic Mexican food wafting out everybodys' open doors...just remembering it makes my mouth water!!). The schools were rated very low (thanks to the large number of ESL students), but we could tell the teachers and principal were VERY dedicated to being educators. And the house had lots of great pluses, and was pretty much a blank canvas for us to let loose out home makeover passions.
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We spent 18 months in Vegas. There were definitely a lot of drawbacks...but out of all the houses we've owned, this one got the most love and creativity. We decorated it FOR US...not for whoever might buy it next (unlike our home in Texas...which was our favorite STYLE and LOCATION, but NOT our favorite to re-model).
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And Bishop Dastrup? He is still my very favorite Bishop in the whole world...just THINKING of him swells my heart up to 10 times its' size with love. He is truly one of the greatest men (and a good friend) that I have ever known. The times I would sit in his office and chat are some of my favorite memories.
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By time we got done with our house...it was a CRAZY kaleidoscope of colors...and I loved every piece of it (and so did anyone who came over to visit, after they called me "brave", that is). And although real estate agents rolled their eyes when they came in and saw all the colors, the house sold in under 24 hours.
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So, I'm telling you this story because I came across some pictures of our home in the desert..."before's" and "after's". I thought I would share them with you. You'll have to excuse some of the print quality...they were all taken with a throw-away camera, and apparently one of them...the one used to take the "before's", got wet...so there are water spots on the photos. But I'm sure you'll get the general idea...
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So, I want to welcome you to my past, and invite you in...
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...and yes, that really is Brigham with a big smile on his little toddler face, barely doorknob high...
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This first set of pictures is the Master Bedroom...
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We scraped the ceilings of popcorn and ripped out all the 70's dark wood paneling. We re-textured everything, and re-painted the room in a soft sage green. I used a darker olive to create the stripes in the vanity area. We installed a new mirror, new lighting, and new facets and hardware. We also put in beautiful beadboard wainscoting and a gorgeous thick chair rail (we had help from our wonderful neighbor Steve, who was by far the most excellent handyman and all-around good guy that we have ever come across)...which you'll see more of in subsequent photos.

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We took out the ugly dark double doors and replaced them with french doors (again, with help from Steve), complete with sheer sage curtains. We also put in a closet organizer.

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We installed central lighting all over the house...mostly in the form of recessed lighting. But in the bedrooms, we installed ceiling fans (you can barely see it at the top of the photo). You can see more of the pretty wainscoting and chair rail, and the framing Jason did around the window. Another fun note is our kitty cat Oreo cuddled up on my bed.

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Here you have a better shot of the gorgeous french doors, the elegant ceiling fan, the wainscoting, and the new window treatments. This room went from oppressive and old to calming and refreshing. I loved it.

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The next set of pictures have to do with the front room/living room in the home. It was old and dark. The walls were covered with a very rough texture...more like the stucco you find on the OUTSIDE of a house (in fact, I'm sure that's what it was).

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We scraped the ceilings of popcorn and re-textured. We installed recessed lighting with dimmers. We primed with a very thick enamel-based primer to help soften the stucco on the walls, and then painted the room a sunny yellow. The laundry room was connected to the front room...I painted it a citrus orange and sponged a darker orange on top of that. You had to walk through the laundry room to get to the downstairs bathroom, which had brown-speckled tile. In every room we scraped ceilings, installed new lighting (a cool pendant in the laundry room and recessed and vanity in the bath). In the bathroom, I painted the walls peanut butter brown to go with the tile and found an adorable Surfer decor that featured Woodys and surfboards and was in the same shade of browns. In the bathrooms, we also replaced both toilets (long story), and replaced MOST of the plumbing. We also re-framed every doorway, framed the windows to turn them into picture windows, and ripped out and replaced all the baseboards. In the below picture...you can see through the front room, into the laundry room, and beyond to the bathroom.

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In this picture, you can see down the hall . We took out the lighting and installed recessed lighting, and you can see the freshly framed doorways and smooth, re-textured ceilings. The closet to the left was destined to be re-fitted with custom cabinets to turn it into more of a linen cabinet than coat closet, but we never got that far before we moved.

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This is my kitchen/dining room. It had some great stuff...for one, it was big. The door in the back led to an enormous walk-in pantry before going into an over-sized two car garage.

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Best of all, the kitchen cabinets were custom-made by the former owners, whose husband was a master cabinet maker. My mom used to say that the "Shoemakers kids never have shoes"...and that was true about this house. There was the potential to have all kinds of amazing cabinetry all over...but apparently, he had only gotten around to installing the custom kitchen cabinets a couple years before...after living in the house almost 16 years. Nita was most devastated to leave those glorious cabinets...and I was most jubilant to get them, and the amazing butcher block island!

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Once again, we scraped ceilings and took out those terrible lights and installed recessed lighting. We left the modest chandelier because it oddly fit. If you look at the first kitchen "before" photo..you'll see that there is no "header beam" dividing the kitchen from the front room. The ceiling had begun to sag in that area, so we installed (with help) a header beam and encased it in drywall to prop up the ceiling. I stripped the walls of the wallpaper, and painted the kitchen a vibrant red.

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On that back wall with the door, I hand painted little swirls all over in a deeper, darker red. You can't see them, but they're there. Again, we replaced all the baseboards and door frames.

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The next room was part of an addition to the house that made up the family room, and had an upstairs that contained an office and another bedroom, which became Kaitlyns room. The bedroom had a balcony that was missing it's railing!! We had big plans for that...but...while we were able to complete the house UP TO the landing on the top floor, we weren't able to finish the bedroom or office up there. This picture is the "before" picture of the family room. And yes, that is little Joseph in the picture, and baby Nicolette sitting in Yayas lap. You also get a closer look at the ugly wallpaper that used to cover the kitchen.

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This picture is more of an "in progress" than an "after". We did the same things as we did in the other rooms...scraped cielings and retextured, installed new baseboards, window and door frames...but because of the second story, we didn't get around the recessed lights. We painted the room a denim blue, which made it very comfortable and relaxing.

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This next picture is a "before" picture of the boys room...the smallest room in the house.

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To maximize space, I designed built-in "floating" bunk beds that fit right into the studs of the walls (I got the idea from something I'd seen in a magazine), and Jason built them out of 2x10s and galvanized pipe. They literally were suspended off the floor and fit right into the wall, supported by the frame of the house. He also built the shelving unit on the end right into the wall and bunk beds. Again, we scraped and retextured, replaced all framing and baseboards, and installed a cieling fan. We went with a space theme, and I painted the walls a dark blue and the cieling a dark grey, and then I painted the furniture lighter shades of grey, with any and all recesses a bright orange, to make everything look very industrial and modern (not too hard with those space age bunk beds!!) and glued glow-in-the-dark stars all over the cieling.

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This next room was really a labor of love...it was my little girls room. This is the "before", and you can make out the little alcove that was the perfect fit for a bed.

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We did everything we did everywhere else, and I also had Jason install a simple chair rail. Beneath the chair rail, I painted a castle "wall" with light and dark grey paints, and painted climbing mosses and flowers. Above the chair rail (or top of the "wall"), I painted the open sky. I continued the sky up to the cieling, painting clouds all over and gluing three-dimensional butterflys right onto the wall. I also found a 3-D sun that I put up above the closet.

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Then I painted a mural on one wall of a distant adjoining castle on a hill with a little forest.

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We framed the window and I sewed curtains. Then, in the alcove, I painted pink on pink stripes, and had Jason install a special curtain rod across the space. I sewed sheer, glittery curtains that could could be closed to enclose the space, and a valance of pink satin that I cut like to look like a Medieval tent. I accented it with dangling pink beads.

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We moved into our Vegas home in January 2005...

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We moved out in June 2006...

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What a difference 18 months makes.

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I miss owning my own home. For the first time since Jason and I were newleyweds, we're renters again. I realize my tastes in decor aren't for everyone...but that's okay...because having a home isn't about what everyone else likes. It's about what YOU like...the way YOU want to live. I've had other homes, and they've all been decorated differently...but I have a special fondness for my Vegas house. It was the one home where we really let loose and just did whatever we wanted...no matter how many people told us we were nuts.

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Sometimes I wish we still lived there. I remember how much fun we were having fixing it up, and I want to go back. But then I remember how much work we had left to do...and lots of it was not cosmetic...but serious over-haul stuff...like replacing roofs and insulation, and fixing that balcony.

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For now - this is where the Lord wants us...and I believe that he'll look after us. Probably in a way we don't expect. Just like how we found a home we loved in Vegas, against all odds. I'm sure he has a miracle for us here, too...I just have to be patient for it.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Great New Videos

I LOVE being Mormon...

Everybody thinks we are stuffy and uptight, and have too many rules. Rules like not drinking coffee (gasp!!) or giving 10% of our income to the church (cry of horror!!).

But we're actually pretty funny. And really goofy. And extremely creative.

The church recently put out three ADORABLE ads to encourage fathers to spend more time with their kids. I thought I'd share them. Whether you're LDS or not, you should get a kick out of these...

First...there is this GREAT Sci-Fi ad...



And for all of you Western lovers...



And my personal favorite (because I totally have a thing for Jack Sparrow AND William Turner)...



Aren't those fabulous?!?!

Hope they brightened your day!!!

Monday, April 13, 2009

Happy Easter!!

Here comes Peter Cottontail,
Hopping down the bunny trail...
Hippity-Hop! Hippity-Hop!
Easter's on its' way!!!

Or in our case...already here!!


The bunny was good to the kids this year...bringing new snorkel and swim gear, bathing suits, towels, and DVD's...along with his customary candy-stuffed eggs!! The kids were REALLY excited, and kept exclaiming: "Thank You, Easter Bunny!!!"



After a quick breakfast of cinnamon rolls and OJ, it was off to church for Easter service in our pretty new Easter outfits.









After we got home...mom slaved away in the kitchen with our Easter feast.

Kaitlyn came home from a trip to visit her dad around 7:30, and plowed through the leftovers...specifically the Spinach Artichoke Dip (maybe it was because i added bacon crumbles?).

But poor Daddy...he came home from work sick. All the emotional stress and cross-country traveling of the last few weeks (he had to go back to California on business last week) have finally caught up with him and he's got a bad cold. Poor guy!!

Well - Happy Easter, everyone!!

Junior Ranger Day at Shark Valley

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On Saturday, the 11th of April, I took my Girl Scout and Cub Scout troop to Everglades National Park to take part in their 2009 Junior Ranger Day, held at the Shark Valley entrance. It was a FABULOUS day!! The Park Rangers were GREAT with the kids...
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There were tables set up displaying different shells, bones, and skins of animals found all over the Everglades. The kids were allowed to touch and explore and ask lots of questions, which they loved.
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Then they met Ranger Rick (no, seriously), a law enforcement Park Ranger who told them about what he does for National Parks.
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Then Ranger Nate and Ranger Greg played some games with the kids and we all got to go on an awesome tram ride through the park.
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We stopped at a tower that you could climb and see 15 miles in any direction all around the park.
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The view was AMAZING...and there were so many animals to see (especially those incredible gators!!)
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We also went on a little hike in a Hardwood Hammock, where our VERY observant Abi spotted a baby Burmese Python lounging in a tree. Burmese Pythons are invasive species and NOT GOOD for the Everglades...but they have pretty much started to take over. The little guy was less than a foot long, and so well camouflaged, I'm just REALLY impressed that Abi spotted it!!
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Then it was back to the Visitors Center for lunch, and a meeting with the Everglades mascot, Alisha the Alligator!
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We had a little ceremony where the kids got a badge, a certificate, and an AWESOME new patch. After that, everyone got cake!!
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I had taken my own kids to Junior Ranger Day LAST year, and it was so fun that I just KNEW I had to get my troops out there this year. We had a lot of VERY last minute cancellations, and so several kids missed it, but boy!! They sure missed something AMAZING!! This is an activity that I would do again and again...
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Now that my girls and guys have been through Big Cypress AND Everglades, they just need to visit Biscayne national Park to earn their Junior Ranger patch from the National parks service.
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Keep posted...we'll be working on THAT soon!!!