Life in These Here Parts

I haven't posted much lately--shame on me! I'm in this bad habit of thinking that if I don't have any pictures to share that it's not worth writing a post. Luckily, we have taken some pictures this past week or so, so I've got some things to show you all. On Mother's Day (which was also my birthday) we went down to Fairview to see DH's mom. Fairview is about 1 1/2 hours away, so the drive is a drag, but it sure is pretty:

Here is a picture of DD out on the paddleboats with her Uncle John and Cousin Derek. We love getting to see Uncle John because he works in Africa and is gone a lot. They took Smuckers out with them. They could tell he couldn't make up his mind about jumping in and swimming to DH, so John gave him a little push and made up his mind for him.

It's ok though, Smuckers is a great swimmer!

Here is the beautiful waterfall that DH made in our backyard. Be sure to notice the fence in the background. YAY! Our first fenced yard. It makes it so much more peaceful back there to have that fence up.

Last year, Grandma and Grandpa got the kids a sand and water table to play with. We got some "play sand" at the hardware store, but it really wasn't very fun for playing. It had a lot of gravel in it and was really nothing like beach sand. More like lake sand. So, this year the kids saw some colored sand at Wal-Mart and were dying to have some. It was about 3 times the cost but totally worth it. It makes great castles and things. We spent Sunday afternoon building dams across it, filling one side with water and then "flooding" the village below. Fun times.

This picture is included just because I love it. This is such typical cat behavior! And DD's eye peeking through is just the best!

I'm thinking of Ireland lately. My Dad and Stepmom are in Ireland as I write this for a two week vacation (doesn't that sound fabulous?). My mom and her friend from work are going there next week. What are the odds? All of my parents (all three of them) are going to be in Ireland for the same week just by coincidence. I don't think my mom has ever even left the United States before. I'm really excited for her. My dad and stepmom have been there before and have given her some really great tips for her trip. What are the chances they run into each other over there somewhere?

I'm excited for American Idol tomorrow night. David Archuleta just gives me chills when he sings. David Cook is spectacular too, but the raw emotion isn't there the way it is with Archuleta.

Have a great day!

My Newest Creation

Usually I post stuff like this on my Stamping Blog, but I think I'll post it both places this time just so everyone will see it : ).

My former roommate of 5 years, Stefani, is expecting twins in the next month or two--Wow! I can't even imagine how much work (and how much fun) twin girls would be. I picked out a couple of super cute outfits for the babies, but wanted to do something a little creative for them too. So, here you go Stef:

Here is the card (couldn't figure out how to make this one twin-like):The next part is a shadow box. I got this idea from a blog I visit daily (Taylored Expressions). You can find her masterpeice by following the above link and looking under the category "Altered Art". For some reason I couldn't get a link to the specific post, or I would have done that. So, here it is:

It's a little hard to see every detail in the photo, but after the word "baby" is a "2" with rhinestones on it. There is a stamped background behind the flower that says "too cute" in a circle. These aren't the exact colors Stefani had in mind for her baby decor, but I just couldn't pass up this paper! (It's Nanna's Nursery by Die Cuts With a View).

The Best Cake....EVER

So, yesterday we went down to visit DH's mom in Fairview. It was a nice, peaceful day. I took a great nap while DH took the kids out on the paddleboats. DH decided that I still needed to have a birthday cake. We thought we might have some down in Fairview because there are so many in his family that have May birthdays, but most of the family had headed back home by the time we arrived on Sunday. Anyway, to get to the point, I requested that DH go to Dippidee's in American Fork. They have the absolutely yummiest cupcakes and things that I have ever had. Nice and moist on the inside with a chewy outer crust--and they always fill them with yummy creams and things. Mmmmmmmmm.

Check out this cake I found on their website. I would love to learn how to do cake decorating, but it doesn't seem like a good hobby choice for someone with a sweet tooth! So, I only practice that kind of thing when we actually need a cake or cupcakes for something, and that hardly ever happens.

DH went there tonight and brought home this yummy little specimen, along with a chocolate one (it was super yummy too, but not as cute.)

Ahhhhhh....a Nice, Relaxing Friday.

Seriously. I can't usually say that because Friday is early-out day at school and the kids usually have other kids over to play all afternoon and it gets a little hectic. Today we had 3 different things going on at the school starting at 8:00. I took all 3 kids over with me bright and early. There were a lot of parents there--they kept announcing over the loudspeaker for people to move their cars out of parking spots that were illegal, unsafe, etc. I had to smile once again because I didn't have to drive! There are only 3 families in the entire school that live close enough to walk, so I love being able to do that.
First there was the "Moms and Muffins" event in DS's classroom. We had muffins and he read me a book that he wrote about me. It was great! Then we went over to DD#1's room for a kindergarten presentation put on for the moms. She was so cute and did a great job! Then DS was in a musical performance called "Heroes". It was great. I am so pleased by the things my kids learn at school that go beyond just the academics (although I think they're doing really well in that area, too). My favorite part was when all the kids sang the theme songs from each of the armed forces and anyone in the audience who had served in that armed force was invited to stand as the kids sang. It was really cool. I would have liked to have stayed for the whole thing, but DD#2 was being impossible, so we snuck out the back door and came home.
So, that part of the Friday was fun but not relaxing. Once we got home, though, the girls went upstairs and played quietly for about TWO hours! That hardly ever happens. I watched The Office and 30 Rock online and took a nice, long shower. Then the girls wanted to watch some TV in my room so I cuddled with them and took a nice, snuggly nap. It was great.
Now I've got to do some cleaning, but I'm actually all geared up for it now. DH got a gift card to Applebee's at work yesterday, so we're going out for my mother's Day dinner. Yum. Then we're leaving the kids with a sitter tomorrow so that we can go to Carraba's for my birthday. The big 3-6! I think 40 is going to be really weird when I get there.

Our Little "Sheep" is Shorn

Or sweet little Smuckers sheds ALL over the place. We've been talking for awhile about shaving him to see how that goes. Yesterday just seemed like the right time, so we got to work. It was quite the job. Smuckers enjoyed every minute. However, his coat is SO thick that it took quite a while to get it all off. He seems to really like it. We didn't shave all the way down to his skin because we want him to have protection from the sun. We just took off his longer "outer coat" of coarse fur. Now that his undercoat is exposed he is a lot softer, even though he looks a little funny (shhhh.....don't tell him!).

It's finally starting to feel like spring here. There are guys outside right now putting in fence posts around our yard--YAY! However, Alpine Homes put a sprinkler line right along the inside edge of the sidewalk, so that got drilled into. We'll have to repair that. Oh, well--it will be well worth the trouble.

We had a nice night out on Saturday. We took the kids to a sitter and had a YUMMY dinner at Chili's. We LOVE their chips and queso. Then we went to pick out some clothes for my birthday. It's funny how I get more and more laid back about "birthday rules" the older I get. I've actually worn all of the clothes already. Forget saving them until it is actually my birthday.

Crazy Spring Weather

Well, we've finally had a few beautiful spring-like days to get some work done in the yard. In a couple of weeks we should have a beautiful fence around it. Yay! It will be nice to not have to worry about DD#2 when she goes out there to play. DH's big project has been a little water feature at the edge of our patio. He is almost completely done--we just need to cover some of the pond liner that you can still see. We like to open the window in the living room and hear the water outside. We picked out the plants a couple of weekends ago and this is the first time he has ever been emotionally invested in any of our plants--usually that is totally my thing. Every couple of days he says "Oh--I need to go water my plants". Never thought I'd hear those words come out of his mouth : ).

The weather continues to be totally unpredictable with a LOT of wind. Sometimes it makes it hard to sleep at night because it is rattling the windows and whistling. Last week we got some more April snowfall. I won't be suprised if we see more snow in May. I don't dare start the vegetable garden until things get more normal. Here's a little picture of the snow and the waterfall area. I'll get a better picture of the waterfall after we finish the rockwork.

Spring Break Trip to the Zoo

We just finished the kids Spring Break, and it was back to the routine this morning. Only about 5 more weeks to go and we can enjoy Summer break. It's so nice to not have to worry about homework and schedules (for the most part).

Last Thursday we took the kids to the zoo. It was the perfect day for it. We stopped for some yummy Cafe Rio on the way up and got to the zoo right after lunch time. Spring is a great time to go because it's not as crowded and the smells aren't as bad. The first thing we saw were the Tamarins. They were my favorite. A couple of them were running around with little babies on their backs. They were soooooo cute! DH says I only liked them the best because of their name : ).

Then we went into the monkey house and the kids had a fun time looking at this guy. He had the cutest little face and looked at them a few times but didn't seem very impressed.

The kids also like to play with this elephant. It makes all kinds of cool noises and plays music when you walk around it.

This giraffe was really funny. There were lots of people there, but it just stood in front of us and stared at me the whole time we were there. I was joking with the kids that it was giving me "the cold hard stare". They thought that was great.

We had a great time. The kids all said that they're favorite part was the playground at the end. I have to admit though, it was a pretty cool playground.

When the day was done we returned home to our very own wild animals : )