slow kids at play

more often than i would like to admit, i have days(especially sunday) when i think my kids will be destined to live me forever. mostly because scarlett can't sit still for more than 30 seconds and reagan can be so laid back i need to check his pulse to make sure he is still with us. the yin and yang of children, complimentary opposites in a great whole.

however, today was the twilight zone. we were early for church. it took us less than the usual 5423 minutes to dress and get into the car. no one demanded snacks the entire sacrament meeting. both kids read books and shared them with each other. scarlett sat on my lap and wanted to be rocked like a baby. they were reverent while the sacrament was being passed. both only touched one piece of bread and one cup of water each. reagan and scarlett only made one trip out of the chapel, and that was for bathroom usage. no screaming about poop or the other child touching them. no rolling underneath the pews. no boogery nose wipes on my shirt. and then the earth skid off it's axis and the sky rained meatballs. it was that wild. a day that will live in infamy. in years to come when we are feeling especially crazy we will reflect upon march 28th, 2010 and try and remember just what we did differently this day.

and then i went to my new calling in primary(secretary again) and the earth righted itself. reagan pretended to have no spine while he barely endured sunday school and singing time. scarlett ran and squealed all the way to nursery and i could hear her "singing" from outside the door. and all was right in the world.



the end.

viva las vegas(temple)!

i actually wasn't planning on going to las vegas for heather's wedding. with the BIG MOVE and the new job and packing and unpacking all happening around the same time, it just wasn't going to be feasible for us to do it all. i had contented myself that i would be able to attend her reception in kansas city the week after. about a week before her wedding date, i received an impression. i was blow drying my hair, minding my own business, and i felt like i just needed to be there. come hell or high water, i needed to go to las vegas and be at the temple for my sister's wedding. being that my husband is wonderful and understanding, he made it happen. i hopped the 6am flight to las vegas a few days later. it was surreal being by myself on a plane. what a treat! i was so keyed up that i talked the whole way to dallas to the perfect stranger sitting next to me. i was like a homeschooled kid going to public school for the first time. then i made a lifelong friend at the food court in dallas and talked her ear off too. that's what happens when the majority of your time is spent talking to children. and wiping orifices. i finally arrived in the desert and immediately felt my face crack. it's not an easy adjustment coming from the humid swamp of alabama and landing smackdab on the face of the sun in nevada.

here's the breakdown:

i enjoyed lots of time with the fam. we even took a 3 generations scarf picture with grandma bonnie, sandy and myself.

we rode around town in a miniature van and my dad fell in love. with the GPS. we girls were stuck in the back. which makes NO sense. girls are hippier than boys, yet we are forced to squish together on a van bench in the way back whilst they luxuriate in bucket seats with arm and headrests. all because they are physically unable to squish together.

since we were in vegas, we did things vegas style. el pollo loco for dinner.(not that great). my dad and grandma got cut off in the picture, lucky for them. the rest of us are looking pretty rough after a day of travel. incidentally, i could NOT get that lame katy perry, "that's what you get for waking up in vegas" song out of my head. it was almost becoming a threat. that's what i get for waking up in vegas? a cracked face? squished in a van? mediocre mexican food? is that what she's singing about? and furthermore, call me a prude, but there is a TON of almost nudity on the billboards out there. it was like flipping through a plastic surgeon's catalog. my eyes were assaulted! it was almost a relief to see the carrot top billboards. almost.

that night, heather, linz, heather's BFFFFF and i had a sleepover. linz revealed what she looks like without makeup.

we all slept in the same full size bed. a giant spoon fest. with no HEAT(HEATHER!). that's what you get for waking up in vegas. if one person moved, we all had to move. and el pollo loco didn't sit well all night. (do gas jokes ever get old for you? me neither!)

in the morning we ventured to IHOP for a pre-wedding engorgement on homefries, nutella crepes and blueberry pancakes. and greasy faces.

linz topped off the meal with a travel size edition of trivial pursuit. i didn't know they made those. (my birthday is coming up soon. )and i performed exceedingly well, natch! i was almost a perfect meal. now THAT'S what you get for waking up in vegas.

afterwards, the beautification brigade arrived. i had my beauty treatments the day before and had my self-confidence deflated at the same time. a two for one special. the lady who threaded my eyebrows treated me like the wolfman. she said, "you want the rest of your face done too? it needs it." thanks, add a few cyanide capsule while you are at it. cause that's what you get for waking up in vegas.

and we ate a lot of food at the wedding luncheon. which was only about 2 hours after i left IHOP. because that's how my stomach rolls. PUN!

i had never considered las vegas to be one of the "pretty" temples, but !WOW! ay carumba! it was amazing! with grass and everything. an oasis in the desert!

picture stolen from somewhere on the internets*

i documented the first family fight:

thank goodness for a zoom lens.

when i see pictures like this, i kick myself. because heather's dress was so beautiful and i am jealous. it is common knowledge that i didn't like my wedding dress. wedding dresses with sleeves have certainly come a long way in 8 years. i promised myself that on our 10th anniversary, i would buy myself my dream wedding dress and have a huge party. a boy/girl party. start making your reservations to visit now. only two years away!

i wish i had taken my shoes off for this picture because she is actually a little taller than me.

linz and fam. they were heather's surrogate family in college.

mark the MAN.

my aunt marie and my mom. this is what i will look like when i am a youthful grandmother.

daniel had to restrain heather from snorking down the whole cake. not really. they tastefully fed each other cake like civilized adults. it may surprise you that i do not enjoy watching people smash cake in each other faces. that's seems right up my alley, right? destruction and food? but no, it bothers me to no end. cake in the hair and messing up your professional make-up job? no gracias.

the view. casinos are rather pretty from far away.

the traditional father daughter dance. it was sort of a tear jerker.

the untraditional and somewhat uncomfortable brother/sister dance. for families like ours.

during the reception, whilst i was snorking down half the cake, i had to opportunity to chat it up with my uncle bob. everyone should have an uncle bob. bob is pretty hip. quite the edgy guy. i wish we hung out more. he could really help me turn my life around.

many of my male relatives hung out here while they were not-so-covertly checking basketball scores. i hate basketball. every one of these guys except for steve, second from left, is available. well-groomed, return missionaries, hygienically aware, college-educated single males. aged from 23 to 29. take your pick ladies. do you enjoy foosball? these are your guys.

and the highly outnumbered beck women. we are small in number, but strong in spirit. expert at listening to and cutting through bloviating and bluster.

after the reception, i never went to bed. i headed to the airport where i took the redeye back to birmingham. it was a delight. people watching has never been more enjoyable at 2am in the las vegas airport. almost as good as the billboards. i arrived at noon to my awaiting loving family. it was a great trip indeed. i spent time with relatives and still want to see them all again. the end.

things we may or may not miss

the days leading up to our BIG MOVE were fraught with emotion. mostly crying. some blubbering. and some excitement. there were many things that i will miss, mingled with a few things i definitely won't miss.


i was able to put together a VERY last minute musical number with my dear jessica for church. i think we played the song 4 times total, including performance.

i may miss practicing my violin with my dear jessica. that's what nerds like us do on a friday night. at someone else's house. growing up it always bugged me when people would come to my house and want to play our piano. that was the last thing i wanted to do. that was torture. so i am sure that it is doubly worse when you do it as an adult and there are two violins screeching away. i screeched, jessica played with the skill of someone who actually learned theory. i thought theory was for the birds. 4 beats per measure in 4/4 time, what? trip-ple-let, trip-ple-let, trip-ple-let(anyone? anyone?)


action shot



check out the concentration. thank goodness i had high school orchestra to keep me out of trouble.



i'm glad that i won't miss this guy anymore since he will have more free time with his new job.

as i was packing up, i was in the depths of despair(name the book). then one day a prize that i had won via a fantastic blog in the mail came. it was tailored to me. it was a shining beacon in a dark night of sorrow. tender blog friend mercies.

perfect strangers sometimes know you so well.

~please note my nasty-asty packing face and attire. that apron and i were almost one because i wore it so much. it was fused to my neck from lack of washings.

i won't miss my kitchen looking like this:

or my living room looking like a flea market:

i will most definitely miss sunday dinner at my mom's house. if i had known our time in KC would be so short, then i would have spent EVERY sunday over there. free food and baby-sitting.

but i'm sure as reagan was the greatest president of the 20th century, i WILL NOT MISS this:

or this:
or this:

we had a lovely ice storm the week we moved. we were packing the truck up in 9 degree weather. LOVE IT. my pioneer abilities were at an all time low after that.

and word to the WISE. don't be like me and stick your finger in a clorox wipes container when half your ward is at your house loading your truck. it hurts like you-know-whatski and it's quite embarassing when your finger has to be freed by the local herpatologist's pocket knife. i shall never mock snake love again.

plus, this was not the first time i have done this, and it hurts even worse when you know what is happening. it's the combined efforts of shame and pain afflicting you.

this picture is about 10 minutes after i was freed from the clutches of the clorox wipes.

and i will most definitely miss this ol' place and everything that it represents; my inability to paint well, perfecting my spackling and sanding skilz, my fantastic closet that went on forever, my great friends who lived in close proximity, my callings in our ward, especially passing notes in primary about clothes, my running trails that all originated here, playing in our backyard with sidewalk chalk, hiding and seeking in the kid's bathroom closet, falling down a whole flight of stairs while holding a baby, teaching reagan to pedal on these sidewalks. the list goes on and on.

ps-it's still for sale.

ebony and ivory

just a sneak peak until my new usb cable comes in the mail.

ebony and ivory, live together in perfect harmony.

side by side on my piano keyboard, oh lord why don't we?

*photos borrowed without permission from my SIL sarah.

*and yes, that is a bump-it in my hair.

*and people have actually asked if heather and i are twins. seriously?

and happy birthday uncle bonecrusher!

things i like about marky mark

1. he's a nice guy. a really nice guy.

2. he does what's right. because he likes righteousness.

3. a GREAT shopper and dresser. one of my fave partners. always on the lookout for a bargain. and doesn't mind wearing thrift store gems.

4. low drama.

5. my kids LOVE him. and he likes my kids.

6. he drove from rexburg to KC with no radio and no cd player once. he's a maniac.

7. he got a speeding ticket on the way to church because he didn't want to be late for teaching his lesson on the blessings of temple attendance.

8. loves the royals and the chiefs. not a fair weather fan.

we're not dead

but my phone might as well be.

things of note-
1. i can't find my download cord for pictures(anybody remember seeing it anywhere? it was wrapped around the newel post in my upstairs hallway. isn't that where you keep electronics?). and i have some GREAT pictures. some beauties. visualize my pointer finger stuck in the lid of a jumbo package of clorox wipes. just. you. wait.

2. same goes for my phone charger. i can only charge in the car. and that's why you haven't heard anything from me.

3. i drove ALL. THE. WAY. from kansas city to birmingham. and i didn't fall asleep once. and roadhouse(the BEST patrick swayze movie EVAH!) was playing at the hotel to make me feel at home.

4. my new house(that we are only renting THANKFULLY) has paint that is worse than i thought possible. it's like the olive garden hooked it up with sherwin williams and their baby exploded. other than that, the house is perjfect. very well maintained crazy.

5. the things at wal*mart that drove me nuts in KC still bug me just as much in birmingham.

6. we went without cable and internet for over 2 weeks. it was really nice. really nice. i forgot what day it was several times. and now i have over 500 posts to get updated on in my blog reader.

7. i spent so much time unpacking and getting things ready around the house that i found myself belching and doing other unseemly things in public. i forgot what it was like to be around other people. and when i was finally around other adults, i was like a homeschooled kid at her first day of public school. I COULDN'T STOP TALKING TO SAVE MY LIFE.

8. alabamians love talk radio.

9. i owe my life to members of my old ward. especially melinda and steph. we could not have done this move without their help. i thought i had things under control. i was wrong. i am utterly humbled and i feel like i have misunderstood my entire life what true service is. thank you.