reagan is going to college next friday

reagan gave a talk today in primary. it was about the importance of the temple being the house of the Lord. we wrote it together(ish). he wasn't that keen on the idea but he certainly enjoyed talking into the microphone. he acted like he couldn't read but when he saw me coming to help and not someone more sympathetic, he told me(with a smile) "go away" and "don't look at me." that's the kind of special, close relationship we have. he knows that i am the enforcer. the literacy enforcer!

i'm just glad he did it. i'm pretty keen on kids learning about the gospel of Jesus Christ at a young age. it's one of my things.

plus, he's such a handsome little boy.

he already reminds me all the time that he is going to college next friday. (it's a toy story 3 thing.)

35 so i know you're alive

thomas turned 35. we love him anyway. for a celebration he said he wanted a meat tornado a la ron swanson from parks and recreation.

i couldn't really find a recipe, though my searching was thorough, so i made something up. it's a pizza with black beans and mexicorn(because i like those things) with a spicy beef and cream cheese compote layered on a bed of barbeque sauce and a fluffy crust. it's the 2nd best thing i have ever made. (next time i may add caramelized onions and cilantro. who knows!? living on the edge when we're 30something!)

the 1st best thing i have ever made was thomas' extra special oreo birthday cake. it's ugly and sloppy, because that's my style, but it tastes like heaven on earth. i'm not an oreo fan, but i love oreos in ice cream or smushed into a cake. this cake is bomb dot com. it was almost like it was my birthday.

we also celebrated by trying to teach the kids about he-man. they weren't that into it. thomas and i loved it. it was funny and nostaligic. the animation was like watching somebody's coloring book on tv.

but scarlett the total tv junkie totally got into the transformers movie. she decided that she likes optimus prime the best but wondered where bumblebee's mother was.

the end.

the triangle of no secrets rides again!

recent things of recentness:

thomas and i celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary. we took a little overnighter downtown. our original plans of going to atlanta for fun, food, templing and shopping were ruined(and believe me i cried about it. and pouted. and thrashed around on the floor.) because we had to take care of a bunch of paperwork for the house we are in the process of buying. keep your fingers and eyes crossed. i do think the universe is against thomas and i ever spending taking a real trip together. but the trade-off this time is buying a new house so i guess i'll dry my tears and suck it up.

thomas and his two loves- me and crystal light

me and my two loves- thomas and aprons

my mother and sister flew in from kansas city and las vegas, respectively to come and enjoy me(and really, the kids. grandma came for the kids.) for a few days. the triangle of no secrets rides again!!!

i love this action shot of a shove in progess:

we enjoyed our neighborhood park and correcting the spelling of the local graffiti. one of my favorite games to play with heather is "can you find this ridiculous typo?". one time a few years ago heather and i sat down at the dinner table with searched for typos in a kansas city bridal guide. it was the most fun ever. and there were a ton of typos and grammatical errors. i love a misused aprostrophe in a professional publication. we are the worst kind of snob. grammar snobs!

while here, the gals all went to the biltmore together for a little day trip. it was amazing and incroyable and so lovely.

i do believe there is a biltmore curse regarding earring loss. that morning, heather lost one of her favorite earrings. at the biltmore house, i lost one of my favorite earrings. and the next day, my mom discovered that one of her favorite earrings was lost. dun dun DUN!

we laughed and giggled and started all of our stories with, "here's the thing..." we also shared embarassing stories from childhood. most of the stories involved "tooting". or crying. like the time i was in the 4th grade and i had to give a presentation on spain. mom and heather came to watch but my mom accidentally opened the classroom door smack into heather's face so all anyone could hear was heather's screaming. sigh. 

for dinner we met up with thomas and the kids at the mellow mushroom(which i still assert is the best pizza ever.) thomas was a dear to take care of the kids all day and cart them to different activities. and their clothes almost matched and fit properly.

my side of the table wasn't as ready for our photo. of course, i am always up for a photo shoot.

the highlight of the night was the torrential downpour and trying to find a bathroom while we were walking around downtown.

some enjoyed it more than others.

we celebrated my mom's and thomas' birthday. the cake was ugly(surprise!) but delicious. i learned the secret of fantastic cakes is to add a box of pudding and a scoop or 3 of sour cream to the batter and the follow the box directions. plates were licked.

ugly is my new party planning theme as represented by my wrap job on my mom's gift:

i'm a much better shopper than wrapper. yo.

and to make this post even longer, we swam.

i must brag on reagan because he is a most excellent swimmer. he can swim the entire length of our pool unassisted. boo ya.

i am extra proud because a lady at the pool asked me if i was his mom or his coach. i was thrilled, but i think she was implying that i was being a little tough on him. but simpsons aren't weenies. i'd like to know what tune she would be singing if she started to drown and reagan had to rescue her.

and i have to make fun of heather on last time. she looked she was about to go hiking in the himalayas with her backpack on. if i was on her plane, i would have avoided her and that backpack at all costs.