Tag...I'm It!

Okay, Mark got tagged to do this little survey so I decided to do it as well. I must give one disclaimer, though. I cheated. The rules for this list are that you can only use one word answers and I kinda fudged a little, but only on ones that were absolutely necessary. Since I am a newt at blogging protocall, I am not going to tag others on this survey because I'm sure I would do it all wrong. Still, feel free to tag yourself if so desired!

Where is your cell phone? kitchen????
Where is your significant other? floor
Your hair color? highlighted
Your mother? warm
Your father? leader
Your favorite thing? balance
Your dream last night? quirky
Your dream/goal? charity
The room you’re in? soothing
Your hobby? kids
Your fear? failure
Where do you want to be in 6 years? vacationing
Where were you last night? home
What you’re not? athletic
One of your wish-list items? furniture
Where you grew up? Ogden
The last thing you did? ebay
What are you wearing? slippers
Your TV? off
Your pet? Schatzietheprincess
Your computer? useful
Your mood? content
Missing someone? JoniAndy
Your car? dirty
Something you’re not wearing? bikini
Favorite store? Anthropologie
Your summer? calm
Love someone? Mark
Your favorite color? these
When is the last time you laughed? now
Last time you cried? September

My wonderful trip to visit my wonderful college kids!

Joni and Jana in the London Market. Joni loathes this picture...says she looks slightly tipsy...I think it is just because she is delirious with joy at being with me!



Joni's native college habitat.


Tammy, Dayna Driscoll and I after eating a nummy dinner they made. Dayna lived in Iowa with her family while her husband served as mission president. They are now back home in Aberdeen, Idaho growing those luscious potatoes. It was great to see her and her daughter, Crystal again.

Andy with Des Moines friends Crystal Driscoll and Lexie Thomas, who are also at BYU-I. Well, Crystal used to live in Iowa when her dad was the mission president. Now her family is back in Idaho.

Andy's drawer.

Notice the closet...clothes are organized by type.

A couple of weeks ago, I got to do something WAY fun! I got to spend 16 hours in a car with two of my favorite people, Tammy Thomas and Brenda Bahr driving to Idaho/Utah to visit our kids. We all wondered how time went so much faster on that drive with each other than it does when we take it with our families...hmmm....

Anyway, it was absolutely soul-filling to spend time with Joni and Andy. What amazing people they've become in spite of their incurably flawed mother! We first went to Idaho to the BYU-I Mother's Weekend. I got to see Andy in his new habitat and meet many of the people I have heard so much about. It is great to see him so happy and so...well...how do I say this?...mature? grown-up? responsible? Maybe all three. He told me on the phone that he had turned in to a neat freak like his dad, but all I could think of was that "neat" compared to how he was at home could still be pretty messy. He was right, I was wrong. He is a neat freak. Who'd have guessed it? Part of me is so incredibly proud of him and part of me is a bit miffed that he didn't decide to be neat when he lived under my roof! He also spent time choosing to study, a new development since high school. Go figure. And, I got the treat of hearing him sing with the Collegiate Singers group he is a part of. He is loving that group and appreciating it so much after the less than positive experience he had with his high school choir (not to be confused with his high school show choir that he loved.) Overall, I couldn't be happier with where he is right now and don't know when I've seen him so happy or at peace with himself. Very rewarding.

Next I got to spend about 24 hours with my wonderful parents in Ogden. Could I just say how much I love an appreciate them? It was great having some one-on-one and being the kid again. Thanks for the nummy lunch at the Union Grill, Mom and Dad! Can't wait to go back.

Finally, I spent a day and a half with Joni in Provo...well, most of our time was in Salt Lake shopping, but that is okay! I adjusted a while ago to having Joni live away from home, so seeing her in her native habitat wasn't a new thing like it was with Andy. Still, I always feel a sense of satisfaction and peace in actually being where she lives and seeing first hand how well she is doing. And, we shared our first Ikea experience together. How's that for bonding! We also got to eat lunch with my wonderful friend, Jana Sneddon, another person who always warms my heart!

First day of School for Jared

Okay, school started almost a month ago, but I thought this was a perfect picture to capture Jared's attitude about first day of school pictures... WHATEVER MOM!

I Love Washing Dishes!

So, I decided to try blogging again after a 2 month hiatus. Sorry, I'm just not consistent yet. Anyway, I love looking at friends' blogs of their kids in action, so the one kid I have at home tonight gets the spotlight. Alli said tonight that she LOVES doing dishes and will do it every night if she can. I needed to record this for future reference. Still, I had to wonder if kids nowadays are so used to dishwashers that the novelty of hand washing seems exotic to them. Not me! I remember life before dishwashers.

Oh, and want to know why her tongue is over at the side of her mouth? She lost a tooth there tonight and is intrigued by the space it left.

Frankenstein Fashion Trend

While Mark's blog entry may be more detailed than mine, (mainly due to the fact that he was conscious for most of the event while I cannot boast the same privilege), I do think it appropriate for me to comment on my attempt at introducing Frankenstein's image as a fashion trend. If you are totally oblivious, let me point you in the direction of my upper lip in the above picture and the 11 stitches that now adorn it. No, Mark and I did not get into a fight, nor did I slip while licking a butcher knife, I simply had a mole removed. Okay "simply" is a very loose term to describe the ordeal. I thought it would be simple because the thing was only about 1/8 inch in diameter, but since it straddled my lip, I suppose a more elaborate procedure was necessary. In my case this included a morning in the hospital, one doctor and 4 nurses, one hour of "conscious sedation", an incision that starts under my nose and ends about an inch and a half later under my lip, and the aforesaid 11 stitches which will be my partners for 10 days.

The worst part of the recovery is not the pain or the unsightly appearance. It isn't having to clean and dab ointment on in every 8 hours, take pills that make my stomach feel off, or even the odd looks I get from others. The worst part is that the swelling makes it hurt to talk and especially smile. Now THAT is agony!!

Schatzie

Ah, the life of a dog! Schatzie is the one creature on earth who brings unity to my family because we emphatically agree that she is the world's greatest dog. Please excuse her less than lady-like pose; she's just game for belly rubs 24/7.