Hello...hello...tap-tap...anybody there?

So I have sort of slipped off this side of the planet and let moving into our new house and trying to keep a d+ average in school get in the way of blogging. Such a slippery slope the space between a d+ and d-.

Anyway two more weeks of school and then I promise to update all on our crazy life.

p.s. our dog has anxiety - separation anxiety and is now on doggy Prozac. Can owning a dog get any better?


Christmas Questions

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I am really into the clear plastic stuff tied with a bow (don't be surprised if your gift comes wrapped in a see-through package)
   
2. Real tree or artificial? 100% Real | We had a tree cutting day with some friends this year and i don't think I will ever do a lot again.
   
3. When do you put up the tree? Day after Thanksgiving this year (thanks to cutting the live tree!)
   
4. When do you take the tree down? New Years Day - that when my mom always did it
   
5. Do you like eggnog? Usually no too thick!
   
6. Favorite gift received as a child? Cabbage Patch dolls and dresses
   
7. Do you have a nativity scene? We do, its a tiny little ceramic set that Grandma bought and Murphy carries it all around the house. It is currently residing in his room.
   
8. Hardest person to buy for? My parents.
9. Easiest person to buy for? Myself son.
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail. Hmm that reminds me!
    
11. Favorite Christmas Movie? White Christmas
12. When do you start shopping for Christmas? After Thanksgiving.
13. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Probably, but I can’t think of any specific instances.
14. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Lefse.
15. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear.
16. Favorite Christmas song? Oh, Holy Night. My dad always insists that I play this on the piano
    
17. Travel for Christmas or stay at home? Home. When Murphy gets older I would love to do a vacation to somewhere new each year instead of gifts.
    
18. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeers? Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and Rudolph.
    
19. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star.
20. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? One Christmas Eve - Rest Christmas Morning
21. Most annoying thing about this time of year?Malls decking the halls before Halloween is over!
    

Who is running this blog anyway?

I had such good aspirations of updating this neglected blog. I have been on break from school for the past week and a half and one would think that there would be penty of time to get caught up, but somehow that time slipped away into games of hide and seek and a scary train ride on a historic train that was filled with ghosts and goblins.

We were laying in bed the other night and Josh turns to me and says " you really need to update your blog", lets see is that in between washing your underwear fixing your dinner and caring for our toddler and finishing school that you would like me to do this?


That isn't quite fair as he does do some of the dishes.

Whose Dean?

As many of you know I have been back in school for almost six months now. Any of you that have gone back to school as an adult know what a daunting thing it is to return to school while keeping normalcy in all of the other areas of life (not always completely possible though a fantastic goal).

It is an incredibly personal decision to put yourself out there with the huge possiblity that you might not be able to pull it off. I started in college in my late teens not sure what I wanted to be when I grew up - a peds doctor was my first choice and then after a stint at Primary Children's as much as I loved helping people I realized that it might not be the life choice for me, I then sort of just wandered through undergraduate studies without a real passion or drive not know which direction I would end up. I found the love of my life four years ago and we settled down to have our amazing little guy ~ Murphy ~. College took a back seat in my life though I knew it was always something I wanted to finish.

Since then I have continued my career in Marketing and have realized my passion for it - everything about it from the people interaction to being able to create things and work in a team environment. I kept thinking "when Murphy get older I'll go back to school" and then it hit me - what exactly was I waiting for or was it really just another form of procrastination. So a really long story long - I took the plunge with my husband holding my hand being the most supportive partner and Murphy helping me do "homework" and I just found out I made the Dean's list. Wow - I guess theres a first for everything.

Why must they grow so fast?

"mom"?

"yes".

"I leabe (leave) you when I get bigger"?

At least he is still little enough to want to snuggle every once and a while...

Music I am Loving...

Peter Bjorn & Jon = the whistling song.

Why do you Blog?

Interesting Question - I read this post over at a design/mom blog I had ran across where she give the a beautiful response to this question.

As for myself I want to use this to celebrate my life - the life of my family - A Celebration. To put some of those good moments down that if they aren't written somewhere they are at risk of being forgotten. Life can be found in so many places - we just have to look for it!

Why do you blog? I tag:

Trina

Lace

Kim

Marci

Singin' in the Rain...

The weather around here has been really cool lately! (Though not so good for the forest fires) Every afternoon there has been thunderstorms, a little muggy but really neat with all of the thunder and lightening - as a friend put it "I love this weather and and yet am a little afraid of it all at the same time"...

Project Completion

Thanks to my friend Ash I made my husband wonder "who in the world is this crafty woman at the kitchen table?" I seriously do not do anything crafty but this project made me want to do more. In fact it inspired me to make magnets for my fridge! The first project was the one we did at Ash's house which was painting wood blocks and then adding letters to them to create a word. Murphy has his in his room and loves them - he points to them and tells us "that says MURPHY". Thanks Ash!!!

The magnets are very simple, they are glass pebbles and then I used the scrapbook transfer stuff for the words and then glued on the magnet on the back. FUN!

July 24th - Food Fun & Fireworks

Murphy and I took the day to go down to Liberty Park for the Utah Pioneer Day, we went to the Tracy Aviery and then into the park where the festivties were aplenty! Murphy ate corndogs, nachos and candy - mmm healthy. On the way out of the park we had them paint a snake across Murphy's face - it resided there for three days until we finally washed in off!

He said...

So I would like to announce.....drumroll....Murphy is POTTY TRAINED (+ or - a couple of accidents). We are so proud!!!

So I have to share something he said while he was sitting on the pot...

He tooted and then looks down and says "bless you my pee-pee" in the most serious voice (as though it had sneezed)... I am seriuosly laughing while I am typing. You have got to love a two-year old's point of view.

Here is a link to a really cool personality test. Instead of the standard multiple choice format, you get to use sliders and quadrants and other nifty ways of rating yourself on a continuum. A much more realistic way to assess yourself. It's fun! Try it here.


My Result was a free-wheeling creator! I love it!

Mad Hatter Hats

We went to the Art's Festival this weekend, it took an hour and a half to wait in two food lines and the beverage line for water - I was about worked at this point. We were walking through the displays and there was a children's booth where you could make "Mad Hatter Hats" so we asked Murphy if he would like to make one and very excitedly went to pay for the pleasure of pasting glue and paint all over a paper bag - lady behind the counter "we're closed" no emotion (I get it long day etc etc), but but there are people right their painting their bags!!!! So I get down on little Murph man's level and tell him how sorry I am but they are closed - sadness! He was such a big boy and we made a pact that we would make Mad Hatter Hats at our house, I think that it was a success!

Where are you???

First Fishing Lesson - Catching Grass Like A Pro

Big Kid Bike

Murphy is such a big kid now! He received a treasure from his eight year old cousin - his big kid bike! Zach has been hanging on to this bike even though he grew out of it many years ago - for one purpose...Murphy's First Bike. He loves it (can't imagine where he got that from...)

Props to the Tan-Man love his wheels!!!!

Happy Father's Day

Baby you are the most amazing father, the love you have for your son shows in everything that you do, from playing with the Murph man to being the tough guy. We love you so much.

Too. Much. Fun.

We went up to a cabin this weekend with some friends, Murphy was the only kid there and he was doted upon by all. There was a tepee outside of the cabin, and he and I would go in and "pretend" to have a fire and roast marshmallows and cook bananas, seeing him use his little imagination is so cute, I remember playing pretend when I was little being able to lose yourself for hours playing whatever came to mind, I am so glad that I can do it again for a second time.

Murphy has a new toy; a bicycle. It is pretty cute to see Josh sharing the love of his life (not me - bikes) with his little guy. Josh put some training wheels on Murphy's bike and helped him maneuver all over the dirt road - ultimate happiness for both.

Bikers

Memorial Day Weekend - CAMPING 07

We went camping this last weekend down by Price in Hunnington Canyon - really pretty national park. It was FREEZING the first night. We of course put all of our extra layers on the Murph-man so he wouldn't be cold, when he woke up in the middle of the night calling for mommy - you better believe I high tailed it into his sleeping bag - it was toasty warm in there! When we got up the next morning there was frost all over the car and it was 32 degrees out!

Murphy had so much fun having our undivided attention for the weekend, he was helping Josh split wood, throwing rocks into the river and generally getting dirty.

Tagged - Eight Wierd Things

Now if you asked my dear husband he could probably come up with many more than just eight weird - I mean endearing - things about me. But since I am supposed to come up with them here we go:

1. Nails being clipped - I absolutley can't stand to listen to other people click their finger/toe nails creeps me out! Funny thing is that it doesn't bother me to hear mine being clipped at all.

2. Forks making that weird scraping sound on a plate - I will seriously have to run into another room if someone is doing this on purpose.

3. Drinks in glasses - I always leave about 1/4 to 1/2 in of whatever liguid I am drinking in the bottom, I don't even think about this I just don't EVER finish what is in a glass, I also have to get a new glass almost every time a get a drink if the old glass has been sitting longer than a few minutes - You said weird right?

4. OCD + Undiagnosed = me (cleaning, on-time etc etc)

5. Leftovers are not for eating!!!!! I have a 24-48 hour rule on leftovers, if they have been in longer than that/or you can't remember when they were cooked they are not edible.

6. Shopping - I am the most undecided shopper you will meet, I don't know how many times I have stood in line to checkout only to get to the cashier and decide that I don't really need said item and put it back - irritating!

7. I don't like to be splashed with water especially if I am not in a pool aka doing dishes or bathing a child and husband thinks it would be funny to splash water on wifes face - I don't know if it is mental or not but it makes my skin FREAK OUT!

8. I am a freak about Christmas - I am getting better so that they people that live with me don't go insane but I used to start listening to Christmas Music sometime in Oct (you only get to listen to it once a year right) Now I am forced to wait until after Thanksgiving - PURE TORTURE

Cute Comments from a two-year old...

Murphy and I were enjoying a lazy Saturday morning in our pajamas watching cartoons, and when I asked him if he wanted to go help fix breakfast - he ran to the door and started yelling Mommy coming too!!!! I think that we go out to breakfast a lot on the weekend - this little guy knows the routine even if that wasn't what I meant.

After breakfast I told him we needed to the bird feeder store, and as we were driving there he told me "we're going the eat bird store!"...

Over breakfast we discussing how we needed to get Mother's Day presents Murph got all excited and said "and CAKE"!

EAT. THAT. MOMMY.

Eggs in the City

Forever Friends...

I know Murphy won't remember this trip - but at least we have pictures. Murphy adored this little man - he is such a sweet caring spirit, as we ate dinner the last night Malik got really quite and seemed like something was bothering him - we kept asking and he would just say he was fine, but come to find out he was so sad inside because we were leaving the next morning. Family - Forever.