30 September 2009

. . . words to live by . . .

. . . we love it when elliott wears this shirt . . .
. . . especially when he wears it with his arsenal skort . . .
. . . "fun stuff" includes
{but is not limited to}
playing with papa's large jar
of jelly bellies . . .
{the watermelon ones are long gone}
. . . and watching videos
{baby einstein, i think}
on his dad's iPhone . . .
{sometimes even during church!}
. . . and showing off his new teeth . . .
. . . at ten months old,
life is pretty much
non-stop fun stuff . . .


29 September 2009

. . . this month is such a special one . . .

. . . happy {a week late} birthday to chris, the crazy dad . . .
{how can i have a thirty-one-year-old son-in-law?}
. . . and happy twenty-ninth birthday today
to amber, the amazing mom/daughter . . .
{i hope she gives herself a break
and doesn't run 11.5 miles again today}
. . . half-marathon training can wait . . .
. . . just take it easy for once . . .
. . . right . . .
. . . like that'll happen with these munchkins around . . .
{this officially concludes our september birthdays!}
see lots more here


28 September 2009

. . . hah . . .

. . . totally appropriate initials for
halleigh anne hansen . . .
. . . who always makes me laugh . . .
. . . hah . . .
. . . take, for instance, her yellow accessories . . .
. . . they perfectly match the yellow light
she got at school recently . . .
{the goal is to keep your light green at all times}
. . . who would have guessed that
cartwheels in the cafeteria
were such a big deal? . . .
. . . those stuffy lunch room ladies are so not fun . . .
. . . but twister and candyland
with about twenty of your closest friends
is lots of fun . . .
. . . just like halleigh . . .
. . . so are red velvet cupcakes . . .
{though i'd recommend them only for
outside birthday parties next time}
. . . happy sixth birthday
halleigh anne hansen . . .


26 September 2009

. . . not on my "a" game . . .

. . . that's for sure . . .
. . . "the facts were these" . . .
{i miss that show, by the way}
. . . it's my month to play the organ
in good ol' hp ward . . .
{i'd love it if every month were my month ~
it's the best job in the church!}
. . . the opening hymn was announced
~ a favorite ~
#144 secret prayer . . .
. . . the intro went off without a hitch . . .
[the part marked with little brackets]
. . . continuing on . . .
. . . i played,
barbara directed,
and the congregation sang
three whole verses . . .
. . . then i stopped . . .
. . . but she didn't and they didn't . . .

. . . because, sadly, . . .
. . . there are four verses . . .
. . . i can only imagine
how my red face looked
with my aqua sweater . . .
{we did eventually sing the fourth verse}
. . . i got a sub for tomorrow . . .
. . . i'm going to another ward . . .


25 September 2009

. . . white on white . . .

. . . perfect gift for blessing/christening day . . .
. . . 'cuz even when
your little darling
is dressed in white . . .
. . . spit happens . . .
{or worse ~ speaking from experience!}


24 September 2009

. . . girls gone wild . . .

. . . zebras, cheetahs, and giraffes . . .
. . . oh, my! . . .
. . . available in hot and pale pink colorways . . .


23 September 2009

. . . rise and shout . . .

. . . new to oops! . . .
. . . navy chenille . . .
{che·nille ~ etymology: french, literally, caterpillar}
. . . which i totally get ~
it really does resemble
those furry little critters . . .
. . . these probably
would have been better sellers
a couple of weeks ago . . .
. . . but ~ true blue cougar fans will snatch these up . . .
. . . even if you're still in mourning . . .


22 September 2009

. . . hey, taylor . . .

. . . i feel your pain . . .
. . . you've probably already seen this,
but i found it rather amusing . . .
{it's customizable ~ go ahead . . . give it a try}


19 September 2009

. . . go green 1.0 . . .

. . . let's try that with a little added punctuation . . .
. . . go, green! . . .

. . . how about this? . . .
. . . go {away} green!! . . .
{look ~ there's drew}

. . . anyhow ~ to celebrate my birthday,
my sweet children provided paint and manpower
to make the green go away . . .

. . . everyone worked hard . . .
. . . chris got appointed "superintendant" . . .

. . . he was super handy with the caulking gun . . .

. . . he tried to teach us to roll the paint on
in the shape of a "v" or a "w"
and then fill it in . . .
. . . but, amanda got a little confused . . .

. . . it's great to have young, skinny daughters . . .

. . . hop up on the counter? . . .
. . . "not a problem" . . .

. . . crawl under the desk? . . .
. . . "i'm totally on it" . . .

. . . naturally . . .

. . . shenanigans ensued . . .

. . . especially with brent . . .
. . . who took a break mid-job
to play in a basketball game . . .
. . . hence the wardrobe change . . .

. . . she moved the ladder all by herself,
but amanda's aim was a little off . . .
{nearly two times ~ check that back leg!}

. . . finally ~ about
•eight hours
four rolls of masking tape
three gallons of behr premium plus ultra
{in "sensible hue" ~ with a couple of drops of black added}
three coats of paint
three oreganos pizzas
two pablo picasso salads
numerous diet cokes
dr. peppers
minute maid lemonades
•and lots of laughs
later . . .
. . . the task was complete . . .
. . . thanks, tyler, for pointing out that
this is the end of the post . . .
. . . and huge thanks to
my girlies and their wonderful husbands
for making this happen . . .
. . . i love you all! . . .


16 September 2009

. . . one year older . . .

. . . aging is so much more fun . . .
. . . when you celebrate with fabulous friends . . .
{even though the candles wouldn't stay lit}
. . . happy little birthday to us! . . .


11 September 2009

. . . q&a . . .

. . . because enquiring minds want to know . . .


. . . dear bobbi: please!
NEVER use mayo and salad dressing
in the same question . . .
. . . also ~ please! NEVER use salad dressing {at all} . . .
. . . and only use best foods real mayonnaise . . .
{apologies to vicki ~ mayo was put on the earth to torture her}



. . . dear kristen: kosher salt is delightful . . .
. . . it is less salty than table salt . . .
. . . it comes in little flake-like pieces . . .
. . . i keep some in a little pinch pot on my stove . . .
. . . i feel super fancy/gourmet-ish
when i sprinkle it in my cooking . . .
. . . you can find it {usually} in the baking aisle ~
near the regular salt and ice cream/rock salt . . .
. . . try it . . .



. . . dear angie: {as i answered earlier in a comment} . . .
. . . it's a good thing we named her
amanda "joan" after mom romney . . .
. . . they are practically clones . . .
. . . and amelia "nathel" looks exactly like my mom . . .
. . . we were smart baby namers . . .
. . . thanks for noticing . . .



. . . dear bobbi: {again, as i answered earlier} . . .
. . . a z-pak is the antibiotic i was on for bronchitis . . .
. . . it has nothing to do with the fact that
my feet are large and wide! . . .



. . . dear amanda: sorry, but no . . .
. . . this goes along with my inability to
"give you {or anyone else!} a piece of my mind" . . .
. . . i have none to spare! . . .


. . . dear amber: you are my daughter . . .
. . . you should be well aware of the fact
that NOW would be way too early
to get ready for the holidays . . .
. . . what fun would christmas be
without the panic/stress/last minute rush? . . .
. . . oh, no. these are late birthday gifts . . .


. . . dear kim: apparently baby girls wear camo, too . . .
. . . i know! i couldn't believe it, either . . .
. . . yes, i fill special orders all the time . . .
. . . that's what these were . . .


. . . questions? . . .
. . . feel free to ask . . .


10 September 2009

. . . no permit required . . .

. . . every time i make a batch of these . . .
. . . they become endangered species . . .
. . . hunting season is officially open . . .


09 September 2009

. . . black/white/red all over . . .

. . . all packed up and ready to go . . .
. . . by custom order/special request . . .
. . . for a swanky/sophisticated baby-to-be . . .
. . . there's a couple of extras . . .
. . . so, start spreading the news . . .