Preschool Program

Our youngest is now done with her first year of preschool. She loved it. The program was so cute. We love her teacher and were just sad daddy had to miss all the fun this week (party, program, school productions). Next year she'll go 3 days a week for 2 hours each time. Lucky lady!

Wax Museum

After taking my birthday boy to lunch today, I hurried back to the school for my oldest's "Wax Museum." All the 4th graders dressed up as people from Utah's history, made posters or pamphlets and buttons to push, and then stood still by their display in the halls. You'd walk by and push the button on the desk and they'd give their little monologue about the person they were representing. Here's Chief Black Hawk. I stayed up late last night sewing the indian clothes and putting together his costume. He loved it. He just didn't love the actual monologuing he had to do in the hot hot hallways in his hot hot wig/racoon headdress.

Happy 7th Birthday

My middle child turns 7 today. We had a family dinner and celebration on Sunday night before dad left town for his business trip. I made him a Jawa cake. He loves Jawa's! So we sprinkled the chocolate cake with yellow sand candies and placed on his lego jawa's and some of the droids on top (he placed them). After a dinner of homemade pizza on the shaded patio, we opened presents. We had decided to pool together money with my parents and give our oldest an early birthday gift and our 7 year old a gift together...a Wii. But we just gave one of the Wii games to the 7 year old first and when he opened it, we pretended that we had accidentally gotten the wrong game...having meant to get one for the xbox we already have. We said we'd have to exchange it. He gave a 1/2 smile and said okay, sliding the game back over to me.

But then we pulled out the big gift and his jaw dropped. They love it.



Then, on Monday we had his real b-day party. We did it early because the weather was supposed to be hot then and rainy today (which it was). He had a water party. And we were sure glad we had the shaded patio! Have I mentioned how much I love it? He told me it was the best birthday party ever.




So for his official birthday today, I made him cinnamon rolls (quick pillsbury ones) and took him to Burger King for lunch...just the 2 of us (checked him out of school). He's had a great week.

Don't Die Please

So this is the "cooler" thing my hubby had his eye on when I wanted the awning for the patio. Then he decided he'd make getting one a reward to himself if he could lose 40 lbs. BUT...he saw a great deal and he couldn't pass it up. So despite my worry about his general health, his safety and his goal to lose some weight, he bought himself this little beauty. Don't ask me anything about it, check out his blog for that. All I know is that I'm secretly glad he's in on business out of town this week so there's one less week of wreck possibilities to worry about.

Oh, but get this...while I was so glad not to have to worry about him riding his motorcycle, the place he's on business at gets shut down for an anthrax scare for a full day and they locked everyone inside. It turned out to be sugar, but sheesh! He would just say, "See, I could die from anything, anywhere, anytime. Quit worrying about the motorcycle."

Tax Stimulus stimulates some SHADE!

So we did our part to boost the local economy...we employed some people to build us a solid roofed cover for our patio. We are LOVING it. It was put in a couple of weeks ago and we've enjoyed it immensely. It provides shade outside and has kept that side of the house 5-10 degrees cooler than normal on the hot days this week. I didn't even have to turn on the AC on the 90 degree day this week except for a couple of minutes to cool down the upstairs before going to bed. My hubby didn't want to spend our money on this (I think he had his sights set on something way "cooler" already). But I am SOOOO glad we did and I think he is too. It looks great and functions great and the dumb winds here won't blow it away. What more could you ask for?

The first picture is the before plan picture I made for the installer.

In the News

Well, I had a wonderful time at the Provo Children's Book Fair last Saturday, presenting on a panel, doing an illustration demonstration for kids, reading to the kids, and signing books. My friend is a photographer for the local paper and made sure to put me as the photo op even though there were far more noteworthy authors and illustrators there. Too bad he had to show it from an angle that exaggerates my already thick arms.

It was a fun day. Here's a link to the article DESERET NEWS

Chop, Chop

After seeing my oldest get all his long locks chopped off, my youngest boy came to me and said he wanted his hair cut all the way off...(meaning cut short). This was a HUGE thing b/c he's had the same long hair bowl type cut since he actually grew hair. My little boy is now all grown up and looks more like a strawberry blonde than a blondie toe head now. He loves it. See the before and afters...and the piles of hair...