Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Tagged....

The A-Z's of me...... A- advocate for: the physically and/or mentally handicapped/ill. I've worked with people of all ages, male and female, through mostly volunteer work. I'm drawn to these people and/or Heavenly Father places them in my life for some greater purpose. Sorry- don't mean to start of this list on a totally intellectual note- I'll loosen up in a second :) B- best feature: my hands, I was once told I could model my hands, but I'm sure that now they are too dry, wrinkled etc. C- Could do without: People who judge harshly others that are different from themselves D- Dreams and Desires: To make a difference in the world, to be loved, and accomplish all that I'm supposed to do. E- Essential items: I'm a milk chocolate fan but I can eat dark choclate if there's no milk chocolate in the house. Hairspray- can't go a day without it! Also, eyeliner if I am leaving the house. F- Favorite pastime: Being on the computer doing various things such as blogging, reading email, checking out the classified adds on ksl.com. Shopping is fun for me IF I have money to spend. G- Good at: finding bargains. H- Have never tried: It's sad but true- I've never downhill skied. I ONCE cross country skied and if you saw that you would thank your lucky stars you've never met me on the slopes. I- If I had a million dollars: it would be spent in a second is what my husband would say. Seriously, I would go on a cruise, visit Hawaii, pay off the house, save the rest for retirement since you need more than a million to retire comfortably. Believe me, I've been in the nursing homes and I wouldn't want to stay in those. Assisted living is the way to go and they are more expensive! J- Junkie for: food, food, food and pizza, chocolate, icecream and Reeses Peanut Butter Cups. K- Kindred spirit: My big younger brother Randy. He looks out for me. 'Nuff said. L- Little known fact: I was inspired to write a song for a cousin while her husband was passing away of liver failure. I wrote the lyrics and the melody and had my other cousin Kathy compose the piano music. From the time I received the vision and part of the melody, until we had a finished copy of music was two weeks! My cousins husband passed the day Kathy brought me the finished music. She had used a program at Weber State University where you play the music and it prints out the music in sheet form. The song is called "Thou Gavest Me". I have received more ideas for songs but I haven't got nearly as far on them as the first one. M-Memorable moment: When I got an answer to a prayer in high school. It was the first time I really knew God listened to me and knew my needs and it changed the course of my entire life. N-Never again will I: This one is hard for me because I tend to repeat my mistakes- even if it is several years later. Aha- buy from an infomercial without consulting my husband first! O-Occasional Indulgence: Okay- here is one of my bad indulgences- sometimes I will buy the magazine "People" and read it from cover to cover. I know it is full of garbage, but I enjoy keeping up with some of the celebrities especially the ones that just had babies. P-Profession: Daycare provider, Mother, Wife, Sister, Daughter

Q-Quote: Have an attitude of gratitiude

R-Reason to smile: When I see my kids having fun, making a funny comment, learning something new, choosing the right.

S-Sorry about: Not being a better housekeeper

T-Tag some friends: I tag anyone who reads this and feels up to doing it themselves.

U-Uninterested in: Hurtful gossip

V-Very scared of: Dying in a fire-being burned to death.

W-Worst habit: Eating when I am nervous, anxious etc.

X-X marks my ideal vacation spot: Anywhere with lots of family, that is near water to play in.

Y-Y did I do this: Katie (my fun SIL) tagged me

Z-Zodiak sign: Scorpio

Monday, April 14, 2008

Tropical Encounters

Our favorite pet store around here is Tropical Encounters. Ryan has developed a working relationship and friendship with the owner. We try to visit it once a month. Here is Ryan with Dallin. Iggy the Iguana- he wanders around the store freely.

Sydney got her pet cockatiel here. Damona is her name and she is a baby. Sydney picked her out and had to wait a couple of weeks while the owner weaned her off the "baby food". She is a handfed cockatiel which makes her much more friendly.

Spring odds and ends

This first composition was a fun shot for me! I only wish I took more pictures of it so it would come out clearer. Can you guess what it is of? It is a shadow of an ornamental tree in my neighbors front yard. It is cast onto the sidewalk which is next to a gravel area. I really which I had taken more photos- I only had this one to work with! With the warmer weather, the sandbox has been getting a lot of use by Tyler and his friends. Last year we expanded the sandbox and made it a more permanent place. It has been a good investment for imaginative play. This side of the house gets a lot more shade which makes it more comfortable in the hot Utah summers.

Flowers

Spring has begun to show in the emerging blossoms around our yard. Yesterday was a beautiful day to take pictures of them. I hope you enjoy!

New haircut

I got another new cut and this one's pretty short. I have such thick hair that I get too hot. I also tried coloring my hair with some golden blond highlights, but as you can see, it turned out reddish brown. Guess I need to leave the coloring to the professionals. I have a habit of tucking my hair behind my ears to get it out of the way. If I didn't do that, it would look more stylish! I'm just too utilitarian.

Friday, April 11, 2008

Changes at our house

Our sister/Aunt has found a place of her own nearby and so I have been able to redecorate the family room after she moved out. I have a knack of finding good things to decorate with on a budget, so here is some of my finds. I started out with finding a sofa sleeper and loveseat for $450 total. I love using the classifed adds on ksl.com! It is where I've found many great things and have sold old furniture. Now, back to the furniture, since I had some colors to build on, I found some mismatched paint at Walmart for about $8. Then I added the wall hangings that my mom gave me for Christmas that say "love, home and family". The black wall shelf I found at DI for $4 and it was originally white. I bought black paint and painted it!

Next, Sampson is in the same room but along the opposite wall. I hung my picture of Christ there and found a coat rack at DI for $5. I took out the middle section of the rack so that kids can hang their coats up easier. The piano also found a new home on a different wall in the room. The chess set is sitting on our "antique" piano bench that really needs to be refinished! I'm going to assume that Tyler won that game of Chess!

Then, I found this entertainment center for FREE on the ksl.com site. I regularly check the free section since many people don't want the hastle of loading their unwanted big items and taking them to DI (deseret industries). Okay, and since I am bearing my hidden talent of scavenging- I picked up the swag above the entertainment center for $4 at DI. Notice the small white piece of paper on the T.V. It is hiding the power button so that Dallin won't turn it off! I know, I hate the white wall and want to paint it some other color.

The last picture is of our kitchen table and chairs. The table has two leaves that aren't shown and I picked it up two years ago for $100 (also a ksl find). Recently, I found the six black painted windsor chairs for $60 total (ksl). I loved finding these chairs since I was going to find used chairs at DI and paint them black anyway. So, you now know my cheap way of decorating!

Monday, April 7, 2008

Tag....You're it!

Katie tagged everyone who read her post and so each of you are in turn tagged. Here's the deal, you pick up the nearest book and turn to page 123 and find the fifth sentence. Then you copy it... To preface this, the nearest book was Webster's New Thesaurus- you always wondered how I came up with such interesting stories and now the secrets out! LOL p.s. The second closest book would have been the dictionary :) "Twist implies the influence of irresistible force having a spiral effect throughout the object or course involved (the twisted wreckage of the spacecraft). Now go forth and find your own source of enlightenment!!