For Laura

Once upon a time, my best friend, Sheryl, had a Valentine's dance in her ward. I went as the photographer, but it was an 80's dance! Like I wasn't going to go dressed up and have some fun while I was at it! My sister commented today that she had never seen the pictures, so these are for you Laura...

This is Marisa, Sheryl's sister, and Rick, my brother. They are both clearly always good to have at a party. The two of them figured out a version of the "Thriller" line dance and taught it that night. It was AWESOME.

These are Sheryl's friends in her ward, but I can't for the life of me remember their names. Wait! The wife is Debbie...that's all I've got. But they were fun and into it. Isn't it always nice to have good sports around?

I went with more of a pop star look, while Jeff was my celebrity boyfriend, sporting a "Miami Vice" look. We just happened to end up with coorinating colors. What can I say? Certain colors were more popular then. In 20 years our kids will dress up "90's" and wear forest green, or they'll dress up "2000's" and wear brown.

Sheryl looks gorgeous even when she's dressed up in ridiculous 80's workout gear while pregnant. And doesn't Darren look smashing in his acid wash jeans and skinny tie?

This night was really fun, but I have to say, I think thrift store shopping for our costumes had to have been the best part. We would get so excited with a good find and then we laughed ourselves sick when both Rick and Jeff scored some nice shiny gold chains to wear. Bodacious. (I'd like to note that 3 of the four men are wearing loafers, and two of them are sockless. Awesome and Ewww.)

Saver's Shopping

My ward is having a Valentine's dance, and since it was my idea to have it, I couldn't be content with just any old dance. So we're having a best dresssed contest. You are supposed to wear prom attire, but from any decade. So a few of my friends hit Saver's looking for the perfect thing.

Aleece and I know it's just not a perfect girl's night without chocolate!

Kristie brought Kai, but he was so perfect we hardly noticed him. Except of course when she put this wig on him. HA! Looking dapper, Kai.

Don't you think Holly should have bought this dress? She looked FAB in it.

I ended up buying one, but I have to get it taken in and accessorize, of course, so I'll take pictures of the final product later.

For those that want to know...

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Snowy Day

Try as I might, I couldn't avoid taking the younger kids out to play in the snow any longer. After we got buried in snow on Monday, I decided to let them play while I shoveled. Lame. Actually it was good workout. But I couldn't get that workout until everyone was properly dressed which took 30 MINUTES. Ugh. But since I invested the time in bundling them, they were very happy and comfortable out in the cold. Don't they look sweet and happy? Especially Bearbear who tried to ride the much too small tricycle while spastically singing the crazy frog song. I have weird kids.

I didn't want Jeff to have to come home from work and shovel in the dark, and there was so much snow I wasn't sure if he could get the car into the driveway (that car is a fighter but lately it's barely limping along), so I decided it was upon me. In previous years I've gotten in trouble with him for doing that, I don't know why he thinks a woman that's 6 months pregnant shouldn't be shoveling snow, talk about over reacting...heh......heh. After a little less than an hour of heaving dense snow, every muscle straining under the weight of the shovel, I stood at the top of the driveway, exhausted, admiring my hard work. I was quite pleased. Our driveway can park 5 cars (I left a little of one side undone- it didn't really matter, we weren't going to walk or drive on that part), so it was no small task. I also shoveled a narrow path to the front porch, just enough for one person to get through.

As I stood there, being rather pleased with myself, thinking how proud my husband would be with me for working so hard and saving him from the task, and hoping that the workout burned off the chocolate cake I'd eaten at the in-law's the night before, a kind man (who looked to be about 60) with a snow blower saw that a poor weak woman was shoveling all by her own little self. So after he finished the walks at the church next door, he sweetly came over and helped me out, finishing the part I hadn't cared to do, and cleaning up the edges. I couldn't thank him over the noise of the snow blower, so I paused from snapping photos of the kids and blew him a kiss as he left and he just laughed in reply.

We went in the house when we lost the sunlight. It then took me 20 more minutes to peel all the layers off the children, and clean up the rapidly melting snow that we all tracked in.

Then my husband came home, scanned the driveway, looked at me and said, "Wow, who came and used a snow blower on the driveway?".

Come ON.

Tagged by Sheryl...

Seven random things about me:

1- When I'm driving in the winter I love to slide just a tiny bit and fishtail. I get some sort of pathetic housewife thrill from it.

2-I dance like no one would believe when I'm with my younger kids. Even my 8year old is too big to see it now. Seriously, it is some major blackmail material.

3-I hate when a question is answered with "Sure". I guess I think it sounds like the person is saying "I really don't want to, but I can't or don't want to tell you 'no' , so I'll give you a half-hearted non-committal answer instead".

4-I don't like touching raw meat. Ew. It feels like botulism right in my fingertips. I also only cut meat on ceramic plates because I have an irrational fear of the bacteria not washing out of my porous plastic cutting boards.

5-I like tomatoes, but not the tomato snot inside. Isn't that the texture? It is. Trust me.

6- I love love love Mexican food. I could eat it 5 times a week and not get sick of it. MMMMM. Spicy and warm and meaty with cool tomatoes and lettuce piled on top. And NEVER get between me and my guacamole.

7-I never read a book twice. I feel like there is WAY too much great literature out there that I've never read to waste time re-reading a book. Even if I love it. Even if I have nothing else on hand to read. It's dumb, if I like it I should just read it again. But I don't. I just catch up on What Not to Wear- even if I've already seen it.

(The exception to this is Ender's Game and Pride and Prejudice- which I've read both of at least eight times each over the past ten years).

TAGGED

I've gotten tagged twice in the past week, but I haven't made time to do it yet so here is the tag I got from Janet...

How long have you been together?

Jeff and I met this month ten years ago. TEN YEARS? Yup, I guess that's right. We met after work one day (he worked at Franklin Covey and I worked at Kiddie Kandids as a photographer), we had just happened to be parked next to each other. It had snowed and Jeff came over and helped me scrape the snow off my car. Awwwwww.

Who said "I love you" first?

Jeff, I had him totally whooped. :-)

Who is smarter?

I'm totally going with Jeff on this one. He's brilliant. I have him fooled though, when he's rattling off some smarty-pants thing I don't understand, I just nod and furrow my brow like I'm fascinated and say "right...right..." and he thinks I get it.

Who pays the bills?

Jeff usually does. I don't know why it ends up that way, it just does. I guess I'm in the middle of nursing a baby or changing a diaper or sitting staring at a wall in some exhausted trance, so he just goes over to the computer and does it. Thanks honey. I didn't want to anyway.

Who cooks dinner?

I do. I plan meals for 4-5 nights a week and every Friday night is cereal night. Jeff LOVES cereal night. However, if I'm too tired or don't feel like making dinner, he will. Jeff is actually a really good cook, and he loves trying a new recipe.

Who drives when you are together?

Jeff does. I do sometimes, but I think it just frees up my hands to change the songs on the radio for our little demanding music dictators in the backseat.

My husband is AWESOME, I'd like to add.

Funny Bear-Bear

This is my Bear-bear. He is SO funny. If he was a girl he'd be called a drama queen. He goes from one extreme to the next, happy and giddy and his face just puts sunshine in my heart- I tell Jeff all the time that Bear's my sparkle. Then suddenly he'll turn into one of the most miserable beings on earth, nothing goes right for him, and the tears don't stop. He has more swings than a blind golfer. Last night he was exhausted and having trouble with his toothpaste which made him to dissolve into tears. I consoled him and helped him and then when the situation wasn't quite so volatile I said, "Wow, you must be really tired or you wouldn't be crying so much" , he looked up at me in astonishment, baffled why I didn't understand, and said "No, I have problems!". Jeff and I laughed for an hour (after he was in bed).

1-At the zoo. Grandpa bought all the kids a popsicle.
2-Fishing at Brighton.
3-We were on a hike with Jeff's parents and some of his siblings. Bear wanted to look at a mountain across the valley, and when Uncle Stephen offered him Bear his binoculars, Bear said, "No, don't worry, I have some".
4-First day of Preschool.
5- Cuddled up with the baby.
6- He was about 3 yrs old here. This is one of my favorite photos of him. Click on it to see it better. This kid has really long lashes and a serious uni-brow.
7- About 3 years old. I should have cut his hair before I took this picture.
8- He wanted to be a police officer for Halloween. When I was taking photos I said "Give me some serious cop faces", these are just two of the series. They are frickin' hilarious.
9-Look how the shape of his mustached changed! HAHA! He is the king of facial expressions.