New Years Eve-What a Night!

This was probably the funnest night EVER! And believe me, I've had some fun nights in my life. We had dinner at Chili's with friends and a few hours a RURU LALA...There is no better way to ring in the New Year. All I can say is that I wish everyone I love could come to this place with me. I love Felisha & Ashley(my friends with me) because they, like me, can perform like a blitzed hair band...but we're really stone cold sober. I love you, girls! I can't wait for next time!!
alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286888965731604210" />


What can I say? It rocked!! If you aren't convinced...check out this video!

Some Christmas Cheer

I now know if I ever have any true devastation in my life, alerting my friends and family via this blog will not do a thing for me....Cameron has regained his place in my heart as the king of whatever he wants to be the king of. Something about how cute is or something. I've been so busy with stuff that I hadn't posted my LLL happenings, which I've been dying to do. (I like everyone to know that you need to be in a great LLL club to really be a cool person.) We had our holiday breakfast...tons of waffles w/ creme freche, jam & berries;tons of baked yummies, chicken apple sausages, & hot chocolate. We had a very fun gift exchange. I came home with the most charming homemade sign from the ever-so lovely Molly.

It was just a blissful morning. Then, yesterday, we went to The Chateau at Carmichael Park to carol for the residents there. We sang for about a half hour. Our children handed out homemade gifts to each resident. We were happily surprised to see Spencer's kindergarten teacher there visiting her mother. We had no idea she was there. I'm so sad to say we didn't take photos...I played the piano and a few of the kids performed vocal & piano solos. Oh, it was so enjoyable. This is the best tradition in the world....(I say that alot! Traditions are just all great!) This one really is amazing. It's a little stressful after being at church for 3 hours and being at the piano for so much of my day(I played a ton at church that day.) but when we leave our hearts are so full of joy for bringing Christmas cheer to these people. I thought about my Grandma. She was in a godforsaken home for a very short time and I will be very upset about that for along time. But, doing this year after year somehow relieves me of some of that. Thanks my LLL ladies for all the Christmas cheer that your brought back to me!!! Merry Christmas!

Welcome, December!

We're home from RB. I really had a great time. The day after Thanksgiving, I went shopping w/ my mom, my sister, & my sister Sarah & my sister, Stevie(yes, she's named after Stevie Nicks & it's a good story for later.)We are not the early riser type so we didn't get out until 10 or so. It's Red Bluff, so we started at the major shopping spot in town, Wal-Mart. I got some $4 pajamas for the kids. Whoopee!! We headed up to the Anderson outlets. Gymboree got me. Those kid stores really know how to trap me without much effort. Then we went to Maurice's. I swear, my narcissism was at a peak in the dressing room. I'm seriously angered that I didn't think to take pictures because I had such a fabulous time there. I do feel bad for my sisters and mom that sat so solemnly while I paraded myself around the dressing room like I thought I was a rock star. My mom, she's the greatest, got me an early present and those of you that saw me at church know how smashing it was. (Again, I didn't take a picture...but I will of that dress because it's fabulous.) Here's a picture of us in the car...Sarah didn't make it in.
Saturday night, my mom & dad took Bruce & I to dinner. We had ribs,(again so fitting for Red Bluff)really great ribs I might add. No kids. Then we went to the Christmas parade downtown. Now this is no Macy's Day parade...this is in true RB fashion, Mexican's in low riders and a whole lot of tractors and cowboys in big trucks. I really love hanging out with my mom & pops.

But now we are home, so,it's time to get busy...laundry, laundry and more laundry. A little bit of dusting and....Yeah! It's Christmas time. I will be spending the rest of today decorating. My Christmas carols are already playing. I went to Starbucks this morning to get my grande hot chocolate w/ whip. Today is the day to go (RED) at Starbucks. I've actually been going there alot lately. I got a $40 giftcard from the soccer coaches for being the team mom. Another disorder I may have...A $40 giftcard in hand and I suddenly feel like a pimp at Starbucks! Spencer got up early to cut out snowflakes for each of his classmates. He's very thoughtful that way. My first thing to go up in my home was my advent calendar, of sorts. It's actually socks strung using a long piece of ribbon and clothespins. Each sock if filled with a treat and a "to-do today item". For instance, today the treat was 3 hershey's kisses and a paper that says decorate the house. So, not only do my children get the normal tasty surprise to help countdown the day until Christmas, I get to maintain my sanity by having all the Christmas stuff scheduled. Only 1 thing a day, that's easy! One day will be making Gingerbread houses. Another will be making reindeer food. The next might be Christmas movie night. It's all very exciting....This whole wonderful thing was a live, laugh, love project. My friend, Ashley, started this tradition in our club and I love her for it!
I'm proofing this post before publishing and I can't help but get a kick out of myself. I'm a bonafied nut job...(No offense to anyone mentally or emotionally challenged in any way...I refer only to myself as a nut job.)

Veggies, Please with some Bling on the Side

I know I'm starting off subject...but, I thought if I waited a full week to post it might allow for people to lerk and they would eventually comment. I was wrong. I seem to have several peepers who would rather remain silent. Admittedly, it's so silly but I tend to be hurt over a lack of commenting on my blog. I realize that's ridiculous. I'm over it. I've accepted that I have people that won't comment too much. I will try to be grateful people care to stop by at all.



On to the real post, I awoke yesterday morning to find my new box from Farm Fresh. This week we received sweet potatoes, collard greens, kale, leeks,broccoli,radishes, fennel, cranberries, pears & apples. This is so exciting for me. What do I do first?

I chopped leeks, collard greens & kale. Sauteed them for a bit. Boiled & chopped up a butternut squash from last time. Through in some lentils, diced tomatoes, chicken stock with course salt & pepper & oh, what a yummy soup did I have.

The kids weren't as convinced. Bruce, however, (he's my toughest critic) liked it. In fact, I think he really liked it. He happened to pass through the kitchen when I was cooking and saw the ingredients which was not good. I'm sure had he not seen them raw he never would have known and would have enjoyed it even more.

About my jewelry show, Holy Toleto, thanks to all my wonderful peeps that came. It was SO fun. I can't believe how great I did. My sister-in-law did a fabulous job setting the whole thing up. I'll be posting pics of my new loves shortly. I got so much stuff that I'll be cheery and positive for at least a full week!

P.S. I do give full credit to my couple of buddies that comment regularly. I can count on you to brighten my day!

P.S.S. (or is it P.P.S? I'm deliriously tired.) If any of you locals are interested in Farm Fresh to you. I have 3 $5 off a box coupons to hand out. You can order only 1 box to try it and see what you think. First come, first serve!

Thank you!

I want to thank my 5 current followers. I started my blog simply as a way to release all of the random things that go through my mind and to find some balance. I've referred to it as my free therapy. I actually thought that I should keep it secret so that I could post any feelings or thoughts completely uncensored. We all know I'm no good at keeping such things secret. Going into it, I didn't realize how much I would look forward to others noising in on my life. When I receive a comment, it makes me feel so great. I love my 5 followers. You each have boosted my confidence and made me feel very special! Thank you for outing yourselves as my public snoops!

It's a Wonderful Life...

I have spent alot of time feeling alone or isolated emotionally. This afternoon I see how foolish I am. Friday after school, Bruce went hunting with a friend. I was actually happy to see him go because I started reading "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" by David Wroblewski. I like alot of alone time when I have stuff like that going on. I also was watching my friend's 2 kids while she & her hubby went out on a much needed date. I got no reading done that night since Cameron was at an all-time mischief high. By the time my friend picked up her kids my back was killing me from holding that sweet little newborn.(A reminder that I cannot handle having another child anytime soon)Bruce came home for a brief moment to show me the deer in the back of my car that his friend got. It was very exciting for us. He went over to his friend's house, where they cleaned & cut it up...

I slept great that night...Woke up in the morning to go to a very exciting soccer game for Spencer. The whole family went which made me so happy. Spencer's team lost as they seem to always do but they played better then they have before and it was quite fun to cheer them on. After the game, I took Taylor for a date w/ Mom. We went to my dear friend, Molly's home, for a yarn sale. OH MY!! Ladies, please learn to knit. It's so great. I feel so empowered while knitting. I'm creating this wonderful piece to warm and comfort someone I love and all the while armed with dangerous weaponry(THE NEEDLES AND YARN) If Bruce gives me any lip while I'm knitting, he could be a goner if wanted him to be. Anyhow, I got alot of fabulous threads for practically nothing. We went over to watch my sister, Stevie, play in a volleyball tourney and then we had lunch at El Palmar. One of my favorite things about my daughter is that she shares my love of beans and rice. Gotta love her. We met up with Bruce at Home Depot to get wood for the treehouse that Bruce and Spencer are building together. (Isn't that sweet!) I took a very short nap and did a little cleaning. Then Bruce took Spencer and went our for another hunt. I got a babysitter and went to dinner with my friend, Megan. Her hubby was hunting with Bruce. We had great food at California Pizza Kitchen. I was excited since Bruce never wants to eat there. I came home, put Tay & Cameron to bed and enjoyed my book until Bruce came home. It was late...but we got to talking and then we started reading a book "Rock Solid Relationships" by Wendy Watson together. I've read it before and liked it and mentioned that I thought it would be a good one to read together. He agreed so at midnight, we read.

Today I made pancakes with strawberries for breakfast, chicken salad sandwiches for lunch, and have a venison roast in the crockpot for dinner that will be served with winter squash and apple mash, and mixed greens. All from my Friday delivery. I've been watching the General Conference on TV that our chuch has twice a year. It was so great this time. I felt so much hope and comfort. As I watched I knit. Then Henry B. Eyring began talking about being knit together in unity. I was so inspired I finished one scarf and started another that is halfway done. I share all these boring details of my weekend only to say that I have so many wonderful things and wonderful people in my life. The things that are missing seem huge at times, but I have a great life without them so doesn't that speak volumes about how little I really need those things? I love my husband and my children. I have great parents. More brothers and sisters than I can keep track of. I love my filthy little home. I have great friends. It really is wonderful being me.

Honestly...October has Arrived

It's the 1st of October, finally! I've many fun things to share. Last October, we took the kid to Bishop's Pumpkin Farm in Wheatland. This has become a beloved family tradition. It's so festive and quaint. You go and enjoy hot cider and pumpkin pie. The kids play on the many attractions. We take the train ride through the acres and acres of land. And, we pick pumpkins. Going back to last year, the kids each picked a small pumpkin to keep and then Bruce & I picked out a huge pumpkin for the whole family to enjoy. We went home, carved them up and had a great time. Little did we know, that sweet little Spencer, had some plans of his own to grow pumpkins the next year. Fast forward to a few months back...Bruce was out in the front yard and noticed a strange squash like sprout. We discovered that a pumpkin patch was growing. When we brought the kids out to see our discovery, Spencer said,"Um, yeah guys. Last year when you told me to throw away the pumpkin seeds I didn't. I planted them in the yard so we could grow pumpkins." He had that "you all are dummies" tone in his voice. So here we are...we have a wonderful pumpkin patch to enjoy. Now that October is here, we can pick them!Yeah!


My next October favorite has to do with my Live, Laugh, Love Club. Each month we have a value that correlates to the holiday in that month. October is Halloween. We wear costumes or disguises to have fun. However, in real life, we tend to wear similiar disguises without always realizing it. We may be dishonest or hide who we really are or how we really feel because it's uncomfortable or because of other fears. Hence, we teach the value of honesty in October. It is, of course, about not lying or stealing or cheating. It's also about being honest with ourselves and in our relationships. We do a take-home tradition each month. It's a little activity that becomes a family tradition but also aids in teaching the monthly value. We use these adorable pumpkins. You have 2 kinds. The happy face and the sad or "disgruntled" face. You have a discussion with the family about allowing each other to share our honest feelings, especially in situations that are difficult. It could be when you did something wrong and need to own up to it. It could be if your husband hurts your feelings and you're afraid of his reaction if you tell him. It could be that you have a hard time sharing intimate feeling vocally and you feel the need to tell a loved one how much they mean to you and need a little help. Whatever it is good or bad, you pick the pumpkin face appropriate for the situation. Give it to the person you need to be honest with. Receiving the pumpkin is the clear signal to sit down, open your heart and mind, and KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT! Give this person the respect and opportunity to share their honest feeling understanding that this is hard for them. You can put the pumpkins in a cute fall bowl or jar. It doesn't matter. We do this activity every October, all month long. Honestly communicating my feelings has been a struggle for me most of my life. It's one of the most important things for me to teach my children and so it is my favorite of all the months. Here are the cute pumpkins, this year made by my fellow Live, Laugh, Lover and friend, Molly.

Last, the project that we did as a group last night was so cute. We got the idea from our dear friend, Martha Stewart. They are clipboards, a cute system for decluttering and displaying those incidental papers...Misc. artwork, photos, lists, etc. I will be hanging mine in my kids bedroom. Presently, all 3 share a bedroom. So this will work out nicely. They are so simple to do. If I ever want to move them to a new home, I can easily cut and glue new paper to back them with so they will match any decor. Molly gets credit for these too. She was our lovely hostess last night. (The risotto was amazing, too!Thanks Molly!)

I wish all of you an October full of treasured family gatherings and traditions, great food galore, and a new resolve to always be HONEST! Much love to my friends and fam!

T-

Happy Easter Friends!!