Touching tributes to a great man...

Our dear, sweet prophet passed away earlier this week.  My good friend passed on these touching tributes, and I wanted to share them.  I couldn't have said it, or shown it any better.  My life is better having known him - even from a distance - and he will truly be missed.

I am blessed with good friends

Charlie, Grant & Mallory

Yesterday, a group of friends from church all came over for a little luncheon/play date with the kids. Several of us had babies just months apart, so now they're all toddling around. There were about 9 adults, and too many kids to count! I am thankful for the friends that I have made through the years through my association in the church. No matter where I go, I can find amazing women of all ages who inspire, motivate, uplift and amuse me. I'm at the stage of life where I'm on the "older" end of the "young mothers", which is a weird place to be. I don't feel as old as I am, nor do I feel as old as I thought I'd feel at this age...I hope that youthful feeling stays with me for a long time! And I am so thankful to all of you, my friends, for the light you bring to my life!

Our kitchen grew!

When we bought our first house 8 years ago, we had to buy all the appliances to go with it. When we picked out our refrigerator, we bought the biggest one that would fit in the space, on the edge of the kitchen with one side against the wall. It was deeper than our cabinets, but we didn't really notice it since it was against the wall. When we moved to this house, the opening for the fridge was smack in the middle of the wall, with the oven/microwave on one side and cabinets on the other. The fridge stuck out a good foot from the cabinets.

A few weeks ago, we came across a "french door" style fridge, with a pull-out freezer on the bottom. It was counter depth, so we were losing some cubic feet, but we decided the continuity of the kitchen more than made up for the lost space! The fridge was delivered today, and I love it! Yes, it's definitely smaller inside. But it looks so much better in the kitchen.

We moved the monster down to the garage, to keep our upright freezer company. I can store extras of everything down there, and just put what I need upstairs. Am I a dork for being excited about an appliance? Probably, but who cares?!

New Jeans are good for the ego...

I was at Nordstrom this weekend, shopping for some much needed new jeans. I've been watching what I eat, and working out more, but I still grabbed my customary size 10's. They were too long, but felt pretty comfy. I asked the saleswoman about hemming them, and she suggested I try on a pair of 8's. Skeptically, I agreed. The size 8's felt about the same as the 10's, and were still a bit long. When she suggested I try a size 6, I looked at her like she had lost her mind. However, I relented. I put them on, and was actually able to zip them up without laying down, and I could still breathe! I ran to the counter and bought them before I woke up from this dream...I don't even remember the last time, if ever, I bought a size 6 jeans. I'm still not convinced...I think maybe there was an error in the manufacturing. But at least for now, I'll parade my bootie around and tell everyone who will listen (okay, maybe not everyone!) that the jeans are a SIZE 6!!!!!

Out with the old...In with the new!

Happy New Year!

Last night, as we ate our take out from Strizzi's and tried to have a somewhat civilized celebratory dinner, we each listed our best memories and accomplishments of the year. Here they are:

Olivia: Biggest accomplishment - Getting baptized in August. Best memory - Seeing the Broadway musical "Wicked" with grandma, mom, Aunt Jeanne, Aunt Kathy & cousins.

Jack: Biggest accomplishment - Pooping in the toilet...FINALLY (I added the emphasis there...it was an accomplishment in patience for me!). Best memory - 4th Birthday at Enchanted Forest.

Grant: Biggest accomplishment - Too many to list...firsts of lots of things!

Steve: Biggest accomplishment - Raising 3 amazing kids for 1 more year. Best memory - Camping at Pismo Beach with the family and trying out the newly acquired dune buggy.

Me: Biggest accomplishment - Completing my first 1/2 marathon and my 3rd triathlon. Best memory - Celebrating 10th anniversary with an amazing trip to Mexico with my honey!

So now, it's time for a few resolutions. I'm notorious for making and not keeping these, so this year, I'm not going to over-commit. But there are a few things I would like to work on:

1. Lose the 10 extra pounds I've been carrying around since Olivia was born.
2. Read the weekly Sunday School assignment before Sunday rolls around.
3. Yell less at my kids. Figure out how to get them to listen (and respond) to my normal voice.
4. Spend more time doing the things I enjoy. Not sure how this one will come to pass, but I want to include it anyway. I figure if I write it down, I'll at least think about making it happen.

There's about 200 other items I'd like to list as well, but as I said before, I want to be realistic and not try and change the world in a day. So I'll work on these 4, but still try and improve the rest of me as well!