Butterflies

One thing I like about living in this corner of Texas is all the new wildlife, a lot of which I get in my yard. We have geckos all over our house (and sometimes they sneak inside). They're usually small, like an inch or two, but I've seen them as big as a foot. I found a tarantula in our garage once (not so fun, but I didn't even scream). We have a few squirrels that are always chasing each other through our trees (they are very entertaining to watch). One of them drowned in our pool last summer - very tragic (and gross). I've seen more varieties of birds in my yard than I ever have anywhere else, including cardinals, woodpeckers, blue jays, and a bunch others that I don't know the names of. Last year we had a nest of baby birds right over our trampoline, and one baby bird fell onto the trampoline (which is enclosed with a net), and couldn't quite fly out of it. The kids came to tell me, so I got a broom (so I wouldn't touch the baby bird and make the mamma bird not want it anymore) and I went and got on the trampoline to try and help it out. The second I got on the trampoline that baby bird starting making such a racket, and the next thing I knew, I had to adult birds squawking and swooping down at me. The kids started screaming, and I was screaming, while still trying to help the baby bird, and protect my head. I finally got the baby bird out, but I don't know what became of it. For the next couple of weeks the kids were scared of birds and didn't go outside. I can never get pictures of any of these animals, mostly because, by the time I can get my camera, they're gone. But on Tuesday we had literally hundreds of butterflies in our yard, all over the trees, and flying around everywhere. We we went a little crazy with the pictures. The two older kids were at school, and Alex was asleep, so only Madelyn and I were able to enjoy it. Here are a few pictures we took. It was a really nice day out.

It's Joyful AND Triumphant!

Your eyes are not deceiving you - these are actual cherry TOMATOES from my garden. Not only did they survive, but they are yummy too! And how funny is it that I'm harvesting in the middle of November? There are still more to come, ripening on the vine. Oh, and by the way, my post title is a quote from a TV show. If any of you can guess the show and who says it, I might just send you a tomato:)

Tagged By Amy - MUUHAAAAAAAAW!

1. Where did you meet your husband? Fountain Green, Utah. Our BYU singles ward was having a social there (I think the Bishop's mother lived there or something). Joe was in line for food right behind me. I told him to try the crab salad I'd made, and he said he didn't like mayo, but I sat next to him to eat anyway because he was cute.

2. How long did you date before you got married? Well, after we met we dated for a couple of months, and then I told him "I just want to be friends". The funny thing is, we actually stayed friends, and continued to hang out occassionally. About a year later we went to a movie together, and I remember coming home that night thinking, "Now why did I break up with him?" That was in August. By Halloween we were engaged, and we married on January 8. So we knew each other a year and a half before we got married, but we only actually dated for about half a year.

3. How long have you been married? Since we were married in January of 2000 it's always easy to remember - coming on 9 years now.

4. What does he do that surprises you? Not much - I can read him like an open book. I guess it surprises me how patient he can be with me, and how much he puts up with.

5. What is your favorite feature of his? Where to start.....I love his hands and his eyes the most I guess.

6. What is his best quality? He always makes me laugh:) - He's the biggest geek I know (besides myself).

7. Does he have a nickname for you? No. Come to think of it, I'm not really sure how he normally addresses me.

8. What is his favorite food? Pizza, hands down - I think:) - yep, Pizza

9. What is his favorite sport? Biking, and he's a little obsessed lately, as I've mentioned in previous posts.

10. When and where did you first kiss? It was shortly after we started dating the second time around. We were at his brother's apartment.

11. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple? We love going out to dinner and a movie. And we love being outdoors biking, golfing, camping, whatever.

12. Do you have any children? 4 beautiful crazy ones - Cora, JT, Madelyn, and Alex

13. Does he have any hidden talents? He's an inventor at heart. He can fix anything, and most of the time he just makes it up as he goes a long, coming up with things that I would NEVER think of.

14. How old is he? 32 in January. I turn 34 in December. From December to January every year he teases me about being 3 years older than him instead of 2. He really thinks it's funny every year.

15. Who said 'I love you' first? I'm assuming that he did, because I just don't think I would have, but I really don't remember it.

16. What is his favorite music? He's got a very eclectic taste in music, but I'd say alternative.

17. What do you admire most about him? He's just a really, really good person. He's not perfect, but he is such a good example to me, and he inspires me to try harder.

18. What is his favorite color? Blue (I'm just guessing here - I actually don't think that he has a "favorite" color, but I like Blue, so close enough)

19. Will he read this? Not unless I read it to him. He leaves the blogging to me, but he likes that I do it.

20. Who do you tag? Whoever is feeling cheesey enough to do this one.

I LOVE YOU JOE!

JT is 6 years old!

We just had the best birthday ever! We had originally planned to have a birthday party at McDonald's with all of JT's friends......but then we had another idea. Joe and I heard about a local hotel in town that was doing a pajama party to help raise money for The Children's Miracle Network. They invited the children in the community and there families to come stay at their hotel for a discounted rate and 20 percent of that rate would go the children's miracle network. The last thing that any of my kids need is a bunch more toys that they won't play with, so we thought this might be a good alternative to a birthday party, since we couldn't afford to do both. We talked to JT about it, explaining that he wouldn't get any presents, except from Mom and Dad, but that we would be helping other children, and we would still have a fun time doing it. He liked the idea (and so did Cora), so we went ahead and made a reservation, hoping for the best - we were not disappointed. The Pajama Party started at 3:00 in the afternoon. We arrived at the hotel and they gave each of the kids T-shirts. In our room, which was one of the nicest that we've ever stayed in, was a goody basket with popcorn, candy, bracelets, and glow-in-the-dark necklaces, and temporary tattoos. They had a variety of activities for the kids downstairs, including a bounce house, cookie decorating, nail painting for the girls, face painting, and remote control cars, movies and popcorn, and a pizza dinner. They also had a drawing for different prizes (we won a Mexican dinner), and they gave all the kids certificates for free Happy Meals. We thought we'd brave the cold (about 80 degrees outside) and try the swimming pool, but we ended up in the hot tub instead. In the morning there was the best hot breakfast buffet I've ever had at a hotel.

It was all like a wonderful mini-vacation, and I didn't have to plan, carry out, or clean up any of it:) Cora said she wanted to do that for her birthday too, and I wish she could. Back at home, we made cupcakes and sang Happy Birthday to JT.

We gave him a couple of video games, including Lego's Indiana Jones, which you can see he could hardly stop playing even to blow out his candles. We are ALL now addicted to it, but it's fun because we're all sitting around Together playing it as a Family, so it could be worse. We love our JT and we are so blessed to have him in our family. He is the funniest kid and is always making all of us laugh. He's so smart, and picks up things lightening quick. He's a cuddle bug and a wrestler. He's learning how to be a hard worker, and he loves to get the most out of life and enjoy every minute. We Love You JT! Happy Birthday!

Trunk-or-Treat

Tonight was our ward's Trunk-or-Treat. I love dressing up every year, and I make Joe dress up with me too. He's such a good sport. This year I really wanted us to be 80's punk rockers, and I really wanted him to have a mohawk, so I made him grow his hair out as long as he could possibly get away with in the military. It looked great!

I think we match pretty good.

Cora was a beautiful Southern Bell (her first choice was Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz - hence the sparkly red shoes - but she changed her mind - after we bought the shoes, of course).

JT was a formidable Darth Vader (even without the mask, which you can't wear at the church).

Madelyn was a spunky Fairy (part of the night she wore a witches hat too).

Alex was a non-compliant Pumpkin (he kept that hat on for about 2 seconds).

And here's our whole family.

And just for fun, here are a couple of past halloweens.

2007 - Joe wasn't dress last year because I stole his costume at the last minute. I was supposed to be a mummy, and my costume just wouldn't stay on right. I one second place for the costume contest - it should have been Joe's

2006 - Frankenstein and his Bride. I thought we looked great.

2006 -Joe was missing from this one because he had language training in Hawaii. The kids were so dang cute that year......well, they always are.

Now I've got to start planning for next year. Yes, I'm serious. Happy Halloween!

Things are Clearer now

Well, our JT got glasses today. He was very excited about it, and he picked them out himself. You can't really tell in the picture, but they're blue. As his parents, we want him to always feel good about himself, so we can't help but worry that kids will make fun of him, but he doesn't seem worried about it. I'm paranoid about something happening to the glasses - they're not cheap ya know. But he does look so cute in them, doesn't he? And what do you know, he can see all the letters clearly now.

Random Sampler

I love October, I love the Fall, and I love Halloween. This week we carved pumpkins for our Family Home Evening activity.

The kids drew the kinds of jack-o-lantern faces they wanted on paper, and then I carved them out. But first, everyone had to help scoop out the pumpkin guts. Cora was being very careful and dainty with a spoon, but I finally got her to try it with her hand. Gross!

We've never roasted up the pumpkin seeds before, but this year I wanted to try it. Too bad, our oven died! Just what we need. Remember the nice pictures of my kitchen? Well, it's a construction zone again. Explanation. We have a wall oven and a separate cook top stove. I've always hated that they're separate, and the wall oven is tiny. The oven was going to cost $400 dollars to fix (just what you want to hear right before a string of birthdays and holidays). We knew that eventually we would have to replace the cooktop stove too, so we decided to just get a regular stove/oven and save ourself a lot of money. However, money saved = a lot of work and time. In order to install a new stove/oven, we have to cut out some of our cabinets and re-do them, and extend some of the flooring, and some other stuff. Here's what my kitchen looks like right now.

Anyway, Joe got started last night, and took off work today (good thing his class just graduated). It is a chore trying to keep Alex away from the excitement. He is just drawn to the tools, and the noise, and the tools, and the wood, and the tools. He loves to "fix" things. He "fixes" things a lot. He's very busy. The only time he's not as busy is when he's in bed or strapped in his high chair.