Happy Birthday Sydnee!

Sydnee turned 2 on Sunday, so we had a party for her at the Children's Museum on Saturday. Unforunately, it was on the same day & time as a Primary activity, so lots of our friends couldn't come (hey, we're not old enough for Primary- so I didn't know!) Anyhow, we still had a great time with the family & friends that could come. The theme was MONKEYS!

20,000 people

My great host took a few of us see the White Sox game tonight. We had a good seats and a great time. The seats were at the front of the section facing right field:

At the end of the 8th inning they were showing fans up on the jumbo screen. Suddenly I realized the kid on the screen was standing a couple of rows in front of us... and there I was in the background!

Early Bird

The window of my room faces east, so when the sun poked through the curtains and woke me I panicked from over-sleeping. Turns out the sun rises at 5:17 am up here.

First Chicago night

I made it to Chicago at 11:00 am this morning. On the way out of Waco, I realized the last time I came to O'Hare was July of 1998 when I returned from my mission in Argentina. I didn't get to see any of the city of foot at that time, so I'm excited about this trip.

All last week, I heard very opposing reviews of the hotel I'm staying in this week, The Carleton of Oak Park. Either people hate it or love it. So far I really like its old style and the live jazz every night. It's also close to downtown Oak Park, so I walked around a bit to explore the area. I actually did a pretty poor job of exploring because I looked for a certain pizzaria I found online just a few blocks from the hotel. But when I got the address and saw it was out of business, I ended up eating here instead. To quote my beautiful wife: "you went all the way to Chicago to eat there?!"

25 Blankets

The girls can always sense when I will travel for work because they tend to become very clingy the day before I go. Today was no exception; they refused to take naps today and instead wanted me to play with them. So I did, until I gave in and decided to take a quick nap on the floor while they played. They didn't seem to mind as long as I was there. When I woke up a little later, I found they had put a blanket on me. I rolled over to thank them for being so sweet and saw they had pulled out every blanket they had accumulated over the years and had them draped over everything they could imagine (that included me). I had no idea they had that many blankets!

"Ants Got me"

While I was at my meeting yesterday Sydnee came in screaming & I knew something was wrong by her scream. Ants all over her legs. I went to work quickly, but their ant bites...and they are bothering her a bit today (and last night!). Poor Sydnee!

She sure is a trooper. This is the worst of the 2 legs. She was showing me where they got her toes too. P.S. She's in her swimsuit. She went potty all by herself & then put on her swimsuit. Ready for a party. My funny funny girl.

Tired?

Ever go to bed REALLY tired & know you have a full day ahead tomorrow with grocery shopping, visiting teaching, and all the other stuff life throws at you AND you have to get up extra early to bake your husband cinnamon rolls to impress his seminary class he would be dropping in on for the first time and then you don't get a good night's rest because one of your children wets their bed and the other one was struggling with the itch from the ant bites all over her legs? No? I have!

A fabulous weekend...

Well we just had the best weekend, here's a little recap of all we did.

Friday- traveled to Dallas, arriving there at 10pm- everyone ready for bedtime.

Saturday- left the house around 8am, ate breakfast at La Madeleine's (yum) and then did sealings at the temple. It was very special. There was one family that we sealed (with some other people) that had 5 sisters in it, it was so amazingly sweet and special. I was glad to be a part of it. THEN I got new garments! Well, actually only 2 pair- but I feel brand new, ya know? Most of mine are 7 years old & show it! *The dress & sweater I am wearing was my anniversary gift, Todd picked it out for me , & I LOVE it...the black & gray shirt he is wearing later on was also a gift but from me. :)*

Then we traveled to Fair Park for the Arts Festival. It was fun, but they didn't have as much to do as I had remembered, but we enjoyed looked at the art & were grateful it was overcast. We ate at the Old Mill, which is on the grounds. It wasn't expensive & it was INSIDE. It certainly had an old southern feel to it. The waiter told Todd to take care of the beautiful lady, so I'm sure he got a nice tip.

After that we went to see Ring of Fire- a musical about Johnny Cash. It was fun, good music, good seats, and no children. It's a very different kind of musical in that there were 3 men playing Johnny Cash & 3 women playing June- all on the stage at once...but once we figured that out, it was just plain fun.

Then we went back to the Arts Festival for a bit, and then out to eat at a new restaurant in Mesquite, Si Mesa. It was yummy- we shared fajitas. The queso was especially good. And after that we went to a movie, Prince Caspian! It was SO FUN! We had read the Chronicles of Narnia to the girls when they were littler and so I knew the story. It's a must see, I liked it better than the last one.

We got back almost at 10pm and the girls were still awake- just having too much fun with the grandparents. It was good to spend the day away, it always makes you appreciate your blessings more.

Sunday- we went to church, which is always a little weird not having any responsibilities- but I managed. :) I did take several mental notes in Relief Society. :) Overall is was a laid-back day. And the Blackhurst's were adamant about letting Todd and I relax & enjoy our weekend. So we both did a lot of reading, which is great. Oh Wally!

Monday we spent the morning preparing to go to Colleyville. Once we got there it was really lovely. I have felt such a closeness to those uncles since reading this WWII series of books. It was just really nice to honor them, even in a very simple way. We loved seeing the McHorses, it's always fun to have the cousins together & to get to talk to Leah & Patrick. We went back to Rowlett then left for home at 7pm. We got in, put the girls to bed, and I read some more. I'm on book 5 today, the final book in the series. I know I'll be sad to see these beloved characters go, but I hope I'll remember what they've taught me.

Today is going to be catch-up in many ways. The girls are still tired, and I have a lot to do. I hope we don't have to go anywhere! I just want to relax, catch-up, and read. :)

So there it is, our wonderful weekend, in 1,000 words or less...or more, actually. :)

7 Years Ago Tomorrow!

LOVE YOU TODDLES!!!

Tuesday....

Well who knows what's going to happen this week with my ailing grandmother...I've canceled my presidency meeting, but I wonder if this is the beginning of a much longer wait. To catch you up, she had a massive stroke & her brain was very damaged this time around. She hasn't had a normal life in a while, being plagued with dementia. Since my brother & I are the youngest grandchildren, her memory of us faded soon- and most everyone else after that. She's eating, which was unexpected, but she's not expected to make it too much longer. I'm not sure how I feel about it either way, actually. I would hate to think of MawMaw living a meaningless life, but I've also considered that maybe she is teaching something to those around her- at least that's what I am telling myself. But enough of that... I volunteered to sing at her funeral whenever it is, & my solo is ready whenever. The Rugged Cross is a very pretty country hymn & I hope to sing it well.

We are having a laid-back week. The girls are presently watching a little tv, but they have been playing with play dough- which is fun. They are growing up so fast. I love to hear them talk to each other. Ava loves to be Sydnee's helper & Sydnee loves the attention from Ava. Sydnee needed help with one of the play dough tools and Ava was helping her. Ava said, "I'll fix it, Sydnee & then Mommy will say (Ava talks in a high whispered voice) 'Good job Ava'".
When she was done she looked at me and said instead, "I'm so strong!" in a gutsy voice. Very funny.

Anyways, that's all on the Waco home front. I'm also reading a book series my sister, Heather gave to me to read a while back, Children of the Promise. I may have to have my head in a book all week! It's at an intense part & I want to know what happens to this family! I'm already over 100 pages into the 2nd book...I need a life, oh wait- I have one! Where are my priorities?!

Have a lovely week!

Fun web-site

My friend Brandy swears by this web-site: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/
I checked it out today & it's a lot of fun. Brandy is always baking up something of hers for our presidency meetings & they are always yummy- and since I know we have some people out there that love to cook, check this site out!

She also is very VERY funny...like me!

I love my camera!

but I really love these little girls!

Busy... who isn't?

Sorry folks- took a few days off from the blog to read a good book. I find reading calms me down & makes me happy. Don't get me wrong, I love to stamp too *obviously*...just nice to have a change every once & a while. It makes me well rounded (at least I think so!) Anyhow, if you are looking for a fun read, here's a few books I've read. I do have a few friends out there that like to read, so here are some recommendations, take them or leave them. And if you have any for me- send them my way- just keep in mind, I want them clean...minimum cussing, maximum happy feelings. :) I love books that make me laugh out loud & cry all in the same chapter. My sisters, Mom, & I have our own little private blog called the Sisterhood of the Traveling Book- so we're always looking for fun books.

Recent Reads:

1. A Good Yarn, part II of Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber



2. Standing in the Rainbow by Fanny Flag



3. Twilight series (New Moon, Eclipse) by Stephanie Meyer

And just a random tidbit about me- my favorite leisure-reading book of all time? Any guesses? It's To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Love it.

The turtle song

Yes, this is my life...and I love it!