SPT--Something Old

Courtney & Jenny
Canyon Lake, AZ

Feeling out of the loop and slacking on my SPT I couldn't go another week of missing. I have had several friends come and go in my life. One friend that sticks out in my mind is my oldest, dearest best friend as a child Courtney. I have written about her before. We have known each other since the age of 8. That makes us friends for nearly 25 years. How crazy is that? Growing up we met on year round swim team. We went to different elementary and junior high schools and reunited in high school.

Mtn. View Prom
1992

We kept in touch our freshman and junior year and did things on occasion. But, it wasn't until our senior year we started really hanging out again. In fact, I am the one who set her and her now husband up. (woo-hoo for me). We both started out in the same major (pre-nursing).

Jenny and Fred

A year into college I took the discussions, as she convinced me to become a member of the church and was baptized by her dad. For that alone I am forever grateful. My life has changed considerably since that day in my life.

Who doesn't love Contempo Portraits??

Courtney waited for Steve on his mission and I couldn't even get her to go out on a date or a group date for that matter. She was perfectly content hanging out at home or with girlfriends. (To this day I still don't know how she managed to stay so loyal) It just shows the type of person that she is. Her and Steve were married soon after his return from Boston, MA in April 1995. We kept in touch over the years on and off with Christmas cards.

Jessica, Jenny & Courtney

Mountain View Graduation

I always knew in my heart Courtney would be there no matter what. Even after several years of not actually seeing or speaking to her, we always can pick up where we left off. I remember when we were younger we made a promise that we would be talking about our children, husbands, and grandchildren and grow old as friends. I still believe that and am thankful for her friendship. After several years between our husbands attending college, medical school and residency I am FINALLY moving back home to Arizona.

March 2008

Better yet, after about a year of persuasion she started a blog, and now even participates in SPT. It looks like the tables have now turned and she is trying to persuade me into something BIG for 2009. I still am not sure about it, but after all my years of convincing her to do things I may have to break down. Any guesses to what it is? (and those of you who know can't cheat). I am forever grateful for crossing this girls path back in 1984, love you Court!

Motherhood: A Matter of Perspective

Resorting dinner to a restaurant in order to keep the kitchen clean.
BWW is one of our favorite's.

It's that time of year when your children recognize and tell you how you do as a mother. It makes being a mom worth it just to hear three little words from your child. I. love. you. This week I thought my plate was a tad emptier, but apparently I was wrong. Monday appeared to be open besides the two showings we had. Tuesday was a repeat of Monday and then Wednesday came along. I swapped with my friend so that I could attend a temple session. I also agreed after picking up Weston that I could help Angie (since she was getting her hair done). I had a great session was sitting and chatting with my friend and my phone rang.

Luke's Mother's Day Card
I love they used finger prints for the flowers.

It was Luke's school. I thought it was odd since I have yet to receive a phone call from them. I was immediately worried he had gotten sick. The program director said, are you coming? I was clueless. To what? The mother's tea? It's going on right now. My heart sunk. I quickly grabbed Weston and was at the door. Umm.. I suck. Strike one for mom. Who misses or forgets about a Mother's Day program at their son's preschool? Me. Just when I thought I was being good by going to the temple, I immediately took two steps back. Luckily, one of my other friend's happened to be there and Luke was sitting with her. It didn't seem to bother him, except for the fact he said, "mom you took forevber." After apologizing over and over, he replied that's okay, I ate a cookie.

Jared getting ready to recite his poem.

I am in complete awe of how resilient these little people are. Adults can hold grudges for years and 4 year old's for 4 minutes. We know who we should be taking the lessons from! Today I redeemed myself and REMEMBERED Jared's program at school. It was so sweet. They sang about 5 songs and each student got up and read a letter they personally wrote about their mom. In Jared's eyes I can cook and buy him cool things.

I love Mother's Day. It's not only a time you feel extra love from your children, but the meaning you are in their lives. I am by no means a perfect mother. In fact right now, I feel like a horrible one. I am determined to work harder and keep trying. Last night before bed, I reread Elder Ballards talk. I was left feeling touched and realized we can all change for the better. He asks us three questions. One in particular I liked was: What can you do as a young mother, to reduce the pressure and enjoy your family more? First recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in the moments.

This is something I struggle with on a daily basis. The whining, the fighting, etc can totally take a toll on me. Some days I am left raising my arms in the air feeling helpless. The thing that struck me even more was that we only live with our children 1/4 of our life. If you do that math that really is no time at all! It definitely makes you rethink how you do things and how very little time we get to spend with them. 18 years may seem long, but I am coming up to living with my husband longer than my parents. Weird.

Taylor modeling her medals

My kids continue to make me proud with their outstanding efforts in school, citizenship, and extra curricular activities. I sometimes have to ask the teacher, are these MY children you are talking about? Taylor entered into a solo competition for orchestra and walked away with two first place medals! Motherhood has it's highs and lows, but I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Last Minute

What is up with my pizza face? Ick!
(apparently I am not only feeling stress, but wearing it--ha!)

Are we already in May? My word time is flying faster than ever! Friday Angie had been invited to go see a movie with some of the ladies in her neighborhood. She called me to tag along (since she really didn't know them very well). Since we had about an hour to kill, I was expressing how nasty my feet were and how a pedicure sounded heavenly. There was a nail place right behind the theater and they worked us in at the last minute. Hurray! I was trying to explain to the lady (who didn't speak English very well) that I wanted a thin black line (like eyeliner) under my french manicure. It turned out okay, but I probably should have just left it plain.

With 10 minutes to spare we quickly headed over to grab a bite to eat shoved it into our bags and sat just before the previews started. I thought the movie was great and I haven't laughed that hard in a really long time. It was just the medicine I needed after a stressful month. If you haven't seen it, grab your girlfriends and go! (I am a total sucker for Patrick Dempsey).

Our weekend was consumed with baseball/softball. Jared's team lost again Saturday. They are definitely in a loosing streak. In fact, on our way to the game last night Jared expressed how discouraged he was and that they would probably loose again. They were playing against one of the top teams in the league (The Astros). The coach on that team is beyond buggy. He is a little too hard core for my taste. Jared's team pulled it together and the boys hit like I have never seen them do in the past. The game was close throughout, (seriously a nail biter) but they managed to pull through and win 9-8. It was the greatest victory! The best part was after the game (coach Tim normally talks to the boys) and he said, "See doesn't it feel good to work together and win?!" It was so funny. Hopefully, this win boosted their confidence and they will play this well Saturday. I wish I would have captured their faces after the game, but this is one of the only shots I have. Dang!

I am feeling down to the wire on so many things. The kids only have a month of school left, we move in 7 weeks, my friend Sara moves in 2 weeks, Mother's Day and Angie's birthday are around the corner. Time needs to slow down. Ahhhh!

The Whopper

Playing catch up on our family and thoughts that come in and out of my head are often hard. Much of the time you forget the little things that happen on a daily basis, so instead of posting several old posts I have decided to present the "whopper" post if you will. Last week we had our pinewood derby. Jared's car obviously wasn't the fastest, but I think he still had a lot of fun. And as most of you know the dad's were WAY more in to it than the boys. Doug was already talking about their next year car and how he would modify it to be faster.


Obviously, the house has consumed my thoughts, emotions, etc. I have been trying to be good about taking all realtor's feedback with a grain of salt. Most of the comments have been nice, such as nice well maintained home. One in particular (who came late and without notice) left a lengthy comment expressing how our home needs better staging. A week went by and I decided that our "kid" area really isn't practical to most. For us it works great, but in a market of people with "no imagination" visual seems to work best. Because I have the greatest friends (seriously) my house has now turned into a formal living area. Angie brought in furniture and other knick knacks for my house and rugs, Sara allowed me to borrow her mirror and sconces. My house has turned into more of a "model" home appearance if you will. Her is our newly improved design to sell look.........

(before)

(after)

more decorative touches

Unfortunately, since our staging makeover we have only had one showing. The interesting thing to me was they wanted a more open home. I thought my house was pretty open, but apparently my views are biased. What do you think??

the yummy Cafe Rio grub

Moving on to last weekend, the Gordon's invited a few families over for a delicious Mexican food bar. She made Cafe Rio pork and I brought in some restaurant tortillas (from Chuy's of course), along with some Cafe Rio tomatillo sauce. We may not have Cafe Rio here in Texas, but it was a pretty close tie I must say to tasting like the real stuff.

Nicole, Angie, Jenny and Ellice

Sadly, the rest of this week is a blur between baseball games, dance, renewing my temple recommend, Doug being consumed with high school physicals, and a head band party I am just happy that it's Friday. Oh, and I failed to mention I even passed up on my 2 year blogging anniversary! It's crazy to think it's been that long and 700 posts later. I hope to catch up with you all soon!

Five For Friday

Five things I learned this week:

1. Realtors can show up with their clients 2 hours past the time they told you. Note to self--if there are no footprints on carpet upon returning from home, be prepared!

2. Vacuuming multiple times a day for the above can give you some guns!

3. The Phx Suns have absolutely no chance in winning against the Spurs. As loyal as Doug is, it's extremely painful to hear him yell at the television. (he even wore his orange and white today) At least he admits this is his biggest weakness (see his team loose) We have had way too many upset moments in our home this week. (the couch is now used as a punching bag).

4. Despite fighting the urge to go to the temple this week. I am SO glad I went today. It was rejuvenating and took a huge weight off of my shoulders.

5. Hallelujah! The Office is back on along with Lost. How I have missed my regular scheduled programs. It is good to see Jim, Pam, Michael, Dwight and the rest of the gain once again.

Whiny Wednesday & Good Mail

Our house has almost been up for 4 weeks. We have already lowered our price and added that we would contribute to some closing costs. I shouldn't complain, we have had about a dozen potential buyers looking, but no one has decided to bite. I think the hardest thing for me is most of the homes in our neighborhood sold in 3 weeks time, which often makes me wonder what is wrong with our house? Does is smell? Is it ugly? Granted the vinyl flooring in our kitchen is ick. It's ugly, dull, and has TONS of scuff marks (it's 10 years old) I haven't liked it from the moment we moved in. However, since we replaced the carpet, new flooring just wasn't in our budget and now, well it's too late. I figured if that was the biggest hang up we could throw in some incentive money at closing. We have a feedback website that I check almost as much as email when we have showings. The bummer part is not all realtor's leave comments, or if they do often times I get my hopes up. I can't change my floor plan (we have had a few that didn't like that). The upside of our neighborhood is it is a starter home with a lot of turnovers, and the cost of our home is quite cheap compared to some of our surrounding neighborhoods. I know it will sell in time, I just wish I knew when. Doug jokes that maybe we should get one of those obnoxious neon signs to place above our garage that blinks "buy me" Ha!

Taylor in action making a base hit!
(my camera skills suck)

Baseball season has kept us busy with 4 games a week and 2 practices mixed in. It hasn't been too terrible other than Jared's team just can't seem to make a win. I feel bad for the coach and the kids. It's discouraging on both ends. The baseball fields may seem like a second home to us right now, but there is a perk. At the beginning of the season they sold refill cups for $20 which allows you to fill up your cup endlessly until the end of the year. It was the BEST thing I invested in. Taylor has surprisingly enjoyed softball more than I imagined. She has even expressed interest in pitching. However, her games are long and painful. The first three innings aren't so bad because they are using the machine for pitching. The last innings on the other hand are the girls throwing wild pitches (and most don't throw strikes) allowing most to walk and then they steal bases to score the runs. Not very entertaining if you ask me.


This week is Fiesta in San Antonio. The easiest way to describe it is a Mexican party with a lot of food. I like to refer to it as a wanna be Mexican Mardi Gras. My kids even get this Friday off in honor of the Battle of the Flowers. Harsh, I know. But, New Orleans really just knows how to throw a party and Mardi Gras is actually really fun! Eating greasy food, hanging out with friends for an entire day, loosing your voice due to screaming for silly beads is my thing. Here they eat tamales (not my favorite), crack hollowed eggs filled with confetti, and have a parade. Sadly, Doug and I don't even consider parades anymore (or my kids for that matter) We have grown accustomed to having goodies thrown at us, stuffed animals, beads, candy, etc at Mardi Gras. Who wants to attend a parade just watching someone wave? Not me. Call me a Mardi Gras snob, I am okay with that.


Tonight is our pine wood derby. With, Wednesday being crazy carting Taylor around from 4-6pm, I don't even really want to go. I want to veg on the couch, ya know? Perhaps a little American Idol or Ace of Cakes? But, Jared has been anxiously awaiting this day to race this red car and if I wasn't there to support his first derby I would be that mom. Doug purchased the car pre-made, forgetting about the rules. For some that may seem as cheating, but in our defense most of our tools have been packed up and time sorta was an issue as well. Despite, all of that they were pretty stoked as to how it turned out. Doug feared it may be over the 5 oz or the "legal weight" but, I took it to the post office and they have about .8 to spare. I am interested to see what the other boys came up with.


Lastly, I received these to cards in the mail, one from Michelle and the other from Amie. My mailbox has been getting some major neglect since we have completely resorted to online banking. Which means we rarely get anything "worthy" except junk mail. These lovely's were sent last week on different days(which I failed to document) and truly made my day. It's always nice to get a thoughtful note from a fellow blogger. I love warm and fuzzy mail. Anyways, I think that is enough whining for one day. Is is Friday yet?

SPT--Green Generation

If you participated SPT last year, (I did) are you doing anything *greener* this year? Yikes-- I always dread year "check in" reviews, especially if I totally slack. I am come to realize that I really am not very "green" with the environment. BUT, this past weekend Luke had to make a Fiesta Box for his upcoming parade that takes place tomorrow. I had all intentions on going out and buying supplies for this big event....why do that when you can scrounge up some cool stuff around the house? Exactly what we did. I made the mistake last year and missed the **wink wink** "memo" that parents go all out for this preschool fiesta parade. Not wanting to make the very same mistake as last year, we decided to go with a theme that Luke picked all on his own. Here is what we came up with:

Luke's favorite toys are his tools.
I thought it was more than appropriate for his float to contain this.
Look out Bob here comes Luke the builder!

they are expected to reach $4 by the summer!
(perfect time for moving a ginormous truck--ha!)

Also, with gas prices sky rocketing.... Gasp! I volunteered to be the driver last night for our girls night out at Angie's. I felt sorta like a tour guide in my mom mini van. It was the first time several have even set foot in her new home. We trekked out to Camp Bullis Road (which really isn't THAT far) and in honor of Earth day, I offered to drive. Carpooling counts as going green right?

We all came in one car (minus 2) and all left in one car. Thanks Ang for the delicious chips/dip and brownie sundaes. My 1:00am hang over was TOTALLY worth it!

(left to right)
Hillery, Nicole, Kristen, Jenny, Sandy, Natasha, Ellice, Angie, Kari Dawn, Lisa and Kristi.

Lookout Three

Weston 8 months, Luke 2 years

I don't ever recall my children going through the terrible two's, however, it seems that once they hit the age of three their taste for independence suddenly begins. Weston has been three now for one month and boy does it show. He definitely is our most free spirited child and fears nothing. This must be the m.o. being the baby, because I think he has had more injuries than any of my kids put together (thankfully we haven't had any broken bones yet). I am awaiting the day for that to come to pass. Due to the craziness of our house Weston's official birthday post came and went (over spring break in March--to be exact). How sad! So in honor of our 3 year old, here are several things that make our life much more colorful due to this little guy.

he is actually a pretty good sport about the car (most of the time)

--he lives on cereal, m&m's and wheat things (hmm... I wonder where he got that from?)
--he is NOT a morning person, watch out if you are in his path.
--he loves dogs and I have often found him hanging on bones, telling him "you are such a good boy"

it is quite common for him to "steal" beverages from the fridge or the counter.

--he has been potty trained for 4 months (it was a VERY painful process) but we over came it!
--he has a special bond with Taylor and currently shares a room with her. (this will soon change)


--he has talked since the age of 12 months and hasn't stopped. We often refer to him as a parrot.
--he can be a spit fire one minute and a sweet hart the next, he knows how to manipulate!
--his best friend is "Lukie", he idolizes him.

he is a professional whiner, oh wait that is ALL my kids :)

--he is good at teasing his brothers, I have found him calling Luke a baby (he didn't approve of that one very much)
--he LOVES his bike and I often find him riding it (when I thought he was inside!)


--he is the hardest to get to go to bed and often has me pulling out my hair.
--thankfully he still takes naps. (see above)
--I often find him singing to the radio (it's quite funny)
--he has the greatest laugh and cutest cheesiest smile.

Here is just a piece of him for pure enjoyment. We love you Weston!! Life just wouldn't be the same without you in our family.

Rolls 101

One of the talks that was given today was on patriotical blessings. As I reflect and reread mine on occasion I am amazed to see that the same words written several years ago applied to my life then the very same way they do today. Mine in particular discusses how I am blessed with talents and will continue to gain new ones as I progress. I wouldn't really consider myself a multi talented individual, but one of my strengths is learning hands on and then perfecting it on my own. When Doug and I first got married cooking was definitely not one of my strong points. I remember often times dinner not turning out and Wendy's saving us on numerous occasions. Obviously, practice makes perfect and I can honestly say I have mastered the art of bread. I have never owned a bread maker, nor bosche (but I would love to own a bosche!) So, all of my trial and error has come from the labors of my hands and arm work. Several people have asked me to give them a "bread" tutorial. So I decided I would take the advice of my patriotical blessing and share with you my knowledge of rolls. There are several recipes out there, this just happens to be one of my favorites. I tried to take a step by step photo (since I think visuals are so helpful).

Zaharis Rolls

2 Tbsp yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 tsp sugar
2 cups milk
1 cup oil
4 eggs
2 tsp salt
6-8 cups flour

Step 1: In a small bowl add, 2Tbsp of yeast, 1/2 cup warm water, and 1 tsp sugar. Stir until yeast melt and set aside.

Step 2: Take 2 cups milk, 1 cup oil, and 1 cup of sugar. Mix these ingredients and heat in microwave for 1 minute. Once heated you add this and yeast mixture in a large bowl (or bread bosche). Stir well and slowly add 4 eggs (I add one at a time). Then sift in 3 cups of flour along with 2 tsp of salt. Beat and then add last 3 cups of flour. (I sift all of my flour, but it's not necessary)


Step 3: Once all ingredients are added. Take dough out of bowl and knead on counter (this is if you don't have a bread mixer). Knead well and then place in large bowl for 2-3 hours. I cover mine with a damp cloth.



Step 4: After 2-3 hours pinch small pieces of dough out (I dip mine into a small amount of butter) again, not necessary and roll into long snake like piece and then twist bread like a braid and place onto pan.






Step 5: Be sure and grease your pan, I use crisco on mine and found that it works best.

Step 6: Allow rolls to rise on pan for approximately 1 hour. (I cover mine, but again not necessary).



Step 7: Preheat Oven @ 375 and bake for about 10-15 minutes (depending on your oven) I pull mine out when they are slightly brown.


I probably should have rolled these out a tad smaller (as you can see they are rather large) The ones I made today yielded 24, but you could really stretch them to 48 if necessary. Enjoy!

Babbling Rainbows

1976

I remember scoffing at my parents when I was a teenager on their words of wisdom. One of the famous quotes was, "I understand, I was once in your shoes." Of course at the time I thought no one, ESPECIALLY my parents understood what I was going through, whether it be a breakup with my boyfriend, money issues, school stress, etc. Now that I am an adult, married with children, I find myself using the very same tactics as my parents did with me. (yes, it's scary!) At any rate I sometimes feel that Doug and I haven't had the "taste" of real adulthood in some ways. We have been living as students for the past 12 years. We often have bought things just to get by, which hasn't always been smart and has often caused a backfire. But, we truly had no other choice. In the next few months, decisions I had never thought of, nor heard of are now coming to the table. Retirement, 401 K, investments, IRA's, stocks, bonds, college funds for our children, a savings account, it's overwhelming. You know the little numbers at the bottom of CNN (those tickers) I never understood, nor paid any attention to, apparently can be pretty important when it comes to investments. Index, the Dow Jones, whhaaat?? Am I the only one who lacks this knowledge?

New GL 450 Mercedes 7 passenger SUV.

Which leads me into bad investments, or things that depreciate the minute you buy them. Cars just happen to be a great example. I have decided that the car industry has us ALL since we are so dependent on them. It's rather sad. There is the decision on either buying used or new. This can be scary within itself. Does it have a warranty, am I buying a lemon, etc. I remember needing a car so desperately when Doug was in his third year of medical school. There was absolutely NO way we could afford a brand new car and had to settle for a 2 year old car. This got us by for a while (6 years to be exact), but the maintenance was painful. Every time we turned around there was something to be fixed. Thankfully, that car laid to rest a year ago this month. Last week as I was getting my oil changed I browsed around the Honda show room eying brand new cars like the one I currently have, but with more "bells and whistles." It was at that very moment I decided I really didn't want another new car like I have, but perhaps a larger more safer car like an SUV. We were lucky enough to drive my in-laws Tahoe during our visit to AZ. I have always been skeptical driving such a big car, but as I have gotten older, safety is becoming more of an importance issue (especially since my car accident). I was surprised how much I enjoyed driving it, and most importantly felt safe. Unfortunately, SUV's (Tahoes, Yukons and Suburbans) not only have a steep sticker price, but also LOVE to guzzle gas. My car isn't the most economical, but MUCH cheaper to fill up. Again, my eyes were opened today as I ran in to Doug's boss, Dr. Delee. One thing about Jesse, is, he not only has a story for everything (he really is a blog entry by himself), the man is knowledgeable. Period. I have no idea how the conversation got onto the topic of cars, but he said, you really should check the car out I bought my wife, it's really nice and gets 30 mpg. I have no idea how much these cars run in price until I just looked **ouch**, but it is a beauty. (see above) It also happens to be one of the safest cars according to the ratings.

Running through the water rainbow

I have no idea why I rambled on about investments and cars other than that seems to be what is consuming my brain today. Yesterday was a much different picture. I have been watering the lawn in order to keep the right shade of green for curb appeal on a daily basis. Each time I get ready to pull out the hose my boys plead and beg for me to allow them to help. "I want to help mom! Can I water the flowers??! Yesterday I caved and this was the result. They wanted me to make the water appear like a rainbow in order for them to run through it. The weather couldn't have been more perfect. We had clear sunny skies and 75 degree weather. Pure bliss. The best part was Weston was so proud of himself.... he was using his bike to make rainbows out of gutter water. Pretty creative I must say!

The sun was so hot it dried the other half before I could take a photo.

SPT--What Was I Thinking??

This post could obviously be more than one thing. As I sat and thought about my week in general things popped in and out of my brain like crazy. My over scheduled calendar, picking the wrong collision center to fix my car, choosing not to eat and then inhaling a package of chips ahoy in one sitting at 10pm, making two trips to pottery barn outlet in one day, screaming at my children to stay off the "freshly vacuumed" carpet so that some "person" could tell me they hated my vinyl flooring. We all have things we wish we could have or should have done differently, but most importantly we learn from them and move on. My hair has been standing on end over the past couple of months. The littlest things have bugged me. Not for any apparent reason, it's just something I wish would go away! Bad mood be gone. I can't change the past, so rather than rehashing the things I wish I could change I decided to take a different approach. Here are some things that have been going on over the past week or so..........

Jenny, Julie, and Cheri

I have met some super nice parents on little league this year. It has made Jared's baseball games a lot of fun. These gals are new to SPT, but they were great sports about taking a photo. Funny, Cheri offered to take this photo, but I explained that self portraits are more fun.

This isn't anything new or out of the ordinary for me. I do have to document that I am still going strong doing a morning walk/run. I can't believe it's been close to 6 months without Angie. It's definitely hard on some days to make myself go, but I am always glad I do. Weird to thing 3 years ago I had absolutely NO exercise regiment in my life at all.

Yesterday, Angie and I drove up to San Marcus to the Pottery Barn outlet. I had a gift card from Christmas and wasn't expecting to find anything. And really went up to "window shop" It is such a crap shoot when you drive up there. This happened to be one of those times I found a deal I couldn't pass up. Doug and I have been saving here and there to buy furniture for our next house. I wasn't planning on getting Taylor a bedroom set for a while, but this was 60% off. Unheard of really. Two trips later she now has a "real" bed. I must say I was pretty pleased with the look and how incredibly easy it was to assemble. No tools required, just my style!