One more...

One more post and then I HAVE to clean my house. My in-laws will be here in just a couple of hours and this place needs more work than that.

This is Reils in our beautiful fall leaves. With Oreo and eyeliner on her face. Two musts in a woman's life!


This is her cleaned up.

Okay, I'll keep her.

T-R-O-U-B-L-E

What has Reily been up to? Everything. She had a hard time coming off of vacation. She was an only child for 2 weeks and didn't adjust well to her previous life. That girl has been a source of anguish ever since we came back.

How she did this, I still don't know. But, it involved her "stepstool to trouble" and perfect timing. In case you can't tell, her belt loop is stuck on the cabinet knob. Mwahh hah hah! Now, I must admit, I was tempted to leave her there...just for a bit. But, my good side came out and I released her (after the photo-op, of course).

She's Craftay...!

Every fall, I get a crafting/sewing bug. This is what I produced (Thanks to my crafting guru friend, Traci). I'm pretty proud. It seems to be a staple of every good Mormon wife's house. And, now that I have a mantle of my own, I feel like I needed it.




I am thankful I only did "Thanks" instead of the entire "Thanksgiving". It was just right...enough to knock out in one evening.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Surprise!! She's SIX!!

Okay, it really came as NO SURPRISE to any of us that Macy turned 6 on Sunday. As a matter of fact, the reminders were frequent. The party and gifts were perfectly-planned by Macy herself. She even made a list of who was getting her what; and in what order she was opening her presents. There was no room for surprises.

But, she could definitely act it for the camera!! (Of course!)

Happy Birthday Sweetheart!

BOO!

Okay, I'm a bit behind. I'm not sure I will ever catch-up with my 2 weeks (and 2 days) off.

While in Utah, Reily and I headed down to Provo to trick-or-treat with cousins: Mikey, Jakey, and Robby. (NO, they are not all "Batman". I believe they are "Batman", "Batboy", and "Batbaby".... There's a difference!)

She is definitiely the most stunning female pirate I have ever seen!! While scavenging the wasatch front for a costume the day before, she refused to give in to the obvious choice...a princess. She insisted on piracy. She just wanted to say, "Aargh, Matey!". But, it worked. She still thinks she in charge of her scallywag of a mother! I'm thinking...mutiny. If I could only muster the courage!

As of today, she is still on a sugar high.

John & Kate = IRRITATE

Oy! I have been watching them for a long time. I have marvelled at their "normalcy".

But, I CANNOT watch them in Hawaii!! It may be the jealousy speaking as I sit in my furniture-less home, hashing over my family budget one more time, and still not finding any $$$ for a couch or a new mattress; let alone a trip to Hawaii. A trip to Target is stretching it right now. My skin is crawling! I'm so bugged.

How about "Blaine & Mo with Fo". We could be good candidates for "normal". We're not challenged in many ways (some may debate this). We could just be normal. After all, isn't the average American family...average? Maybe the media should stop focusing on the outliers and head for the middle.

Hmmm...Would that be interesting? I don't know. But, I'd take the paychecks, free stuff, and trips until we vaulted to the other side.

Just a thought...vent...whatever.

TLC: You can contact me through my blog. : )

Free to Breathe 5K

We did it! After a couple of weeks of traveling to and fro. We opted for a hometown 5k...our neighborhood.

Reily chose the sweet life in the stroller. Macy whined for the sweet life in the stroller. Taylors feet hurt and she was starving by the end. (It was only 3.1 miles). Payton took off quick and stayed just far enough ahead of us. Blaine and I just juggled little ones from stroller to shoulders to street. But, we did have fun. It was all for a great cause.

Thanks for walking...let's do it again next year!!

Goodbye.

My dad is gone. He surrendered his last sweet breaths Wednesday night.

I was able to spend his last few days with him. He wasn't strong, but he was filled with love...lots of air kisses, whispered "love you's", and winks. Good memories of tough days.

Words escape me.

I love you, Dad. I'm just not sure I said it enough.