The Piles

Piles of Books



Piles of Shoes


Piles of Stuffed Animals



Piles of Aliens

The Piles were the beginning of the end. And this was only the first day of packing...

Birthday Bonanza!!

Since my last post (which I know, I know has been WAY too long...) we have had no less than 8 family birthdays - here are the alien hi-lights







ROBBIE's Birthday



Robbie had only 2 requests of his big day. The first that he get to open his presents first thing in the morning. (Smart kid) So we did presents in pajamas! Even cute cousin Skylee made it to the early morning festivities!

Granny gave him a new Webkinz. Somehow they can never have enough!


Transformers again this year? He got some last year too, but this year he is much better at actually transforming these complex vehicles/robots. It must have been all his hard kindergarten work!



New spiderman shades. How cool does this 6 year old look?











The second request he had for his big day was to visit his Great Aunt Susan. So I took him up to the steel yard where she works. It was the epitome of boy...hard hat, Wall-E type compacted aluminum squares, and getting to watch a crane with a massive magnet - pick up a school bus.



Great Aunt Susan really made the birthday great! I was happy he got to have a boy day - since he's always around all us girls!

DD's Birthday


She got a cool kids digital camera...(Hmmm, I wonder why she wants to take pictures of everything...where did she get that from?) Here she is taking a picture of her very cool "dirt" cake. She especially loved the gummy worms. Her Aunts are very creative!




**This is pre-new camera I got for MY birthday...notice a different a pictures...(goodness, I do!) DD all decked out with her new scooter and Dora protective gear.

Cool new Ducky poncho towel from Daddy - who got to be at the festivities!

Cool Strawberry Shortcake pillow made by her mom - she is in love with this pillow.






DD and I enjoying her day. Yes- thats me in all me big-ness - but it was such a cute picture I couldn't pass it up.

Becca's Birthday

Becca had a butterfly cake. Decorated and frosted by Amber and her bestest friend.


Outside our dinner destination - with Friends. Party on Wayne. Party on Garth.



Becca wanted pancakes for breakfast - I am no good at pancakes and Grandma was still on the mend from her car crash...so, what does a girl on the go (me) do - visits McDonalds at 6am and makes a HUGE order. Thank You Mickey Ds!



Becca picked the Mayan for her birthday feast...the divers are cool - the food was good and of course we snagged a picture with one of the "ancients" that live there...

Its been a literal Birthday Bonanza!!

All About Amber

Today Amber, aka, Frog is 11 years old. This is what she chose to wear on her big day. She loves that belt - I love that I could have worn this when I was 11 in 1984!



Amber is a smart cookie. Here she is getting her Principal Pride Award. She is an avid reader - I have quite a stack of books to read that she has recommended for me. But, math has never been her thing...so, we were especially proud when her award was for Math! She is one smart girl!




She's also a good little dancer. This year at her 5th grade program - Amber learned to sock hop with a partner (the cutest boy in the class) to Rock Around the Clock. She was great! She really learned to love learning to dance!



Amber is just one cool chick. In recent months she has developed a cool, relaxed demeanor that I adore. She is just great at chillin' when its time for chillin'!



She also knows how to have fun. Here she is making the most of the tedious Easter pictures experience. She can really show the rest of us how to have a good time!



We are eye glass buddies - here at Disneyland. She always helps me find my glasses...and I her. Aren't we cute?



I loved Amber's cute little fat cheeks when she was a baby. She loves this picture of herself and so do I!



She's off to begin her year as an 11 year old. She's ready to have fun and she's cute as ever.

Happy Birthday, Amber!

**PS Blog friends - this post marks 2 firsts for this blog - did you catch them?

P J H!

I was a Poston Panther for my junior high years (7-9) in Mesa, Arizona. Our colors were Orange and brown. We had a bright orange panther as our mascot and someone who dutifully wore that thing to all our events. I loved P J H! In the 9th grade, I was named the top female of the whole grade - I got a big panther trophy - its a black cast iron panther on a base. It was unexpected and very cool. I was the elected secretary of the National Junior Honor Society for the school. I was in choir and all of the accelerated classes - it was cool to be smart. Ah, I had such promise back then. Today - I'm wearing orange and brown - Orange top and brown pants and I'm thinking about good old Poston Junior High. Since my years there 86-88. They changed the colors! They changed them to turquoise and white - I think...I'm sure ont he turqoise. Its such a travesty. Orange and brown are a very memorable combination. At least they are still the panthers. I wonder if they have a big bright turquoise panther?! Funny. They have also extended the name...they call it CD Poston Junior High. (Charles D...as in the picture). That is weird. I liked it when I got to shout P! J! H! at all of the football games. Ah, how sad is it that junior high are my glory days sort of. Ah..and nothing tops the experience like my 8th grade Heroes class (yes, Heroes - we learned about Heroes...I've often wondered if NBC took their idea from my junior high curriculum) and Mr. Little and his rubber chicken. Times were never so good.

This post is dedicated to my BFF Melba, aka Eden - who I met in Mr. Little's class and with whom I will be forever bonded since we were the only two girls in that class who didn't have Guess jeans or a Forenza bag.

Happy Valentines Day

For the at least the last two decades - if you live in the same house as my mother, on Valentines day - the breakfast table looks a lot like this. The culmination of her longstanding yearly tradition - The 14 days of Valentines. Every February 1-14th is marked with a daily treat of some kind - a little valentine. Stickers that say "Valentine, Stick with me" or Gum that says "I "chews" u to be my Valentine"...each day the Valentines basket is filled up with a treat. If you don't live with my mom, but are one of her offspring or friends of her offspring or family of her offspring or random relatives that she thinks might need it - she will deliver to you - on or before February 1st - a package filled with sealed brown paper lunch bags - each with a date on them, and conveniently a day of the week. And each day you could rip open your own treat. She also sends a table cloth and decorative plates and cups for you to decorate your own table to have your own special Valentines breakfast. On Valentines day - she delievers an actual Valentine gift wrapped in red or heart paper - and makes a special breakfast. Its really quite amazing that she does this...and has been doing it for so long - she now prepares this tradition for at least 40 people. All through college and the many years I have lived in a different state than her - I always got my package of goodies and presents and she always sent treats for my room-mates however many there were. But, this year is the first year in a very long time - that I get to wake up to the special mom made and decorated breakfast in person. My mom is very cool.
Individual place settings even...
The greatest thing about this tradition is that it has made this holiday for me and most of my family less about romantic love and more about family love, appreciation and togetherness. I have never had a disappointing Valentines day (even when I had a boyfriend) - because I still get the red hearts and the treats and I still feel a lot of extra love and appreciation on the holiday. The only thing that plagues me still - is finding a way to appreciate my mother and this tradition for the great gift it is in my life. This year - we tried to compensate with a large basket of Disney cookies (on the table)...but, its just never really enough. Really, my mom is very cool.


A few days ago, I overheard a conversation between Bear and my mom. He just randomly announced, "I just love Aunt Jen so much" (ahhhhh) And my mom, said "why is that?" He said "because she has so many things we don't have" To which my mom replied, "like what?" And he said: "Like stairs, she has so many stairs. We don't have stairs at home in our house."


So, here are some of my glorious stairs - if nothing else, on this Valentines Day, you, too can love me for my stairs.

Happy Valentines Day!

New Hair, Same Alien

I took the scissors to Duckies hair this morning. She cut a chunk out of the back of it a while ago - and I just couldn't take it anymore. She looooves her new hair.

She loved posing for pictures...

But, she's still the same mischievous alien...

Where Have I Been?

We have church at 9. At 8:15...the phone started ringing like crazy. What?! Church is cancelled?! Yes...and I got several e-mails informing me as well:

All,

I received a call from Bishop Hendricks stating that all 9:00 meetings
throughout the stake have been cancelled due to heavy snow. I'm
sending this out in case anyone checks their email prior to going to church.

Thank you.

Yeah, its a blizzard out there. A white out. At least 8 inches on the ground. I didn't know they could cancel church like that - but...yay! I love the organization of the Church - our hometeacher called, my visiting teacher called - the Elders Quorum President called. We called our visiting teachees and home teachees. It really works. So, the good news is. I'm taking my snow day to catch up on my blogging.

I've been gone. No blogging for me. I have some excuses.

First...

It was the holidays. The alien parents came...there were so many people in my house and so much to do - I thought my head might explode. More on the holidays on the post below. And, yes, my Christmas tree was crooked. Crooked the whole time it was up - I kept trying to fix it and then it became the defining marker of our Christmas season - everything was a bit off balance!

Second...

Taking care of aliens is hard...and a lot of work. A lot of days, this happens... A LOT.


We are still having fun too...doing silly things and playing a lot.





And, there are many things that keep you away from the computer - like Flower's 3rd Grade Patriotic Program. She did a very good job and gave me a cookie - which made me like it so much more.




Mostly, I'm just grateful for the Gameboy. To think I wouldn't let them play them for the first 3 months they were here. I have learned the value of a little box that makes aliens quiet.



Third...


3 adults in one household is hard. Harder than I could have imagined. Lately - I mostly feel like this about the situation. Its really, really hard.

Fourth...

Yes, mortgage interest rates are down...they are pretty volatile at the moment...and when the "Fed lowers rates" - its not the good old 30 year fixed mortgage rate that one might think - though it does have an affect on them. I'm crazy busy with work. I'm always at a computer. Always - all day Saturday...long days. So, the last thing on earth I usually want to do is come home and blog....but, it all means money. And money is good. Its really good and very needed.

But, don't worry...


There are snow days that make me want to blog. Since I've been blogging today - the blizzard has subsided and the Bishop has finished clearing our walks on his ATV. This is the BEST. CHURCH. EVER. (Grandpa is doing the porch right now). This is what my street looks like right now.

Good thing the aliens still like to help with the snow...though they can only withstand it for short periods of time.


So, there you have it - that's where I've been and what I've been doing. There's a long list of other stuff too...like - its Oscar time and I have lots of movies to see (lots on that on my OTHER blog.))
AND, I'm addicted to reading so many blogs out there - I had to stop leaving comments for fear someone would click on my page and see nothing exciting. But, really - there are some GOOD blogs out there.

So, what's the verdict? Am I forgiven? I must warn you - it might be a while before another snow day hits... So, to the 5 of you who read my blog - enjoy it while it snows!