Beautiful Birthday

For my daughters birthday
she wanted to take a group of friends up to Gisela

It kinda works into the last HOORAH of the summer.
I gave up going to lunch with my girlfriends
for this pleasure.
I was the driver and got to be the official photographer.
It was a fun time
but it makes me realize
that i am not as young as i used to be.

Last year i lost my cell phone while i was there.
this year i left it in the car.
Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

Highlight of the day....
my dear sweet daughter--
thanked me for taking them.
"It was really fun mommy--
thanks for taking me and my friends"
that statement alone made missing lunch worth it.
i doubt there will be many more birthdays
that i will be so involved with
i am glad that i was there to document this one.

Gotta love and appreciate AZ
for the beauty that it does posses

Officially scarred

It's official.
She official.
At 11:20 this AM
my daughter officially became an adult.
Where have the last 18 years gone?
Light speed I say!
Or maybe it is warp speed?
What really is the difference?
Could someone please explain that to me?
Whatever the difference--
lets just say it went really
FAST!

For my daughters birthday
we spent the day talking her off the ledge.
Literally!!!
Most of the time you spend talking someone away from the edge--and yet here we were encouraging her to get near it.

(she is the stick person that kinda blends in with the rocks)
She spent many the minute at the edge--looking down.
willing her legs to take that final leap of faith.

I am not saying that she was lacking in faith but her physical fears were much stronger
Her friends

kept

telling her

"Every

one
is
doing
it"

and

for some

reason

that

statement

didn't seem

to help

But then again her friends were going
higher

and higher


and

falling


Farther..






and




Farther..










and





Farther..

and still emerged with a smile--
just to do it a few more times.

Let's face it.
I am glad to know
that she will not follow her friends off a cliff
just cuz "everyone" is doing it.

But i did want her to
face her fears
and be able to defeat them.


Instead
she opted
for a less
intimidating
lower ledge

to leap off of

and found great success in it--

somehow
it was
far less
intimidating
than the
cliff
that was
twice as high

Notice
where
she is at
in relation
to the rest
of the
crazy
teenagers?!
she also ventured off the rock slide.

while still high up
there is something about sliding
that just seems
safer
easier

You don't have to feel your legs shaking as you go off the edge.

She did attempt the higher ledge again
and her friends were patient with her
strangers were patient with her
all were giving her words of encouragement
willing to hold her hand
stand beside her.
Wanting her to succeed.
Wanting to cheer for her...
They were patient...
real patient....
as she would walk to the edge
stand for awhile
and then walk away
only to repeat this process in a few more minutes...
many more times.
After the passing of MUCH time

She finally did take that leap of faith

and is still alive to talk about it

The canyon erupted with loud cheers and clapping.
I am not sure if she will ever do it again.
But i am proud of her
Today and Everyday
But especially proud
for facing those fears
and overcoming them.

Onto the next challenge.....

picking a college
talk about scary

I need your wisdom

I need you my cyber friends.

Of any day to come out of the framework this is it.

It is dire--

{well not actually dire}

but it is important.!

Child #1

is turning 18.

I am having a hard time putting my head around that fact.

i swear it was only yesterday that i was bringing her home.

So sorry--

i kinda got lost down memory lane there for a moment.

This is what i need from you.

If this was your child

(we shall pretend this is, my oh so wise friends)

what word/s of advice

would you give this new adult.

What has helped shape you as an adult?

I figure it is never to late

to give advice

and maybe she will take it

if she knows it didn't come from me.

After all the advice i would give her

IS.......

Always take your mom's advice.

I think that about sums it up--

thanks for your support!

Time out doesn't work for teenagers

What was i saying
about being a bit sad about sending my kids off to school?
After today i am ready.!
Why is it sooooooo painful
and frustrating
trying to raise your teenager
to become a responsible adult?

Remember when time out used to work?
What is time out for an almost adult--
who is being rude and behaving poorly?
I am trying to help them in this transition to adulthood
I want my children to be independent--
and capable of making choices
and behaving in an adult manner.
They want the independence on one hand
and then in the next moment
they are wanting you to smooth everything out for them.
I want them to make their own choices--
I try to direct them--
give them encouragement--
use my life lesson wisdom
when i know they are floundering
and yet.......
the theme song for this time in my life is
HOLD ME CLOSE....
LET ME GO.!
and on those moments
i am more than willing.
Here's the door,
figure it out.
I have a feeling
that this is going to be a
LOOOOOOONG year.
Anyone know a good therapist?

Time flies-father in training

I am looking at this upcoming week and feeling

Overwhelmed

and a bit sad.

We only have this week to get life in order

before i send off my brood

to school.

My children have lamented.......

[and i have to concur]

Where has this summer gone?

We have some back to school shopping to do

Several doctors appointments

including an ortho appointment

to get braces on daughter #2.

We need to schedule senior pictures

and get my oldest certified to watch my youngest.

Now that she will be 18

her little brother will become her part time job.

It will be nice for her

to get paid for all the things she already does for him.

I must say though

all of my kids are amazing with their little brother

{he does try all of our patience at times}

but he is such a blessing to our family!

He is training my kids

to be good mothers and fathers in the future.

Just today i saw a glimpse of fatherhood

with my 11 year old.

We are lucky to sit in front of a family at church

that has twins

and they are willing to share their babies with us.

All of my kids love to hold these cuties.

It is a good thing there are two babies

since sharing is already an issue.

So today my pre teen,

goofy

(sometimes smelly)

boy

was holding the little baby girl.

She was standing on his lap

and they were making eye contact.

I was sitting next to him

so I was privy to the conversation that took place

it went something like this

"Averie, you are such a cutie

You look so pretty in your dress

Do you know what your dress says?

It says "Be Happy"

Are you happy Averie"

This conversation went on for several minutes

And of course the whole time Averie is giving him

her cute smile

and batting her eyes.

And my boy was lapping it up.

What a tender moment

to see that rough and tough exterior

peeled away

and to catch a glimpse

of the father he will someday be

Caring,

Loving,

Dotting.

In gives me hope

that he will turn out OK

That he will grow out of the silliness

that he sometimes possesses.

I know one thing fore sure

That as my oldest turns 18 this week

and becomes an "official" adult

time really does move fast

and before i know it

my goofy little boy

will be holding one of his own.

I can wait for that day--

We have a few milestones to cross off the list

before that happens.

But today...

He was a father in training.

The ODDS are against you

I know some amazing women who are not married.!?

I often sit in disbelief
WONDERING---
WHY?

I have received a new knowledge
and am seeing first hand
what my girls will be up against.

Upon returning from EFY
my children informed me
that in their group of 34 kids
10 were of the male persuasion
and the remaining 24 were girls.
Now for my daughter her odds were even less--
since one of those boys was her brother

EWWWEEE.

So for my son
the numbers worked in his favor,
but for my daughters
I am seeing that they will have their work cut out for them.

I hope that no matter what their future holds,
that they will continue to grow
and become amazing woman,
regardless of their situation.

I am thankful for those women that i know
that have set such a good example.
That have touched the lives of kids.
That continue to grow and improve themselves.

That are amazing.!
They are an example to me.

They inspire me to be better

It is something we all should be working at

regardless of the ODDS.

Be prepared, be for warned

AHHHHH,

Sweet technology i have missed you!!!!

I never thought i would get to the point in my life

where i became dependent on the computer.

I have missed not being in touch with my life

and those of my friends.

Did you all survive without me?

Was I missed?

I knew i wouldn't have time to blog

while i was in Chicago--

I was prepared for that fact.

But i must say being without the Internet

while in Utah made me a tad crazy.

I felt so out of it.

So, with that being said,

I am going to warn you.

I have some catching up to do.

My goal is to have 365 entries for the year,

and i am a bit behind.

I have had adventures that need to be documented.

My brain has been muddled with many BLOG thoughts.

I know that they won't all get posted,

but i will try.

Have i mentioned

that i have hundreds of pictures to download as well?

So i apologize if i give you BLOG overload.

Feel free to skim,

or not read at all.

After all--

i really am doing this for me,

and my family.

Someday they will appreciate it .

Right?

Anyway,

i am off to catch up on your lives--

so the real question is

What adventures did i miss?

driving statistics

1901.5 miles

107 gallons of gasoline

{at $4.+ a gallon--I really don't want to do the math}

many hours behind the wheel

8 episodes of Bonanza

Not sure exactly how many movies were watched

{but we did see Back to the Future 1 and 2}

Saw Mt. Rushmore, the Eiffel Tower,

Statue of Liberty, a Pyramid

and the Hoover Dam.

[the hoover dam was the only one based in reality]

got rained on some

killed many bees with the windshield

had a wonderful week

in slightly cooler weather.

Had a great time

BUT......

I am glad to be home.

Back to my reality-----

Let the games BEGIN!

Pictures you don't see every day

What? Too many shakes?

Looks like UPS wins!!!



Oh, come on... just one?



starting with spelling .



I think it was the FedEx driver



I bet this is by the school that teaches Arithetic



Sometimes a name change is the best idea...



Take me to the cleaners, baby!



Major dilemma in California .



How do you get there from here?



Everything you need for your 'shotgun' wedding!



It's a good deal, but... oh, the college costs! ???



McLogic gone wrong...



Pork the one you love?



Still Dead, Huh??? Go Figure...



What?



'Mass suicides...Cows going over the edge...

tonight on Channel 3 News...'

Good Job!!

Load 'em up with burritos, Mom!!

I'm Confused...

How the heck can I write if I'm ILLITERATE!!!!

I can't even comment on this one

Beautiful, lush lawns of dirt...must be somewhere in AZ

Speling iz knot imprtunt fir astranawts

Make up your mind!!!

Don't drink and make signs...

thanks for sharing Connie--afterall a picture is worth a thousand words--or atleast a good laugh

People on airplanes

I am a self described people watcher.
What a better place to watch people than at an airport.
I look around with curious intrigue,
and I wonder why people are traveling.
(but i am not curious enough to strike up a conversation)

And i can't help but find family dynamics interesting.

As i boarded the plane and sat down,
there were some teenage girls sitting behind me.
Based on their conversation (argument) i felt like i was home.
If you have teenage daughters--you know the argument

hte one about who wore what last,
and who got dirty.
It kinda cracked me up,
and i couldn't help but look at them
I then told them if i wanted to listen to arguing
i could have brought my kids with me.
They had a rather sheepish look on their faces
and got real quiet.

Unless i am with a friend or family,
I like my space when i fly.
I like to isolate myself and tune out the rest of the plane.
Give me a window seat,
my noise reduction headphones,
and my pillow.
And i am perfectly content.

Prior to boarding the plane
I find out how full it will be
and base my odds of an empty seat next to me
on that information.

If i know there will be empty seats
I strategically place my bag in the middle seat
and avoid making any eye contact
(less they think i am friendly)
And i am a bit embarrassed to say
that it usually works.

It's not that i don't like to talk
or meet new people
I am usually tired
and don't want to think.
I don't want to have to be "ON"

Except for my flight home from Chicago.....
I knew I would not have my quiet time
when a woman proceeded to sit down in the aisle seat
and introduce herself.
Then another woman sat in the middle seat
and conversations were started
and i was involved.
Involved in their lives.
The womna in the aisle seat was recently divorced
and had attended a wedding of a family member.
Her ex had been there--with his new girlfriend.
The woman in the center seat
was flying out for a funeral
of a friend who had been murdered
Not exactly what you expect someone to say
when you ask them about their trip.

We conversed about
Kids and Life.
And when all was said and done,
I was thanked.
The woman in the middle seat
appreciated us taking her mind off the reason
she was taking the trip.
She appreciated our sorrow for her circumstances.
It made me appreciate
how quickly life can change
and to appreciate the many blessings i have in my life.

So despite the fact
that my routine had been disrupted
and i had been sucked into others lives
for even a few hours--
I am glad for the experience--

I just don't want it every time i fly....

I am Home

I am home for
8 hours.
Sleeping in my own bed
with my own pillows and blankets.
Using my own bathroom--

For the next 8 hours
I will savor--
cherish--
my moments at home.
And then i am off again.
Can you say
ROAD TRIP?

CHA CHA CHA

Contrary to popular belief
{or at least the belief of our husbands}
We have been working our buns off--
my feet and shins are killing me from walking
around CHA in elevated slip-ons
Normally i would not have worn those shoes
but in the effort to look cute
comfort is sacrificed for fashion.

We decided a few weeks
ago that we were going to make our dream a reality
or try to anyway.

We spent several days walking and talking,
SCHMOOZING,
and being the fun people we are.
It remains to be seen
if things will pan out.
But it won't be from lack of trying.

Regardless if it comes to fruition or not,
we did have a great girlfriends weekend!

Here are some highlights of the trip
LAUGHING
{that has been a big one.}
It doesn't matter who,what or where.
We like to laugh,
mostly at ourselves.
We find that we often crack ourselves up.

Here we are with the SIMPLY SWANK girls
{That is SWANK not SKANK}

I had met them last year at Creative Escape

and i was lucky enough to have them give me a personal tutorial on soldering.

They can do some amazing things!

We had a great time helping them with the finishing details in their booth

and we enjoyed their homeless (with Coach purses) in Chicago stories.

They definitely added to our laughter

Oh the stories i could tell

I am not often star struck.
I figure most stars just put their pants on just like i do
one leg at a time.
But when it comes to

stars
who are red and furry
I couldn't resist

I will go on record saying that Elmo was much taller in real life

And here we have "Tickle me Lisa"

Could you have resisted a face like that?
I am so glad that i was able to document this momentous event with a picture

There are some that would have doubted
that i had really met
ELMO
in real life.