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Why I love living in Highland


2010
08.12

Posted in Family Fun, Field Trips, I love to laugh, summer fun | 3 Comments »

Last weekend was our town celebration, the Highland Fling. It’s one of our favorite activities as a family. Last year, however, we missed it because we were taking a family trip to Yellowstone, and several family members complained about missing the fling. Seriously? It was a vacation, guys. You are not allowed to complain about what you missed while on vacation.

On Friday night, we went to a “so you think you can dance” type competition. It was a blast to see so much good and great dancing. After the competition, one of the judges, Gev Manoukian, came up and did his own performance. It was amazing!

And then they had a “Moms and Dads’ dance off”. They invited all the parents to come up and compete. I am not a dancer, nor do I pretend to be one, so I didn’t go up, but our good friend Sherry was not afraid to get up there and shake her stuff. That’s her there in the jeans, white dress and green jacket.

She danced her heart out and even did “the worm” up there. She ended up winning a Cricut from Provo craft. It was a fun activity!

Saturday morning we got the gang up and out of the house for the wonderful pancake breakfast. Our Chinese girls must think that we have a big outdoor pancake breakfast EVERY week, since two out of three Saturdays that they were here, we had our only two big breakfasts of the year. We even sat by and talked to the mayor! (he’s in our ward, so it’s not so rare to see or talk to him.)

After breakfast, the kids went exploring before the parade started. Megan came and told me that they were giving away free Webkinzes for the first 200 people in line. So we got the kids together, and went to stand in line. We had to wait about 40 minutes, and were hoping that they really were giving away Webkins animals, but we had nothing better to do, really, so it wasn’t a bad wait.

They were indeed giving them away, and we were in the right place at the right time. Every one of the kids, even the Chinese girls and the boys, got a free little animal.

Then we settled in to watch our favorite small town parade.

We went back to the park later to check out the shops and booths set up, and also for Cole and Megan to compete in the burrito eating contest. When I signed them both up for the eating contest, the guys at Barbacoa didn’t actually laugh at us, but they kind of smirked in a “really?” kind of way. But when we got to the contest, there were only 5 people total at the table. I thought their odds were looking up.

I mean, they should be able to beat out a little girl and her grandma, right? There were a few last minute recruits, so the eating pool looked more like this when they started.

They gave it their best. Trying to hork down those three pound burritos.

But this guy had them beat from the start.

In about three minutes, this guy finished his. Cole made it about 1/2 way through his burrito, and Megan ate maybe 1/4 of hers. We took their leftovers home and Ryan and I split Megan’s burrito and ate them for lunch the next day. They had fun, and got free food out of it. I’m proud of them for actually entering the contest, and giving it their best shot.

We also introduced our Chinese girls to cotton candy. I didn’t think they would like it, but they did. They each bought a bag of cotton candy.

Later that night we went back to the park for our favorite fireworks program. It’s not a long show, but we sit with friends, it close to our house, and we love it. We could actually watch the fireworks from home if we didn’t feel like going to the park, but we love actually being there.

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We’re off to see the Wizard


2010
07.10

Posted in I love to laugh, summer fun | 5 Comments »

Oh, things are busy around here. Very busy. Hubby did indeed come home from his long business trip, but he’s spend the last 5 days dead dog tired trying to recover. I’ve had rehearsals every night that go quite late, so I’ve also been pretty tired. But all the rehearsals have finally come to an end. For last night was OPENING NIGHT!

I have SO many pictures, but I’ll try not to totally bore you with ALL of them.

Here are the munchkins. Can you spot my Natalie? This is actually only 1/2 of the munchkins, as they have double cast a lot of the roles to let more kids be in the show.

And here we are, the apple trees.

I’ve had so much fun with these ladies. I know them both from previous shows, but they are truly a TON of fun, and I’ve had a blast with them.

as you can see.

And see all those people?

They’re having fun, too. Well, most of them are. The kids find it really long to have to sit around and do nothing the whole second act just to come on for the curtain call at the end. (There are no munchkins after about the first 1/4 of the show).

We’ve had many laughs as we’ve rehearsed. I guess that’s one reason I just love to do these shows. It’s so much fun. The other night, they brought me a mic, but there was no clip on it or mike belt. I’ll just stuff the mic pack (which is about the size of a think deck of cards, but heavier) here in my shorts that I wear under my costume, I thought. But by the end of the show, the mic had slipped down through my shorts and was just dangling there, hanging by the cord. Not good. So, the next night I asked if there was an extra mic belt I could use. Nope. My fellow apple tree Felecia said to just stick it in my bra. Hmmm, that works. So, although I’m pretty sure that everyone who looks at me can see this big LUMP at the side of my bra (maybe I should get that checked, you think?) they’ve assured me that it’s not noticeable, and it’s actually a pretty secure place to keep a mic. But it makes me laugh, that’s for sure.

Oh, and here’s a shot for your vampire fans.

The family came last night for opening night. They enjoyed the show, too!

Notice that we have a real dog playing Toto, which is a bit of a challenge. Last night he (she–her real name is Daisy) ran off the stage to her owner in the wings. She also whined a barked a lot when she was tied to the post by the scarecrow. I guess those crows forgot to give her the bone they had hiding there. But she really adds to the show, and the kids all love her.

After opening night, it’s customary to go out to eat. We were invited out to Chili’s, and I invited the family. I wasn’t the ONLY person who brought family along, but almost.

Jenna, John and Natalie came with Ryan and I, and the kids were super tired.


That witch even came in full makeup and costume. Some kids at Chili’s thought THAT was pretty weird. She even had some parents and a little boy come backstage and seek her out during intermission just so that he could be reassured that she really wasn’t that scary. I promise;

I’ve met her and she’s quite nice.

We got home well after midnight, and Natalie slept in until almost noon this morning. How heavenly does that sound?

So, it’s one show down, and 7 more to do. We have a show tonight, but Natalie won’t be in it. She only gets to do four of the 8 shows, but that’s about right for her. Then she can still do some fun things and not be tied to the show every night.

I wish you could ALL come see the show. It’s fabulous, if I do say so myself. There are really cool special effect, incredible scenery, and extremely talented actors. There’s an article about the show here and here. It’s so much fun.

We’re off to see the the wizard, the wonderful wizard of oz.

5 comments

But they were sad and lonely


2010
05.19

Posted in Family Fun, I love to laugh, blessings, pets | 5 Comments »

Last week I got a call from the piano teacher. She assured me that her call had nothing to do with the attitude of my piano students (thank goodness!). She knew that we had birds, and proceeded to tell me all about her sad little cockatiel. It was her daughter’s, but she went off to college and no one has played with him, and now he’s just a sad and lonely little bird. She wondered if we perhaps wanted another bird; if we would love and play with him more than her family did.

Of course I said we would take him. Never mind that we have 4 birds at home who rule the roost (literally). Because I just can’t live with the idea that the poor little bird is sad and lonely. SAD and LONELY, people. He’s with a family who doesn’t LOVE him, doesn’t play with him. He doesn’t have any friends. Well, as a certified foster home for birds, it is my duty and privilege to take him in. Ok, I’m not really a certified foster home for birds–you caught me.

birds
(this is not a picture of my house, by the way, just one I found showing many birds)

So, yes, call me the crazy bird lady if you must, and when you come to visit, would you mind bringing some millet or bird seed?

We should hang a sign by the birds that says “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. …” But all little birds should have friends, right? If not a bird friend, then at least a human friend.

Anyway, we picked up this little bird on Saturday, cage and all. The kids were VERY excited.

But the first order of business was to give him a new name. He had been called “Katie”, but then when they discovered that he was a boy, they just kept on calling him Katie. Well, I can’t in good consciousness call a male bird Katie, so we started taking suggestions for a new name. “How about something sort of close to Katie,” I suggested, “like Petey”. Nobody liked that one. Clayton? Clyde?

When Ryan’s flight to Japan was canceled for the day and he ended up coming back home (surprise!), he first got on my case for taking in YET ANOTHER homeless bird, (he tells me that they AREN’T sad and lonely and that I’m just giving them human qualities, but I know they do get sad and lonely. So there.) and then gave his suggested name, “Guido”. We liked that one, so Guido it is.

So now we have evened things out…5 kids and 5 birds (not counting those silly little parakeets upstairs, but coincidentally, there are 5 of them, too). The problem, though, is that everyone keeps giving us normal greys, so we have 4 of these birds who look VERY similar, and it’s not until you get closer that you can tell them apart. Why can’t people give us their whitefaced, or their lutino cockatiels? I guess they are more expensive and less common. Oh, well. (I actually have one sitting on my shoulder and one on my leg as I’m typing this. Too bad you can’t see how cute they are).

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Three things


2010
05.06

Posted in I love to laugh, Kids | 1 Comment »

My little guy, John, has this weird thing about lunch. Every day when he comes home from a tough day at kindergarten, I make him lunch. It can’t just be any old sandwich slapped together and thrown on a plate, though. There must be 3 things on his plate for lunch. And in his words, “Drinks don’t count.” What? Who made this rule? I humor him, and when I make macaroni and cheese, for example, I’ll be sure to add two more sides to his plate, maybe a couple of apple slices and a cookie. Usually it’s not a big deal. But some days I just can’t seem to come up with two more things that he will eat. It’s about all I can do to scrape together a peanut butter sandwich. But no, that’s not good enough. Every day he demands his “Three things” for lunch.

Last week, I went to the BYU women’s conference on Thursday and Friday, so I was gone at lunchtime. Ryan worked from home those days so that he could be there when John came home and fix him lunch. I called one day a little after lunch to see how things were going, and he said, “What’s with John wanting ‘three things’ for lunch? Where did that come from?”
Oh, the 3 things rule. Did he mention anything about a drink in his demanding of three things? I asked.
“Oh, yeah,” he said, “Drinks don’t count.”
Exactly.
How is it that my child has turned into such a picky little person? Who says you have to have three things for lunch? It’s a good idea to eat a variety of foods, of course, but why three?

A few days later I asked John why the infamous three ingredient lunch law. Did his illustrious teacher tell them something about nutrition? Did a friend tell him there must be three foods at lunch? “John,” I said, “Why must there be three things (not including a drink, of course) for lunch?”
His answer was quite simple.
“One day I was hungry, and I ate three things, and then I was full.”

Well, then. That explains it.

1 Comment

Tulip Festival?


2010
04.25

Posted in I love to laugh, Kids, Uncategorized, seasons | 1 Comment »

I’ve been wanting to take the kids to the tulip festival at Thanksgiving point. I thought we might go yesterday, since the weather was nice, but we ended up working in the yard and garden, which is also a good thing.

But it looks like we’ve got our own tulip festival going on here. Ryan was so kind to post this little video onto youtube so that I could share it with you. It starts slow, and it’s not all that exciting, but take a look at the kind of visitors we have late at night around here.

I guess I need to get more irish spring around those flowers if I want to save them.

And in the spirit of strange things that the porch cam has recorded, here’s another one. It makes me laugh every time I watch it.

And we did ask Cole if it was ok to make fun of him on the blog. He’s a good natured soul so he didn’t object too much. I don’t know what he was making a face about, but it just cracks me up.

2 comments

Seuss!


2010
03.02

Posted in I love to laugh | 2 Comments »

Today is Dr. Seuss’ birthday, and that makes me smile.

Last night I read Green Eggs and Ham as a bedtime story.

I tried to point out the message that you should always TRY the food before you stubbornly refuse to eat any of it, but I think the point may have been lost on the 6 year old.

Let me share a few of great Dr. Seuss quotes, in honor of the very creative man who was Dr. Seuss.

Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not. (the Lorax)

Adults are just obsolete children and the hell with them.

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.

Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.

I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, It’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, And that enables you to laugh at life’s realities.

Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.

And my personal favorite, since it reminds me of the massive amounts of fun we had doing Seussical,

paige seussical

A person’s a person, no matter how small.

IMG_0166

Speaking of the theater, Megan asked me yesterday “Why do you do those plays every summer?” My answer to her was, “Because they don’t do them in the winter.” I thought it was a pretty clever answer, myself.

So have yourself a wonderful day, and remember not to take yourself too seriously.

“I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, It’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, And that enables you to laugh at life’s realities.” –Dr. Seuss

7 comments

Home Decor?


2010
02.08

Posted in I love to laugh, Kids | 7 Comments »

My kids thought this was a great idea for shelf decor. To heck with those silly teapots.

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Superpaige’s Superpower


2010
01.23

Posted in I love to laugh | 1 Comment »

I have a superpower.
super
It’s my amazing sense of smell. It’s not a very unique superpower, as I’m sure many of you have experienced bouts of supernose, as I have.

(Ok, this is so funny, but every time I try to type “superpower” it automatically comes out “superpaige”)
I may have already mentioned my extreme dislike of the immitation maple smell that seems to plague me, as well as my talent for sniffing out the one sour towel.

When we went on our recent vacation, I had several packages of this new Trident fruit gum, in both the apple and the strawberry flavors.
trident
I didn’t buy them because I really like them, but because they were free with coupons. I think I ended up getting five or six packages of this gum, but when I tried it–ICK. Let’s just say I am not a fan of fruit flavored gum. I like my gum to be minty. So, since I didn’t like the gum myself, I let the kids have it. The problem was, if they were chewing it in the car, the smell was overpoweringly “fruity” to my sensitive nose. At one point I turned to them and said, “Stop chewing with your mouth open! I can smell that gum from HERE!”

They laughed at me. Me and my super sense of smell.

A day or two into the vacation, Ryan and I went to the grocery store to stock up on some groceries and snacks to last us the rest of the week. As we came out to the car, I could SMELL that dang strawberry smell! “Those kids must have opened another package of that DANG smelly gum!” I ranted just a little. I looked around and couldn’t see any gum. I might have accused or blamed one of the kids. Might have.

After we got our expensive groceries, we opened up the back of the suburban and the strawberry smell was OVERPOWERING. What the what? I looked, and there was the 5 pound bag of gummy bears my friend Jenny had sent me for correctly guessing the birth date of her darling baby. She had sent me this huge bag of gummy bears as a prize!
Now I don’t want to sound ungrateful for those yummy gummy bears, but they were stinkin’ up the back of my car! Luckily I had bought ziplock bags from the store and was able to divvy up all the bears in smaller portions, and we enjoyed them for a lovely theme park snack. And the smell was contained.

So, let’s hear it, what’s YOUR super power? The ability to find that one lost sock? Great parking space finder? Amazing organizer? Juggle things with your toes?

2 comments

Don’t let your ponytail sag


2010
01.12

Posted in Family Fun, I love to laugh, Kids | 2 Comments »

I was doing daughter’s hair this morning, (and by that I mean putting it into the standard ponytail) and I placed the ponytail 3/4 of an inch higher than she usually wears it.

Let the freaking out begin.

She HAS to wear her long blonde hair in a ponytail every. single. day. and she won’t let me vary that ponytail in the slightest. Even when I pointed out that her hair is starting to break off from the constant pressure of the ponytail. I calmly stated that we need to at least vary the height of the ponytail, either putting it slightly lower or slightly higher. Or perhaps a braid or two ponytails.

Not happening.

So, this morning, I put the ponytail slightly higher than normal, told her stop freaking out and I would give her a brownie for her lunch. Seriously. It looks the same. NO ONE is going to notice if the ponytail is the tiniest bit different!

As she was leaving (stomping out the door, actually), I called, “Don’t let your ponytail sag.”

“What does that mean?” she asked.

“You know, like it would sag if it weren’t happy. You want to stay happy, keep your ponytail nice and perky and happy. Don’t let your ponytail sag. It’s my new slogan.” I said.

She rolled her eyes at me. I had it coming.

So, there you go, folks. It’s my new catch phrase. “Don’t let your ponytail sag!”

1 Comment

Yes, the human.


2009
12.14

Posted in I love to laugh, Kids | 1 Comment »

My 6 year old was looking around the office at some of the gifts I have laying around waiting to be wrapped (not for him, but for cousins, friends and people that don’t live in this house). Whose *** is that? (I won’t say the specific gift because I’d hate to ruin the surprise)
“That’s for Rachel,” I said.
“The human?” he said.
I looked puzzled for a minute, wondering what in the world he was talking about. Of course it’s for a human. OH, I see, the HUMAN Rachel, a cousin, as opposed to the TURTLE named Rachel that lives upstairs in Cole’s room. “Yes, John, the human.”

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