Okay, I admit it I'm...

30!!! I don't know how it happened, I mean I look so young and all:) Well, my big 30 finally came and I didn't die. In fact it was probably one of my best birthday's so far. My sweet Rand has apparently been planning and plotting for some time to make this my best birthday ever!

Friday my in-laws came over to watch the kids for the night so that Rand could take me out. It was so great just getting away for a bit together. Just getting away would have been present enough. We stayed up at the Marriott on Main Street in Park City. I love Park City. It's so close and yet you feel like you have left home and gone somewhere fun and different from the usual people and setting. It was beautiful and cool and we had such a great time.

First we went to a great little French restaurant that my brother had told us about. It's called Bistro 412. It was so charming and reminded me so much of Europe. The atmosphere was great, the music good and the food also very good. In fact Randall ordered a stuffed portabella mushroom and it was bigger than the biggest hamburger bun I have ever seen.

We sat right inside the open door so could look out and have the outdoor while still being cozy and private inside. It was perfect. After dinner we walked up and down main street for a bit trying to decided the most important of all things...what to have for dessert. I don't remember the name of the place we ended up but I had a pecan roll and a cinnimon steamer and Randall went with ice cream. It was actually kind of chilly night and outside our hotel there were some gas fire pits with benches around them so we sat and enjoyed that for a bit. Some people were even roasting marshmellows. I guess we will have to do that next time.

For my birthday it's normally tradition that Randall makes me an egg mcmuffin for breakfast. Since that wasn't really an option, we went to McDonalds for one instead. Yum my favorite. Then with various cash donations for the cause we went to the outlets to get some fall clothes. Then ate lunch and headed home. It was a fabulous time. Oh, and that' not it. Ithoughtt all the planning and plotting was over until I I starting thinking how strange it was that some of my closest friends hadn't even called or anything so that must mean...a surprise? That's right after dinner that night we headed over to some friends house for dessert and surprise,surprise 2 other couples and their families came to celebrate with us. It was wild and crazy with all the kids, but it meant so much to me that they would all take the time out of their weekend to spend it with me for my big day. Thanks to Randall, Rick and Shelley and Melanie for making me feel so special on what we all know (that is if you know me at all) could have been a real bummer of a day. Thankfully it was the exact opposite.

Kate's Birthday

Sadly Kate's birthday took a back seat with all that we had going on. In fact somehow it just happened that it was my month to host 12 girls for dinner and Bunco that night. We gave her some gifts on her real birthday Thurs. then had my parents come over last night to help celebrate both of our Birthday's.
In random order:




The important thing, is that she had no lack of cake!

Our Kate turns 1!!

Tomorrow is Kate's 1st Birthday! I really can't believe it, and my emotions are many. Of course I am excited and happy that it's her birthday,and yet on the other hand I'm a wee bit sad that she is already so "old". With Kate being our 3rd child, I find myself wanting to embrace and enjoy each new phase and step. With Ethan we were so anxious for him to sit, then stand, and walk... With Kate we have enjoyed that she hasn't been in a big hurry to get around and suddenly grow up on us. We have taken advantage of every little snuggle whether she's willing or not. When I wake up in the morning and know that she's awake, I don't roll over wishing I had just 5 more minutes. In fact, each morning I am thrilled to open her door and see her standing there with her huge toothy grin. She has been a bright spot to our entire family. When we foun out we were expecting, we never could have guessed at even the fraction of joy she would bring to us. Kate is one of our very greatest blessings. We are so grateful she came to our family 1 year ago. We love you! Happy 1st Birthday and best wishes for 99 more!

Please excuse me while I take a walk down memory lane

Is this really going to be worth it?

A beautiful, big, baby girl!

love at fist site...

3 days old and as sweet as ever

2 months old

1/2 Birthday!

Is all this bundling really necessary?

Blessing Day


What a cutie pie

cute even when crusty around the edges


This is what she'll look like when she finishes her cake!

How did we ever live without you?

Go Ethan Go!

For some time now we have been meaning to teach Ethan how to ride his bike. He hasn't been too anxious and hasn't spent much time on the bike even with the training wheels. Ethan rides his scooter like the best of 'em and I figured that he would take to the two wheeler quickly. If only we knew he wouldn't need teaching we would have tried long ago.

Randall took his training wheels off and Ethan got on his bike. Before Randall could even get to the street to help him Ethan, rode off without him! Wow, were we surprised and excited. Not only could he ride but within just a few minutes, he could turn, go off a step, through the gutter, over grass and just keep pedaling. He rode as if he's been doing it for years.

Last night we took his bike up the canyon so he could show grandpa and grandma. He told grandpa "I can ride my bike now, and am really enjoying it!" He's such a funny boy. He rode for about 30 minutes back and forth through the mud and water weaving in and out of people without problem.

Way to go Ethan!

Canyon Celebration

Yesterday we went up South Fork in Provo Canyon for a post-wedding celebration. Randall's sister Jody was recently married and we went up the canyon to meet some of our new Brother-in-law karlek's family etc.

It was a beautiful afternoon. The weather was perfect and the stream cool. The kids had a great time playing in the water. Uncle Justin even took Ethan and some other cousins on a "bear hunt". Ethan said they saw a monster but weren't able to catch him. Too bad :)
Kate spent her time eating crackers from others plates. Right here she looks a wee bit pirate-like, searching for more treasure

Anna with cousin Laurellin

Anna did her best to enjoy the stream without getting wet or dirty. She did well until the end when she fell in and got a muddy bum.


We had a fun time and give our congrats to Jody and Karlek!

Mother of the year!

Last week I was needing a break in the normal routine. Randall had been on 2 business trips within 10 days of each other and I needed a little "me" time. I decided to just do what I could with what I had. So...I bought the kids some ring pops and VIOLA, self-made me time. One of my best ideas so far. I took the kids into Roberts Craft to just look around.(One of my favorite things to do for fun) The kids were all quiet, content and happy to just follow me around as they enjoyed their lollipop. Ethan did remark once that he "didn't have time for this". I guess crafts aren't his thing. Kate was especially in heaven. When I first put it on her finger she kind of looked at it like "is this a new binki?" I thought it may not even fit in her mouth but sure enough it was perfect. By the time we got in the car she pulled it out and it was perfectly formed to the roof of her mouth. It could have passed off as a "nuk" binki. A lady walked past me once and kind of smiled. I remarked to her "yep, mother of the year here" She said "you do what you have to do". That's right and that's what I'm doing.

Do I dare try this?

Hmmm...

This might be a keeper

I think I could get used to this

Ethan's ring pop sure made him happy

Finished!

Okay, so before I talk about the book I just want to say why wasn't I invited by any of these "crazy" girls to a book release party. I'm a party animal. I could have added to the party atmosphere. It would have been fun. You better remember me next time...or else.

Anyway, I digress. Thankfully a friend of mine went and stood in line for an hour and a half at Barnes and Noble to get me my copy of the book. Little did we know that Seagull Book was selling them as well and there wasn't a line. Oh, well.

Well, After I post this I think I might get virtually stoned, because I did enjoy it yes. I thought she did a good job of wrapping things up. But... I wasn't just drawn in and staying up all night to read like I did with "Twilight" and "Eclipse". Is it me? Probably so. Anyhoo, it was a good read and I'm glad I read it. I finally finished it yesterday at the gym. I rode the bike just so I could finally sit down and get er' done. By the way just to make me even more disliked I...didn't...like..."The Host" Whew, I feel so much better now that that's off my chest. All I have to say is go Bella.

Oh, and by the way what is your interpretation of the cover for the book? This is my take. Bella used to be a small, clumsy, un-noticed and no more significant that any other high school girl. A "pawn" in her mortal world with flowing blood-thus the red pawn. In the end, without her they would never have won the game. In the game of chess the Queen is the most powerful piece. Bella went from being a mortal "pawn" to the Queen and central figure of the game, all powerful. Without Bella the "match" would not have been won. If you want me to go on she is also now beautiful, pale and strong as is the white queen piece on the cover...a penny for your thoughts?

Girls Weekend

This weekend was awesome. I went with 3 of my girlfriends up to Park City for the night for some girl talk, good food and lots o' outlet shopping. One of my friends parents has a beautiful home in Park City that is currently vacant while they are on a mission and she was gracious enough to let us stay there for the night. Thanks Jordan! It was a beautiful home up on the Mountain with a gorgeous view of Park City.

Friday night we went to dinner at "The Cheesecake factory". I was proud of myself since it didn't take me and hour and half to look through the menu and order. The food was good and the dessert even better. Okay, I'm not a big cheesecake fan so I broke the mold and went with a lovely layerd chocolate fudge cake that was awesome. It was rather large, and even too rich for me to finish which is saying something. Nothing is too rich for the likes of me. On our way up to the house we saw 3 moose. Two of them were a mother and baby. It was incredible. They were literally 20 ft. from the car. We stopped and watched them for awhile. We also saw many deer, and other sorts of wildlife creatures. Then we sat around the house and told old dating stories, talked about our wonderful husbands and all that good stuff until about 1am.

This morning I woke up and sat out on the porch to try to finish the last of my vampire book. I'm about 60 pages to the end but just can't get the time to sit down and finish. Hopefully tonight. The morning was fresh, cool and so peaceful. I slept with the windows all the way open to sleep in cool mountain air. I love sleeping in a cool room with fresh air. It made me crave the up coming fall.

We went to breakfast at a deli on Main Street, then headed over to the outlets for several hours for some school shopping and such.

Randall was great to watch the kids. I am so lucky to have someone so willing to let me have some away time once in awhile to relax and rejuvenate. He probably knows I will come home more relaxed and happy.

One of the greatest things of the trip was that we able to talk about all sorts of things from silly to serious, spiritual and uplifting. It was nice to talk with other Moms about all the current concerns we have with our kids in school, how to teach them good things, books we are reading etc. It was a weekend much needed and even more enjoyed. Thanks girls for such a great time, and to Randall for making it possible.

Family update

We're back, mostly unpacked and just about as tired as Anna looks in this picture. Brittney guessed right and now matter how hard we try this must be the place for us. We are back living in the same town homes we were living in exactly 1 year ago. We purchased a 4 bedroom 2 and 1/2 bath place that was owned by a single, older lady that kept the place looking brand new. It is two years old and we are excited about having everyone have their own room. Our plan is to live here 2 years or so and then keep this as a rental property. A good way to build wealth-so we are told. When I drove by and finally saw a "SOLD" sign I wanted to cry tears of joy. Of course I had to document it as this is our first home purchase. We love the neighborhood and the ward. The only problem is that a lot of our friends who were here when we were have now moved on. I guess that means we'll just have to make new ones.

We quickly learned that as home owners there is always maintenance to be done. Our first order of business was to take care of the many wasps nests that were on our place. I guess they like this house as much as we do. Randall decided that although we had wasp spray and our neighbors offered us a pole to remove the nests, he had a better plan, his pellet gun. Rand thought it wasn't any fun to just knock it down, he wanted to shoot them down. My favorite line of the night was when he said "A man has needs", apparently shooting wasp nests is one of them. He even climbed up on the roof with his gun to shoot one of the nests off. The best part about it is that he is allergic to bees. I was standing close by with the phone to call 911 just in case he was stung. He does have a prescription for an epi pen but of course he hasn't filled it yet. Rand made it out alive, thankfully the wasps did not. I have to admit it was pretty funny to see his first shot hit the nest and about 40 mad wasps flying about.
Oh, on an unrelated note. I was feeding Kate the other night and looked up to give her another bite when it hit me...she looked just like Nacho Libre. I laughed so hard. I just had to capture it. And no I didn't purposely paint a mustache on her with her veggies. I guess it was just meant to be. She is crawling around now and has only fallen down our new steps once, and it wasn't all the way down. He birthday is in 3 short weeks and I can hardly believe it. I wish she'd stay this small and sweet forever!
In other news Rand continues to do well at work has been given bigger clients, and has begun to travel. This week he went to DC for two days and next week he will be in San Francisco for a day or two. I don't mind as long as it's not weeks on end. You have to impress the boss somehow right?

And no I am not brave enough to paint anything red as of yet. Although I am hosting Bunco this month so want things looking tip top by then. We'll see how it goes.

I'll post pictures as we do fun things and I feel a little more settled. this weekend we have a Barrett family reunion and Randall's Summer work party. I won't name the company because the last time I did his supervisor's services flagged my blog and he was able to read all about it. They are bringing in a Carnival to Thanksgiving point and have given the whole family free passes to all that is available there all day tomorrow before the festivities. They gave everyone in the family a fun t-shirt to wear and Kate a onesie. I'm looking forward to eating my weight in cotton candy. :)