The Graduate

Cue the Simon and Garfunkel.  Saturday was a great day for Big Miss.  We are so proud of her for sticking with it and accomplishing her goal.  Yes, there were some weeks we had to talk to her about the cons of dropping out.  Mostly it was things like, 'You can't even get a job at McDonald's', and 'You will regret it for the rest of your life because you are so close.'  Fortunately, she listened and can now call herself a high school graduate. 

She is also not the only one in the family who is glad high school is over.  On to bigger and better things, I say.  Darren and I are both excited (and scared, truth be told) for her young adult phase.  She is a great girl and will do well.  We love you Big Miss.  Congratulations!

Darren has informed me I should never give his dad the camera to take pictures.  This is the best picture of the four of us taken with my camera.  I love you Curt, but I may have to fire you as camera man.  Does anyone have a cuter one of us?

Keep smiling and remember to be happy

It's Friday, I'm in Love

I totally saw on my cousin's list today that it had been 6 MONTHS since I posted last.  Crazy.  We are still around, still figuring stuff out, and still having fun doing it.  Big Miss graduates in a few weeks and between keeping her focused and silently saying thanks each day that brings us closer to the end of high school, we are all looking at what changes lay ahead.  Today's Friday Five are where each of us stands on the precipice of change.  It won't be deep, I promise.  Here's the list:

1.  Darren is transitioning from working out indoors to golfing once a week.  I know, poor baby.  Seriously though, it has been a year for him at his company and so far so good.  I am always glad to have a happy husband join us each night.

2.  Big Miss is gearing up to graduate (as mentioned) and is taking advantage of using the "I'm a senior so I need to experience......" line whenever possible.  Today it was for participating in senior ditch day, which surprisingly, Darren nor I actually did as a senior.  She will be working this summer and saving for school.

3.  Little Miss is finishing up first grade and dance.  Why do I add dance in the mix?  Well, because the one day a week has turned into something that sometimes rules our lives.  Just this weekend she is involved in a competition.  True, it is at Lagoon, but that only mildly makes up for the dread that I feel being surrounded by dance moms.  Little Miss has declared she is done with dance after this.  Thank goodness.

4.  I am dreading the summer a little bit.  Not as much as I have in the past, but already I am wondering what I can do to entertain my very active 7 year-old.   How many times a week can we go to the library?  How often is too often at the splash park?  Summer, for me, has always been about reading as much as possible.  Can I institute reading time for Autumn and then say, "Now mom gets to read.  Don't bother me for 90 minutes"?

5.  Bailey is in the best shape out of all of us.  She goes with the flow and as long as she gets her chewy each night, is unbothered by coming changes.  Well, it helps that we had her shaved.  Lucky dog.

I hope you all have a good weekend! 
Keep smiling and remember to be happy.

Ten! And We'll Do it Again

Today is our ten year anniversary.  It sounds like a long time to me, but doesn't feel like it could possibly have been that long.  Or that we could be that old.  Didn't we just get married yesterday?  Here are ten things I've learned in the ten years we've been married:

1. There is no statute of limitations for being late to the temple to get married.
2. Car seat warmers are straight from heaven.
3. I can buy vegetables, but I should get what I like because I may be the only one eating them.
4. Keep tissues in every room.  There is no reason to use paper towels and napkins to blow your nose.
5. Why can't candy wrappers make it to the trash can?  I mention this to the family and ask if we live in a trash can, and then have to take a step back because I think I just sounded like my mom. 
6. Darren has a lot of 'baines of his life.' Here are just a few:  The wrapping paper container, hair clips all around the house, my pile of paper that sits on the microwave, eating in the car.
7. I have a good husband.  I really marvel sometimes and wonder how I got so lucky.  In the grand tradition of Han Solo, I'm sure Darren also wonders how I got so lucky.
8. Not only can food storage fit under the bed, it can be used to prop up the bed.
9. Vacations and trips just work better centered around Wyoming Cowboy sports.
10. Apparently neither of us think it is super important to celebrate our anniversary.  Big Miss had to remind us it was this week...

Despite the fact that we had to be reminded that it is our anniversary, I do love this man and am happy to be married to him.  We still have so many mountains to conquer, I'm glad I've got a good hiking buddy to keep me entertained, grounded, and to embarrass when I do a little jig.

Love you Honey B!  Here's to many more happy years.

Keep smiling and remember to be happy.

It's Friday, I'm in Love

It has been a while since I did one of these Friday things, but I've been thinking about this one for a while.  Little Miss just makes me laugh.  She has such a little personality.  I probably should be more patient more often, because i am always rewarded with some gem of her six-year-old perspective.  I need to record some of them for posterity.  Today's Friday Five are a few of my favorite Little Miss Missives.  Here's the list:

1. "'Get your body moving!'  That is what Aunt Ruth's exercise video says.  I am such a good exerciser and I am so strong.  I can totally lift the bars that say 6 because I'm 6 and Aunt Ruth can only lift the 5."  Not that it is a competition Ruth, I promise.

2. "Mom, I know what I want to be when I grow up.  I am going to be a tooth fairy.  I'll have wings and wear tights and I'll leave lollipops for the kids.  The really big ones that are all different colors and are circles and have all different flavors.  Kids really like those."  My comment about job security went over her head.

3. Darren and I were talking about finger prints and I was explaining that even identical twins had different fingerprints.  Darren was dubious, and apparently Little Miss picked up on it because from the back seat she said, "How do you know, GEOLOGIST?"  That one still makes me giggle.

4. "Man, it feels like I am going to be tardy.  I'm going to be tardy, aren't I mom.  Maybe I should drive.  Man, it feels like we are so late."  We were actually 10 minutes early to school -- Little Miss is only learning about O'clock and half past the hour in school so me telling her the time meant nothing.  And she has only been late once, so no "I feel empathy for you Little Miss" from Aunt Jacqui, got it.

5. "Mom, you need to start teaching me how to do my own laundry.  When I am a missionary, I will have to do my own laundry, so I need to start learning now."  That one came out of no where on a Tuesday, but all I could do was agree, so I have her help me by separating her clothes.

I sure love this girl.  Even on tough days, you know, those days when I just want to go to bed so I start again tomorrow, I do love Little Miss.  She brightens my days.  Have a good weekend.

Keep smiling and remember to be happy.

Who is That Masked...

 Jacqui wanted to see Halloween pictures of the girls.  They both decided to be super heroes -- Big Miss dressed up for the youth dance on Saturday, and that is about the time Little Miss decided to be just like her big sister.  Here are some pictures from this weekend:

Big Miss had eyes in the back of her head because they couldn't technically wear a mask to the dance.  She was definitely an original.

Little Miss wanted a symbol for the front of her shirt, so I made one.  My favorite part of the whole outfit is her woman boots.  I just love them on her.

As for the home front, we had four groups ring our doorbell for candy.  We have a whole bowl left over.  If you need some sugar mosey on over to our house. 

Hope everyone had a good and safe holiday.  It is snowing here today -- glad it didn't do that yesterday.

Keep smiling and remember to be happy.