Spring Dance

My beautiful girl

Time sure flies.

I was always told to cherish every minute when my kids were little. That time flies by so quickly. How right they were!!!
I have loved every minute of watching my children grow. And thankfully they are still some-what young enough to enjoy! Although, these teenage years are sure coming fast.

Alixx started the 7th grade this year. MIDDLE SCHOOL. Wow.
I guess I always figured she would stay little forever. She was so excited to go. Not too worried about finding all of her classes, not knowing anyone, not having recess, etc.. etc.. I was the nervous one! Nervous about my baby growing up that is!

Middle school has been great for her. Her school is wonderful and full of great opportunities.
She took choir this year and has absolutely loved it. She has performed 3 times now and we are looking forward to one more to end the school year. Her teacher is simply amazing.

She has also been in the school play, which she loved. She has a great drama teacher and is looking forward to drama 2 next year. She is on the track team, and is so proud that she can run 5 miles non-stop! I would probably have a heart attack and die. I am so proud of her for trying things that interest her.

I think one of her favorite things about this school are the dances.
They had the spring dance last night and she looked GORGEOUS! How could she not? She is GORGEOUS! She danced with lots of boys, which I'm not overly excited about, but I know she is a good kid and I trust her.
I'm just glad that we have a good realationship and she feels comfortable talking to me. I hope we will always be close and I hope she knows how proud I am of her and how much I love her!

Opportunity knocks...

Wow, The power of prayer.
I have been praying so hard for answers of whether or not we should move, and if so, where to go.

Well, over the past few weeks, opportunity has been knocking down our door. It's such a great thing, especially in these hard economic times.

I have the opportunity to start working full time, possibly as early as mid-April. This would mean having good health insurance again. Being self employed means buying your own insurance, which is VERY expensive and not worth a dime! Of course with being full time, comes more money and that is a bonus in itself!
I haven't worked a full time job in over 10 years, and while I'm not overly excited about it, I am okay with it because it still fits with my children's school schedules, including having summers off! YAY!!!

Mike has been asked to serve on an advisory committee through my school, which could lead to even more opportunity.
There is even the possibility of him teaching a cabinet making class at one of the High Schools next year. IS that perfect for him or what???
I forgot to mention that he has been picked up by a local metal worker to build mall kiosks! He loves it because it's challenging and new.

Well, that may not seem like much, but right now for us this is great! It has been a long, cold and very slooow and tough winter for us and we are looking forward to happy, sunny times ahead!

We still don't know where to "be" but at least it's looking like we might have some options. I'll just keep praying.

Indecisive

Well, we are getting ready for an Open House today to try to sell our home. Up to this point I have been ready for it to sell so I can go "home." However, this past week I have been a little sad thinking about it. And last night, as I watched Zack and the many, many neighborhood kids play in the dirt pile in the empty lot next door, I was sad thinking about leaving.

It's all about me, this move. It's because I haven't been able to handle being away from my family. Well, I guess it's not all me, but mostly!

The kids are so happy here, and as I mentioned, there are so many kids for them to hang out with. The weather has been SO great this week, and with the time change, it's been light outside until nearly 8:00. Zack has spent every minute he could playing out in the dirt. They are building a "climbing wall" for the neighborhood kids to play on. i LOVE it! It reminds me of when I was a kid. I had so many friends to play with in the neighborhood that I was never alone or bored! At out old house we hardly any kids. The kids were constantly complaining they were bored and always wanted to go to Grandma's just for a change of scenery!
BUT, at the same time, Zack was telling his friend Josh about our wonderful yard at the old place was and that he missed it. He loved climbing the trees (we have none here!) and playing in the playhouse. I guess we could have those things here, but we are still missing our families. I guess we just have to get them out here!

I love how peaceful and quiet it is out here. Really. You never hear sirens or cars zooming by. Occasionally I hear a dog bark or a cow moo, but that's about it other than the laughter of the kids playing outside. And that I love!
Living in the country really is nice.
It certainly is a lot less rushed and stressful and not to mention safe!
UGHHH!!!
WHAT TO DO!!???!!

To grandmother's house we go.....

Ever since I was a little girl, one of my favorite places to go is to my grandma's house.
She lives in Holladay in a home that my great-grandfather built. It is a small home filled with love and memories.
My great-grandfather built it, and my grandparents lived on the back of the property until they later inherited it. Way back in the day, they had an outdoor kitchen. It has definitely seen better days,and although I can't recall it ever being used in my lifetime, I have many fun memories of baking mud pies in it!

One of my greatest memories is playing secretary in my grandpa's garage. The garage is great. It looks like a barn from the outsde, but inside it's greasey and obviously a mechanics workshop. I love the way it smells. Grandpa had a little desk-like area that I would sit at and I would pretend to take calls and messages for him. He use a distributer cap for a pencil holder and always thought that was so clever!

I always loved spring time at grandma's. We always had a fun Easter egg hunt in the front yard. All the cousins would come and we would have the best time.

I'm so glad I got to visit my grandma today. I miss her and the fun times we had growing up.
I can't wait to move back so I can see her more.

How to succedd in the business world with even trying

A few months ago Alixx tried out or the school musical. We were so excited to hear that she made it!
It's a small part as one of the secretaries, but nontheless, a great part!
We went to see her Friday night. It was a great play, and she did a fantastic job as a jittery, coffee mad secretary.
It was hard to get good pictures as she moved around so quickly, but here are a few.

How I would change the world

I have to say that I haven't been the most positive about my job over the months. I have come to realize over the past few weeks, that I actually really like my job though. I work with some amazing kids.
For those of you who don't know, I work at an alternative high school. Now, my first thought was that I would be working with a bunch a misfit, naughty kids who just don't care. Ah, was I mistaken! (Thankfully!)
Now don't get me wrong, some of these kids really are naughty, but for the most part, they are all great kids.

I have a handful or so that I really enjoy seeing each day. They actually brighten my day! One in particular, I will call NP.
NP is a large guy, about 6'1-6'2ish and very broad. Not fat, just a big guy. He has tattoo's galore and huge gaged ears. First glance, you are taken back a bit, but once you get to know him you find that he has a heart of gold and despite his appearance, he is a softy! And really, he likes to be nice!

This week we have been writing essays about "How I would change the world." Now considering the economy, I really figured that most kids would write about jobs or money or something, but boy was I surprised. I had one kid write about how she would make it so you couldn't build anymore new homes. That we should have to fix up all the old homes and neighborhoods to make them nice and safe. And that by not building new homes it would save farm land which in turn would mean fresh produce for all. Hum....I like this!
Another wrote about stopping child abuse, one about homelessness and poverty, and so on. WOW! Great kids!
NP wrote something that surprised me too. He reads the Bible a lot and really has a strong belief in the Lord. His essay was about adding a Spritual class to the day. He thought that if everyone would just take an hour each day to read the Bible, the world would be a better place. His thought was that, while he is not L.D.S., he like the idea of seminary. Why shouldn't all religions have a class? He also feels strongly that Prayer should be a part of school.
I wish I had a better memory so I could quote from his essay. He really had some great points to share. They all did really. I honestly have to say that some of these kids are going to make a difference in the world somehow or other. And I am really grateful for the opportunity I have to work with these kids each day.

On a side note, the song that should be playing now, is called Chicken Fried from the Zac Brown Band. NP was listening to it in class one day and I over heard it and loved it! That's another funny thing about him, he looks all tough and rough, but he's a cowboy at heart and let's everyone know!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Happy birthday dad!
I had such a great time spending time with you today. I can't wait to move home so I can hang out with you. I'm really looking forward to some bike rides and working on the car with you.
Here is one of my favorite pictures of us together.

Have a great day!
XOXOXOXO

Peery's Egyptian Theater

On Saturday Mike and I took Zack to a movie at the Egypian Theatre in downtown Ogden.(Kelsey was down in Salt Lake for the day)
We have driven past it many times and have been very intriged by the unique building.
Once a month they host the Len Allen Saturday Matinee. February's feature was Open Season 2. It was an okay movie, but such a great atmosphere! They have a wonderful organist that sets the tone of an old fashioned theatre. Actually, it reminded me of Disneyland! I loved it. They start off with an old Bugs Bunny movie and an old fashioned black and white film. Then they raffle off prizes. They gave away games, shirts, hula hoops and a bike. Unfortunately Zack wasn't a prize winner, but he had a great time anyway!
This was such a grat way to spend a chilly last day of February.
Come with us later this month, March's feature is Madagascar 2. It's free for kids under 16 with a milk cap and only $4.00 for adults.