Welcome to the 801

We had a beautifully PLAIN cement wall.  What to do, what to do.  

We did a little research and definitely over estimated our abilities.  

We did take a few extra minutes to make sure we weren't missing anything with this grand plan that would make us regret this moment.  And came up with nothing, so we proceeded with the plan. 

We made sure to get the kiddies involved of course.

You can see a part of Drew's "I love you . . . Dad."

And all you had to do when you went about the imaginary boundary line is say an audible "opps" - per Drew.  

Dirt will be here soon.  

Just think, I would have never had the opportunity to come up with my tag signature. 

And Drew would not have his.

He become a master a tagging . . . just ask the smiley face with gun shots. 

And we just kept it going . . . Kate left her mark.

40 and Still Young (and bald-ish)

Ansen hit a big one this year . . . 40 years old.  

We didn't stray too far from the usual . . .
family party - with Ryan (34) this year

balloons to the office - where we decided NOT to run out of gas on the way home this year.
Dinner at Asian Star this year.

homemade German chocolate cake . . . that I have now mastered. #17years

but we also really, really tried to announce his 40th. 

We pre-ordered a bunch of black balloons to stake into the yard with Over the hill signs. 

But we don't quite have a "yard" and it was super windy.

I hurried and snapped a picture while these meager 10 balloons were still alive.

I had Ansen text me when he was leaving work, we waited 8 minutes and then staked them all in.
The yard dirt really ruined "the look" we were going for. 

There was 1 balloon left that Drew salvaged and brought inside.  Just in time for Ansen to get home.  #failhard (we honestly had that planned for 2 years)

Summer Time - Ashleigh Edition

Limes became scarce this summer and I started judging a drink locations solely based on limes present and sizes of lime wedges.  Again, I'm aware I have a problem. 

 

Becky did a figure competition and we all went down to support her.  It was a funny, fun experience.  And then we supported her all the way down to Leatherby's for some ice-cream. 

My "Ray Berriz" that I negotiated my own sale of with a man in the subways of Spain broke . . . and it was tradgic. 

 

 

I dropped a gallon of milk and it broke - and went everywhere. 

 

My mom did not yell at me. 

I patiently went golf club looking with Ansen - it was worthy of notation.

 

 

 Warning:  When you move in with your Mom, you might revert back to a teenage form of yourself - with kids.  She sent me for pictures, a return and a watermelon.  I came home with this, including enough socks to sock the country of Africa and 3 yummy popcorns on sale with no pictures and the forgotten return.  But I got the watermelon. 

 

The kids (and Banna) made us a surprise fruit pizza for our anniversary.  15 years with this guy . . . and looking forward to another 15 (eyes wide open). 

 

I noticed right off the new countertop arrangement at the Sinclair and had a 5 minute conversation about it with the employees and my friend I ran into there - there's a problem. 

 

My mom and I text pictures of the cute things our dogs to eachother.  There is no one else in this UNIVERSE I could do that with - besides my sister. 

 

 

 You better believe I wore my Harry Potter Snitch necklace in public . . . to soccer practice to use the clock . . . it's a locket with a watch.  Yeah, that cool.

 

A Good Washing

Lisa and I like to text pictures to each other every time we wash out our purses. 

It may appear like we spilled a waterbottle in our purse, but no, I promise we're just washing everything off.  Purses are dirty. 

Lisa's turn . . .

My turn . . . I went with soda this time.

Lisa's turn .  .

My turn . . . I went with lotion this time to condition everything.

  

 I know it's shocking that we have a routine with this and that it really does happen that often. 

We were driving and I had just finished telling Addie that I was so tired and my brain was done for the day. 

 

And then I notice this license plate and clearly it says something. 

I tried sounding it out - Stu -pio, Stooo-pide, Stu (u sound as in under) pid . . .

 

"Stupid Mom, it says Stupid."

 

Thanks Addie.  And I think I made my point.  

Just for you

  . . . on your birthday.  

What grown man doesn't love a balloon bouquet delivered to his office on his birthday?!  

We've been doing it for years to Ansen. Yah, he's at home in these pictures, but that was after he drove home from his office with a bunch of balloons stuffed in the back of the car.  

This year was no different . . . I like to tell people that he begs for balloons every year. 

But this year I wanted to give him something special.  So after we dropped off the balloons, I ran out of gas on the way home on the freeway . . . 

And then let my car battery die.  

 Turns out it wasn't his favorite idea.  

Stupid = 3 kids & 3 dogs

We decided to go for a hike to Battle Creek Falls over Labor Day.  The only glitch was we were dog sitting again for Susan and Sophie AND Jeter.  Yes, 3 dogs folks.  We are slowly (but surely) breaking Ansen down (bahahahah).

Anyway, the kids and I talked him into letting us take the dogs.  One dog for each child . . . what could not be perfect about that?

We first grabbed lunch and went to a park to eat.  Ansen was literally besides himself embarrassed that the drive through people would see that we had THREE dogs in the car and think we were "those kind of people." 

We got a lot of attention from other hikers for the dogs . . . see people LOVE dogs.  But we had to keep "taking turns" with the difference dogs, their leashes were CONSTANTLY tangled, no one could go as fast as Sophie wanted to go . . .  

But we got to the Falls.  Drew hurt his foot and pouted . . . Ansen had to rescue him. 

I thought it was be "fun" for the dogs to get in the water . . . and then walk in the dirt . . . creating mud all over them . . . which dried and caked to their fur.  No bid deal. 

The Falls were neat.

 

Ansen threw a small (JUSTIFIED ALBEIT) fit about the muddy dogs in the car.  I gave them all baths and we talked about how dumb of an idea that was.

But I love the dumb ideas because they never get forgotten. 

It's the dumb sunroof

Every night I goop my face up with my new sunburn relief gel and continue to be completely perplexed as to how I got a sunburn again.  It's usually just on my forehead and the bridge of my nose.  I'm not really out and about that much, I don't even walk in and out of stores yet  . . . I guess I get the mail and I sit outside with Drew on occasion.  But it wasn't enough to explain a daily sunburn. 

I finally figured it out . . . it's the sunroof in the car.  And it doesn't have to be open, it just needs to have the shade pulled back. 

Seriously. 

That's the life of a fair skinned, redhead.

Real . . . tried to anyway

We tried to go to the REAL game, but it was sold out. Ansen made a bold move, stopped traffic and dropped us off in between the cones, the tape and the police so I didn't have to walk so far and then went to park the car.

The kids and I figured out they were sold out, but not first before getting a show of some guy irrately yelling at the ticket agent making a total fool of himself . . .

Then I called Ansen 17 times before I realized I was calling his office phone and not his cell phone. I also might have mentioned to the girls that it drove me crazy that he had a ring tone that he can't hear (which ligitimately happens - I don't always call his office phone).

Ansen kept wondering who was calling his office phone over and over on the weeekend since a message beeps into his cell phone everytime he misses a work call.   - This is a tidbit of information I found very interesting since I can NEVER get ahold of him at work (cell or office) . . . I'm not an annoying wife (I don't think) there's just things you need to be able to get ahold of him for.   

But we did get a refund on our parking.

you HAVE to just laugh

I found this post for awhile back that I never posted it, but reading made me remember the funny day and thought it was worth a post now.  I guess it reminded me to find the humor in the annoying things of life.

I had one of those random days and I had to share though I'm not sure typing will do it all justice . . .

I paid $55 for a man to spend less than 2 minutes pulling a dime out of my garbage disposal. Our garbage disposal jammed and Ansen was sure that the disposal had just died, so we called our home warrenty insurace to send some one out. I could tell it was going to go south when the same guy showed up that came a month ago to look at my shower issue (another day). Anyway, he walks in looks in the disposal and pulls a dime out with his "special tool" (long-nose pilers). I write him a $55 check. Then Addison and I spend 20+ minutes listening and trying to laugh at his jokes for the joke book he's writing (no joke). They are sersiously jokes like . . . why did the elephant wear red shoes? so he could hide in the strawberry patch. It was horrible. Last time he came he gave me detailed instructions about how to cook deer meat and then preserve it for an entire week.

Lisa Besa

Last Sunday the kids and I (Ansen was in Logan at a baby blessing) decided to go visit Lisa at her new apartment.  On the tour she showed us the storage room which had Lisa's candy stash.  In an effort to get some candy, Olivia went with this line . . .  "Those starbursts are sooo cute"  over and over until we finally paid attention and Lisa offered her some candy . . . Jackpot. 

One of me and Lisa's favorite stories from the past . . .

In 2003, Lisa and I got to sit by each other on the plane to Hawaii.  As the drinks were being server, we discussed and decided she would get Sprite and I would apple juice and then we would mix our drinks for a sparking apple juice.  Yummy, right? 

We put the plan in action, mixed our drinks and decided on this occasion (being a plane ride) we should toast and not just any toast, a intertwined arms toast.  We got a little excited and the next thing we know we've poured Lisa's whole drink in her lap.  Since she's not sure what to do, she just sits there while it runs down the seat below her and soaks her entire butt. 

It was funny, actually hilarious, since it wasn't my wet rear. 

Not too much later, I had  tiny baby Addison on my lap (yes, I was mixing drinks and toasting with my sister on an airplane all the while thinking I was old enough to be a mother) and she knocked my tray table and my whole drink spilled all over the front of my lap.

It was funny, just not hilarious, since now it was my lap.

There we sat for the duration of the ride.  Lisa with a wet butt and me with a soaked lap. 
We were two Mormon adults on a plane, who wanted to enjoy a mixed drink and a toast. 

I guess it was just too much to ask for that day.

Motherhood

I was rocking Drew to sleep the other day and I noticed his Bumbo box in the closet and saw this . . .

So, I don't know about you other Mom's, but I can totally relate to this picture. It's like someone snuck a picture of me during mealtime. Except . . . usually I prefer a black evening dress (preferably with sleeves) or actually maybe just some black sweats. And I guess I do prefer an up do, like a french twist with diamond bobby pins or maybe, say, a ponytail. And I have problems with carpal tunnel so I don't usually lounge on top of the table with my baby. It seems to be easier to lay ontop of the black baby grand piano or something like that. I have to admit, that sometimes, he's on the kitchen counter top and I'm feeding him while I'm making lunch, talking on the phone and emptying the dishwasher. But that's a rarity, a real rarity.

Yes, yes. I would have to say that this picture depicts my life perfectly. Really it's a perfect picture of Motherhood.

(So, it makes me laugh now everytime I'm rocking Drew and I get a glimpse of it.)

Good bye and Good Riddance!

I'm using my 30 posts in 30 days to catch up on all the old posts I never had time to finish.

So, maybe you remember our Easter gift . . .

here: http://hatchies.blogspot.com/2009/04/addison-opted-to-have-easter-bunny-come.html

and here: http://hatchies.blogspot.com/2009/04/they-flyed-mom.html

(I don't know how you magically make the "here" go straight to the link and I'm not even looking into it for now)

and now, I EAT MY OWN WORDS . . .

The Chickens ended up being a disaster! Initially we thought we only agreed to keep the chickens for 1-2 weeks. We were taking them to some a great tax client I know with a chicken coop, but then it was still too cold and they were going to be smaller than the rest of her new chickens, so we had to keep them for 2-3 more weeks.

All parents, please note: Chickens are NOT so cute past 2 weeks old!

They stink, they're loud, they eat, drink and poop a TON! and then they start to fly and it can scare the bugeebers out of you.

I was sure that I was going to end up dropping the chickens off on my way to the hospital, but turned out we dropped them off a few days before. The girls were sad to see them go, but they have a great new home and my basement no longer stinks!

Though Ansen and I decided it wasn't one of my better ideas in the end, the girls loved them!

So, good-bye Big Mama, Snuggles, Tiny Tim and Betsy.

I forgot to get pictures of the chickens before we said our good-byes, but here's their new home and our sad/happy girls.

And the follow up story, that my girls still don't know is that a week after we dropped them off a dog got in and killed all of ours except Big Mama and all 24 our our friends' chicken. It was a massacre. If we had known that would be their fate we might have just let them go in the field across from our house 3 weeks ago. They made have even had a chance.