A day in the life with a dog...

(You know those helicopter leaves that you threw around as a kid? Well, for the first time-ever for me, I actually saw them on a tree! That is what those little white things are.)

Today was a lot of fun for the Fairall's...well, after we finally all were up (mainly after Chris & I pulled our lazy butts out of bed...) We decided to spend the gorgeous day outdoors. After trying to decide on going to the zoo - or somewhere Minnie could go...we opted for taking Minnie. We packed lunch for all parties involved & headed out.

We first went up to the dog park in Salt Lake. There were a few other dogs and our Minnie really likes to be leader of the pack...(fits right in with us huh?) She kept getting bugged when a different dog would come sniffing around me. She is so protective, it gets rather annoying. We were there maybe a half hour or so and then headed off to the next destination.

Next destination...Toys R Us. Christianna has had a little gift card since her birthday so we decided that a day before it expires would be a good time to use it! She picked out these crayola window crayons. They are seriously AWESOME!! Luckily the girls are old enough to clean up after themselves and have experience in cleaning windows....so the mess isn't a really big deal. (I am contemplating getting some for my self actually.)

We then headed up to City Creek Canyon. By now it is almost a half hour past lunch time and the girls were "starving." After we found a lovely picnic table with a view, we settled down to eat. Let me tell you, it definitely was chilly and we were all glad we brought hats & mittens. Once the bellies were full, we headed up through the canyon. I took some nice shots of the scenery. Enjoy!

(We found a little hairy caterpillar. They really wanted to bring it with us.)

4:00 am and the dog is puking on my floor!

Yeah, this was a fun awakening for me. All of a sudden, when I am peacefully sleeping...and it is still quite dark out....I hear this heaving sound next to me. Not to the right - that is where Chris is sleeping, no! it is from the left....where Minnie is trying to hack something up.

You see, she tends to eat non-food-like materials. BECAUSE SHE IS PSYCHO! The evidence was right there (of course on my side of the bed): mingled with gross goo, were a couple flesh colored arms, dark brown hair...and I am thinking...pieces of a face/head. Before you think - "great, she actually ate one of the neighbor kids," I will share a bit of interesting info.

We had been gone earlier yesterday for about an hour while I had scouts. (Yes, I am a scout leader over the Webelos.) I came home to find a little torso on my floor. Earlier that week a friend had returned my doll pick used for Barbie cakes. I just threw it in my bag & forgot it was there. Well, Minne smelled it or something...maybe there was a little frosting smell...WHO KNOWS! She decided that the best course of action would be to just eat the whole thing! I found alot of the hair on the floor too, looked like we had a cat heave a hairball. But there was no head or arms left!

So, there you have it. I figured that I was too tired to even grab my camera to show you the mass destruction...but I have a feeling that you probably don't mind the lack of photographical evidence. Am I right? Oh, and now I have to find another doll pick since Barbie cakes are all the rage at our house.

"I'm swinging in the sun!"

We are proud to report that Christianna has taken one GIGANTIC step towards becoming independent! The other night we went for a walk and she got right on the swing and just swung herself! FINALLY!!! Victoria was an excellent coach too.

I took pictures & a little video on my phone, but have no way of actually getting them off of it. NICE. So we went back after school later that week and took more. It was a beautiful day, a bit windy, but we didn't mind.

I loved the video - except for the fact that it is sideways...sorry about that one. She is singing a fun song, not sure if you can make it out. But listen to her rendition of "Singing in the Rain."

Did you catch it? "I'm swinging in the sun...I'm swinging in the sun!"

Planes, trains & huge snowdrifts!

Today I had a Pampered Chef show way up in North Ogden. The weather here in Salt Lake has been unseasonably warm, so I was all planning on wearing some cute spring-like outfit to the show. Well, I am soooo glad that I didn't! I got up there and saw a ton of snow & boy, was it nippy! As I was leaving, I had to get some pictures of the snow! It is hard to tell, but those piles were level with my car windows! Now that is what I am talking about! I LOVE snow. It brought me back to my younger days when we would go to upstate NY to visit my grandparents & extended family. They always had that much snow every winter. It was a BLAST playing in it & sledding on it. (I resisted the urge to borrow a sled and have at it.)

Anyway, after the show I went to the train station in Ogden to pick up Chris & Christianna. Victoria was at a friend's birthday party so he decided to take the FrontRunner commuter train to meet me. I found them looking at old trains & then we ate at the restaurant there - The Union Station Grill. Yummers!! We headed back home just in time to pick up Victoria.

(OK, so there were no airplanes in this story...unless you count the ones we heard overhead??? I thought it was a catchy heading.)

I hate the I phone

***This post actually was composed in the middle of January - at the time, I was having a very rough venting kind-of morning. Now Chris has been back from his trip to PA, for a couple weeks now, and it hasn't been nearly as bad. But I have seen that phone rear it's ugly head more recently. So, with out further ado - here it is!***

Seriously, this issue has been plaguing me for a few weeks - ever since we went into AT&T to renew our contracts. I have always been the type that feels like a cell phone should make & receive calls..and that is it! I do not need all the other crap that they stuff into a piece of plastic that could fit into the palm of your hand.

Ever since he chose to get the frills phone, he never puts it down! There is always some application or game or some other annoyance going on. I feel like it is just a hand held game that he has to constantly play. Before the age of the I phone in our home, he just had his phone sitting in his little holder on his belt & he only took it out to make or take a call from someone. I am missing those peaceful days.

I am truly tired of seeing it in his hands - even during dinner or watching TV or a movie!! The past few nights I have fallen asleep to the constant glow of the screen from the other side of the bed. I was so fuming about it as I fell asleep last night that I seriously had a dream about it! I dreamt that we got the first bill for it and it was over $100 MORE that what our bill used to be! We will see when we get it, he does have a tendency to underplay the cost of things by giving me a low ball number - I was told that our bill will be about a $30 difference....time will tell.

SO for all you Disney fans who have seen the Emperor's Groove, in Eezma's words..."I want to take it & smash it with a HAMMER!!!" I know I would sleep better.

***PS - the hammer idea is still there...in the back of my head.***

I Love to See the Temple

Today was a wonderful day. We all got up early - especially for a Saturday - got in our Sunday best and and prepared to leave. We, along with Kayla and the kids, were heading down to see the new Draper Temple. We were meeting Chris's brother, David & his friend, Katrina there so we were a little worried about getting there on time because we woke up to a few inches of snow on the ground & it was still falling. It truly was a beautiful sight! (I know the picture looks hazy, but the snow was still falling when we arrived.)

We had our directions and went on our way. We drove to a stake center in the Draper area, watched a video about Temples and then boarded a bus to go to the Temple. This is very special for many reasons, but a big one for me was that the girls were able to go in! (For my friends who are not as familiar with the church...this is an experience that has to wait for children until after they turn 12 and then they are restricted to a specific area. Then after they are young adults either going on a mission or getting married - can enter the Temple and go to other rooms & areas. We attend the temple to do work for the dead. We perform baptisms & sealings for family members who have passed who did not have the opportunity to learn of the gospel in their lives on earth. They then have the option to accept it as true or not...but the ordinances are done.) The church opens the temples to the public before they are dedicated so everyone can see what it is like there. And I can tell you that it is beautiful. It is a quiet and serene place where we can go to worship our Father in Heaven and learn more about him and ourselves. I was overfilled with joy that day. To be in the temple with our girls and to ponder on the importance of ETERNAL families is one of the Lord's most wonderful blessings. We are so blessed to have the ones we love on earth bound to us, not just for time or until death parts us, but for all eternity.

Scouting is HOT!

Well, that's if I am your leader! He, He!!

(Is that inappropriate??)

The boys participated in a flag ceremony at the school during the Abraham Lincoln celebration. They did an good job, but we all realized that they definitely need a little more practice with the technical stuff. Chris valiantly tried to get me to wear the scarf too - he is HILARIOUS!!!

Burbs, Anyone?

I came home to find that Minnie was nowhere to be found & this note was lying on her pet bed...any die-hard Burbs fans should get it!

(Luckily, I hadn't left in too much of a hurry. I had time to grab my hairpiece!)

Now - for anyone who hasn't seen the movie, it is HILARIOUS! One of the many "new" things I experienced after marrying Chris.

Oh, what a night!

We ACTUALLY celebrated my birthday!!! No other events stood in our way!!!

I originally wanted to have a family celebration and I am so glad that we shared this experience with the girls! Chris called a little after 4 to let me know that we had reservations for 5:30. So in between a ton of phone calls within the following 40 minutes, we all managed to be ready & presentable...seriously, how do people just know when you are busy? It is like a beacon suddenly appears over your house & everyone returns calls then. Weird!

Anyway, we had such a fun time there - a first for us...ha, ha - meaning going to Benihana's! We have fun quite often actually. We really enjoyed the show of seeing our food prepared in front of us. Christianna, of course, told everyone that he made his shrimp so much better than me. It did taste fantastic! It is hard for me to eat out for a couple reasons, normally I evaluate the food - for example - comparing it to my own dishes (my chicken is juicier-take that shrimp man!) & also how much more "cost effective" it is to make it at home. So I tried really hard to NOT focus on that for the evening. Afterwards, we stopped by Sam's Club for a cheesecake and headed home for some dessert.

It was a great day!

Another Year Older (and a few grey hairs later...)

So is life, huh? Well, I turned 31 today. It is kinda funny - last night I was talking on the phone with a fellow Pampered Chef team member & when I told her how old I was going to be, she said "Ah just a baby..." BUT at the very same time Christianna said "You are so old!" Isn't life grand?

I am actually quite excited for my birthday this year because it has got to be a good one! Let's just say the past couple haven't been that memorable - well a little, but for all the wrong reasons. Last year was Super Bowl Sunday - yippee for me! If it wasn't for my very good friend Liz, whose house we were at, I wouldn't have even had a cake! She was so sweet getting me a cheesecake - my FAVORITE!! The year before that, I was asked to take photographs for a friend's sisters wedding -but they also had cheesecake for dessert, so that was ok.

This year Chris was going to take the day off so he could dote on me all day, however, he was assigned a recruit for training this week & couldn't take it off. But tonight we have plans!!! I would really like to have my favorite meal (stromboli) for dinner - but Chris is leaning toward taking me out for dinner. I can see why, since he doesn't get home until almost 5 and I am such a scheduled freak that I feel like I am starving by 5:30! (He knows me so well.)

Here's to a fantastic evening out! I will keep you all posted as to how it went.