Me n the Boys

Grief Counseling

2012-02-10T16:22:00.001-08:00

First, a little background.

I’ve had my eye on this little jewel for a few months:

I’ve had my Suburban for nigh on 12 years. She’s been a great friend and seen us through car seats, smashed juice boxes, many a family vacation, new puppies, elementary school carpools, teenage basketball teams, driver’s training, taking kids to college, and much much more. Most of her exterior has been replaced at one time or another. 127,366 miles of togetherness. We’re moving on. It’s time she be retired. You know, gold watch, greener pastures, yada, yada.

So I’ve been using all of my best feminine wiles and a few less flattering ones (whining among them), but as yet there is no shiny white platinum (the platinum part costs extra!) Explorer in my garage. Yet.

Well yesterday my dear, beloved 90-year old grandma entered the hospital and my mom called last night to give us an update. I was not home so she got my hubby. Apparently she also mentioned that she was considering purchasing the VERY SAME car as I’ve been wanting! Well, Jeff knew that would not sit well with the wifey and that he’d be subjected to another round of ranting interspersed with begging, so he made her promise not to tell me.

Fast forward to today.

I called to check on Grandma. I could tell Mom was not at home so I asked her if she was at the hospital.

Mom: Um. No.

Me: Oh, where are you then?

Mom: [pregnant pause] I’m actually at the Ford Dealer.

Something in the way she said it made me know I was not going to like why she was at the Ford dealer…

Me: YOU ARE NOT BUYING MY CAR!!!!

Mom: Actually, I thought about it and if this one had leather seats…maybe. But, no, I’m getting the Edge.

Me: What COLOR? Not white PLATINUM?????

Mom: Well, yes.

OK, whatever.

My mom next calls my husband. At work. She doesn’t do that. He excuses himself to take the call.

Mom: The gig is up!

Jeff: Oh. I’m sooooo sorry. Did she go peacefully?

On the other end, the response is silence broken up by periodic muffled sounds. Jeff knows she must be too choked up to speak. It’s to be expected.

Jeff launches into consolation mode, comforting my mom through the loss of her honored mother. “…you know she lived a good, long life….”

Then this sound burst forth from the receiver in Jeff’s hand:

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

At this point my mom manages this reverent redirection,

“Oh no! The old bird is still with us!” *

___________________________________________________

*Note: I hasten to clarify that we appreciate a bit of wry humor in our family. Grandma IS often described as a tough old bird by those who know and love her best. She is a modern medical miracle of longevity despite every reason why her body should have shut down years ago. She is going on sheer will. We are truly grateful to still have her with us and yet will celebrate her full life when she decides to reunite with loved ones who have already travelled through the veil. Just so you know.

Fail

2012-02-03T16:35:00.001-08:00

It is often said that the true test of what children learn at home is how they behave when they are out of the home.

That is bad news for me.

I received this picture from #1 son, age 20, living as a missionary in Mexico City for the last 18 months:

This was the explanation:

“…a picture of the trash pile in our house that we have because we have been too lazy to buy trash bags…”

If you ever wondered what missionaries in Mexico City feed themselves, there you have it.

Also this week, I received a text from #2 son, age 18, student at college:

“i registered for spring and washed my sheets”

He washed his sheets for the first time since I made his bed when we moved him into the dorm in August. Yes, 160 days between washings. I knew it was going to be a problem.

No word yet if the sheets are actually back ON the bed or if now he’s just sleeping on the bare mattress.

*sigh*

I Married a Winner!

2011-12-15T09:44:00.001-08:00

We were invited to an Ugly Christmas Sweater party.

Well, if it had been a few years ago, we would have had plenty of sweaters to choose from. The one Jeff is wearing in the picture below (1992) was a Christmas staple for years.

I’m sure it was in the closet until recently. (Notice how I don’t mention the sweater I’m wearing?)

Of course, truly ugly sweaters are never appreciated as such in the era in which they reside. Or, maybe they are and we are just clueless. Hmmm. A mystery of life to ponder.

Regardless, I set off to find ugly Christmas sweaters. Prizes were involved, we had to make an effort.

I was stuck at home one day and thought I’d search that online garage sale called eBay. I found a lovely winter accessory themed vest with 3-D effects (pompoms).

All for $3.99 and $6.49 shipping. Money well spent. Done.

But then I started looking for Jeff.

Did you know there’s such a thing as “vintage ugly Christmas sweaters”? They want upwards of $100 or more for such things!! Uh, no.

For instance:

Then I just “googled” ugly Christmas sweaters. Guess what? WHOLE STORES are devoted to ugly Christmas sweaters! Check THIS out! However, still a little pricey for a joke.

So, I had a coupon and JC Penney was advertising some sweaters so we headed to the mall. However, the sale had expired so we were still looking at $30 for the one with reindeers on it. Jeff at least reasoned he might buy a more questionable sweater that he MIGHT wear again for $30 so he chose THIS. Meanwhile, he also picked up a few solid color sweaters on sale for $12. Big spenders, eh?

However, we knew the sweater he purchased was not a prize winner. BUT, he had an idea! What if we converted one of the plain $12 sweaters into a MASTERPIECE? Yes, that’s the ticket. So we returned the mediocre $30 sweater and went to work.

We brainstormed. I don’t think he slept at all that night as his mind was awhirl as he created. I drew inspiration from an old ornament I found that one of the kids had made in elementary school—a construction paper reindeer with handprints made into antlers. Jeff made a special trip to WalMart and we had everything we needed.

We arrived at the party and there were several good contenders…

Some couples came with a theme.

Extra credit for headgear and the little dance he did whenever you asked (his hat wiggled too).

Our party hosts (sans their wives, I hasten to explain). The tall one is wearing his mother’s sweater and she was a little offended when she heard why he wanted to borrow it (it also has a recipe for sugar cookies embroidered on the back!). The other one is wearing all women’s clothing. Just because he likes to.

Winners for best couple. I think it’s obvious they went the extra mile. We think they just wanted to get their money’s worth for the hairpieces they picked up for Dionne’s 70’s themed party last year.

Whatever. He didn’t even wear a SWEATER!?!

But no, here was the winner…

The lights add just that little something it needed and created a nice glow when we were outside. I only wish the pictures adequately showed the 3D effect of the reindeer head which is one of my socks, stuffed, and sewn on where it meets the antlers. Incongruently, when Jeff added the tongue, he forked it--like a snake.

Hands off, girls. He’s mine!

What did he win? Oh, the last pick in the white elephant gift exchange. So, 10 lottery scratcher tickets.

By the way, how many Mormons (with several advanced college degrees between them) does it take to figure out the instructions on a lottery ticket? Well, at one time we had at least eight trying to figure it out. We THINK we won $8. But now we have to figure out how to redeem them.

Fun night, thanks to our hosts! We hope it will become an annual event. Although, now the bar has been set. We’ll have to start planning now.

Meeting Zorrita, aka “Zoey”

2011-12-01T08:54:00.001-08:00

Yes, I am a pleaser.

My birthday present, my puppy. But….

My Mexican Missionary wanted a Spanish name. My (very vocal and persistent) son at home liked Zoey. In fact, I think he would have called her Zoey no matter what I named her.

I had looked at puppies last summer and found this little fuzzball that I immediately dubbed Sugar, so that was the name that had stuck with me.

We picked her up from the airport on Nov. 6th:

Brave girl. She flew all the way from Arkansas. All by her self.

She was so tiny. We thought we’d let her out at the little patch of grass at LAX, but it was so loud and chaotic we decided just to go home first.

Bryce tried to lure her out of the kennel as we drove home. She would stick her nose out, even got her front paws out a few times, but would not come out. Bryce put a small towel out on the seat in front of the kennel for her to sit on, but she just dragged it into her kennel (see the red towel in the picture below). She was perfectly fine to just hang out in her safe place.

We finally coaxed her out at home. It was raining, but she didn’t care. Every leaf commanded full attention.

She dragged around branches 3X her size.

FINALLY I got to hold her!

Bryce posted his picture with her on Facebook. Puppies are real chick magnets. Just sayin’.

But there was one more introduction that needed to be made.

Umm. Houston we have a problem. Sparky wanted to eat her. Severely maim at a minimum.

She kissed him, she rolled over for him, she crawled on her belly demonstrating her immediate and undying devotion and submission.

He growled, bared his teeth and snapped.

He growled for 3 days straight, I think he eventually broke his growler.

So that first night, they spent a lot of time apart.

She’d had a big day.

She snuggled in and fell asleep on Bryce’s lap while we were skyping with Tyler, cozy under her new snuggie courtesy of Dionne. We melted.

She fooled us into thinking she could have been a Sugar. We didn’t understand then that she was just EXTREMELY sleepy.

But she’s definitely a Zoey now.

Name Her!

2011-10-28T09:58:00.001-07:00

9 more days…

Sugar

Zoey

Scout

Reina

Zorrita

Kiki

Kimi

Chica

Dulce

Poppie

1 Gallon of Milk

2011-10-20T13:26:00.001-07:00

That is all I need to buy each week.

I’ve figured it out. It’s a symbol of all that’s making me sad.

In our heyday, we would buy 4 gallons of milk each week. Two gallons of whole milk for the toddler and two gallons of lowfat milk for the rest. I don’t remember when we went down to two gallons, all lowfat, but I seem to remember being pretty excited to regain that refrigerator real estate.

For years we’ve been at two gallons of milk each week. Even when Justin left for school, we still needed two gallons. They might last us a little longer, but I still pretty much picked up two gallons every time I went to the store and it worked out about right.

After Tyler left I continued to buy two gallons of milk. Soon, there were four gallons sitting in our outside refrigerator in addition to the one currently being used. They just kept stacking up and I forgot to notice.

Then that refrigerator died (in the hot days of September)and suddenly I noticed. Yuck.

Now I buy one gallon. I dread the day that a carton will do the trick.

I spent the first 25 years of my life dreaming of being a wife and a mother. I’ve spent the next 25 years living the dream. The transition from the first to the second is so exciting and welcome. I’m on the verge of the next transition, and I realize that I’ve been living my dream but now it’s almost over. I need a new dream.

Maybe once I get there I’ll think, “Eh, why did I make all that fuss? It’s green and lovely over here too.”

But right now, it’s looking pretty brown and desolate as I walk closer to the ledge begin to mourn the family we were. (this is the whining I warned you about a couple of posts ago)

And all I have is one darn gallon of milk in the fridge.

It’s His Birthday, Let Him Eat Cake!

2011-10-14T08:14:00.001-07:00

1996 - 3

2001 - 8

2006 – 13

2007 – 14

2008 –15

2009 –16

2010 - 17

We skyped (LOVE LOVE LOVE Skype) last night as he opened his presents (it was his birthday already in New York) and we hung out for an hour until it became officially his birthday in Utah. The middle of the night seems to be primetime for college freshmen, but we could barely keep our eyes open and there wasn’t a fancy mirror ball that dropped 20 stories or anything.

Undying gratitude to our friends the Spikers for supplying his cake this year. His UT grandparents are also filling the gap. A little piece of my heart has just broken off not being there. We love this boy!

Oh, and, Tyler got this cryptic message from his roomie:

Explained here:

Yes, I’m sorry. Like a car accident, you won’t be able to look away. You’ll be singing/quoting it all day.

Fact Checking

2011-10-12T09:01:00.001-07:00

Last night--

Mom: I thought your blog was funny. But I never had 7 OR 9 dogs.

Me: Really? Didn’t you have 7 puppies?

Mom: Oh,well. Puppies. There were 7 of those…plus two adults. Ok, 9. But they were puppies. Not that tall.

Fact 1: They are still pretty tall. Here is a picture (thank you www.ibizan.freeservers.com) of Ibizan hounds, which is what my mom has. These look to be rather youngish, maybe a little bigger than those 7 puppies were at the time of Jeff’s introduction.

Fact 2: Have you been around puppies? Especially big puppies? One puppy seems to take up as much space as 3-4 adult dogs since they are in perpetual motion (until they crash from sheer exhaustion). So, I don’t think the fact that most of them were puppies helps her case.

Fact 3: While you may say, “puppies are short term, they eventually leave to their forever homes”… you don’t know my mom. Always one or more were keepers. And, all of her puppies came with a lifetime guarantee. So, more than a few bounced back over the years.

Fact 4: Shake all mental images of outdoor living. Huntington hounds have full use of the household.

Fact 5: One particular occasion will go down in the hallowed halls of Huntington history (how about that alliteration??) We were settling down to watch something on tv and the dogs were restlessly circling the area. My mom chastised my dad,

“George, get off the couch! The dogs have nowhere to sit!”

To her everlasting chagrin, she realized not only did she say that out loud, but she said it in front of her son-in-law.

Did I mention he has a good memory?

I rest my case.

P.S. These little idiosyncrasies are demonstrative of an underlying generosity of spirit and only add to our love and enjoyment of all that is Nancy!

Tyler Has Been Replaced

2011-10-03T19:38:00.001-07:00

Tyler’s departure to college left the house entirely too quiet. Not that Tyler ever made much noise, but since January he’s been getting home at noon. After graduation, he was gone on excursions a little more often, but Bryce was home too.

Since August, there’ve been a lot of long days of

quiet.

So, I initially tried to replace

THIS

With THIS

But my mom came up with a

BETTER idea…

While I was growing up there were two kids and two dogs in our house. After my ~~little~~ younger brother left for school, my mom filled her empty nest with seven dogs. Seven? Were there only seven? Maybe there were nine? Anyway, seven to nine TALL dogs. This is about the time my husband (then not my husband) met my family.

My parents are back down to two dogs.

My husband has a good memory.

I had to pinky swear that two is my limit (since we already have one).

I knew I had him when he started thinking of names for MY our puppy.

She’s not Tyler, but she’ll be a good distraction for sure.

Already she’s distracted me from whining this week (more on that later…) and I won’t even get her until November!

Thanks mom and dad for my early birthday present!

Ongoing Education

2011-09-02T10:09:00.001-07:00

nesting (ˈnɛstɪŋ) — n

the tendency to arrange one's immediate surroundings, to create a place where one feels secure, comfortable, or in control (World English Dictionary, Collins)

Compare this with:

empty nesting (ɛmptɪ nɛstɪŋ) — n

the tendency to arrange one's immediate surroundings, to create a place where one feels secure, comfortable, or in control (Lisa)

I think it’s time to paint. A lot.

Making a Dream into a Reality

2011-09-01T07:51:00.001-07:00

All for the everyday low price of…

$35

Although, you really can’t put a price on happiness like this!

Luke’s parents previously purchased chairs for said space (you can see one just off to the left in the picture). I asked Tyler what they would do with those. He assured me they still fit too.

Who knew you could fit a whole living room within a dorm room?

He Is, So We Are

2011-08-30T11:23:00.001-07:00

Happy.

Movin’ in to the dorm…

Peacock and Spiker part deux (Tyler & Luke are the “new and improved” Justin & Patrick). Remember THIS? That was just yesterday.

Note how high the beds are. I’ve heard tell that one of them (who shall remain nameless) has only fallen out of bed once so far, and that’s when he was wide awake!

I just know those sheets are not gonna be changed all ~~semester~~ year. It is really hard to make that bed when it’s up that high.

Here they are imagining the sweet couch they will find at DI.

They live in a new dorm, this is only it’s second year open. Most of the other dorms are named for famous people in Church history, but this one has yet to be dedicated. It is known only as the generic “Building 9” or “J Hall”.

Of course, the boys that reside in this dorm have suggested a name….

JIMMER HALL

Maybe we’ll just go with that for the time being.

We noticed that the dorm area comes alive after midnight. Two days ago these kids all had a curfew.

Tyler gets to look out his window every day and see these gorgeous mountains.

It was hard to say goodbye, but so much easier because we know what an amazing year he will have.

XOXOXO

Good News!! I am NOT the World’s Worst Mother…

2011-07-11T16:30:00.001-07:00

At least not today, anyway.

It all started innocently enough last November.

Send in a baby picture for your senior, they said.

Eh, no problem, I got a bazillion of those.

Except--

When I went to go find the book,

I didn’t.

Find it, that is.

I looked in every nook and cranny.

Nowhere.

I knew EXACTLY what I was looking for. But it just was not to be found.

I got this sick feeling in my stomach.

REALLY SICK.

What if it got tossed inadvertently? My beautiful son’s babyhood, POOF, erased.

He’ll think I don’t love him enough.

Talk about middle child syndrome. (I’m sure he’s long suspected something like this would happen!)

Fast forward 7 months. Every once in a while a new place to look will occur to me. But nothing. The dull ache continues.

About a week ago, Bryce was helping his dad clean up the garage after the various camping activities of the summer. I’m not home, but Bryce happens to mention later how his dad was cursing me (with love, I’m sure) when he came across this mystery box with all sorts of *garbage* in it. He (Jeff) was tempted to throw it away. Sure! he’s willing to throw MY boxes!! Let’s talk about that Spuds McKenzie sweatshirt that was packed in the garage for how many years? Seriously? But, I digress.

That’s right, you guessed it. Tyler’s babyhood has been rescued from obscurity (or, in this case, the garbage).

I cheered. I sang. I did a little dance.

I made Tyler sit down and admire his cute baby self.

(He had to go and ruin the moment by mocking our wardrobe choices. Red is a good color for me, I don’t care what he says about too many stripes….)

Of course, now I may actually have to FINISH the book.

And I Think I Neglected to Mention THIS Minor Occasion

2011-07-04T00:23:00.001-07:00

No bigs.

Just #2 son graduating from high school.

Eh. Once you’ve had one graduation in the family, you know, It’s really nothing special.

NOT!

We are so very, very PROUD of this young man! He kept us hopping in the weeks leading up to graduation attending award ceremonies where he added some hardware and dollars for college. Ho, hum!

But, who’s bragging?

That’s right. That would be… ME!

He loves kisses~

Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for braving the crowds!

Dr. Dixon was his 3rd and 4th grade teacher. One of those teachers who make a DIFFERENCE. This was the last class she taught before retiring so it was GREAT to see her there!

Then, as if I had nothing BETTER to do with my Thursday evening, I just followed him around taking pictures every time he flashed that handsome grin my way…

Um, I think something’s missing?

Back in the Day

2011-07-03T23:57:00.001-07:00

Bryce and I were playing cards tonight. Truly, he is shuffle-challenged. We decide that it must not be a genetic trait, since I have absolutely no coordination, but I can shuffle like nobody’s business…

Bryce: And type. You type really fast.

Me: I used to be better. The computer has ruined me. Knowing the backspace key is there has ruined my accuracy.

Bryce: Like, what? You used a TYPEWRITER?

Me: Well, ya. That’s how I learned. I had a typing class in high school. We used typewriters.

Bryce: No. Really?

Me: Yeah, really. I used a typewriter to type my papers all the way through college. I only started using a computer when my roommate made me, in graduate school.

Bryce: A TYPEWRITER? (clearly incredulous, like it’s some medieval torture device. Maybe it was.)

Me: Yeah.

Bryce: Really?

Me: YEAH. (indignant now)

Bryce: Wow.

Near My God, To Thee

2011-07-02T11:21:00.001-07:00

Day 3 of Trek. Last day.

The boys and men got conscripted into the army first thing in the morning.

We sent them off singing “God Be With You ‘til We Meet Again”. I knew it was all pretend. Why did I keep crying?

There’s just *something* about a man with a rifle…mmm.

It was just me and my *daughters*…

Yes, we had a little tear…(this poor cornhusk doll never stood a chance with these girls. But that’s a different story!)

But, you can see, we put a smile on our face and carried on. It wasn’t so bad. In fact, we did pretty well. At one point, the boys came back and I hesitate to admit that I was a little disappointed. Honestly. We could do more, we hadn’t been tested!

However, they were only passing through, not to stay.

Then.

I saw THE HILL.

It was too long and too steep for any one handcart family to make it up by themselves so we needed to work together with the other families in our company.

Which meant we needed to do it SEVERAL times.

This picture does not do it justice.

On one of my ways up the hill, the girl just opposite of me fainted. We were mid way up the hill. We faltered. If we stopped we would roll backwards down the hill and take out the women pushing from behind. Yet, going on seemed unforgivable.

“There is Jane James, finally pulling her handcart into camp toward midnight. Her children had become scattered and disoriented in the whiteout on Rocky Ridge, but she has gathered six of them…Somewhere back on the trail are her husband, William, and her 13-year-old son, Reuben. William had collapsed earlier in the day and sent Jane ahead to find the children. Reuben had stayed with his father. Over and over, Jane’s children ask, ‘Will Father and Reuben be here soon? Do you think someone helped them?’ All through the night the uncertainty gnaws. Finally, toward morning, one of the captains approaches Jane, bearing the dead body of her husband and the nearly unconscious body of her son. He tries to comfort her and then goes back to work. The look in Jane’s eyes frightens her children, but she calls upon the deep reserve of faith and has her family ready to move on the next day.” (Andrew D. Olsen, The Price We Paid, 2006, pp. 209-210)

We continued up the hill, we had to. The Captains (who had been coaching, but not pushing) swooped in and got her into the shade. She recovered, and we were so grateful. So much for being pretend. Suddenly things were very, very real.

But, we weren’t done.

Now, we had to go DOWN.

Going up was hard. Going down was petrifying. Going up, it seemed like you could do it as long as you just kept moving. It was possible, controllable. Going down, you were never really in control. It was way worse.

The reward was, at the bottom of the hill we got our boys back. I have never, ever been so grateful to see them.

Together, we would face Testimony Hill. It goes on and on and on. Surely it is named so because you have to pray continually that you will be able to finish.

By luck or design, we were THE VERY LAST HANDCART in the the Camp.

Most of that last hour is a blur but here are some glimpses that have remained with me:

About a third of the way up the hills personages in white appeared to help lighten our load. One of them happened to be the mother of one of my *daughters*. The angel mother silently took her daughter’s place. This daughter—SO strong in body and mind—had not expected her and broke down in tears.

Further along came a group of young men who had previously made the journey and came back to assist others until every last cart made it. Tyler related later, “I never want to ask for help. But I knew that I would not be able to do this by myself and it reminds me that I don’t always have to do it all on my own.”

One of those young men took the place of Jeff pushing from behind. He said, “Brother, you’ve done enough. I’ll take it from here.” I know that if we do all that we can, in the end, it is the Savior’s atoning sacrifice that makes up the rest and takes us the rest of the way Home.

Our cart in good hands, Jeff and I looked up the hill to see our Bryce (remember, he’d been assigned to another family and had previously made it all the way up the hill) coming down the hill for US. Ya, I can’t even say what that did to us. We walked the rest of the way hand in hand.

Even just walking it without pushing the cart was HARD. I had to remind myself to breathe evenly and deeply.

As we crested the hill we were greeted by those who had made it ahead of us as well as other well wishers. I was sobbing. I still couldn’t tell you why.

I had not expected to feel this way. I was so full…

of gratitude,

of compassion,

of the Spirit.

And that is very

REAL

When we finished, we gathered with our *families* one last time. It was one of the most spiritual experiences of my life. We talked about the memorial at Rock Creek Hollow. One word…

President Gordon B. Hinckley’s prayer of dedication at Rock Creek Hollow:

“O God, our Eternal Father, we thank Thee for the great inheritance that is ours, that we come of the strain of noble people who valued faith more than life itself, who were willing to work and sacrifice—even to give their lives in death—for the cause in which they believed. Help us to be true to the faith, and help all generations who shall follow to remain true to the faith, that they may keep the trust which became so much a part of the lives of those who died here and elsewhere along this trail of tears.”

Carry On

2011-06-28T15:40:00.001-07:00

I came home so FILLED after the trek that I’d hoped to record our experiences immediately. Life happened. BUT, I do not want to forget, so continue on with me...

This is what we did on Day 2.

‘Brigham Young’ reported that Governor Boggs had issued the Extermination Order and sent us on our way.

Along the way, we took a wrong turn. Especially unfortunate was the fact that on this leg we were the 2nd handcart in the first Company, which meant we had nearly the farthest to backtrack. Coincidence? I don’t think so!

Bryce was reluctantly “hitched” to this cute young woman (never met before). This was as close as he would get to holding her hand and he refused to look her in the face. He should be so lucky. Really.

We were a bit “bugged” this day. We were pretty grossed out until we looked closer and realized those were all ladybugs landing on my shirt. If all the bugs had been ladybugs it would not have been so bad, but alas, that was not the case. Made us grateful for long sleeves and long pants. And, really, while we’re on the subject, the bonnets were EXTREMELY useful to shade from the sun. Fashionable, no. Practical, yes.

The major challenge for this day was the fact that the road had washed out, causing a steep drop off of about 4 feet. The Captains huddled and the plan was to empty one handcart at a time and using a line of youth like a bucket brigade to pass the contents to the other side of the road. AND THEN, pass the actual handcart over too (imagine crowd surfing, and you’re getting the idea). Note that my beefy boys are first in line to move the handcart.

Of course, this was particularly hard on us since we had perfected our method for loading the handcart only that morning and it was packed PERFECTLY!

We ended with Porter Rockwell, dutch oven desserts and a fun hoedown with a live band. The girls fretted to attend a dance not looking (or smelling) quite their best, but they had fun anyway!

At the end of the day, Jeff taught about Ephraim Hanks who answered the call to help rescue the Martin Handcart Company. While others needed to time in order to prepare to leave, Ephraim answered “I am ready now!” We learned about the miracles of the buffalo meat he was able to bring to the starving company. His story provides a brilliant example of someone who was prepared and ready serve at a moment’s notice, who prayed for specific needs and recognized the hand of God in all things.

Come, Come Ye Saints

2011-06-20T08:11:00.001-07:00

The youth in our church periodically re-enact the experiences of the Mormon pioneers who crossed the plains in the mid 1800’s to escape persecution.

It’s a large undertaking. We had nearly 300 youth participate, organized into families of 10 with a “Ma” and a “Pa”. Each family is organized into a company of 4-5 families. We dress in pioneer clothing and walk in honor of a pioneer.

We packed all of our worldly possessions into 5 gallon buckets.

The Peacocks have many, many pioneer ancestors, but I was surprised to find my ancestor among the Mormon pioneers.

Elizabeth Sarah Elizabeth Dummer was born in 1860 in England and traveled with the William S. Seeley Company in 1868 when she was 8, along with her parents. She was my great, great grandmother.

Jeff and I acted as Pa and Ma for one of the families. The kids from our ward (congregation) were divided among 4 families and we happened to be lucky enough to get Tyler in our family. We love our family!!

Here we are looking pretty and clean (I even had make up on!) as we packed our handcart Thursday morning. As we set off, the boys set a fast pace. We were constantly telling them to SLOW DOWN as we were jogging behind the cart.

The first day we traveled about 7 or 8 miles. It only took 1 mile, however, for us to realize we’d packed our cart ALL WRONG. We weren’t the only one. We were constantly picking up stuff that fell off and tossing it back in, only to have it fall out the other side. Jeff spent his time on the trail plotting how to master packing a handcart.

There were 25 handcarts in all, so the company wound around on the hills. What I strange sight we are! On that first day I found myself laughing to myself about what a strange bunch we are! Is it any wonder the world considers us so… PECULIAR? Who would ever think 300 teenagers would CHOOSE to spend three days dressed in pioneer clothes and dragging handcarts around the countryside. OK, well, maybe a good portion of them were STRONGLY ENCOURAGED by their parents and others to attend. Regardless. WHAT were we doing here? WHAT were we hoping to accomplish?

What I learned that first day was APPRECIATION and COMPASSION for those who made the trip originally.

As I mentioned, we went 7-8 miles that first day. The weather was moderate. We had ready access to water and good shoes. Well, most of us had good shoes:

We knew our journey would end that night with a good meal.

YET.

With less than 1/2 mile to go that day our boys all started cramping up. Huge cramps. Stop everything cramps. The handcart wheel ran over the foot of one of our strongest girls. We were in a BAD way. We knew it was pretend and so we we were tempted to just QUIT. At one point, Jeff sat along the side of the road and I wasn’t sure he was going to get up again. We ended up being nearly the last cart to make it into camp that night where we nursed our blisters.

That night we learned about James and Amy Loader. They joined the Church in England in 1851 and 1848, respectively. James joined the Church 3 years after Amy because he’d been told he would lose his job, which in fact happened. They were in their 50’s when they left England with six of their children and their families. They saved enough money to travel with a wagon train to Zion but were asked to travel by handcart instead so that the extra money could be used to help other families who did not have the means to emigrate. It was a trial of their faith. They did not think that they could physically withstand the demands of the trip by handcart. But they did it.

As members of the ill-fated Martin Handcart Company, they were right to be concerned. James became very sick and weak. He knew that he would not likely survive to see Utah. He spent every spare moment whittling tent pins. He knew that winter storms would soon be upon them and that he might not be able to be there to protect his family, so he did what he could while he was alive to care for them.

SACRIFICE.

The pioneers were obedient. They did what they had to do to protect themselves, their families, their faith. They were COURAGEOUS in a way that I don’t think we really understand today. They ENDURED hunger, exhaustion, dehydration, illness, death. They pressed on when it seemed impossible.

They put one foot in front of the other and walked.

And walked.

That is what I learned on the first day.

One Last Nod to Cancun Before We Take Our NEXT Vacation…

2011-05-28T11:03:00.001-07:00

(are my eyes open? this is what you get when you beg favors from wandering strangers who may or may not be good photographers…)

We didn’t let Bryce bring this hat home. He wanted to, though.

Bryce made friends with the busboy. They could not speak each other’s language but they figured out the communication needed to share table tricks and little jokes. They had us busting up. It was very sweet. Bryce palmed him a few dollars on the way out (with the “Chandler” tip gesture…)

Aloe Art on sunburned backs

Tyler sacrificing for the family to eat leftover food the night before we left

Bryce geared up to try out his Cancun whip.

Woh-pah!

I Do Not Know This Man.

2011-05-09T08:55:00.001-07:00

It is has been scientifically proven that there is a unique code in Peacock DNA that causes their right foot to in fact be filled with lead. The sister trait to this “lead foot” is a streak of aggression only discernible when sitting behind the wheel of a vehicle.

It’s true.

Ask Jeff Madsen.

Ask Dave McGill.

Ask Haley Hansen Peacock.

They’ll all confirm this fact.

My sweet husband is no exception. I’ve learned that it is much more enjoyable for me to ride in the front seat if I just close my eyes when we get too close to the vehicle in front of us. If I don’t close my eyes, I tend to flinch, grab for handholds and gasp. If I try to suppress these responses, I just end up anxious. So now, I just close my eyes. It’s better for everyone. It’s better for my marriage. And, I know that if I don’t watch, it all turns out just fine. He really IS an excellent driver. My flinching, grabbing and gasping leads him to flinch, and I think that increases the chance of an accident.

I am regularly the butt of jokes in my household (because, of course, my sons have inherited this Peacock DNA) that if the men drive to Utah it takes 9-10 hours. If I drive any leg of the trip, it will take 12+. Whatever.

Jeff’s freewheeling ways have recently caught up to him. After over 20 years of being ticket-free, he got two tickets within a year. He took traffic school on line and passed the final exam with an impressive 100%.

There has been a fundamental shift in our household dynamic. I’m not sure I’m pleased.

Jeff now goes the speed limit (or below) everywhere. Even if we’re late. He makes complete stops. He’s in no hurry, WHATSOEVER. He points out infractions in other drivers, tsk tsk, present company included.

Be careful what you wish for.

I believe my real husband has been abducted by aliens. I wonder if Mulder and Scully are available to take the case.

Isla Mujeres

2011-05-05T16:12:00.001-07:00

I should totally be working right now. I have more to do than I can even fit on my list.

Which is EXACTLY why I am retreating back to Cancun in my mind…Ahhhh….

So one day, we took the ferry over to a nearby island, Isla Mujeres. The main selling point for Bryce was the opportunity, just MAYBE, of getting to DRIVE a golf cart around the island. He didn’t want to go at all when I MENTIONED, just MAYBE, there would be a minimum age somewhat ABOVE the age of 13 required to drive.

We went anyway.

Do you like Jeff’s hat? He is an AMAZING dickerer. The opening price was $30 USD. He was able to parley all the way DOWN to $28 USD. Don’t let him negotiate your next car purchase.

Here we are on the island, picking up the aforementioned golf cart. Jeff drove it away.

They weren’t really SPECIFIC on the whole minimum age thing. Much to Bryce’s joy.

We visited a turtle preserve.

Tyler met his match in this iguana.

And we saw real ones too.

At the end of the island is this beautiful overlook, surrounded on three sides by the clearest water. We decided this is the best place EVER to stop and have lunch.

Bryce, appreciating the view…

briefly.

Tyler drove us back the other side of the island and back to the ferry.

Oh well, back to work.

Self Sufficient. Almost.

2011-04-29T16:51:00.001-07:00

Conversation after Tyler has just blasted Bryce for asking me to type a paper. Tyler tells him he needs to learn how to type his own papers.

Me: Tyler, you’re just very independent. You haven’t needed me for anything since you got your driver’s license.

Tyler: (without missing a beat) Except for money. If I didn’t have you, I wouldn’t have any money.

It’s enough to warm a mother’s heart.

A Step Back in Time

2011-04-28T09:54:00.001-07:00

Back to Cancun. This is for you, Kylie, our biggest silent blog fan! We’ll have to take you with us when we go back:) See what flattery gets you?

We took a tour of nearby Mayan ruins. This tour came highly recommended by friends and relatives since it is from a Latter-day Saint perspective. We don’t KNOW that these are locations referred to in the Book of Mormon, but there is a familiarity and several pieces of convincing evidence. Regardless, it was a spiritual day and our tour guide Helaman (yep, that’s his real name!) did a great job of bringing the Book of Mormon to life and relating its lessons to our lives today. It was definitely one of the highlights to our trip and we can’t wait to bring Justin back.

Helaman is one of 9 children of Mayan and Aztec descent. His siblings include Alma and Lemuel, and he has a son named Nephi, all famous names in the Book of Mormon. Lemuel’s namesake in the Book of Mormon is quite rebellious, so it’s interesting and kind of funny that his faithful parents would choose that particular name. Helaman says of his brother, “But he’s a good Lemuel. In fact, he’s my Bishop. He also has a son named Lemuel. We call them 1st and 2nd Lemuel.” Awww, that Mormon humor. Gotta love it. Justin would be slapping his knee at that one! Now this is a family COMMITTED to the Gospel!

Helaman picked us up at our hotel. Our tour included our family and one other couple. I sat up in the front because he needed someone to help with his visual aides. Helaman is the master of multi-tasking. At one point, he was MERGING onto the freeway, SHIFTING gears (manual transmission), ANSWERING a text message, and HOLDING a microphone EXPLAINING the water routes Lehi’s family may have taken while POINTING them out on the chart that I was holding for everyone else. He never missed a beat.

Our first stop was Ek Balam. Ek Balam is one of the least visited of the Mayan sites around Cancun, which makes it especially lovely to visit. (Note the absence of people in the pictures above!) They are still actively excavating and restoring the location and surrounding the buildings that are visible are little “hills” which will eventually be excavated to likely reveal other buildings for this city. You can still climb these buildings as opposed to other ruins which have been roped off to preserve them from over visitation. Of course, once I climbed the temple at Ek Balam (and then had to figure out how to GET DOWN), I was not sure that this was a FEATURE.

In the parking lot, we enjoyed a little coconut with chili powder and lime. Bryce’s favorite part was watching the guy cut the coconut in half with his machete.

Our next stop was Chichen Itza.

In contrast to Ek Balam, this is one of the most popular tourist locations, considered one of the seven wonders of the world, so there were many more tours, people and vendors, but it was never oppressive (except for the HEAT). It is a fascinating location. Helaman talked about how the Mayans had the basis of true principles but they became warped with time. For instance, they began by worshipping God and expressing gratitude for the things He provides like rain and corrupted it into worshipping the THING they need, rain. Do we do that today?

It was bright. Tyler had a tough time posing for pictures.

This one was a little better, we caught some cloud cover.

Helaman also posed an interesting theory about Mayan human sacrifice. Our doctrine states that Christ’s sacrifice ended the need for sacrifice by the shedding of blood (Law of Moses). Christ states in 3 Nephi 9:

17 And as many as have received me, to them have I ^agiven to become the sons of God; and even so will I to as many as shall believe on my name, for behold, by me ^bredemption cometh, and ^cin me is the ^dlaw of Moses fulfilled.

18 I am the ^alight and the life of the world. I am ^bAlpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.

19 And ye shall offer up unto me ^ano more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings.

20 And ye shall offer for a ^asacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. …

21 Behold, I have come unto the world to bring ^aredemption unto the world, to save the world from sin.

So, Helaman’s theory is that the Mayans may have perverted the commandment to offer a broken heart to mean a literally broken heart, thus creating the tradition of human sacrifice.

Below is an ancient precursor to the game of basketball—only the “Winner” became the sacrificial offering, a great honor. Below are pictures of one of the hoops and the large ball court. The spectators sat on the top of the walls.

Amazing stuff.

On our way home, we also visited a cenote, or a sink hole filled with water. It was also, incidentally, filled with people. So a quick dip and we were on our way.

I loved driving on the 2-lane roads on the way home. We drove through several villages that were throwbacks to an earlier, simpler time with anachronistic things like modern advertising and vehicles tossed in the mix. Truly a different glimpse of Mexico.

Prom

2011-04-26T07:56:00.001-07:00

The clock is ticking.

The rituals of the senior year are upon us. All too soon we will be packing up his stuff to go to college. *sniffle*

But, until then, we’ll just enjoy.

I LOVE the SHOES!

~~Cute~~ Gorgeous Aralie, his date…

She’s not even really pinning (I’m the designated pinner after all), but look at his face!!!

I had to include this full length view. Her shoes were the first thing to go as soon as they got to the dance (I was working coat check at the time). She wasn’t the only one, either. So this was the first and last time to see those beautiful shoes.

Thanks to my good friend Daleen (Aralie’s momma) for snapping these amazing pictures and being such a great surrogate mom while I was checking kids in for the bus.

I love the way they look when they’re all decked out!

*sigh*

Prom Dresses

2011-04-25T10:00:00.001-07:00

A brief break from Cancun…

Our stake, along with several others in Southern California, participates in an LDS (Latter-day Saint) Prom as an alternative to high school proms. The difference is—the youth must actually adhere to the standards for dress and conduct. It is also less expensive, but of course, much of the prom expense comes down to attire.

There were several girls who desired to go to the prom, but who did not have a dress and could not afford to get one. I told the YW leader, “No problem, I’m sure I can borrow dresses for them to wear.”

That was an understatement.

On Thursday, 8 days prior to the prom, I put a message on our ward’s Relief Society bulletin board and sent out messages to the YW Presidents in the stake. By Friday afternoon, I had gotten offers for over 60 dresses! By Saturday, I was turning dresses away!

I was BLOWN AWAY by the generosity of people, many of whom I had never met. I drove from one end of our valley to the other on Saturday morning picking them all up. I had rented a coat rack to store them. My boys rigged up the cars so the dresses could hang as I transported them. I systematically tagged them all so that I could return them to their owners after the fact.

I had a fabulous time with the YW on Tuesday night as they tried every single one of them on. It was a swirl of taffeta and silk in every style and color.

My head is now awhirl… If I can collect this many dresses in 2 days, just think what could happen if I actually PLANNED something…!

Just Another Day in Cancun

2011-04-20T10:43:00.001-07:00

Bryce knocked #43 off of his bucket list when we got cool frosty drinks at the swim up bar.

Pool or ocean, the water looks the same.

Now that’s what I like to see. Of course they can’t see because I’ve got them squinting into the sun.

A little bit of this.

Now he’s looking authentic. The Nike socks and Vans complete the ensemble.

Tyler picked this out just for me.

I didn’t buy it.

XPLOR

2011-04-20T09:07:00.001-07:00

On Monday we met the bus and headed out for a day at an eco park

You must wear helmets throughout the park…very stylish!

Jeff and I were cringing from our sunburns, but it turned out that XPLOR has a lot of underground activities, cold water, and shade—perfect!

We started out on the amphibious vehicles:

Then we moved on to the hammocks:

You zip over the water and then land in the shallow pool on the other side. Jeff got a defective hammock his first time out and it got stuck halfway, so he had to jump into the water below and “be rescued”. Funny stuff. The boys and I were dying laughing, but were sure he’d be put out by the whole thing. Not even, he wanted to go again and again.

Next stop: underground river swimming. Now, I am not a fan of cold water. On the bus ride over, the staff person was not making this part sound very fun as he was describing the 56 degree water. I was shivering just thinking about it. There was no way that water was 56 though, because I could get right in.

It actually ended up being one of our favorite parts. Quiet and peaceful.

We also tried it with rafts, but I was glad to get off the raft. Have I mentioned how uncoordinated I am? I think Jeff was a good sport having me as a partner. Also, you kind of have to check your vanity at the door when you’re wearing the helmet and walking around in a bathing suit with unevenly burned skin and not even a touch of mascara.

Here we are, triumphant after coming off the rafts…

Last event: ziplines. Jeff confessed to being a bit skittish about this, but the boys couldn’t wait. You climbed endless stairways to reach the start, zip to the bottom and then climb up another tower and repeat. Each one in the circuit was a little different, some with water landings and one actually ends on a water slide:

You may wonder, “How did you get all those great pictures?” Well, my friend, it only takes money. They have this great system where each of the helmets has a number on it. They have cameras all over the park and at the end of the day you can give them your helmet numbers and they pull up all of the pictures taken during the day, conveniently placed on a flash drive. Pretty cool. They know that once you see the pictures, you won’t be able to leave without having them. We only got a few pictures in our set of people we really didn’t know.

Some places in the park actually have “viewpoints” where you pose and push a button to take a picture. We never could get the timing right with this one:

Oh, the funniest part of this day was the bus ride back. The boys wanted to sit in the back and they ended up sitting near 4 very inebriated Frenchmen who each brought a six-pack on the bus with them (and they discovered the mini fridge in the back so they could keep em cold until needed). It was amazing to me that one of those guys could chatter (loudly!) non-stop for an hour and a half. Whatever he was saying must have been hysterical because he kept his buddies laughing the entire time. Everyone else on the bus was exhausted after the long day, but not them! Good thing they weren’t driving anywhere.

Beds, Beach & Burns

2011-04-19T09:10:00.001-07:00

First things first, sleeping arrangements. Our unit included 1 master bedroom and a living room with a pull out couch. We ordered a rollaway bed. Tyler has seniority so he got to pick and he of course picked the rollaway bed. Bryce is nothing if not persistent and probably argued for switching beds no fewer than five times each day (he finally got the rollaway on day 4). Poor kid, at 13, to have such an “aching back”. At one point he slipped into our bed, thinking we might not see him…

Off to the beach, he drowned his sorrows in super nachos…

Note that the kids are fully shaded while Jeff and I (I was sitting in the chair on the left) were in the sun. You’d think we’d know how our pale bods will react in the sun after 40+ years, but no, we end up with this:

and burns in other miscellaneous spaces on my body. I looked polka dotted. My feet were so bad that they swelled up the rest of the week. Hideous burning totally cancels out the cute toes I had to have before we left. Jeff also burned, more of an all over burn, but the kids were fine.

Oh, and we learned a very important cultural lesson this day. In Mexico, it is considered rude to bring you the check before you ask for it. We just thought they knew our room number so it would just be taken care of—how nice that they don’t hover for a tip (although he totally deserved it—bringing the food all the way down to the beach!). Nope. We apparently dined and ditched. We were on the beach for a couple of hours after the food and the waiter would ask us if we needed anything else, not realizing by “else” that he actually meant, “do you want your check”? Never fear, 10 minutes after we returned to the room, they tracked us down. Tyler went to go sign for it but he didn’t leave a tip. (I was in the shower, so was unavailable to give my usually explicit and detailed instructions!)

I’ve had guilt ever since.

I’m Having Guacamole Withdrawals

2011-04-18T10:46:00.001-07:00

Cancun over Spring Break: Way fun.

Coming back to reality: Not so much.

So much to tell. I know, I know. No one is interested in vacation slide shows. Too bad. It’s my scrapbook. Look away if you must, but I will try to make it a little interesting.

Day 1: Travel begins at 3 am. On a positive note, no traffic at all to LAX this early in the morning. Double bonus: Aero Mexico has no baggage fees unless you’re overweight (your bags, not you personally, fortunately for us).

We have a 3 hour layover in Mexico City (Justin is SOOO close!) and hit the food court. Why has all my Spanish left me (and Tyler, I might add, who should be more current!)? All Tyler can remember is how to ask where the library (la biblioteca) is.

Jeff tries to order from the menu by number but is actually ordering by price (!) Tyler is determined to find REAL Mexican food like all those cow head street tacos his brother keeps talking about. Bryce is freaking out a little and orders:

Yep, folks, those are chicken nuggets. Or, as they say in Mexico City, nuggets de pollo. I think it’s hilarious that “nuggets” is the same in any language.

After we establish that we are, in fact, ALREADY IN Terminal 2 we go about the business of finding our gate for our next flight. There are two main thoroughfares to gates at either side of the terminal, separated by about 60 yards. We find our flight on the board but no gate number is listed. We then proceed to walk back and forth several times between these two main entrance points, like ducks in a shooting gallery, trying to translate that difference between the two and passing the informacion booth no fewer than four times. Effective. At least we are exercising.

I give up. I ask the lady in the booth who uses beautiful English to make me feel even more ridiculous. Oh! That entrance! Pass through security, gate will be posted 45 minutes before flight. Duh.

All goes smoothly, luggage arrives, and we make our way to the Westin Lagunamar Resort. You can’t really tell from the picture but there is a prodigious amount of pink and purple paint accenting the décor. And, this is one of the more subdued establishments. I really love how fearless Mexicans are with exterior paint colors!

This is our room. Ya, baby. Spit and you hit sand. Doesn’t get much better than this.

Bryce contemplating the fact that he is the luckiest kid in the world.

See, not SO boring. I know you’re on the edge of your seat waiting for the next installment. Here’s a sneak peak:

Orange Love

2011-03-22T18:49:00.001-07:00

{I have just peeled an orange and begin to eat it.}

Bryce: I can’t eat oranges anymore. The last orange I had was dry and it has ruined it for me.

Me: I know. A dry orange is hard to get over. I have a hard time buying them again after I get a dry batch. But, {holding a section out to him} this one is juicy, see? Do you want a bite?

Bryce: {considers for a moment…} No. I’m not ready to love again.*

*This message has been approved for blogging by Bryce.**

**The FACT that this item has been approved by Bryce has been approved for publication by Bryce.***

***Etc.

Nerds

2011-03-14T08:00:00.001-07:00

Bryce (offended over something someone has said…):

“I’m not a nerd!”

Tyler:

“ Bryce, face it. You are a nerd. I’m a nerd too. It’s ok, embrace it.”

More Martha Stewart than Bill Nye the Science Guy

2011-02-14T11:14:00.001-08:00

Log #3497 of Embarrassing Moments

Scene: Youth Valentines Dance Saturday Night

The dance had just started, youth gathering but not yet dancing. I was going around checking the tables—straightening tablecloths, generally fidgeting with stuff.

Near the front of the room we have a round table with two large "igloo" coolers with ice water. I thought it was weird how one cooler was facing out the door and the other was on the opposite side facing the stage. Clearly, they would look better facing into the room, so I changed them. Satisfied with the improved aesthetic, I turned to walk away.

Behind me, I heard this terrible sound: CRASH! WOOSH!

About a million gallons of ice water went sliding into the dance floor as the table totally tipped over and the tablecloth, decorations and balloons went flying every which way. AAARGH! In that instant of clarity I understood why they had been on the table the way they were. Hmmm. Fortunately, a bunch of very helpful teenagers came to my aid. Armed with mops and paper towels, I had more helpers than I knew what to do with (except Tyler. I think he was hiding in the bathroom so he didn't have to admit he knew me).

The night got better from there.

These are some of my favoritest women serving in Stake YW with me! These were toward the end of the night so I think I look a little haggard, but I love them so much I had to include! (Thanks Cassie & Dave for the photobooth!)

Who’d a Thunk?

2011-02-11T17:46:00.001-08:00

Have you ever hung out with a family for years on end? Played together, grown up together, cried together, vacationed together, through thick and thin? And, what if that family happened to have kids the same age as your own kids? And what if some of their kids were girl kids and some of your kids were boy kids?

I think it would be understandable, even NATURAL if the moms (who are inclined toward this kind of thing) kind of started thinking (when the kids are like 2 or 3)…

“Matchmaker, Matchmaker…”

But, *sigh*, you know those things NEVER work out.

Usually as soon as soon as I mention a girl might be cute, my boys start running as hard as they can in the OPPOSITE direction. Don’t they know I have EXCELLENT taste!!!?

So imagine my surprise when Tyler comes to me a few weeks ago and says:

“So. Would it be ok if I went to Winter Formal?”

Me: “Uh, sure. When is it?”

Tyler: “Dunno.”

Me: “Uh, OK. Who are you gonna ask?”

Tyler: “Aralie.”

Me: (keeping my cool) “Oh. OK”

Miss Aralie is a Hoskins. We’ve known the Hoskins since 1994 or 1995. Tyler and Aralie were 2 and we lived in Lakewood. We served in church callings together and became lifelong friends. Jeff and Leonard work at the same company. We moved to Santa Clarita in 1997, they moved to Santa Clarita a few years later. We have been together for most major life events (and a lot of stuff in between) ever since.

I should have become suspicious, take a look at some of our vacation photos—Mazatlan, 2005:

And, more recently, Rancho Mirage last summer:

You get the idea. Somehow in every group picture, they end up being RIGHT NEXT to each other. Coincidence? Not so much, I’m thinking now.

So, back to the dance. He went with an “Elf” theme to decorate her room (he must have thought she would not have to consider her answer very long, since the dance was only 10 DAYS AWAY at this point):

Her reply:

Daleen and I just keep marveling that we didn’t do even have to do a THING! Look at these cuties!

Things couldn’t have worked out any BETTER if we’d planned them ourselves!! (But don’t tell Tyler that, hehe).

Turning Point

2011-02-09T13:23:00.001-08:00

Today is the day.

I’ve been a Peacock for exactly half my life.

Day of Gluttony

2011-02-08T17:01:00.001-08:00

Or,

Manly Men Masticate Meat

For the uninitiated, Tucano’s is a Brazilian steakhouse, which means that for one all inclusive price you get to gorge yourself on grilled flesh brought skewered to your table until you puke. Oh, there is a salad bar, but only girls go there.

We girls decided if we were just going to eat overpriced salad, we’d stay home, thank you very much. Also, we do not like to puke. It’s overrated for anyone who has ever been pregnant.

So, this was an all-testosterone adventure on New Year’s Eve—Jeff, b.i.l. Dave, and an assortment of sons and nephews (they had to nearly kidnap 2 nephews, their parents did not think gluttony was wholly necessary):

(Oops, I see contraband on one of those plates. It appears Coleman broke the Man-code and went to the salad bar!)

Pineapple…the lone exception to the grilled flesh only rule.

No thanks Dave, you have it! Did you bring your pant expanders with you?

(As an aside, a few years ago we went on an Alaskan cruise and mid way through the week, Dave had to resort to pant expanders to shore up his girth due to the extreme amount of food he’d eaten…Funnier still cuz he’s the skinniest of us all—kinda like how a snake looks when it’s just ingested a large rodent. jk, love ya dave!)

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Look at those bellies!

Oprah’s Not the Only One With a Secret Sibling

2011-01-25T08:03:00.001-08:00

Oprah made news yesterday with the fact that she had a secret sister. Well, she’s not the only one harboring a secret! There is a 4th Jonas brother.

Yes, that’s right, you’re hearing it here first…

He’s not deformed or anything, if that’s what you’re thinking. In fact, he’s arguably the best looking one! He’s got mad guitar and vocal skills too! Maybe that’s why they don’t talk about him…he’s TOO good.

For the first time ever, pictures of Joshua Jonas, or “JJ” as he’s affectionately called by his family, are being released:

Only recently have we been able to PIECE it all together…

Here’s JJ going incognito with the family he often hangs with…

George Gains a Major Award

2011-01-24T09:07:00.001-08:00

A family tradition

Played out this Christmas.

Proof that my baby brother was the instigator (sorry mom!)

Complete with a crate marked fragile (pronounced FRA-GEEEEE-LAY), so I’m sure it came straight from Italy. Oh look, you can see he knows what it is! Look at that happy face!

A MAJOR AWARD!!!

(who deserves it more?)

Denice admiring the hardware…Mom peeking around the gam, thinking about where she left her feather duster. It MUST need dusting (oops! I can’t think WHAT could have happened!!!)

Dad! You shouldn’t be looking up the Award’s shade like that!

Exceptionally Agreeable

2011-01-21T08:13:00.001-08:00

I have noticed that as I have aged, I have become increasingly specific about how I think things should be. As I have been wont to tell my mother,

“It is such a BURDEN

to have an OPINION

on EVERYTHING!”

I do realize (and have had it pointed out to me) that this makes it difficult to help me do things like grocery shop, cook and other tasks that can be typically delegated.

Jeff and I were looking forward to a few “staycation” days as his work had shut down for the holidays and the boys were going to be off on a youth retreat. We resolved to act like we were away by ignoring the phone and computer and any jobs we needed to do at home.

I made my own personal resolution to be EXCEPTIONALLY AGREEABLE. That is, I was going to be pleasant and malleable on all matters inconsequential. Mellow as the month of May (is May really mellow?).

It worked like a charm. I felt peaceful and happy and I know Jeff noticed the positive effects (especially when I pointed out how exceptionally agreeable I was being!)

This is great! Why don’t I live this way ALWAYS? What a RELIEF not to care about whether he salts the water BEFORE it boils or AFTER it boils! How PLEASANT it is not to care that he took the LONG way to get home from the grocery store where you have to make TWICE as many left turns or that he bought GALA apples instead of PINK LADIES! And, I think he LIKES me better (he always loves me, but I think I can be, well, a little, um, exasperating at times…)

It was a great experiment. I knew my time of being EXCEPTIONALLY AGREEABLE had come to an end when this came out of my mouth:

“So…did they not have any GREENER bananas at the grocery store?

Well, it was good while it lasted! *SIGH*

Pancake and Pumpkin #6

2011-01-20T12:11:00.001-08:00

This is Lexie, aka Pancake.

She is our niece (cousin to the boys).

She lives in Utah so we don’t see her as often as we’d like and when she was little she was a little shy (not in general, as we’ve come to find out, but just of us…)

One time when we were visiting her house, Jeff came upon her eating pancakes and thus christened her “Pancake” and the name stuck. He worked and worked during that trip to make her fall in love with him. She liked her new name and she was sold.

But it didn’t stop her from toying with us—making us work for her twinkle every time we came back.

We visited again this year over New Year’s. Pancake took a shine to Tyler (it must be his new cologne, he’s been getting that reaction a lot lately:)

It was rare to see one without the other for 6 days.

The other day, Tyler got a call. Ya, a real one where they SAY words instead of TYPE them.

“Hi Lexie!”

Lexie had “borrowed” her older sister’s phone while she was napping so she could call Tyler.

Of course, there were long periods of silence interspersed with words here and there. She still makes us work for it.

Her sister found her with the phone and informed Tyler that he was “Pumpkin #6”.

Apparently, Lexie has a list of things/people she likes (kind of like Santa, I guess…) and Tyler’s made it to #6!

Maybe if he works really hard in the coming year he can move up in the rankings!!!

But Did I Mention…?

2011-01-15T12:10:00.001-08:00

That when Bryce called in to report his success (see below), he was informed that they (the scouts) had failed to actually collect mistletoe to sell and so would not be needing the arrangements with the store after all.

Heavenly Father has such an interesting sense of humor sometimes.

PS. And for those of you patting me on the back, I don’t feel all that full of myself since this is the third and last kid and he’s already 13. SO. It took me a long, long time to figure this out. Too bad for the first two kids! Somehow they seem to be surviving despite my somewhat haphazard approach to parenting.

She Can Be Taught!

2011-01-14T13:12:00.001-08:00

In the course of my church job, we have been counseled to let the youth run their own program. To really lead. To gain experience for themselves. This, in turn, is what we’ve been preaching to the Young Women (YW) leaders. In all truth, it is NOT my strength. Leading me to remember, randomly, one of our favorite quotes from that classic movie, “School of Rock”:

“Those that can't do, teach, and those that can't teach... teach gym.”

So far I have not been relegated to teaching gym. Yet.

As a YW leader I always tried to give the YW opportunities to lead. But, I consistently found myself taking over, doing it for them, and basically enabling. I always justified… these girls have sooooooooooo much to do. Church needs to be a safe haven from the stress of the world. I can do this faster, easier, better (oh yeah, there it is, the ego! OUCH!). Much easier to teach than to do.

Bryce is in the presidency of his age group at church. The Young Men have also been coached and mentored to step back and put the responsibility for the success of the program on the youth. He was given the assignment to call three area grocery stores to see if their scout troop could sell mistletoe on a few selected Saturdays. I groaned (inwardly). I HATE asking for free stuff from stores. More than I HATE going to the dentist. My stomach is knotting up even recalling this. However, he seemed fine with the assignment and had a couple of weeks to accomplish his task.

Week 1 he writes out a script of what he’s going to say. He emails it to his leader who gives it the thumbs up.

Week 2 nothing. I consider calling for him. As much as I HATE making those requests, it is tearing me up that my son will be exposed to chasing down the right person, stumbling over his words, and then possibly being rejected. I’m projecting every fear I have on him. But, in the end, I ignore it. Maybe it will go away.

Week 3 Bryce asks me to remind him the next day to make his calls after school. Each day we forget until we get to the day before the sale is supposed to happen. He knows today is IT. He gets on the computer and locates three ~~victims~~ stores and their phone numbers.

Then he got nervous. He didn’t want to do it. He was nervous. What should he say (suddenly the script seemed drastically insufficient!)? He was agitated. I was agitated. He laid down on the floor lamenting. I had to physically leave the house to escape the overwhelming urge to do it for him.

I went and did some errands. I had every expectation that when I returned I would find him in the same position on the carpet as when I left, perhaps softly snoring.

Instead I found an exuberant youth. “I did it! I did it! I called all three! Two said ‘no’, but one said ‘yes’!” At that moment, he was his very best self.

There is power for doing for yourself. I would have robbed him of his power by doing for him. I thought I understood that before, but now I know it and I will be stronger so that they can be stronger.

I Guess the 1st Two Didn’t Count

2010-12-14T15:00:00.001-08:00

Jeff has been with Boeing for 15 years as of May 2010. As a result, he got to select a recognition gift from an online catalog.

He went through it several times and didn’t see anything he was dying for. He asked me to take a look. I guess I’m not that picky because I found several things. However, Tyler’s birthday was coming up and he asked for a watch. There was a nice Guess watch in the catalog (similar to this one)

and I suggested to Jeff we give it to Tyler.

In the process of ordering the watch, there was an option for engraving. There was no additional cost, so, why not? Jeff ordered engraving for it.

We were very surprised when the watch arrived with the following inscription:

TYLER JAMES PEACOCK

15 YEARS

2010

Woops! We had no idea that they’d automatically put “15 years” on it! So now, Tyler has a very nice watch inscribed “15 years” that he received on his 17th birthday… he’ll have this nice remembrance of how cheap his re-gifting parents are!

I Owe Tyler and Justin an Apology…

2010-11-24T10:33:00.001-08:00

We moved into our current home in 1997. It was a repossession and the landscaping was dirt in the backyard (it was grass at one time). Justin was 6, Tyler was 3 and Bryce was an infant.

I found these cute matching raincoats with a nice fleece lining at JC Penney and the deal was too good to pass up—like $6 each. A real stretch since we used every dime we had to get into our house. I bought them for Tyler and Justin.

One day in the late summer it was raining. Hard. The boys asked if they could go and play out in the rain. I said they could if they wore their raincoats.

I went about my business. About half an hour later I looked out and saw two little boys splashing and throwing mud at each other, their cute new raincoats caked in mud. I blew a gasket. Seriously, after 13 years I can still remember how FURIOUS I was. I’m not sure what I thought “playing in the rain” would entail, and why I was SO SURPRISED, but I was. (I don’t have a picture of the event—I was not that forward thinking—I borrowed this one for effect so don’t be confused if you don’t recognize this kid!!)

I yelled and washed and fumed and issued consequences pell mell. I couldn’t get over the mess, especially on those cute little raincoats (that washed up just fine, by the way. And, being California, they were used exactly 5 more times over the next few years until Bryce grew out of the larger one).

I’m so so sorry J&T. That was crazy of me. Little boys SHOULD play in the mud!!!

The reason for this remembrance: It’s all I could think about when I went to Bryce’s football game Saturday morning in the pouring rain. The adults were all huddled under EZ Ups in the stands so that we wouldn’t get wet, but we sent our 13 year old sons out to play. And, unlike the majority of fields we play on, this one was (and I do mean “WAS”) real grass.

So… (Bryce is #66. Course, most of the numbers became increasingly obscured as the game wore on.)

We paid good money (and an even more expensive commodity—time) for this! We won in overtime!

As if they were not muddy enough, they dove into the mud to celebrate their win! Bryce looked to me for approval and I even encouraged it!! (I am really, really sorry J&T!!!)

Here is the team in all their glory!

I wish I could go out today WITH my little boys to play in the mud (if it were raining, and if we still had dirt, and if I had a time machine). Look at the love from THIS mom:

She knows what it’s all about! I’ll have to pay mine forward with my grandkids!

By the Numbers

2010-11-23T10:22:00.001-08:00

In honor of Tyler’s last football game…

6 Seasons of Football

63 Games Played

1 Trip to Urgent Care (Stitches)

1 Game Missed

1 Touchdown

575 Practices

75 Rolls of Athletic Tape

862 Bottles of Gatorade

1,900++ Hours

Oh, and…

2010-11-04T09:59:00.001-07:00

Glory Days

2010-11-03T10:45:00.001-07:00

If the season ended today, I think it would be a success. Tyler had one of “those” games. I couldn’t slow down my heartbeat for at least 24 hours after it was over!

Justin had a magical varsity experience. It was just the right group of young men at the right time. His senior year, his team went undefeated in league, beating Hart (first time since the 70’s) and Valencia (cross town rivals), and going deep into the playoffs (knocked out by perennial football powerhouse St. Bonaventure).

Tyler’s first season of varsity was good for him personally, but his team stalled out and didn’t go to playoffs after losing a coin toss (there was a 3-way tie for 3rd). I just wanted him to have that ONE game—you know, where your team overcomes and wins the game when no one thought you could. Where the team is more than the sum of its parts. Gravy: the opposing team is Hart or Valencia.

This was that game.

(Tyler is #68 in pictures, he plays center)

Let me set the scene: This was the 2nd league game for both teams, both coming in with 1 loss, but pretty equal pre-season records. The local sportswriters picked Hart across the board to stomp. Our QB had been injured the previous week and would not play. Likewise, one of our captains, a linebacker had been taken away in an ambulance and would play, but was still compromised.

First half. We are tearing them up defensively, but they still manage to score 14 points. Our offense can’t get anything going. Penalties are killing us. Interceptions don’t help. Not looking good.

Second half. All Saugus. The offense was amazing. They don’t give up. The defense keeps on keeping on, stopping Hart each time. Their QB never knows where the blitz is coming next and gets really skittish. They hurt themselves with penalties and interceptions.

Hart gets the ball back with 3 minutes left (way too much time! We did not come here to tie!) But the defense does their job and more. Too bad for Hart, it was their Homecoming!

Words can’t describe the awesomeness of this game. As I type, it’s just not coming through.

But Tyler knows.

And no one can take that away.

Even better that Grandpa George was there to share.

We won the next week too. The Signal Headline:

“Call them contenders”

That’s what I’m talking about.

Yep, It’s Football Season

2010-11-03T10:05:00.001-07:00

Exhibit “A”

Happy Birthday, Dionne!

2010-09-29T13:53:00.001-07:00

Here we are… ready for a hot date on the town!

Football games are done for the weekend, we thought we’d hit a discotheque.

What? You didn’t know Santa Clarita had any dicos?

They do when Dionne turns 40!

Biehahns in vintage 70’s attire (and hair)

Tricia also wore vintage…this little orange number was her mother’s.

Brandon (center) also wore his dad’s clothes. Here he is escorting his lovely wife, Jill Monroe. Just in case you don’t remember her, here’s what Jill looked like in the 70’s:

I love this girl! Only for her would I have gone out of the house looking like this! Happy Birthday Dionne!

Lesson from Childhood Unlearned

2010-09-11T09:02:00.001-07:00

Or we could entitle this post:

“I Told You So!”

Testosterone and Packages

I’m sure all parents can relate to this little scene…

Mom: “[insert kid’s name here]! Stop hitting him! Ok that’s it! You’re in time out!”

Kid 1: “But Mom! He hit me first!”

Kid 2": “Did not!”

Repeat and add layers of detail, finger pointing and accusation. The weary mother has no idea who did what but she only saw the final meltdown in Kid 1. Kid 1 gets punished while Kid 2 hides a knowing smile.

Dad: “You can only call what you see. It’s always the retaliator that gets it the worst. Know it. Learn it.”

I know you know what I’m talking about.

Now. Go with me to a lighted football stadium full of several thousand spectators. There are 22 of these “kids” on the field with only a few “moms” wearing zebra costumes. Course, the “kids” are all now young men weighing between 150 and 300+ lbs. and have come padded up for a little rumble.

You’re getting the picture. Kid 2 is smart. He gets his licks in surreptitiously. He pins Kid 1. He squeezes the package. Kid 2 lashes out to free himself. Kicks indiscriminately. Hits paydirt. Gets up and walks away. Kid 2 is alone on the field writhing in pain.

And that’s what got Tyler (Kid 1) kicked out of the game in the 3rd quarter of the game last week. Per CIF rules he could not play last night either. He’ll be back next week. Fortunately, Saugus won both games as he paced and cheered on his team and lamented the unfairness of it all.

In Honor of the First Football Game of the Season

2010-09-03T07:37:00.000-07:00

Kenny Chesney - The Boys of Fall (Official Music Video). Watch more top selected videos about: Kenny Chesney

(thanks Cindy Kramer...)

Football. Such an insular world. Lots of good, some bad too.

I have more thoughts on football/competition...coming soon. (I know you're on the edge of your seat now!)

But today, today...today we focus on the good--watching our son start his senior season of football after six long years. You always begin the season with a perfect record. And whatever happens over the course of the next few months, you're a winner every time you step on the field. Go Cents!

Mission Accomplished

2010-08-26T07:53:00.001-07:00

Bryce: Oh darn, I spilled milk on my shirt.

Mom: Go dab it with water.

Bryce: No! That will make it worse!

Mom: It’s so hot it’ll dry in like 2 seconds.

Bryce: No it won’t.

Mom: Ok, whatever. You’re right and I’m wrong.

Bryce: [PAUSE] You make victory so unsatisfying.

Outdone…Again!

2010-08-25T10:40:00.001-07:00

So I thought I’d surf a few of my favorite blogs and found that my friend Daleen had just posted her pictures from Rancho Mirage. Check her out:

Daleen’s Blog

for a much better representation of our fun long weekend, especially the picture of Tyler in Aliza’s bonnet. That alone makes the trip worthwhile. Thanks D!

Essay: What We Did Over Summer Vacation

2010-08-25T10:17:00.001-07:00

You asked for it, you got it (ok, maybe just one person asked…) Here’s what we did over our summer vacation in 60 seconds or less…

Summer began on June 4th after school dismissed. Bryce went backpacking with his scout troop, Jeff went to Europe on business, and Tyler started football practice. Meanwhile I filled my schedule with contractors while we redid all the windows and painted the outside of the house (why is it so hard to pick out the right color?). Justin went to the gym:)

Tyler and I went to Big Bear for youth conference…

I went to Girls’ Camp at the beach…

It always cracks me up that all notions of what is considered appropriate attire is thrown out the window when you get a bunch of girls together for an extended period of time.

View Full Album

I left Girls Camp to go to the temple with Miss Cassie…

Returned to Girls Camp…

Left Girls Camp again to attend Cassie’s wedding (who, incidentally, has got to be the most photographed bride in history)…

I don’t really love this last picture because I look giant next to her. She is tiny, but obviously she’d taken her 4” heels off by this time. That girl likes her heels. I love that girl!

I got released as YW President and called as Stake YW President. (Just to keep things interesting)

And that concludes June.

In July, we started out by sneaking out to Rancho Mirage for some R&R with our friends the Hoskins. We had to celebrate the first 4-day weekend of summer football in 6 years!

It was hot and crowded (4th of July weekend). In fact the pool was so crowded at one point that you could have walked on bodies from one side to the other and never gotten wet. Made me wonder why I wasn’t spending more staycation time at my own pool. But then I remembered. At my house there’s the phone and tv and computer and all of “those people” who need something. When you’re away you give yourself more license to eat out, watch a movie, play a game, and just hang out. (And, we don’t have fluffy white robes at home.) It was well worth it!

View Full Album

The rest of July was Justin, Justin, Justin…

Open House/Fiesta:

View Full Album

Talk in Church:

(sneaked in a trip to Magic Mt. with the McGills-sh!)

Setting apart:

Off to Utah for more learning (Tyler was at EFY in Provo) gathering (“This is the Place”) and farewells:

View Full Album

Dropping at the MTC:

And crashing.

August has been a month of putting it all back together…

Starting Justin’s blog—www.elderjpeacock.blogspot.com
Fixing all the broken stuff (pool system, tires for 2 cars, water regulator, sprinkler system brain, whole house fan, more car stuff, our checkbook…yeesh!)
Returning to school, returning to football (Bryce too), returning to Weight Watchers! (and all that those things imply)
Starting a new project for work
Doctor and dentist appointments

Oh and in the midst of it all, I had decided that I thought it worthwhile for Tyler to attend as much of his YM’s river rafting activity as possible, since he’d have to be back for football prior to their scheduled return. So we arranged for me to go pick him up about 30 hours after he left. It was only after he had already gone that I looked up HOW REALLY REALLY FAR AWAY this place is. 6.5 hours EACH WAY not including stops. Would have been a good thing to look up before. Thank goodness for cute Cassandra who consented to keep me company on the way. And, plus, she was much better at getting information/talking out of Tyler than I am. Bonus. OK, maybe it was worth it for just a few glimpses into that little black box we named Tyler. Wow that was a long long way.

So now you’re all caught up. I expect lots of comments (you know who you are! hehe).

My Conversation with God (or something like it)

2010-07-13T08:00:00.001-07:00

Me:

“So, um, Heavenly Father….I’ve been Young Women’s President for a few (like 4) years now… I’m a little tired and my son’s about to leave on his mission. Don’t get me wrong, I have sooooo loved serving You in this way. I love the Young Women like they are my own daughters. I cry when they cry, I laugh when they laugh. I have learned much and served well. I am not perfect, no, not by a long shot, but maybe it’s time for someone else to have this honor? My ideas are getting a little stale and they deserve better. There are some great ladies I could even suggest. It would be so very nice to have a little break and not be in charge. Do you want to hear my list of places where I could serve? I promise I will be a very good follower.”

Heavenly Father:

“OK. I call you to be the Stake Young Women’s President.”

Me:

“But…”

Heavenly Father:

“Yes?”

Me:

“But…”

Heavenly Father:

“Dear [Lisa], I have your recent letter. I have only one suggestion: forget yourself and go to work.”

“Whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it” (Mark 8:35).

ok then.

Advice to Live By

2010-07-09T22:29:00.000-07:00

Of all the things I have learned and done in the last month, this little piece of advice garnered from Brother DeVore who spoke at our youth conference in Big Bear last month has really stuck with me:

"If you can't think of something interesting to post as your status for Facebook [or Blogger, or Twitter, etc. etc.] then go DO something interesting."

Well, I've been doing just that, interspersed with frantic periods of organizing, packing, cleaning up, worrying, praying. I will get back to posting because the record is important to me, but for now I am experiencing, surviving, living, doing.

Happy Birthday Nancy!

2010-06-14T09:53:00.001-07:00

For my mom’s birthday in April, her only desire was to have family portraits done. After two months of hammering out the details (photographer, location, wardrobe), we met over Memorial Day weekend at the Huntington Hacienda (aka mom and dad’s house) to make it happen!

You can see that we skew heavy to the males on this side of the family--

And those boys love their birthday meema--

And of course, a manly-man shot is requisite--

Three generations--

Back where we started--

And then there’s the Peacock gallery--

Happy Birthday mom! We have to say, we were prepared to endure it all and it turned out to be soooo fun! We love you!

This Just In!

2010-06-09T23:35:00.001-07:00

Read in The Signal, Santa Clarita’s newspaper on 6/9/10:

“City [not ours, by the way] mulls crackdown on peacock population…Roaming peacocks are ruffling feathers in an exclusive estate where city leaders are considering toughening measures to control them. Residents…are complaining that the peacock population is a nuisance, with droppings and raucous calls.”

I guess we’ll have to keep our heads low until this all blows over.

My Basketball Crush

2010-06-09T23:26:00.001-07:00

Sorry honey, I (and Grandma Virginia) do have a crush on this man…

"I got a bit emotional in my postgame interview right after the game just because I love what I do, and I love helping my team win,'' Fisher said. "Even when things maybe aren't going the way I'd like them to go for reasons I can control and some I can't, I still pretty much kept my mouth shut and just keep doing my job, and remain faithful that things will come around. And so to come through (Tuesday) again for this team, 14 years (into his career) after so many great moments, it's always quite surreal and quite humbling to experience it again.''

Derek Fisher, following Game 3 of the 2010 NBA Finals

And…

2010-05-26T16:11:00.001-07:00

As I look back over the last post, I believe I have officially confirmed my reservation for a padded room given the amount of time I spent arranging and photographing the flops.

Flip Flop Frenzy

2010-05-26T14:54:00.001-07:00

Try saying that three times fast.

For Girls Camp this year we are camping at the beach. One of the fun parts of camp is showering them with little gifts throughout the week, so I’ve been on the lookout for inexpensive doo-dads for the girls, since I must be mindful of the budget as well…

I’ve been wanting to find flip flops for them, but even $2.50 at Target has been a little pricey given the volume of flip flops needed. An ad for $1 flip flops at Old Navy started playing early last week. I was stoked! $1 is good, very good. Old Navy flip flops are good quality as these things go, so even better! I had it all set in my mind. They were on sale for $1 on Saturday only so I’d head over early in the day and pick up the 25 pairs or so I’d need. No problemo.

Only…then I read the fine print…5 pair limit. AARGH! Then, I hear that this was a THING. You know, early queues, crowds, hair pulling, etc. AND, they were opening at 7 am. Now, I was scared. But an idea planted is an idea not easily discarded (if that is even possible). I started scheming. Jeff stayed away, he knows how I get when I have that look in my eye.

First things first, I needed a plan. I called all the moms for shoe sizes and compiled my list. Next, I needed co-conspirators and maybe someone to drive the getaway car. Just kidding, but I did briefly consider disguises to move through the line multiple times (hair up, hair down, sweatshirt on, sweatshirt off, just enough to make them question…turned out not to be a problem—they didn’t care if you got back in line, but were firm on the 5 pair limit).

Angie and Corinna met me at 6:45 am (such early morning craziness, on a weekend no less, is a true sign of devotion!) I got there a few minutes early and made friends with people in front of me who were not buying their full quota, so they agreed to help me out. Thanks Theresa and Katie! I think we are now lifelong friends…Katie hugged me at the hand off. I was the third person in line with my first 5 pairs. Went to the car to drop them off then back in for my next batch (and locked my keys in the car!) Somewhere along the line, I went off plan and got too many 9’s and missed the 5. I looked like a flip flop scalper as we stacked them across the back of the car while waiting for AAA and we assessed the sizes in hand. I sent Corinna back into the fray for that elusive 5.

Success! Shh! Don’t tell the girls (I don’t think any of them read the blog…) Course, then the boys complained they didn’t get any so we were back at 2pm for them. Fortunately, boy colors (navy, black, brown) and sizes were still there but there wasn’t a brightly colored flip or flop for miles around! Made me feel especially wily for getting there early and grateful for my flip flop frenzy friends!

May Days with Justin

2010-05-26T14:11:00.001-07:00

When Bryce was born and I got to stay home and be a mom I swore that I would savor the days with the baby and remember every minute. But now, nearly 13 years later, I can only remember snippets of moments. Things that are just so clear while you’re living them disappear *POOF*. It is the saddest thing ever.

So, here I am again, trying to memorialize the brief months that we get to spend with Justin before he leaves us for 2 years, maybe never again to LIVE with us (I’m not sure what to hope for here:) In the end, we just have to live what we are because living under a microscope hoping for “special moments” is a sure way to scare them away.

We’ve been to Disneyland…

We spent a lovely day in LA…

We celebrated Justin’s 19th (and 20th and 21st) birthday(s). What do you get a young man who will be living minimally for the next two years? A watch that can be stolen…and red velvet cake with creatively numbered candles.

I made a wish too when he blew out the candles, but I can’t tell you or it might not come true!

I Have Sock Issues

2010-05-16T19:44:00.001-07:00

This is my sock basket. I took this picture tonight. Here’s my system:

Do laundry on Mondays
Fold socks when clothes are removed from the dryer and throw into this basket on the floor of the laundry room
Sock wearers remove their socks, preferably all at once (say, on Tuesday), but generally on an as needed basis
Repeat

Today is Sunday. Sunday evening to be precise. Presumably, there will be 5 more pairs of socks removed tomorrow morning. It should be at the lowest point of the week. You can see there are more than five pairs in the basket.

Here is a conversation that occurred yesterday:

Tyler: Mom, I don’t have any socks.
Bryce: Ya mom, I never have any socks either.

So, I’m wondering whose socks are in the basket?

Return with me to a simpler time. I had a sock plan. With three boys + sports, a wise mother will make a sock plan. Here was mine:

Justin: White, no-show Joe Boxer socks
Tyler: White crew Hanes socks
Bryce: White crew Goldline socks
Jeff: dress socks (of course, which the boys all borrowed from on Sundays), and white ankle Adidas socks.
Lisa: Whatever I want. I’m the only girl and after all, I fold them.

It was a lovely plan—a standard for domestic efficiency, if you ask me. Buy in bulk for the best price. If the dryer eats one, or there’s a hole, no problem, always plenty more where that came from. Matching and sorting to their owners was a cinch.

But my plan began to crumble when Justin wanted variety. Soon, I had black socks in the mix. Tyler wasn’t happy with his socks either. I could deal though. They could have one other option, but COULD NEVER have the same style as anyone else. That point was non-negotiable. Jeff went rogue. He claimed ignorance of the sock plan and purchased his own socks…that looked just like Justin’s.

Corporate greed also assaulted my plan. Do you know that Nike dri-fit socks have “rights” and “lefts” now? I have been assured by Justin and Tyler that they really can tell a difference. Of course, such custom fitting of socks makes one run faster and jump higher, that goes without saying.

One day when I went to fold socks, this is what I got:

R-R-R-R-L

My plan was in shambles. That was when I stopped sorting socks to their owners. I conceded that point of the plan and just matched the socks and tossed them in the basket. I think there are some pairs of socks that have gone unclaimed week after week until they have been there for over 3 years. We are in sore need of a sock overhaul.

I have sock issues.

Mormon Helping Hands

2010-05-14T08:57:00.001-07:00

Getting a little more current now…this only happened last weekend. Click HERE for the story and more pictures which helps show the magnitude of it all…

For the second year in a row, our stake has organized a service day at Castaic Lake and Canyon Country Park. We painted red curbs at Castaic Lake. Jeff and I are just now recovering from bending over and painting curbs for four hours. Somehow our biggest, strongest boys ended up with the rollers on poles, thus saving their backs and hamstrings.

It was a gorgeous day—great to be out working.

Prom

2010-05-14T08:36:00.001-07:00

I worked long and hard on a witty title and this is what I came up with.

Dateline: Friday, April 30th, LDS Prom

For the last 4 years our stake has participated in a multi-stake “LDS Prom” to offer our youth an alternative to the school proms. It’s more affordable and dress and behavior codes are strictly enforced. They do a fabulous job. This year it was held at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach and they offered many activities including karaoke and harbor cruises. They had a lot of fun.

Tyler looking sharp.

Ahh, the fake pinning of the boutonniere picture. You know, the teenagers pose and then mom steps in and does the actual heavy lifting.

Katelyn and Tyler

I had to snap a picture of the back of Katelyn’s hair because it was beautiful. The wind was a little challenging for the girls and their cute hair.

Wes, Lauren, Dylan, Aralie, Katelyn & Tyler

Valencia 2nd Ward Prom Go-ers—aren’t they gorgeous?

House of the Blue Door

2010-05-09T18:42:00.001-07:00

Our house was built in 1978. Slowly, but surely, we have replaced most of the infrastructure (some more than once). This was a fun, and very necessary, upgrade.

BEFORE:

I think it is/was real wood, painted MANY times, with moulding to create detail (and collect dust) and brass fixtures all original to the house. We went through a period where the lock didn’t unlock and/or the door didn’t close all the way…

AFTER:

It’s not terribly fancy, but I adore the color (it came primed and we painted it). Blue is my happy color. The glass is always tricky because we wanted a balance of privacy and light. Also, the front door looks straight up into the master bedroom so, well, you can never be too careful…

Bryce:   Um, is that the color you want it to be?

Me:       Yes! I love it, don’t you?

Bryce:   Well, it’s not what I would have picked. I mean, I don’t think the house can really pull that look off. Sorry.

Looking at these pictures, I’m thinking I really need to add some container plants to set it off. However, I do not have good luck with container gardening and may be accused of involuntary plant- slaughter. Hmm, that reminds me of the famous children’s book:

If you buy a woman a front door, she’ll want a patio to go with it. If you buy a woman a patio, it will need landscaping. If you buy landscaping, she’ll need a new car to look great in the driveway…etc. *sigh*

OK, maybe doesn’t say EXACTLY that. But, today I’m very happy with my new blue door!!!

A Piece of Freedom

2010-05-07T16:43:00.001-07:00

More catch up…

Dateline: April 4-10…………….Washington DC

I LOVE WASHINGTON DC. Outside of cities where I or my family has lived, it is probably the one I’ve visited most often. I don’t consider myself significantly political, but I do feel very patriotic and grateful for the free land we live in and the blessings that have come from the sacrifices of our forefathers so that we could live in this great land. It is not a perfect country, we do not have perfect leaders, and we are not a perfect people. But, there is DIALOGUE. I’m currently reading about the *miracle* of our Constitution, so revolutionary at the time, an act of compromise and, I believe, Supreme intervention. We are blessed.

But, I digress. Tyler really wanted to go with the 8th graders to Washington DC a few years ago. I was so excited that he’d want to go. It was pricey, and I told him that he and I should just go. It would be cheaper and we’d have more flexibility (and, well, I’d get to go!). But, the year came and went and we did not get there, leaving me with lingering guilt (mother’s are good at that) that I’d talked him out of his trip.

With the planets (ie school/sports schedules) in alignment, it finally seemed like a good time to go. Both boys were old enough to appreciate and had a desire to go. We missed Justin, he did not have a spring break and had never had a real desire to go. No, it would be relaxing. Yes, it would be work (transportation, walking, pondering, crowd dodging). But, I felt, well worth it.

We stayed in Arlington, Virginia and took the metro in to DC every day. It was HOT! Unexpectedly so since it had snowed a few weeks before. High 80’s every day except Friday, when it dropped 25 degrees after a Thursday night rainstorm. Crowds were at record levels given the perfect storm of spring break and blooming cherry blossoms.

So, excuse the travelogue. Probably only interesting to grandparents…If you’re planning a trip to our nation’s capital maybe it’ll help:)

Day 1: Library of Congress, Supreme Court, Congress, Air & Space Museum

I can’t believe that I’d never been to the Library of Congress before. It was high on the boys’ lists because of the last National Treasure movie. Ahh, history, I guess we’ll take it anyway we can get it? Anyway, I loved the architecture—beautiful! Also, I’d recently read a historical fiction book on illuminators and Gutenberg so it was amazing to see one of his bibles.

The most amazing exhibit, in my mind, was the Jefferson Library. When Congress was burned in the War of 1812, Jefferson offered to sell his mammoth collection of books to the Congress for the library for $23,950 in 1815. A second fire on Christmas Eve of 1851, destroyed nearly two thirds of the 6,487 volumes. A recent grant has provided the means to reconstruct this library. Within these plexi-glass shelves you can see original books from the collection, copies of books that were in the original collection, and the titles of books still left to be replaced. The depth and breadth of the topics and authors is staggering. The love for learning, pervasive.

Next stop, Supreme Court. I really need to do the tour sometime (oh good, a reason to go back!) We didn’t, just looked in the courtroom.

We had a scheduled tour at the Capitol courtesy of Congressman McKeon (more on that later). I don’t think I’ve been here since 9/11 so it was a much different experience. No more walking wherever you want in the dome room or surrounding rooms—all is very tightly controlled. Our tour guide had the most annoying voice/smile thing going on that I had a hard time overcoming. I can perfectly replicate it, just ask me.

After the tour, we also had tickets to the view the House chambers, although unfortunately Congress was not in session this week. Despite that fact, we had to strip all electronics (including car door clickers, cameras, phones, etc.) and leave them in a coat check area and then walk through another metal detector to get into the room. It’s smaller than it looks on tv.

By this time, we were starving. It was probably 2 or 3 o’clock and there had not been an opportunity to eat. We thought we’d just find a vendor on the way to the Air and Space Museum but we went blocks and blocks without seeing one. We finally saw a “roach coach” just before the museum and settled. Bad move. I mention this incident only because of it’s pure awful-ness. I won’t go into many details, but it was memorable for the color tone of the hot dogs as well as the overall decay of the condiments. Course we found a nice clean vendor or two around the corner, but the appetite was long gone.

We (Jeff and I) thought the boys would really like this museum—it’s usually a real kid pleaser. In truth, I think they were a little bored by it (they did like astronaut ice cream and the flight simulators). Or, maybe they were just tired from the morning (or sick from the “lunch”).

Here’s more from Day 1:

View Full Album

Day 2: Monuments and Memorials, Museum of US History

Always breathtaking and thought provoking, we walked from memorial to memorial. I seemed particularly taken with the Washington Monument this trip. I have never gone inside and had hoped to this time, but found out that tickets are distributed each day at 8am and are usually gone by 8:30am. Needless to say, that didn’t happen. Maybe next time (reason #2 to get back!).

Last time I was in DC, the World War II Memorial was just about to open, but was surrounded by chain link fencing. It was nice to walk the plaza. My favorite part, though, was watching Jeff and Tyler. Jeff walked Tyler around the plaza and told him stories about his Grandfather Leslie Anderson.

I still tear up every time I enter the main room of the Lincoln Memorial.

Mr. President seemed thirsty when we walked by, so we shared. I think they liked the US History Museum—there was a special exhibit on the ‘Price of Peace’ or, in other words, war, which seemed to captivate them.

I sneaked away to see the First Lady gowns—Mrs. Obama’s inaugural gown is already there!

The Eagle Takes Flight

2010-05-05T09:06:00.001-07:00

So much to catch up. Momentous events coming fast and furious, hardly time to enjoy/recover from one and another is upon us!

Dateline: March 26th, Tyler’s Eagle Court of Honor

(Note the wizard behind the curtain:)

We were very grateful to have both sets of grandparents with us for the event, including the grand dame herself,(Great-)Grandma Virginia. Thank goodness for Grandpa Bruce who salvaged the audio visuals!

As always, our friends the Hoskins are with us through thick and thin. How is it that Daleen can always anticipate every need that I have when putting on one of these events? In return, Aliza has decided to adopt all of our grandmothers as her own—and is planning her vacation at the Huntington Hacienda…

Bryce led the color guard, Scoutmaster CPayne conferred the honor, and Tyler “pinned” Jeff and I.

Grandmas Joyce, Virginia & Nancy

Brotherly Love

G.G. Virginia loves him best because he looks like her:)

Some of the nice things I said about Tyler in his intro:

“He is trustworthy. If he says he’ll do something, he does it. Take schoolwork, for instance, Tyler is an exceptional student. He knows what he needs to do and he does it. He might be up until 3 am to finish it, but he does it.

“He is independent. He likes to figure out things on his own. He never needs my help, but sometimes I impose it on him anyway, just to make myself feel useful

“He is loyal. He will not tolerate if someone is critical of a friend, and will call you on it. He’s also the first in line to cheerfully help someone in need.

“He is thrifty. He doesn’t waste his money, but is very purposeful in setting goals. He’s saved money to purchase a bike, a camera, a computer. It’s often hard to surprise him with a big gift because he’s usually saved money and purchased it himself.”

See below for the audio-visual presentation:)

2010-05-05T09:02:00.001-07:00

Free photo slideshow created with Smilebox

Here's the slideshow from the Court of Honor.

The Court of Honor also included another scout, but I have re-edited the slideshow to only include Tyler in the interest of brevity (sorry Connor!)

Gems from My Youth

2010-04-12T14:42:00.001-07:00

Last month when we were in Yucca Valley, my dad inserted two boxes into the back of our car just as we were leaving and said, somewhat aside, “Here are some of your things we’ve been storing for you.” Since I haven’t lived with my parents for 27 years, and noting the certain gleam in my father’s eye as we left, I was sure I probably did not want those boxes.

I drove around most of March with those two boxes clanking around in the back of the Suburban and only removed them when we needed the space to go to the airport a week ago. I thought I’d open them today. I think the bug to open the boxes hit me for two reasons:

I have just spent a week in Washington DC viewing some of the most spectacular artifacts—the Constitution, Guttenberg Bible, Wright plane, Old Glory, etc. I’m sure something in those boxes must be a treasure worth saving, storing, and throwing out in 27 more years.
More importantly, today is trash day.

I’m sure you’re on the edge of your seat. Here’s what I found:

A water damaged clown/harlequin doll thing. While some vague recess of my memory recognizes this, I can’t imagine what caused me to have this on a shelf in my room given my debilitating fear of clowns. Gone.

Baby dolls. Not well preserved. I considered momentarily saving them for a future granddaughter but decided against that. Included is one with a ceramic face that I think might have been from a grandmother’s childhood (?) but she is also water damaged and it looks like a coyote gnawed off one of her hands. Or, it was the clown thing that gnawed it off. Regardless, since I can’t remember the significance, gone.

Some very 80’s candles, incense burners, other ceramic knick knacks. Why were these saved? Gone.

Some of the ugliest, stiffest stuffed animals you ever did see. The only thing I can think of is that they were remembrances from some teenage knight conquering the skeeball dragon in my honor. Gone.

Dolls from around the world. Ahhh, now these I remember and did wonder where they’d gone. My mom and grandma were travel agents and travelled extensively. They used to bring me back dolls from their travels. Many are quite lovely and special. The poor Vietnamese doll had a mastectomy during storage. She may need some reconstructive surgery, but these are keepers.

Records. (Children, these are the black things that made music. Sometimes you see them in old, black and white movies.) I’m told some records are worth a lot these days…but, probably not these. Here was my full record collection (no offer will be refused):

Donna Summer, “Live and More”. A 2-record collection including such classics as “MacArthur Park”, “Last Dance” and “Love to Love You, Baby”.

Helen Reddy, “I Don’t Know How to Love Him”. My favorite song on this one is “I Am Woman” [hear me roar, with numbers too big to ignore…]

Leif Garrett, “Feel the Need”. This features a nice picture of Leif (note, we're on a first name basis) in spandex pants and a leather jacket. I used to have a Tiger Beat shrine to Leif in my closet. He was better to look at than listen to though.

“Annie, a New Musical”. I still love musical theater. I could really belt out “Maybe”.

C’est Chic. It seems funny that I would buy this one with my carefully saved record dollars.

Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”. Another soundtrack. I remember seeing the movie (strange) but really liking the music.

“Grease”. A classic. I still know every word of this soundtrack. We used to act out the music during slumber parties. I had no memory of all of the innuendo the movie contained, however, and was quite surprised when I tried to make a kid watch it with me and was too embarrassed. They were happy for the reprieve, they don’t understand my love for musicals…I think “Sound of Music” should be required viewing at least annually. I don’t know why their father won’t support me on this.

Leo Sayer, “Endless Flight”. I think this one was all about the song, “When I Need You”.

Commodores from the Lionel Richie days.

Bee Gees, “Spirits Having Flown”. I’m sensing that I really liked the Bee Gees…

“Saturday Night Fever”. Need I say more?

Two albums I’m surprised not to find: Air Supply (no idea which one(s)) and Stevie Nicks “Belladonna”. I used to swoon over every Air Supply song—how did they know exactly how I was feeling?? Air Supply was the first concert I ever went to.

Stevie Nicks is probably the only artist of all of those listed that I still really love. I loved when “School of Rock” reintroduced the song, “Edge of Seventeen” to my children and they all had to have it on their iPods.

I also remember getting the 45 of “Muskrat Love” by Captain and Tenille one year for Christmas. There was nothing I wanted more. Our little record store in Yucca Valley never had it so my cool Uncle Bob who lived "in the city" had to acquire one for me.

It seems my dad decided to keep the best ones for himself!

A Gap in the Education…

2010-04-12T10:45:00.001-07:00

As Justin was preparing for college last year, I worried frequently about whether or not we had prepared him sufficiently for life on his own. I devised a lesson plan of things we needed to make sure he knew about—like reconciling his checkbook (have you done that yet, Justin?).

Anyway, he’s done really well. He figured out all of the mission paperwork on his own, including scheduling medical and dental appointments. He figured out how to register for classes, buy and return books, maximize his meal plan dollars and other useful things. We have, however, discovered a gap in the practical living curriculum… use of the postal service.

Here’s the conversation:

Me: Will you pleeeeeease mail me a copy of your mission packet so I can help you prepare (this is after asking for this several times over several weeks).

Justin: Um. How do I do that?

Me: What do you mean? Take it to the library or Kinko’s, copy the pertinent sections and mail it to me.

Justin: Mail it?

Me: Yes, mail it.

Justin: Where do I get an envelope? Doesn’t it need a stamp or something? Then where do I take it?

Me: Seriously?

Thank goodness for Mitchel next door, whose mother obviously taught her son about the virtues of the postal service (of course, in fairness, Mitchel is her 4th out the door). Mitchel was able to set Justin up with an envelope AND a stamp. Somehow he located one of those magic boxes where you put things in in Utah and they show up in California a few days later.

Me: Um. 1 stamp? How thick was it?

Justin: I don’t know. Does it matter?

So, needless to say, I got a notice that the post office was holding the letter hostage for an additional $0.51 owed.

The post office is a beautiful thing. Sometimes email, facebook, skype, texting, or phonecalls just won’t do the trick. I see I have more work to do before he leaves for Mexico…