beat em by a hair

we were at mission yesterday for a meet. 

turns out we won by 1/4 of 1/1000 of a second or something like that. 

otherwise known as a hair. 

unfortunately, hunter has realized the blue whale is just 

that in a race...maybe he should be called the 

sinking gigantic very slow blue whale. 

he's working on it, and has a good attitude, 

but all i can say is, glad he has an alternate sport.

and he IS a fantastic cheerleader for his teammates. 

maybe he should have done football after all.

where's the bunnies?

easter last year at the lovely provo marriott

the new guys

my favorite

i am certainly in a weird funk. 

cant write (i know major blog slacker) cant even
put the numerous bunnies i have collected over the years
up in my kitchen window in celebration of easter. 

i have all of 2 up, new ones this year, however i do have my favorite
egg and rafia wreaths on the front doors. 

at least i havent died completely. 

and usually am excited to fill 5 easter baskets...this year unfortunately only 3.
(maybe thats the root of my problem-had to mail 2 packages full of goodies to far off places). 

a trip to the mall, waiting in a long line at sees, piling 5 giant foiled rabbits,
5 bags of shiny eggs and butterscotch suckers (and getting lots of stares)
in my little black overflowing basket is typically on my spring to do list...however,
this year target will just have to do. 

and i did buy the big dove bunnies, reeses little bunnies
and of course the yummy hershey marshmallow eggs.
LOVE marshmallow eggs...but of course im not eating ANY this year.
(maybe THIS is the root of my problem-food deprivation).

i may be in a funk, but i do know what good american chocolate is.

who doesnt love reeses?

i will get to taste it in a month.
literally (and you think i am kidding) counting the days.

bagel boycott

so i have been dreaming lately, not of hanging out with hunky men or 

going to school with no clothes on 

(c'mon, you all know what i am talking about)
or getting ready to graduate from high school, and realizing i forgot
to take a class necessary for graduation.
all the while, standing there in my cap and gown.
weird, i know.

anyway, i have been dreaming of 

bagels. 

see, i have officially been without any sort of bread anything 

for almost 2 weeks, and i think i am going to die. 

you know they say after a certain amount of time, 

you get over it? 

uh, no. 

i would kill for a cinnamon sugar bagel 

with even just a little bit of cream cheese smeared across its warm underbelly. 

 but with that said, i am a woman who does what she says she's gonna do.

so i am bagel free for at least another month. 

wish me luck. 

i need prayers too.

lots of them.

lessons learned

have learned a few things lately in my oh so exciting life.

when making cupcakes for little boys, ages 8 and 9, 

it doesn't matter if the cupcake liners are color coordinated,

or if the cupcakes are a little overdone.

just trying to get this through my head.

and that herbal tea in the morning isnt really that bad.

even if i drink from the famous portmerion, $25 cup

i got at DI for $1...emma so mad at me because she thought

i should "leave it for some poor person who really cant 

afford portmerion...we can afford to buy that cup, mom."

gotta love that girl.

and the tea is tazo, wild sweet orange, sweetened with stevia.

and yes, the eyeliner nazi mom, has agreed that everyone

needs a little eyeliner once in awhile. i watched eden

put on her makeup for winter formal, she did the eye shadow, then

mascara...then she added a touch of this on the inner part of

her lower lid. made such a big difference.

so, yes, old dogs can learn new tricks, and moms 

can change their minds.

and finally, the dreaded scout shirt i have to wear now

since i hang around 8 year olds once a week.

i swear i will make this fashionable...somehow.

just hope this old school version, in a lovely

shade of pale, pee yellow will suffice.

heaven forbid if they make me wear the tan one.

just not on my color wheel, thank you.

well, to be honest neither is this.

thanks karen for loaning it to me...

shoot me now.

blog slacker

i admit, i have been a blog slacker. 

so my goal to write every day has slid down the 

slippery slope of laziness...or sheer lack of anything 

very exciting going on in my life. 

actually i like it that way. 

if there is no drama in my home, i am happy.

so the subject of this post is chocolate covered raisins. 

i use them as bait for dane to do his homework. 

and they work. 

this tiny little chocolately treat works well to get him in 

the kitchen, pencil in hand, his scattered little mind on homework. 

if only it were that easy when they get older.

”We will receive not what we idly wish for but what we justly earn. 

Our rewards will always be in exact proportion to our service.” 

Earl Nightingale

tiny tiles

love it when the sun hits the tiny tiles in my pool just right.

magic.

mormal

so this "mormon prom" is commonly called "mormal" too. 

i prefer mormon prom for some reason. 

i equate "mormal" with "normal"....doesnt sit right with me. 

cute brandon was her date,

 he asked her in front of the whole group in young women 

who were gathered for new beginnings....and 

while she was in the middle of a skit...so cute, 

handed her a bouquet of flowers and they hugged.

they were darling yesterday...brandons first "dance".

they had a picnic in the park before the dance with about 40 other kids.
complete with gourmet pot luck and bbq chicken, hamburgers and hot dogs.
thank you jerry and vivian for pulling all of that together.
what a beautiful day too. 80 degrees as we were pulling into
the parking lot.

and...just glad brandons dad is a cop. made me feel safer for some reason. 

maybe if they needed help during the night he would be there lickety split?

maybe he could give them a police escort on the way home?

maybe he could stand at the door of the dance, with his gun on his hip? 

still need to hear all about it.

and the reality that there was no police escort, or bodyguard needed. 

she IS still asleep. 

who knew?

i officially feel like a have sex pot on my hands.

and i mean that in a good way...

the girl who wears pajamas and a sweatshirt all day long

cleans up pretty well.

monkey love

so glad i have a mother who cares for me enough to send me a brand 

new bundt pan so i wont be poisoned. apparently, the lining of those 

teflon pans is "somewhat" poisonous.
(when you think about it...how is something "somewhat poisonous?)
anyway...
i baked my famous monkey bread in my 

trusty old bundt pan (the older the better in my opinion) at christmas 

time when they were here...i guess she noticed how beat up it was 

and how we are slowly poisoning ourselves with the non stick coating. 

i do know, if you have birds in your home, you cannot cook with teflon...kills em. 

so i guess i just have to ask the cookware manufacturers...why do you coat cookware 

with a hazardous material? doesnt make a whole lotta sense. 

i do think next time i will buy the regular all-clad 

ones or something shiny and bright. like the old farberware ones i had for 20 years. 

im into old school these days. 

so i get this little box on my doorstep...with a shiny new 

RED 

bundt pan inside...along with some cute socks and a quilting 

article from the newspaper in st george.
love my mom.
shes so concientious. 

and i will share my 

AMAZING monkey bread recipe. 

you can thank me later...

after youve gained a couple pounds.

monkey bread

1 bag rhodes frozen dinner rolls

1 small box cook and serve vanilla pudding

1 cup brown sugar

2 tsp cinnamon 

1 cube melted butter

optional: chopped nuts or raisins

(prepare at night, before you go to bed)

place frozen rolls in greased bundt pan.

pour melted butter over rolls.

mix dry pudding/brown sugar and cinnamon.

sprinkle over rolls.

place on counter overnight, covered with tea towel.

in the morning, they will be all puffy and raised.

cook at 325 for approximately 20 minutes, or until brown.

red blooded man

so eden is studying for her ap biology test coming up.
shes at the kitchen table, computer open...i am at the
kitchen sink putting dinner together...hunter
is rummaging through the pantry looking for a snack,
famished after swim practice.

eden: did you know that fruit is actually the ovaries of plants?

hunter: maybe thats why they taste so good.

i am not sure whether i should be alarmed or flattered.

the real deal

visited the coto country club yesterday...
the epitome of orange county housewives here.
we decided they would be bored with our rather mundane lives.
good thing we stayed for nearly 3 hours, eating salmon tacos and
bbq chicken salad, and the birthday girl even had a burger...solved
all the worlds problems with our smart intellect,
seasoned good looks
(well, i speak for myself...i am the oldest one of the bunch)
and witty humor.
just so you know,
we are the real deal...and so glad i have friends
who have birthdays they dont want, lots of kids and real problems,
like washing machines that malfunction,
family members with serious mental disorders and grown
adults who are afraid of mickey mouse and mini vans.
(you just had to be there)
makes me feel normal.

whatever normal is.

just a matter of priorities

 this is what emma sees in her spare time...

this is what i see in my spare time...

there is a God

magnificent creatures right outside my kitchen window, 

who were indeed created by someone with some great design sense.

happy birthday jessica...

so in honor of my niece who would be 33 today, we ventured to red robin (her birthday favorite spot) to celebrate with a french dip sandwich and diet coke (her favorite birthday meal). how wonderful to celebrate such a wonderful life, who is alive and well...just in another place. i know beyond a shadow of a doubt she is doing wonderful things and probably pities us poor mortals who have to deal with such mundane, unimportant things. the only mourning we do is for ourselves, as she is just fine without us. i am confident there are many great things she is doing...so great she was called home a little early to perform her duties. she was just too valuable to waste here on earth. so jessica, in honor of you...simply feel sorry for us pitiful earthlings...while we indulge ourselves in such inconsequential things as fat laden cheeseburgers and all you can eat fries. 

just promise me you will be the first one i see when its my turn.

plain turkey

today we ventured out of our comfort zone...got a mesa sandwich, 

while nursing dane's stuffy nose. 

hopefully he will be better enough to do school tomorrow, 

although it has been fun having him around during the day. 

reminds me of summer.

medium hi-c

dane home from school today with a stuffy nose. 

another blank head day.

wonder whats wrong with me.

maybe we will go through drive thru for some excitement.

stay out of the water

so i am officially one of tesoros swim team photographers. 

took some fun ones yesterday (ya know, sometimes youre ON, and sometimes youre OFF...well, i was ON yesterday in the photo taking department), at a meet against university...sorry only swim/polo 

moms will get any real pleasure out of looking at these. 

i get it. 

watching half naked kids running around in freezing cold weather isnt for everyone.

im kind of used to it now.

doesnt phase me a bit.

seen it all.

for years.

(maybe i love it cuz it reminds me of when the girls were swimming)

and to all you swimmers out there.

got a little tip for ya... 

dont jump in the water to celebrate a monumental, amazing win until the 

last extremely close, highly anticipated race of the day is completely over. 

tesoro was in the lead by 1 point against this highly ranked team (they came in 2nd in state last year, CIF champs over and over...so i hear). anyway, a tesoro swimmer who will remain nameless (no, it was not hunter-thank goodness-talk about scarred for life) jumped in the water, just as this important race finished (so he thought), to celebrate this incredible win.
there he was, screaming, fists in the air, jumping up and down in the pool...big smile on his face. 

for only one split second.

till the whistle was blown.

till he realized he was the only one celebrating in the water.

silence on deck.

mouths agape.

a couple swear words could be heard.

he disqualified his team.

then pandemonium set in.

so instead of winning by 1 point. 

we lost by 1 point. 

so lesson to be learned...

stay out of the water unless YOU are racing.

and learn the appropriate time to celebrate a phenomenal win.
(i just hope he recovers...)

apparently we have a decent team this year...

blindside

yay for sandra bullock. 

i like her. 

i really liked her in the blindside. 

one of those feel good movies. 

lately, thats the only kind i will see. 

so probably the biggest compliment anyone has ever given me, 

was when my dad called after seeing the movie 

and said her character reminded him of me. 

made my heart melt...and i have a pretty awesome dad 

who not only thinks those things, but says them out loud. 

way to make my day, dad...even if you are a little biased.

eat your heart out

end result.

strawberry cake

sort of a baking day today. raining, cold outside. 

so i am going to make a mess in my kitchen now, just after i have spent the afternoon cleaning up.

this is the best cake ever...especially if youre NOT really into chocolate, like i am. i would much rather have a banana cream pie or cream brulee than chocolate...not really a chocolate girl, i guess. 

so...try this luscious cake. 

1 duncan hines white cake, made in a jelly roll pan

1 8oz cream cheese

1 pint whipping cream

2 cups powdered sugar

sliced strawberries

store bought glaze

mix cream cheese and 1 cup powdered sugar, set aside. whip cream with 1 cup powdered sugar, then combine with cream cheese mixture. spread on cooled cake. mix sliced strawberries and glaze and spread on top of cream mixture.

meet time

(waiting for his event)

(being the cheerleader for jack, who just lost by a split second)

(my boy, the gorilla...sans hair)

(simply amazing-the blue whale can fly)

another meet for hunter. 

this time against trabuco hills. 

his times were a bit better. 

still trying to figure the whole swimming thing out. 

all new for him.

and realizing too, how much fun the swim girls are.

the blue whale is growing up.