Washington DC

Soon I will be here...
and here...
and don't forget here...I may need to lend them some money...
I'm getting there on this...
I am excited...mostly to see my cute son Cam, and to spend time with him and my sisters Sue and Nancy!

Luke...

I haven't picked a name out of the box for a while! Today I picked Luke! Luke is my nephew and I don't think he could be any cuter or sweeter! He is a great kid! He is always happy and polite and just a nice nice boy! Luke's brother Jake and Sister Erica love him so much and are always looking out for him.
Things I Love about My Lukie...
1. His smile
2. His Eyes
3. His kindness
4. His politeness
5. His laugh
6. His ability to adapt
7. His LOVE for Skiing...Good thing because of where he lives!
8. His willingness to help
9. His patience with the all of his little cousins that think he is the GREATEST!
10. His LOVE for his Family

I Love you Luke and it was so good to see you last weekend! I hope it snows so you can hit the slopes soon...See you at Thanksgiving!

HomeAgain, Home Again...

Got back last night from a fast trip to Breckenridge Colorado to visit my sister Nancy.
We (Sue, Nancy, and myself) always have a good time together...we all love to shop, eat, laugh,
play games, talk, eat, shop, eat, shop...so you know how the weekend went!
We played Domino's, and Scattagories...
Thanks, again Erica for coming to the airport with your Mom and driving us home in the rain and snow, yes you read it right SNOW! We got to Nancy's house at about 2:00 in the morning because our flight was late and then because of the weather! Friday was pretty cold and rainy still but then Saturday, Sunday and Monday turned out to be beautiful days. Breckenridge is a beautiful place!
We are going to try and get all the girls together for a weekend in November (Thanksgiving Weekend)

Another Restless Night...

I had one of those nights last night when you just toss and turn and can not shut you brain off! So I started thinking about the things I need to change in my life! So you my dear family and friends get to hear all about it! I got some really sad news last night (Which I may or may not share at a later time) anyway it made me think! I kept hearing this song in my head!

Lord, I Would Follow Thee...

The second verse is

Who am I to judge another When I walk imperfectly?
In the quiet heart is hidden, Sorrow that the eye can't see
Who am I to judge another? Lord I will follow thee.

I am guilty of judging others! I am going to try really hard to stop. WHO AM I? I have no right to do that, and most of the time I find out I am wrong! I have listened to someone else or I have jumped to the wrong conclusion or I judge someone because of how they look or act! I am really guilty of this!

Case in Point:

A long time ago we used to go to Lake Powell with a group of people from our ward. Every year there were about 10-12 couples and we would rent a Houseboat. One summer a couple invited another couple who wasn't in our ward. We had a meeting to discuss the food and who needed to do what and who was in charge of what...anyway this couple came. She was teeny tiny and very cute and bubbly...he was nice looking (a lawyer) and was pretty quiet. I thought they just didn't fit in with this group! I think I was also intimidated by them! They had brought 1 of their little boys with them and the guy (we will call him Mark) was not really being a part of the discussions he was just playing with his little boy. I thought he was weird! and I remember thinking "Why do they have to come?" She is too cute and tiny for heavens sake and I make about 10 of her and he is just plain weird! I can't believe they are going to come and ruin my trip! I thought to myself I will just ignore them so they don't ruin my fun! I am not sure exactly what happened, and why I was stuck on the houseboat alone with them, but we started talking and I found out that he was really funny and she was as cute on the inside as she was on the outside!
Long story short (too late you say)
I ended up loving this couple...we became really good friends. We have lost track of one another and I am going to make it my goal to find them and get back in touch...I miss them! I need to find out what is new in their lives!

So my dear sweet family bloggers and blogging friends I am going to look for the good in everyone! How can we be like Christ if we are judging?

Night Out with The Girls...

Last night a bunch of us from work along with Lindsey, Carrie, and Brenda went to the Taste Of Home Cooking School at Thanksgiving Point. We had a good time and best of all I won a door prize! Yeah Me! I had just said to Lindsey "I never win anything" whine... whine...when they called my name! What's funny is that right after they called my name they called Julie Holman...she was sitting 2 rows in front of us.


This is the bowl that I won...

This is the bag I got...
The Recipes came from this book...
My bowl had this dish in it. We had it today for lunch. I thought it was good...mixed reviews!
Fragrant Indian Butter Chicken

2 tbls. butter
1 cup chopped onion
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tbls grated fresh ginger
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 can (14 1/2 oz) diced tomatoes
2 tbls tomato paste
1 tbls brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 whole rotisserie chicken, skin removed and cut into large chunks
1/3 cup half and half
1/4 cup light sour cream
1 tbls minced cilantro
Hot Cooked rice

In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add garlic and onion cook until onion is tender. add ginger, chili powder, tumeric, and cinnamon. Cook and stir 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Reduce heat cover and simmer 10 minutes. Add
chicken, cream, and sour cream. simmer uncovered for 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro. Serve over rice.
YUMMY!

Rose and Barb...

Two 90-year-old women, Rose and Barb, had been friends all of their lives.

When it was clear that Rose was dying, Barb visited her every day.

One day Barb said, 'Rose, we both loved playing women's softball all our
lives, and we played all through high school. Please do me one favor: when
you get to Heaven, somehow you must let me know if there's women's softball
there.'

Rose looked up at Barb from her death bed and said, 'Barb, you've been my
best friend for many years. If it's at all possible, I'll do this favor for
you.'

Shortly after that, Rose passed on.

At midnight the following Friday, Barb was awakened from a sound sleep by a
blinding flash of white light and a voice calling out to her, 'Barb, Barb.'

'Who is it?' asked Barb, sitting up suddenly. 'Who is it?'

'Barb -- it's me, Rose.'

'You're not Rose. Rose just died.'

'I'm telling you, it's me, Rose,' insisted the voice.

'Rose! Where are you?'

'In Heaven,' replied Rose. 'I have some really good news and a little bad
news.'

'Tell me the good news first,' said Barb.

The good news,' Rose said, 'is that there's softball in Heaven. Better yet,
all of our old buddies who died before us are here, too. Better than that,
we're all young again.

Better still, it's always springtime, and it never rains or snows. And best
of all, we can play softball all we want, and we never get tired.'

'That's fantastic,' said Barb. 'It's beyond my wildest dreams! So what's
the bad news'

'You're pitching Tuesday.'



Life is short...

So remember to live well & laugh often!

Happy Birthday Brent!

Today is my Brother-in-Law Brent's Birthday! Have A Great Day Brent! Thank you for everything you do for me and my family! You are a great guy and I love you very much!

The Tale Of The Cracked Pot...

A water bearer had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole
which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it,
while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water.

At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked
pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily,
with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his house.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect
for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own
imperfection and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of
what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke
to the water bearer one day by the stream.

"I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you. I have been
able to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes
water to leak out all the way back to your house. Because of my flaws,
you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said.



The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers
only on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side? That's
because I have always known about your flaw, and I planted flower
seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you've watered them.

"For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to
decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there
would not be this beauty to grace the house."

Moral: Each of us has our own unique flaws. We're all cracked pots.
but it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives
together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take
each person for what they are, and look for the good in them.

Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.
Remember to appreciate all the different people in your life!

To all the crackpots in my life, thanks for being you and for your flaws... and accepting me and all my flaws!

I'm Back...

I had such a good time at Meg's. Here are some cute pictures of the kids and Megan's family. Thanks for everything Megan...See You Soon! I Love You!


Brayden and Molly...
Miss Molly...
B-Mann deep in thought...
I think the sun was in his eyes...
Miss Molly...
Brayden at Mt Hood...Oops should have fixed the red eye!
Molly at Mt Hood...
The Whole Family at Mt Hood...
Brayden and Molly...
How cute is this picture?

Bullwinkles...

We went to a fun place called "Bullwinkles" it is just like "Boondocks"
The kids had so much fun riding the Go Carts and playing games. It was a fun day. We had driven all the way up to MT Hood to ride the Alpine Slide and do the Go Karts up there, but they had closed because of the rain...WHATEVER! So we ended up at
"BullWinkles" Amanda, Mark and Allison came with us. It ened up being a fun day even though we were in the car for too long!

Bullwinke and What's his name...

Molly on a Roller Coaster Simulater Ride...

Same Ride...She isn't so sure about it...

Good Golly, Miss Molly...

J. And B-Mann on a Roller Coaster Ride...He Hated it!

J and B-Mann on the GO Karts...

Meg and Molly on the GO Karts...

B-Mann on the Roller Coaster Simulater...

Good Times and Great Memories...