Memorial Day 2010

"Do you know what a soldier is, young man? He's the chap who makes it possible for civilized folk to despise war.” - Allan Massie

Yesterday we went to Memory Grove in Salt Lake City for lunch and to honor those who have passed on Memorial Day. We took a walk with the kids and showed them the many graves and monuments to the fallen soldiers from Utah who fought so bravely for our freedom.

We talked about what we believe happens when you die and how it all works in the plan of salvation. We talked about people we knew who had passed away, as well as people the kids knew who are no longer with us on the Earth.

Romy said she missed Brother Holmgren and I told her that I did, too.

We talked about Uncle Niel and how that must have felt for Grandma's family to lose a brother and son when he wasn't much older than Parker.

Even though Memorial Day is a day typically spent celebrating that there is no school or work and having a picnic, it's important that the kids take some time and remember why we have days like this and to learn how to stop and think about things with more meaning than what kind of chips Mom packed for lunch.

We miss you all and we will see you again one day.

Murder in the Wild West

Last night everyone was finally able to get schedules lined up just right and the Smith's murder mystery party happened. Matt wasn't a gunslinger in this one, they chose a new skit because the last one was a little complicated for everyone.

I was still a saloon girl. We decided to just make our costumes this time, and use stuff we had around the house. I did go to Saver's and buy a prairie skirt. The dog ate my feathered headband I made for last time, so I just used a flower clip that I had in my stash of cute things I buy, but never wear.

Matt made himself an authentic Indian costume from the tribe of Winco.

Paige wasn't taking any crap from Matt....

Jason & Sam

Kristi & Jared

Corrine & Jeff

Jared was the murder.

Matt played a drunk Indian who only spoke in poetry. I guess that's karma for all the drunken poet inside jokes we make. He only drank root beer, but he really hammed it up and had everyone rolling.

One couple was a no-show, so Chase and Paige filled in. They were so adorable. Chase was one of my favorite cub scouts, he and Paige are good kids.

Knitting Group

Last night I brought my camera to knit night. It was late and we all were not exactly dressed to the nines, but I wanted to make sure I captured this group of wonderful women in their element.

We laugh, we cry, we joke, we support, we discuss spiritual things and tell terrible jokes and sometimes, we even knit.

These women have become a second family to me and I love them all so much. I cannot say enough how much I admire and trust these ladies and I an thankful every day for the gals at knit night.Our lovely hostess, Joie...knitting a TIE. I can't wait to see how that turns out, it will either be the coolest thing ever or something we tease her about for years to come.
San & Diane (PS Sam we are SO kicking yer butt tonight!)

No make-up face me and Sher.

Betty and Corinne- Corinne is knitting on the round like a pro, btw, she just learned how and she's kicking some yarn butt!

Wordless Wednesday

Photoshop Fun Part 2 Billion

I admit that when I start a new hobby I can get a little obsessed. My last pair of socks have been sitting in my bag ever since the last time I went to knit night, but in my defense, I had to frog my last sock because I didn't have the stripes lined up perfectly. Two hours of work gone because I'm a perfectionist freak when it comes to artsy crafty things.

Clearly, I do not have this same sickness regarding housework.

I need to start by thanking Kayla for her help in figuring out "actions" in photoshop.

I have a lot to learn but I'm excited about learning this.

Actions enhance your photos and transform those great pictures into vibrant works of art. I still don't have the skill to make them works of art yet, but just playing around with them today, I feel like I am on my way.

I can use photoshop for more than just shaving the fat rolls off a person's back and erasing ex spouses from family portraits. (Don't you judge me, you'd do it if you could, too.)

I suppose it was only a matter of time before I started to use my powers for good and not just hilarious evil.

Kayla, you are a lifesaver. You are one of the most real people I know and I love you to bits. I'm glad you're in Utah and I'm glad we've reconnected. I'm also glad you're so much smarter than I am because I spent two hours scratching my head trying to figure this out.

I'm probably going to be messing around with everything on my blog as I figure out what I like best.

I still need to get a good beat up scratched and grungy looking overlay or action so I can weather my photos and really achieve that vintage look, but all things in time. For now, I'm super happy with what Kayla taught me today.

An Early Morning MeMe

My head and my heart have been working overtime these days. I'm changing my outlook on a lot of things and realizing that just because something has always been done one way, that I don't have too keep doing it that way- and that old way no longer seems to fit anymore.

It's always good to grow and to think.

It's always good to make choices.

It's always good to let go.

That emotional hoarding is a lot more of a burden than the 20 loads of laundry I have screaming my name at any given time.

To restore the balance in the force, but not totally depart from my current navel gazing mode, I'm posting answers to one of those many questionnaires I've been sent through facebook.

Maybe next week I'll post about knitting again and then you know the party has officially started, woot woot.
1. What's on your nightstand?
Seriously? Lots of junk. It looks like the final resting place for almost everything I managed to touch during the day. My phone, the book I'm reading, the remote control, lotion, medication, an address book, my camera, a box of band-aids, a basket of nail polish and sunglasses, sea salt?, letters from Romy and various Cd's. Oh and a lamp. Somewhere in that mess, there is also a lamp- the only thing that really belongs there besides the book & phone.

2. If you could eat only one thing for lunch for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Cheeseburgers. I haven't had a cheeseburger in over a year though so it's not going to happen anytime soon.

3. What is your middle name? Is there a story behind it?
Anne, with an "e." I'm named after both of my grandmothers, but just their middle names. I want to thank my parents for not going with the first names, because then i would have been named "India Brownie" I kid you not.

4. If you could win a shopping spree in any store, which store would you choose?
Marshall Fields

5. What word or phrase do you use most frequently?
"No, but thanks for asking." I picked that up from my cousin years ago when she was dealing with her demanding three year old. Saying no always seems nicer when followed with "thanks for asking." It sends the child the message that you heard them, and you appreciate them asking nicely but the answer is still no.

6. What's the last thing you purchased?
Groceries with Matt last night. We picked up fancy cheese and about 6 boxes of Instant breakfast.

7. If you could have a different career, what would it be? What's keeping you from making the switch?
And give up all of this domestic bliss? If I could have a grown up person career I'd like to go into social work and focus on humanitarian projects or play some part in changing the way the family courts are run these days. What's keeping me from moving forward with that? 7 kids in 6 different schools.

8. When you get too stressed out, what do you do to relax and calm down?
I pray, I talk to my sweet husband, I blog, I knit and I play around with my laptop.

9. What's the most recent thing you bookmarked on the Internet?
it was a blog--- http://www.sugaroni.net/#85a/posterous

10. What five things are you most looking forward to during the next two months?
Our trip to Chicago, sleeping in, reading books in the hammock while the kids play in the pool, trips to Utah Lake, wearing shorts

S'Mores

I just realized my dear friend Tina

http://bushmanadventures.blogspot.com/2010/05/anyone-want-smore.html

just did S'mores with her kids this week.

I promise, I'm not copying you, Loo- it's just that great minds think alike. :)

We had grand plans to roast the giant marshmallows I picked up from the grocery store, but the weather just wasn't going to allow it so we made S'Mores in the microwave for Family Home Evening on Sunday night. Watching them grow is always fun for the kids- mom is a party pooper and won't allow them to make them explode.

No, not even just one.

They made huge s'mores, but they were so yummy and so much fun.

I don't think any of the kids actually finished a whole one, but look at those smiles.....

If that wasn't worth six bucks, I don't know what is.

I heart Photoshop

One of the things I find relaxing and rewarding is to mess around with photoshop and see what I can do. Soometimes I use my skills for good, sometimes for evil. (Hey, it's not my fault if some people just look better with donkey ears, but we don't talk about that. :P)

Someday, when I have more time and money, I am going to take a photoshop class so that I can make photos look both vintage and restore old photos with a greater skill than I do now.

In the meantime, I'm still pretty happy with my self taught skills.

This is a picture we took yesterday of the Salt Lake Temple.....

And this is a photo of my stepmom, Donna when she was a child with her brother.

Before After...
Not bad, eh?

Deep From the Heart of Texas

This weekend my dad and stepmom came to visit us. They live in Texas and between work and the miles and the ease of traveling with 7 children- we never get to see each other. Ha hadn't met Matt and Emma, Kate, or Jane yet, and he hadn't been to Salt Lake since I was a baby.

We were so happy to have tome come out and visit us.

We spent Saturday downtown, taking them to tour the Mormon Mecca/ Temple Square. We did a tour of the conference center, saw the temple and the Church History Museum. We also caught the trax train and had lunch at The Gateway.

Everyone had a wonderful time.

It was one of the best weekends of my life. I didn't really know my father at all until I was an adult, then I wasted my 20's being angry over things that I didn't understand. I won't go into it here, that's what my journal is for and I won't really go into all f the emotions and healing that took place this weekend. I'll be processing for awhile, but it's all good things. This weekend was wonderful and a lot of peace and love came out of it.
The kids got to know my dad and stepmom better and see how wonderful they are. My Dad is brilliant, entertaining, kind and real and Donna is patient, soft spoken and has such a soft heart. It was cute to see Jane make a connection with her, they are the two quiet ones. He gave all of the kids advice and they all just loved every minute of the visit.

Romy would not quit touching his beard, it was a little on the weird side, but it was cute, too.

I love my dad and his wife so much. I am sad over the years we missed out on together and I am so very thankful that we have the gospel. Even though we lost many years of being a family together, we have so many more to figure it all out and to be together. Eternity is real and the blessing of the temple and of being a forever family touch this family directly, the plan or Father in Heaven set out for us is real and I am forever thankful, not just that I get to be a forever family with my husband and children, but with my Dad and stepmom as well.

There were moments that were shared this weekend that I will treasure up in my heart forever.

I love you, Dad & Donna.

Thank you for coming to see us, and thank you for being in our family.

Two More Layouts

I'm not in a very good mood, my tooth hurts, my medication gave me nightmares last night, it's raining, and we realized last night a fast one was being pulled on us yet again.

I am SO tired of it. How hard is it to just tell the truth? Yes, you may not get what you want, but at least you did the moral thing. I do not understand people who are missing a fundamental morality chip. The ends do not justify the means.

The car is fixed, but it was a big hit to the wallet.

I have so much to do today and what I want to do is lie in bed and pull the covers up over my head.

Today I do not feel up to the challenges that are before me.

Today I feel small and weak.

They Happen In Threes....

Meet my clone of the day.....
My forehead is huge. I should wear bangs, but they make me look like a seven year old. I have enough situations where I am mistaken for a seven year old.
I had that root canal this morning and half of my face is numb as I settle into bed with a heavy painkiller.
We took the car into the shop and the ABS has committed suicide. The electronic panel that runs it is fried and needs to be replaced. The part alone is $875.00.
Ouch.
The total cost of the repairs will be just shy of $1200.00 and any dreams of fancy photo programs or a three day trip this summer for the week we only have 3 kids just went out the window.
$1200 bucks.....are breaks really THAT important?
It's also raining when yesterday was an absolutely perfect warm day except for that whole breaks going out on me part- so I'm hoping the weather counts for crappy thing number three. I am a firm believer that bad things happen in threes. I'm going to cross my fingers and hope for the best.
This blog post was brought to you by my endodontist, Precision Auto Repair and Lortab.

Photoshopping

I'm playing around with photoshop this evening, just working with some brushes and textures. I need to create or purchase a few good overlays to create some cleaner, more vibrant vintage overlays.
I've been absolutely coveting Adobe Photoshop 5, but can't really justify a $600 photo program. Matt and I have decided that I ought to take an actual class at SLCC this fall and then I will not only get a student discount, but I can master the program. Doing all of these digital layouts this month has really got me wishing my skills were a little more advanced.

Tomorrow I'm getting the rest of my root canal completed, I'm not looking forward to it. I was going to have to do it alone, but now Matt will be coming with me because the ABS on our car has gone kaput and the pump won't shut off, so we need to take it in for repairs. With only one car and four kids in 3 different schools who need rides, I can't do it all without a car. Hopefully the repairs won't be too spendy.

Visions of Clutter Control Dance Through my Head

This weekend my Dad is coming over to meet my husband and the girls for the first time.
I have a lot of deep housecleaning to do and as always, zero desire to do it.
Does anyone know a good magic and free cleaning fairy who will help me purge my home of 4 years of 7 children clutter and grime?

I don't usually link to other blogs, because I figure I am just not that big in the blogsphere to assume hardly anyone comes here in the first place, but I really loved CJane's blog post today. It's inspiring me to let go of some of the physical and emotional hoarding I may be doing.

http://blog.cjanerun.com/



Yesterday's layout was another 'niece' layout- I think that's my theme for the month, doing layouts of the little ones who crack me up and make me smile when I see them, and when they get fussy, I get to give them back to Mom and Dad. :)

"Summer" Fun

The year we decided to invest in a backyard swimming pool. we set it up and filled it this weekend, we're hoping that by June, the water will be a decent temperature.

The kids were not about to wait until June......

Layouts

Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

This morning, the kids all went across the street with Mom and helped clean the church building. Nobody signed up this week and so we agreed to lend a hand. The job normally takes a few hours, but we finished in 45 minutes and did some extra cleaning, too. Afterwards, we went to Pleasant Grove for Dad Olson's Birthday celebration. Everyone had a great time.

Happy Birthday, Dad. We love you!


The cool kids always hang out on the grass, while the rest of us band geeks are stuck out by the dumpsters....

Mom O. and Lilly......

Our hoodlum kids tagging Grandma and Grandpa's place with sidewalk chalk......

Miss Abbie and her beloved bubbles...