Mother of two

2009-12-01T00:40:00.003-07:00

Our Brand New Advent Calander
Sam typing our daily activities on strips of paper.
(Yes, this is my very messy desk)

The cute tins Liz and I put together!

It has been such a long time since I have done an all out

craft project. But this year I am feeling better mentally

than the last several Christmas seasons. So even though

I am terribly busy at work, I am trying very hard to

do fun things at Christmas, and not let everything

bog me down. Since Sam is in High School, I feel like

I have very few years left, so we are making them very fun!

I decided we would do a fun advent calander. Ofcourse I

still need to make sure they have treats in them every day.

Heaven forbid, the kids really don't change all that much do they?

Then the kids and I sat down together and made a list of all

the things we wanted to do this year, like watching our

favorite Christmas movies, making our favorite treats,

see the lights at the temple. Make gingerbread houses, ect, ect.

I was kind of surprised how excited the kids were to help. Even Sam.

Now ofcourse he could care less about cute paper, and such. He left

that up to Liz and I. But he printed and cut the stips out.

I put the strips in the containers, plus a few surprises of my

own. So they don't know everything. But we

are very excited for a fun holiday season!

2009-12-01T00:36:00.002-07:00

Here is a picture of Liz's Girl Scout troop doing a food drive.

Their group brought in 20 boxes of food that was donated

to the local Lutheran church. Here they are at the church

helping put all the food that was collected from the church, and their

private school. There was a ton of food! The girls helped put

together boxes that held all the fixings for a Thanksgiving

dinner, plus another dinner or two. The girls had a great time~

2009-12-01T00:13:00.002-07:00

Busy Lizzy!

Since football is over, there

is a little more breathing time.

Very little actually. I thought I would

catch you up on what Liz has been up to.

Since June, she has been working really hard

with her YW personal progress.

Our ward had a baby boom over these last

several months with 6 babies being born.

So the Beehive class made quilts for each of

them. Since Liz has sewing experience, she

made 3 of them. And with all her hard work

she was able to complete her first 10 hour

project. for Good Works ofcourse.

She loves YW! They have some wonderful

leaders. She has also joined some friends in

a girl scout troop. As if we weren't busy enough.

But they have done some great service projects,

and have a great group of girls and mothers.

Both she and I are having lots of fun with that.

2009-09-11T13:41:00.002-07:00

Sam gets some play time!

Here is Sam during his second game. This

time he got some good playing time in. And

a couple of nice tackles too! The great thing

about being a photographer, is that I volunteered

to help take pics for the booster club and do

some fund raising, so that allows me right

on the field with the team and such.

So I was lucky to get this great picture. This is

Sam getting ready toward the end of the game.

I loved it! I think this one is getting framed

and put in his room!

2009-09-07T11:33:00.002-07:00

Freshman Football

Here is a picture of Sam at his

first game last Wednesday night.

The freshman won 20-6.

Go Agua Fria!!!

2009-09-07T11:24:00.002-07:00

Teacher In Service Day

Last Friday Liz had a day off. Because in the area we

live in the elementary and Middle School districts are different

districts than the High School. ( I have no idea why, seems

kind of stupid to me.) So Sam had school, and Liz and I had

a girls day. So we decided to make cookies. Our choice for the

day was Monster Cookies. Boy were they good!!! We also had

pizza for lunch. What a fun day!

2009-08-19T11:54:00.002-07:00

JROTC

Every Wednesday Sam will wear his uniform to school
Doesn't he look so nice?

Dad performing his own inspection.

I don't know who was more excited Sam or his dad.

As stated in an earlier post, Sam has decided to participate

in JROTC. Ofcourse his dad is pleased. Even if it is only

"Air Force" And Jake quietly let me know that he wouldn't

be dissappointed if he entered the Air Force, "only if he went in as

an Officer though." I thought that was very funny. Because as

you know if you are in one branch of the military, you kind

of look down on the others. However, if you look at the BIG picture

they all have to work together when push comes to shove, and

that is what makes our country great. And whether he goes into

the military or not we are very proud of him.

2009-08-04T14:22:00.002-07:00

August Special

Get great School pictures this year!

Step1: Call for an a appointment

(woo hoo no sitting fee!)

Step 2: Pick a background

Step 3: Pick a pose from the 5 taken

Step 4: Pick which package you want

It can't be any easier than that!!

Call 623-332-6968 today for an appointment

2009-08-04T14:03:00.003-07:00

The First Day of School!

So I am officially old! Yesterday was Sam's first

day of High School. He attends Agua Fria

High School. He had a great day. Ofcourse in

this school district on the first day of school all

the Freshman go to school and then on the second

day of school the rest of the grades attend. Which is

nice because it gives the Freshman a day to get the

lay of the land before everyone else gets there.

He is playing football this year, he is also going to

be in ROTC. He is also excited about taking a

Theatre class. So I can tell this is going to be

a busy year for us. Not to mention he starts

early morning Seminary on Wednesday morning!!

Miss Liz starts 7th grade this year! She is excited because

she has Art as one of her elective classes. She is also

going to be playing the trumpet again in band this year.

She is planning on being in the Art club and Drama club

this year as well.

And as per our family tradition since moving to Arizona,
we can't have a first day of school without going to
Coldstone! Since it is still very very hot in AZ when
school starts we always go to Coldstone afterschool to
celebrate! Yummy!!!

2009-07-30T17:30:00.006-07:00

The Great thing about going up to Washington is

that I was able to take pictures of my parents

with their Grandkids. How cute are these pictures.

It was so fun to see them all together. Though I

have to say, it is alot easier to take pictures of people

I don't know very well, than people in my own family.

2009-06-19T15:15:00.003-07:00

Liz Checking in before leaving for GC!! Look

at the cute bags her ward leaders made.
Look at these adorable ward t-shirts!!

Girls Camp

Its liz here and I have just came back from girls camp. It was so fun. We did a hike, repeling,hatchet throwing ,crafts, we were able to wash our feet and it was so nice and we also got to do skeet shooting.

2009-06-01T19:04:00.003-07:00

I Scream!

U Scream!

We all scream for

Ice Cream!

Oh, Yes, it is that time again. Time where we

break out the ice cream maker for some

good ole' fashioned sweet creamy goodness.

This year we made homemade Strawberry and

Chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. Oh

and boy was it YUMMY!!

This year we used a cooked vanilla ice cream

reicipe. It made a nicer thicker ice cream.

for the Strawberry ice cream we just put in

mashed strawberries the last 5 minutes of

mixing in the mixer. For the cookie dough

ice cream, we took some store bought cookie

dough and cut it into tiny chunks and then

froze them in the freezer for awhile. Then

again during the last couple minutes of the ice

mixing, we poured in the cookie dough, just

long enough so it would be even throughout

the ice cream. Oh it worked out perfectly!!

2009-05-26T04:04:00.002-07:00

Cooking with Jake!

Wyatt not liking the smell of garlic too well.
Ezra had to have his turn too!

As many of those who know us knows, that Jake loves

to cook. And it is a good thing too, because he is

great at it. He has always been great at getting

the kids involved. And now it is the little boys turn.

They made Sunday night dinner with Jake.

They had great fun together. And the thought

that pudding pie for dessert was the best thing ever.

And they are right. I forgot how much I love pudding

pie. We haven't had it for a long time.

2009-05-26T03:50:00.002-07:00

Ofcourse the biggest hit since the

boys have gotten here is that they get to go

swimming everyday. The pool is at the perfect

temperature. Just cold enough to be refeshing

when it is 100 or more outside. But not warm where

it just feels like you are taking a bath. Don't worry,

give it another month and it will be that hot.

Sam and Liz will be dark brown before you know it!

It will be interesting to see how tan the little ones get

they have such fair skin. I slather them up with sunscreen.

And I also try and take them out to the pool later in the day.

It is funny because for every time I think, "oh, I hate having

a pool". There is a time I think, "oh, I love having a pool."

And it does make the summers more bareable.

2009-05-26T03:26:00.003-07:00

House guests for the Summer!!

Wyatt and Ezra eating pudding for dessert.
Wyatt

Ezra

This summer we've got a whole lot of fun in store for us!

First of we get to have my nephew's Ezra and Wyatt stay

with us. Piper had a very bad accident and is layed up

for awhile. And I thought it would be fun to have the

boys for the summer so she wouldn't have to chase them

around. Piper was riding a horse and another horse came

up and tried to kick the first horse, and instead kicked Piper's

leg. It broke her tibia and fibia ?(the two bones in the lower leg)

She's now got rods and screws and staples holding everything together.

So during the week while Ben is at work we are having a good time.

Sam and Liz are great with the little ones. They are big helpers too.

This summer we have a fun time planned. The first two weeks are

going to be laid back, going to the library, swimming, I am sure a

trip to coldstone will be in there as well.

Then in the middle of June, Sam and Liz will be going to camp.

This year our stake planned that Girls Camp and Scout Camp will

be the same week. Which is great for Jake and I. The little boys aren't

even going to be around. They are going to Texas. Ben has a conference

down there, and then they will be visiting Grandma Clifford, Aunt Patti

and the whole Davis gang! I am very jealous. So with a whole week

of free time, what is a girl to do? Well I am hoping a painting project will

be in the works. Our living room, kitchen and hallways need a fresh

coat. And that would be the PERFECT time. I think I am going to

be a bit lonely too.

Then everyone will come back, we have time to do laundry, and start

packing everyone for a big trip to Washington. This will be the little boys

first airplane ride. We will be flying to Spokane and then hopefully

taking a ride over to the West side to visit the Farrar and Abston clan.

When we get home from that little excursion, we will be doing laundry,

resting up for a little bit, then, packing our bags and heading to Utah.

Sam and Liz are excited to get to see their cousins again.

I am excited to see old friends again and family too.

The little boys are going to come along with us. I know they

are going to have loads of fun meeting all the cousins. There will

be so many kids to play with, they won't know what to do!!

Then we will get home, and have a week before school starts to

do more laundry, shopping and figuring out High School and

Early Morning Seminary!!!!

Time flys when you're having fun!

2009-05-26T03:20:00.003-07:00

How can that be?

Last week Sam graduated from middle school. I don't

really understand how that could have happened. Surely

I am not old enough to have a son going to High School in

the fall! He is such a good kid. And I love him so much.

The day after graduation we had a party with a few of

his friends, which included, X-box, pizza, cake, and swimming.

An all around great time!

2009-05-24T02:06:00.004-07:00

2 posts in a month?

Yes, I know it is true. I am trying to get back in the

swing of things and keeping up on my blogging.

I was never very consistant in journaling, so I shouldn't

be all that surprised. I know my mom always says that since

I take so many pictures of "other people's children" that I should

take some of my own. So here are some pics that I did

a few weeks ago of the kids. I haven't touched them up in

photoshop yet. I actually used these for a final project

for a class I was taking at the community college. So I

really didn't want to edit them for that any ways. And I am

sooooo far behind on other editing, that these will have to

wait. But I am looking forward to playing with these pictures

and hanging them in my studio though. I just can't believe how

fast they grow up! They are such good kids. Ofcourse I am biased.

2009-05-17T09:28:00.002-07:00

My surgery is done!!!

Now all I have to do is heal.

Below is my attempt at smiling. It doesn't work very well.

And it hurts like crazy. We watched a funny movie last

night, and I thought I was going to die. :)

Don't you love how the bruising brings out the lovely

color of my eyes?

I also have slight brusing around my mouth as well.

But looking at the bright side, I just have to wait 4-6 months for

this to heal and I will be anble to get everything crowned and

it will be done!!!

2009-04-28T07:54:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0v3d6SFcDys

This is wonderful to listen to!!!

2009-02-16T09:02:00.004-07:00

Josh and Steffany's wedding!!!

In December Jake's brother Josh got married to

Steffany. I was able to do their pictures!! It was

so much fun! Here is a slide show of the pictures.

It was so much fun to see all the family there.

We are planning a trip this summer. We are all

excited.

2009-02-15T19:18:00.002-07:00

The boys came in town, and I ofcourse had to

take pictures of them. It was fun. I loved it

and they are so cute!!!! We had lots of fun with

them. I will add more pictures soon.

2008-11-30T17:00:00.002-07:00

The Posse Jake Shot with.

Jake shooting.

Jake's gang!!
Bordertown 2008

Here are some pictures from when Jake went to

Bordertown at the end of October.

2008-11-08T20:28:00.002-07:00

I haven't put work pictures on my personal blog

for a long time because I wanted to keep things

seperate. However, I just wanted to let everyone know

that my dear friend Tiffany started her own little

baking business and is making the yummiest treats

just in time for the holidays! I helped her by taking

pictures of these goodies for her blog. Liz was

able to get in on the fun too. She was the "backdrop"

holder. Thanks Tiff for the plate of goodies too!!

http://tiffany-sweettooth.blogspot.com/

She features new items every couple of weeks. So if

you want to order some goodies for the holidays

she's the one to call!!!

2008-11-08T20:22:00.004-07:00

Shadow's Makeover

Before

After

Shadow has been needing and trim and a bath

for awhile, and this morning I couldn't handle

it anymore!!! I called Petsmart and got him

in. Now he doesn't look so shaggy!!! What

a pretty dog.

2008-11-08T20:11:00.002-07:00

Friday night Pizza Night!!!

YUMMY!

Well for Christmas Mom gave me some great Pizza

Pans. I haven't pulled them out to use yet, and later in

the year she sent me some fun flours to play with,

so we decided to finally use our Present and have

family pizza night.

The pizza turned out Great!!! The crust was awesome. The problem

is, was it the flour or the pan that made it so great..... oh well

we will find out when the flour runs out and we have to use

the regular stuff. We usually just order pizza on Fridays, but

we are trying to cut out needless spending, and boy, having

the kids jump in we had a great time and great Pizza!!

2008-11-05T08:34:00.003-07:00

Yeah!!!! Visitors!!!!

We don't get a ton of visitors, and as a family we

get excited when someone comes to town.

Aunt Karen and Uncle Bruce were on there way to

a romantic weekend get away in Pinetop and visited

us for a few hours. We get to see Uncle Bruce atleast once

sometimes a couple times of year, because he has business

trips and he always drops in for a visit. Which we really appreciate

because we get lonely down here some times. This time we were

especially excited because Aunt Karen came with him. Luckily

I had a tripod and a timer on my camera so we were able

to get a family picture. We are planning on going to Washington

this summer and can't wait to see the rest of the family!!

PS. Thanks Jacob for giving them this fun vacation so they

could drop by and visit us!!

2008-11-05T08:18:00.002-07:00

Halloween!!

Ok I was lazy this year. I bought a costume

for Liz and talked Sam into being a military guy

and just wearing Dad's cami's. Though this year

I have to say was pretty fun. We had a ward

trunk or treat party and Chili cook off. Jake won

the meatiest chili award. And I was able to be a judge

for the costume contest. And I have to say that

was a hard job, because all the kids were so cute!!

A couple of days before Halloween I walked fliers

around my neighborhood and invited parents to

bring their kids to have their kids come over and

get their pictures taken. We had several people

take me up on the opportunity. I set up everything in

the garage and as people were trick or treating I took a few pictures.

Thus the picture of Liz, she was my test shot!!

Liz went trick or treating with Jake, and Sam went

with his friends. Next year though I hope to

be a little better planned and let the kids have a

Halloween party.......

2008-11-05T07:47:00.005-07:00

Relay For Life

Our Team!! (Jayden on the right is the Captain)

Jayden had a great idea to bring his guitar

and play songs to raise money. And it worked!!

Here are a few of the boys working the Bake Sale

Sam and Dax getting ready to make a few laps

on the Track! (Sam's funky hair is due to the

fact that he was dressed up as Wolverine from

X-men because we were super hero's)

We won the award for the Top Youth Team Fundraiser!!

Thanks to family and friends who donated money,

and thanks to Bashas and Shamrock farms who donated

a ton of stuff for our Bake Sale!!! Seriously.... Bashas a

locally owned Grocery store originally donated 10 dozen

donuts which was awesome, but when we got there they

donated tons of items from their Bakery!!! Then Shamrock

farms, a local Dairy Supplier donated 1000 cartons of milk!!

So our team over all raised $2003!!!

Here is everyone on the team in our Superhero masks.

Liz is on the right in the Bat girl costume.

Jayden and Ken Osborne!! Ken and I were the

chaperones who stayed the whole night!! We

each had to take a nap. We both commented

on how long it had been since we had each done

an "all nighter" and we were much younger then.....

Me and my girls!!!!

Tiffany Joyner (middle) and Jessica Osborne (right)

LOVE THEM!!!!

We had the wonderful opportunity a few weeks ago

for the kids and I to participate in the Relay for Life

with some friends of ours. It was a great experience for

the kids and I and we are all excited to do it again

next year. The kids had a great time. We showed up

at 5:30 to set up in the evening and got home the next

morning around 6:30. Our team was awesome. All the

kids participated helping to raise money and always

keeping someone on the track. Before the Relay, we

raised money from wonderful donations from friends and

family. Then that night we continued to raise money by

having a bake sale and a Pin the "S" on Superman game.

Our team was the Super Heros and we centered everything

around that theme. By the end of the night our team won

the title of highest amount raised for a youth team.

The great thing about that is that we also won a pizza

party with the kids.(So more pictures to follow).

I want to personally thank all our friends and family raise

money for such a great cause!

2008-10-13T07:52:00.002-07:00

Ben visits the Boys!! Aren't these the best looking guys ever?

(besides the ones living at my house)
Ezra Wyatt
Sporting some "Winter wear"
Wyatt in the snow
Look at that grin!!
Looks like a snowball fight getting ready to
break out!!

Cute Ezra
Cute Wyatt
Great Brothers!!

Ben got to go see his boys last week, and took these

pictures. I thought I would post them so everyone

could see how cute they are!! Not that we didn't know

all ready. I am really excited because they are

going to come down for a visit for Thanksgiving.

I can't wait to give them tons of hugs and kisses.

2008-10-10T11:16:00.002-07:00

Bad Teeth Day

So I woke up this morning and while still in

bed, one side of my teeth fell out. I'm thinking,

great, well I will just wait till Monday. Then I

eat a bagel for breakfast, yes from Einstein's/

And trying to be careful from breaking the

other side, I chew only on the side that is

still glued in. And I take a couple of bites of

my bagel and hear a crunch. And sure enough

the other side crumbles into pieces. So yes, I

am sitting here at my computer without my

teeth. Waiting for 12:15 to go to the dentist.

Anybody have a money tree so I can finish this

thing once and for all?

2008-10-10T07:59:00.002-07:00

http://http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=44287812

My friend Tiff had this on her blog,
and so far this is the best of the trailers that
I have seen! We are all excited to see it,
even Sam is reading the books now.

2008-10-08T12:13:00.005-07:00

Zoo Trip

The kids have Fall break this week.

So we decided to go to the zoo. We

haven't visited the Pheonix zoo since

we have been here, so we thought it would

be fun. Here are some cute pictures

from our day.

Sam made some homemade granola for the day!!

It sure was yummy

Nap time for the Tiger

Do you have your ducks in a row? We have

our turtles in a row!

What will they think of next? I mean really,

do I really need paper made out of Poo?

The great thing about the zoo is that you

are able to bring your bikes and ride on the

trails. We didn't know that until we got

there so we will have to bring our bikes the next time.

2008-10-08T12:02:00.002-07:00

Heavenly Father DOES

love us!

How do I know? Because he sent an

Einstein Bros. bagel to our neighborhood!

When we lived in Utah we would go

there for breakfast alot. And we were sad when

we moved here because the nearest one was 30 minutes or

more away. Too long a drive for a quick breakfast stop.

So as a General Conference treat, on Saturday

we visited the newly opened store. Standing in

line wasn't a bother. Because soon we

would be sinking our teeth into a fresh

bagel! OH it was so good!!!

Liz had her favorite, Cinnamon and sugar with

a strawberry smear!!

Jake had a 6 grain with a plain smear.

Because of the season, Sam was able to enjoy his

favorite, Pumpkin bagel with a pumpkin smear.

We even brought home a doggie bagel

for Shadow.

I enjoyed my favorite of Honey whole wheat

with a smear of Honey almond cream cheese.

Yummy!!!

2008-09-30T14:14:00.002-07:00

Cabin Fever

This morning my friend Teri (down below) and I

went on a hike in the White Tank Mountains.

There is this pretty state park not too far from our

house that has tons of trails. This has been the first hike

of the season. The weather has dipped into the 90's so

it is nice and pleasant. While we were driving up

Teri was saying that she was having a bad case of

"Cabin Fever" I thought that was so funny. Because

here we are taking the "first hike of the season" and

my other family are getting ready to hunker down for

winter. I was looking down at my skin and thinking,

now I can work on my tan. Laughing again because my

cousin Alicia is probably getting sad because her tan

will be fading away soon. It has taken some

adjustment to living down here. But it is growning on

me. I do miss fall and winter, but luckily with Ben

living in Flagstaff now, it will be easier to visit my

favorite seasons. I do miss evergreen trees and the smell

of Salt water. (Not the Great Salt Lake) I do miss the turning

colors of fall. But I am loving it here now too. So Happy

Fall everyone, I am heading out doors to do some hiking, running,

and biking. Come down this winter for some relief from the cold.

We would love the company!!

2008-09-23T12:15:00.003-07:00

This is Troy (and the missionaries)
This is Teri and Troy

I have been meaning to write a blog about this

for awhile. And since I should be working, this seems

like a perfect time to do it. :) Teri and I got called

to be activity day leaders earlier this year. Marchish

I think. And since then we have been having a

great time. And she is truly a great friend. She has

been married to Troy for 15 years. And has two kids

Taylor (a little older than Sam) and Tatum ( a little older

than Liz) which is part of the reason we get along so well.

We can complain about kids. Teri has been a member all

her life and Troy just got baptised about a week and a

half ago. Teri and her two kids have been really active

in the church for a couple of years now. Now our Stake

did a pioneer Trek a few months ago and Troy thought

this was an interesting thing that they were doing. And

being a Firefighter, voluteered to do Medical for them.

Teri's son was old enough to go, and Teri was asked to

be a big sister. There was a lot of excitement in

the ward as the Trek came together. As a New Stake,

just organized in January, they did a great job pulling this

together in such a short amount of time. Anyways,

longer story short. Troy came home from the Trek,

and told Teri some of the experiences he had on

the way, and decided he needed to learn more

about the church. He talked to his brother in law

who is a member and who baptized him. And after a

good long talk from him, his brother in law said he should

call the missionaries. So Troy called the Bishop. (At 10:30

at night who was asleep, he had been on the

Trek too). Now, a side note: Troy and Bishop are

great friends. He called him and when Bishop got on

the phone, Troy said, "Bishop I think I need to talk

with the missionaries" there was a long silence on

the phone. Then Bishop said "Troy this isn't a good

time to joke around." Troy told him he wasn't joking.

So Bishop told him he would introduce them at church

the next morning. Well Teri told me that Bishop

called the missionaries at 6:00 the next morning

and said that if they screwed this one up they

would be in BIG TROUBLE. So I was oblivious to

all this ofcourse. But I caught Teri really quick that

Sunday to ask her how was Trek. And she said it was

good but she had to hurry, because the missionaries

were going over that night. And I thought, that was

nice, they are going to have the missionaries over

for dinner. I think she knew what I was thinking,

because she said "NO, the MISSIONARIES are

COMING over." I thought for a second, and my

eyes got big and I said, "For Troy?" "No Way!"

I told her she had to tell me what happened

when she had the time. The thing about Troy,

was that he always supported Teri and the kids

going to church. He was friends with the bishop,

who was earlier their Home Teacher. He came

to church occasionally to support the kids. Teri

always wanted him to become a member but never

asked or pushed the issue. And when the time came

he blew everyone away!

Well fast forward to his baptism. He is a well liked

man. He is a firefighter, and had many firefighters

that he worked with that were LDS as well. It was

decided to do his baptism in the Chapel instead of

the Relief Society Room. Which was a good thing too.

All of Teri's family were there. Most of his Family was

there. (They are not LDS but boy they are very supportive)

Alot of ward members, A ton of Stake Members from the

Trek. And his Firefighter friends. Lets just say, that

the chapel was filled all the way to the back.

When it was time for him to be baptized I just told the

kids that we would stay behind, so his family and friends

could watch him. When they started coming back, a

friend from the ward who had gone and watched the

baptism, I asked her how crowded it was, she said,

Wow, you can barely fit 80 primary kids in that room, but

try and fit 200 adults and it was no, problem. I was

thinking, darn it, I missed the miracle of the room

being enlarged for the whole group!!

I just want to say that through these past few weeks

I have gotten to know Troy and Teri even better.

They are such great people and I can't wait for

a year, when they can be sealed together!

2008-09-19T17:40:00.001-07:00

2nd Place!!

Jake's last shoot was last weekend in Prescott.

He won 2nd place in Traditional and 2nd place

overall. We are so excited. Now he is getting ready

to shoot in Border Town down in Tombstone at

the end of October!!

2008-09-09T08:40:00.002-07:00

The Reward

All right I will let everyone know what

the reward is. You probably will think we

have lost it. And maybe we have. But we

were desperate, and desperate times call for

desperate measures. First of all let me explain

the problems we had with homework. Both kids

were frankly not doing it. After dinner I would sit

them down and ask what they needed to do for

homework and for the most part they would lie

and say they had none. So my next line of defense

was that it didn't matter if they had no homework

or not, they had to study for 30 minutes. That didn't

work either. We tried paying them for A's and B's

I think $10 for A's $5 for B's $0 for C's and

any D's of F's canceled the whole thing out.

That didn't work either. Every night was a fight.

I would go through notebooks, bags, see what I

could find. I was emailing and talking to teachers.

Jake and I were so frustrated, that when the end

of the year came we were actually glad to get a break

from homework. The kids grades weren't so bad.

Mostly b's but with an A here or there. And there

was a scattering of C's D's and and F once or twice.

With these grades came groundings. No TV, no video

games, no friends over......on and on and on.

You get the picture. And the bad grades came

from not doing homework. I was beside myself.

I was being a good mom and making sure they had

time away from distractions so they could do their

homework. I would look in their bags for it, I would ask

them "what" homework they had instead of

asking "if" they had any homework. I was going crazy.

So over the summer Jake and would talk about it

together and not really come up with anything.

We were tired of the lying and the fighting. It was

wearing on us both. So a week before school started

I was doing something in the kitchen and he was

reading on the couch. The kids were out swimming.

He all of a sudden said. Ah ha!!! I figured it out. I

know how to get them to do better in school.

I was pretty flabergasted when he announced his

idea. All I said is all right, if you think "we" can

make good on it.

So we told the kids. This is reward is stricktly for

All A's on a report card. We wouldn't count mid-terms.

Just quarter and semester grades. If they got

any b's or below they wouldn't get anything.

(We don't think getting b's are bad, but we

needed to shake things up in our household)

So if you get all A's 1st quarter you get $25.

I know it doesn't sound like much especially

since other like bribes like that didn't work.

But just wait....it gets lots better.

(atleast for the kids)

All A's for the 2nd quarter $50

All A's for the 3rd quarter $100

All A's for the 4th quarter $200

Total: $375

This is each person.

Are we crazy? Probably. But let me tell

you. The kids got very giddy when Jake

unrolled the plan. I got light headed.

But since school has started, there is no fighting

over homework. Even if they have one

problem in Math left to do from earlier in

the day, they do it at home instead of

trying to get it done at school the next day.

They are actually studying for tests.

They are telling us about projects when

they find out about it not the night before.

And working on them right away.

Now we are not going to let the kids spend

every penny on frivilous nothings. The money

is going to be put in the bank till the last report card

so they have the full amount. Then they will get a big

chunk probably $100 to spend how they want,

then they save the rest.

When I saw Sam's mid-terms I knew that this

was worth it. 5A+'s 2 A's and 2B's. He was my

biggest fighter. Being a teenager. He loves to fight.

But he loves money like they all do, even more.

And he has never had the opportunity for

this much.

The other great thing about this, is since the

mid-terms have come out, Sam and Liz have

come to me on there own, about how they are

going to raise their grades from B's to A's.

And none of those plans are make sure I get

my homework in, because they already do.

Liz talked to her teachers on her own and

found out that her B's were from quizes that

she didn't do so well on. So she is making

sure she studies and makes sure she understands

the concepts. Sam did the same thing.

I was a little scared when they started Cross Country.

I was sure they would be too tired to do

homework. And it would be a battle again.

but, they just come home, take a quick dip in

the pool, eat a snack and get back to work.

It is great. Now I am a realist. I don't

know how long this will last. I hope it lasts through

high school. But I know my children. It may get old.

But until then, I am enjoying "homework time".

I am enjoying not fighting.(Well over homework atleast)

And I love seeing how proud they are of

themselves.

2008-09-05T20:45:00.003-07:00

1st Cross Country Meet

Sam and Liz had their first Cross Country Meet

on Wednesday. They had to run 2 miles. They did

such a good job. (Ofcourse I am biased) They were

both in the middle of the group. Sam ran it in 22 minutes.

And Liz did hers in 31 minutes. I think it is pretty good

since they have only been running for a couple of weeks

and haven't been in any other sports for a couple of years.

On another note. We are so proud of the kids.

Last year we all struggled with grades and finishing

homework. So this year Jake implemented a heavy

"reward" for getting A's. I won't get into the reward

we have promised, however I will show you the results!!

Last year Sam and liz were getting B's C's D's and F's

and most of it was because they were not doing their

homework. This year, Sam so far has 7 A's (5 of them

are A+'s) and 2 B's. Liz has 6 A's and 3 B's now

granted this is only their mid-term. But we are so

proud of their hard work!!! And they are keeping

their grades up while running in 100 + degree

weather. Good Job Kids!!!

2008-09-03T10:50:00.003-07:00

Dog Sitting
Since our fun Labor Day plans fell through
because of Jake's mid-terms, we helped out
a friend and watched Peanut for the weekend.
He and Shadow tried to figure out who was
the dominant one all weekend. It was kind of
funny. Neither one of them gave up. Peanut
reminded us of a little Ewok. His little face
and his little growl. So ofcourse that inspired
us to do a Full On Star Wars marathon this
weekend. All 6 movies. It was great fun!

2008-09-03T10:38:00.002-07:00

Mr. Fix-IT!!!

Well our TV is now fixed. Our TV has been

broken for about a month now. And personally,

it has been HEAVEN!! I told Jake how much I

loved not having the TV. He did not share the

same opinion. When he bought the TV it had

been a floor model so we knew that sooner or

later that we would have to replace the lamp.

Well the time came and getting quotes was scary.

They said it would be $700-$800. And we didn't

have that much money to spend on the TV. So

with a little research we looked up the owner's manual

and figured that it would be easy to replace. We ordered the

part for $200. (Which included a new remote, and overnight,

Saturday delivery on shipping.) And it took Jake only 5-10

minutes to change out the lamps. I am so glad that

we figured it out on our own. I have to say I love

the internet, this isn't the only time it saved us a

bunch of money. When I needed to turn my little

company into an LLC, it was going to cost us

$500-800 to hire a lawyer. But then I hoped online,

downloaded the paperwork which was easy, self explanitory,

and drove downtown, and turned it in and paid $97!!

2008-08-30T09:03:00.002-07:00

Yesterday the kids started their 4 day weekend.

They were bored and staring at me all morning.

I was getting very frustrated with them, because

I figured they are old enough they should be able

to entertain themselves. Obviously I was wrong.

Anyways, I was on the computer in the morning,

and all of a sudden they were going through Jake's

Spanish flash cards. It was funny. So I thought I

would take a couple of pictures. The box says you

can learn Spanish in 2 weeks, but I don't think it held

the kids attention that long....Anyways, later that day

we went to Target to get the kids some more running

clothes for Cross Country. I am sure we will be

posting pictures of that very soon. And since it was

HOT and MUGGY ( I just love monsoon season)

We went to Cold Stone for a treat.

2008-08-28T16:14:00.003-07:00

Here is a fun collage I did for Kimberly.

She is a little Princess! Thanks to my

cousin Monica for help with cropping! You

can check her out at http://monicaefarrar.blogspot.com/

She is a great photographer!

2008-08-28T08:29:00.002-07:00

This is cute Kimberly. I had the opportunity to take

her 4 year old pictures. They were so fun. As you can see

she brought her pretty ponies and her princess dress.

We had a great time. And got lots of fun pictures!

2008-08-24T15:39:00.002-07:00

Ok, so I thought I would also take some pics of
my pup. I am getting ready to do some
marketing to vets, groomers, doggie daycares,
ect.... So I am taking animal pics. I do need
pictures of cats. So if anyone local has a
cat I would love to take pictures. So here
is Shadow. Next week I will be doing a
tea cup chiuaua. I can't wait to see
how that turns out.
Enjoy!

2008-08-23T21:16:00.002-07:00

As most of you know, I love animals.

So I thought is was time to start taking

pictures of them. This is Marcella and Roxie.

Marcella is actually the person who opened

up my business account at my bank. And

she asked me to take her and her dog's

picture. They turned out great!!!! Roxie

is a crazy 1 year old who loved to give kisses.

I was covered in dog slobber by the time I was

done. She also liked to come and sit in my lap.

I told her it was hard to take pictures of her

in my lap. She didn't really care though.

Thanks guys!!!

2008-08-15T16:19:00.002-07:00

Liz and her new trumpet
Sam and his Saxaphone

As I mentioned before the kids are in band.

They are quite musical. Which can be good and

bad. Liz brought home her new Trumpet

today and started honking it as soon as

she got in the door. Then ofcourse Sam had

to join in the fun!!! Poor Shadow has been hiding

underneath my chair since they got home.

Well except for the time they were chasing

around the house while blowing on the

instruments. I did make them stop that

ofcourse. Anyways the kids are having fun

with music. Sam is still taking lesson on

the electric guitar and is getting quite good

on that too. It is not so painful to listen

to anymore. And Liz is also taking lessons for

the piano. So as you can see there is quite

alot of music (or loud obnoxious noise)

going on at our house!!!!!

2008-08-15T08:17:00.002-07:00

Breakfast for Dinner!!!!

Yes, I still have a family. I am sure you were all

wondering when you would get to see them again!!

I have been busy since starting my little business. I

have been very blessed. I could not do this business

without my father in heaven. I can see his guidance in

everything I do.

So a quick catch up on what we have been up to.

The kids are finishing up their 2nd week of school.

So far so good. They have been great at doing their

homework and staying organized. That is our goal

this year. I think it helps that I am around for them

when they are home to help them out. Both the kids

are in Band this year. Sam is still playing the Saxaphone

and Liz has decided to play the trumpet. I was kind of

hoping for a quieter instrument like the triangle or

something.......but no luck. The kids will also be

going out for Cross Country this year. I have again

started running so I hope to be able to keep up with

them. Our goal is to be able to do some races together.

In all of my busy-ness, my good friend Cristy called me

up because she went to this great cafe in San Diego called

Cafe 222. She said that her sister ordered this wonderful

breakfast dish that was to die for. She looked it up on the

internet and we had to get together to try it. Cristy and

I have had several "Cooking Days" when we find a

good recipie or watch a great Food Network show we

get together and try it out. And since this was

breakfast my all time favorite meal of the day

I was up for it. It was soooooooo yummy and easy,

the kids and I made it on Wednesday night. Jake was

going to be home late. And when he is gone or not

going to be home for dinner that is usually when

the kids and I have "breakfast for dinner" because

Jake is a party pooper and won't eat breakfast for

dinner. So the dish is "Peanut Butter and Banana Stuffed

French toast" Below the pictures I posted the recipie!!

Peanut Butter and Banana Stuffed French Toast

6 sliced day-old white or wheat bread

1-2 ripe bananas

8 Tbls creamy peanut butter

Honey, for drizzling

4 eggs

1/4 heavy cream

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 tablespoon dark rum

(yes you need the rum, Cristy and I used real rum but

with the kids we used extract)

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Dash of salt

Butter or oil for frying

Powdered sugar for topping

Maple syrup for topping

Remove crust from bread. Lay bread out on

counter and spread a thin layer of peanut butter

on each side. Peel banana and slice enough to

cover every other piece of bread. (You'll be making

3 complete sandwiches). Drizzle a small amount of

honey on each piece of bread that does not have

bananas on it. (These are the tops) Place honey

drizzled piece of bread on top of a piece with bananas

and peanut butter on it to make a sandwich. Reapeat

until you have made 3 sandwiches.

In a bowl gently whip by hand the eggs, cream,

vanilla, rum, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

Heat skillet to medium heat, around 350-375 degreesF

or until butter melts and begins to sizzle. Dip 1 sandwich

at a time into run batter and place into skillet.

Cook until golden brown ( about 3-4 mintues before turning)

on each side. Remove from skillet and cut in 1/2 diagonally.

Top with powdered sugar, butter and maple syrup.

Serves 2-3 people

http://www.cafe222.com/recipes.html

here is a link to watch a demo of making the dish.

And other yummies from the Cafe.

I see a trip to San Diego in our future!!!

2008-08-15T08:09:00.002-07:00

This is Mason Leavitt. I have to say that

he is one of my favorite little boys. I have

known him since he was a baby.

It made me sad when I was editing these

pictures because he is so big now. I had

to apologize to his mom for making him look

like such a big boy. These are his 4 year old

pictures. You should see how tall he is too!!

2008-08-13T19:59:00.002-07:00

The Roberts Family

Here are just a few of my favorite pics from
my photo shoot with the Roberts family.
http://www.bitsoflifephotography.blogspot.com
http://www.bitsoflifephotos.com
There are a ton more photos. And a slide
show on the blog!!

2008-08-13T12:56:00.002-07:00

This is Mikayla. She is 2 and she did not want
pictures taken at all. Ah ha!! We fooled her and
got some cute shots. During one of our "breaks"
I found out she was a little "Cowgirl" at heart.
She did not want to wear a dress. Well she would
wear the dress but she wouldn't take off her jeans.
And she loved it when Jake brought out his
boots. Then Liz brought out her hat. And
needless to say we got some great pics!!!!

2008-08-07T12:04:00.002-07:00

Thanks Joyners for the great shoot!!! To see

more of their shoot, see my website at

www.bitsoflifephotos.com

2008-08-03T19:46:00.002-07:00

Here is a panorama of the Grand Canyon at the

south rim. (I love photoshop!!)

This is a picture of the Canyon at the East Rim

Here is a fun pic of Jake and Liz sitting ON the rim

of the Grand Canyon. I was too scared my self to do

it. But it makes a cute pic.

2008-08-03T13:09:00.002-07:00

We went on a family vacation to the Grand

Canyon. It was GREAT!!! It wasn't as hot as

it was down here so it was great!! We were able to

do lots of stuff. We hadn't gone camping for more

than 1 night in a long time. So needless to say we

forgot some stuff. Luckily there was a grocery store

right down the way. We had an 2-3 year old bull elk

walk through our campsite. While we were at the

canyon we were able to see a California Condor.

And in the tradition of the Clifford/Farrar's we had

some awesome dutch oven cooking, complements of

Jake. This was Shadow's first campout. Besides being

scared of everything he did great. We did not go hiking

down the canyon this time. But we are planning on going

back during the spring or fall to do that. It is too hot to

do that during the summer. We are planning another

camping trip next summer. We are so excited!!

2008-08-03T12:50:00.003-07:00

Here are pictures that I have been meaning to

post for awile. These are from the day that we

all went to Sedona and had a picnic at slide rock.

As you can see it is lots of fun. I regreted not

taking my swim suit!! The kids can't wait to go

again!!!

2008-07-29T17:04:00.002-07:00

This is Beautiful Kylah. I was able to take

pictures of her 2 weeks ago. Isn't she a doll?

She was so much fun to work with.

2008-07-10T10:05:00.002-07:00

VISITORS!

We were so excited to have Grandpa and Grandma Clifford

come to town with GG and Andrea. They stayed for a little over a week.

Unfortunately we didn't take nearly enough pictures. Which

is ridiculous because I got a new DSLR right before they got

here. I am an idiot!!!! Here you see we had a great time in the

pool. The kids loved to swim with the family. We even got Shadow

to get into the pool. We did all sorts of fun things when they

got here. We all went to see "Get Smart" . That was a great

family movie. I could watch it again and again. Grandma

made some awesome french bread and homemade rolls

for pulled pork sandwiches. Jake made an awesome

homemade BBQ sauce, and between the two I was in heaven.

We had Uncle Jerry and Ben over for 4th of July. We were

going to watch fireworks. But we had a huge Monsoon roll in

and the cities cancelled the fire work displays. That's OK though.

We also went to Sedona for the day and had a picnic at slide rock.

Uncle Jerry wanted to show us Jerome, so we went and

had an icecream stop there.(Pictures to follow)

We had a great time and can't wait to see everyone again.

2008-07-09T22:24:00.002-07:00

Liz's new haircut!!
Liz decided to cut off her hair. She has got
this great spiky new cut. I don't know who
is having more fun with the new do, me or her.
I love spiking and playing with her hair. I
wish I had the guts to cut off my locks.

2008-07-09T22:13:00.002-07:00

More Proof
Here is more proof that Jake and Shadow love
each other. Jake got a new shot gun belt and
tried it on Shadow.

2008-07-09T22:08:00.002-07:00

Yeah!!!!!!

Ben has moved to Flagstaff Arizona.

It probably won't be for very long, but

I am glad that he will be here for a little while.

He was transferred for his job. I am so

glad he is here. We are going to have lots

of fun while he is here.

2008-07-09T21:58:00.001-07:00

We can't have our summer start without having

our annual End of school celebration at

Coldstone. I can't wait till school starts so we

can go back. Yummy!!!!!

2008-07-09T21:37:00.002-07:00

Memorial Day Weekend

Here are a few pictures from Memorial Day weekend.

We had Uncle Jerry and Ben over. We had BBQ'd

steak and shrimp. Yummy!!!!! We also had

some homemade Strawberry Icecream. As

you can see Shadow also had his very first bone.

We all had a great time. And as you can see

Jake was testing out the water in the pool.

2008-07-09T20:56:00.002-07:00

My Son Sam!!!

The best way to describe him is a typical teenager.

He has his own mind and is very stubborn. And

a little creative as well.

This story starts with Sam working hard on

earning merit badges for his Eagle.

He wanted to work on the Reptile merit badge.

I asked him what it entailed. And he said that he had to

observe a lizard for a month. Ok. I hate lizards, and spiders, snakes, anything

creepy and crawly. So I turned him down. Knowing that it was not

an Eagle required I said that I was not going to spend any money

on a yucky lizard. He was a little mad at me, but I thought I

won because I didn't hear anything more about it. Until a few days

later there was a big rubbermaid container without a lid that

had a yucky lizard in it. I was thinking what the heck, where

did he get that? Well sure enough he caught it. At a park in our

neighborhood. And I really couldn't turn him down because

I didn't have to spend any money on the yucky thing.

The only thing I did have a problem with was that

we couldn't find the top of the container he had the lizard in

and he was also catching crickets. And I could not handle the thought of

yucky crickets roaming my house. So we did get a little container with

a lid on it. I did have a little freak out when Sam caught this

huge outdoor cockroach that was like an inch wide and 2 inches long!

There was a little yelling on my end at that time. So I also had

Jake buy Sam already dead crickets so Sam didn't have to find

yucky bugs for food. Now that Sam realized that one Lizard was

great. He also thought more would be better. So I walk in

his room and find 2 more lizards in make shift cages. OK. I thought

I was being a good mom, letting him keep one. But I put my foot

down on 3!!! So I did make him release the others to the wild.

So it has been past the 30 days. And the lizard is still alive. He did

loose his tail. But he seems to be doing well. Actually

someone told us the lizard is a she. So she is doing well.

These pictures are all taken by Sam who is documenting

his little experience for his merit badge.

2008-07-09T20:41:00.002-07:00

Shadow and Jake

Even though Jake says that he doesn't

like dogs, he does enjoy a little cuddle time

with Shadow at night.

SHHHHHH!!!Don't let him know I told you :)

2008-07-09T20:02:00.002-07:00

Family Cooking Night!!

We found a fun recipie in our Rachel Ray

cookbook. And we had a great time cooking

together. Cooking is one of our family's

favorite pastimes.

2008-07-09T19:21:00.002-07:00

Back in Action!!!

Sorry for the long absence. I can't believe all the stuff

I haven't put on the blog so hopefully in the next few days

I can catch things up!!! I downloaded a card full of pics

and realized that I have not done a good job in keeping

up on everything. So enjoy all the pics from the last

few months.

2008-07-08T11:53:00.002-07:00

hey everyonethis is liz, we had our grandparents,aunt and our great grandma at our house for about a week and we went to sliderock in sadona. It was so much fun Even the water was COLD it felt so nice to swim in but watch out for the rocks they are so very slippery.

2008-05-26T11:07:00.003-07:00

Hey it is liz here in arizona the wonderful hot state it was the last day of school on friday may 23,2008 are uncle came in from wyoming .It has been so much fun this week. Ben has been so cool he is going to take us to in and out.That is going to be so cool.see you guys later.

2008-05-23T09:08:00.001-07:00

Here is another fun layout I did this week.

P.S. Ben is here for Memorial Day so I will be

putting up pictures soon. I hope everyone has

a great 3 day weekend.

2008-05-20T16:44:00.002-07:00

We had alot of fun in class today we had twister tuesday. We got to bring in our board games I got to play star wars monopoly it is so cool.

love liz

2008-05-19T17:15:00.002-07:00

Just another digi project I was working on today.

This time I learned how to use a template. Very

very very fun!!!

Credits: template from Jen Caputo

and papers from Jessica Sprague

2008-05-18T19:22:00.002-07:00

I decided to work on my online scrapbooking class

a little more. I am ashamed to say I got behind.

So look at this cute layout from Christmas pics

background paper, ribbon and green paper by KP flat Jacks

and grunge overlay by KPertiet

2008-05-14T10:34:00.002-07:00

Happy Late Birthday BEN!!!!

Just want to wish my brother Ben a late

birthday. It was last Friday. I don't have

a scanner so I had a friend scan it for me.

Look how cute my kids are!!!

We hope we get a chance to see you this

summer Ben. Thanks for being the best

Brother!!! And Uncle!

2008-05-13T07:12:00.003-07:00

As many of you know, our family loves to cook together.

I bought this family cook book for us yesterday.

We haven't had a chance to try anything yet, but

I can tell you there is a bunch of yummy

things to try. We'll let you know what some of

favorites are!!!

2008-05-11T18:56:00.002-07:00

Our Ice Cream Machine
Yummy Raspberries
Delicious Blackberries
Vanilla Ice Cream base
Adding berries

Blackberry Ice Cream and Raspberry Ice Cream

Poor Shadow had none!!!

Great Mother's Day

Today was a great Mother's Day. Today the kids

made one of my favorite breakfasts. Cheese Blintzes

with blueberry sauce. I love love love Cheese Blintzes.

For dinner Jake made a great Pork tenderloin and we had

yummy homemade ice cream for dessert. Thanks Alicia

for the great idea. And thanks mom for the great

Christmas present that we just tried. It was great.

We used a vanilla icecream base and then mixed in

blackberries in the first batch, then raspberries in the

second batch. Jake did an awesome job!!!!

I love my family!!

IMDb Video: Twilight: Teaser Trailer

2008-05-10T19:12:00.000-07:00

IMDb Video: Twilight: Teaser Trailer

Yeah! I am so excited for this movie to come out. I need to read the book again just to get ready for it!!

2008-05-09T06:49:00.001-07:00

Take the Quiz here!

2008-05-07T08:37:00.002-07:00

The best girly cry movie EVER!!!

As many of you know. I am a sucker for a good

cry movie. I love to cry at movies. So when I

saw the commercials come out for this movie at the

end of last year I was very excited to see it. My friend

Brenda and I went to see it and we cried our eyes out.

I think there were some sobs too. This was a very

sappy love story. But very touching and there was

some great eye candy as well. The yummy Jeffrey Dean Morgan

(Denny Duquet From "Grey's") and Gerard Butler with

lovely Irish accents. (Honestly, any man with an accent makes

me melt....) Harry Connick JR. always been a great love of mine.

However I do have to say I didn't like his part or acting in this

movie. But I still love him. I loved loved loved Kathy Bates in

this movie. And Hilary Swank was adorable too. So

if you haven't seen this movie yet, it is on DVD. So run to your

nearest RED BOX or Hollywood video and rent it. I actually

bought it and will be forcing Jake to watch it with me this

weekend. I am sure we will have to follow it up with a good

killing action movie to get the testostorone flowing in the

house again.

2008-05-05T06:50:00.002-07:00

Happy Birthday Meredith!!!!

We Love you Meredith. I hope you had and

awesome birthday!! I miss you and can't wait

till we can see each other again!!!!

2008-04-28T18:43:00.002-07:00

www.bitsoflifephotography.blogspot.com

I have a new blog for my photography projects. I am not quite ready to have a website yet, so I thought I would start a blog. It is not half as cool as Monica's awesome photography. I hope to be as good as she is when I grow up.

2008-04-20T18:47:00.003-07:00

All about me tag........

Dani tagged me a long time ago. But I was lazy. And Suzanne tagged me again so I thought I would get off my rear and do it. Actually I am still on my rear. Because I am sitting. So here we go.

1.WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
I was named after my maternal great grandmother.

2.WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED.
Last weekend while watching "Dan in Real Life". Yes I am a boob.
I cry over everything.

3.DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
Yes

4.WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCHMEAT?
Pastrami

5.DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
Sam (13) and Liz (10)

6.IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
Probably.

7.DO YOU USE SARCASM ALOT?
Sometimes.

8.DO YOU HAVE YOUR TONSILS?
Yes.

9.WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
Yes. I would also like to sky dive.

10.DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
I live in Arizona so I mostly wear sandals. But when I take off my running shoes I do untie them.

11.DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?
Yes.

12.WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR?
Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice cream from Baskin and Robins.

13.WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
Their teeth. It's aweful I know.....

14.RED OR PINK?
Red

15. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
My intertube stomache and flat bum.

16.WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
I miss my cute Papa!! And I miss living close to my brother and sisters and cousins. I love them!!

17.WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
I am wearing green pajama pants. And bare feet.

18.WHAT IS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?
Yummy homemade Fettuccine Alfredo with shrimp made by Jake.

19.WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
We are watching Oprah's Big Give. My favorite show.

20.IF YOU WERE A CRAYON WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
Probably Sunshine Yellow.

21.FAVORITE SMELLS?
Orange blossoms, clean babies, roses, and good food.

22.WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
I think it was Jake or Ben.

23.FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
Basketball.

24.HAIR COLOR?
Dark Brown

25.EYE COLOR?
Hazel.

26.DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
Yes.

27.FAVORITE FOOD?
Cheesecake. Fresh Raspberries.

28.SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
Happy Endings of course. Even better if they have a good cry included.

29.LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED.
"Dan in Real Life" and "There will be Blood."

30. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?
Pink

31.SUMMER OR WINTER?
Winter......I have summer all the time.

32.HUGS OR KISSES?
Both!!!!

33.FAVORITE DESSERT?
Just one? Tirasmisu or Cheesecake.

34.WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING RIGHT NOW?
Isn't it awful? I am not even reading anything right now. But Jake is reading 2 books so does that count?

35.WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
It is a boring gray color.

36.WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT?
A show on the History Channel about the beginning of the FBI and them catching big time criminal gangsters of the times like Bonnie and Clyde, Dillinger, and Babyface Nelson. Really quite interesting. The funny thing is that Jake went to bed early and I kept watching for another hour.

37. FAVORITE SOUND?
Rain falling.

38.ROLLING STONES OR BEATTLES?
Beattles.

39.What is the farthest you've been from home?
Alaska and Hawaii.

40.DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
I can't really think of anything

OK I TAG.........
Alicia, Stephanie, Monica, Natalie, Mom, Meredith, Andrea, Brenda & Kari

2008-04-17T21:44:00.002-07:00

Sushi Night!!!

Sam had to do a project at school that included

making sushi for his class. So we kind of made

a family night out of it. Even Liz had fun making

the Sushi. Though she did not have any. We made

it kind of simple for the kids at school. I figured

that most kids wouldn't try it if it had any raw

stuff in it so we stuck to California rolls and

shrimp rolls. I think we even mastered sushi

rice. It took 2 tries. We burned the first

batch. But that is ok. It turned out awesome at

the end. This was our first time making sushi.

We all had a blast making it!!!!

2008-04-17T21:24:00.002-07:00

Marissa Joyner

Here are some cute pictures I did for
another friend Tiffany for her
daughter's one year old birthday.
Marissa is such a cutie. We had lots of
fun. I got to experiment with a white
back drop. I learned that I need to iron
it next time. It was really fun to work with.

2008-04-17T21:21:00.001-07:00

Here is a collage I made for a friend of mine.

I had it on earlier, then took it off, because

I didn't want my boss to see it. But then I

ended up showing him anyways. So I thought

I would put it back on. I just love babies!!!

2008-04-17T21:12:00.002-07:00

Jake's Suprise Party!!

Richard, Frank, Dave
Stephanie & Betty

This year I surprised Jake for his

birthday with a party with

all his Cowboy friends. I am just sad that

once the party got under way I forgot

to take more pictures. I have to thank

Dean and Stephanie for all the help with

the planning. Dean lured Jake away while

we could put everything together. He

was sure suprised. I was very proud

that I was able to pull the whole thing

off. And keep a secret for so long. You

know this is a big feat for me. I held this

secret for almost a month. I know, very

impressive!!! We had lots of fun. It

was great getting to know the gang outside

of the cowboy arena!!!!

2008-03-16T18:49:00.002-07:00

(click to enlarge)

Credits: Whitie Tighties by Amy Teets
Stamped Moments brush set by Katie Pertiet

My Kids

You probably have been wondering why I haven't

done any cute layouts with my kids in them.

Well here you go. I just bought a black backdrop.

(Fun Fun Fun!!) And I took these awesome pics

of the kids today. And I worked up this lovely

layout. I still need to work on the lighting a

little bit. But with Photoshop I can tweak

things so they don't look so bad.

2008-03-13T19:42:00.002-07:00

Before

After

LIZ HAS GLASSES

I will put this in a cute layout tonight or tomorrow.

But Liz wouldn't let me rest till I got this on the blog.

2008-03-13T19:32:00.002-07:00

Howdy Cowboy!

As you can see I am having fun with Photoshop.

This is a collage of Jake's western gear. I am going

to enlarge it to a 16x20 and have it framed for his birthday.

Don't worry, he doesn't read this blog.

2008-03-12T11:14:00.002-07:00

Family Tree

Today I have been cleaning out my bedroom closet.

Wow I found some great things. One is the catalog

of the family tree that I gave to my parents and to

Jake's parents a couple of years ago for Christmas. I

couldn't remember the name of the company or the

site to which I bought it from. Which made me mad, because

I wanted one for our family and never bought one for

us. And others have asked me where I had got them

and I couldn't tell them. So for all who want them

I got them from the company called "Once Upon a Family".

They can be found at www.onceuponafamily.com

And actually the other reason I am putting this information

on the blog is because I am going to throw the catalog

away and I needed somewhere to put the information

where I wouldn't loose it again. So hopefully I will

remember that I put the information on my blog. And some

further information about finding it on the site. ( For me and others)

Look on the left hand side under"Family Heritage".

All right back to cleaning. Hope you guys all have a wonderful

day!!!!

2008-03-10T19:41:00.002-07:00

Hyrum

Hyrum has joined the ranks of the crazy cowboys

of the family. I have some pictures from Winter Range

that I will post in the next few days. Here is my new layout from

my scrapbooking class. Girls if you want to check out this

class, look at www.JessicaSprague.com there is some

great stuff. These pictures of Hyrum are actually from

his first shoot in November when we were up for

Thanksgiving.

2008-03-07T12:26:00.003-07:00

Yeah my second lay out is done. Thanks to Kari for

a little bit of tech support. And new ideas on how to

support my addiction!! This beautiful girl is my niece

Brooke. She is such a cutie. Check out some cute

video of her on her The Lillywhites blog!!

2008-03-05T13:05:00.002-07:00

I found something very addicting!!!

I am taking an online digital scrapbooking class so

I can figure out how to play around with photoshop

a little more. A friend told me about this class and

loves it. I had my first class this week. And this is

my first 12 x 12 layout. How cute is Ezra? So you

will hopefully be seeing more cute posts from me.

2008-03-05T10:38:00.002-07:00

I have to appologize for not updating my blog lately. I am sitting here in the kitchen having my carpets cleaned. And to wait for it to get done I have been amusing myself by looking through the family blogs. And since I have no new pictures I thought I would just post a note to everyone.
I have a new job. I haven't told a ton of people yet because I have been so busy at it that I haven't had a chance to call or email or obviously update my blog about it. I am a baby photographer. I work for a company that is called "Our 365 Portraits." AFter the new year I was feeling discouraged with the Real Estate business. The market is bad here. Homes are not selling and I am was putting in more money than I was making. I went to a great Conference in Las Vegas in November and I figured out how to make more money in this type of market. Shovel more money and work about 80 hours a week. Well I didn't want to shell out more money. I am actually trying to make money to pay to finish my mouth. And I didn't want to sacrifice time with my family and put in too many hours working. I have talked to a couple of successful mothers in Real Estate and the one complaint they had is that it took too much time away from the family. So I was talking to Meredith when she did her little job change and I thought I should do the same thing. So I found this cute job. I get to play with babies all day. I wish I could post some of my pictures, because some of the kids I photograph are just the cutest. I take pictures of babies as young as 1 month all the way up to 7 years old. And I take a few family pictures as well. Ofcourse working this job has gotten my photography bug flaired up again and so ofcourse now I want a Digital SLR. And I have been reading a ton on photography. I am focusing on lighting right now and trying to figure that whole thing out. It is a fun job but sometimes very challenging. Because babies and toddlers do have a mind of their own.

I do promise pictures soon. We are having a visit from Papa and Nana and Hyrum this week. It is the week of Winter Range and they are coming to shoot. So we should have some fun pitures soon. And Ryon and the boys are coming at the end of the month for spring training.

I love you all and love your blogs. I think it is such a great way to keep in touch with one another.

Love,

Amy

2008-01-18T13:28:00.000-07:00

King of the Castle

Here are some more pictures of Shadow. The

spoiled puppy at our house.

2008-01-18T13:03:00.000-07:00

Sam and his Gourmet Hamburger

Liz and I making muffins

Nap time for puppy.

Day off with the kids!

The kids had a day off last friday. So we had a fun day in the

kitchen. Liz and I made yummy pumpkin muffins. Thanks

Alicia for the yummy mix!! And Sam had fun making

a gourmet hamburger with grilled carrots for lunch.

As you can see it was too much fun for puppy. He

took a nap.

2007-12-21T22:30:00.000-07:00

Merry Christmas!!! Alright Mom. I have updated my blog!!!

Hello Sandy and Bob.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

2007-12-21T22:29:00.000-07:00

Liz playing the piano at her piano recital

2007-12-21T22:24:00.000-07:00

Shadow!!

Mom's Christmas present.

A cute little cocker spaniel.

2007-12-21T22:17:00.000-07:00

Gingerbread House!

You can't have a holiday without a gingerbread house!

The kids had lots of fun putting it together.

2007-12-21T22:13:00.000-07:00

Decorating for Christmas!!!!

2007-12-21T22:01:00.000-07:00

While in Utah Jake was able to do a shoot with his Dad and brother.