Bonjour!

Bonjour!
I’m a 51 year old mother of five amazing daughters and wife to a caring, sensitive AND sexy husband. I adore my family. I’m dedicated to my faith. I enjoy a good laugh. I'm nostalgic and love to reminisce. "Remember" is my favorite word in the English language. I love life! I’m passionate about music, food and {dreams of} traveling the world. I wanna be a castle and waterfall chaser. I’m fascinated with anything European. {PARIS! Hello!} I love celebrating anything and everything! I love to read, especially a good biography, mystery, Regency Era Romance or Historical fiction novel. I love thoughtful gift giving. To me the gift wrap is almost as important as the gift itself. I have a bit of an obsession with gift boxes and gift bags. As well as old world maps & globes, apothecary bottles and jars! I love being creative…bolts of ribbon, coordinating scrapbook papers, producing a table scape, or planning décor for a themed party puts a smile on my face. I love the details! I’m a freak for anything theme oriented. I enjoy event planning, but oddly enough do not like to host or entertain. I enjoy fashion, but have to really be in the mood to clothes shop. I love purses and funky costume jewelry. Especially big rings! I’d rather wear wedges or heels any day than flats. I enjoy decorating and searching for the perfect decorative pillow or picture. However, you’ll never see me frequent high-end stores. I'm more of a Ross, TJ Maxx, Tuesday Morning kind of gal. My favorite decor style is an old world rustic Italian chateau/Spanish Villa look with a hint of bohemian! OR a vintage shabby chic French country cottage/English cobblestone farmhouse. My #1 cookie-Molasses! Autumn is my favorite season. I’d go through childbirth a million times. I enjoy biking with my man, Pilates, and power walking. You’ll never find me in a gym working out. I love movies, whether watching them in the theatre or cuddled up on the couch with my family. I enjoy a good chick flick or real life drama! I'm a sucker for movies on the Hallmark & Great American Family Channel. I have a tender heart for the elderly. I adore Disneyland. I enjoy being in the canyon on a summer or fall evening at dusk. I love my friends. While I have some extroverted characteristics. I’m a self proclaimed introvert. I’m generally quiet, calm, reserved and pretty darn private. Why in the heck do I blog? It’s a creative way to record family history. I enjoy photography. I really don’t like to write, although I write in my journal often. My journals, patriarchal blessing, scriptures, quote book, and beloved Christmas tree filled with ornaments of family memories are among my prized possessions. I love the beach. I enjoy WWII history. I love a clean, orderly house, but ours usually looks lived in. ;) PBS Masterpiece is my friend. I adore Jane Austen films. They transport me to another time and place. If I had to choose another time period in which to live, early 19th Century England would be my pick. "Sense and Sensibility" is my all time favorite movie. My 3 favorite TV series are...BBC's Larkrise to Candleford, the 1950's Spanish Drama "Velvet," and the travel/food show "Somebody Feed Phil." My biggest pet peeve is people who blow their noses in public. So gross! {Take it to the bathroom people.} I’d go on a wine tasting vacation if it wasn’t against my religion. I’ve always wanted to adopt a baby from a foreign country. I’m an avid BYU football fan. I'm a Educational Support Professional. I tutor elementary kids in phonemic awareness, phonics, reading, fluency and comprehension. I love our campfires at Scofield Lake. I have a 'thing' for fairy gardens, Gallic French roosters, fresh flowers in a vase, pretty bowls & plates, and yummy smelling candles & soap. I love summer rainstorms and warm baths. I'm a scripture podcast fanatic. I'm also a fan of several Fox News shows; Hannity and Dave Ramsey Talk Radio. I very much miss Rush Limbaugh! I hate when my kids have homework. I'd rather clean 20 toilets than give a talk or prayer in church. I have quite a collection of Madame Alexander Dolls, children's books, Disney pins, and quotes. My favorite quote is "Don't underestimate me. I know more than I say, think more than I speak & notice more than you realize." True True LOL! I always prefer sitting in a back row versus the front. {I'm sort of a seat snob..yikes} I also have high expectations for my lemonade, salsa, and french fries too. HA! I work well behind the scenes. I love a good Dateline, 20/20 or 48 Hour Mystery. I’m a night owl. I'd rather be cold than hot. I love to budget our finances! I enjoy being a chauffeur to my children. I'm not a huge fan of social media. I don't snap, pin or tweet. All I want for Christmas every year is a ticket to the Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert. It's my FAVORITE. I’m an Anglophile…a royal watcher who loves anything English! Especially tea parties! I would like to serve a church mission to England with Jaren someday. I'm queen of paper towel, used kitchen dishrags and sponges kinda make me squirm. You’ll rarely find me out of the house not ready for the day, except when driving the kids to school on the days I don't work. I feel naked without lipstick or lip gloss. Mismatched socks, chipped fingernail polish, chapped lips and brownie crumbs on the floor drive me nuts! I like to organize and BE organized..but not saying I always am. ;) I enjoy hiking to waterfalls, ATV’ing with my family and snowshoeing with the hubs. Although I enjoy collecting recipes and occasionally watch cooking shows... (Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade, Paula Deen, Jamie Oliver, and the Pioneer Woman are my favorites) I’d rather not cook. Eating out is so much more fun. I'm a foodie. I live to EAT! LOL Trying new foods and restaurants is a favorite past-time, and believe it or not so is intermittent fasting. I'm not good at a lot of things... but gosh, if you need help with a themed celebration or someone to enjoy good food with, I'm your girl. I love the joy of anticipation and the celebration of holidays. Family traditions are important to me. I'm a memory preserver. I'm a pathological picture taker ;) a visual storyteller, and a lover of happy lists!

My Fam!

My Fam!

The Hubs and I

The Hubs and I

My Girls!

My Girls!

Kyleigh Dawn (28)

Kyleigh Dawn (28)

Emma Abigail (26)

Emma Abigail (26)

Hannah Isabelle (23)

Hannah Isabelle (23)

Brielle Olivia (19)

Brielle Olivia (19)

Kate Evangelene Lyllie (13)

Kate Evangelene Lyllie (13)

Mr. Charles "Bingley" Wentworth III (4 yrs.)

Colonel Edward Fitzwilliam "Darcy", Duke of Westridge (3 yrs.)

My Man!

My Man!

Good Times!

Good Times!

Wedding Day 5*17*22

Lillian "Lilly" Belle

Disney Food Fun! 2019

Disneyland Tips

What I Believe!

Our Missionary

We Bleed Blue! {Except for the Poppi}

My list of favorite movies!

Learn more about Dyslexia!

Music To My Ears!

Monday, August 27, 2012

What's On My Happy List?


END OF SUMMER wrap up! We had our annual outing to the Redwood Drive-in with the neighbors..We had quite the caravan with 7 cars and about 40 people joining in the fun. The only descent movie with the possibility of both kids and adults enjoying was The Odd Life of Timothy Green.  The title fit the movie perfectly. Talk about odd! We still enjoyed the evening though...




 Family Picnic in the canyons...with a rattlesnake scare included...

Emma had a little too much fun stuffing her face....

Summer Chores! 
I came across this idea for summer chores and meant to post it sooner.  This idea worked fairly well for us in the beginning of the summer... and then we lost steam, which we usually do. But I do think its a great idea if you can stick to it. We are just challenged in that area. :) I had cup of craft sticks with a chore written on each one. The girls would pick three. 

Sometimes I'd find they would pull the same stick as they did the day before, and if that happened they could re pick. What also worked well was picking a handful of sticks and then deciding from those what three they would rather do, or what I would rather have them do depending on need. Most often during the summer I would just assess what needed to be done and ask them to do it. Sometimes I found that to be the easiest way. IF anything with chores is ever easy?!
 
Another cute idea involving sticks was using them for summer reading. With each stick saying where or how to read. I was hoping this idea would work for us. Did it? No. Brie maybe used it a handful of times.
It's like pulling teeth to get Hannah and Brie to read. {It's the inherited Dyslexia. My dad is Dyslexic. It is something you are born with, you cannot cure it, you just find ways to manage around it}  


So.... basically reading is a chore to them.  And I have a hard time enforcing it.
The key is to find material that they are really interested in. The One Direction Biography and numerous 1D magazines Hannah was more than happy to read this summer. Yeah! And Brie quite likes Junie B. She has read five of her chapter books just lately... on her own, with this incentive from Grandma...Yes, another Lego set... but hey, whatever works! 

Speaking of books here are a few I have enjoyed reading as of late....
If you are a Downton Abby fan, Below Stairs is a must read!
Below StairsThe Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times


The Peach Keeper: A Novel
Turn of Mind

Currently reading Turn Of Mine, probably my least favorite out of the ones I've listed but still good. I can't wait to finish and read Edenbrooke next. Emma took it from me and started reading it, staying up til 1 AM. The first thing she did the next morning was pick it back up and finished it. She couldn't put it down. 
She loved this book! 
 She says it is the best book she's ever read and she has read a lot!
Edenbrooke


She had to read Cold Sassy Tree for her summer Honors English assignment. There is a huge project due about the book so she is currently busy working on that...as school starts this week!
 
Cold Sassy Tree
This is just a sample of one of her 26 pages that she has created so far....Seriously you should see this project she is working on..over the top!


Here's the kitchen table to prove it!


 Kyleigh's summer Honors English reading was the Crucible..
 The Crucible

I've about had to put her on house arrest so she would just sit and read it! She has put it off and left it to the last minute. She is so programmed that way and works better under pressure, most of the time.. {Whatever works I say as long as she gets it done.} She is the type that will do just the minimum to get by and get the grade where as Emma puts in a ton more effort, like 110%. We had a good laugh about that tonight because they are so different in that way. ...


Had the girls clean out their personal binders and throw away school work from this past year to determine what they want to keep. This was just from Kyleigh's school bags that she ended up chucking...
 

Can't believe its time to start a new school year. Summer just always flies. Our summer has been pretty low key which was so nice. I really came to the conclusion this summer that I am not a summer person. at all. It is my least favorite season. I could give you a not-happy list of what I can't stand about it. lol 

I think the heat being at the very top. It's been a disgustingly hot summer! And I am not a fan of many of the activities that scream summer.....Lagoon, water parks, zoo, museums, hiking...etc. etc. 
{I can really be a boring person. I think you'd be surprised.}  
There are a few things I enjoy though...I love that my kids are home and we don't have the pressure from school and all that goes with that. {Although there are days that I miss the routine and structure}. I love the fruit that is in abundance this time of year, summer nights, the sound of crickets, and ice-cream runs....

Not quite sure if we are ready for it to end. Other than the heat! We will be back into things full swing very soon...Getting these kids to bed at a descent time is probably my main concern at this point for the school year...our house is always buzzing until late..very late! And mornings come way early. It's going to be interesting. So I'm wishing myself luck :) 

2 comments:

  1. Good luck my friend! We started last week and it's a beast. :)
    Thanks for the book recommendations. I'm headed to the library tomorrow to get them.

    And just incase you ever need a "buddy" to go live in Alaksa with you, where it's cold...I'm here! I hate the heat so much!

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  2. Summer chores... now THERE is a novel concept. Probably had I thought of that, I'd not be shoveling out from under summer (move) like I have been for two weeks.

    Drive-In. Good times. Wish I could have found one in Co. The RI drive-in used to be...a...well... google "Rustic Drive-In". We loved going, so long as the kids were young enough to not look too closely at the marquee.

    Lastly, LOVE a good book list. Reading "The Shoemaker's Wife" right now. A must read.

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