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!

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

What's On My Happy List?

Emma's Birthday
We even had Scooby Doo dog bone snacks
in the favors...


My peace loving, thoughtful, creative, helpful,
funny, darling, t-shirt/levi wearing, Valentine
baby turned 11 this weekend. She had a dog
themed birthday party with her friends. She
is a dog lover! Oh, how I wish I could have
surprised her with a real dog for her gift!
Unfortunately, between her allergies and
mine, a dog for a pet will not become a
reality unless we consider allergy shots.
UGH! We went to the theatre to see the
movie "Hotel for Dogs". She had the
playroom set up as a veterinarian office
so she and her friends could play "vet"with
the stuffed animals. They had a good time
just doing their thing.

Since I did this for Kyleigh on her birthday,
Emma wanted this done for her too. Such a
girl thing! LOL So here it goes…..

DUE DATE?
February 17, 1998
DELIVERY DATE? February 15, 1998
DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS? No
WHAT DID YOU CRAVE? Don't remember
anything in particular, although I do have
a memory of crawling in bed at night with
little Kyleigh and eating bananas. Jaren
seems to remember it was Wendy's
frosties. :)
WAS THERE ANY ARGUMENT OVER THE
BABY'S NAME? No, the only two names we
were trying to decide between were Emma
and Hannah. I remember Jaren taking
the baby and having a quiet moment with
her. He came back and said I think it should
be Emma. Sweet memory.
HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN
THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY?
I believe 38 ‘ish lbs.
DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS
DURING YOUR PREGNANCY? In the early
stages some blood work came back abnormal. I
had to have an early ultrasound and opted to have
an amniocentesis to check for Down Syndrome. Of
course having an amnio, there is no question what
the sex of the baby is.The results of the test got sent
to my OB where my mother in law was the office
nurse. She looked at the results thinking that we
would be finding out the sex but that wasn’t the case.
We didn’t want to know, so I went throughout my
pregnancy not knowing the sex of my baby but my
mother in law did. WEIRD! I thought I was carrying
a boy for quite awhile and then towards the end
I just wasn't sure.
WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH? LDS Hospital...
(Love that place!)
HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR?
After being induced, which I have been with all
four babies (so convenient I might add), I was only
in labor 3 ½ hours…so different than my first
delivery of 15. I hit a six now and I’m ready for
delivery within the half hour.
WAS IT VAGINAL OR C-SECTION? Vaginal.
DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN?
Yep!! But the epidural came way too late. The nurse
kept asking if I was okay. I had lost all color from my
face, obviously from being in quite a bit of pain. I kept
replying I was fine. However, as I progressed further
the anesthesiologist found himself in an emergency
situation with another patient. AHHH!
So it took him awhile to get to me. The nurse said I was
at a nine before the epidural kicked in. I wasn’t
screaming or swearing yet, so I probably should have
gone without any pain med but it’s the pushing the
baby out that freaks me out. I have big babies…big
heads. OUCHY OUCH!
HOW MUCH DID THE BABY WEIGH? 8 lbs 8 oz.
TIME OF BIRTH? 12:01 p.m. on a snowy, Sunday
afternoon
WHAT DID YOU NAME THE BABY? Emma Abigail
This was before the name Emma became so popular.
In fact we got a few raised eyebrows over our choice of
name (so rude) but little did they know I was just a step
ahead of the fast growing trend of using more traditional,
old fashioned names. Not only is Emma a family name on
my Dad’s side, but I have a lot of respect and admiration for
Emma Smith, the Prophet’s wife. I loved the movie EMMA
with Gwyneth Paltrow and ‘Emma’ Thompson is in my all
time favorite movie, Sense and Sensibility. There was also
a family we knew, when we lived in Loma Linda, that had a
child with the same name, but they called her Abby. This
was about 4 years before Emma was born but I remember
falling in love with the name then. If Emma would
have been a boy, Brennan is the name we had chosen.
Memories of the day? Her head of black hair and the nurses
wisking her away to suck out all the meconium she had
swallowed.
Love you Emmsie!!
Celebrating President's Day
Draper Temple Open House
We took the youth in our ward to tour
the new Draper Temple before it is
dedicated. Beautimous! The chandelier
in the Celestial Room is
absolutely stunning!

1 comment:

  1. Happy Late Birthday Kyleigh and Emma! What a cute idea...a dog themed party! And of course you celebrated Presidents Day! I love the tag you answered for both of them. I think I'll do that next year for the kids birthdays! Looks like Valentines Day was a success! Love the smilebox slideshows. Aren't they fun? Thanks for turning me on to them!

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