Remembrance Day

"The whole world should stop and honor America's fallen heroes on Memorial Day," commented Father Richard Welch, CSSR, JCD, President of Human Life International, the world's largest pro-life, pro-faith, pro-family apostolate. "Not as a gesture endorsing any nation and its current political or economic policy, but in honor of brave men and women who gave their lives for others."

"Memorial Day is not about picnics and ballgames. But neither is it an unqualified endorsement of American society as we know it. These brave soldiers, sailors, fliers and marines died protecting their country and what it stood for. They died defending a way of life that they felt was worth dying for ... families, children, freedom, morality, values, responsibility."
COPYRIGHT 2000 PR Newswire Association, Inc. in association with The Gale Group and LookSmart.

I wanted to post a little reminder of the importance of this day! Not only do we remember all that the brave men and women of our military do and have done for us to protect us, we also remember all of our loves ones who have gone on home before us. It is a beautiful day to celebrate life, our country, and our loved ones.

May your Memorial Day be filled with peace.

The week in review

Some big things happened this past week, so I thought I would dedicate a post to all the events that don't really connect with one another, but all happened this past week!

Let's start with the great news about our challenge: We had a weigh in after 3 weeks to let us know where we are: Scott has lost 7.1% of his body weight! And I dropped 4.4%!!! Woo-hoo! Yeah us! We're are really pumped about our success, and working out regularly, and sticking to our meal plans!

Next, not so exciting piece of news to share: It snowed here in South Jordan this past Tuesday! Yes, it was May 25th! Craziness! It didn't stick around more than a few hours, but it was enough to be annoying while driving to school and work. I hope that this winter sticking around will mean it will take its time coming back in the fall.

Then let's see...my sister just younger than me, Heidi, gave birth to her seventh child yesterday morning. His name is Mitchell Wayne. He is her sixth son! I haven't seen pics yet, but hopefully, we will soon!

Then today, my baby sister, Kari, turned 22! Happy Birthday Bear! I bet this makes my mom feel really old!

I started my 4 day long weekend today. The first day went too fast. I drove carpool (only 2 more Fridays!) and then I went to the church and worked out with two other girls. Then home to shower, and then went to the credit union to refinance our two cars. The rates went down so we're going to take advantage of paying more toward the principal rather paying the credit union more interest. Then I finally took Seth to get his hair cut! It turned out good...his hair was really wild! Then it was time to pick up the kids at school again. Then I took the boys swimming with our friends. It was pretty nice. Seth loved the water, and stayed in there more than 30 minutes after the other two boys were done. After the swimming, Shauna and I decided it was a perfect day for a pedicure! Thankfully, Craig was willing to take all 6 boys for a bit so we could go get pampered! It was such a treat!

And finally, we've been tackling the mounds of laundry. One more load to finish, then we need to put it all away! Tomorrow, Noah is starting Guitar lessons! The Chief and I will be doing yardwork, and getting the house in order before a date tomorrow evening. 

So, that is the latest from our neck of the woods. It's a crazy life, but we are living the life!

Breaking News! I have to Share!

Today was Momentous! Earth-shattering Big! Today, Seth stayed in Sharing Time without me sitting right next to him. And, even Bigger...he went to his Primary class without a fight, without crocodile tears, without me even walking down the hall with him. He just went...didn't even turn around to say good-bye, didn't even notice that I wasn't there.

Yeah, I know it is late in the game...he is 4 1/2 years old, but this kid has not gone to Primary without me or his dad once thus far this year. So, it was huge.

Big thanks and lots of love to Sister Lopez. I adore this woman, and her ability to woo my son into Primary today! Wonder if I dare to hope we can do it again next week!

A "Zoo-tastic" Outing

Seth, 4 years old, still dealing with the effects of his Haircut by Seth two months earlier!

Every year, Seth's preschool goes to the Zoo. He has been there for 4 years now (it's a daycare too) and so it was time for the annual Hogle Zoo trip this past week. This is the first time where Seth knew what it was about, and was counting down the "sleeps" til Mom and he went to the zoo.

Left to Right: Hunter Rogers, Seth, Kylie, Julie, Jessica, ?, Joe, Harley, and Jocelyn

We rode the Carousel too!

We dropped off the carpool kids at school and headed up to the Zoo, which is about a 45 minute drive, right at the base of the mountains. When we arrived, it was dark and overcast and sprinkling a bit. It was blowing too. When we had left our house, it was nice and sunny, so I didn't pack Sethers a jacket. Thankfully, since big brother Noah thinks the van is his coat closet, we found a hoody that Seth could swim in and keep warm! And

See what I mean about swimming in his hoody? Oh well, he was warm at least!

I had a jacket too! So, we were off with Julie and Jessica and 7 of his little friends at preschool. We had such a great time! The cool morning kept the crowds away and it quickly warmed up, and the sun came out. There were too few animals to see. But we did see a few of our favorites: The giraffe are my personal favorites and Seth loves to visit the Tigers!

It was such fun to hear him talk with his friends and to see his excitement! It was nice to have some mommy and Setheroo time too!

Seth and I on the train at the end of our visit to Hogle Zoo - May 21, 2010

Living the Life

Unfortunately, I've been overweight for the past 12 years. I've done things on and off to work on it, but I haven't been successful and maintained it.


So, I signed up for this Weight Loss Challenge, which includes a food program (they tell you exactly what to eat, you eat 6 different meals/day and you eat the EXACT same meals for one week. They do give you options to change things up a little but they encourage you to basically eat the same thing to help speed up metabolism, make digestion easier, etc. The meals are pretty decent, for example, tonight's dinner is a chicken BBQ pizza. It is on a whole wheat pita pocket bread. It is easy for me to make in the toaster oven and then heat up tonight at work.
Anyhow, the other part of it is working with 2 personal trainers. I'm required to attend one power boot camp/week, and then I can pay to attend any additional class. I can use the workout facilities which are small but definitely adequate that are literally 2 minutes from my house. And I have internet support from the "team" of experts. I have to be accountable and record my measurements and weight each week, and I weigh in at the gym every 3 weeks.

I thought I would die when I went to the first class. It was so difficult. I immediately started using similar exercises to work out at home so I can improve and not feel like such an idiot there. I've attended 4 classes thus far (we are in the 3rd week of the challenge though), and today, I almost cried as I was working out. I did REAL pushups for 1 minute WITHOUT stopping! When I went a month ago I couldn't even do 2! And I can just tell I"m getting stronger. I'm emotional about it because I feel like it is really working.


I haven't had a diet coke in 4 weeks and I don't miss it. I'm off ALL processed sugar for the past 3 weeks, and I have no cravings. I'm eating about 1400-1550 calories/day and I don't feel hungry. And one of the very, very best things about it? Scott is doing it with me! I can't tell you how happy that makes me! We've both been overweight for too long. We are changing it and we are all happier and have more energy! Life is feeling so great! My boys are benefitting from it too! They are eating healthier and they are getting active with us, and noticing us working out, and having fun! We are definitely living the life!

We took a trip

Well, sorta, kinda you could call it a trip! We loaded the boys into the van, and left our quiet neck of the woods for Utah County! First, we stopped at Ikea, and got the boys dinner...it was a kids eat free weekend afterall, and since the Chief and I are doing THE challenge, it saved me from having to make their meal and mine and it was FREE and free is always good! Then after looking at a few things, and buying a couple things from Ikea, we loaded up again, and headed south. We soon got into traffic on the freeway, and realized we needed to make a pitstop for gas. I had not had time to make it to Costco earlier today to fill up, so we pulled over in Lehi, our old neck of the woods, and filled up.(We lived in Lehi for 7 years) Then we decided to take the back way down to Lindon. It was the way that I drove daily for 6 years. Yet, we soon discovered that a lot had changed in the past few years since we'd been down that way. My old "backroad" is gone and instead a new freeway entrance is there. And despite the recession, there were a number of new stores and restaurants. And then we were saddened to see some of our old faves were no more. We had spent a lot of time at some of them, and they were no more, and yet, we didn't know they had gone or when, or why. It left me feeling somewhat melancholy.

Nonetheless, we ventured on. The boys were content in the back as they watched a movie. It's a treat for them because the rule is that the trip has to be greater than 30 minutes one way to watch a movie, so they were engrossed. The Chief and I noticed the changes and remarked on them and favorite memories as we headed to our favorite Mexican Restaurant: Los Hermanos. We stayed in the van, as the Chief went in to buy some salsa. It really is the only salsa he has discovered that he enjoys. So, he came out with his "jar of gold" as he called it and we were on our way!

We then headed back to Lehi, and stopped at my sister's house. We dropped off a bench to her that she had found earlier in the day at a yard sale near my house. We visited and chatted non-stop as sisters tend to do. Meanwhile, my boys thought they would enjoy their time running through her sprinkler system. So, finally, in comes three drenched boys, shivering in their skin! Looks like it is time to head home from our trip...

And we loaded up again, and made our way home. It wasn't a long trip. Just a nice trip down memory lane, and our Souvenir? The salsa, of course! It was a trip worth making!

loving my life

You know how sometimes you can be so busy that you forget to stop to "smell the roses"? Each day comes and goes and I sometimes get lazy in taking time to be grateful for all the wonderful blessing I have in my life. This past week, despite the "busy"ness of the week, I found myself reflecting on all the wonderfulness of my life. Each day, I looked at my children, really looked at them, and took time to notice the things that make them laugh, and the sounds of their chuckles. I watched as they attempted something hard, and kicked back with one another on the tramp and the couch. I watched as they played together, and read a book alone. I spent more time noticing my husband, the efforts he made to help the boys, to love me, to serve his family, and I realized that I have the best life. I have relationships that are loving, giving, and tender.

Thank you Heavenly Father for my life...

Sugar free and loving it!

We're making changes around here. The chief and I entered a challenge that began last week. It is a weight loss challenge with exercise and an eating plan. It has been such a change, but in a good way! I said good-bye to Diet Coke 15 days ago, and I haven't missed it. The chief gave up all soda pop too...this is huge! He is drinking water! We are going to a power boot camp, and we are working out together. For the first time in our marriage! And guess what...it is fun! We are really enjoying the changes. The boys are on board with being more active, and so far they haven't complained that their only dessert has been strawberries and raspberries!

So, we're sugar free here and haven't minded it at all! So, just thought I'd report our changes here so I can be accountable. I'll keep you updated on how we do with the challenge! So far, so good!

For the birds...

Getting up at 5 a.m. and going to bed at 11 p.m. routinely is just for the birds. The chief and I are trying to fit daily workouts in our schedule, which means sleep has been the thing to give. I think I gotta find something else to give because 6 hours/sleep a night is for the birds...

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

A Chief's Tale

So, My Lady is an amazing wife, mother and writer. I have enjoyed reading her posts and reminiscing about all of the events she described. In case nobody has guessed, this is the Chief writing a rare post. She is very accurate on her depictions of our life and it is good to have a record for our posterity.

There are times when everything seems so complicated and difficult. However, with all the difficulty and complications, life is wonderful. It is great to see the different talents that each of our boys provide to our family. McKay is a quick learner in school, has a peacemaker attitude, most of the time, and enjoys the intricacies of how things work. He really loves to watch TV and play his DS. Noah is Mr. Sports, he loves all kinds of sports and being outside, jumping on the trampoline, riding his bike, scooter etc. Seth is a little shadow to his brother Noah lately. Seth loves his mommy, loves to ride his bike and as My Lady said, he wants to get his training wheels off. I want to wait for good weather, we need to get him a new helmet and maybe some elbow and knee pads...

Work is going well for me. I enjoy working in human resources. I love my family and know that I am very blessed by them. I could not have asked or hoped for a better eternal companion than I have in My Lady. She is selfless, loving, caring, helpful, hard working and extremely

Sweet sayings

I have to tell you about how I woke this morning. It's Sunday, so we can typically sleep in til 7. So, I don't normally set the alarm as my body just doesn't let me sleep that late. Well, I guess today my body didn't hear it's internal alarm, and I was still asleep at 7:15 when I awoke to see my 4 year old standing just 3 inches from my face. So, that was the second unusual thing. For the past year or so, Seth has climbed into our bed sometime between midnight and 5 a.m., and normally, the Chief and I don't really notice him until we wake up or get a foot in our back. However, we have been working with Sethers to motivate him to stay in his own bed the whole night. We're not above bribing! But last night, in family prayer, we prayed that Seth would have the courage to stay in his bed the whole night. And he did! He was so proud of himself!

So, I grabbed him and pulled him up on the bed, and snuggled with him. The Chief was still asleep, but having looked at the clock, I knew we needed to get up and at 'em. So, I was tickling Sethy, and then he says, "You're the sweetest girl I ever met!" Oh, my heart just melted.

How can a mom not be more in love when her kiddo says these words? Oh, these sweet sayings now and then help me put up with all the not so fun in between. It sure is a wonderful way to start the Sabbath day!

Saturday is the day we get ready for Sunday

or the day we try to do as many projects as humanly possible in the very limited amount of time we have!

Unfortunately, for most of my time as a married woman, I have worked Saturdays. I think there was a period of time from 1999- beginning of 2001 when I didn't work Saturdays, and then there was 9 months in 2006 when I had my Saturdays again, but generally I work from 8-1. You know what that means? Most of the prime hours are gone to get things done by the time I get home. The Chief is great at getting things done around the house, when I am here to supervise! So, most of the time, when I get home on Saturday, he and the boys have had an awesome time with one another, wrestling, playing the wii, watching Saturday morning cartoons (even the Chief gets sucked into those) and loafing on the couch. I've learned to have only a few expectations: everyone gets fed breakfast and lunch, and noone gets hurt. Those are pretty much it. And generally, I'm not disappointed when I get home! =)

However, it means that we then have from 2-the sun goes down to get all the typical homeowner jobs done! So, it looked like this today:

I left at 7:45, and the Chief got up. He got started priming the backdoors, and taping off so he could paint later on. Then, he met me at my office at 1. It was the annual Scout-o-rama, so he dropped Seth off to me, and took off with the older two to do their Scout stuff. Meanwhile, Seth and I headed to the grocery store. Then home to put it all away. Then I did my weightlifting. I decided I needed to get that in first or it could get lost in the shuffle. Then I super cleaned Seth's room, even sorting out all the clothes that don't fit from his drawers AND closet. I was feeling super accomplished! Then off to clean up the kitchen and change laundry. Then the rest of the gang came home, and I made a yummy dinner (hamburgers and veggies) and then the boys and I headed out to the backyard to clean up the mess and mow the lawn, while the Chief got busy with painting the backdoors. Unfortunately, it has started raining again so he can't paint the outside of them today.

So, the lawn is mowed. Laundry is almost done for today at least. And it is time to start showers and ironing clothes for church tomorrow. Then I'll get the two youngest in bed, and the Chief and I are heading over to the gym across the street to finish the day with some cardio!

Doesn't that sound like a full day? But happiness reigns in this household...we're together, we have a house to care for, we have healthy bodies to do all these things...we're blessed!

And now, we'll put the finishing touches on this Saturday and put it to bed!