Ridiculous Vest Fest 2009!

I think the pictures say it all.  Don't you?

p.s. Check out Rikki's blog for more party pics!

Moon Over Mi-Amy

This girl had a birthday not too long ago.

Here are the highlights:

Clever & nice Jenny Frame made her this awesome T-shirt that said "It's my Birthday.  Moon me."

And moon her, we did! 

New Mooned her, that is.

And we can't forget the smuggled sandwiches, the Thank You for My Records CD, and the Tiramasu. 

Happy Birthday Ame-Dawg!

What? December already?

Yay!  A REAL TREE this year.

And Tyke got one too.

National Adoption Month

November is National Adoption Month. 

I've been a fan of adoption for quite some time now.  In fact, long before I ever started blogging. 

Over the last 3 years, though, I've discovered that there are A LOT of things about adoption that I didn't know.  Also, that there are many misconceptions about adoption.  These misconceptions cause people to talk negatively about it, dismiss it as an option, and to (sometimes unknowingly) hurt those who choose to be a part of it. 

And that is SAD.  So very sad.

Let's NOT be these people.

And, while we are not being these people, let's learn about Positive Adoption Language.

Go.

*Positive Adoption Language
The words we use when talking about adoption can send unintended messages. When writing about or discussing adoption, please consider using language from the Preferred Terms column.

Negative Terms                                Preferred Terms

Gave up her child for adoption         Placed her child for adoption
Real parent; natural parent              Birth parent, biological parent
Adoptive parent                               Parent
His adopted child                             His child
Illegitimate                                      Born to unmarried parents
Adoptee                                           Child who was adopted
To keep                                           To parent
Adoptable child; available child        Waiting child
Foreign adoption                              International adoption
Track down parents                          Search
Unwanted child                                 Child placed for adoption
Is adopted                                        Was adopted 

*Taken from itsaboutlove.org

Clearly a Fan

One day, Mike offered to clean the house while I went grocery shopping.  Nice huh?

Well, it was nice.  My husband is a nice person.  And he did clean.

But I also came home to this...

Hanging on our FRONT window.  For all the world to see.

Really Michael?  Really? (Picture me slowly shaking my head now)

Yeah, it lasted just long enough to take the picture..... much to Mike's dismay. 

And, not that it matters, but yes it is also backwards. (More head shaking)

The ONC

Ahh.  Creatures of the Night.  At the Ogden Nature Center.

A place where friends are made.

Come on lil chicken.

We took the little chicken with us to the ONC and met some of my family.  Unfortunately, I didn't get more pics.  But good times were had. 

Thanks, Jenny Frame, for the VIP treatment!

Halloween

Mike, Ben, Me, Pam.  (Hope you guys don't mind having your faces plastered on my blog.)

Have a happy one.

(We obviously are.)

An Outing.

Not long ago, my parents and a few of the grandkiddos & I visited the Bear River Bird Refuge. 

And the Golden Spike.

Good times.

Except when one of the workers got all up in my Mom's business.  Seriously, lady.  I think a grown woman knows to stop before she reaches the track.  And the train wasn't even close.  Let's lighten up a little.

Meanwhile, back at la casa...

While I was livin' la vida loca, my rockin' husband was back here working on a great suprise for me.

New carpet and a paint job.

Man, he's nice.

Unfortunately, these aren't the greatest before & after pics. And we still have a few things to work on in this room. But you get the idea.

Before

After

Tyke likes the carpet too.

Reasons..Part 2

Okay. This "reasons" thing is getting old, I know. I'm sorry.
Here are the rest, so we can move on to other things.

Island Park/Yellowstone with Mike's fam. Um yeah. Lost my phone there. Which is why no one could reach me for a few weeks. (Go ahead. Just say it. I know you're shaking your head and thinking what an idiot for carrying my cell phone around Yellowstone anyway. Hey. At least I didn't drop it in the Mud Pots.) Not cool. But, thankfully, some awesome person found it and turned it into the Lost & Found. I know! Nice!

Boating on Glendale Res. That's pretty self-explanatory.

Mike's baseball games. Sadly, I have no pics. I know. I should not be allowed to call myself a wife. In my defense, I was in Mexico for most of the season. Okay, so maybe that doesn't help my case either. WELL. I never said I was perfect, people!

Hauling hay with my fam. Good times. Who doesn't love going back to the farm? There's something great about doing hard physical labor. Yeah, so maybe I did drive the tractor most of the time. But pushing that clutch in is quite a workout, you guys.

Watching Doug, Mel & B run. The best part was the mid-run diaper change. Now that is talent, my friends.

Girls' Camp. Oh Girls' Camp. Bless Girls' Camp's heart. I was the lucky gal who got called as Ward Camp Director this year. Lucky gal indeed. (Sorry, no pics.)

Everyday life. Eating. Sleeping. Working. Y'know, the usz. (That's how I've decided to spell the shortened version of "the usual". In case you were wondering.)

And Finally... I just didn't feel like it. I know. Anti-climactic, isn't it. Well, it's all I've got, amigos. It's all I've got.

Thanks for reading.

After these messages...

Remember this 80's commercial? Oh, the 80's. Bless the 80's heart.

But anyway....

I've been getting a few questions about Mexico, so I'm going to interrupt my "Reasons" monologue to answer some of them.

Why did I go to Mexico for 3 weeks?
I wanted to learn Spanish. My sis-in-law found out about this Spanish Immersion Course and she signed up. At the last minute (yes, the month before is considered last minute when you're going to Mexico for 3 weeks....the day you return from Girls Camp) I invited myself and signed up too.

What is this so-called Spanish Immersion Course, you ask?
Well, it's through a group called Project Amigo. This was the first year they offered the class. It was a pilot program for them so the price was good.

Where in Mexico was this offered?
Cofradia de Suchitlan. This is in the state of Colima. The nearest large town is also called Colima. (That was for you, Lisle.)

How did it go?
There were great things, and there were not-so-great things. If you email me, I'll elaborate.

Where can you learn more about this?
Um. The website is projectamigo.org. So you should check that out. But if you REALLY want to know more, you can email me. Or leave a comment with your questions and your email address so I can email you.

Can you throw in some more pics please?

Okay, no one really asked that. But here are some anyway. :)

Where I lived.

Mel & B giving out toothbrushes.

Waiting our turn to play volleyball. Photo taken with my unreliable camera, obviously.

Playing volleyball. Good times.