Memories....

Here are the directions:
1. Add a comment on my blog of a memory or two that you and I had together. It can be anything fun that you remember. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot or not at all, just put any memories you have.

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments. Try to keep it going on your blogs with your friends.

This is fun! I am eagerly looking forward to your memories!

Crazy Summer

Well summer is cruising along. School starts in one month from tomorrow! I can't believe it. I thought I'd update on what we've been up to for the past month.


The Monday after we got back from our Southern Utah vacation Brent and I decided to take the kids to Lagoon since Brent had one more day off before he had to get back to work. We didn't tell the kids we were going until they got up that morning. They were very excited about the surprise and Isabella was extra happy because she has trouble sleeping when something exciting is happening the next day. My favorite ride was this ride pictured above. It went in circles and you had to go up and down and try to avoid getting wet. It was like being in a video game. There was this recording of this guy with this weird voice talking about the ride while you're waiting in line and then he would sing the stupidest song while you were in the ride. For some reason I just found the whole ride hilarious!


We went hiking up South Willow canyon in the Stansbury mountains which was quite beautiful. Followed by a fun cookout.


Next came the Fourth of July where we continued our tradition of going to the Tooele parade. Sadly, this year they didn't have the float with the giant missile on it (only in Tooele). But they did have the the "Abstinence=Freedom" float with the giant wedding cake with the teenage bride and groom on top. Okay I admit it, the kids go to the parade to collect their giant bagful of candy and Brent and I go to make fun of everything! It's all in good fun!

I was lucky to have family in town this month but it wasn't a very lucky reason. My sisters Lynn and Kimberly and my nephews Josh and Matthew came to town for a funeral. Josh and Matthew's dad passed away (Kimberly hasn't been married to him for years). While it was great to see them it was very sad and the boys are still in my prayers.



Lynn stayed with us, as mentioned in a past blog, while the rest stayed with my Dad. As usual, I forgot to take pictures. So instead, I offer a picture of our deluxe guest accommodations in our basement guest/storage room enjoyed by Lynn during her stay.





The kids took swim lessons again. Isabella and Zoe were in level 3 while Noah was finally allowed into the big pool and out of the kiddie pool for level 1.


Zoe working on her summer "do"!


Brent spent a day kayaking on the Great Salt Lake with some friends from work. One guy decided to see what would happen if he stood up in his kayak. Of course it tipped over, dumped him in the lake, and filled his kayak with water (he was okay). Brent was too smart to try that trick.

So there you go, lots of pics, lots of happenings and still a month of summer to go!

Just messing around

Yeah, I know I keep changing my background, looking kind of fickle and indecisive. I think I got it figured out and won't have to mess with it for a while. I admit, it's kind of fun putting up a new template every other day, seeing something new. And I am a little obsessed with lots of color. I did figure out in the process how to change text colors and fonts and sizes. That was helpful so I could actually read the thing, don't have the best eyesight you know. This one will stay for a while though since it's getting to be a pain to redo everything. Certain templates save your side elements, some don't. Enough babbling. Should go check on Isabella, she's been sick but I think she's getting better now. Happy day!

Do you want to talk? Not really

My sister Lynn was staying with us for a couple of days last week. After she left, Brent commented that she probably thought we were a really weird family. I asked him if it was because we went out to eat with her and our family barely spoke a word. He said he was thinking about the ride in the car where we barely spoke a word. You're probably thinking, these people are freaks or they don't like each other. No, it's not that. Okay, I may be a bit of a freak but I wouldn't describe the rest of my family that way. We are just quiet people (except Noah, sometimes that boy can go on and on and on!) Anyone who knew me as a child knows how completely shy I was. I'm not that shy now but I can still be a very quiet person. My Mom used to say I was just sitting back taking things in, observing. That's true. I think I catch things about people that others wouldn't catch as quickly. Sometimes anyway. And Brent, he's so comfortable being alone it's almost ridiculous sometimes! But I still love him. We do of course talk to each other frequently enough, sometimes for hours. And there's nothing wrong with the art of conversation. I have my moments when my kids are pulling on me because I'm talking with a neighbor and the kids are saying "IT'S TAKING FOREVER!" But we do have those times when we'll be together and not saying a thing. That's just who we are, it's in our DNA to be quiet more often than the average person. And it's definitely in our kids DNA, getting this characteristic from both sides. I think the best payback my parents ever got from raising me is me having a daughter with a quiet voice. My whole childhood was spent with my parents saying "Speak up! We can't hear you! Stop mumbling!" And now I've been blessed with Isabella, great girl, awesome person, you couldn't ask for a better daughter. But I have to put my head right next to hers to hear what she's saying a lot of the time. Definitely payback! I used to think there was something wrong with me, not talking as much as everyone around me. But now I'm okay with who I am. It's just a part of me, and a part of the rest of my family too. And the kids will get over this more and more as they grow up. But you gotta embrace who you are, right? What's that expression? Silence is golden. :)

Cleaner Salesperson, part I & II

A couple of months ago a woman came to my door selling cleaning products. Usually I try to pretend I'm not home, being the mature woman I am but this time I answered the door. Well she showed me some yellow cleaner and cleaned my window quite nicely before I had a chance to say "no thank you". Then she took the lid off the bottle and asked me what I smell. I smelled it and replied "Gasoline". 'Cause gosh darn if it didn't have a slight smell of gasoline. She looked shocked and said, "Gasoline?!" She said it was supposed to smell like lemons so I tried again and said "Oh yeah, lemons" adding "and gasoline" in my head. Then she asked me about my kids and showed me a picture of her twins. Following this I told her I couldn't buy her product, no money, husband wouldn't approve, yadda, yadda, yadda....no thank you. She said okay, then asked if I had any cheese. Yes cheese. You see she had some crackers but needed some cheese to go with them. Well sure, I had cheese. So I cut some up, put it in a sandwich bag and she was off. As she walked down the road with her cheese and crackers I wondered if she had gotten the crackers from a neighbor and I felt like crap for not buying her gas smelling cleaner.
Fast forward to today. A salesman comes to my door. I have to answer it because Zoe and her friend are looking out the window and yelling "Someone's at the door!" So I open the door and there is the salesman holding a bottle of blue cleaner. He asks me to follow him over to the garage so he can show me how well the cleaner gets fingerprints off the car window. As we walk to the garage I notice he has a limp, and then he mentions my kids and how he has twins (I don't know if all cleaner salespeople have twins or if the other saleswoman was the mother of said twins). He then cleans my car window quite nicely and lets me smell the cleaner that doesn't smell like anything in particular other than cleaner. I say, "yes I will buy your cleaner" after he tells me some fascinating tales about his life selling cleaner and how some of the proceeds go to helping inner city youth, yadda, yadda, yadda. Then I write him a check. So Brent comes home a while later and I tell him I bought the cleaner and how much I payed for it (eventually I tell him how much I payed for it and no I will never again divulge exactly how much that was). Brent says "You payed HOW MUCH for the cleaner!?" To which I reply "Remember that cleaner saleswoman asked for cheese! And he had a limp!" Needless to say I will never be buying anything from a door to door salesman again.

Vacation!

We just returned yesterday from our summer vacation where we spent a week in Southern Utah. In St. George we hiked scenic Snow Canyon, saw "The Sound of Music" at the Tuacahn Theater, toured the Brigham Young Winter Home (very informative, thanks Sister Hansen!) and swam in the hotel pool many times (I think this was the kids favorite part.) We also visited beautiful Zion National Park. The kids enjoyed riding the bus up and down the canyon but all of the hiking really wore them out. The last leg of our trip was heading over to Bryce Canyon National Park where we saw the cool hoodoos and hiked into the canyon on the Navajo Trail. If you've ever wondered what it might be like to be in a Dr. Seuss book, check this trail out sometime. Along the trip we waded through three rivers and streams and saw snakes, toads, squirrels, chipmunks, deer, and crows. Yes, there was crying, whining, many band-aids, a little sleep deprivation for the kids, and a lost flipflop (we know you know something hotel maid!;) but overall it was a great trip, good memories made and good times with our little family.

vacation pics

Pygmy Goat Farm

Grandma Karen and Grandpa Richard have friends who own a pygmy goat farm. So Monday evening we got to go out with them to see the goats. It was the third time they've taken the kids and the first time for Brent and me. They had about twenty little goats running around it seemed like. The baby goats were sooo cute! The kids spent about an hour in the pasture running around with them, holding them, petting them, etc. Of course, they all wanted to take one home as a pet when we were done! The farm is in this area of Murray that is still a little bit country-like. I loved the setting with the goat pasture next to the tree-filled backyard off of the farmhouse. It was beautiful weather and relaxing just hanging out in the backyard watching the kids and the goats frolic about. Thanks for the fun time, Grandma Karen and Grandpa Richard!

mail mystery

Well my paranoid fears can now be laid to rest. I've solved the mystery of the missing mail. We put a hold on the mail for next week when we go on vacation and the mailman (woman) decided to start last week. So there was a huge pile waiting for me at the post office. Now they'll probably forget about holding it next week. Sigh.

All blogged down! (stupid, stupid title @%**!;)

I'm seeing another blog. I decided to start another blog so I could have a private place to post more personal things, rants and what not. Sometimes you're writing on your blog and you think, "Is this something I need to share with everyone?" and then you end up editing yourself too much. I'm sure there are still plenty of things on this blog that anyone would say "who cares" about. Anyway, I'll try to save enough material for this blog with a good rant thrown in here and there for good measure, you know for entertainment value.;)
I may end up going private soon but you're all invited along if you want to come. Unless you're a psychopath blog stalker, but I tend to think my little blog is a little too boring for any psychopath stalkers to be interested in! I've had a few people join the blogging community since I started my blog a couple of months ago. I invite the rest of you to start your own blog if and when you are ready, because blogging is fun!
I also did a new background and lost most of the side stuff (widgets?) so I have to get them back on soon. This is what comes from staying up way too late goofing off instead of going to sleep like you should and now I'm too tired which doesn't help my self diagnosed ADD (I always tell Brent I have ADD but he never believes me) and I'm sounding a little off today and it's almost noon and I'm still in my pajamas and I need to go investigate why the mailman hasn't brought me mail for 3+ days now (could she be trying to intercept my GW check?)....

Thirteen and counting

Brent and I celebrated our thirteenth wedding anniversary a few days ago (May 27th actually). I can't believe it's been that long already! It's really flown by. We have our ups and downs but we really get along well most of the time. We have fun together and laugh at stupid things that no one else would find funny except us (just ask our kids). Brent really gets me (most of the time anyway) and it's good to have that.

A little history on Brent and Cindy~
I was a bright eyed young girl, fresh off the bus from BYU (okay, there really wasn't a bus). Needing a job as I did for the summer, what's a car-less girl to do but get a job at the place her sister is currently working and mooch a ride with her everyday. It was my first factory job (ah, we all remember our first factory job!) and my first time on the graveyard shift (oh wait, no it wasn't). San Segal Sportswear was a sea of "rockers" as they were called in those days. I was working with a foulmouthed bunch, I heard more colorful language in the first five minutes than I'd heard in two semesters at BYU. It was a shock to my sensitive post BYU system. When the chance to move to a quieter position QC-ing for the eight color press came up I gladly took it. This press had a couple of loud, obnoxious guys running it. There was a lot of yelling and laughing coming from over where they were. One was a guy who seemed different from most of the people there. For one thing I never saw him drive off at first break to meet the guy who "allegedly" dealed drugs. Another clue was I overheard him talking to another guy about classes at the University of Utah. I'd listen to him in the lunchroom talking to the other guys who didn't go meet the drug dealer (I couldn't help it because they were so loud). He would tell the craziest stories, I recall one about solving the garbage problem on earth by sending it by space shuttle to outer space. He'd have my sister Lynn and me in tears from laughing so hard. One day Lynn came up to me and told me that Brent was a Mormon. That was an exciting moment, because up to that moment he'd just been this cute, funny guy who would tease me while I tried to keep up with his printing. He'd purposely print the shirts as fast as he could so I would get way behind and he could stand there and laugh at me while I tried desperately to clean ink spots off of shirts and catch up. Or he'd tease me in the breakroom when he'd check out the tape in my Walkman and I'd be listening to the Morrissey tape with that "Ouija Board" song and he'd tell me it was satanic music. But now I knew he was LDS and he likely wasn't out drinking with these strange guys on the weekend (as if that could ever happen, there was still a lot I didn't know about this guy). So it went on for a while, he'd make fun of me, I'd blush (blushing being a big pastime for me back then), we'd talk at break and that pattern would repeat itself. Yeah, I could tell he liked me, but I didn't have the best track record with the guys, so I tried to play it cool. He wasn't going to ask me out though, so I had to come up with a plan. I asked him to go up to the University of Utah with me so I could get a catalog. Okay, I admit there wasn't much of a chance of me going there but I hadn't finalized my school plans for the Fall yet, so it was possible. We drove up in his red Nissan truck (he was an art student with a truck, you can't just dismiss a combination like that) and had a good time hanging out and then he took me out to lunch at a little Mexican restaurant his family liked called Su Casa, and I ate about three bites of my tacos because I was nervous and I didn't want to look like a pig (later he mocked me for being one of those girls who doesn't eat when she's with a guy and was glad when he saw I could wolf down a meal). We had a good time, although I was sure he thought I was a big dork, but he still didn't ask me out. So I had to take action again. I know, I'm starting to look like a pathetic loser here. I had some bounce back passes to Lagoon, where you can go back for free, so I asked him if he wanted to go with me. I knew I could only use one because they aren't transferable but I figured I'd just pay for his when we got there. He insisted on paying for it himself and then made fun of me for making him pay, of course. Anyway it was a great day and we held hands and I was all starry eyed but I promised myself this was his last chance and I'd move on if he didn't ask me out after this. So before we parted ways that night he finally asked me out and I told him "No". I already had plans to go to Bear Lake that weekend on a blind date with a guy who had a glass eye and with a friend and the glass eyed guy's cousin. So I declined. But.... when he saw me at work the next week when we were picking up our checks he asked me out again and we went out that night. We went to the movies and saw "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey". And four years later, two or three breakups and a lot of maturing on both of our parts we were married, and the rest as they say, is history....