no chance for fate

Here are some pics from last weekend. I had the best time throwing an outdoor birthday party for Nathan Chandler. He is the coolest and I had to throw him a little shin dig for turning 18. The fact that he survived that long in the Chandler house is a miracle. hahajkdc.:) We watched X-Men Beginnings: Wovlverine and, afterward, Twilight on the big screen (aka my garage) while eating 12 layer cake and popcorn and ice cream. I think that everyone who stayed to watch Twilight with Ashley, Stacy, Nathan and I regretted it later, but we had a great time so I'm not really worried about it.

Then on Sunday night we helped to throw a party for one of Klayton's best friends, Glen. He turned 27 and we had a bash for him in Rexburg. I made the chocolate trifle!! Check it out. We are so lucky to have such good friends and a very busy but nice weekend.

I also threw into the collage a couple of pictures of Avery playing with Rocky and waiting for swim lessons to start. She is such a fish!! She asks me about 8 times per day "We going swimming tonight?" I wish it was every night and so does she. I just love how excitedly she screams and kicks when we pull into the Aquatic Center parking lot. Speaking of... we better be off! Swim lessons start in 10!

they're overdue

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
by Mary Ann Shaffer

My rating: 5 of 5 starsOne of the few books that I didn't hesistate a moment to give it all 5 stars. Truly wonderful from start to finish. Comprised completely of letters, telegraphs and journal entries, this book follows a writer in London just coming out of WWII. Juliet recieves a letter from a man living on the small island of Guernsey, which had been occupied by German soldiers during the war. From an inquiry he poses to her about an author they form an aquaintance and then a friendship as she learns about the book club that formed from dire circumstances and kept its members sane in wartime.
Charming, interesting, and so real I felt like I was reading real letters from real people. I couldn't put this book down. The main character, Juliet, is witty and sweet and cutting, especially when it comes to her own faults, and the people on the island of Guernsey are so lovable and palpable that I want to go there and visit them. This book is filled with places and people that I want to return to again and again.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/788935-mandy">View all my reviews >>

i'm just trying to change the color on your mood ring

Today I am obsessing over...Homemade Chicken Stew with Biscuits. Mmmm Thanks for this recipe, Barefoot Contessa. I'm so excited for Fall! Soup and sweaters and scarves and sssstuff. Sorry- had an S theme going. Muse. Their new album, The Resistance. Their hair. Their voices. Their Britishness. Their morning-breath (okay, haven't experienced this one, just trying to paint a picture here). Pretty much everything about them. Whether I have officially switched sides for New Moon. The way they styled Rob with his blazers and his lame hair coupled with the fact that Rob himself is acting super douchey lately makes me wonder... Okay, the fact that this Taylor kid is super sweet and cute and pretty much half-naked the entire movie MAAAAAAY have something to do with it, too. I'll never stop loving MY Edward (you know, the one that only exists in books/my head who is the perfect, headboard breaking man of every girl's dreams), but movie Edward is not doing so hot in the polls (you know, the poll that consists entirely of my opinion) right now. These two. Aren't they the cutest? Klayton calls Avery his little Joey Ramone when her hair is all in her face like this.Whether or not to murder our new puppy. Okay, sorry- that's a little harsh. But seriously, if he poops on the floor one more time after he was JUST outside I think he's going to go "live on a farm", if you know what I'm saying.

...I mentioned Muse already, didn't I? Shoot. Sorry bout that.

This book. I picked it up at the library last weekend and Avery is crazy for it! She calls it "Wocket in Pocket" because There's a Wocket in my Pocket is the only Dr. Seuss book we own and she loves it, too. She has had me read this to her about 3 times per day every day for the last week, though and I don't mind a bit. It's fun to read and I love how mesmerised she is by it, though I doubt she has picked up on the deeper meaning (if there is one. I love how people give this book as a graduation gift and things- truly about 99% of it is nonsense. Brilliant nonsense, but nonsense none the less.) and I'm quite surprised she's not weirded out by the odd, acid trip quality of the pictures in the book. Hmm. Oh well.

Tomorrow night I'm throwing a birthday party for a friend of mine in our backyard and we are going to project a movie onto the side of our garage. Yes, we tried doing this on the 4th of July and got my father-in-law's projector stolen while we were watching fireworks. No, we will not be letting the projector out of our sight this time. But I'm super excited! I love doing stuff outside on beautiful Summer nights (just because I'm excited for Fall doesn't mean it's here yet. I made that chicken stew in 90 degree heat yesterday) and I hope Nathan is excited for his 18th Birthday bash!

another promise, another scene

I love our small little town! There's always fun stuff going on. Last week was "Babes in the Zoo" week. No, the Hawaiian Tropic swimsuit model bus wasn't in town- if you brought a kid in a stroller to the zoo (they're free) then you got an adult admission free! Yay for free stuff! So I took Avery on Friday morning and we had a great time! She loves animals. At every cage she went through the same thought process. First she would get excited: "PEGUINS!!!!" Then she would think about it for a second and say, "I want to touch it." or "I want to get in." I would laugh (she's so cute!!) and say, "No, we can't get in. We're just here to say hi." or (at the lion enclosure) "No way, Jose. That lion is a nice guy, but he would eat you up if we went in there. Let's just say HI! from here, okay?" Then she would shout "HI LION!!!" or whatever. If an animal was sleeping she'd whisper, "He's sleeping, mommy!" and if something looked odd to her (camels, red panda bear, flamingos, etc.) she'd see them and say, again, after a moment of thought, "FLAMINGO! (repeating after me)... He's nice, mommy." haha.

She's been doing that so often lately- she assigns everything (especially inanimate objects) emotions and types. The other day we were at the park playing on those plastic animals on springs that you can rock back and forth on. You know what I'm talking about? Anyway, she was riding the dolphin (saying, "Giddyup, Dolphin!!"), she climbed off and went right up to its little face, looked at it and said, "She's sad, mommy." Then she gave it a hug and a kiss and said, "AWWW SHE'S HAPPY MOMMY!!" Or she'll see the alligator at the zoo and say, "DRAGON!!He's scary." with a little shudder. I'll say, "Yeah, he looks a little like a dragon, but that's an alligator and he's nice." Then she'll say, "Oh. Alligator. He's nice." haha. It's amazing to watch her mind work. She's so smart and sweet. Lately she's taken to hugging (and even kissing) everyone before we leave somewhere, whether it's her cousins or our neighbors. We were at the Chandlers on Sunday evening for a few minutes and she went in a circle around the living room hugging everyone and saying, "Bye! See ya!"

Then on Saturday evening the Idaho Falls Symphony held a free(!!) concert on the river in Freeman Park. It was a really nice, perfect evening. We brought a picnic dinner of things that Avery and I purchased at the Farmer's Market that morning; Artisan bread, Gruyere cheese, ham, blackberries and fudge (Amish Sour Cream- sounds weird but it was SUPER yummy). Mandy and Troy and their kiddos joined us and we all had a great time laying around on blankets, listening to the music and chatting and eating. Avery is just obsessed with her cousins, especially Milo. Those two become 10 times more mischevious when they are together, and they love to play and giggle. It's so fun to watch. Rocky came with us as well, and he was so excited and hyper and crazy that when we got home around 7:30pm he passed right out for the night!

rainy day photos

It was raining yesterday (yay! I love Fall!) and Avery begged me to put on her boots and raincoat so she could play. I decided (since she looked so darn cute in all of her gear) to make an ANTM moment out of it. Even Rocky joined in!

blergh.

Having such a bad day. I don't even think chocolate chip cookies, a visit from my mommy and a sneak peek at New Moon could make this day better. Sorry to whine, but ugh! It's silly to worry about my own problems when I have been so blessed, but it's almost (note that I said ALMOST) funny to me the way the grass always looks greener in someone else's yard.

I look at all of these mothers who have no problem getting pregnant, no problem with delivery, and have done it over and over again. It's hard to wonder what that would be like and not be jealous. And I go from feeling sorry for myself to ENRAGED when I hear about people who irresponsibly reproduce and the messed up lives they create for their children. Or worse yet, speaking to anyone who believes that people should have the right to choose to abort their babies. That's like saying that I have the right, consequence free, to murder someone! If you think that a little fetus doesn't count as a person then I hope that you never have to suffer a miscarriage (that'll change your mind). Either that or I hope you enjoy your luxury suite in hell (am I being harsh? NO!... Okay, maybe a little.). Anyway, I believe that you are free to choose- but your freedom stops at this decision: To have sex or not? After that, you need to own up. There is birth control and abstinence and a whole host of other ways NOT to get pregnant (playing tennis, riding a bike, keeping your legs together, etc.)- Abortion is wrong. And not only do we have a President in office who has condoned partial-birth abortion (see here- the sixth paragraph down will make you want to vomit), but this Health-Care bill would FUND abortions (see here)!! It's INSANITY! I swear I'm constantly on the edge of my seat just waiting for the fire and brimstone to rain down.

Anyway, all of that political stuff doesn't have much to do with my glum day. Just feels good to rant every once in a while. But I should be struck by lightning just for whining. I have Avery. She is so perfect and wonderful and I love her so much, and I am so lucky 1) to have her- so many good people who would be great parents aren't able to have kids and 2) that she is alive and healthy and just so so so perfect- with the way she started out in life things could have wound up so different for her. So... I am going to think of how lucky I am to have her, my wonderful hubby, and about what a busy week we have lined up (swim lessons start this week! Plus I have signed up for a class at a local college and I'm super excited!) and forget about my despair that I don't always get everything I want.

you knew it was coming

But did you expect it to be THIS good!? Me neither. Ah-ma-zing. I think I switched to Team Jacob and back to Edward again about 8 times during this preview. Klayton asks me, "Wait, is there still a Team Jacob? He lost."
Just watch this preview and you tell me. I say Team Jacob is alive and well! But maybe that's just because I'm sick of seeing Edward in that sport coat and seeing real life Robward being such a grungy tool with his plaid shirts and chain smoking. Still love him, though! Love it all!

I will never forget

I will never forget 8 years ago today, when our country was attacked, when our nation was shaken and we all stood up together. Since then sometimes I think that everything has gone to hell, and that we've all forgotten the way we came together on this day. I know that is cheesy or cliched or whatever. I don't care. I really believe that we are still a great nation, and I love our country so much. Whatever our differences, I like to think that we still have this strength in us, the strength and unity that we showed on September 11, 2001. God bless America. -