Free Stuff

Don't cha want some free stuff? (Heidi- this is for you!) How 'bout an uber cute bloggity blog design. Well, you might get one for free if you comment here: Chabot House of Pink You can see her designs here: My Daisy Baby

Dear Sarah (George Clooney's Ex)

Hey, if Celia can write letters... so can I!

Dear Sarah,

I heard today that you broke up with George... Sorry... I mean, did you REALLY think that you could get the most famous bachelor on the planet to settle down? I mean, I did there for a while, so certainly YOU must have thought you could! You seemed pretty "normal" and "down to earth" (whatever that means) and I thought you might actually have a chance! I did notice that you were 'absent' from the last few events. What happened? Did you ask for a ring? Did you get all pushy and committal? Did you have a DTR with him? (Define the Relationship) I mean, cuz, anyone would have told you that that would send him running.

Well, I hope you have a good time settling into your old apartment. Probably gonna feel kinda small now.. Hopefully you get to take home some great "parting gifts" with you. I hope you also had a note on your back as you walked out the door that said, it is HIS LOSS... because in my last big break up (before the marriage) I just happened have to have that written on the door he was walking out of. (and Yes, he saw it--I call that Karma) Anywho, I hope you have some good Karma coming your way. But, I can't think of any other famous bachelors who aren't already taken! I mean, they are all pretty locked up right now... Even Lance Armstrong (rumored to be with Kate Hudson), and Matthew McConaughey--girlfriend with child, Jake Gyllenhall (Committed to Reese Witherspoon) Brad is committed (I guess that is what you would call it- 6 children later) and Matt and Ben are actually married (IMPRESSIVE!) Maybe you could hook up with Jen and Luciana and ask them how they "did it" (meaning, got their men to commit) Anywho... hopefully you can get back to work. I am sure there are a few bars hiring. Best of luck!

Love,

Lindsey

PS- I realize in this post, I have just professed how much I know about the celebrity world, and no, I am not proud of it. :)

Lindsey's FAVORITE THINGS FOR SUMMER!!

I was watching some TIVO'd Oprah Shows the other night and came across her Favorite Things for SUMMER! I decided to take a little page from OPRAH's book and have my own "FAVORITE THINGS" list. You know what??? I think all of you should too!!! I have just come upon so many great things lately, they are hard to not share with others, so, here it goes!!! (Please tell me when you have YOUR list ready to share!)

Since Oprah was the inspiration, I will start with a knock off from her list because you can ALL enjoy it! It is the MAR-A-LAGO TURKEY BURGER!Made by the Executive Chef at Donald Trump's Mar-a-lago. My mother in law and I BOTH decided to make them yesterday for Memorial Day, and they were AWESOME! I HIGHLY recommend them. They might take a little prepwork.. But if you feel like WOWING your guests for a BBQ, this is a SURE FIRE way to do it!

Many of you visit Kelly, and if you don't, you need to start because the girl has the best fashion sense on a budget that I have seen in a long time. She could definitely start her own fashion website.. and practically has. She gave my summer a kick start by suggesting this shirt from target. She said it was her newest favorite shirt, but now it is mine. I hopped on down to Target to get it, and they didn't carry it at my store, but they DO ONLINE.... For $12.99 it is a steal, and everyone looks great in it. LOVE IT. So, go ahead and buy it now.. in all 4 colors. You will be glad you did. Bag the plain old t-shirts just for one summer, and look CUTE!


What does everyone need to go with a cute new shirt? CUTE SHOES! I have LONNNNGG since coveted these gladiator sandals worn by Kate Hudson, They just speak to me. HOWEVER, I found out that they are Chanel, and since I don't plan on setting foot inside Chanel maybe EVER, I guess they are out of the question. PLUS I don't think I could really pull off the Gladiator Sandal Look... since I am rarely seen outside of cut offs and a t-shirt in the summer toting around a crumb faced kid. BUT, if I DID have someplace sassy to go, I would get THESE knock offs and feel like a fashionista!

Ok, SHIRT: Check! SHOES: Check! HANDBAG: Ohhh baby... what girl DOESN'T love a great handbag. I like to keep it below the $50 mark. (I know some of you out there go a little beyond that...)However, why go over that when you can have THIS!OR THIS!OR THIS!!!ALL WHILE SAVING MOTHER EARTH! That is right.. they are man-made! No harm to animals... recycled goodness. I don't profess to be a TOTALLY green goddess, but I do try my best, and why not get one of these bags for under $50 to make you feel even more GREEN. :)Find a Shiraleah bag at a store near you.. You WON'T be disappointed.

There are other things that belong on this list like the Vitamixand these flip flops that I am about to order from Eddie Bauer $5 off each pair if you order 2 pairs!!!They come in 8 different COLORS!

But the last thing I am going to put on my list for summer is: If you need to find me, this is where I will be. You are welcome to come for a swim any time! :)

TWILIGHTERS

I came upon the Twilight series last summer when my Sister (who I was constantly bugging for a good book until I discovered goodreads) said it was written by a BYU grad, and that it was the biggest book around...Hhmph... I thought. Why haven't I heard of it then..hmm???? Oh yeah, because I am not a big reader.

For those of you who know me, you probably know that I don't like to read much. I mean, I DO like to read, but reading takes far too much time, energy and I usually don't have enough discipline to put down a book if I am having a good time reading it...thus keeping me up to all hours of the night... making me a grumpy, ineffective mother who spends most of the morning sleeping on the couch while children run amuck in the house. So, I guess I DO enjoy reading... however, it always seems to be at the detriment of my life/family. I CANNOT read deep or heavy or sad books because they take FAR TOO MUCH out of me emotionally and having a child with autism usually requires that I save all of my emotional reserve for dealing with him... PLUS... I hate how my eyes ache all day after I bawl my eyes out over a good book not to mention the dehydration and pounding headache the day after. Soooooooo....

I do enjoy reading easy, quick, engaging light reads... which in the past few years have kept me to sticking with series reads like Harry Potter or TWILIGHT.. The Twilight series actually helped me get on a bit of a reading kick where I ACTUALLY read a few books!!! (I know, it was a miracle) but the shear ease and pleasure with which I could read her books made me enjoy reading again... so, THANK YOU STEPHENIE MEYER... for letting me enjoy reading a bit again.

I was visiting Aberjabers blog today and low and behold she had posted some Twilight Trailers! I am sure there are others of you out there that worry about the movie ruining the series for you and others.. but I am happy to report the trailers look pretty good!!! If you would like to take a look visit here and here. Thanks for the links Aberjaber!!Happy reading. As always, I DO recommend reading a book before seeing the movie... Especially in this case.

Tis the Season

Tis the season for DANCE RECITALS! I have many fond memories of dance recitals...Unitard... just the word sends shivers down my back..(Um, yes, I am the freakishly tall one)
Silky blue..with a great VEST... sooooooooo 80s. (Back row on the end... I DISTINCTLY remember that I DID NOT know all the words to these songs and that most of the time I would just move my lips and we had a ukulele song that I would pretty much just pretend like I was strumming my ukulele... my daughter is so me...)
For some reason, I thought that when my daughter had a dance recital she would have a much better, more stylish, more hip, more now COSTUME...At least that girl knows how to WORK IT! :) Hey, I guess we have all had our share of not so great costumes....

What were YOURS like?

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm GooooooooooooooooD!

Did you see this post from Ilene? Well, I did, and today I decided to try her amazo recipe... with the VITAMIX. I must say it was sooooooooooooooo goooooooooood... think of a delicious fudgesicle flavored smoothie...I didn't have the cream... but I used Wade's Whole Milk... I didn't have the Malted Milk.. .but I used powdered from food storage (I can't THINK of a better use for THAT!) I had ice, chocolate, sugar and the Vitamix, and that was all I needed baby!!!


Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm I think I need some more!

Everything you wanted to know about being Tall. . .

Do you see the similarities in these pictures?Check out Nicole bending her legs to appear shorter...her man is even wearing heels to help her out!
Check out me bending my head to extremes..chin down..to appear shorter. (Look at the difference in our shoulders to get a REAL height discrepancy.)

This was my first date ever... my parents forced me to go. (Yes, you did!) I guess I wasn't scarred for life.. but if you want to know more about my LIFE AS A TALL PERSON. Go HERE.

Here comes the Sun.

That is right... we are moving to sunny ARIZONA! Here is the scoop. The entrepreneur aka "Peter" has long since wanted to "be his own boss." He has been working for his Dad's company for the last 9 years (on and off, but mostly on) and has generally been in the hotel business. His long term dream involved working with his Dad developing hotels in cities all over the West. He has been able to do this for the past two years or so. HOWEVER, Peter's dad is retiring and although we THOUGHT we would be venturing off to do "this sort of thing" in a couple of years... the OPPORTUNITY presented itself a little "early"...

We are excited, scared, nervous, thrilled, anxious, overwhelmed, stunned, happy, and pretty much every other adjective in the book about it. We never thought we would leave here. We have family ties, we have real estate investments, we have a home that we love... we have everything.... except.... "our own thing" which we just happened to find in PHOENIX.

You might ask, WHY PHOENIX? Well, the long and the short of it is just plain OPPORTUNITY. There just happens to be more of it THERE. (It might have something to do with the fact that Phoenix is the 5th largest city in the US or something- Not to mention the FASTEST GROWING city) Anywho... my sister lives there as well and my parents have been there to "visit" (i.e. get warm) at least 4 times already this year. As a matter of fact, my mom actually said, "We are glad you are moving CLOSER." Apparently my mom thinks that being warm makes you PHYSICALLY closer because in actuality Phoenix is only 69 miles closer in driving miles. . . (Love you mom).

If you need a "sunny place to go" in lets say... January? Or February or.. if you are from the Northwest like we are... APRIL or MAY? Please remember us.. we will be warm... we will have a pool (and air conditioning).. and we love visitors. :)

We like to Move It Move It. . .

Peter and I like to move. Really? No, not REALLY. But we do it anyway. Sometimes it is for work, sometimes it is for size, sometimes it is for location, and sometimes it is because of inspiration. Regardless, we are moving... AGAIN.

Peter determined today that we have moved 7 times in the last 8 years. I guess that is not as bad as some, but considering my husband is not in the military.. it is substantial. Between those moves, we have moved to 4 different states (including the one that we are going to) So, I guess that means... we move to a different state every other move. (About)

So, you might ask.. WHERE ARE WE GOING????

I will tell you. . . tomorrow. MAYBE it will be a location near YOU!

PS- some of you MAY have already figured it out. If you know me only by my blog, I will know you are an avid reader if you have figured it out. :) There COULD BE A PRIZE FOR YOU IF YOU KNOW WHERE!!!

Yard Sale Today

Come buy my junk... I mean, treasures... :)

Product Placement

You need one of these:What is it? It is NOT just any old blender... it is a VITAMIX 5200... AWESOME EDITION. (ok, I added the last part)

A few weeks ago my MIL called and said, "Don't you want to go to Costco today?" My response to any such question is, "OF COURSE!" She then informed me that we would be going to watch a demonstration given by her nephew who sells VITAMIX blenders..It was going to be our job to Ohhhhhhh and Ahhhhhhhh and say.. MY Oh! MY!! And, if I were feeling lucky, my MIL was going to buy me one for Christmas. . . CHRISTMAS? I don't recall submitting my Christmas Wish List already.. Oh well.

We arrived at Costco and Johnny was whipping up the finest concoctions... Smoothies (obviously) Sorbets, Ice Cream, Salsa and even SOUP! Needless to say, I was a wee bit impressed and started to actually get a little excited about my potential Christmas gift. You see, I would NEVER buy one of these for myself because they have a WHOPPING price tag. $400 anyone? But looking at the prospect of getting one for *Christmas in May* was pretty exciting. (My MIL, sweet, supportive, AND generous--to a fault)

Then, Johnny got out one final appliance to seal the deal... a different blender that grinds wheat, rice YOU NAME IT.. into a fine powdery flour substance. THAT IS RIGHT! EVEN RICE! (Glutten Free Anyone?) SOLD SOLD And SOLD!!! (Ok, so I bought the extra grinder myself, but it is Soooooooooo worth it. I needed that *wheat grinder* for my food storage anyway, RIGHT?)


Well, since I have brought my new blender home, I have NOT been disappointed. I have made Ice Cream (Soooooooo fast, good, low fat, easy, and delicious- It melts kind of fast because it is made with ice.. but still, sooooo good.) I have made SALSA, ask Penny what she thought of it. And I have made Smoothies... and have turned my baby into a stark raving LUNATIC!

He has overcome his fear of the noise the blender makes because he has figured out what comes out of it... oh-so-good-yum-yum that he can't get enough of. I have yet to find out how much he can drink because I pull the plug on him LONG before he stops asking for more. The little tanker just screams.. MO! MO! MO! (his word for more) and throws a hissy fit on the floor when I tell him he is ALL DONE! At least it is something healthy I guess. :)

Performance of a Lifetime

Well, if there is one thing we know about Jaxon it is that he is a performer and he has a sense of style that is well... interesting. Just the other day when he was getting dressed for school he got mad because his Star Wars shirt was dirty (He wore it just the day before) I told him to pick out a different shirt and he said, "But MOM!! None of my other shirts are COOL!" No doubt his teacher (or someone) told him his Star Wars shirt was cool, and now, no other shirts are worth wearing. I guess he would be considered "METRO" then. :)

Here is Jaxon's performance of "Coconut Soap" If you don't know.. he is the BOY with the BUTTERFLY sunglasses on.. his lei is a little skiwampus and he is definitely singing the loudest. To begin his performance he is sure to blow kisses to the crowd (in his Metro way) and attempts to instruct his neighbor at the end to give a grand scale bow... (Yes, he is the only one who ends up bowing) During his performance.. he addresses his arch nemesis *Malachi* who is the only person at school that Jaxon can remember his name because their relationship is similar to Jerry and Newman's... (you know) Anyway, I hope this little performance cheers up your day. I think I could use a bath in some coconut soap... Rub a dub dub.



If you would like to watch his other performance of, "A Sailor Went to Sea" (Trust me, it is worth it to watch him "Shoo op doo op") Click on the video link under Family Videos!

Second Wave

Here is my second WAVE of jewelry clean up!
This cute little thing is made of glass blown beads, and silver plated spacers. Super cute summer time set that will go so great with everything you will forget to take it off. The necklace is made of beads and leather with a barrel clasp. Necklace $10, Bracelet $10 $ Earrings $5.00 Whole Set $23.00

NO BRACELET IN THIS SET: Super simple necklace and earring set with sterling silver and black swarovski crystal cubes. The earrings and necklace are exactly the same thing. The perfect compliment to your stylish black summer outfits. Necklace $20 (Sterling Sliver Snake Chain) Earrings $10.00 Whole Set $25.00
This Jasper stone is unique and rare. It is a BEAUTIFUL piece. Different and exciting. Gold plated chain with earrings to match! Set: $25.00 for both. Not sold separately.

Remember, I have limited supply on hand. First come, first served. Happy Shopping!

Disneyland Remix

Ahhhhhhhhh Disneyland. Full of fun, magic, candy, food, and THROW UP (or Blow Up).

Nobody blew up on Tuesday night so Peter and I shook the kids out of bed at 4:00 a.m. to hop a 6:00 a.m. flight Wednesday morning. Everyone was cheery and we were all happy to be heading to Disneyland! We arrive a 1/2 hour earlier than anticipated and actually made it to our 10:00 a.m. reservation at the Character Breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen! Goofy did the Macarenaand Captain Hook gave Jaxon a High Five.. The kids ate a great $20 per plate meal and just a quick 20 minutes later, Jaxon looked like this.And then promptly blew up his $20 meal.

My SUPER HERO (Peter) Swept him into the Bathroom, ditched the shoes, sweatshirt, and washed him off as best he could while Abby rode the rides by herself with random granny. (I was on Wade detail)
A short while later, Jaxon and Peter emerged victoriously (and with a lighter wallet) from the gift store which had a Jedi Academy Sweatshirt, Buzz light year Shoes, AND Buzz Lightyear SOCKS! (I guess other people blow up on their shoes in Disneyland too)
Jaxon hung out in his stroller for most of the day, and we did get to enjoy the rest of the afternoon in D-land. We thought MOST CERTAINLY Jaxon would be over Blowing Up by THURSDAY! I mean, he has been blowing up since MONDAY! Abby blew up on Tuesday, and she was TOTALLY FINE by Wednesday. SURELY IT COULD NOT LAST ANOTHER DAY.... (famous last words) Here is Jaxon shortly after blowing up on Thursday after holding down breakfast AND lunch. Oh well.

Peter (once again) saved the day on Blow Up duty, but was unfortunately joining the blow up gang that night in the hotel room. BUT... Not all was LOST! Peter joined us by 4:00 p.m. the next day and we enjoyed our last two days in Disneyland with what we now refer to as the "Jaxon Pass".

Having a son with Autism is stressful, challenging, and sometimes frustrating. Overall, for the most part, it STINKS. That is right, I said it... I don't REALLY enjoy having a son with Autism. It is hard. HOWEVER, it DOESN'T stink when you are at Disneyland because when your son is not blowing up... he has a pass that can get your on EVERY SINGLE RIDE without so much at a 10 minute wait. As a matter of fact, some rides you walk right into the exit and hop on the ride before they load anyone else on....... aaahhhhh, I knew at some point Jaxon's Autism would be an advantage for us... Well, it sure is at Disneyland. Huzzah...

Dear Mom

Dear Mom,

I am sorry that I didn't send you a Mother's Day gift. Between looking for a place to live in Phoenix, having all the members of my family get the flu and going to Disneyland over the past 10 days, life has been a little bit nutty. I hope you understand. Since I didn't get anything to you via USPS, UPS, Fedex or other, I hope ISP will suffice. I want you to know that I love you and I think you are a wonderful mother.

You are fabulously fun. Some of the best memories I have of you are dancing until all hours of the night in Balboa, CA to "Word Up" by Cameo, traveling across the globe with you as a family and having fantastic parties in our home with perfect food, perfect decor and a perfect hostess. (Getting ready to Cruise- waiting in the airport for one of our many family trips)
You amaze me with you ability to teach kids. You find the most fun and creative ways to teach your Grandkids and I love the things that you share with them from your tiniest treasures, to your cute little songs.
I can't believe the costumes and things that you used to sew for us. Your creativity is astonishing, and although I like to try to imitate it, it is NOTHING like having the real thing. I still love to call you for decorating ideas and the latest trends in home craftiness. And even though my husband won't let me show this picture to Abby for fear she will ask what a "playboy bunny" is, I think it was a great costume idea . . and I will never forget the looks that the 6th grade teachers gave me when I showed up for Halloween looking like this:

Mom, I am glad you love the beach. I have so many memories of our family at the beach. I just love that you LOVE to have fun! I don't think it is a mystery as to why I ended up with a "party planning" degree. You have a passion for life and fun, and as a matter of fact, you have passed your passion for things like the beach, parties, fun and yummy food to all of your daughters. Personally, I think they are some of the best passions to have.
Some of the most precious time I have spent with you is after just having a baby. I love it when you come to stay with me and cuddle those sweet little babies. I love the pictures I have of you holding each one of my little bundles. It brings me so much joy to have you in their lives. They love you, and I love you too.

You have always been the epitome of fashion and style, and I love to look at old pictures of you. Always hip, always now, always beautiful.
Thank you for all of the love and support you have given to me throughout the years. Thank you for the wonderful memories and traditions, and thank you for raising such a wonderful family. I hope I can do it as well as you!

TIME OUT! - THE SEQUEL

Yes, I am supposed to be in Anaheim right now...tucking in little children who just can't wait until their eyes fly open and they get to go to DISNEYLAND. Instead, I am praying that no one else gets sick between now and 4:00 a.m. which is the time we will be pulling our sick little babies out of bed to get on a rescheduled plane to go to DISNEYLAND where we will walk around bleary-eyed and hopefully have fun at the HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH. . .

Until then, do you remember this?

Well, apparently the bears in our house do an awful lot of bad. This bear has it so bad that Jaxon had to re-inact the scene from Indiana Jones to scare the wee wee out of the bear. Hopefully this bear will NEVER ACT UP AGAIN!Please notice the proximity of the time out chair. :)

Modesty and Blowing Up

So, I take Abby in to get her Prize for winning a drawing contest at the Halmark Store in the mall. She submitted a colored picture in the 6-10 years old category and WON! They called and left a message for her to come and get her prize..

We stopped by the Mall tonight and the as one of the desk clerks went to get her prize the other decided to talk to her about her "talent"
Clerk: You did a really great job on your picture!
Abby: *smile shyly*
Desk Clerk: You must really like drawing!
Abby: Yeah, I like to draw a lot. . . . *thoughtful pause*. . .THAT is why I am SO GOOD at it.

I guess we still need to work on humility.

Peter and Jaxon

Peter: Jaxon don't eat so much! You might get sick again!
Jaxon: But dad, I am hungry!
Peter: But Jaxon, I don't want you to throw up again!
Jaxon: I feel BETTER! Don't worry dad, I don't Blow Up again. I already blew up in the car, so, I won't blow up again.

Count Down to D-Day

Ok, so, it isn't much of a countdown . . it is tomorrow. We are headed off to Disneyland and I am just trying to keep my head on because I

Just got off the plane Sat. night at midnight and today I:
Cleaned the kitchen floor
Vacuumed the house
Did four loads of laundry
Paid the bills
Faxed a million pages to a school psych.
Made a bunch of phone calls
Loaded and unloaded dishes
Got the mail
Deposited a check
Went to Target to buy shorts because it has not been over 49 degrees here
Cleaned up the throw up out of the car after Jaxon said he wasn't feeling so well
Did more laundry due to the throw up
Gave Jaxon a bath
Didn't make dinner
Went to the mall
Looked for shoes that can endure d-land
Got Abby's hair cut because it still hasn't been fixed since the disaster
Picked up Abby's "PRIZE" for winning a drawing contest
Came home
Put Wade to bed
and hope that no one else gets the flu before we get on a plane tomorrow at 5:30 to go to the HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH! (It better be)

The Pains of Being Tall. . .

I'm tall, my husband's tall, my kids are tall. . . and although you may argue... there are some DISADVANTAGES to being tall.. This particular disadvantage is ok in my book because I feel the same way as Jessica about this kind of toy.

Here is Abby's friend in her FAB barbie car (it even has a radio and goes FAR TOO FAST for my taste)... see how she fits so nicely in the car and can easily move the steering wheel about and operate the pedals. . .
Now, here is Abby in the car. . . see how her knees are almost to her chin and she looks like she is sitting in a matchbox car? She can BARELY move the steering wheel because it is wedged between her knees...
Well, guess what? Abby and her friend are the same age. . . and much to my Abby's dismay, she has already out grown her dream.