4th of July Fireworks

I love taking my kids to the 4th of July fireworks in Logan. It is one of my favorite things to do in the summer and I look forward to watching my kids enjoy the show.

Jace was making us giggle with, "I want to go back to the car" and "this is scary" while hiding underneath his blanket. But after a while he was making up all kinds of funny words like, "doeeng" and "ooooohhhhh" and quite enjoying himself.

Dax likes to say, "this one is for grandma" and then changes his mind when a real good one goes off, then it's "oh wait, that one was mine".

As usual, the finale was awesome. Jace seemed a little freaked out about the noise but kept talking about the "fireworks" on the way home. He also kept saying, "go, go, go dad" because we weren't moving very fast out of the parking lot.

Happy Birthday Melissa!

With all the time I have spent with my best friend this last week, I am surprised I don't have any pictures of her. I am seriously going to have to work on that! Well, she is not the kind of gal that likes the spotlight anyway, so I don't feel so bad. I will tell you though, she is beautiful, kind, generous, and talented. I love her and I am so thankful that I have her as my friend.

Melissa and I have been through many good times and some tough times. We have laughed, cried, bitched and ate ourselves silly together. We support, we lift up, we tease, we love, we drive, we create, we dream, we browse, we play, we share, and we know when to stay the hell away! We are true "kindred spirits" and every time we get together we build on a friendship that will last our lifetime.

OK, I found a picture! This was at my wedding. Melissa did my flowers and some of the photography..

My Favorite 2 Year Old

Jace hasn't been feeling well this week. But even through the nose bleeds, high fever, loss of appetite, inability to sleep through the night, and puking he has managed to be just as sweet as ever and I have been blessed with lots and lots of cuddles and kisses.

Would you guess that this little guy was not feeling like himself?

Book Review - The Glass Castle

Nothing like a good book about true family dysfunction to make you feel like your parenting isn't so bad...

Happy Birthday Matt!

My little brother turned 36 today...

My brother and I have always been pretty close. There was a time when I considered him to be one of my best friends. This was back in Edmonton and started when I was in Jr. High and lasted until he moved back to the U.S. in '87. Now that isn't to say that we didn't play well together earlier on or don't play well together now, I just have very fond and vivid memories of him during this time. What I find most interesting is that his memories and my memories of the same events are very, very different. It's been fun to read his blog, his version of what went on throughout our childhood and yes, every now and again, I have an aha moment and remember "his side of the story" to be true. At one time, Matt and I talked about blogging/sharing our account of a specific event or a picture, just to see what the similarities and differences would be. I would still love to do that.

I have a ton of stories and I have a ton of pictures, but today I just want to tell Matt that I love him and that I am proud of him.

HE IS FUNNNNEEE
Matt can make me laugh. He can tell a story that will have you crying or peeing your pants. Seriously, the story about the Big Blue Burger or Dumb Pheasant Road or any of his mission stories make me laugh and laugh and it's not just the story, it's the presentation. If you haven't heard the stories and need a little pick-me-up, have Matt tell them to you, you will not be disappointed.

When we were little, Matt would take my stuffed animals and do shows for me. Each animal had a name and a story all it's own. He would make them come to life for me and always had me laughing. It's nice to see he does it now for his own family.

Matt also makes this little farting noise that always sets me off.

HE IS MY CONFIDANT
Matt knows more about me than most people do, even my parents. I did a lot of stupid things as a teenager and Matt was my BFF, my confidant, my adviser and my #1 fan. I could tell him anything and he never turned me in... even when interrogated! I know if I needed him now, he would do the same thing.

HE KNOWS WHEN I NEED A HUG
One thing about Matt that I love is his "big brother" hug. When I am sick or just don't feel like myself, I love getting one of these hugs from him. He does it in such a way that I know everything will be alright and that no matter what happens, I will always have someone that loves me, prays for me and thinks I am cool.

HE'S A FAMILY GUY

Matt loves Kristy and Logan. I love to see him and Kristy, whispering and giggling and carrying on now, just like they did when they first started dating. I also like to hear Matt talk about all the boys stuff him and Logan do together. I love to hear about them plotting and scaring the hell out of each other. I am glad it's not me anymore!

NO TO AUTHORITY
I am proud of my brother for saying "no" to authority. For becoming his own boss and for trying something most would call risky. I am envious of his ability to live and enjoy simple pleasures.

GEEK
Yes, I love Matt's geekiness. I think he makes it look cool. I love that he likes to write. I love that he has hopes and dreams and that, like me, Star Wars is real. I love that he loves Princess Leia in the same way I love Han Solo... I love that we can talk about what kind of "super power" we wish we had and how we would spend a million dollars. Hey Matt, we haven't had that conversation in a long, long time...

Matt, I love you and I am proud to be your sister. I think you are as awesome today as I did on the days we scared the little neighbor girl, or the day we discovered the toilet paper in the backyard, or the night you and I went to the mall without permission, or the days we crank phone called people, or the day you left on your mission, or the days we played Star Wars together, or the day you got married, or the day we figured out mashed potatoes don't bounce, or the night we searched for presents or the day you thought you heard a helicopter, or the day you became a father, or the day we ... well you get the picture, right?

Anyway, I hope you had a good day today. I didn't call you because I knew you were out on the town and I really had hopes of having this post done before you went to bed and I will be officially celebrating with you on Wednesday.

Forward and Backwards

Yesterday Justin and I decided to go to Bear Lake and stay in his dad's cabin for the night so I wasn't able to post. We got back late this afternoon and I had to finish a project for my new niece Lola. Now it is almost midnight and I don't have the energy to post for yesterday although I did record my blog, I just don't have it in me to download and add my pictures.

Even though I have been making up my own rules for this 365 day adventure (I don't think there were any rules to begin with) I want everyone to know, I have been writing things down, I have just been to busy or out of touch to add them... my brother is the only one that can make that judgment call... go easy on me bro!

Having said that... I am going to bed and will post yesterdays tomorrow along with a little ode to my brother Matt for his birthday...

Bear Lake

Justin and I decided to go over to Bear Lake and take advantage of his father's cabin for the night. I haven't been there in quite a while and now that I am back, don't really understand why I don't take my family and venture up there on a regular basis.

The cabin itself is more like a lodge; with 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, a huge kitchen and a couple of family rooms.

The view of the lake is spectacular...

We didn't get there until about 5:30pm and Ray and Shelley were just packing up to leave. Unfortunately, we missed grandpa and grandma Olsen as well which was disappointing because I love to sit and chat with them.

The beach, as I knew it, was no longer a beach because there is quite a bit more water in the lake. The cabin looked a lot different as well. Ray had cleared out a bunch of large trees from in front of the deck making the view even better. Dax walked down to the lake through the grass and tried his hand at catching himself some really big fish.

It was nice just to sit around and read and hang out as a family. The kids went to bed like they were in their own home and slept all night long. We headed to the beach around noon the next day and just enjoyed sitting and watching the boys play in the water. We even took the Craigcat out and cruised the lake for a bit. Neither Dax or Jace enjoyed that enough to take it out again, much to my disappointment.

All in all, it was fun and I look forward to doing that again (and again) this summer.