It's a small world after all

About half way up to Newport RI I began to notice that every single car that we passed or that passed us had a different licence plate on it. We began to keep track and continued to keep track as we drove back home and then to and from Pittsburg, PA.

1. Arizona
2. California
3. Colorado
4. Connecticut
5. Delaware
6. Florida
7. Georgia
8. Idaho
9. Illinois
10. Indiana
11. Iowa
12. Kansas
13. Kentucky
14. Maine
15. Maryland
16. Massachusetts
17. Michigan
18. Minnesota
19. Mississippi
20. Missouri
21. Nebraska
22. New Hampshire
23. New Jersey
24. New York
25. North Carolina
26. Ohio
27. Oklahoma
28. Oregon
29. Pennsylvania
30. Rhode Island
31. South Carolina
32. Tennessee
33. Texas
34. Utah
35. Vermont
36. Virginia
37. Washington
38. Washington D.C.
39. West Virginia
40. Wisconsin

Pretty amazing that traveling such a small distance we can see people from 40 different states as well as 5 cars from different countries.

TEN, 10, the big 1-0

I remember in our first year of marriage, a man in our Broomfield, CO ward said to me, "Enjoy this time because tomorrow you will turn around and you will have been married for 14 years." I couldn't see it then, but now I sit here amazed that 10 years have passed before my eyes.

• married on March 22, 1997 in the Bountiful Utah Temple
• honeymooned in Newport, RI
• moved 9 times so far
• have three kids
• 2 cars
• a house in Laurel, MD

All this in ten years!! Amazing time keeps on tick'n! I have been lucky to be married to such a wonderful man, who supports me in the things that I do and loves me despite my downfalls. I love you Alan! Happy Anniversary!

We decided that we would go back to where we honeymooned for our 10th Anniversary. Leslee Boss, Alan's stepmother came and watched the kids for us. Thanks Leslee! We drove the 7 1/2 hour trip up to RI. It was amazing. It was like we were there yesterday! Everything looked the same. We stayed right on the Bay in Jamestown and were able to see all of Newport as well as the bridge. We didn't have Internet access (which Alan and I didn't know if we could live without) and no responsibilities. It was a lot of fun, we read, went out to eat, went sight seeing, walked along the ocean, watched movies, drove around, went to Boston and Salem, MA for the afternoon. Most of all we enjoyed relaxing and not having to wake up in the morning! We love the ocean as you can tell by all of the pics.

Dancing

I love to dance, especially with someone who knows how! I am lucky that I married someone who fits into that category. Tonight we had an Enrichment Activity where we were able to learn the Cha Cha. It was a lot of fun and I think everyone really enjoyed it. It was slim pick'n on the men, so Alan got to dance with all the cute ladies that came. It makes me what to get really good by going to the church on our date nights to practice and then find a dance hall that we could go to show off all of our moves! Maybe one day....

I'm melting!!

Has anyone ever said anything that makes life just stop, and it just makes you smile and leaves you in awe! Twice today, twice! Where are my defences?! I, who am made of stone, who doesn't show emotion (except to a select few)?! I have broken down in tears twice today because of two of my sweet little kids.

Peter and I were going through his dresser cleaning out the clothes that he has grown out of in the last week or two. I had him try on some pants and told him that they were to short. His eyes immediately got glossy and I asked him what was wrong, he said "Nothing." He looked on the verge of tears so I asked him why he was going to cry. "I'm not!" I said, "Babe, what's wrong?" He lost it, came and crawled in my lap, and said, "Mom, I don't want to get big!"
BAM stopped me in my tracks. Those were his favorite pants and he didn't want them to be too small. I just held him, almost on the verge of tears myself.

Because of a head cold the last couple of days I have taken advantage of Alan being home and I have taken an afternoon nap with the boys. I have written notes to Hannah and instructed her on what to do with homework and other things. It has made her very happy. Anyway, one of her homework assignments this week is to write a one page report on a woman in history or a woman in current times that has made a significant difference in the lives of others. I had written for her to think about one of these women.... Amelia Earhart…..Susan B. Anthony……Helen Keller. I woke up from my nap and she told me that she had written a "practice" biography for her assignment. I asked her who she had written about. She said, "I did it about you."
BAM another moment where the world stops and everything is in perspective and life couldn't be better.

Update...

I thought I should post an update on Joe. Joe and I haven't slept very much since we got ride of the bink. Last night was probably the best yet. He went to bed without any problems and then slept until about 5:15 this morning. He then crawled into his makeshift bed next to my bed and went back to sleep until about 7:00! Hooray! Plus he is back to taking a 2 hour nap in the afternoon. It is getting better, lots better. He has stopped asking for his bink although he knows that he only threw away 3 and the 4th is somewhere out there. I can't believe we were able to accomplish something I thought would never be.

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday .......

Today Alan turned the ripe OLD age of 36. This was probably his best birthday ever (according to him) because he got everything his little heart desired. On Saturday we went to Don Pablo's (one of our favorites) to celebrate his birthday. Then on Sunday we had a little family party for him, which was fabulous. Happy Birthday Alan! We Love You!

Interesting facts about March 4

• The date means something "March Fourth"
• Our roommate Amanda also shares this same birthday
• 1792 -Oranges were introduced into Hawaii
• From 1793-1933, March 4 was Inauguration Day for the President of the United States.
• 1863 - Territory of Idaho established.
• 1909 - President William Taft approves Congressional Gold Medals for the Wright brothers.
• 1946 - The Voice of Frank Sinatra, the first Frank Sinatra album ever, is released by Columbia Records.
• 1950 - U.S. Premiere of Walt Disney's animated film Cinderella.
• 1952 - Ernest Hemingway completes his short novel The Old Man and the Sea.
• 1954 - Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, announces the first successful kidney transplant.
• 1975 - Charlie Chaplin is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II of England.
• 1979 - U.S. Voyager I photo reveals Jupiter's rings.
• 1982 - NASA launches "Intelsat V".
• 1997 - US President Bill Clinton bans federally funded human cloning research.
• 1998 - Government, naval and university computers running Windows NT across the United States crash as a result of a hacker.
• 2006 - A new species of shark, Mustelus hacat, is discovered in Mexico's Sea of Cortez, bringing the number of Mustelus species found in the eastern North Pacific to 5.
• 2007 - The first of two total lunar eclipse in 2007, observed during the early hours (penumbral eclipse ending 02:23:44 UT), is unique in that it is partly visible from every continent around the world.

Party On

Joseph and I were feeling lonesome so we had a lunch date with our friends. It was fun to hang out eat good food and enjoy every ones company.

I really like hosting parties, and get togethers. It is a wonderful excuse to make my house clean, it's something that doesn't stress me out, and I couldn't think of anything that makes me more happy then to have family and friends in my home.

Happy Birthday Dr. Suess!!

What an amazing author that has been loved and admired through the ages. We love to read his books. One of our favorites is Green Eggs and Ham. At Peter's preschool today they honored Dr. Suess by trying green eggs and ham! He was one of the only kids who would even eat them. He gobbled them up and asked for more!

Hannah's whole day at school was planned around Dr. Suess as well by reading his books and watching the Cat and the Hat Movie.

They're GONE!

Joseph has thrown away a bink everyday since the dentist appointment, except today. Joseph asked to throw it away and Alan couldn't have him do it, he wasn't strong enough. Once I got home I hid the last bink so that no one could find it. (I actually thought it was a good idea to have one, just in case everything fell apart) We had a nap without the bink, went fairly well. It took longer than usual for him to fall asleep, but he took a nap with out crying. Bedtime came at about 8:30 tonight, and he is still awake. It is now 11:15. He's not crying and only asked for his bink when we put him down. Hopefully he will be sleeping by the time I go to bed so that I don't have to worry about him wandering.......



Sleep finally came around 11:35.

I couldn't help taking a picture. Who crosses their legs while sleeping? Only those who are extremely tired!!

a First and a Last

Joseph had his first dentist appointment today. It went very well. All I could hear was "What's this do?" "What's this one?". They told me that he had a 7 mm gap between his teeth, and he needed to stop using his bink or he will need "major dental work" to correct the problem.

Thoughts while the dentist was talking to me: bink or dental work...... sadness now or later......... hating me now or hating me and the dentist later. These are tough decisions, so life changing!

I told Joseph at the dentist office, in front of the dentist, that when we got home he had to through away his binks because they were hurting his teeth AND the dentist said we had to. (Let him be the bad guy!)

On the way home I reminded him that when we got home he needed to through away his binks. He replied, "Just one?" I said, "Only if you will throw away one tomorrow too." He thought that was a good idea.

So far, so good. The blue bink.....garbage. Only 3 more to go, yes I know we have quite the stash. After Joseph threw it away he just stood there, looking longingly at his bink that laid in the garbage. After the moment of silence out of respect, we all cheered for him. Then Peter asked if he wanted to go play. As they were walking away Peter said, "It's o.k., we just can't use things that hurt us." What a sweet brother Peter is.

Book Tag

The Rules of the game:
1. Find the nearest book to you.
2. Name the book and author.
3. Turn to page 123.
4. Go to the fifth sentence on the page.
5. Copy out the next 3 sentences and post to your blog.
6. Tag three other people.

Row 22 Seats A & B
Short Stories
By Frederick Waterman

Last Flight From Moscow
"Oh, no," Bukharin said softly. He tried to spin the dials, but they would not move unless the door was closed and both tumblers had clicked into place. Bukharin swore with out making a sound. There was not enough of the pilotka showing to pull on it. Bukharin leaned on the safe door, trying to press it hard enough for the second tumbler to click. It was futile.

Gripping isn't it!! This and other short stories in this book were originally printed in the United Airlines' Hemispheres magazine. I have only read a couple of these short stories, (because Alan has claimed this book) but the ones I have read have been cleverly written, fun stories. All the characters in the story's seat in row 22 seats A and/or B, on flights to different places. I would recommend it to anyone who just wants a quick read. Thanks Lynette that was fun!

Tag you're it: Libby, Melissa, Breena

HOT stuff!

I don't know if you have ever tried Fiery Habanero Doritos but they are SPICY! Alan got them because he wanted something with a kick. Both of us like spicy things but this almost was to much for Alan and I. We could only eat a couple at a time, don't get me wrong they had a great flavor and the bag is gone. All I am saying is that they are powerful. Now comes the amazing part(drum roll please)..................My kids loved them!! Joseph was eating them by the handfuls. Peter couldn't get enough. Hannah who doesn't even like mild salsa was asking if she could have more. Yesterday I got them out again for my lunch and all of the kids asked if they could have more of the "hot" chips. Go figure!