Where am I and what day is this?

Yes, it has been four months since I last blogged. And I shouldn't even be doing it right now. But I feel guilty and no one will ever see this because everyone knows nothing changes on my blog, except my count down to London. Yes, 11 days. That's all we have. And I have to work 6 of them next week. I'm getting a little sick to my stomach thinking about it. Nerves and all that. The Air France crash this week also hasn't helped any. Fortunately, Missy hasn't heard about it, or she'd probably opt to stay home.

But we are so very EXCITED!!! I hope things go as planned. We'll make it work one way or another.

Cameron has been (and still is until tomorrow) at our BSA scout camp. One full week. It's been VERY quiet around here, even with Missy and Amy still here. Does that tell you something? His scoutmaster called his wife the other day and told her to tell all the scout moms that their boys were having a great time. I'm glad. I'll be glad to see him tomorrow, though.

Missy is playing tennis every morning now until we leave. She loves it. I hope she gets good at it. Cameron never sticks with something long enough to be proficient. Missy is more motivated. She's also doing well with the piano, picking it up quite quickly. But she's happy to have a break for a month.

Amy is playing baseball this summer and I'm the assistant coach for her team. She won't wear her glove in the field and still hits off the tee, but then again, she's only 5. We always call her Tiny around here, and now her teammates have picked it up. Now they chant "Tiny, Tiny" when she's up to bat. I think she enjoys it!

Okay, I've got to go do some stuff before I have to go to my hair appointment and yet another meeting for my weeklong workshop next week. It never ends! Enjoy the day!

Things about me.

I've been getting requests on my facebook page to complete 25 random things about me, but I think they'd all be too negative right now. So I saw this on Becky's page and decided to fill it out. But no one ever reads my blog, so no one will ever see it. I would really like to wax philosophical like Bryan, but I can't ever find the time. I do have an interesting topic that will appear one day, though.

Get to know me better
1. What is your occupation right now?
Which one? I am a college professor, a mom, a wife, a confidante, a counselor, a cheerleader, a taxi driver, a student, a care giver, and that's all I can think of right now!

2. What color are your socks right now? Cream colored

3. What are you listening to right now? www.club977.com 80's hits, Pat Benatar, "Hit me with your best shot"

4. What was the last thing that you ate? Hershey's kiss and some leftover Pizza Hut.

5. Can you drive a stick shift?Yep... Artie certainly hopes I can

6. Last person you spoke to on the phone? My mommy friend Adina. Her daughter and Amy are going to play this afternoon.

7. Do you like the person who sent this to you?I love her and really look up to her! (it was neat to be able to save this answer from Becky!)

8. How old are you today? 43 years, 342 days

9. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Equestrian things (horse races, show jumping), but I like just about anything, including golf and bowling.

10. What is your favorite drink? Please, is there anything else? COKE!!!!

11. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream? Something with chocolate covered nuts in it and swirlies, or licorice. Can't find it in the States, but ate it whenever someone bought me a cone in Canada.

12. Have you ever dyed your hair? But just a weave

13. What is your favorite food? Salads and soups at Sweet Tomatoes.

14. What is the last movie you watched? I started watching The Good the Bad and The Ugly (my
favorite western) but I didn't get it finished. But I know how it ends!

15. Favorite day of the year? Halloween!

16. How do you vent anger? Yell at my kids, or if I'm really mad, take Wiley out for a walk and yell in the desert.

17. What was your favorite toy as a child? Anything I played with outside -- probably monkey bars. I know that doesn't count, but it's true!

18. What is your favorite season?Fall - it's the start of a new year for me

19. Cherries or Blueberries?Cherries!

20. Do you want your friends to e-mail you back? ALWAYS!!!!

21. Who is the most likely to respond? (to an email? Jan -- My BFF in the whole wide world! But to this post, Becky!)

22. Who is least likely to respond? Everyone else!

23. Living arrangements? Husband, son, daughter, daughter.

24. When was the last time you cried? What time is it?

25. What is on the floor of your closet? You name it. Mostly shoes

26. Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are sending to? See #21

27. What did you do last night? Pilates, fixed dinner, scriptures, homework, housecleaning, taxi service (same stuff, different days)

28. What are you most afraid of? Anything other than the celestial kingdom for eternity.

Where's 29?

30. What is your favorite kind of dog? My huge, slobbery yellow lab Wiley. (But I still miss Simone)

31. Favorite day of the week? Saturday, silly

32. How many states have you lived in? 5 - Idaho, Utah, California, Nevada, Arizona

33. What is your favorite flower? Anything purple

34. What is the weather like right now?Blue sky, 62 degrees

35. What is the gas price there?$1.89

My 99 list

I thought it would be fun to do this, too. But I going to cheat a little and italicize the ones we're going to do this summer! The tickets are bought so I guess we're going!

99 things I have or haven't done:
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child (no fair, Becky!)
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty (but I sat at the bottom and waited!)
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train (not in a sleeping car though)
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill (don't you know teachers ALWAYS do that)
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person.
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight(but it was by myself in Hawaii, boring!)
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted (actually it was a charcoal drawing)(mine, too)
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie(do home movies count?)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class (does TaeBo count?)
59. Visited Russia (no fair on this, either Becky!)
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Gotten flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp (see 15 and 59)
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar (but I have eaten escargot!)(ditto, and we did eat pate de fois gras at RS. Do you remember that Becky?)
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job (nope, thank heavens!)
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle (yep, but don't tell Mom, and it's not how I broke the bone)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book (but I have one I'm going to write!)
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life ( I know this doesn't count but my children are still alive)
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club(hated it)
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, it's back to work we go

January 4. . .

Yes, I guess Christmas vacation is all over with and I didn't get anything done that I wanted to do. Oh well, I supposed those things really didn't need to be done anyway.



We've had a very wonderful year and an equally wonderful Christmas. So far, we're discovering that if we continue to live the commandments we will not be affected by the events that are occurring in our nation and throughout the world. We are truly blessed, indeed, by our membership in the Savior's church.

January 16. . .

I was going to post this a long time ago, but as you can see, I didn't. I wanted to post some pictures, but now I'm at work and can't do that. We're all well entrenched in school again. Amy still doesn't want to go to school each morning, but is happy when she gets home. So we just deal with it.

Missy had her first piano recital this week (which I will post) and she did a wonderful job. She's picked it up quite quickly.

This weekend we'll be working feverishly to finish 3 merit badge requirements since Cameron is eligible to be a Star Scout, but for the 3 badges from summer camp. Hope they'll still accept them!

Rob and I went to Tucson last Saturday (by ourselves!), shopped, had dinner at Red Lobster, and then went to the Tucson Symphony Orchestra and their special guests, The Smothers Brothers! Yes, after all of these years, they're still funny. Rob really enjoyed it. I saw them 21 years ago in Palm Desert. They've aged very well. Fun was had by all. We were about the youngest in the audience. Gee, I wonder why. I also wonder if Terry still has his old Smothers Brothers albums anymore. I wish I still had them.

Okay, back to work. I'll post pictures this weekend. Love everyone's updates and new looks. Except Traci . . . she needs some help! Welcome to the world of blogging, Bryan! I've enjoyed your posts. I used to like Traci's. . .

My Broken Car. . .

So here's the damage from Thursday. I was supposed to pick Amy up from school and she was very upset with her mommy when she got home from school. I called her at Nana's and she was crying until I told her I broke my car. Then she forgave me. Just as long as I had a good excuse! In the left and middle pictures you can see the offending rebar that caught the front of my car. I haven't heard yet from the adjuster, but he was faxing the estimate yesterday afternoon to our body work friend who is going to do the repairs. We hope it can get done before the 26th, or we won't be going to Utah. Wish us luck!

Snow White

Here's a collection of pictures from their play this week. I'm still working on formatting pictures. Amy was a chipmunk and Missy was Doris, the wicked queen's servant (instead of a huntsman). The last pictures were from the cast pictures before the play. I was taking ones of each group and using the telephoto feature alot and my batteries died right before Amy's group got on stage. So later I'll post pictures that the director took. The girls had fun and did a wonderful job.

The End is in Sight...

It must be the end of the semester because I came down with a cold yesterday. I'm never sick during the school year (unless it's something bizarre), but as soon as my body realizes that the semester is done, then it poops out and I get something. But I've been doing the Zicam thing and I think it will work.

I only have two finals to write this weekend and three to give next week (two of them are the same) and then I'm FREE until January 5th (Happy Birthday, Cindy). I also have a study guide to post today, hopefully I'll get to it or they'll be mad at me. What do I care? Let 'em be mad! What a rebel I am.

Missy and Amy have been performing in the semiannual play this week. Tonight is the last performance after a month of rehearsal. I love them in the play, but am always excited when it's over! Pictures will follow after we do cast pictures tonight.

Everyone's off somewhere right now, that's why I can post. Cameron, Missy, Calli, and Rob (and maybe Jeff) are at the movies. Modern Woodmen of America (our life insurance company) sponsors a movie day in December (cheap and food goes with it). So they usually go. Amy is at a teddy bear tea party for Marleigh's birthday for another 20 minutes. And I'm in my office (my sanctuary) finishing up letters of recommendation for a former student who is going to graduate school. I just came from my usual Saturday trip to Wally World. As I was lifting the dog food bag (all 44 lbs of it) up to get to the UPC symbol, yep, you guessed it . . . the bottom fell out and so did 44 lbs of dog food. Nice. I don't even like my stupid dogs. No, I'm just kidding. Too bad Wiley and Daisy weren't there to clean up the mess. They certainly would have been happy to oblige.

Hope all is well with everyone. Now I can gear up Christmas. Haven't gotten that spirit yet, but I think we'll get our tree today and then maybe that will help. I love to celebrate the birth of our Savior, but I'd rather do it on his real birthday and bag the pagan start of winter/new year holiday thing. Oh well, no one listens to me.

Next time I'll post how I broke my car on Thursday. Check out my facebook page if you can't wait.