Leah, Leah, Leah

I dont get it...scared of this and not scared of that..look at next picture..

Perhaps a Test of Friendship?

Okay, so most of you know that Matt and i have some reptiles and we probably dont fit the typical "reptile owner" description. I know what you all picture..tattoos with nose rings, burly, hygiene-deficient, rough and tough people who faithfully attend such things as The Reptile Expo in Salt Lake. Well, Matt and I and the girls rubbed shoulders with other reptile owners at this expo and were suprised to see such a variety of people and animals there. The whole time I was there I kept thinking that i should be at the Home and Garden Expo..but no, no, we had to see every reptile ever created. By the way, did you know that bullfrogs are carnivorous and can eat full size rats? Interesting. So anyways, we went to the reptile expo...there! I said it!

In case you are wondering, that is a smile on Hayley's face. She is not suffocating.

Hayley is so cool!

SOME SERIOUS QUESTIONS

So today when Hayley and i were driving to school she asked me if she saw Daddy and i get married. So i told her that she was up in heaven watching. This was a little confusing. So I told her that mommys and daddys can make babies and that we had not made her yet. (My mouth went dry, I rolled my eyes and kicked myself because i knew which question was next.) Of course, she asked "how do you make babies?" So I thought for quite some time and realized that I could seriously scar her innocent little mind. So then I did what any good and bright parent would do...I told her to ask her preschool teacher. Then I told her I was kidding and proceeded to explain in a very vague way (with no body parts involved...she's only 4!) And she seemed like she understood...and then she asked if she could watch!!!! Advice anyone?

An Update on Matt

I thought that I would spend a moment and tell you a little about Matt. He is now working for South Salt Lake Police Dept and loving it. It has a pretty high crime rate and probably the highest concentration of wackos in a very small area, so Matt stays pretty busy. Its always fun to hear his stories and he has just as much fun telling me about them. The other day he was so excited because they had caught two robberies in progress. There was also a stabbing and a big fight they had to break up. I dont think these scenarios make Matt excited, but anything that gets his adrenaline going is desireable. I am just glad he is willing to work a job that gets the bad guys to face some consequences.

Say No to Crack

Unfortunately, we have regressed with potty training.

Our Family

skittle (bribery) in the mouth

here we are

The girls

My Sweet Leah

A Nation Turns to Prayer

Just this last weekend I went to a wedding in Seattle and the reception was in this amazing house. So I decided to do what any future home owner would do...I would snoop! This house was AMAZING. But something I have learned that makes a house unique is the artwork. I saw this painting and could not take my eyes off of it. It is significant becuase of September 11th but also because Matt and I knew a family in Staten Island and the dad was a firefighter and a father of 2 young blonde girls. We loved this family. He lost several of his buddies in the towers that day.

THE TALE OF A SNAKE

So i have decided that you can divide the human race into two groups in several different ways. For example, you can say there are those who HATE the the snow, and there are those who like it. OR , there are those who like the fruity candy and those who prefer the chocolate. Some who like blondes and some like brunetts .Coke or Pepsi. Then there is a more serious topic. One that may send someone screaming or send chills down your spine. Or in my mother's case, send you to the floor in the fetal position. Its a ...ssssssnake! People either HATE them or like them. So I really discovered this when Matt and i made a slithering serpent our first pet. Weird , I know. so we have had this snake before Hayley was even born and suprisingly, she is quite an interesting pet. So, to get to the point. We thought we had lost her the other day. Matt will sometimes put her in a tree while he is working outside and she will usually bask in the sun...or climb down. Well, she did the latter. She is usually easy to find. She is a little over 5 ft long and she is not the fastest creature..or very intelligent for that matter. Well, several hours passed and nightfall came. Since she is nocturnal, we knew she would be on the move at night. Our hearts sank. She was missing for 24 hours! Very sad. Then the next day Matt was a t the gas station and a woman asked if the red Denali was ours, and of course he said yes. Then she said "is THAT yours?!" Sure enough, our snake was crawling out of the wheel. Its crazy to think how this must have looked to someone. This lady even took pictures with her camera phone. Yes, the snake was just chillin in our bumper. We had driven all over town with her there. I think I will notify GMC and tell the our car is not only comfortable for our family but lso our snake.

I am pretty sure this pig is depressed.

Do you ever have those days when you feel a little bloated and puffy? When your clothes feel a little snug? When you just feel hairy and fat? I know I do. Well...GET OVER IT! At least you didnt come to this earth as a depressed and overweight pig who cant even move!

A BIRTHDAY TRIBUTE TO JUDY HRIBAR

Here are just a few pictures of my mom. I wish that i could have an hour long slideshow of her life and a book of her life story...but this is all that i have. She deserves much more than a few pictures and a few words of recognition. She deserves first of all a great birthday, but also a million hugs, a trillion "Thank you's" for her acts and thoughts of kindness and just simply a day to be a Queen.

I dont know about you, but I am pretty sure she is one of the cutest little girls that I have ever seen! Here's lookin' at you mom!

My mom was an airline stewardess for United Airlines.

"Fox" is a term my dad uses quite often to describe my mom. (She will be embarassed by this.) They met on a blind date and i am guessing my dad was not wearing those pants because he obviously got a second date. Anyways, he always says there was just "something about her".

WARNING: potty language posted!!!

Leah, our brilliant 2 year old decided to potty train herself when we were in California....# 2 and all! You would think that if she is bright enough to figure out the potty process, she could at least say "poops" properly, but instead she says " I doe pooch!" Interesting.

A better close up!

Here we are!

A memorable trip to Illinois

A few months ago I decided to frame pictures of my ancestors and Matt's ancestors. This was no small project! Not only collecting the pictures took time , but getting the right frames for the right size of picture in the right place was not a simple thing...not for me anyways. Needless to say, I spent alot of time looking at their faces, realizing that because of them, I am here! That we were all connected. My mom has the same pictures on her wall and so she has helped me learn who they are and what their stories were. This may sound funny, but I feel like they know my story just as much as I know theirs. So we when we were in Illinois , where my Mom's side comes from, we visited their graves and learned even more about them. Grave sites use to creep me out but now I feel differently.

Leah's Love

Besides sippy cups and getting her nails painted, Leah LOVES Linda's dog Sadie, who we are currently living with. Sadie is a really sweet dog and is an incredibly good dog. Minus the excess hair and her crush/obsession with Matt, she is not too bad!

What Hayley Thinks of Baseball

Matt took Hayley to an Oakland Athletics baseball game when we were in San Francisco. I am pretty sure the hotdog was the highlight. Or maybe she is just loyal to the Dodgers...ha ha.

FUNNY LEAH LANGUAGE

WE ARE PRETTY SURE ENGLISH IS HER 2ND LANGUAGE..WE JUST DONT KNOW WHAT HER FIRST IS.

" i DOE PEE!" I go pee

"AHH HA MAMA." I talk to Grandma

"POMPA" grandpa

"AHH WA WOO" I want food

"AHH WA TA YAN!!!" I watch Tarzan (her latest crush)

" AHH COME ON!!" this is what she says if we dont bring her bottle fast enough at bedtime..or anytime for that matter.

FUNNY HAYLEY COMMENTS

Matt: " Hayley..time to go to church so you can go to Primary!"
Hayley: " But I dont like primary! They sing too many songs and it hurts my ears!"

We had not been to church for 2 Sundays and Hayley asked "Mom, are we all done with church?"

While driving in the car one evening "Mom! Why does the moon keep following us!"

JULY...BAD LUCK...GOOD LUCK

Okay, I promise that I do not revel in drama, but this time I cannot resist. My life remains pretty simple most of the time. But July was wacky! Let me just share the drama but then I will relieve you with some good news. HERE IT GOES... trying to pack my house with the stomach flu, move (which is never really fun), car accident, root canal, earthquake while in San Francisco (it was only a 4.2 but did'nt that get your attention?) then I get Larengitis ( how do you spell that anyways?) When I lost my voice I convinced Hayley and Rebecca that I lost it in the house somewhere and they had to find it. They fell for it and ran off searching desperately. HA! Now taht i told you about all of the drama, I must admit that perhaps that I am over reacting.

San Francisco

Just recently Matt, the girls and i just went to San Francisco for a wedding od some good friends of ours. It was a total blast! We went to pier 39 and went to the aquarium and saw the sea lions. It was a very fun trip..minus the LONG car ride with a tempermental 2 year old.

Poor truck

Just when I thought it couldnt get worse!

Okay...so life just got a little scary. After a long day of moving in 100 degree weather, my sister in law Janine and my other sister in law Chloe decided to go get food for the whole family who were helping us move into Matt's Mom 's house in Pleasant Grove. Just about a mile from her house we were T-boned by another vehicle and flipped Janine's Toyota Tundra. I just remember a scream and then being in a whirlwind of glass wondering when the car would stop rolling. It felt like it took forever. As soon as the car stopped, Janine and i crawled out while Chloe was stuck in the passenger seat with a broken Vertabrae and a head injury. She had to be extracated out of the car and life flighted to a hospital in S.L.C. At that point we had no idea how bad her injury was. Janine just had scrapes and bruises and i was okay as well , despite the fact that I was a total MORON and did not have my seat belt on. So I was glad to be okay. The creepy part is that I was so close to driving our PT Cruiser and at the last second for no reason really asked Janine to drive her truck. It could have been fatal if we were in my car. I am just glad we are okay

MY CRAZY LIFE!!!

This will be our home! Actually, our home wont be built until January. But this what it will look like. The picture doesnt even do it justice. It's like a big old farmhouse. I cant wait to have flowers and an American flag flying in the front.

Wow. What a day! So my life is just a little crazy right now. Well, it all started when Matt and i decided to build our dream house out in South Jordan. It has been a long time coming and Matt and i are super excited. BUT, alot has needed to be done. Well, we have had to put our townhouse (where we have been the last year) on the market, which is currently under contract. So today we have been packing our whole house...which I have realized that sometimes we think we are organized until we have to pack up and move and then you realize it is all craziness! But small problemo..I have had the flu yesterday and today and have been completely worthless! Talk about timing! Thank goodness for Matt and my Mom who have been lifesavers. We have also had to sell our other rental property which needed major remodeling so that has also been a project. I am also managing about 10 rental properties. Actually all of this is okay..the hard part is taking your children away from their home and turning their whole world upside down. Poor Hayley has been so scared that we would forget to bring her Barbie toys. it is so fuuny what matters to our sweet kids. Her little toys seem to be her whole world sometimes. Anyways...such is life..one adventure after another!

If you are wondering about all of these flowers...they are not just any old flowers. When i was at the Nauvoo temple in June, these were just some of the flowers surrounding the temple. i am just a wee bit obsessed with the beauty of a flower..so you may see many.