Soccer

A couple of weeks ago, we heard about a group of Charlie's friends that were all playing soccer on the same team. So a good friend of mine gave me all the info and I emailed the guy in charge and begged him to let Charlie play on the same team. Even though the team was at it's "limit" they just happened to have an extra uniform in that team's color and the guy agreed to add Charlie to the roster. Isn't the uniform cute???
So his first game was on Saturday morning and even though he'd never even been to a practice, the coach explained the rules to him and rotated him in so he would have a chance to play. I was so surprised at how well he did. He actually even scored two goals! I love this picture of him listening to his coach. He's the first #7 from the left.
I wish I had zoomed in a little for this shot, but he got to do a "corner kick" and I was crackin' up because he's holding his new shorts up - they're way too big for him. He was hitching them up the whole time he played! So his first practice is tonight and he can hardly wait.

Do you ever wonder...

I saw this on a recent email from Boden and thought it was funny. But I actually do have a light in my freezer. Do you?

Jedi Training

One of our Disneyworld highlights was Jedi Training at Hollywood Studios (formerly known as MGM Studios). Our neighbors, who went to FL for Spring Break, loved it and once Charlie heard their stories, we knew it was not-to-be-missed. Plus, since a hurricane had ravaged our hometown, we added a few days to our Disney tickets and decided to spend Tuesday at Hollywood Studios. We loved the Indiana Jones stunt show - I'm sure my kids have never seen anything blow up that close to them before - but like I said, Jedi Training (and the Star Wars store) was the favorite.

As the show starts, a real Jedi comes onstage and talks about the force. "A true Jedi uses the force for knowledge and defense - never for attack." He chooses 12 volunteers from the audience to come onstage with him. I had tried to prepare my kids for this, so they were both jumping up and down and screaming, "pick me! pick me!" and sure enough, the Jedi noticed and chose Hannah. She went onstage to get her Padawan robe and lightsaber and the Jedi taught them a few basic lightsaber moves. It was fun to watch her! (But I will also admit to having a few tears in my eyes for Charlie. He wanted to be chosen so badly and I think he was totally shocked that Hannah was picked and he wasn't. But, true to form, he quickly overcame his disappointment and cheered her on - brave little guy!)
And then, suddenly, the Darth Vader song from the movies starts and out comes Darth Vader with a couple of StormTroopers. It was so cool! Each of the new Padawans got a chance to fight Vader himself.
The Jedi was really cool and knew a lot of fancy Jedi moves!
Luckily, when we went back the next hour, Charlie got his chance! He was chosen and got to go onstage for Jedi Training too!
His fight with Darth Vader was so cute! We spent yesterday afternoon looking at our pictures from our Disney PhotoPass and their pictures were even better so now we're trying to decide if it's worth the huge pricetag to buy the photos on the CD. Both kids graduated and have offical Jedi certificates. I'm sure this is one we'll go back and do again someday!

Getting back to normal...

So today was my first trip back to the grocery store after the hurricane. Since we threw everything in the fridge and freezer away, it was a MAJOR shopping trip and I was in the store for almost 2 hours. Anyone want to take a guess at how much I spent? Keep in mind, I took this picture after I starting putting things away...

Hannah and Charlie are both back at school which is nice - I'm glad I only had Rachel at the store today. We've had a couple of people here to give us estimates on our needed home repairs, but we're still waiting to hear from our insurance adjustor.

I took Charlie to the hospital yesterday for his EKG and we are anxiously awaiting the cardiologist's report. I also faxed a copy of the EKG to a friend whose husband happens to be a pediatric cardiologist so it will be nice to have a second opinion.

I've decided that we, meaning the people in the U.S., are seeing the fulfillment of prophecy. In the October 1998 General Conference, President Hinckley said, "There is a portent of stormy weather ahead to which we had better give heed." (To read the entire talk, click here). We watched a couple a different news shows last night along with all the commentary and opinions about President Bush's economic "bailout" plan and I can't help but think that we were warned by a prophet that days like this were coming. It scares me to think about raising my kids in days like the Great Depression and makes me think a lot about what I could be doing right now to prepare ourselves as well as possible for whatever comes next. We've been enjoying the "fat" years and I don't know if I know how to survive the "lean" ones. I don't feel panicky or anything, but one thing I personally learned from the hurricane and it's aftermath is that life isn't always the way we're used to it being - things can change drastically in a short period of time and it takes a long time to recover.

Anyway, those are my random thoughts today and for anyone who's interested, stay tuned for pictures about JEDI TRAINING at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

Magic Kingdom

We had such a great trip to Disneyworld. In fact, I think we all wish we were still there! We spent 2 days at the Magic Kingdom. Since we left for our trip a little earlier than planned, our first day there was a Saturday and it was a little bit crowded. Our next day there was a Wednesday and it was perfect. We walked onto Pirates of the Caribbean twice in a row and CJ took the kids on Splash Mountain 3 times with barely any wait. When we get our printer/scanner hooked back up, I'll have to scan the Disney picture of them going down the big hill on Splash Mountain because it's hilarious. For now, here are a few highlights of our two magical days in the Magic Kingdom:

Hannah got to meet Princess Aurora - CJ spotted her before there was a line which was nice.
And the kids were really excited to meet Mickey - Rachel only wanted to see him from a distance.
Rachel was so excited to see "'Rella" during the afternoon parade.
Charlie LOVED the Buzz Lightyear ride. I think he rode it 8 times in a row!
Here's a picture of the fireworks as we left the Magic Kingdom on our last night of vacation. Hannah was in tears. I wish you could see how cute the Halloween decorations there - I should've taken some better pictures of them...

Of course, we had to ride the teacups at least twice.
And here's everyone's favorite: DUMBO! (Although I think my kids liked Aladdin's magic carpets better since you can make them go up & down AND the person in the back can tilt the carpet as well).
Each kid got to choose one souvenir and is it any surprise that Charlie chose the Mickey Mouse lightsaber?
Rachel loved Mickey's toontown. She got to get wet and cool off a little and everything in Minnie and Mickey's houses was just her size.

We can't wait to go back!

We're home...

Wow - what a week it has been! I hardly know where to start. I was really excited to get back from our trip and post all about our experiences at DisneyWorld (and we had a BLAST!) but there are a few other things that jumped into line ahead of that...

Thanks to Emily for her fun posts. She is an incredible person and I'm lucky to have her as a sister. She's clever and talented and very funny and if you're ever looking for a fun blog, check hers out - it's awesome. Thanks again Em!

And yes, Hurricane Ike is the big story around here. We had some damage but luckily, CJ had thought to leave a key with our neighbors or things would've been much worse when we got home yesterday. Here's a picture of our latest addition to our entry way:

Our neighbor was here on Monday cleaning a few things out of our fridge since the power had been out for several days when he heard what he described as, "someone driving a truck through your front door." When he walked around the corner, it was snowing insulation and a piece of soggy drywall was smashed on the foyer floor.

And our office got pretty wet as well. Our wonderful neighbor and another friend from our ward tore the carpet up for us before it could start to mold. It turns out that during the storm (which went on for about 13 hours according to our neighbor) the wind tore down shingles from our roof and then it got wet enough inside that several walls in the entry way, office, dining room and our bedroom will probably have to come down and be re-built and re-insulated. A big part of the ceiling will also have to come down (in addition to the section that fell). And we'll have to put new flooring in the office at least (I'm thinking hardwood!) and maybe in our bedroom upstairs as well. But all in all, I know it could've been much, much worse and we're blessed to have such good friends and neighbors and to be part of such a wonderful ward that did a lot to help before we even got home. I know there are several families in our ward that fared worse than we did and since Galveston Island is in our stake, I know our ward will be very busy in the coming weeks and months even to help those who lost much more than we did. We saw major damage along the highway on our way home yesterday over 2 hours away from our house and I think that more than anything made an impression on me. This storm was massive and dangerous and I'm very glad we weren't here for it. Almost all of the families we've spoken to that stayed here and weathered the storm have said they wouldn't do it again. Ike hit Houston 1 mile an hour under a category 3 and I can't even begin to imagine what a cat 4 or 5 would've done.

On the bright side, we had a fantastic vacation and Hannah hasn't missed a single day of school - and won't start again until at least Thursday and luckily, the state has given us 10 days that won't have to be made up. And my fridge and freezer are cleaner (and emptier!) than they've been since we bought them!

On an unrelated note, sometimes when it rains, it pours. I took Charlie to the Dr. this morning for what I thought was strep. His culture was negative - the Dr. said it's "adenovirus" but told me that he has an irregular heartbeat. She recommended that we get an EKG within the week and we met with the referral specialist to make an appointment at Texas Childrens Hospital for next week. Hopefully, it won't be anything significant but keep him in your prayers for the next few days.

More on Disney coming soon!

stupid hurricane.

my dad wrote this email tonight, and since it's about sara and this is her blog, i thought y'all might like to know:

CJ called tonight while they were waiting for the fireworks to start at Epcot. They learned today that there is more damage to their house than they had originally hoped. Yesterday, a neighbor looked around and called them and told them that everything looked pretty good, no broken windows or anything, but he told them that shingles and roofing material had been blown off down to the plywood in one area. (Which, of course, makes it vulnerable to serious water leakage in a hurricane that is dropping 5 to 10 inches of rain while it is blowing at 100 mph.) He didn’t go inside.

Today, a group from the ward was going house to house to members’ homes to assess and help. They went inside CJ and Sara’s home – the neighbor had a key. There is apparently a significant amount of water damage in their home in the area where the roofing was damaged. The insulation soaked up a lot of rain water, the drywall also got wet and then it all collapsed into their large open foyer. Those of you who have been there know about the lovely foyer/entry way of their home. This is the area they had professionally painted recently. (You can look at here to see what it looked like before and after it was painted). Anyway, the ward group did some clean up and then some patching (Hopefully that means putting a tarp or some plastic sheeting over the roof area where the damage was to avoid further water damage). I expect they won’t know the full extent of the water damage until they get home and get up into their attic.

The good news was that while the ward members were working in their house, their electricity came on. So they now have a little more information about what they are going to come home to. They have not yet decided which day they will go home, but they will check with the neighbors to make sure the electricity is staying on and, if so, may start for Houston on Wednesday (it’s a 16 hour drive so it will take a couple days). Of course, they also have to make sure they can get gasoline to get there. Things all along the gulf coast are still pretty iffy – especially through the Beaumont area. CJ said they may have to go further north. He also said they may drive directly to Austin first and leave Sara and the kids there with his sister – depends on what he learns about what things are like in Manvel before they head back (stores open? gas stations open? water pressure in the homes? sewer system working?, etc.) If things are still not really functioning there, they will probably just stay in Florida another couple days. They also, of course, want to find a contractor to start repairs as soon as possible, but I expect that may take a while due to how busy insurance adjusters and contractors will be.

confession #3

i am a shopaholic.

my freshman year at byu i got a credit card in my name. oh the freedom! i was so excited. i went to the limited and spent $200 on clothes the day after it came in the mail. it was the most money i had ever spent in my life. i still remember what i got: a black wool knee-length jumper with tiny red plaid, a white button-up shirt to go under it, a red cardigan to go over it, some tights, and a pair of navy blue dress pants.

it took me four months to pay it off.

and in the meantime, i was still using the card.

i had to go home for the next two summers to work and pay it off.

every time i had a bad day, or did poorly on a test, or wasn't asked out when all my friends were, i went shopping. i was well dressed, but it was getting a little out of control. it wasn't until i got married that i realized what a moron i was. we paid off my credit card (poor dave) and i've kept it (mostly) under control ever since. shopping still cheers me up, but now i know the horrible feeling that comes with a credit card bill too big to pay off, and i'll never ever do it again. we buy everything on one card and pay it off completely each month. i won't ever be in consumer debt again.

still, sometimes a credit card and a mall are all it takes to cheer me up.

what cheers you up?

confession #2

i love country music.



i know this is blasphemous to a lot of music lovers out there.
but ever since i heard "fishing in the dark" when i was 11 years old, i was hooked.
there is very little country music that i don't like.
love travis tritt, randy travis, george strait, reba, shania, faith, tim, keith urban (especially him), martina mcbride (she is the best to sing along to!)...and so many others.

can't stand the new "shift work" song that seems to be so popular.
dumbest song i've ever heard.

but for the most part, i think it's great.
the country station is always my first stop when i get in the car.
it's not all i ever listen to--far from it, actually--but i do love it.
"it's a great day to be alive" always cheers me up.
there are several different songs that always make me cry.

i love to sing along to country songs...in fact, the first (and only) time i did karaoke it was a country song. that is also one of the most humiliating moments of my life, but that's a story for a different day.

what kind of music do you love?

confession #1

my friend lynette did a series of confessions once on her blog, and i've had the idea mulling for quite a while now. so i thought, what better time to do a confessions blog, than when i'm blogging for someone else? it's perfect. and maybe my husband won't see this and be jealous. win-win, people.

so, confession #1:

i have a crush on statboy.

do you ever watch pardon the interruption (PTI) on espn? i don't, unless my husband is home at 3:00 in the afternoon. but when he does, you better believe i'll be there for the last few minutes. the show is about sports (obviously) and two guys banter yell back and forth for 30 minutes. but towards the end, they ask statboy what they got wrong, and he proceeds to give them correct facts, dates, scores, etc. that they misquoted during the show.

statboy has his own show earlier in the day, but on his show he wears a suit and tie. on PTI he's got his top button undone, no tie or jacket, sleeves rolled up, and he just seems so authoritative. i wait for his 15 seconds every time the show is on. so i don't begrudge dave his 30 minutes of pti, as long as i get my 15 seconds of statboy at the end. he is SO cute.

who is your secret crush?

guest blogger emily

sara asked me to guest blog for her while she escapes hurricane ike and heads to disneyworld.

so, here i am.

i'm emily, sara's younger sister (emphasis on young, heh heh heh). i live in clearfield, utah and have two little boys: isaac is 4 and noah is 2. i graduated from byu in political science in 2003 and currently work part-time from home for google, mostly after dinner when my husband is with the kids (but sometimes on fridays and saturdays when i need to get my hours in before sunday!). i love to read, breakdance, spend money, and blog.

just kidding about the breakdancing thing.

Ike Strikes (or comes to our rescue?)

As of tonight, our area is officially under a "hurricane watch" and we got a (recorded) message from the mayor inviting us to voluntarily evacuate. Tomorrow morning at 8 am, our county is under mandatory evacuation and Hannah's and Charlie's schools are both closed. CJ has to work tomorrow but if he can leave early we just might leave for Florida then. Might as well take advantage of these days off from school and get a head start at Disneyworld! Hope all is well and we still have a dry house when we get back...

Happy Birthday Mr. Darcy (and a vent)

Who loves Colin Firth? I do! I do!
L.O.V.E.D. him as Mr. Darcy in A&E"s "Pride and Prejudice" and in the "Bridget Jones" movies.

He's 48 years old today.

I also have to quickly vent all my frustrations about our upcoming trip. If you're not interested, please just wish Mr. Firth a happy birthday and exit my blog now. Trips are supposed to be fun and exciting, right? A chance to get away and relax a little and spend time together as a family right? Well, it doesn't feel like it right now. It feels like the elements are combining against us - literally! First of all, I just want to say that I am S-S-S-SICK of hurricane season and all the threats of hurricanes to our area. I know - it's a stupid thing to be sick of, but I am anyway. Ike is gonna cause us problems and yes, I'm just selfish enough to be bothered that's it's affecting our trip instead of thinking of all the poor people in Cuba whose houses blew down or got flooded and now have nowhere to live. (And since CJ is the emergency preparedness contact for our ward, don't even get me started on the number of phone calls and emails he's receiving about this storm. I'm talking HOURLY people!) We don't even know for sure yet which day we're leaving or at what time because it depends on when and where the hurricane makes landfall - work might be cancelled and schools might be closed, but who knows at this point?

In addition, Hannah's school district is giving us major headaches about excusing her from school. I totally get that school is in session and that ideally she would be in class every day. But a few days off is not going to seriously disrupt her 2nd grade education and it's not like she won't catch up when we get back. The bad part is that she woke up yesterday with a fever and missed school. Not good. That attendance secretary is going to hunt me down, report me to the truancy police and probably take me to court if Hannah misses any more school (and yet we're supposed to be gone next week). We're already planning to shorten this trip by several days because of the "attendance police" and it's makin' me mad that we're going to lose days at Disneyworld AND we had to re-book our hotel (both in Orlando and where we'll stay on the way and on the way home).

I keep hoping that by this time next week, we'll all be healthy and enjoying ourselves at Disneyworld and all the stress of getting there will be forgotten. For now, I'll just cross my fingers and hope for the best and try to stop feeling so stressed about something that I can't control and should be more fun than this!

New neighbor

Anyone who has ever visited my house knows that we live in a neighborhood that is named for and modeled after the famous Ewing Ranch of the 80's-era show called "Dallas." It's a little bit ridiculous, I'll admit, and I get a lot of comments from people almost everytime I give directions to my house (mostly because of our street names). So at the entrance into our neighborhood, the sales office looks just like the Ewing house and we even have a field with our own (fake) oil derricks and some cows. Once, when we first moved here, a few of the cows escaped onto the feeder road for the nearby highway. Anyway, my kids LOVE our cows and always look for them as we drive into or out of the neighborhood. And we have a new neighbor!

We first noticed this little calf about two weeks ago and I finally remembered to stick my camera in the car so I could get a few pictures the next time we drove by. Isn't it darling? Just another one of those things that makes living in Texas so unique!

Charlie's favorites (age 4)

food: honeycomb & fruit snacks

color: blue

movie: Star Wars

treat: licorice

TV show: Ben 10


game: Ben 10 & Star Wars


animal: lion and my favorite sea animal is a shark


toy: Ben 10 watch and Transformers (is anyone starting to notice a theme?)

drink: water

thing to do: play


something I'm good at: playing and helping people


place: Disneyland and Disneyworld



person: Ty and Jake



(idea stolen from Emily who stole it from Natalie)

Palin Power

Not to get all political, but how many of you watched her speech last night during the Republican National Convention?

She seems (to me) to be the first "average American" to run for office in a long time. She's not Ivy League (she went to the University of Idaho) but she's done an amazing job as both a mayor and as the governor of Alaska. I think she's a breath of fresh air in a very stale race. She seems like someone I could talk to and relate with. Maybe it's her 5 kids or the fact that she refers to herself as a "hockey mom." I think choosing her was the best decision John McCain has made. But that's just me...

Plus, I'm dying for Tina Fey to impersonate her - they look like sisters! SNL needs to talk Tina into guest hosting JUST for her Sarah Palin look-alikeness!

In other news...

I had an awesome time in Canton last weekend. I was sad to miss Swiss Days (read more about it here) but I have to say that Canton was a very close second. I went with a couple of friends and it was so nice to have 2 days to shop without the kids. I found some fun things for my house too, so watch for pictures in a coming post!

Plus, I'm happy that Gustav didn't turn into what we worried it might. Right now we're keeping an eye on Hanna, Ike, and Josephine since we leave for Orlando in 9 short days. We still haven't told the kids and we're getting really excited for Disneyworld. I hope they're happily surprised and really good while we're there.