McGannTribe

Seventeen Candles

2012-02-20T09:14:00.003-05:00

Again this year, Bobby did not want me to decorate for his birthday.

You can see how well I honor his wishes.

Since he had to work on his actual birthday, we celebrated on Friday night.

Bobby wanted a Coscto cake again this year filled with sinful goodness.

It is a rule that you have to look stupid when taking a picture with your brother.

A hard and fast rule.

Marcus got Bobby some Pims cookies for his b-day.

Pims are British orange biscuits.

Both boys love them and beg me to buy them when I grocery shop.

(Marcus likes the raspberry ones)

I wanted a picture of both boys together to gauge their height.

Marcus kept standing on his tippy toes and Bobby was trying to push him back down.

Bill told Bobby to stand on his tippy toes and that solved the problem.

This is a fairly accurate representation of their height difference.

The lighting of the cake...

The singing of "Happy Birthday"

The blowing out of the candles...

...seventeen candles takes a little more breath!

The opening of the presents...

Cheapest present by far...a beanie hat from Target for 66 cents!

More brotherly silliness..

The much needed present were some new pants to cover his butt AND his ankles!

Debating on whether or not the pants are actually long enough.

They were.

A fancy box for a special present!

Could it be underwear?

Just tons of tissue paper?

Comic books!

I am worried about the fact that Bobby will ever get married and give me grand children.

#nerdy #geek

More pants!

Taller than his mama.

Taller than Grandpa Joe too.

Later in the evening Bobby's friends came over to celebrate.

Anslo, Alec and Tom

Tom's family owns a chinese restaurant in Lansdowne and he brought us some yummy Wonton soup!

They played video games until the wee hours of the morning.

I stayed up until 2:30 and then I couldn't hang any more.

They passed out in the basement looking all cute and snuggled.

The next morning I made them chocolate chip pancakes and bacon which were devoured in a heart beat.

Bobby had a great birthday and thanked me profusely for it.

What made it even better was that the next day on the 18th, Bobby was legally allowed to drive by himself.

He drove every one to the video game store to shop for boy stuff and then home.

I think that was the best part of all for him!

Happy Birthday Bobby!

Seventeen

2012-02-14T05:30:00.000-05:00

Dang it.

He's Seventeen today.

Bobby is Seventeen.

He was always supposed to stay a little boy...not to grow up and be taller than me.

He has been Bobby since before we knew he was a boy.

I don't think we ever even picked out a girl's name...we just knew that this was Bobby.

We found out pretty early in the pregnancy that he was a boy...it was *clearly* evident on the sonogram...and we referred to him always as Bobby.

He made his grand entrance into the world at 5:30am on Valentine's Day.

It was a short but extremely difficult delivery and one in which he sustained life long injury to his right arm.

He was HUGE...ten whopping pounds of Baby Bobby.

I pushed him out without pain medication.

Let me repeat...NO DRUGS.

Not because I didn't beg for them.

It was just too late to get some by the time I was feeling like I needed them.

Do you see the outfit that I had on him? I had to jam him into it. He wore it that one day to come home in and never again.

I am still having trouble keeping that boy in clothes now!

His 6 foot 1 inch frame contains a short torso and extremely long legs...finding pants to match his waist size is almost impossible. So when you see his pants sagging below his butt, it's because I have to buy them long enough to fit him, but the waist is too big...even with a belt.

And his arms...long just like his dad's.

Bobby's personality has been the same from day one...and even inside the womb...calm and mellow.

He has an even temper, sense of humor, and a kind heart.

As always, he was my very best Valentine's Day present. Nothing will ever top that.

Happy Birthday Bobby!

Seventeen!

Cue the mom crying.

Bobby McGann: EAGLE SCOUT!!

2012-02-05T15:04:00.000-05:00

Bobby McGann is an EAGLE SCOUT!!

Yay!

We are so proud of him!

The Eagle Scout advisor is ordering the name plates today and Bobby's will be added to this plaque.

This day has been a long time in coming for Bobby.

He had several glitches with his Eagle Scout application which got sent back to us three times for corrections.

Then we had to wait for letters of recommendation to come in...and that took a long time too.

Finally, we received word that everything was complete and that we were ready to hold his Board of Review.

It didn't take long for the board to deliberate the merits of Bobby's application.

He worked hard to complete each badge and to accomplish his Eagle Scout project.

We are very proud parents to have not one but TWO Eagle Scouts in our family.

Congratulations Bobby!!

We love you!

Old Geezer

2012-02-01T05:00:00.000-05:00

This is my sister-in-law Diane McGann

She is an old geezer because today is her FIFTIETH birthday.

50!

Can you believe it???

To commemorate such an event, I rounded up some items from my house that reminded me of her.

They are pictured below:

All of the items are old, outdated, expired, broken, used up or worn out.

An old used up dryer sheet.

A gum wrapper

A sock with a hole in it

Broken glasses with no lenses

An old receipt

A broken pen

An outdated calendar

An expired coupon

A ratty old dishcloth

A broken nail clipper

And some black thing that is a plug and I have no idea what it goes to.

I wrapped it up nice and pretty and sent it off with the following card:

I almost peed my pants laughing when I read that card!!

Lest you think I am terribly cold hearted, I also sent along a gift card for her to go out to lunch and pretend that I am with her.

Diane had to work today...so as a treat, I sent her an e-mail every hour on the "50" minute mark to remind her that she was the big

5-0!

Here are the e-mails that were sent:

#1:
This e-mail was sent at 7:50am for a reason. Get ready! This is just the beginning of a looooong day of old people jokes. I love you! Happy Birthday!

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#2:
Good Morning!
Happy Birthday to you…Happy Birthday to you…Happy Birthday dear Diane…Happy Birthday to you!! (imagine me singing to you!)
Happy 50th you OLD GEEZER you!

You should have a package from me in the mail when you get home today.
Notice that this e-mail was sent at 8:50am. Eight: FIFTY. Fifty. It might be a trend!
Hope you have a great day!
Love you lots!
Eva

#3
Hey Diane!
I just wanted to remind you that I sent you an e-mail about an hour ago wishing you a Happy Birthday. I know that sometimes when you get up there in age, you tend to be forgetful.
So….Happy Birthday! You are 50!
Love you lots!
Eva

#4
Hello again!

The time is now 10:50am. I just want to let you know that today you are FIFTY. FIFTY YEARS OLD. I know that is hard to comprehend. You will not be able to count up to this age on your fingers and toes…it takes A LOT more fingers and toes than that. You will have to do some calculating on a calculator to do that. Calculators are like adding machines…the things you used to use back in your day to add numbers. The world has changed a lot since you were born. We have sliced bread and indoor toilets now!
Ok, just wanted to remind you that you are FIFTY!
Love,
Eva

#5
Hi Diane,
Gosh, I just realized that you probably don’t even know who I am! I know that old people tend to forget people a lot!
My name is Eva. I am your sister-in-law. We know each other. We like each other. We have fun together. I have brown hair, brown eyes, and am plump and well developed for my age…an age by the way that is MUCH YOUNGER THAN FIFTY.
You, my dear are FIFTY today. FIFTY.
I know…you are probably saying that you aren’t FIFTY and that you are really 21, but let me break it to you sweetie….YOU ARE FIFTY.

Ok, I’ll let you go b/c you probably need to go take a laxative or something.
(It is no coincidence that this e-mail was sent at Eleven: FIFTY am.
Love,

Eva

#6
Good Afternoon!
It is lunch time…did you have some tapioca pudding and jello for lunch? Was it good? I hope it was easy to swallow. I know old people can only eat soft foods. Don’t forget to take a fiber pill later so that you can have a good BM before bed.
I am just checking in to see how it is going being FIFTY and all. FIFTY. Wow. FIFty.
Yeah, well….Happy Birthday. I said, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY”!. Maybe you need a hearing aid.
Love,
Eva

#7
Diane…
Now listen…this is getting ridiculous….you have to face it. You are Fifty today. FIFTY. I know, I know, you want to be in denial, but really think of all the things that you can do now that you are FIFTY! You can…let me think. I am sure there is something. There’s going to the…no that’s not it. You could probably…..nope you can’t do that either. Well I am sure that FIFTY is wonderful even if you are too old to do anything fun anymore.
By the way…what is it like to wear polyester clothing? Just curious.
Ok, just take it on the chin. You are FIFTY.

Eva (sent at 1:50…do you know why?)

#8
DIANE! WAKE UP!!! Ok, so I know that you are FIFTY today…but seriously…you can’t take a nap at work! I know that lots of old people nap during the day, but you need to stay awake and do your job! Ok, well maybe while the boss is in a meeting you could shut your door and close your eyes for a bit. But then you have to take into consideration that old people snore really loud…..so maybe you should turn on some music in your office to mask the noise. Just try to stay awake ok? I know what you are thinking….”I was awake ALL night going to the bathroom”, but taking a nap at work really isn’t an option. Gosh, it must suck being FIFTY!
Happy Birthday anyway.
Love,
Eva (did you forget again???? I am your sister-in-law)

(the time is now 2:50)

#9
Hey Diane…ok, so hopefully you have remembered that today is your birthday…it is 3:50…(you are 50) almost time to home. You might be able to catch dinner with the EARLY BIRD special! That is what old people do!

I hope you have had a good day at work while turning FIFTY! Now when you leave to go home make sure you hold on to something…we don’t want you falling a breaking a hip or anything.
You also might want to check out the blog for today…YOU have been the featured special! Yes YOU! I know you are asking “Why”? It is because TODAY IS YOUR BIRTHDAY. YOU ARE FIFTY! Remember? I am the one who has been sending you e-mails all day long. Me. Eva. Your sister-in-law. 50. It’s your birthday. Sheesh! I guess the memory really is the first thing to go!
I hope you have a great evening! I love you very much!
Happy Birthday! (50)
Love,
Me
(Don’t look at the blog until you go home tonight and open your package…the blog has pictures of your package on it. I am trusting you to behave and NOT PEEK!)

SO DIANE IF YOU ARE READING THIS BEFORE YOU GOT HOME FROM WORK YOU CHEATED!

But I will forgive you because I love you very much and hope that you had a great 50th Birthday!

Learn, Plan, Act, and Report

2012-01-30T07:57:00.000-05:00

Sunday afternoon our family spent some time planning for some goals that we want to set individually and as a family for 2012.

It is kind of like a belated New Year's Resolution, but with a little more responsibility and kick to it.

In December, we received this letter from our Stake Presidency. (a Stake is kind of like a Diocese if you are Catholic)

They are asking everyone to improve their lives in one or more of four possible areas:

Spiritual Self-Reliance

Temporal Self-Reliance

Caring for the Poor and Needy

Serving Others

We needed to LEARN about the reasons for improving our lives, PLAN for what we will do, ACT upon it and then REPORT to each other and our Home and Visiting teachers.

So, as a family yesterday we talked about what we wanted our goals to be across these four categories.

We reminded ourselves that about 6 or so years ago, the Stake Presidency also issued a recommendation for everyone to get out of debt and figure out a way to become financially self-reliant.

We were just moving here at that time, but ironically, our Stake Presidency in Ohio had given the same counsel.

We heeded the counsel and just a few short years later the economy crashed.

Without following the direction of our leaders, we would have struggled a lot to get our bills paid.

This counsel seems equally as important. I am not sure what lies in store for the future, but I am confident that as we prepare ourselves as individuals and as families to improve our lives across those four categories, we will be ready to face whatever challenges lie ahead.

As we discussed, we came up with a lot of stuff that we need to work on.

However, we recognized that we can't do everything because it gets too overwhelming.

So we have chosen some small areas to work on to start off with.

Hopefully, once we master these, we can move on and work on others.

As a family our temporal goal is to replenish our savings account that was depleted while I was unemployed. This is a family goal b/c that means we have to do without a few extras in order to put that money in savings.

Our Spiritual goal was a little bit harder to accomplish because we are not together as a family very often.

We talked about the need to have family prayer and read scriptures together as a family on a more regular basis.

However we thought that we wouldn't really be able to follow through with that goal b/c of our three differing work schedules and Marcus' ROTC schedule.

Thus, Bobby came up with the idea that we would fast as a family every month.

It was a great idea.

Before I was unemployed and through my unemployment we fasted a lot as a family for me to get a job.

Once I got a job, we continued our practice of fasting once a month, but not as a family for a unified reason. We recognize the blessing that fasting as a family brought to us and we have decided that this will be our goal. Each month we will fast for a purpose together as a family.

Next we came up with individual goals for each of us to accomplish...one Spiritual and one Temporal.

This engendered a lot of conversation too as we helped each other to figure out what we each needed to work on most.

Under the Spiritual category...

Bobby is going to stay awake in seminary and actively participate by making at least one comment or asking one question during the class time.

Marcus is going to get on his knees and say his own individual prayer each night.

Bill is going to work on his mood/attitude when he is at home so that he argues less (which means I have to try and do this too) so that our home is a Heaven on Earth and has peaceful feelings.

I am going to also work on the above and make my scripture reading each day a priority since it has fallen by the wayside since I have started my new job.

Under the Temporal category....

Bobby is going to exercise every day by doing pull-ups.

Marcus is going to get a job this summer when he turns 16.

Bill and I both have the same two goals...we are going to pay off more debt that was incurred while I was unemployed (it shouldn't take too long) and we are also going to work on improving our health though exercise.

That one for me is HARD.

I hate to exercise.

In order to remind ourselves of these goals, we have posted the letter from the Stake Presidency on our refrigerator.

I am going to make a list of our goals and post that too so that we can remember them each day.

We talked about the last two categories of caring for the poor and needy and serving others and decided that we will all make concerted efforts to improve our Home and Visiting teaching so as to help and serve others.

Lastly, we will report our actions when our Home and Visiting teachers check in with us to see how we are doing.

I think I will try to report here to all of you as well.

Wish us luck...some of these are hard ones for our family!

It's That Time of Year

2012-01-28T08:11:00.001-05:00

It's that time of year.... when the world falls in love...

Can't you just hear Carly Simon singing that song in your head?

Well around here...it's that time of year when we spend our Saturdays at the stake center for church basketball.

It is usually tons of fun b/c I take a lot of pictures and talk to bunches of people.

...and sometimes I watch the game.

I always *pretend* though that I have watched every single move that Marcus makes while on the court.

"Did you see that shot I made mom?"

"Yes!"

"Off the rim?"

"Of course!"

"Wasn't it cool how it went in after going around like three times?"

"SO COOL!"

Then I get caught...

"YOU'RE LYING!...IT DIDN'T GO IN!"

"What?...Well I saw one of them that went in...wasn't that the one you were talking about?"

"You are such a liar."

I think Bobby's basketball playing days are over since he works every Saturday.

What a waste of a good 6 foot 1 inch boy.

Finally...let's take a look at what Marcus is wearing.

He LOVES his PT shorts he got while on the Marine Base at Camp Lejeune back in the fall.

However, I don't think they are quite right for basketball as his Under Armour underwear hang out from the bottom.

Marcus thinks he looks cool.

I think he looks like I can't buy him clothes that fit him.

And he is all legs right now...his torso needs to catch up to his ever-growing frame.

At least he has matching Nike shoes, socks, and T-shirt.

Because you have to fashionable for church ball right? (sarcasm)

Old Mother Hubbard

2012-01-25T05:00:00.000-05:00

Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard to

fetch her poor doggie a bone.

But when she got there, the cupboard was bare...

...because her two teenage sons ate it all!

I just have to tell you that I can't keep my sons fed.

On Sunday morning before church Bobby ate two bowls of cereal (large).

We were going out the door and he decides that he needs another piece of toast which turned into three pieces.

Yesterday, Marcus ate THREE ham sandwiches and then about an hour later proceeded to eat his dinner.

It is not uncommon for Bobby to go to his friend's Chinese restaurant and get food from him after school...

...come home and eat what I have prepared for dinner...

...go to work and eat while on his break...

...and come home and eat before bed.

Marcus has breakfast before and after seminary....

he packs himself a huge lunch...

...texts me several times throughout the day to say that he is STARVING...

...eats as soon as he gets home from school even though dinner is only an hour away...

...eats his entire dinner (begs for more food every time)

...and proceeds to eat everything in sight for the rest of the evening.

My food bill is OUTRAGEOUS!

I am spending $800.00 a month on food.

FOOD!!

Do you know what I could do with $800.00 a month?

As I am writing this, dinner is imminent and Marcus is eating hard tack that Bill made this afternoon.

If you know what hard tack is...you will know that the boy is crazy for food.

It makes me totally insane when I am standing at the stove cooking dinner and my boys come into the kitchen and start opening the cupboards and the refrigerator looking for food.

I am COOKING dinner!

I tell them that.

"I AM COOKING DINNER.

CAN'T YOU WAIT???"

They always say the same thing.

"I just need a snack".

"I promise I will eat all the dinner".

I have NO DOUBT that they will eat their dinner.

I just want food to stay in my cupboard a little longer!

Five Thousand Dollar Smile

2012-01-23T05:00:00.000-05:00

These are teeth that I never thought would need braces.

When Bobby had his four wheeler accident and knocked out his front teeth, they were cemented back into his head.

I thought they would stay straight.

Unfortunately they didn't.

Thus on Thursday morning, we went to cute Dr. Hancock's office and Bobby got braces.

I have to take pictures so that when I want to put new carpeting in my house, or install new window treatments, or get a new roof...I can remember that the reason I can't do any of those things is b/c I spent $5,000.00 in Bobby's mouth.

At one point, Bobby took a picture of himself and sent it to his friend Alec.

I wanted that picture for the blog but he refused.

On goes the wire...

...on go the black green rubber bands...

And here is his five thousand dollar smile!

Day In Court

2012-01-17T23:33:00.002-05:00

I spent the entire day in this gorgeous building.

One of the many things I love about Leesburg is the old architecture and quaint feel of this town.

The look and feel make it seem like I have stepped back into the 1700's.

Although I would have to amend the 1700's to include my iPhone or I would probably die.

In any case, today was my day in court to testify as to the crazy events that occurred at 7-Eleven back in the fall.

And it happened on September 24th.

Not because I recalled it happening then however.

After many phones calls to friends trying to figure it out...I had it placed in late August.

Nope.

The attorneys informed me this morning it was 9.24

Aren't I a great witness?

I am sure they had TOTAL confidence in me after that.

The hearing was set for 10:00am.

I had a meeting in downtown DC at the Department of Justice at 2:00pm.

I totally thought I had plenty of time to get there.

Nope.

Completely missed the meeting.

Apparently, criminal cases are heard in BULK.

Just like at Costco.

I arrived early...thinking erroneously that if I got there early, somehow they might start early.

Foolish.

At 10:30am the Judge announces to all who are seated in the courtroom that he is still working on the 8:30am cases and that once those are finished he will take a 15 minute recess.

It all went down hill from there.

The 10:00 cases didn't really start until 11:00.

The prosecuting attorneys called me and the two guys that got beat up into a conference room to prep us for trial.

TRIAL?

I thought this was an open and shut thing.

Nope.

The crazy guy pled NOT GUILTY.

Seriously?

He was soooo guilty!

Thus, the attorneys prepped us to be examined and cross-examined.

We return to the court room a half hour later to find that the Judge has moved our case to the last on the docket.

Fantastic.

At that point I called my office and let them know that I was going to be a "no-show" and to send another person in my place to the meeting with DOJ.

A meeting by the way that I really wanted to be at.

Our case didn't start until 12:30pm.

I was the first witness to take the stand and was on it for about half an hour.

I got to draw a map on the dry erase board and everything!

It was pretty cool!

I was very proud of myself for answering the question that was asked of me and only the question without going into detail.

Those who know me well know that I can't tell a story without detail.

To make a 2 hour trial short...the verdict was guilty.

He got 18 months in jail with most of it suspended, only having to serve 7 months.

This guy has a list of priors as long as my arm.

Assault

Assault with a deadly weapon

Concealing a deadly weapon

Unlawful gun possession

And about 15 different drug charges

He has served time for them all, but in two different states.

This was his first offense in Virginia.

This guy was just as crazy in court as he was the night the assault occurred.

He told the court that the person driving the mini-van (Bobby) TRIED TO RUN HIM OVER!

Hahahaha!!

My mouth dropped to the floor when I heard that one.

He also stated that we were chasing him down trying to run him over when we drove around to the back of the 7-Eleven.

It was hilarious!

He made up all kinds of other great stories too.

I haven't been to story hour in a long time, but let me tell you this one was by far the most entertaining one I have ever been to!!

After the trial was over we were informed by the prosecution that the defense intends to appeal the decision which means that the trial will go to circuit court and I will have to go back to court and testify again.

Let me just say one thing about the people that show up for court.

They are a FASCINATING bunch of people to watch!

It was totally funny to watch people walk in the courtroom in clothes that you KNOW they are NOT comfortable in.

Clothes that they just bought from Wal-Mart (button down shirt) that still have the fold and crease marks in them and have obviously never been worn before.

Guys who had long hair that they attempted to slick back, or put in a pony tail, or even one guy who wore a headband to hold his hair back.

Some people walked in with jeans and ripped T-Shirts on.

Some people came in very dressed up.

Some came in and pled not guilty when they were totally guilty!

There were tons of people in there for drunken/disorderly conduct...marijuana possession, and domestic violence.

I could have sat there all day watching people and their reactions to their verdicts.

And not one person was found Not Guilty by the way.

Not one.

I contemplated scooting over to traffic court to see what happens to those who unjustly receive speeding tickets.

But I figured that I was the only one who thought that.

I am doubting that I am going to have my day in court.

Because like everyone else today I am positive that I am Not Guilty.

But I don't think the court would say the same.

My Favorites

2012-01-16T10:26:00.001-05:00

For a while I have wanted a necklace from Vintage Pearl with my kids names on it.

But by the time I thought to ask for it as a present, it was too late to place the order for it to arrive in time for Christmas.

However, it arrived on the perfect day...the day that Sammi left to go back to Utah.

I was feeling all sad, but I had this beautiful necklace to remind me of how much I want to keep all of my children close to my heart.

Or my throat such as it is.

This necklace has quickly become my favorite piece of jewelry.

My other favorite is my Christus statue.

It sits on a table in the foyer of my home and reminds my family each time we leave and return that Christ is the center of our home.

We try to live in the world but not be of the world.

It is hard to not be worldly; the pull to be in the world is very strong.

We try to make our home, Heaven on Earth a place apart from worldly things.

It doesn't always work, with dogs barking and a bird squawking and rushing to get to this place or that.

But each time I look at this reminder of our Savior, it brings a little bit of peace...a little bit of calm...it reminds me that the things of this world are not important.

The Christus sits next to a picture of the Temple which also reminds me that my family is going to be together forever.

We have been sealed for time and all of eternity as a family.

It makes me happy to know that when I leave this world behind, I will still be wife to my husband, and mother to my children.

It makes me happy to know that I have family waiting for me on the other side of the veil, anxious to greet me.

It makes me happy to know that as long as I keep the covenants that I have made here on Earth, that someday I will be able to see my Savior face to face and not need a reminder of Him...because I will have the ability to place my hands in the palms of His hands and feel the marks in His side and in His feet.

Someday our home will be Heaven.

That is my favorite.

Bobby's Turn

2012-01-14T02:57:00.001-05:00

First step -- spacers. Next up -- braces.

Bobby is the last kid to get them.

Goodbye to another 5K.

Speaking of saying goodbye to money, I will be parting with $133.00 for that blasted ticket.

Bill told me that I should just admit to myself that I was speeding and get over it.

Not gonna happen.

7-Eleven Craziness

2012-01-13T05:00:00.000-05:00

So while I am thinking about the police and going to court...

...(which I am still totally mad over that *#!@ticket)

...I remembered that I hadn't told you a story about the craziness that occurred at 7-Eleven this past summer.

How I didn't blog about this is beyond me!

I can't remember exactly when this happened...which is probably kind of important since I have to go to court next week and be a witness about this event...I need to try and remember....

...In any case, there was one evening when Marcus and several friends went to a party out in Lucketts at the home of Hattie's birth.

It was my turn as the parent to do the carpool to bring all the friend's home...it was late at night...like 11:00 and I don't see very well to drive at night.

So I asked Bobby if he would drive with me out the get everyone and take them home.

His bargaining deal was that if he went with me, I would take him to get a slushie at 7-Eleven afterward.

I agreed.

So Bobby drove my dad's mini-van since we had a number of boys to pick up and take home and I rode in the passengers seat.

Once everyone was dropped off, Bobby, Marcus and I went to 7-Eleven.

As we were pulling in the parking lot, I saw a pretty good sized black man charging across the parking lot headed directly toward 7-Eleven.

I commented to Bobby that he looked mad.

As we pulled into a parking spot, the man reached the sidewalk of 7-Eleven and grabbed a guy standing on the side walk and started punching him!

I was in shock, but immediately reached over to the driver's side and started beeping the horn.

When the man heard our horn beeping, he turned around and started CHARGING RIGHT TOWARD OUR VAN!!

I couldn't believe that he was coming at us!

I yelled at Bobby to DRIVE and get away from him.

The way the parking lot was arranged, we weren't able to get back out the entrance the same way we came in unless we ran straight over the man.

I wasn't sure if he had a gun, so I told Bobby to drive toward the back of the parking lot and around the back of the building to get out that way.

As we were driving around the back, I got on the phone with 911.

I was reporting the incident and we were almost out from behind the building when lo and behold the guy comes running around the building from the front and starts charging toward us again!

The way he was running at us told me that he was high on crack or meth or something.

It was not the type of energy and power a normal person would possess.

I am on the phone with 911 and yelling at Bobby to throw the car in reverse and get out of there.

Behind 7-Eleven is very narrow, so there was no turning around...

...Bobby threw the van in reverse and we sped backwards at about 50 miles per hour.

I am screaming into the phone at the 911 operator that we need help NOW!

The dummy put me through to Loudoun County police first which was the wrong station...it needed to go to Leesburg police.

Finally they got me to the correct place and I was able to report what was occurring.

As we were backing up, the man gave chase for about half the length of the plaza building but then he stopped and ran off into the apartment buildings behind 7-Eleven.

Bobby credits his amazing video gaming skills with saving our lives....he says he learned how to drive and maneuver like that from video games.

Right.

Anyway...we left 7-Eleven and drove over into another parking lot to wait for the police to arrive.

In the mean time the man had punched a second person as well.

The police arrived and we gave our statement.

Oh and did I mention that I was in my p.j's?

A moo-moo in fact?

Yeah...that was spectacular.

As we were giving our statements to the police we heard all kinds of yelling and slamming of the garbage dumpsters behind 7-Eleven.

Wouldn't you know the dummy came back to the scene of the crime and got caught!!

As it turns out he didn't know either of the two men that he punched.

They were in shock too...neither of the two guys knew each other...they had just been standing on the side walk after having purchased their items at 7-Eleven.

It was totally crazy.

I told the boys we were never going to 7-Eleven again at night.

Nothing good happens there after dark.

I had for the most part completely forgotten about this incident until early December when a police officer showed up at my door to serve me a subpoena to be a witness in this case on January 17th.

I totally forgot to blog about it again until I got my ticket yesterday.

I think this is an open and shut case.

I will let you know the outcome next week!

Oh...and Bobby never got his slushie.

He didn't want one after that!

Not Guilty

2012-01-12T06:39:00.001-05:00

I. Got. A. Ticket.

First. One. Ever.

I. Am. MAD!!

I wasn't even in a hurry!

I wasn't even really speeding!

I was just DRIVING like normal people drive!

If I am going to get a freaking TICKET I want it to be worth my while!

I want to feel sufficiently penitent.

I want to feel like..."Oh...I got caught."

I WASN'T EVEN SPEEDING!!!!!

I AM NOT GUILTY!

You know that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you KNOW you are speeding and you pass a police officer and you start to do a little prayer to the speeding angel to let the officer not see you or be busy doing something else so you don't get caught?

WELL THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN!!

BECAUSE I AM NOT GUILTY!!

So here is my story.

Those of you who live in Leesburg will know exactly where I got pulled over

For the rest of you, I will try to paint a picture.

I was at the top of Edward's Ferry Road and Battlefield Parkway which is a brand new intersection that just opened up a few months ago.

There has been a lot of controversy over this intersection because it leads to a historic area and a couple of farm homes and the residents are upset b/c the new intersection is increasing traffic past their homes.

As I was sitting at the light, I saw a Leesburg Police officer...thus as I made a left hand turn to go down the hill toward Red Rock historic area, I was conscious of GOING SLOW!

I went down the hill and around the curves at 25 miles per hour.

However....when you get to the historic part of Red Rock...where all of the old buildings are...the speed limit changes from 25 to 35 miles per hour.

As MOST PEOPLE DO...I was increasing my speed b/c I KNEW it turned into 35!

As I was cresting the small hill, I saw an un-marked police car with it's lights on that had pulled someone else over.

My first thought was..."Oh, they are checking for speed...GOOD THING I AM GOING SLOW"

(b/c truthfully, I do speed down through there on occasion)

On the right hand side there is a housing development and there was a car sitting in the road ready to pull out into traffic.

As I passed the road and the car, I was approaching the 35 mile per hour sign...and then the car pulled out behind me with his lights on.

Another un-marked police car.

At that point, I didn't even THINK that I was getting pulled over for speeding.

I didn't get the pit in my stomach feeling.

I didn't feel penitent.

I didn't feel like I was getting caught for breaking the law.

I didn't pray to the speeding angel.

I thought it was a traffic check...

...to see if you have your license...

...to see your registration...

They DO those kinds of things here randomly.

I totally thought it was that.

NOPE!

FREAKING SPEEDING!

I was like WHAT?????

The officer asked me if I knew the speed limit was 25...I said that I did and that was what I had been doing.

He said that as I passed him I was doing 37.

But as I passed him I was like 100 Feet away from the 35 mile per hour sign.

So basically I was TWO MILES OVER THE SPEED LIMIT!

He informed me that one cannot increase speed until AFTER you pass the sign and then he recommended that I take an online DMV REFRESHER course!!!

I was so mad.

I could barely say anything.

I wanted to yell...

"WHY DON'T YOU WRITE ME A TICKET FOR TEXTING AND DRIVING BECAUSE THAT IS SOMETHING I AM REALLY GUILTY OF!"

I am totally positive that they must have a quota to make.

OH! And while I was sitting there the first police officer that had someone pulled over, finished with them and turned around and went and sat back in the SAME place as the officer had been sitting that pulled me over!!!

It was like they were shooting at rats in a barrel!!

I bet they got a lot of people yesterday!!!

WHO WAITS UNTIL AFTER THE SIGN TO INCREASE SPEED??????

I have to wait until later this morning to call the court and find out how much this ticket is going to cost me.

He told me it would be -2 points on my license.

Since I have never had a ticket before I have +5 point and this takes me to +3 points.

If I take a driver's course online it will bring my points back up to +5.

I am not sure if it is worth it.

I am not guilty I tell ya...not guilty.

Shopping, Snuggling, Eating, and Vampires

2012-01-10T19:11:00.001-05:00

On our last weekend of fun Sammi and I did some shopping at Charming Charlie's.

It is so much fun to just shop and look and not buy anything.

I don't get to do that with boys.

They think that is torture.

Sammi and I tried on lots of fun hats.

On Saturday evening we went to Cold Stone Creamery.

If Heaven doesn't have Cold Stone I don't want to go.

We snuggled on the couch by the fire that night watching Vampire Diaries and Say Yes to the Dress.

After church on Sunday we watched more Vampire Diaries.

It was a marathon to try and finish both seasons before she left.

We didn't accomplish our goal.

Sunday night we watched one of our all time favorite movies...Anchorman.

We were joined by Hattie for the first part.

Luna and Wilbur joined in for the second half.

At this point, we thought Sammi's flight left at 7:30 the next morning.

Before we went to bed Sammi and I printed out her ticket and found out that her flight didn't leave until 5:30pm the next day.

Yay!

We watched Vampire Diaries ALL DAY (while I worked on my laptop).

Then it started to snow.

Making it a perfect ending (for Sammi) to a perfect vacation.

Love you sis!

Utah Sucks

2012-01-09T22:06:00.001-05:00

Withdrawal symptoms have started...

...crying

...shaking

...thumb sucking

...rocking in a corner

I know what life must be like for crack addicts.

I won't get another fix until May.

Oh...and I really hate Utah right now.

Utah...you suck.

Grandma Bonnie's Blizzard

2012-01-04T07:45:00.003-05:00

Sammi hasn't seen her Grandma Bonnie in over a year.

She desperately wanted to go and visit while she was home.

So even though we knew about this blizzarding snow that was going to occur while we were there, we went anyway.

The drive up to Ohio was great until we hit Crawford County, PA.

The snow started in earnest there and got worse as we got closer to Grandma's Bonnie's house.

But while it was freezing cold and snowy outside, it was warm and toasty on the inside.

My niece Vanessa came up from Pittsburgh to visit with Grandma Bonnie and see us too!

It was Christmas all over again as we showered Grandma Bonnie with presents.

She loves wind chimes and Vanessa aptly thought of getting her this beautiful angel wind chime whose dress is what chimes.

Let me talk about the wind chimes for a minute.

I think they are creepy.

I really hate the sound they make.

My mother-in-law's house is not particularly air tight....you can hear and feel the wind howling through it every once in a while.

When it is blizzarding outside as it was...it gets really freaky.

At 2:00 in the morning, I got up to go to the bathroom...that has the worst window of all in it for howling wind going through it.

I felt like I was in a horror movie as I heard the wind screeching through her window and her window chimes outside that were whipping around like crazy.

I was positive that someone was going to pop out of the shower curtain and stab me with a knife.

I hurried back to bed and snuggled Sammi.

She didn't like it and scooted closer to the edge of the bed.

Later in the morning, she couldn't figure out why she was almost falling out of bed...she has no remembrance of me snuggling her.

When Grandma Bonnie came to visit us in October, she and Bill went to Ball's Bluff Battlefield and got a tour of it by our local historian, James Morgan.

He wrote a book about it and we were able to get a signed one for her for Christmas.

She also got a book on Oatlands Plantation...the place I took her too while she visited.

Grandma Bonnie's brother, Jack, used to call all her grandchildren "brats" in a loving way.

Here are Grandma Bonnie and her brats.

We did a lot of what we do best when visiting her....we play cards.

Vanessa brought her new kitten with her...named....BONNIE!

Grandma Bonnie doesn't really like animals very much.

She says she hates to feel their bones move around inside of them when she touches them.

She especially doesn't like cats.

I thought it was hilarious that Vanessa name her cat Bonnie!

I took a gazillion pictures of Bonnie b/c as you probably already have guessed...I kinda like animals.

Like have an obsession with them.

Especially cats.

Bonnie was a huge hit with Sammi...

...and Marcus too...that kitty cat didn't spend much time with her feet or body on the ground b/c one of us was always scooping her up and snuggling her.

One of us as in me, Sammi, or Marcus..

...NOT Grandma Bonnie.

I think she touched her with one finger.

She did observe though that she was a "nice" cat.

And clean.

Grandma Bonnie is big on clean.

Later after we left, I saw that Vanessa posted a picture on Facebook of Bonnie sitting on Grandma Bonnie's lap.

I am not quite sure how THAT happened.

It must have been a Christmas miracle.

More cards....cinch and rummy are the favorites.

I did a lot of smack talking at the beginning when I had a HUGE lead...like a hundred point lead.

But then the bottom fell out and I ended up loosing and coming in third.

The weather outside was still doing this....

...it never stopped.

I forgot what it was like to feel trapped in your house when it snows like this.

At one point I contemplated running into town to get a movie to watch (no TV at Grandma Bonnie's except the weather channel, the news channel)...

...but then I thought about the fact that I would have to put on my boots (that I dug out of the bottom of a box in our garage and had dust all over them from lack of use in VA)

...put on my heavy coat...

...clean a foot of snow off of my car...

...try to get out of her driveway and down her road which hadn't seen a plow all day...

...and drive on a slushy, icy, highway to find that they probably didn't have any movies I wanted to watch anyway.

So I talked myself out of it quickly.

I remembered that feeling from when we used to live there and I shuttered.

I hate snow.

My mother-in-law has a bunch of gorgeous cardinals that hang around her house.

There were actually four sitting in this tree when I took this picture.

Beautiful birds.

This was also a gorgeous scene of the snow coming down fast and furious on her flag pole that was all lit up.

We were at Grandma Bonnie's house for less than 24 hours.

Arriving at Noon on Monday and leaving at 10:00am on Tuesday.

It was a quick trip and we were sad to say good bye.

We love you Grandma Bonnie!

We will be back when you don't have anymore snow...which means July.

Winter Wonderland

2012-01-03T07:48:00.001-05:00

Sammi, Marcus, and I are visiting Grandma Bonnie in Ohio. It is blizzarding here! More details to come soon if we can make it out of here this morning.

2011 Year in Review

2011-12-31T09:04:00.000-05:00

2011 was a year full of challenges and stress...

...but in the end it was full of great blessings.

Here are some of the highlights in pictures:

JANUARY

Thundersnow 2011...it took Bill SEVEN hours to get home from work.

Marcus started planning for his Eagle project.

Bobby started planning for his Eagle project.

Sammi and Miles went back to college...Miles prepped for a mission.

My dad started going to the Senior Center...a very good thing for us all.

FEBRUARY

I hired house cleaners and fell in love.

Bobby turned 16!

Luna becomes a part of the family with mess making and drooling.

Miles got his mission call to Tempe, Arizona speaking Spanish.

MARCH

The first ever women's conference was held for the Potomac Crossing Relief Society.

I was so happy to have these women to work with in the Presidency.

I went to New York City to see Wicked with my best friend from high school, Carolyn Behr-Jerome.

...And forgot to blog about the rest of the trip.

I forgot to blog about the trip b/c I was in such a funk over knowing that I was going to loose my job.

My colleague Chris Doyle left IYD to do bigger and better things and I was left the loan woman in the Garden of Evil.

Marcus was accepted into the NJROTC program at Loudoun County High School!

Marcus installed the benches for his Eagle Scout project.

APRIL

Sammi got a job at Deseret Book!

She also got to go to a session of General Conference!

Bobby did his Eagle Scout project!

MAY

I got laid off from my job at IYD.

It was a devastating blow.

Bobby got his driver's permit!

The United States finally got Osama bin Laden.

The man responsible for the attacks on 9.11...is dead. Finally.

Marcus completed his Eagle Scout project.

JUNE

We took our annual family picture.

Marcus turned 15 years old!

Sammi came home for a couple of weeks!

Bobby got a job working out in Middleburg!

Bobby and Marcus both received Leadership awards for their Eagle Scout projects at Ball's Bluff Battlefield.

We vacationed at Heaven on Earth...Cape Hatteras.

Miles left for his mission.

JULY

Marcus and I made a quick trip to Ohio to visit with Grandma Bonnie.

Marcus and some boys from his scout troop had the honor of posting the colors at the dedication of some new artillery at Ball's Bluff Battlefield in preparation for the re-enactment in October.

Bobby and Marc went to youth conference in Kirtland, Ohio.

Bobby hit six feet tall.

Grandpa Joe finally got cataract surgery.

Bill, Bobby, and Marc all went on High Adventure and canoed on the James River during the hottest part of the summer.

Marcus had icky mouth surgery.

Still without a job and having a hard time...Bill took me to the temple for some peace and reassurance.

Bill and I celebrated 22 years of marriage!

AUGUST

The boys started back to school...Marcus a Freshman at Loudoun County High School and Bobby a Junior at Tuscarora.

My super friend Allison came for a visit!

Marcus went to NJROTC boot camp for a week.

I had an interview at Booz Allen Hamilton....

...and then I got the job.

I am still crying while thinking about how blessed we were to get this job.

Thank you, Heavenly Father.

SEPTEMBER

This stylish boy turned 45.

Our ward participated in a day of service at Ball's Bluff Battlefield.

First day on my new job was September 12th!

OCTOBER

Grandma Bonnie came to visit for a whole week!

We took her out to eat...

She and I made a visit to Oatlands Plantation.

Bobby and Marc went to Tuscarora homecoming.

And the after-party at the Bird's house.

Bill and I went to the long awaited Battle of Ball's Bluff Re-enactment.

Marcus officially became an Eagle Scout!

NOVEMBER

We bought a plane ticket for this girl to come home for Christmas!

Bobby got his driver's license!

I visited Occupy DC across the street from the Booz Allen Hamilton office downtown DC on McPherson Square.

We had an awesome Thanksgiving...but missed Sammi.

Bobby got a job at WEGMANS!

DECEMBER

Sammi turned 20 years old!

Family picture at our ward Christmas party.

Bill and I went downtown to visit the American History museum for my birthday.

All dressed up for the Booz Allen Christmas party.

The party was nothing like I have ever attended!

Potomac Crossing Relief Society Christmas dinner with another great Presidency!

I met up with a long lost friend!

Kisses from my boys on my birthday!

A live band at our ward Christmas party!

Sammi came home for Christmas!

Sammi and Marcus attend Military Ball.

Christmas Eve with my kids!

A fun Christmas morning!

Family Christmas picture before church.

Visiting the Degas exhibit with Sammi.

Closing out the year with lunch at Maggianos.

We are looking forward to 2012!

Maggianos, of course!

2011-12-30T20:25:00.000-05:00

Today we made our annual Christmas break trip to Maggianos.

It filled up really quickly after this picture was taken and was totally packed with people.

We are such regulars that they give the same booth every time!

(not really, but this WAS the second time we got to sit in this booth, which is my favorite)

Waiters never take a good picture of the family.

We got our usual...family style...

Good conversation until the food comes....

Pretty sure Sammi is telling Marcus not to text while at the table...

Spinach salad is my fav!

Bill likes the Maggianos salad with feta cheese.

The mussels are AWESOME!

While we waited for our second course, I wanted a picture with my children...

They didn't seem to want a picture with me...

Marcus is acting like I have cooties!

Sammi tells me to get away...they don't want a picture with me...

I pout and Bill yells at them and I get my picture.

I am sure the people sitting next to us with happy when our food finally came b/c of all of our antics.

Did we eat all of this?

Nope.

We each had a couple of bites and boxed it up and took it home.

We had it for dinner tonight and will probably have it again tomorrow night!

Who says we can't make a very expensive Maggianos dollar stretch?

Oh...and I had a gift card to Maggianos from one of my sweet friends for taking pictures of her sweet family...

....AND I FORGOT TO USE IT!

DUH.

I guess that is an excuse to go back again another day!

Speaking of sweet...dessert is the BEST part of the whole meal!

My absolute fav is the Tiramisu.

I hope they don't soak the bottom layers in coffee like I think they do.

I pretend they don't.

All is taste is chocolate goodness.

Bobby and Bill love this fudgey rich chocolate cake that has a licorice sauce.

I hate licorice so I don't eat it.

Marcus loves the lemon cookies and was devouring them quickly which made Sammi mad!

She looks a little chagrined for poking him and yelling at him...

But not for too long b/c she grabs his arm...

...and shoves it into his face...

Repeatedly....

The fun never ends with these too...

They kept fighting all through dinner b/c Marcus was sitting too close to her and his elbow kept hitting her in her lady parts.

It was funny to me...not so much to her.

Bobby and Bill doing Tim Gunn impression.

The fun never ends with these too either!

The people seated next to us got up and left...they couldn't take it anymore (and I think they were done eating) I hope.

Sammi and Marcus do not find their behavior amusing at all.

Especially b/c I keep taking pictures of it all.

This scene cause a HUGE uproar.

Marcus was totally grossed out b/c they put these cookies up by their noses...

...and then didn't eat them but put them back.

Marcus complained and then stated that it was ok b/c he knew which two cookies were the ones they touched and he wasn't going to eat those...

....at which point Bill and Bobby AT THE SAME TIME reached over and mixed all the cookies up.

It was hilarious.

Marcus still ate the cookies even though he was mad about it.

Just like I would still eat the Tiramisu even if someone sneezed on it.

And as we were leaving the restaurant...this little number caught the attention of the male species.

I thought they had seen money on the ground or a celebrity or something EXCITING by the way they all ran over there.

I thought for sure a car alarm was going to go off.

They finally pulled themselves together after several pictures and we were able to leave.

It was a great time at Maggianos.

I need to be their spokesperson.

Maybe they would give me a discount.

Young Single Adult Brunch

2011-12-29T05:00:00.000-05:00

A few days before Christmas, for a second year in a row, Annie Greene hosted a young single adult brunch.

It is a chance for us to get together with a lot of the young women who are away at college during the year and return home for Christmas break.

Annie hosts it since she has a calling to work with the young single adults....Melaney, Meagan and I get to come since we represent Relief Society.

We had some great conversation about everything under the sun...and we laughed a lot which is the best part!

Some Culture

2011-12-28T21:06:00.000-05:00

Yesterday Sammi and I went to see the Phillips Collection in Northwest DC.

The main exhibit there currently are works by Degas.

We love Degas.

Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take any pictures of the Degas exhibit.

The above picture was taken off of a website and is his most famous painting entitled Dancers at the Barre.

Sammi has a print of this in her room...it was spectacular to see the real painting up close and in real life.

It was HUGE!

What a treat to see it.

Degas in my opinion was a bit of a creeper.

He LOVED to watch ballerinas dancing, practicing, and bathing.

Much of his work surrounded ballet as an art form and drawing, sketching, and painting the dancers.

I do have to say though that even though he was a bit of a creeper...his artwork is beautiful.

Even though we couldn't take pictures of the Degas exhibit, we could photograph everything else.

The picture above is a Renior...one of my favorites...The Boating Party.

I used to have a print of this in our living room when we lived in Andover.

The frame got broken when we moved to Virginia and the print was bent, so I got rid of it.

I might have to get myself another one some day b/c I like it so much.

This is some modern art entitled New York City Lights.

It was a really cool painting.

This room was pretty awesome b/c it was just large painting blocks of bright primary colors.

I think this would look cool in a kids room.

I also loved this piece of artwork.

This was fabric that was painted....this would be cool in my basement!

(I am sure the artist would be thrilled to know I would put it in my basement...I just love it b/c of the bright colors)

Sammi and I both like this one which I think was called Outer Space.

Our absolute favorites though besides the Degas paintings were these two....

The one on the left is called Hide and Seek by William Merritt Chase.

The one on the right is called Macbeth and the Witches by Albert Pinkham Ryder.

I think I might have to get some prints of these two and find places for them.

The panels on the walls are actually the artwork in this room.

It was unbelievably gorgeous...the level of detail in the wood carving is so beautiful.

Sammi and I had a great time visiting the museum.

It was a rainy day....like pouring down cats and dogs raining...there is no parking at the museum so we had to find parking on the street (not an easy thing in DC) and we walked several blocks to get there.

We were pretty soaked by the time we arrived and even more so on our walk back to the car.

It was lots of fun though.

I am so glad that I have this time to spend with my girl while she is home.

I am also glad that she likes to visit museums and look at artwork just as much as I do!

We had a great girls day out.

Potomac Crossing Christmas Party

2011-12-27T11:32:00.000-05:00

The weekend before Christmas, our ward held its annual Christmas party.

I think it was the best one I have ever been to...and I was on the activity planning committee for YEARS!

I had no idea we were allow to staple lights up to the walls!

It made the ambiance in the room pretty awesome.

Bill and David Svir chat about hunting.

Marcus and Saxon are probably talking about Alex Alberro's hot new cousin Emily from Costa Rica.

The live band was AWESOME!

The food and the decorations were awesome too!

Bobby and Alex...bff's

A movie was set up in the RS room for the kids to watch...

The primary room held a service project of writing letters to missionaries and military people and sending the military a goody box.

Bobby and Chapman share an intimate moment...

We all got to visit with Santa!

A professional photographer was set up to take family pictures...LOVE that idea!!

We had a great time...the only thing missing was Sammi.

Christmas Day

2011-12-26T09:42:00.000-05:00

So here is the scoop...this is a loooong post.

If you have no desire to see what we got for Christmas or what we ate...I would skip it.

My blog is my scrapbook and for posterity...so this might be boring to you.

I won't be offended.

Much.

At 5:30 on Christmas morning, I was wide awake.

I couldn't believe it.

I had made Marcus PROMISE not to wake me up until 7 and now here I was awake and thinking about the food I was going to make.

I made myself stay in bed until 6.

When I could stand it no more, Bill and I both got out of bed and went downstairs...he to light a fire and take care of the dogs....me to start breakfast.

I tried something new this year...breakfast crepes.

The above picture is of the crepes themselves.

Last year Bill got me a crepe pan for Christmas...it is great!

I made eggs with ham, cheese, and red peppers and then folded them into the crepes.

Hollandaise was the sauce I put over top and it was a hit with everyone!

I forgot to take a picture of the finished product...by the time it rolled around that we were going to eat, I was starving and completely forgot.

I also make sweet nut rolls which is a tradition and everyone loves.

I was just finishing up the eggs when Marcus came downstairs, mad b/c I hadn't woken him up!

Bill went and gently woke up Bobby and Sammi and Christmas commenced!

Here are the highlights of each person's gifts from oldest to youngest:

Grandpa Joe got lots of sweet treats for Christmas this year and by far his favorite were the Stella Dora cookies that he hasn't had in a long time.

He got a couple of gift certificates to McDonald's and Chic-Fil-A....

Some slippers...to replace some that an un-named dog might have chewed (LUNA)...and a few other fun things!

Bill's two sons know exactly what to get him for Christmas that he would like....Xbox Live gift cards.

They are three peas in a pod.

On the package the tag for this gift said, "To: Bill Recovered From: Leesburg Police Department.

Long story short...I thought three presents that I ordered from different places and were delivered to our house were stolen off of our front porch.

This is one of the presents.

I filed a police report...called each of the companies to have the items rush shipped to my house...and lo and behold found all three items in Sammi's closet two days later where I had hidden them weeks before and forgot.

Go ahead and laugh.

Sammi got Bill a new watch that has the Salt Lake Temple on the face of the clock at the 12:00 position.

Bill's surprise gift was a wool sweater from LL Bean.

SOCKS! Just what everyone wants for Christmas.

Except that Bill really DID want these for Christmas...he was hamming it up b/c I was making fun of him for his exaggerated expressions when I took pictures of him...namely his mouth always hanging open as scene in the pictures below.

This is Bill's wool jacket from LL Bean that I thought had been stolen off of our porch.

I still feel like an idiot.

Marcus got his mama some yummy smelling Vanilla Bean Noel lotion from Bath and Body Works.

I have been dying to open this present since October when Sammi had it shipped to our house from Deseret Book.

It is my combined birthday and Christmas present for the next three years.

I absolutely LOVE this beautiful statue of the Savior.

I have wanted one for my home for the past 16 years as a reminder of his sacrifice and love for us.

I love that his arms are outstretched and open...I have recently completed an in-depth study of the book of Isaiah...one of the things that struck me during my study was the phrase...

"For all this his anger is not turned away but his arm is outstretched still"

...which is repeated a number of times throughout the book.

The Savior is always just and merciful...no matter what we do...we can always repent and his arms are outstretched to us.

And in contrast to that beautiful gift...I got an iTunes gift to buy the soundtrack from Sweeney Todd.

Gory and gruesome...but I can't help it.

I love it.

Bobby got me some lotion too...exactly what I wanted...Coconut Lime and Wonderland!

I have wanted a soup tureen for a long time and Bill got me this gorgeous one that holds over 5 quarts!

My favorite author of all time is Gerald N. Lund.

He has written numerous fictional stories that I love and has also written a number of doctrinal books that I love also.

He has a number of short writings that I have just discovered and was excited to get this book for Christmas.

One of the first presents that Sammi opened was a nice surprise...

....a necklace with her love's name stamped, along with the location he is serving his mission.

He sent her a package in the mail and she opened it at midnight when Christmas Eve became Christmas Day.

He sent her lots of nice goodies.

You will notice that Sammi is wearing footie pajamas...she is in love with them!

It was only fitting that she get a pair for Christmas too!

They have hot pink feet!

She got some yummy smelling lotion from Bobby which she unknowingly picked out herself, thinking she was picking out lotion for me.

Marcus got her an iTunes gift card...

This present was TO: Sammi From: Lynn Kurland (her favorite author)

Her latest time travel romance...I will have to steal from Sammi before she leaves for Utah and read it too.

Sammi started cracking up when she opened this present b/c she got these for her b-day and Miles sent them to her for Christmas too!

Several years ago, Sammi and I went to the National Museum of Women in the Arts in DC where she bought two prints that she really liked...

She was totally surprised to see that for Christmas I had them framed for her.

I wonder why she wanted Spanish language software????

Could it be that Miles is speaking Spanish right now???

Bobby has grown so much lately that his ankles hang out of everything including his p.j. bottoms.

A new pair was in order.

The anticipation is so great....

....then he notices the box says "Kohl's"....

Sweater for church..."Meh"....his EXACT response.

Same thing when he opened the OTHER sweater we got him too.

It was pretty funny.

Reminded us of A Christmas Story when the brothers open their socks...look at each other...and throw them over their heads.

This present he was excited about....

He wanted old man slippers...just like Grandpa Joe's.

Why?

I don't know.

Unfortunately the large (biggest size they had in slippers) didn't fit.

Best present for Bobby....

Video game.

Now it is my turn to say "Meh".

Bobby's friend Alex got him a present....when he saw it, he started cracking up...

A Hulk Hogan sock 'em bopper....

To give them strength before they play the video games.

Sammi got Bobby a book entitled, "Raising the Bar"...on being the best you can be in order to be a great missionary.

Bobby has been playing a lot of Skyrim...

....the are secret clubs to belong to and secret passwords....

...I don't get it.

In any case, "An Arrow to the Knee" is an inside joke on Skyrim.

He LOVED this T-shirt highlighting the joke.

Marcus got Bobby a video game for Christmas.

Big surprise.

Think he wants to play it too?

Probably.

Bobby is going to be our computer whiz...we hope.

He got lots of books for Christmas...

This looks like a good one that I might read too!

Rip and tear was the order of the morning and Marcus started it off in a big way...

He and his dad are soul brothers...Bill bought everything for Marcus this year b/c he knew EXACTLY what he would like.

This is a CamelBak to hold water for drinking when Marcus is out playing airsoft or at an orienteering meet.

He was so excited to get it!

This year was all about military gear...

Camo shirt..

Camo pants...

They fit just right!

Marc has been waiting for this present for a few months...

Boots to run in while at an orienteering meet...

Grandpa Joe usually gives out money, but this year Marcus wanted more things than we had the budget for so he asked Gpa to get him this duffel bag that ROTC was selling.

It will eventually have Loudoun County High School's logo on it and Marc's name embroidered too.

Sammi got him some books on CD since he enjoyed listening to one so much when she came home this past summer that she brought for him.

Bobby got him some Axe body spray...

The biggest present (that we were cruel and made him wait to open for a long time)...

...was an airsoft gun.

Yay.

More guns in the house.

Just what we need!

Here is the total package put together...minus the gun.

Once presents were opened, we ate breakfast and then got ready for church.

We only had 1 hour of service (normally it is THREE) and we were happy to be able to go and celebrate the reason for this holiday...the birth of our Savior.

After church we came home and promptly put our p.j.'s back on.

This year I decided that we would have prime rib for dinner.

I have never made one before, but it was really easy.

It smelled sooooo good cooking all day long!

We watched a movie called "17 Miracles" that Sammi got for everyone as a family present.

It was wonderful movie about all the miracles that happened to the pioneers on their way out to Utah pulling handcarts.

Those stories are close to our heart b/c of Trek that we participated in as a family last summer.

The movie was over about the same time the prime rib was finished...

It was medium rare in the middle...cooked to perfection!

I was so pleased that it turned out so nice.

Delicious does not even come close to describing how good it was.

In addition to the prime rib, we had fingerling potatoes, salad, butternut squash and rice dish, and mushrooms that had been cooked all day.

I made chocolate dessert crepes and several different kinds of cookies for our treat after dinner.

To say we were full is an understatement.

We made a call to Grandma Bonnie and wished her a Merry Christmas and then we watched Zookeeper and fell asleep!

It was a great Christmas for us.

I hope each one of you enjoyed your time with family and friends as well.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T23:28:00.000-05:00

Does your house look like this after you open your presents?

We had fun calling Wilbur back and forth and watching him leap over the mountains of wrapping paper and boxes.

We had a great day together as a family.

We ate.

Opened presents.

Ate.

Cooked food.

Ate.

Went to church.

Ate.

Cooked more food.

Ate.

Watched movies.

Ate.

Played with our toys.

Ate.

Talked to Grandma Bonnie.

Ate.

Fell asleep.

Ate.

Blogged.

Ate.

Went to bed.

That pretty much sums it up.

But you know I can't tell a story that quickly or without more pictures!

Details coming soon....

...when my stomach doesn't hurt quite so much.

I wonder why that is.....

Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T23:44:00.000-05:00

Christmas Eve is always amazingly fun, but also entirely exhausting of a day.

No matter how much I plan, I always have last minute things that need to be completed.

This year, it was three presents to wrap that didn't get delivered until yesterday.

It was also the idea that we would make treats to take to lots of friends and deliver them on Christmas Eve.

That was a great idea in theory...in practice...not so much.

As a family, we spent all morning making the above pretzels.

I coated in chocolate...

Marcus sprinkled...

Bill bagged them up...

Sammi tied them with pretty ribbon.

Bobby had to work this morning, but later drove me around to deliver them.

We were the recipients of so many fun treats and surprises left on our door step...

(thank you to the friends who delivered them anonymously...still can't figure out who you are, even with the clues!)

...that we wanted to give back to them and many more.

Some houses, like this one, we weren't so lucky and the friends had already left for the evening for their Christmas events...

It also took a lot longer to drive around than I had planned for...

...maybe b/c I like to TALK at each place?

At this house, we were greeted by Hattie's brother Angus when we pulled in the drive!

Delivering treats on Christmas Eve was a wonderful way to remember that Christmas is about giving not receiving...it is also great to see friends....

We also were on the receiving end at several places and came home with more treats!

Much of yesterday and early this afternoon was spent preparing food for tonight's meal.

We opted not to fondue this year as we did last year.

So we went with party food instead...

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Potato Salad

Sandwiches

Shrimp

Pepperoni and Cheese tray

Spinach Dip

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Chips and Salsa

Crackers

Chex Mix

It is pretty hard to believe that I am now the shortest one in the family.

Marcus is officially taller than I am.

He is about even with Sammi.

Bobby still towers over all of us.

After eating dinner we all went in to the living room and watched our favorite Christmas Eve movie and my favorite movie of all time...

A Christmas Story.

Even the dogs got a treat by coming in to be with us by the fire this evening.

Bobby promptly fell asleep after working a very long busy shift today at Wegmans.

When A Christmas Story was over, we watched our other favorite Christmas movie...Elf.

Afterwards we read the story of the Savior's birth in both Luke and in Matthew.

Finally we made everyone go to bed so that Santa could come down the chimney and deliver presents.

He did in ever so grand a fashion.

A now we are all off to dream of sugar plums dancing in our heads!

Merry Christmas to all!

And to all a good night!

Relief Society Christmas Party 2011

2011-12-23T05:00:00.000-05:00

It is such a joy to be a part of this Relief Society Presidency!

I love these ladies like you wouldn't believe.

From left...Meagan Getz, Melaney Tagg, Vanessa Bishop, Me

On December 7th we held our annual Relief Society Christmas dinner.

So much work went into this event and so many ladies helped.

I am so grateful for each and every one's talents...when we work together, we pull off some spectacular stuff that by ourselves we couldn't achieve.

Some have a talent for decorating...

Some for organizing...

Some for planning the exact right amount of food...

Some for singing...

Some for great talks...

Some for musical talent...

Some for bearing great testimonies...

Some for pitching in and cleaning up!

I am totally appreciative of everyone.

I feel like I didn't have to do much work...I think everyone feels that way, but a lot of work went into this night.

Here are some highlights:

We gathered in the gym for hors' duerves and a program that started off with singing Christmas Carols.

Tate Peterson then read us the story of the birth of the Savior from Luke

We heard great music from Tera Phomsopha, Melaney Tagg, and Ellie Williams

We invited the Laurels (16-18 year old young women) to join us for the event.

Shelby Anderson gave a talk on what it was like from Mary's perspective...how she was ridiculed...could have been stoned...how she gained her strength in the Savior and we must do the same during challenging times in our lives

Liz Weber spoke about the birth of the Savior...

Three of our young women, Tori Downs, Karoline Macias, and Christina Barbini, sang a lovely song...

Ashley Christensen spoke on the Savior's life...

Sally Dickson spoke on the Savior's atonement...

The program closed with a lovely duet of Silent Night by Betsy Henry and Kristen Coleman.

It was a wonderful evening that was enjoyed by all.

Here are pictures are everyone in attendance!

Military Ball

2011-12-22T07:28:00.001-05:00

Last night was Military Ball for the NJROTC program at Loudoun County High School.

The ball was a black tie event and held at Riverside Country Club...a pretty swanky place.

Marcus asked Sammi to be his date.

Well...he asked her to go with him to the ball and I listed her as his date on the form to which he got mad and said, "She isn't my DATE...she is my SISTER!"

I don't recall seeing a category to distinguish the two.

Notice the height difference between the two of them...Sammi has on heels...Marcus has a tiny bit of a heel on his dress shoe...he almost has her beat. I think flat footed they are the same height.

When she comes home this summer, I have a feeling he will have gone way past her!

Marcus was sure that she was going to get hit on by all the girls and he later reported that she did.

The food was apparently amazing...they had several courses, with their choice of main course being filet mignon with roasted potatoes and yams.

The ball was full of pomp and circumstance...all of the cadets and their DATES lined up and were announced into the room...toasts were made all around...a speaker gave an address...and then the dance began.

Sammi cut out at that point so that Marcus could enjoy himself with his friends and not have to stay strictly with her (a rule if you had a date).

Marcus came home about an hour and a half later.

He looked so handsome in his uniform!

We are very proud of him!

Waiting to Exhale

2011-12-20T09:21:00.000-05:00

You know what it is like when you have been holding your breath, but you don't realize that you were holding it and then you exhale?

You know how tense you realize you were and when you exhale you feel so good?

Well that is what I feel like right now.

Because my girl is home.

The pictures are blurry because I was walking quickly to get to where she was and still trying to take pictures at the same time.

Marcus got to her first...big smiles everywhere....

except on the guy that they are standing in front of who has his hands out like..."Really?....you have to have your reunion right here in front of my cart?"

Bill was commissioned to take pictures too...I am still jiggling trying to get over to her.

Now I am bouncing up and down b/c I am so excited and still trying to take pictures.

I stood still long enough to get a good one of Sammi getting smooched by her daddy.

I think she is cringing a little from the prickly mustache.

Finally I get my turn to hug her.

I want to smother her and hold on to her forever, but she thought that was a little awkward in the airport and made me let go of her.

I think I did have a death grip on her.

I am still trying to smother her with love...she is taking it all in stride.

I am so happy, I want to dance with her.

Sammi...not so much.

But she thinks it is funny nonetheless.

As we were getting Sammi's luggage and walking away with it...I noticed a blue tag on the bag that didn't quite look like her tag...it wasn't.

This bag belonged to a man named David...their bags look EXACTLY alike.

When her bag was no where to be found, we called the phone number on the tag...

...Lo and behold, he answered and said he just realized that the bag he grabbed wasn't his!

Fortunately he was still in the parking lot and was able to bring Sammi's bag in for a swap.

Bill told Sammi that this was probably fate...

...that she was probably destined to meet this man...

....that it would be love at first site and they would get married and have lots of babies.

Sammi guffawed at that one.

I told her the guy would probably show up and be old and bald.

Bill said he would probably be really "hot".

We then had a really fun time picking out people in the airport who were walking in our general direction and guessing that they were the mystery man.

You can imagine the fun and "interesting" people that the boys picked out to be Sammi's new love.

If the person was old or totally weird looking, they deemed that person to be the man coming to claim his bag and declare his love for her.

When David finally showed up he was really nice.

And balding just as I had predicted.

He was a marine in his late 40's and not bad looking if you are my age...28.

But if you are 20...not so much.

I am pretty sure that Sammi's eternal love is this guy:

(the one on the right)

who is doing his job right now, preaching the gospel and baptizing the people.

He has been out 6 months!

We are proud of him.

For now, though I am a happy mama because my girl is right where she should be:

Sleeping in her room.

I can breathe again.

Guess Who's Coming to Town?

2011-12-19T05:00:00.000-05:00

GUESS WHO IS COMING TO TOWN???

Arriving to an airport near you at 2:30 this afternoon.

I am so excited!!

I want to be like Buddy the Elf and scream it from the top of my lungs!

She's here until January 9th.

Unless we decide to lock her in her bedroom.

Which we just might do.

Merry Christmas!

Birthday Weekend Continued....

2011-12-16T08:56:00.000-05:00

My birthday fun continued into Sunday last weekend.

When I woke up, Marcus was already up and making me breakfast.

Egg sandwiches on toast are my favorite!

Later that evening, after church, Bill and the boys made a spaghetti dinner for me.

The flowers and balloons were sent to Sammi and I for our birthdays by my Aunt Ree.

I am hoping Sammi's lasts until she gets here on Monday.

Bill got me a super yummy thick rich chocolate cake with fudgey frosting from Wegman's.

It was awesome.

Bill thought it was too chocolaty.

I don't think there even IS such a thing as being TOO chocolaty.

Mama's boys.

Lovin' on their mama.

I think I forgot to make a wish before blowing out my candles!

In any case, my wish would have been to see Sammi and I get to see her in a few days!

Marcus gave me a coupon for my birthday...I am laughing my head off in this picture....

It is a pimple popping coupon!

THREE pimples a day for TWO WHOLE WEEKS!

It is totally awesome.

I love popping pimples.

It is similar to popping bubble wrap.

Although, Marcus is really strict about this coupon...if I forget to pop three pimples on any given day...they don't roll over to the next day.

After dinner we got to Skype with my girl.

That was lots of fun and just like having her at the dinner table with us.

But she didn't want her picture taken over Skype so she played dead.

I had an awesome birthday because I have a great family.

I love you guys!

Thanks for the presents and the great dinner!

(For my birthday present from Bill, I downloaded The Lower Lights new Christmas album...I highly recommend it)

Birthday Weekend

2011-12-13T13:59:00.000-05:00

I had a fabulous birthday weekend!

It started out early Saturday morning with breakfast at Chick-fil-A.

Have you ever had their little mini-chicken breafast bisquits?

YUMMY!

What I wanted to do most was visit the American History museum that is part of the Smithsonian museums in DC.

Bill and I debated on whether or not to drive downtown or take the metro.

We opted for metro and enjoyed standing in the sun waiting for it.

Bobby had to work on my b-day and Marcus had an orienteering meet for ROTC, so Bill and I were on our own.

I love coming out of the metro at the Smithsonian stop and seeing the Washington Monument at one end of the mall and the Capital Building at the other end.

One of the first things we visited was the exhibit on Julia Child.

Here I am standing in front of a replica of her kitchen.

It was relatively small for all the cooking she did in it!

Bill and Archie Bunker's chair.

Me and Dorothy's shoes!

My favorite exhibit was the one with all of the gowns that First Ladies have worn during their husband's inaguration ball's.

Bill loved the exhibits dealing with the military and the wars, particularly the early wars where long guns were used.

I have no idea what long guns are.

A very moving exhibit was the one on 9.11

This piece of metal was from one of the World Trade Towers.

The very best part of my day was seeing a friend I haven't see for 23 years.

This is Leisa Marie Bednaza Mowad.

She used to visit her aunt Debbie every summer; her aunt Debbie was one of my mom's good friends.

We spent a lot of time together hanging out and having fun.

She lives in Nevada now, but works for Southwest Airlines.

She had a flight into Dulles airport and we met for dinner at her hotel.

It was great to catch up and see one another again.

My birthday fun continued on Sunday!

Stay tuned for more details tomorrow!

28 Again?

2011-12-10T08:59:00.001-05:00

This cute little girl is turning 28 AGAIN today!

I guess that is the 13th time she has turned that age!

She is going to spend the day visiting the Smithsonian American History Museum with this cute little boy:

Afterward she is going to have dinner with a childhood friend that she hasn't seen in 23 years!

Happy Birthday!

Two Decades Old

2011-12-07T05:00:00.000-05:00

Two decades ago, I gave birth to this gorgeous girl.

WHAT?

TWO FREAKING DECADES?

SHE IS TWENTY YEARS OLD??

How is that?

When did that happen?

How did this sweet pumpkin...

...grow up so fast?

I'll never know.

I'm just glad she decided to join our family.

I wouldn't want it any other way.

Even if she does grow up and leave me for Utah.

I love you Sissy!

Happy 20th Birthday!

See you in 12 Days!

Marcus/Mom Date Night

2011-12-05T05:00:00.000-05:00

Friday night, I guilted Marcus into going to see Breaking Dawn Part I with me.

I called it a date night with mom and it was mom's choice.

Poor kid was mortified that he might see someone he knew.

Of course, he did.

The guy taking our tickets is in ROTC with Marc.

Then, a few girls that he knew sat behind us in the theater.

I totally loved the movie.

Marc was pretty grossed out.

Sammi needs to come home soon so I can watch these chick flicks with her.

Although she didn't like Breaking Dawn when she saw it with her roommates.

I told Bill he would have to go with me to see these movies when the kids all move out.

He said he would *never* take that bullet for me.

I told him he would have to find me a girlfriend then.

He said he would do me one better and get me a sister wife.

A rich one.

That can buy him some land on which he can hunt.

As long as she isn't hotter than me.

And as long as she likes Twilight movies.

We are good to go.

Marcus will be relieved too.

Svir, Bishop, Michaux Family Photos

2011-12-03T07:00:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago I had the wonderful privilege of taking some more pictures of great families.

Here are some of my favorites: