The Golfersfamily Page

2 important H's -hunting and haircuts

2010-09-15T09:25:00.001-06:00

H is for Hunting! The boys have been out several times with Jon and the dog grouse hunting. This time we remembered to get the camera out before they went. I love this picture with Delyla in her pj's and shooting her fake gun at a bird...Dalton is checking his safety and Darion is in his own little world!

I told the kids to pose for a Cristmas card - the redneck way and this is what I got. The only thing missing is a few more old cars in the background and a huge hound dog. Our dog runs the other way when the boys have their bb guns out - she's smart! Darion is looking at a huge bird trying to decide if he wants to eat it if he shoots it. He decided black birds might not taste very good. Thank heaven I haven't had to make any squirrel stew yet. Darion is getting better at aiming so I might be calling Brianne for a recipe...gross!!

Dalton was not thrilled with our progress here. He said "where are the dang birds". Can't get much more Texan than that - Sandy Squirrel would be proud. Our favorite quote of hers is "Don't take the name of Texas in vain!" We overdosed on Sponge Bob this summer and are still in a little bit of withdrawal since school started.

We are trying to teach the kids to be "tree huggers" - Delyla said this one it too big! I told her the big ones are the oldest and she said "mommy I think this one is even older than you". Well - I do have a birthday coming up - I'm runing a slight second to the tree - all three kids couldn't stretch around it.

Delyla is holding a used shot gun shell. Such a great combo of girly and tom boy. She came up to the door once this summer with princess shoes and a tiara holding a snake...

Peek a boo - a little heavy on the boo!

On to the second H - HAIRCUT. Now I know most of you think our family is anti-barber - especially if you saw us over the summer. Well, 30 mins and $45 dollars later we have 2 children who are almost unrecognizable.

Darion said he didn't care how I told the barber to cut his hair since I won't let him have an afro. Dalton wanted a faux hawk. It was actually really fun taking them to Taos to get the cuts done. Jon has a great golfing buddy that owns a salon there - he hooked the boys up with some style. Darion was very concerned that the girls would think he looked like Justin Beiber. I don't see the resemblence at all. Dalton just said he looked "wicked" good. ( He hasn't seen Good Will Hunting... )

Delyla just has to be in a picture if the camera is out. She got herself dressed this morning - nice color coordination. I have since chased her around the house and sat on her to get her hair brushed. She looks very presentable now. I love the bed hair though!

2010-08-31T11:25:00.000-06:00

Delyla and I were picking flowers and she brought me these teeny tiny purple blossoms. She said they were her favorite and that they'd be my favorite because they are purple. Girls are awesome aren't they?!

Here is my little mini me on our flower picking day. It has been much cooler the last week so we were wearing jackets - of course hers is pink. I took an adorable video of her and tried to upload it, but couldn't make it work. I'll have ot figure that out. She went up to a mullien stalk and said "Hey mom, look, it's soft." I explained that sometimes on hikes people use it for toilet paper because the leaves are wide and soft and thick (like Charmin;). After that she saw another one and said "Hey mom, look, toilet paper." She's so smart. In another video, she comes running up to me with a seedy dandelion and begins to blow on it. She blows like crazy and nothing happens - it is so adorable to see her try so hard.

This morning we're having an indoor picnic and watching Shirley Temple. I am in heaven!

Yesterday we went to the golf course in Taos. Delyla had a wonderful time. Jon got her a tiny putter and some yellow range balls. She ran all over that putting green. She said she's ready for a tourament now like Daddy.

Here she's getting a little how to from Jon.

Nice background huh? Overcast and windy day - green, green grass and blue blue sky in between huge puffy clouds. Jon's headed to the US Mid - Am today in Albuquerque. If he can putt, he can win!! Pray for a good putting day everybody!

Hey there Delyla

2010-08-24T10:31:00.000-06:00

Since I blogged about Dalton and Darion last week, I thought I'd talk a little about Miss. Delyla this time. She is growing so quickly. Delyla absolutely loves Dora! She also likes Strawberry Shortcake and Barbie and littlest pet shops. She loves to help me in the kitchen - we were making Chewy Brownie Cookies that day. She's really great at rolling them into little balls.

Delyla has a big opinion about what she wears - and actually a big opinion about what I wear as well. She picked out this outfit to match her new church shoes from Aunt Rita. She asks me every day when she wakes up if we are going to church today. She loves going - loves dancing and singing in nursery. I can't wait for her to be a sunbeam! She's our little sunbeam already, but she says she wants to be a sunbeam for Jesus. So precious.

Delyla absolutely adores her brother Dalton and does everything he does. If she's getting her picture taken, she runs to get Dalton so he will be in it too. They are 2 peas in a pod. My mom made the comment that she had always told me Darion would be easier if I had another child for him to play with - I can really see the truth in that with Dalton and Delyla. They play together often and with anything from mud to stuffed animals to dressing up. If Dalton has yogurt, Delyla has to have yogurt...if Dalton is putting on his shoes, Delyla puts hers on...if Dalton says "butt"...well, you get the picture.

Off to school

2010-08-17T11:31:00.000-06:00

The first day of school is just so exciting! Getting up earlier, eating a healthy breakfast for a change, wearing clean clothes and having combed hair. Dalton is starting Kindergarten this year and was thrilled to be one of the big kids. There was absolutely no way he was going to let us drive him to school either. He was determined to ride the bus with his big brother. Darion was being so sweet to him and reassuring him that he was going to have a wonderful day!

Dalton ended up with a wonderful teacher this year. With all of the budget cuts, they reconfigured what grades the teachers were going to teach. Dalton ended up with Ms. Jassmann - the same teacher Darion had last year for 4th grade. She is super and hearing that from Darion made Dalton even more excited. Darion is entering 5th grade this year and has an awesome teacher too - Ms. Ammerman. I told him last night we were expecting big things from him this year - after all, 5th grade was my most memorable elementary school year. He said - in an OH so TYPICAL Darion way..."Oh man...."

The boys were sporting the highest of fashion from Old Navy this morning. Darion in some "Sweet" red cargo pants and a Jaws T-shirt with new tennis shoes too. Dalton decided to wear his slick pants - which are evidently the coolest thing he has. He wore them with the ultimate Yoda shirt - it says..."read, you should". So hilarious. Dalton told me he looked really handsome this morning - well, I have to agree.

The boys posed for me in the yard and then we all piled in the car to go to the bus stop. Delyla watched for the bus out the truck window and the boys made silly faces for me. Dalton and Darion jumped out of the car and ran over to the bus without glancing back at their poor old mom snapping photo after photo and holding back tears. That is actually one of the funniest parts - for all of you that hang out with us often, you know that I should be jumping for joy that Dalton is starting Kindergarten, but still, I felt just as emotional as I did when Darion started. What a big boy! Delyla is home with me today since I didn't have to work and we've been cleaning and cooking and watching Dora the Explorer. She just fell asleep and the house is absolutely quiet - so wierd. What do I do now? I guess I start blogging again;) After all, I promised Kareena I would. Maybe I'll watch a cooking show too;)

To catch everyone up on what we've been doing the last while - I quit the daycare job - hallelujah!!! Jon is working doing construction still and loving it - playing golf (really well lately!!) every chance he gets and looking hot doing it;) I work 3 days a week at a beautiful store called Aldura. Jon's mom Carolyn is still living up here and insists on making our life that much more enjoyable by keeping the kids and giving us date nights every so often. Her sister Rita has moved up here as well and keeps Delyla for me on the days I work. How did we exist without them near before? Darion has grown into quite the opinionated, lazyish pre-teen - although when I ask and he sees I'm a little stressed, he jumps right in and helps me with a million different things ---and---he does it with a semi-smile. Miracles never cease. Dalton is as precocious as ever and dominates the room wherever we are - his little minion Delyla copies everything he does whether it is good or bad - and usually it isn't good.... She's gorgeous though. Delyla is a big girl now and was really upset she wasn't starting kindergarten too. She said maybe she could go when she's 4 since she's a big girl. No arguing with her - even when she's wrong. I wonder where she gets that trait?

We've been to a gazillion golf tournaments this summer and Jon has played poorly in a couple, but very well for the majority of them. He has gone back to being an amateur golfer which is much more enjoyable. I still love to watch him play. We celebrated our 15 year wedding anniversary on Sunday and had dinner over at the Batchelders. I am so glad we have such great friends here. Jon qualified to play in a championship level tournament for some ESPN thing that I'll have to get more details on to understand - but - the exciting part is that the tournament in is Las Vegas. Jon and I were married there and are so excited to go back together for the tournament. Hopefully we can get it all planned and have a second honeymoon - around the golf tournament schedule of course. I've been following Jon to these things for about 20 years now and they are still thrilling.

I think that might have to do for catching up on life for now. I'll try to upload some fun pics from this past winter - Darion was an awesome snowboarder and Dalton learned to ski - they already zoom around me on the mountain.

Off to a cooking adventure - hmmm.... lunch for just me.....wierd. Have a great one everybody!

Miss Delyla

2010-01-09T15:38:00.000-07:00

Delyla is a ham. She loves to kid around. Some of the funniest things about her right now are:

You have, I mean HAVE to call her Delyla. If you call her honey, or goof ball or anything, she says "I no goofball, I Delyla."

She is in charge of wiping in the potty department. We are potty training and she is super independant about it. - Super ewwww...thank you sanitizer companies

She loves to make faces. She'll say look and make the silliest face and then she'll tell you what that face is - mad, silly, sad, suprise!

She is all about her hair. We bought some spray in detangler stuff and she has it in her hand every morning. She says she wants pony tails, one or two...or honey buns (where you don't pull the ponytail all the way through). She'll choose her bow or barrette. She got an Ariel hair brush for Christmas and always wants to brush my hair with it. Not so hard Delyla!:) Too bad she's not so excited about brushing her teeth. We got some rollers for her hair and she thought she was so special - she looked adorable before and after, although you can't really see how pretty it was in the picture, believe me, she looked super sweet.

Delyla chooses what to wear. Even if it doesn't match. Even if it really doesn't match. I'm going to have to start taking pictures.

She has to sleep with her door open. She throws a fit if you try to shut it before she is asleep. I think she likes to see what we are doing - or what she is missing out on.

She thinks she likes Dora. She'll say " I watch D-D-D-D-D-Dora" like the theme song. We'll turn it on, but she never really sits to watch it. I know, Dad is saying...where'd she get that? I rarely sit through anything either.

She copies Dalton all day long. If I serve lunch and Dalton says he doesn't like it. Delyla doesn't like it either. If Dalton takes a bath Delyla takes a bath. If Dalton goes potty, Delyla goes potty. If Dalton says he wants cheetos, Delyla wants cheetos. If Dalton is talking about poop, yup, Delyla is talking about poop. If Dalton jumps off a bridge....well, anyway. Hopefully Dalton will grown into being a really good example, because she sure watches everything he does.

We are so glad to have our little Delyla.

Uncle Spanky

2010-01-09T15:27:00.000-07:00

Old McSpanky came to town e-i-e-i-o
And on his lap he has 3 clowns e-i-e-i-o

Jason (Jon's youngest brother) suprised us by coming to town the week after Christmas. It was awesome to have him here. Here's a run down of what we did: ate, watched football, ate, snowboarded, watched football, ate, watched football, snowboarded, ate....

It was so fun - now I need a diet for my new years resolution though!!!

Christmas at the Bohannon's

2010-01-09T14:23:00.000-07:00

Christmas was great this year. Ebay is my new best friend;) Living in an area where shopping is limited, we still were able to enjoy a wonderful Christmas. The tree was gorgeous and had a few presents for everyone. Dalton and Delyla were vigorously opening presents as you can see from the pictures. On Christmas Eve, they opened their pj's ( a tradition) and then we went to Gammy's to open her presents for them.

Christmas morning was super fun. Santa brought a bunch of Littlest Pet shop animals and accessories. The kids were having so much fun playing with them that we were able to cook and eat breakfast before even getting to the presents. It was nice that the morning was slow.

Darion's favorite present was a Halo action figure. Dalton's favorite was a big rig and a remote contral dump truck. Delyla really liked her Ariel pj's and panties. By the way...Edward was there...in my stocking...Isn't Santa the best?

In the past few years, we have spent Christmas with much more of our family than we were able to this year. We really missed having Mema and Poppy around as well as our siblings that are in Texas and Michigan. All in all it was very peaceful and fun to be home together.

Ho Ho Ho

2009-12-20T19:00:00.000-07:00

I walked into the bathroom to check on Dalton and Delyla tonight and saw this. They had the bubbles piled onto their faces and they were saying "HO HO HO" and laughing soooo hard. It was adorable.

Breakfast with Santa

2009-12-19T21:22:00.000-07:00

Every year the community center here hosts a breakfast with Santa. We always went when Darion was a baby and sorely missed it when we were in Houston. It was so much fun. They put out a spread of juices and cookies, breads etc. Santa is there to spend as much time with your child as they need. There is a puppet show and a craft. And...IT IS FREE!!! Beat that Houston;)

Delyla wasn't very comfortable with Santa, so I had to sit with her. She barely even looked at him. Darion picked up the Santa Dog of course and sat down with both of them telling Santa that he didn't really need anything...what a suck up! Santa said, "well, what do you want?" Darion replies, "well, a laptop would be nice..." Santa looked at me and smiled really big - thanks man. Dalton was adorable as usual. He was so shy, as you can see from the picture. Santa had to lean in to hear what he wanted. He said "a truck." So easy to please...for now.

The kids ate cookies and juice for breakfast and then we went and dropped them off at Gammy's to bake more cookies! Yea for Gammy! We went to Taos and shopped a little more. Bought some new vampire books so life is good! Missing all of my family and friends that are not here - and wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas!!

Walking in a Winter Wonderland... Oh Christmas Tree!

2009-12-13T14:46:00.000-07:00

We had an amazingly fun and exhausting excursion yesterday. A quest....for the perfectly imperfect Christmas Tree. Where we live is a little bitty house situated towards the front of a 10 acre lot. Up behind the house is beautifully forested state land covered in newly fallen snow just itching to be ruined by our fumbling foot steps. WE all bundled up like eskimos and went out with chainsaw in hand to find our tree. We stopped for the boys to roll down the hills, and make snow angels. We stopped to take a few pictures of the scenery too - breathtaking! WE stopped a gazillion times to put Delyla's gloves on - again. She was quite the primadonna on this outing. She didin't want to ride in the sled or walk most of the time, so we alternated carrying her and most of the pictures with her in them, she is crying or frowning.

At the end of about a 30 minute trek, we found the prettiest, strangest Christmas tree! You can see in one of the pictures, Jon in his brown jacket is laying in the snow with the boys waiting for Delyla and I to catch up - my mountain man with his chainsaw....mmmmm. The trunk of the tree splits near the bottom and shoots up nice and straight with two stems. It is very full and just looks so Christmassy in the living room. Jon just finished putting up the lights and we hung decorations. The living room is so tiny, that you can't help but brush up on the tree when you walk around the arm chair, which frees up that delicious piney smell. What started out as an adventure, ended as a cozy day in front of some football with friends on the way. I love Christmas!

This speaks for itself.....

2009-12-13T14:05:00.000-07:00

We had a family clean-a-thon this afternoon. While cleaning the kids came upon the stash of vampire teeth from halloween. Dalton distributed the teeth to all of us and we went on with our light work listening to the radio and picking up with our flourescent vampire teeth on. I went to check on the boys progress in their room and walked in to Darion biting Dalton's neck. I almost fell over I was laughing so hard. "They just wanted to see what it feels like" was the response to my "what in the world are you two doing???!!!"

A little later, Dalton and Delyla decided to pose for me. They attempted to bite eachother's neck, but I think Delyla was worried she'd get into trouble, so I didn't get much of the actress in her to come out. Dalton, on the other hand will put on a show at the drop of a hat. He told me how he would suck my blood and then I would suck his so I could be a vampire too.

Should I blame bad parenting, or Stephenie Meyer, Anne Rice, PC Cast? If my children grow up and become teenage goth vampires, I guess I can only blame myself. Jon claims no partnership in my vampire addiction even though he is very upset that the last couple of weeks of Vampire Diaries have been re-runs. Perhaps the entire family is in vampire withdrawal...I hope I get those Vampire Diaries books for Christmas or we are all in big trouble;)

The first hunt

2009-12-13T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics of Jon and Matt's first hunt. Here in NM, you purchase a lottery ticket for an elk hunt. If you win one, they tell you when and where to go. Matt got a tag this year, so Jon and Matt set out last Saturday, and every day there after until Wednesday, to bring home the prize. It was a horrible week for a hunt in my opinion. It was way below zero most mornings and a big snow storm came in that week too. But, in the quest for MEAT, Jon and Matt were whole heartedly invested in finding the herd. Luckily, the area that they were hunting in is near our homes, so they guys didn't have to camp out or anything. They hiked and 4-wheeled and drove. Jon said our Toyota Tundra could have been in a commercial with some of the terrain it went over. After all of their hard work, they didn't land an elk. Evidently there is quite a story that goes with the reasoning why, but Jon hasn't really shared it with me....... Beautiful place to hunt though, huh?

Remembering Thanksgiving

2009-12-13T12:53:00.000-07:00

We had a really quiet thanksgiving this year. Just Jon, the kids, Carolyn and I. We baked a turkey that was way too big and enjoyed watching football and playing on the computer together. The quintessential black olives on the fingers is always my favorite. Delyla wasn't sure about it, but Dalton ate an entire can on his own. Thank heaven he's not in diapers any more. The weather was beautiful and we got to relax in a clean house with delicious food. What a great day!

The funny things kids say...

2009-11-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

I just had to jot down a few of the funnies that the kids have shared over the last couple of days.

Delyla was getting into the bathtub tonight and said "look at my weenie!" We tried to explain that she didn't have one, but she is a child with an opinion and just kept saying "look at my weenie!" It was hilarious - I guess that's what happens when you have 2 big brothers!

Dalton was getting ready for church Sunday and came in to show me the hole in his sock. I asked if he needed help finding a sock with no holes and he said "No, mom, my sock is like the Holy Ghost!" Precious.

Darion told me in the car that he felt happy. I asked why and he said that Dalton told him that he was glad he had a big brother - that it helps him not have bad dreams. This was the most special thing. Dalton has been waking up with bad dreams alot in the past few months and he asked if Darion could sleep with him. Darion said he would and Dalton's sleeping way better now. Sweet big brother huh?

Although Jon isn't one of my children, sometimes it feels that way. LOL He mentioned that it is a full moon tonight. I said "oh really". He said I'd better watch out, that Jacob might come and get me. I said "one can only wish;)".

Darion also shared a great joke - Why did the toilet paper roll down the hill?
(Drum roll please...)
To get to the bottom... The Mahan genes are going strong in that boy. Wath out!

Sinnamon Rolls...

2009-11-29T14:26:00.000-07:00

I heard a really poignant lesson today at church and want to jot it down to share.

In Relief Society, as you walked in, you were offered a delicious looking cinnamon roll to enjoy during the lesson. For every sister that accepted a cinnamon roll, a priesthood brother would pay the price of 10 push ups. As sister after sister walked in, the poor brother doing the push ups kept going and going. After a while, a few of the sisters, seeing his strain and discomfort and later, pain, tried to return the cinnamon roll, but the brother wouldn't let them until he had paid its price. After about 200 push ups, he was convinced to stop. Sisters were appologizing and offering him the uneaten cinnamon rolls that he gladly accepted, but would not eat.

They made a parallel statement matching the cinnamon roll to Sin and the brother doing the push ups to Jesus Christ. The eloquent teacher wove this into a Thanksgiving, Christmas message stating, what better present to give Jesus Christ this season, than our sins? He gladly accepts our burdens and lovingly gives us peace, joy and hope in return. I hope that we can all try to focus on this in the weeks to come. I was really touched and moved by it. If you're not sure how to do this, but are looking for happiness and peace, please visit www.lds.org and watch the video entitled Lifting Burdens. This web-site offers encouragement and direction in ways only inspired by Jesus Christ himself. Love to everyone:)

Random pictures

2009-11-28T14:08:00.000-07:00

Here are a bunch of random pictures of us, Gammy, the Batchelders and friends. My computer is so slow to upload pics, that I don't have time to put any comments tonight, but enjoy looking at the cuties. There are pics from halloween, a birthday party for Darion, a party for Delyla, footbal in the yard and fun cooking at Gammy's house. We are having a blast in New Mexico waiting for more snow to fly. We're heading out hiking to find a Christmas tree this weekend - I'll post pictures of that escapade soon. Last time we saw a mountain lion! A little too much excitement for a Christmas tree hike. Happy holidays everyone;)

Jealousy will get you.......movie tickets!

2009-11-12T23:03:00.000-07:00

After talking to Kareena and reading Karla's blog, I whined to Jon long enough to talk him into advance purchase of tickets to New Moon! We can't see it Thursday at midnight - imagine driving home through a snowy canyon 45 minutes at 2 in the morning with elk and deer in your headlights! - no thanks! So, we got tickets for Friday the 20th at 9:00. Dinner and a movie night! Now, it won't be the same as going to the movies with the girls and oohing and aaaaaaahhhhhhing over Edward (and Jacob, if you like warm bloods - traitor Kareena), but I'll be going with my own version of Edward (minus the bloodlust). It will be so romantic - watching werewolves and vampires and then driving home...45 minutes...in the snow...deer, elk....full moon....... romanitc or frightening? I'll let you know:0)

Halloween

2009-11-10T21:27:00.000-07:00

So many adorable photos and not enough time to upload! Here's halloween. Delyla was an adorable pink bunny rabbit. We had the ears, bowtie and tail already and just bought her some pink sweats. Then...the amazing Alison made her a plush pink pancho which just made the costume. Thanks Alison!

I somehow didn't end up with many pictures of Darion. As usual he had 2 costumes. The first was terrifying - maybe that's why I don't have any pictures. The second is the dark masked figure. He loved it that no one knew it was him in there. He's pictured with Stanton -who was an exceptionally acted Inspector Cluseau. He's got the funny accent down - among his many talents. Darion and Stanton waited in line at the halloween carnival to enter the haunted house that the 8th graders do. Darion went in and promptly exited, requesting his tickets back. It was too scary!

Dalton was Bumble Bee from the Transformers. He wore his costume for weeks before halloween and suprisingly still wanted to wear it on the actual day. He loved it!

Jon suprised me by dressing up as a vampire...yummy... I can't really call this a family friendly blog and stay in this mind set, so we'd better move on.

I was a witch. Big stretch, I know....;)

Suprise snow sledding

2009-11-09T19:02:00.000-07:00

We've had quite a bit of snow already this year! It snowed on Sept. 16th! We've had a foot or so this month. In our past experience, it rarely snowed before halloween. Crazy...crazy fun! We're gearing the kids up for a big winter with our first sledding trip. Darion and Jon took in the most runs. Dalton was a little timid, but he went down a couple times. Although Delyla is smiling in the pictures, I don't think she really liked it. She tolerated it for the enjoyment of her brothers...She really runs the show.

Family Fun Day!

2009-11-09T18:33:00.000-07:00

We all played hookey today - it was great, even though we were setting a very bad example for the kids. Darion was thrilled to stay home from school (that's a no brainer). I was desperately in need of a day of R&R before my boss leaves for 3 weeks. Jon's boss was out of town...thus - FAMILY FUN DAY!

We had a huge breakfast and started dehydrating apples from a friends orchard. We started a batch of applesauce that lead directly into a batch of apple butter...yummo!

Around 11:00 we went with the Batchelders to Red River. There is a great park with a tennis court converted to a skate park and an awesome frisbee golf course. It was chilly while we were eating our picnic, but once we got out the frisbees and skateboards, and footballs, we all warmed right up. I've never played frisbee golf - there was reason to believe that I never should again... Dalton showed promise and Darion was awesome at jumping across the river to retrieve my wayward frisbees. Did you know that there are different frisbees for different shots, just like different clubs in golf? I can't wait to start scoping out the resale shops for frisbees now. We were at the park the majority of the day and it was so relaxing and enjoyable. Afterwards, we drove around Red River to see what had changed since we were last there - not much;) Life moves slower in the mountains for sure!

On the way home, we stopped to collect some really beautiful quartz like shiny rocks for Dalton's collection - precarious...a 4 year old with a rock in his hand. Please say a prayer every time the thought comes into your mind.

We came home and watched an awesome movie called Alaska. Totally worth searching out. A dad crashes his plane in Alaska and his 2 kids brave the outdoors to rescue him when everyone else seems to have given up hope. You should give it a try!

Now, the boys, without any prompting from me, are wearing vampire teeth and flaring up at eachother. It is hilarious! - And a little odd...

I'm searching for new crock pot recipes to ease the burden of figuring out what is for dinner at the end of a 10 hour day for the next 3 weeks. If you've got any great recipes, please shoot them to me. If I live through these three weeks, I'll be able to live through any job that anyone could throw my way. Wish me luck!

I am a retard and left the memory card from the camera in the computer today. Although I don't have any real proof, this day really did happen. I promise;)

Sunday afternoon at the Bohannon's

2009-11-08T22:00:00.000-07:00

Jon came to church with us today - it was time for the Primary Program, so he wanted to see the boys do their parts. So great! Especially since I didn't have to do anything but watch it for the first time in so many years. The boys did great!

Afterwards, we came home to watch some football. We do a family football tournament called Pig Skin Pick'em on ESPN. We all pick who we think is going to win and then we give out a silly trophy at the end of the season. It is really fun!

I made some popcorn for everyone. Jon and Delyla were eating on the couch and he said - "Gala, check this out..."

Delyla had fallen asleep right there. Luckily she didn't have any popcorn in her mouth. It was adorable.

I have concluded that the Dolphins bore her as much as they bore me.

Go Vikings!

Hello, finally!

2009-11-03T21:44:00.001-07:00

We got internet set up at the house today. Into the 21st century - at least partly...we still don't want to deal with cell phones. I've got so many things to share and pictures to upload. One thing at a time, I guess;) I'll start the updates this week! I sure miss all of my Houston friends - especially Sweet Mama K! I wish I was there to go see New Moon with you guys! We've already had some snow here - I'll upload some sledding pictures tomorrow. Can't wait to catch up on everyone's blog.

Last, but not least

2009-07-23T21:30:00.001-06:00

Just a quick note to have everyone take a look at the blog for the garden at www.hopefarms.blogspot.com. We'll keep you posted on what we're up to and on what's growing on around here!

A few more pictures

2009-07-23T20:51:00.000-06:00

Here are a few more pictures - starting with my absolute favorite. Delyla in her save the planet shirt, with pony tails and sticking her tongue out at me. This is her personality to a tee! Precious and Precocious!

Here's Dalton eating roasted marshmallows at the 4th of July church activity. The relief society prez has this big barn near Eagle Nest Lake where they shot fireworks. We all went there and ate sloppy joe's, roasted marshmallows, drank home made rootbeer and watched fireworks. It was a great night!

Darion is blowing out his marshmallow fire. What didn't come through on the picture, is that he has about 6 marshmallows on there! Sugar head!!

Delyla with her pig tails again waiting patiently for me to give her more rootbeer;) Cutie Pie!

One last one of Darion with a few kids from his rugby team. Darion wasn't actually the littlest kid on the team, but he was the fastest! It is a great sport. I was never familiar with it and can't say that I know many of the rules, but nothing is better than seeing your kid break through and score a tri! Gooooo Darion! We can't wait for next season.

The Wedding

2009-07-23T20:29:00.001-06:00

We were lucky enough to participate in the most romantic day ever last month! Matt and Alison, our best friends ever, had a special ceremony that blessed their marriage in the Catholic church. Their vow renewal ceremony was beautiful! I've never been to any kind of Catholic ceremony and I found it to be a wonderful experience. Alison's oldest brother Peter, we call him Father Uncle Peter, is a priest and he came to perform the ceremony. Paxton and Stanton were altar boys. A lot of Matt and Alison's family was present in the tiny little historic San Antonio Catholic church here in Angel Fire. The music was beautiful as were the vows and readings. The spirit certainly was present and there wasn't a dry eye in the place. That top picture shows Matt's mom Shirley, then Matt and Alison, and Hope and Peter, Alison's parents.

Here are Alison and I right before the ceremony. There is a tiny little room off to the side of the chapel that we waited in. It was girl time.

Here are the guys having their guy time right before the wedding at the house. Jon was Matt's best man and Alison's sister Patty, who is super awesome and fun and lives in Austin, was the maid of honor. We had a wonderful time.

Here are the love birds. Sooo romantic to see people that you love, people that you know have stayed together even when it was hard, re - pledge their devotion to eachother. Jon and I were both so touched by the whole thing.

Here are the Altar boys - Paxton, looking absolutely thrilled, and Stanton rubbing it in that he was thrilled to participate. The altar boys help with the host (their sacrament) - it was really cool to see Pax and Stanton working hand in hand with their Uncle Father Peter during the ceremony.

Here's Alison with her parents. Hope's jacket was soooo beautiful - just the same color as her eyes.

Here's a shot during the ceremony.

A great shot of the altar boys waiting for the ceremony to start.

Peter, Alison, Patty and I right before the mass started. Happy Day!

Miracles never cease!

2009-07-23T20:11:00.000-06:00

I finally had enough time to figure out a way to post pics that wouldn't freeze my computer! Hooray! It feels like a miracle. Now, I have a gazillion pictures to post. Here are some of the fun things about Angel Fire. Our friend Stanton is such a ham! Stanton, Darion and Dalton all tried the Euro-bungie at the resort. They get strapped into a harness that is elevated and then they jump and flip around in the air.

The teenagers that man the station though Darion was a hoot. They elevated him just about as high as he could go and then they would grab the harness and pull him down, bounce him on the little air mattress thing and let him absolutely fly. I think it might have scared him the first time, but after that, he was in heaven...almost literally.

Here's Dalton getting started. He was a little timid, but he got the hang of it and had a great time. Check out that gorgeous blue sky behind him! Man it is FINE here;)

Here are a couple of elk that we stopped to look at on the way to work the other day. They really come down to feed now that we're getting rain. They love the soggy areas. Elk are such big animals compared to the little white tailed deer we would see in Crosby. We did get the chance to see a mama doe with two little baby Bambis crossing the road the other day. The babies were so tiny and they had the little white spots on their backs. Adorable!

And last, but not least, this is Jon's bill board. Yes, Jon has his own bill board in Angel Fire. It is crazy! We had forgotten about it until we got to town. Jon was featured in a ton of promotional advertising for the resort when he was the pro, and this one is still up. What a celebrity!

Sunday fun

2009-07-19T17:10:00.000-06:00

We had a great morning at church and I am relieved to say that after the last few weeks! I'm not sure what the difference was today, but the kids were pleasant and calm. They have been entertaining themselves all afternoon and it has been quiet. I'm totally wierded out! I've been dinking around on the internet and found an amazing LDS Blog site just chock full of great stuff. It is located at www.pleasantsunday.blogspot.com . If I did it right, her tag should show on my blog to the left. I stole her playlist too - well, there was a link to get the HTML code. Those internet savvy ladies out there amaze me. I wish one of them would come over and teach me some more stuff. I feel pretty small when I'm trying to learn how to do something new.

I am so super thankful to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I have dear friends who are obviously struggling and feel impressed greatly by the weight of my gratitude for the spiritual knowledge I have gained over the last few years that has helped me through my personal struggles. I am a different person, a better person, because of this knowledge - this testimony of the mission of Jesus Christ - as well as the humble faith I have knowing where I came from, where I'm going and what it is all for. Thanks to some great missionaries for getting me started and to a great dad and friends for keeping me going even when I didn't deserve their help. I feel lucky today!

We are doing very well here in Angel Fire. The scenery is so majestic and the people are so kind. There's still stress and alot to get done every day, but I feel at home - even though I'm not in my own home yet. It will all come with time. Carolyn, Jon's mom is moving up here next month and we are so excited about that. She is going to fit right in up here with all of us crazy mountain living, nature loving people. Although I really really miss so many of my friends from Crosby, I truly know that this is where I am supposed to be. Thank goodness for blogging and facebook to help us stay in contact a little better! I'm horrible about calling people, or answering the phone for that matter, as you all know..... I'm sending huge hugs and kisses blown with cold breath your way guys! If you feel a cool breeze over your shoulder, it's me thinking about you;) Lots of love, Galadriel

Hello everyone!

2009-06-14T16:43:00.000-06:00

Man, it's been a long time since I updated my blog. But, being the dedicated friend I am, I will forgo changing the stinky diaper Deyla just walked up to me with, in order to update everyone on what's up with us...my nose is in utter peril, so I will type quickly...

Thanks to Matt's brother in law for figuring out the wireless internet that is allowing me to sit in the kitchen, smell the poop and type at the same time. Priceless...

We are awesome! Jon and Matt have been building a ginormous green house and we're planting up a storm in order to provide local produce for the hordes. We are having so much fun! We have named the farm Hope Farms after Alison's mom who is suffering from breast cancer, but determined to beat it!!!! Goooooo Hope! We are working on a grrrreeeeaaatt contract to provide produce year round for a really fancy restaurant here. If all goes well, we could meagerly support both the Batchelder's and the Bohannon's from that one contract. Very exciting indeed;)!

I am working part time at a real estate company for a guy from church. It is an awesome job and I feel sooo blessed to have it!

Darion is partying with his friends all of the time. They're playing video games, camping, reading and running around like mountain boys. Dalton does everything in his power to keep up with them - including adopting some of their not-so-catchy phrases. We've had to wash his and Darion's mouths out with soap to remedy that. Boys will be boys, I know, but my boys will not have potty mouths if I have anything to %# $&* say about it!!!!:) Just kidding;)

Delyla is a joy - not sure what else to say about her. She is still the easiest, most adorable little lady. She talked all the way through sacrament meeting today and everyone thought it was adorable, even when I was getting a little frustrated. She has a ton of teeth and would eat us out of house and home if given the chance. Her little pudgy belly sticks out and she is quickly
growing out of every stitch of clothing we 've got. She's so different from the boys. Just loves being outside and constantly laughs.

Alison and Matt renewed their vows this weekend - after almost 14 years of marriage. It was soooooooo romantic and beautiful. I'd never been to any Catholic service before and it was so different, but neat at the same time. Alison's oldest brother is a priest and he performed the mass while Paxto and Stanton served as altar boys. It was neat to see them participate and be so reverent. There was a great reception afterwards and everyone toasted their friendship with the Batchelder's. Several shared stories of how they became friends with them. The common element was that everyone felt an immediate kinship with Matt and Alison because of their genuine generosity and caring nature. Jon and I feel blessed to have them as our best friends.

We finally rented the Crosby house and have renters moving in on July 1!! Hallelujah for that. What a relief!

I have a beautiful little branch I attend here. We have maybe 30 people in attendance. We roatate serving in primary, young womens and relief society. I love it! The meetings are super spiritual.

I wish I could upload pictures to show you guys, I'll have to work on that. Miss you all;) Wish me luck with this diaper!!!!

Quick note...

2009-04-29T12:32:00.000-06:00

A quick note to let everyone know that we made it to Angel Fire and are unpacking and getting settled. The road trip was about 20 hours!!! The kids were angels since we were able to separate them into the 3 cars we caravaned up in.

I got up and looked out the window at the gorgeous mountains with billowing clouds rising behind them this morning and just felt a complete sense of home that I haven't felt in a few years. I could cry just thinking about it now. We've got alot of adjusting to do to get moved in and get to work, but I feel so peaceful and calm about it that I know this is where we are supposed to be;0) Darion decided to go to school with Paxton and Stanton for the last 20 days, so it is quiet. Jon is up in Taos playing golf. Matt and Alison are working. Delyla is sleeping. Dalton is playing monster trucks. Everyone just seems as content as I am to be here. I'll get out and start taking pictures for everyone soon;)

Lots of love and hugs to all of my Houston friends...missing you;)

Update!

2009-04-11T20:38:00.000-06:00

We are so lucky to have Matt coming down on the 25th to help us get moved to Angel Fire! (Best bud ever for sure - he wins the prize, takes the cake, scores a big one, deserves a gold medal and the purple heart) Yup, I just said the 25th. That's what I'm talking about people. Angel Fire here we come!!!!! I'm not overly excited am I? Our little 4-6 weeks was cut in half.

We've got people lined up to come look at the house Wednesday when we officially open it up for rent. We've painted every room except the laundry room. We've repaired all the siding outside and planted flowers too;) Our last project is to put down new flooring in the kitchen. We got really pretty oak laminate flooring for only 78 cents per square foot. Don't tell me if you've bought it cheaper...I don't want to know! We went to 4 different places plus looked at a ton online - I hate shopping. We had a contractor come over last night to bid the job of putting the flooring down. He wanted $2 per square foot. CRAZY! I told Jon we were going to do it ourselves! I can't wait to put it down. It is going to look so pretty!

Tomorrow is my last Sunday in the Pine Trails Ward. I have made some amazing friends here. I know there was a purpose for us being here, although Jon and I haven't quite figured out what that ultimate purpose was. Maybe we just needed to learn a few things. Well, we have learned alot about what we don't want. I'm not sure how I'll live without Sweet Mama K. She was my lifesaver in Crosby for sure!!!!! I am going to miss you a ton girl!

We're going down to spend our last Sunday with mom and dad at Surfside beach next weekend for Dalton's big #4 birthday and the beach! Bitter sweet! Then, we'll be packing up and moving out! Wish us luck. Hopefully my next blog will be full of pictures from Angel Fire! Yippee!!

The Countdown has begun...

2009-04-05T17:31:00.000-06:00

Well, one of our last projects on the house was completed today! We've got to do a little more painting and then we'll be ready to put the house up for rent/sale;) Angel Fire here we come!

Something really struck me as funny today: Why are we making our house so nice for someone else to live in it? Why do we do that? It's been good enough for us to live in the last 3 years!!! It seems so idiotic, but I guess that's what you've gotta do. Jon patched up a "jagged" corner where we knocked out a wall a couple of years ago. It took 10 minutes! Why didn't we do that a long time ago? So strange how we can live with things in our home halfway done. Maybe we'll complete projects in our next house. Maybe not! We planted flowers that someone else will get to enjoy! The house is gonna look so good - for someone else;0) Well, that's fine by me as long as we find that person sooner rather than later!!

We're going to sell a ton of our stuff in the community wide garage sale on the 19th. Come on over and buy my crap please!!! We're wanting to downsize our belongings to make the move easier. We keep moving boxes of stuff that we never even use! We're going to sell the dining table/chairs, our cool red couches, and a bunch of other stuff. How else are we going to fund this move???

Well, wish us luck and I'll try to keep everyone posted on our actual move date. Right now, we're looking at 4-6 weeks. Probably closer to 4! Yippee!!!

Playing catch up

2009-03-15T16:05:00.000-06:00

Man, we've been so busy I haven't had time to blog at all. Here's what's up:

The insurance man totalled (sp?) the truck! Yippee
Jon bought a 2001 Toyota Tundra
I packed a bunch of boxes preparing for our move to Angel Fire - hopefully sooner than later
I painted the bedroom - looks great
I withdrew Darion from school - homeschool is fun so far!
Jon traded our jet ski for a dirt bike - now the guy is wanting out of the trade because he doesn't know how to make the ski work - he's a jerk......
I spoke at church today - only cried through half of it - pretty good for emotional Gala
Gammy (Jon's mom) is here for the next few days to play
The boys are going to Gammy's to play for a few days after that
I'm worn out, old and crabby and counted a gazillion gray hairs this morning...

That about sums it up - I'm going to take a nap....................

Cox Radioand the park

2009-02-17T21:23:00.000-07:00

We had sooooo much fun on Monday! Don't you just love having a day off of school and actually having a plan? The Scouts had planned to go on a tour of Cox radio. It is a local company that houses 3 different stations in the same floor of a gorgeous hi-rise type building in a fancy schmancy part of Houston. Super Fun. After the tour, The Mullens and The Bohannons went to a great park in the Heights. Of course the pictures loaded backwards from the way I intended, so the park pics show before the radio tour pics. Someday I'll get the hang of it!

Here's David Mullens at the park. If you check behind him, there's a tail growing and although he wouldn't confess it in public, I'm pretty sure he was developing a huge craving for bananas. Here's another monkey - Darion's fellow scout, Jacob.

Here are the partners in crime - Darion and Quentin. Don't you just know that they are up to something? - watch out because it is probably no good...

Dalton is trying to channel Spider Man.

Here's the Princess of course enjoying herself at a new place. She has learned to ask for the pacifier now. She'll say "Binky". If you don't respond in a satisfactory amount of time, she will say it louder and louder until you present the pacifier to her. I think it's about time to let that little crutch go, but it is hard knowing that she's my last one...I want her to be a baby a little longer.

Here's Darion presenting his "I will not embarrass you mom" face. He succeeded. He actually asked a good question during the tour. He asked how you can get a job at a radio station...? The tour guide, a blonde, pony-tailed dude responded - to a room full of boyscouts and their siblings - that you really just needed to finish high school. Then, if you just hang around a radio station long enough, they will eventually give you a job... Thanks pony-tail dude.

Thank heavens this guy said he had a degree in communications. Or else, he has kids of his own and understands that we want our children to hear that nothing comes easy and you need to go to college....

The amount of technology was really amazing. They had studios for each of the radio stations. Everything was computerized. One of the radio stations ran almost the entire day without a person in the studio. Everything was pre-programed and pre-recorded. Did you know that when you listen to Paul Harvey on whatever radio station in whatever town, that Paul is actually broadcasting to 100 radio stations from the comfort of his in home studio? Talk about livin' the high life.

Although there were records hanging on the walls, all of the music was stored on MP4's. No more disc jockeys slinging vinyl or even CD's. Everything's computerized and most of the employees were there based on their computer knowledge rather than a love for music/radio etc. Very suprising to me!

All of the studios had amazing views of the Houston sky-line. Not a bad place to work if you ask me.

Here's a nice shot that includes pony-tail boy that was our guide. He's in the doorway on the left with glasses.

Kareena and I were joking that the only time we've ever really seen a radio station or anything like it was from watching WKRP in Cincinatti. We were dissappointed that there wasn't a cloud of smoke to walk through. We were sad that there weren't any neurotic, mal-adjusted, offensive, smelly DJ's with hang-overs to weave our way through on the tour.

We made it through the tour without our children embarrassing us. Although one of the leaders (whose name I will not disclose out of pity...) son's asked the tour guide when the tour was going to move on at one point when he must have been born. Hee Hee... It wasn't my kid being a cranky smarty pants!!!!!!!

We had a super fun day and I am so glad that we actually went and didn't blow the tour off. It was interesting and informative. It will give our children something to fall back on in the future. Hey, if college doesn't work out honey, you can go work at Cox radio!

On a side note, the insurance adjuster totaled the truck. YIPPEEEEEEEEE!!!!!

Saturday with Mema and Poppy

2009-02-15T15:46:00.000-07:00

Mema and Poppy tore themselves away from the beach Saturday and came to visit! It was so fun! They brought me a big box of books, which always makes me happy. The boys got funny new t-shirts. We visited and played video games and ate valentines cake. Dalton and Darion rode bikes with Poppy and we all played some vicious crazy 8. Of course we played Mario Kart too... What's a grandparents day without the wii? What did we do before it came along?

Delyla is modeling her riding technique in the adorable dress that Aunt Roxanne got her for Christmas. She can climb up onto the horse and says "Yee Haw". It is absolutely awesome. She melted Mema and Poppy's hearts by saying their names too. What a sweetie pie!

Here's me and Dad with Delyla. We kept trying to catch a picture where she was kissing on Poppy, but the camera was never fast enough!

Here's the Mario Kart Party! Look at that focus...major competition going on here.

Dalton is modeling his new Kung Fu Panda shirt with a tiny Mario on his shoulder. Darion got a really funny shirt that says something about the monkeys stealing his sister, but returning her because she talks too much... He wouldn't model it for the camera though;(

Mema was teaching Delyla proper phone etiquette here.

We had a really nice visit and we were all- especially Darion - sad to see them go after dinner. We need to get together more often! Grandparents are great!!!!

On a lovey note, I hope everyone had a sweet valentine's day. Jon redeemed himself from the sinking truck incident by taking me out to dinner Friday night (thanksfor babysitting Megan!!!) and bringing me home a beautiful box of chocolates and the most thoughtful card ever - he did more than just sign it too. He wrote me a note inside that was heartfelt and sweet and I am even more in love today than I was when I was 16. Hello Mr. Bohannon!

Welcome to my world...

2009-02-12T14:59:00.000-07:00

Yup, this is our nice truck as it sinks in the river...
If you're wondering how our day went yesterday, this should answer that...
You're probably quickly feeling concern that someone might be in it..., well, Jon crawled out the window and swam to his boat that was slowly floating away once the water filled the back seat.
You're probably really wondering...What the heck happened???

Well, first I married him....then he bought a sweet, expensive truck that we still owe about $20,000 on...then he bought a nice bass boat on ebay...then he went fishing at 5 am and due to the pitch black skies and murky water, didn't see all of the nasty algae stuff on the boat ramp...once he backed down and all four tires were on the slick sludge, that was the end of the clean new ford (too bad it wasn't 4 wheel drive)...Jon said he was trying to get it in gear and put on the emergency brake as the truck slid back farther and farther and then his buddy Randy was yelling "get out, get out", so he figured it probably was time to bail.

They waited around an hour and a half for a tow truck guy to come get it out - the whole time the truck was under water up to the dashboard and running. Nice...

After they got it out - which wasn't easy or cheap, Jon and Randy decided to go fishing anyway and Jon caught a big old 6 pound bass... Nice... BTW, for those of you who aren't married to fisherman, it is normal (evidently) for a fisherman to sink the truck and go fishing afterwards...I learned that valuable lesson yesterday.

When the fishing was over, we drove over to the Ford house and took a look at the damage...there was a crawfish crawling across the back seat and the truck stank to high heaven...when we opened the door, it was like a commercial and water rushed out...enough said.

Welcome to my world...if it isn't getting hit in the head with a golf club while giving a lesson, it's breaking your leg while doing tree runs on the snowboard... if it isn't showing up with a new truck in the driveway that I didn't know we were buying, it's sinking one...

Welcome to all the poor hidden women whose husbands are completely bland, normal and unexciting. Can we trade? Just kidding... even though he makes me crazy, gray and wrinkled, I still love him... most of the reasons I love him shouldn't be discussed in public...

Yes, we are insured and have gap insurance...pray that the insurance guy totals it... please!!!

2009-02-05T09:15:00.000-07:00

Question #1: Do you guys go to Sonic at happy hour and get slushies like we do? Well, yesterday, after a great morning and a fun afternoon at the park, we went to get sludhies. Dalton always gets a blue one.

Question #2: Have you ever seen blue slush barf? Well, I have. Yes, the pity party should begin about now. Last night, Dalton got the stomach bug that I had on Monday. We were up to our ankles in blue slushy barf until about midnight. Poor little guy. If our coloring is a little off next time you see us, don't think we're cold or ill - we're not... our bodies have been dyed by blue slushy splash off. You know, if it dyes your skin, lips, tongue when you eat or drink it, it probably doesn't do much good in your stomach. Well, I'll tell you that it doesn't do much good on the carpet either. Thank goodness for the carpet shampooer. Between stomach bugs and precious poochies, that shampooer is worth its weight in gold...

Needless to say, we'll be sticking close to home today - steering clear of any artificial dyes - and praying that no one else in the family gets the bug.

2009-02-04T13:44:00.000-07:00

All I can say is, that Brynna should pick on someone her own size!

Darion was obviously up to something here, the result of which I will never know - hopefully...

We tried to get some pictures of Delyla before church Sunday, but every time you would pull the camera out, she would turn her back and say no! Camera shy? I don't think so... Exerting her new found power? Yes - I'm in for it with this little one. She looked so adorable though.

Didn't she?

This picture is the reason that I am blogging today. This depicts Delyla to a tee! She was so over the top bossy on Sunday. She didn't want to be held, but didn't want me to put her down... that sort of day. The instant I put her in the car after church- before I even got out of the church parking lot - she was OUT! Then, I carried her into her crib when we got home, which usually wakes her right up, and went to make lunch for the boys. I peeked in before we ate, to make sure she was asleep and this was what I saw. Absolutely passed out. She slept for 3 1/2 hours. Being a bossy pants is exhausting - - -

2009-02-02T07:25:00.000-07:00

Jon's coming home today, yippee!!!! You can imagine how depressing his evening must have been last night. He was in Arizona with a batch of Arizona boys and a few Angel Fire boys playing golf and watching the FBR Open golf tournament - - - followed by a DEFEAT of the Cardinals in the SuperBowl!!! I just talked to Jon before he got on the plane to come home. He said people were crying openly throughout the airport. There was a thick depressed feeling all around. hee hee...

To lament the sore defeat, the guys all went out and visited several bars last night after the game. Now, to his credit, Jon had to fly out much earlier than the rest of the gang, so he stuck with some iced tea and drove the rest of the guys around from place to place. Sounds fun... He sounded exhausted and is planning to actually come home and NOT GO TO WORK today!!!!! That is a miracle... Dalton is really excited to go pick up daddy at the airport and Delyla is still asleep - crazy.

On a side note... Did ya'll see Marley and Me? Is HATE too severe of a word to use in regards to a movie? Give me your opinion...

We're getting along...

2009-01-30T14:08:00.000-07:00

Man, it's ez to find time to play on the computer with Bo out of the picture for a few days... Boredom? Yup! He's the exciting one in this partnership for sure! Add to that the fact that we've all had colds this week and have been cooped up in the house more than usual. I've also had muuuuch more quiet time without preschool this week. I can stay in my jammies a little longer and watch cartoons with the kids. Lazy, I know. Here's what I walked in on this morning. Dalton was giving the littlest princess a ride on a train. She was trying to jump overboard for the picture, but seemed to like it before I brought out the camera.

I walked in on this about 10 minutes later. You know that Delyla loves the puppy when she is willing to sacrifice the pacifier. The pup was chewing on it while Delyla held it. Lyla was laughing and thought that she was soooo clever. She is like her mother a little, I guess. Atleast in the goofball department!

Here, she hugged the pup and make a mmmmmwah smacky kiss sound. The princesses are bonding for now.

Puppy time

2009-01-29T15:35:00.000-07:00

Here's the precious little princess. Yes, princess is one of the names we are contemplating, along with a list of about 50 others. Darion is a little indecisive - and so am I. I wish he could get some of my more admirable qualities, but.... Anyway, she's here in the port -o-crib resting between the heart beat bear's legs. Thank goodness I haven't given away all of these baby things. They are useful for pups too!

Darion thought this was a funny pic to show how super small she is. His shoe is a little longer. Darion thinks she looks like she is going to race away. I told him - at this point she moves more like the tortoise than the hare...

Her adorable little face close up - she' s a little camera shy.

On to the other princess - Delyla is discovering the wonderful world of self-feeding. I mix just about everything with yogurt and it makes it easier to spoon up. Messy, but fun. After all, we want to give her confidence right?

Dalton saying cheese to show off the new hair cut. Now, grandmas are going to read this and say, what haircut? Believe me, these curly locks are fit and trim. You should have seen the state of the boys afros...every LDS mother's nightmare.

Darion's new haircut -----waaaaayyyyyyy better. You can't see it, but there are cool pieces that stick out from behind. He could be bald and still flash those baby blues and I would be suckered right in. I hope it is a few more years before he's interested in girls.

Awww Heck...

2009-01-29T10:56:00.000-07:00

Well, the New Year's resolution is trashed. How many of you have made it this far? My resolution was to refrain from eating the ever so convenient array of fast food available this year. I've been doing super well, not even a craving for a salty greasy french fry and a ginormous root beer. So here's how my resolution was crushed beneath 10 grimy little hands - well, 6 hands and 4 paws to be precise. Jon (the peron to blame) has been watching a million web-sites where people post pets to sell - I was unaware of course until my driving skills were necessary to pick up the "perfect" puppy...Did I mention said pick up was in Austin? My niave, sweet little heart got the best of me and made a household of 3 boys (yes Jon is included with the children) and 1 little girl eternally grateful - if no one steals the puppy. Jon came home Tuesday night with pictures of a group of adorable german shorthair pups. Shanny, our old chocolate lab that died last year, was half german shorthair, so we are familiar with the breed and have always talked about getting one someday. Well, someday became yesterday. What I assumed would be an easy quick drive to Austin turned out to be an exhausting drive 3 hours there with 3 kids...and four hours back with three kids and a teeny weeny puppy the size of a small hairless guinea pig. This little puppy is sooooo much smaller than Brett was when we brought him home. I was actually worried that the breeder lady had mislead me as to the day of their birth...., but the pup is eating, drinking, pooping and peeing. Aside from being so teeny that a misstep by Delyla would probably really injure if not kill her, she is great. She slept in the little kennel up on my bed last night. I was too afraid I'd roll over and squash her. She slept straight through until about 4:30 this morning, squealled (sp?) and peed on the carpet the instant I sat her down. She squealled and grunted through my morning work out with me - she grunts like a little piggie sometimes. Now, she's napping in the port -o- crib safely out of harms way(delyla is the harm...). I'll post pictures later to show you how adorable she is. Can't wait to show her off!!!

Anyway, because of the doggie trip, I ravenously tore into some McDonalds yesterday. It was awful, but it filled my belly for atleast 30 minutes until I was hungry for another meal... Today's nutrition has been better. I did eat a baked potato for lunch followed by 3 chocolate chip cookies though. Those of you who have had my chocolate chip cookies will know why I couldn't resist... and well, anything I make has to be more nutritionally sound than old Ronnie McD right?

Wish me and my resolution and the nameless puppy good luck...

Here's what we've been up to

2009-01-15T12:35:00.000-07:00

Perhaps this isn't the prettiest picture to start out with, but it's the one you get... We have been up to so many fun things since I blogged last! We're exhausted! The pictures loaded up starting with our most recent adventure... Michael P. Henegar to be exact. Mike is Jon's oldest friend. They've known eachother since they were about 13. Jon and I started dating when I was 16, so I've almost know him just as long. He's great! Super duper funny, majorly sarcastic and one of the most loyal friends I've ever known anyone to have. He's a carpenter and was down in the Houston area doing some work for his Aunt. He came and stayed for a couple of days and the kids had a blast. --so did we! We ate and ate (Ben and Jerry's mmmmm...) and played alot of video games. Eventually we went outside and here's Mike and Dalton teaching Delyla to do her first ollie on the skateboard that Darion got for Christmas!

Here's the scene for most of the time Mike visited. Let's talk about some severe competitive drive here... At one point I came into the room and actually heard Darion tell Mike that if he'd keep playing Mario Kart, that Darion promised not to trash talk any more. Now, trash talking is pretty common around here. We joke around alot and although I'm probably the least competitive person you will ever meet, I do like to win me some Mario Kart. It can get ugly. I don't blame Mike for disliking losing to a 9 year old. I only win when I'm playing against Dalton...

Yep, that's a $10 bill. Yep, that's a gaping hole in Darion's mouth. Yep, the tooth fairy paid dearly for that little pearly white. Quentin Mullens, aka "the tooth tank" was over playing with Darion the other day and well, things got a little WWF. Darion's already loose tooth got loosened all the way by Quentin's knee. Thanks to Quentin for relating the story of a tooth of his (or David's - can't remember) getting knocked out and the tooth fairy giving him $10 for it since it was sooooooo traumatic. That tooth fairy is such a push over.

Well, a little news about super chunk here... Delyla is all over the place. She has us all wrapped around her chubby little finger. She loves the little elephant purse that Gammy got her. She runs around all day and talks up a storm, most of which we can understand - amazingly. Her latest adorable babble is "Bath time." If it were up to her, she'd live in the bath tub. Wouldn't we all? Calgon take me away!

Here are the two studs Tony Hawkeing it up. Helmets are mandatory at our house - not good for the hair, but since the boys are going for the "afro" look lately, the helmets can't make it look much worse. Darion can't wait to hang out with Paxton and Stanton again so they can really help him to learn some new moves. Mom's moves aren't too cool anymore. Back in the day, I could atleast keep my balance, although I had some gnarly skate scabs... Hopefully my boys will avoid those for awhile - along with some of the other bad habits that little skater gang I hung out with had... Those were the days - Red Hot CHili Peppers and a half pipe... Rad

Here's Dalton's favorite Christmas present. A Transformers voice changing helmet. It was the hit of Christmas. All three kids fighting over it. Did I mention that there is no volume control? It's not a nap-time friendly toy, but it is pretty cool none the less.

Delyla got a talking purse, which she is kindly displaying here. You open it and it sings and there are adorable accessories that go inside like a plastic lipstick rattle, keys, a bracelet and a dollar bill. All very necessary items in the life of a 14 month old princess.

Here's the gang revelling in the Santa horde. The funniest thing was Delyla. After this picture, she noticed the plate of goodies that had been left for Santa on the fireplace. Well, she made a bee-line for the half eaten brownie Santa left. She grabbed it and started eating, not even considering that Santa probably has some heinous germs from traveling all over the world in 24 hours. Christmas was great though. Just us here at the house Christmas day. Jon miraculously had the day off and we ate and enjoyed family time. The day after Christmas, my parents came up from Surfside and we hung out and opened more presents. Then, the weekend after New Year's we went to Waco and had Christmas (and ham...) yet again with Jon's mom, and his 2 brothers BJ and Jason. Talk about present overload. We need another room to hold it all. A Christmas that we thought would be simple and sparce ended up being gigantic!

Yes, snow in Houston. Here are the kids and Brett having a snow ball fight before Darion went to school. It made us really homesick for Angel Fire! The saddest news now is that our adorable little Brett is gone. He was outside and we assume someone picked him up and decided to keep him. We are all still really sad about it. That little puppy who peed everywhere held a special spot in my heart... We're still hoping someone returns him, but it's been almost a week, so it is very unlikely. I hope they're taking care of him wherever he is!

Here's a cut picture of Delyla and Carolyn. We stopped through Waco before Christmas on our way back from a trip to Abilene. Yes, Abilene. You'll see the pictures soon enough. On the same weekend, the Bohannon's visited an Alligator Farm and went on a camping trip with the Batchelder's in Abilene. The only thing that could be more Texan would be shooting squirrels for dinner...

The Abilene state park is absolutely awesome. Doesn't it look like Paxton, Alison and Matt are soooo happy to be there with us? The park has a few of these awesome yurts - year round permanant tents that are circular. You can rent them to stay in. Well, Matt and Alison planned for us all to meet there thinking it would be about half way between us and... well, it was a nice drive for us, but is was really really far for them. What good friends to keep on trucking and meet us there anyway - 12 hour drives are really fun with 2 growing boys in the back seat who love eachother soooo much, not to mention the fact that you have to pack so much more for camping type scenarios (did you have to bring that Alison??? sorry for picking on you Matt...). We definitely got the easier drive, although poor Darion squished inbetween Dalton and Delyla's car seats - with the dog in his lap - well, enough said.

There was a fire ban at the park, but what's camping without smores right? These kids are all so good that they didn't even care that we didn't have the chocolate. They roasted marshmallows on the gas camp stove and didn't catch anything (except an occassional marshmallow) on fire. As Rachel Ray would say... yumm-o! Although Martha Stewart would have been mortified!!!

Here's Stanton with Delyla. He just loves the little ones and boy do they love him. You might be asking... "Where did they get those adorable hats, Gala?" None other than the amazing Alison of course. The Knifty Knitter strikes again! Cutie pies huh?

Here's Stanton with Dalton. There were some great hiking trails at the park. It was super fun to roam around until Paxton and Darion left the group to forge their own trail. We all found eachother after a sweaty half hour of running around searching. Jon, Matt, Alison and I were on the verge of panic when the boys just showed back up at camp. They really did a great job considering that it must have been a little scary to get lost. They saw another camper and told them what our camp site number was and the guy showed them where to go on his map. They found their way back and we didn't let them out of our sight the rest of the time - or maybe they didn't want to be out of our sight, we'll leave that to Sigmund Freud...

Here's a fishing dock that the boys posed on. Goof balls!

Well, here's the whole gang. We stopped to put the camera on a stump and get a group photo, and then another camper came by and offered to take a snap shot for us. You know, we've known Matt and Alison for going on 15 years now. They moved in next door to us in Denton, TX in 1995. We'd just gotten married and so had they. Paxton was on the way and we were all just niave college kids. We lived off spaghetti for atleast a year. They moved to Taos Canyon in NM shortly after Paxton was born and we visited them as often as we could. We eventually moved there too and for some reason decided to move back to TX. Not one of our most lucid moments... We'd love to go back - mostly to have our best friends show up and invite themselves for dinner, or to plant a giant garden and eat salad with Asian dressing for an entire summer and still not be sick of it! They're the best.

Here's Darion and his pet deer. There was this very friendly deer that they boys were throwing scraps to at the campsite. It was NOT afraid of us at all... I, on the other hand was a little skeptical. After all, wasn't it the movie Tommy Boy where they put the supposedly dead deer in the back seat and it wreaks havoc on their car? I didn't want a crazed deer wreaking havoc on my kids...

Here we are at the Gator farm prior to going to Abilene. Dalton is sitting on an alligator with Darion's assistance. Dalton was a little nervous, but Darion would have jumped right into the creak with all of the gators if they would let him. I keep telling him that Bindi Irwin is his soul-mate. You can imagine how well that goes over.

Here's Delyla standing next to a stuffed gator. She wasn't quite sure what to think, but she was a good sport. She was crying the instant the picture was over. Not as adventerous as her brothers - thank goodness, or perhaps, "yet" is the better word.

Here's the dare devil. He actually asked the guy that worked there in the red shirt behind him if he would get off the alligator and let him sit on it alone. Thank goodness the guy said no. How much is a mom supposed to handle in one day?

Well, that is it from the crazy Bohannon household. - for now

Pictures!

2008-11-24T13:45:00.000-07:00

Here is the ever so precious and precocious Delyla on her 1st birthday - of course, riding her princess Ariel scooter. She loves it!

Darion is acting like a turtle in the next picture. We were at the awesome Houston zoo!

Princess Delyla on Halloween - such a cutie pie!

Darion and Dalton as Batman and Indiana Jones on Halloween!

Delyla's first steps and her first 2 teeth - more on the way!

This picture is for Alison - remember when Paxton, Stanton, and Darion wore these PJ's? Here are the last 2 wearing them proudly! Our little pumpkins...
Here is a picture of Brett Favre. Yes, he slept in my bed last night...hmmmm

I wish this was in focus. Jon caught this picture of Dalton on the Carousel at the Zoo. He was sooooooo excited that Daddy was there. He waved every time we went around. A special day with dad is all it takes to make these kids happy... Meee tooooo!

Where are you?

2008-11-19T15:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I haven't had time to blog in a month! Well, I guess I can. Life is hectic though right? I lost around 35 pounds this week when I stopped keeping little Garrett during the day. I look and feel great! Too bad the weight didn't actually come off of my butt... (for those of you who need clarification - the 35 pounds was the little boy no longer coming to my house at 6:15 in the morning)

It was just more than I was willing to handle - having an extra three year old that is not biologically yours around is a ton of work. So far, this week has been a dream, quiet, easy. I will never complain about my angel Dalton again (well, atleast for a few days longer).

We did however gain a new member to the family - Brett Favre is his name and he is a 6 week old mutt of a lab type variety. He is sooooo cuddly and cute. Darion really needed a buddy and Brett fits the bill. I'll post pictures tomorrow when I can. Talk about precious. We were going to wait until Christmas to get him a pet, but a sweet friend mentioned her puppies were old enough to be adopted, so we took the kids by her house yesterday and Darion picked out his little buddy. My only requirement is that he picks up the poo.... and that the dog didn't end up being named after a pokemon character. I won in both regards and Darion named him after my favorite football player. Isn't he sweet? Now when Kareena called today and I told her I had to go help Brett Favre potty, I wasn't really lying! Hee Hee...

So many exciting things have happened in the past month! Delyla turned 1 and had a precious princesss party complete with castle cake and frosting. She loved eating the frosting and made adorable faces throughout. She knew that all of the fuss was about her and acted like quite a diva. She has us all wrapped around her finger! She took her first steps last week and will only attempt them when no one is looking. She's not quite sure what to think of the puppy at this point. She doesn't like it to be too near her if she is on the floor. I hope they warm up to eachother.

Dalton has bee having a blast with mommy almost all to himself this week. Daddy even stayed home and we all went to the zoo. He is in heaven and I think he is enjoying not having to share... not sure if that is good or not at this point, but we'll go with the flow...

Darion got 3 awards at school today! He was awarded a certificate for math achievement, and 2 certificates for kids meals at Applebee's - one for getting an A on his 6-weeks math test and the other for getting an A on his 6-weeks reading test! Gooooooo Darion!

Jon switched car dealerships and is now working back at the Friendly Ford here in Crosby. He has enjoyed the switch so far, but is looking for a change out of the car sales business. Who could blame him with the economy in such a state and the American car manufacturers in such a mess...

Me? Well, as we all know, I sit around with my feet on a silken cushion, eating bon bons and watching the food network. Wait, don't pinch me!!!! I'd like to stay asleep a little longer.... awww man, the dog and Delyla have both just taken a giant poo and it looks like they've been eating out of the same dog bowl... Calgon, take me away..... far.

What makes me happy?

2008-10-17T20:29:00.001-06:00

I've been thinking alot about what actually makes me happy and then tonight as I was looking through my camera and uploading pictures, it hit me, that I've got everything I need to be happy right here and right now. I've got a wonderful family full of love and kindness. I've got great friends all over. I've got a home to live in and a car to drive and I can almost afford to fill it up now! I've got an amazing, romantic, hard working husband and three unbearably adorable, smart and fun children. My parents are supportive and kind and thoughtful, as are my siblings. We all seem even closer than we were as kids. But most of all, even if I didn't have any of these things, I've got my faith to sustain me through any trial that could test my happiness quotient. I rarely lack the ability to "get happy" and have always been told by people that I just smile all of the time and radiate a kind of joy. I know that I am this way because of my testimony of The Church and of Jesus Christ. I wish I would have known it when I was younger.

Here are some pictures of my kids doing some of the things that make me happy. I have to live vicariously sometimes because I'm so busy, but it really shows that we do have some good times together! I had trouble posting the pictures where I could type around them, so here's the description followed by the pictures. Aren't my kids the bomb?

Hanging out with friends (here's Dalton with his preschool buddies) , Being a goof ball and laughing (Darion in his Indiana Jones hat being goofy at his birthday party), digging into some major chocolate without any guilt (I helped a little), being outdoors (a cool breeze), playing with Delyla (she has 3 pacifiers which made her very happy that day), a nice warm bath without interruption ( here's Delyla getting a bath after a messy dinner - she was too messy for the tub and went straight to the sink!), finding joy in everyday things (like a new park with a water area), a good book (this is my ultimate best day, A good book)...

2008-10-09T20:06:00.000-06:00

Well, I guess I am going to have to face the facts... The blogging world just can't have been the same the last few weeks without my clever ramblings blocking everyones network... It just seems that I don't have enough time to even wash my hair! We have been soooo busy.

My parents came to stay with us for a week and a half after the storm and then headed up to take care of my sister during her stem cell transplant (which seems to be going as well as it can be when you erradicate your entire immune system...). We had some fun and silly times while they were here. Luckily, once they spoke to contractors and got bids on repairing the damage their beach house took from Ike, the house didn't require as much work as they had originally thought. They should be able to move back in whenever they are ready, which was probably yesterday right? However, being the wonderful parents that they are, they are lovingly caring for Roxanne and I'm sure she really appreciates and needs the help.

Jon and I evacuated with the boys to Waco during Hurricane Ike and had a great time at Grandma's house with Jon's two brothers. I'll have to post the pictures. We ate and ate and ate and watched movies and played baseball. Good Times, Good Times.

When we got home we had a couple of days without power, but all in all, we were very blessed. We had food, power, and Jon home until the car dealership opened back up. It was heaven. We just never get to spend much time with him. Thanks to Ike, we got almost 2 whole weeks. Now, if we could get two weeks where we aren't evacuating, that would truly be heaven.

Once power was back on, we got back to the normal chaos that is the Family Bohannon. I am keeping an extra little guy named Garrett during the day. He is almost 3 and has giant blue eyes. Such a sweetie! He and Dalton get along really well. I keep 2 other kids after school too. They come home about the time that Darion does and the the party really starts. Now I know what all of those typical Mormon moms feel like. Six kids is alot to have around and I only have them all together for a couple of hours. I actually enjoy it most days and really am glad to be able to be a mom and work and earn money without having to put my babies in daycare.

We have a Great book club group. Most of the girls are from church. Most of the time we actually discuss the book. All of the time it is super fun, great stress relief and uplifting too. We have read some wonderful books so far. I'll have to update my Shelfari to show. We are going to tackle a few books this month in a round robin kind of way I think. I love to read and never seem to have enough time. I love to read a book that one of my friends says is worth my time. Just knowing that I won't be disgusted or offended or bored half way through is worth so much when my time is so limited. We're reading a book called Emma by Anita Stansfield that is a retelling of Joseph and Emma Smith's relationship. A little sappy, but enjoyable and romantic. We're also going to read a book called No One Can Take Your Place by Sheri Dew. It will hopefully help us to reaffirm our faith and give us all strength to be witnesses of Jesus Christ as times get tougher. The last Sheri Dew book we all read was so awesome. I have high hopes for this one too. The third book is called The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. It was recommended on Stephenie Meyer's web-site and sounds really engrossing . I imagine that when it is my turn with that book, that my family will be put on hold and I will be ordering pizza so that I can read it and read it fast.

My birthday came and thankfully went without too much of a bang. I didn't see any new wrinkles in the mirror, even if there are a few more pounds on the scale. Maybe the extra pounds are filling in the wrinkles for me. Maybe I shouldn't try to lose weight at all. Skinny or wrinkled? What would you choose???

I'll try to post some pics of my little sweeties later this weekend. Delyla has 2 little teeth on the bottom now and almost enought hair on top to do a silly little pony tail like Pebbles Flinstone. I imagine that she'll be walking any time now. Girls are so cool! Dalton has had a little bit of a hard time since the hurricane. I think he's been feeling insecure, which means "mommy, hold me... all day" , but we're living through it. Who can turn down an adorable curly headed three year old with elephant tears in his eyes? Darion is plugging along in school. Reading more each day and whizzing through any math or art they throw his way. Such a neat kid. Jon is back to work and though the market is in a slump, he is working hard and selling as much as he can. All in all, we are great. The only thing that could make it better would be a house that doesn't need a bunch of work and a view worth looking at out the window. But, we'll be happy wherever we are.

On and on she droned whether anyone read or not. Cathartic therapy.... blogging rocks.

On again, off again...

2008-09-30T13:13:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone! Just jotting a quick post to let everyone know we came through the storm just fine. We evacuated to Wacky Waco and had a really great time at Carolyn's (my MIL). We came back to Crosby about 4 days after the storm and had 4 more days with no power. It was fun and I absolutely loved not having a TV, but I did miss the computer. My parents had some damage to their beach house, but nothing too major. They have been staying with us the last week or so and are heading up to stay with Roxanne in the hospital. Her stem cell transplant is tomorrow and we are all praying that everything will go smoothly and that those fresh new cells will revive and heal her body. It's been chaos, but I'm loving every exhausting minute of it! Thanks to everyone that called and emailed wondering about how we are.

Good times, Good times

2008-09-10T14:45:00.000-06:00

Here are some pictures from the weekend I spent with Roxanne. First off, here is Delyla as I am leaving to go to Dallas. No remorse, no worries, excitement to have Daddy all to herself. We are always competing for his attention. She almost always wins and who could blame Jon for that? She is adorable. She was playing in the yard while the a/c man was removing our old unit. Quite the nature girl, like her mama... Here is a gorgeous picture of Roxanne and Kevin at the Pocket Sandwich. It was so nice to spend the weekend with them. I witnessed them constantly doing small, nice things for eachother. You could tell that they truly love eachother. I could cry (and have) in gratitude that my sweet deserving sister has finally found a guy that is sweet to her as well. Nobody's perfect, but we all deserve to be treated with kindness every day and they seem to genuinely try to do that. Gotta love 'em.
The Twisted Sisters...
On Sunday (yes, sunday... dad will shoot me for breaking the Sabbath...) Roxanne and I went to lunch and met up with my two oldest friends - (well almost oldest, I do have one friend that I've known since the 4th grade). Tanya (blondie on the right) and Alison (my redheaded step sister on the left). This is a different Alison than the infamous Allison Batchelder from NM. Tanya, Alison and I have such a long history. There is nothing as wonderful as a friend who has known you for so long, through good and bad choices, skinny, fat, happy, sad, pregnant, not pregnant, lonely or full of love. Any friend who could love you through middle school dorkiness and high school drama deserves a giant bear hug and a diamond ring. We joked about old boyfriends and friends and feuds. It was great! These two girls are so awesome and I love them so much. It was exciting to hear about their families and to know that we are still close enough be able to count on eachother. I'll have to dig up an old high school picture to post with this one some day. You know, all in all, except for Foxy Roxy being currently bald, we all look pretty much the same. Must be good genes.
Finally, I just had to post this picture. Delyla was in the living room alone for a second while Jon left the room. She was mesmerized by the Moday night foosball... I couldn't believe that she was so glued to the tube when it wasn't even Brett Favre the amazing playing. I guess we all have to start somewhere.

Can we say addict?????

2008-09-06T21:50:00.000-06:00

I'm here at Roxanne's using her sweet Mac computer with a FIOS connection. Talk about fast! I am in absolute heaven. My computer is just deplorably slow in comparison. I'm going to have to find a way to upgrade. It took me longer to pick a new background than it did to change it. It would have been hours, days, weeks, months of utter tedium had I attempted it at home. Isn't it cute? I am not addicted to blogging yet, but man, if I had a fast computer and a fast connection, you guys would be super sick of me... Lucky for you all, I'm still a dinosaur in comparison to most. Oh well, we can all have a dream.

2008-09-06T16:42:00.000-06:00

We're having so much fun here in Dallas! Last night we went to see a play called Moon Over Buffalo at a little dive theater called The Pocket Sandwich theater. We've always gone there off and on since I've was a teenager. It was a really funny, situational comedy where people were mistaken for others etc. I'll post pics when I get back home. Of course, we looked gorgeous!

Today we've been mostly lazy. We made some amazing sushi for lunch before Roxanne's boyfriend Kevin went to work. Ahi tuna, Salmon, Crab..... delicious! We followed the pig out session with a movie and 42 candy bars. We watched Juno and of course I cried so I'm all puffy and goofy looking. Overall, I think it was worth a one time watch. Anything that makes me cry isn't usually a preference for a second watch. Saddness sticks with me unfortunately. I work hard to be this perky person, people!

I do miss Jon and the kids so much, but am really enjoying just chilling out with my sister. She is a deep thinker and she loves music and movies and cross-stitching. She is such a hard worker and has strong opinions about things. We are like night and day in so many ways. We lucked out yesterday when we went to Baylor to meet her nurse for some testing. She didn't need to get the bone marrow biopsy after all - major relief, because evidentely it really hurts. Looks like she'll be heading to the hospital at the end of the month for the big stem cell transplant.

See everyone soon!

Peace and quiet.....sort of

2008-09-05T07:21:00.000-06:00

Well, I sit alone in a dark apartment contemplating my navel (as dad would say). I'm in big D at Roxanne's unable to sleep past 7:00 am - maybe I'll have better luck tomorrow on that . I'm lucky to be here at all... Our Air Conditioner went out on Wednesday afternoon about 2 hours before 3 extra kids and 4 piano students were going to show up. By the time the kids got off the bus it was almost 90 degrees in the house. Yes, I looked and smelled beautiful. The first repairman we had over thought we needed an entirely new system - a mere $8,000 - pocket change, right? Well, Jon came home in a panic and got the lo-down on what was broken and began calling other repairmen. Thank you that my husband is a salesman. After a million phone calls, he had secured us a new condenser unit for outside, parts and labor for $2000. Yes, I think Jon rocks too...

When we realized that we weren't going to have to sell one of the children to afford air conditioning (you can imagine the logic... 3 year old, a/c, 3 year old, a/c...) Jon let me hop in the truck and head to Dallas. Only a few hours behind the original schedule. I got here around 3:00 yesterday, starving and in sore need of a potty - I just knew that if I stopped along the way, Jon would call, change his mind about dealing with utter chaos while I was gone, and beg me to come home. So, I bee lined it here. I talked to Jon around 8:30 last night and the house seemed to be cooling off, so I think life in Texas will continue uninterrupted while I am gone.

We went to Fry's electronics extravaganza and drooled at the amazing computers, gaming systems etc. We shopped for CD's and movies. We got massages. Talk about full service electronics shopping. Yes, I said massages... They had these amazing massage chairs that gave you a full body massage while you laid there and jiggled in the middle of the store. If you closed your eyes, you almost felt alone...that is, until you hear the bass thumping some P Diddy crap in the stereo department. It was really fun to shop with my sister and her boyfriend Kevin. They really know computers and they really love all kinds of music. We came home and watched football and then the Republican Convention. Go McCain! Gotta love Sarah Palin too!

Well on to a new fun day with my sister! I can't believe I have 3 more days - I actually ate lunch without a kids menu late yesterday - weird. Although, we did get the crayons... we colored in the chili peppers at Chili's to benefit cancer...

Thanks a million gazillion to My Big Hunk for letting me come to Dallas. Thanks to Sweet Mama K, the most considerate person ever, for keeping my kids so I could hang with Roxanne - I owe you guys, although payback will occur in extremely different ways... I guess we won't go there... hmmmm

Ahhh, Friends...

2008-09-02T12:14:00.000-06:00

It has happened.... Dalton and Delyla are asleep at the same time and guess what??? I have no idea what to do with my time. Does that happen to anyone? I constantly feel like I don't get any time to myself and here it is, but I'm clueless what to do with it! Thank goodness that so many of my friends have cool blogs to check out. Although now that I have posted this, Jon will read it and know exactly why the laundry isn't done... oops again! I could read a book, but that would be lazy right? I could scrapbook, but we all know that by the time I get an idea together they will wake up. I could clean...but that is what I always do. I guess I'll just have to get the bon bons out of the freezer, prop up my feet and watch a cooking show. Eat your heart out Martha Stewart, I'm going to relax - well, atleast I'm going to try. Wish me luck!

2008-09-01T15:05:00.000-06:00

Here's Darion! Big 3rd grader!!! I can't believe it. He is so much fun too. Workin' the camera like a pro... Darion started school last Monday and said that he likes his new teachers. He is riding the bus this year and informed me that it is not cool to have your mom waiting at the bus stop, so I watch out the window this year with a sad tear running down my face. Pretty soon he won't like me at all...

Well, while Darion has been at school, I have been putting Dalton to work. He has decided that he wants to be a Chef, so when we went to Target this week, we bought him some plastic food (tasty and realistic...) for his kitchen. He is hilarious! He will take your order and prepare you something entirely different from what you ordered. Here he is giving me an order of pizza and french fries. My dream lunch. Luckily, this food is all calorie free, because the set came with donuts and brownies too. Dalton will not let the meal be over until he gives you the check and you pay (thank heaven for monopoly money).

What a little charmer. He expects a tip too. Just like his dad...

I thought I would be really in for it when school started back, but Dalton, Delyla and I have had some great days so far.

I am headed to Dallas later this week to help out my sister. They have postponed her stem cell transplant due to some insurance junk, but she still needed help with other appointments. I am so excited to go! A couple of days with no kids and a rockin' cool sister! I am sooooo lucky!

Here we are!

2008-08-24T16:09:00.000-06:00

Well this isn't turning out at all like I expected it too, but I guess it is going to have to do... My pictures are about as out of order as my house!!! Here's a catalog of what we've been up to the last couple of weeks. Jon's mom and brother came to visit, the kids and I went to the beach, we had a super duper family fun day that included the sport of all sports, bowling, which I totally kicked butt at!!! Here's Mr. Dalton who had his very own style of bowling. He would throw that ball out there with all of his might and it would literally inch its way down the lane, barely having any measurable momentum. Eventually, it would get to the pins. Thank you to the genius that created the bumpers which we all benefitted from. Dalton was sooooo in to the entire thing. We ate greasy nachos with Sprite and burped. He's got great potential! Talk about Quality Time.
Darion's victory dance after rolling a spare I think. He had a hilarious style too. If you know him, you won't be at all suprised that he sprinted to the line, spun the ball in a very ferocious, hyper way, and danced all the way back, all the while talking our ears off.
Here's the final score card. D Dog , of course is Darion, Bowser is Dalton, then I am Big Daddy and Jon is G Mama.... wait, what was that Jon?, I'm sorry, Jon stepped in and tried to falsify the truth so that everyone that reads my blog won't know that yes, here in plain print, there is evidence... I beat him ( I of course am G Mama... meaning Gorgeous and Great at everything)!!! Not that 132 is a score to be proud of, but, hey, I'll take a win how ever I can get it! Jon complained that the yucky lady sitting near us smoking like a chimney messed him up. Still, I beat him by a sizeable amount... please be sure to note the 2 strikes in a row, thank you very much!

Here's dad in his usual beach pose. It would be my preferable pose as well if I didn't have six little legs to keep up with.
Here's a visual of the lovely bowling shoes. Precious, and highly fashionable.
The most adorable bowler in the crowd, as well as the slimmest and most educated.
Darion sprinting to the line.
Jon playing with his pink ball. We won't really respond too much to that one, this is a family friendly blog...

Mom and Dad with the grand kids. We were at a fun benefit for an American Legion place where mom and dad go dancing. The kids had so much fun. Darion and Poppy are sporting their Indiana Jones hats and the quietest shirts they had. Dalton is wearing a ball cap that we call the "shorty" hat after the character in the Temple of Doom movie. There was a delicious roasted chicken dinner and a fun band playing mostly country music. I was the youngest babe there and the only one there with kids, I think, but my angelic children were soooooo well behaved, you would have never guessed that they were the same little tasmanian devils that I usually tote around town. Darion and Dalton helped serve food and then danced the night away!
The love birds... Mom and Dad have been married 40 years this year. Amazing that they could put up with eachother..... I mean, how lovely that they have endured through the good and the bad and been such amazing examples to us. Thanks mom and dad! Love you!!!
Dalton taking Mema for a spin around the dance floor.
Darion learning to do the Texas Two Step. He was really good at it by the end of the night!
Delyla, during the one moment that she wasn't eating the sand. Those were fun diapers...

Jon and his mom at Chili's.
Uncle BJ and the boys displaying their Mario and Yoshi action figures. They were lost forever about 2 hours later (the action figures, not the kids...)
Delyla the Diva wearing Gammy's necklace and eating cheerios. Quite the life of the party!
Darion demonstrating the finer technique required in the game of golf.
The gang ready to go out and hit the links.

Yes, our lives are as adorable as they appear on this blog, but don't be fooled...we have a dark side. Maybe I'll blog about it another time. Toodles!

The Mesmerizer...

2008-08-09T12:24:00.000-06:00

No, I am not a child abuser, but yes, that is one huge goose egg. This photo was taken about 4 hours after Darion had a run in with a grill at the park. It was super freaky as Darion put it. Within seconds of bashing his head on the corner of the grill, he had a golf ball sized bump. By the time we thought to take a picture of it, it was substantially smaller. Thank goodness...
They were playing some type of super hero game and of course D-Dog was totally into the speed and thrill of the game. He popped up from a crouched run and bam!!! Lights out mister!! He was really tough through the whole thing. My reaction was not "ideal", but it was motherly and I eventually pulled it together. We raced home, put ice on it and he was fine. We spent the rest of the day thinking up fictitious super hero names and powers to go with them. The most accurate description for Darion the rest of the day was THE MESMERIZER. Here's why: the Mesmerizer speaks, incessantly, lulling its victims into a restful sort of trance that unless he stops speaking, they can never snap out of. Yes, I was lucky enough to be the object of the Mesmerizer's attention the rest of the day...blah, blah, blah... Now I know what my mom and dad had to go through. I still have problems stopping talking sometimes. I couldn't tell you anything we talked about and I can't describe my relief when Jon finally came home and he became the next victim of the Mesmerizer's charm. Oh sweet release!
This afternoon I cam into the living room and saw Delyla engrossed in the activities going on outside. It was adorable. Even taking the picture didn't peel her attention away.
Darion and Dalton had a friend over and they were playing in the plastic swimming pool outside. I'm not sure if they could have been enjoying themselves more going absolutely crazy and making a huge mess. Hot summer days in Texas - gotta love 'em. Especially when I get to stay inside with the a/c on and watch through the window.

Oops, I farkled...

2008-07-30T17:06:00.000-06:00

Have you ever played Farkle? It is a super fun dice game. If I was as cool as Kareena, I'd take the time to find and awesome link to tell you the rules, but let's face it, there's no chance I could come even close to being as cool as she is... Anyway, look it up! You use six dice and keep score based on the rules - we looked them up on Wikipedia. The game is fast paced and even Dalton loves it, since he is able to roll the dice and there isn't a gameboard for him to mess with and make the rest of us crazy. Here, I'm attempting to put a little mojo on the dice with the rally hat on. I was showing Delyla how it's done, and as you can see, she was really interested.
The boys had to copy their cool mom of course by getting rally hats on and blowing on their dice too. Jon wasn't worried, he always wins everything... That is his, does she have the camera out again for that blog? face. Do your husbands have one??? This is all new to me.
After it all played out, Jon won - of course. He always wins at every game. I tried a last ditch effort to see if Delyla would blow on the dice, but she was not wanting to do anything except eat them. Maybe next time. We try to have a family game night once a week and we were soooo lucky that Jon was home for this one, even if he did win - by ALOT!

Bo's Big Day

2008-07-30T16:42:00.000-06:00

July 25th was Bo's 26th birthday (neither of us has aged since our 26th birthdays). He had the day off and of course it rained thanks to hurricane Dolly. We totally lucked out though!! We went to the zoo with umbrellas and saw just about every animal we could have ever wanted to see. There was a funny monkey with a tongue as long as his tail, licking the fence and eating lettuce. The tiger was swimming. A cheetah was just about close enought to touch - and eyeing Delyla a little too suspiciously... It was sooo much fun.

Before going to the zoo, we ate lunch at Fuddrucker's - yummy hamburgers... We ate delicious coconut macaroon cookies there that Jon decided were his new favorite. The next day for the actual celebration, I tried to recreate them instead of birthday cake. We had a tower of macaroons. We used leftover plates and napkins from Dalton's Cars birthday. The boys must have hidden out for 20 minutes to jump out and yell suprise. Jon should win a nomination for an academy award based upon his acting suprised performance. The kids loved it! He's such a great guy!

Fun Friends to the Rescue!

2008-07-24T11:30:00.000-06:00

We had unexpected visitors yesterday and it turned out to be such fun! Brianne and her kids Austin and Cali stopped by to play on a rainy day. The boys dressed up in silly combinations of random halloween costumes. It was so funny! They kept switching and would run in for help with costume changes. Dalton's combo of Darth Vader and Batman is my favorite.

We found the giant halloween costume box this morning and I am sure they will be having even more fun as the day goes on. We have a neat costume that could be used as Captain Moroni! Maybe we'll even get a Book of Mormon lesson out of this, who knows?

Jon is home today for a birthday celebration and since the rain is clearing up, we're heading to the zoo. Hopefully no one will be there and all of the animals will put on a special performance just for us!

OOPS!

2008-07-22T08:55:00.000-06:00

Not meaning to toot my own horn, Kareena chastised me for not mentioning my singing debut at the Pine Trails Ward... Scary ! Along with my lovely friends Megan and Brianne, we rocked the house with a rendition of Israel, Israel God is Calling - accompanied by the famous (perhaps infamous...) Kareena at the piano. We of course tricked it out by using the words of They the Builders of the Nation for the first 3 verses and ended with an accapella 4th verse from the actual Israel, Israel song. It was really fun to get together with my friends and share our talents. Our tribute to our pioneer heritage.

I never knew what all of the gibberish at the back of the hymnal was talking about where it shows songs with the same meter. We really had fun finding two songs with the same meter and singing the words of one to the tune of another. I guess even old dogs(moms, - same thing right?) can learn new tricks.

On the serious side though, it was a lovely experience and I really felt the spirit as I sang the song. Megan and Brianne have such angelic voices and Kareena tickles the ivories with splendor. Thanks to my talented friends for including me in the plan!

What a week!

2008-07-20T15:41:00.000-06:00

I intended to have the picture of Roxanne, my sis at the end of the blog, but here she is front and center as she would probably like it anyway... This picture is from when she came to visit just after Delyla was born. There's more about my cool rocker sister at the end of the blog.

We had a really busy and fun week! Jon has a great friend named Randy who came over and helped him rebuild the engine on an old jet ski we have. The kids had a blast riding on it. Dalton is quite a dare devil and wanted to go fast! He is certainly his dad's son... I'm not sure how I feel about that. I don't think I can handle two of them. We had a great afternoon bike ride. As you can tell Dalton was entertaining Delyla with something very funny. She is usually a little afraid to be in such close proximity to Dalton - he tends to be a little loud and rough, but they loved riding in the little bike trailer together.
Later in the week we actually loaded them up and rode to the pool. It was a wonderful excuse to not have to carry sooooo much junk (floats, toys, snacks...). We didn't miss anything and by the time we got home, we were pretty dry and Delyla had fallen asleep on Dalton's shoulder. It was just precious.
Darion got a great new bike this week. We ran his old one over with the truck;) The new one is silver and blue like the Dallas Cowboys. Go Dallas!!! He loves the pegs and yes, he has taken it off of some gnarly jumps.
Here I am putting up the facade that I am actually athletic. My bottom is really sore from the bike seat. They aren't very friendly on the rear that's for sure, but neither is having 3 kids...
Along with a double chin, I got a new haircut this week. I told my sister Roxanne I would post a pic of it. Believe me, this will probably be the first and last sort of close picture you will ever see of me on this blog. If anyone had asked other than Roxanne, I would probably have said nooooo way. Jon and I were on the way to have a hot date... I know, big shocker. Our last date occurred when I was about 5 months pregnant with Delyla and she is now almost 9 months old. He takes me out once a year whether he likes it or not... We had dinner and walked around the mall with most of the teenagers in the area. Afterwards, we went to DQ where we were by far the coolest people and had some ice cream. We read the personal ads in those want-ad type news papers and decided that we are pretty lucky to have eachother. If you are a SWF btwn the ages of 30-40 of medium build (as I am), your choices are DWM, 60-70 looking for companionship or GWM looking for a change. Prrreeettttyyy Scary! It was funny to look at and laugh though!

Up top is a pic of my lovely Sister who is soooooo amazing! She has been battleing Hodgkin's Lymphoma for over a year now. She's undergoing intense ICE chemotherapy this month and goes in for a stem cell transplant next month. I've never known anyone as independent as her. We are just like night and day. She's stubborn and brave! There are a million qualities that she has that I envy. She is really able to speak her mind, even if it is about something that will make her upset. She has strong opinions about things. Roxanne is an awesome seamstress and is an artist with a needle and thread. You should see that beautiful needle point, cross-stitch stuff she does. Anyway, she totally rocks from her balding (thanks to chemo) head down to her tattooed toes - well, the tattoos aren't actually on her toes, but who knows, maybe someday right Roxanne? I love you!

The spirit of fear

2008-07-09T16:49:00.000-06:00

It is so strange to me how snippets of life here and there end up linking together into big life concepts.

I was talking to my all time bestest friend Alison from Angel Fire last night on the phone and she worriedly told me she wishes we would move back up there. Now, this is a conversation we have just about every time we talk - I think it is a sweet way that we communicate about how much we miss eachother without getting sappy. But this time her request had a grave concern attached to it. She had read an article where the author had stated his opinion that the area around Houston would be the next place for a terrorist attack to occur due to the connection with important ports and resources, as well as the Bush family. I kind of blew off the conversation and we started talking about other things, but her fear for us stuck in the back of my mind.

Today, Jon was home from work on a rare day off and we went back to Kemah - our new hang-out I guess, hoping to experience the fun squirty, splashy fountains with the kids on such a hot day. Much to our dissapointment, they were under repair. We were lucky enough to be able to visit the Sting Ray Reef. It is really neat - you are able to pet and feed the sting rays. They don't feel anything like I expected them to based on their appearance. Darion practically dove into the water after his initial worries were over. No fear there!

Then, this afternoon, I sat down for a quiet moment and being the good little Molly Mormon that we all know I am, I was reading my Ensign. (I opened the plastic mailer cover first...It isn't quite mid-July yet, so I am doing better than usual in my intentions to read it through each month.) I read the first lesson on Heeding the Words of the Prophets by President Uchtdorf. Within the talk there was a scripture from 2Timothy1:7-8. I reads like this:

"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord."

This really spoke to me. If we have a sure testimony of the Lord, we have no reason to let our fears take over our lives. We are given the blessing of power, love and a sound mind. We can't let our fears take over, no matter what they are about - political, economical, personal...or simply the fear of a slimy animal.

Anyway, that is my rambling and rare deep thought for now.

I did it!

2008-07-07T15:59:00.001-06:00

For those of you that know me well, you'll understand my excitement that I have finally started my blog page. Not only did I find the time, I actually used the computer without the urge to throw it out the window! Miracles never cease... I hope to post often and share our summer fun with family and friends!

These are pics of my spotless, never spoiled, angelic children. Delyla is enjoying her very first cracker - very much... Dalton is piggin out on some watermelon. Darion is actually eating! I thought that some of you might want proof that it does occur and that it wasn't sugar;)

We took these on 4th of July as we enjoyed a huge BBQ luncheon that Jon made - delicious! After that, we went to Kemah and watched a giant fireworks show. It was a fun-filled family day!