(Online) Computer Help Needed

Hey - anyone know why I'd have a site show up like this (it's been this way for about 10 days now)?


It shows up this way on Mozilla Firefox and I.E. Any suggestions???

Announcement

So, we have a dainty little baby preparing to join our family in just less than 20 weeks now (see "ticker" above - there are 40 weeks total). Of course, they are already a part of our family, but they won't get the "real experience" until they are born and out of my oven of a tummy (P.S. I am showing now).

The announcement is that this dainty baby is a GIRL! We are so excited, and finally am starting on names. She was pretty darn modest the first ultrasound we tried to see if she was a s/he. Even this time around, her legs are pulled up pretty cutesy.

I told Brian, and the first thing he said is, "See, I was right." Yes, him and the kids have been convinced it was a girl from the start (with no push from dad mind you). I knew we'd have a girl, but wasn't "sure" it would be this time, but it was! So, I guess this is my "sign" of sorts that our family is complete. I knew we needed a girl to complete the family, and the Dr is getting hesitant with any more C/Sections after this one (which will be my 4th - not by prepared choice though!).

She is active, but less active than Brooke was in the womb. We will see how her personality fares to her less activity (my 2 oldest are extremely active kids). Wouldn't it be fun if she came out red headed like Bridger? Awh. Well, I know she'll be cute and adored however her genetic makeup determines. I am just excited.

I would also say this has been my most difficult pregnancy. I was the most sick I've been, but the meds helped take some of the edge off. I was tired, but that is pretty normal - just moreso because of the 3 kids and their 2 different schools and schedules. There's a few other medical things that have been a bit tougher this time around, but I am so happy to be having the last of our kids. Well, not happy to say I'll never have any more kids, but happy to know the decision is made (if that makes sense). It's been a bit of an emotional road for me though, but Heavenly Father has given me strength every time I ask for it.

Stacey Tagged Me! :)

So, I've been officially tagged (back in mid-Nov.)! :) Here's my answers:


Both hands in writing something

So, I wrote this up in mid November ... and took a pic of my writing then, but I'm too lazy to upload it now. ROFL. Just visualize writing decent/nice with my right hand, and not as well with my left hand. Ok - now you've "seen" the pic. ROFL!


5 of my 50/50's..

1. What is my favorite color? It is either TEAL or PURPLE. I love them both, and I switch back & forth as to which is my favorite.
2. Facebook vs Blogging.
3. Girls or Boys (in terms of preference of sex of child). ... Although right now I am looking forward to change as I've had a girl then 2 boys in a row. LOL
4. Dove dark chocolate or any chocolate thing Mrs. Cavanaugh's has (there is a local shop with a Cavanaugh family member that runs it). ...Mostly this has to do with money though. I'd get a bag of mixed chocolates from Mrs. Cavanaugh's if it cost the same as a bag of delectible dark Dove chocolate.... Ok - maybe this one didn't count - but I can't delete it now that chocolate is involved!!!
5. Amazon.com shopping or in the store shopping.
6. *Bonus* (if the chocolate one didn't count - or made you mad cause you don't have any chocolate around!) - The aroma of Wassail or the aroma of Apples & Cinnamon.

5 pet peeves

1. Anyone talking on cell phones in a line at a store.


2. Anyone texting more than once while you are doing something with them.


3. Anyone using the passing lane as a lane to "hang out" in indefinitely (until they have to get off an exit).


4. Anyone that is a very obvious bad listener.


5. Anyone that stares at a parent that is honestly trying their best to be a parent at the time.

5 things that don't mix well (mine are mostly food-oriented lol)

1. Rice and soy sauce or rice with "stuff" in it (i.e. "Fried Rice").


2. Pancakes and loads of syrup.


3. Hot foods and cooked nuts.


4. Cats & Mice (Cats & Rats - more likely ok together lol)


5. Lucky Charms - the mix of weird tasting cereal with really dried up marshmallows doesn't mix well - especially when you add milk!

***If you've read this, you've been "tagged"! Post on the same topics - with your own answers. If you have time, show us your handwriting with each hand. :)

Tip Junkie

I just discovered these new sites: Tip Junkie and Tip Junkie's ShopAThon. Just thought I'd add the URLs and let you all know that there are prizes being given away, so enter the contest! :)

November 21, 2008 @ 5:10 PM

If the title didn't spark a light in you, please still read on.... if you know what is good for you! :-P

If the title did spark a light in you, you are still reading... and you know what is good for you already! :-D J/K!!!

On the above date and time I'm going to go drag Brian with me to see Twilight. I've been a bit surprised with myself because I'm getting more and more excited to see it.

Possible reasons:

• It is a date with Brian. :-)


• "Everyone else" is excited - I mean, the tickets are getting SOLD OUT!


• I liked the book more than I had thought. >>>EEK<<< (I'm still leery of that conclusion)

So, onto why those that have not read the book (or had no interest in even touching them). Well, I was kind of in that category. There are a slew of different reasons why some of us don't/didn't want to read it. Mine was mostly that I had stopped reading a long while back because I'd get so much anxiety from having to reread a sentence (yes, a sentence) because my brain doesn't always run as smoothly as I'd like. Other than that I have always LOVED English (I've been known to write a few things on my own now and then) as a kid. I also thought it was a silly craze, and didn't want to be a part of the madness.

A great friend of mine had mentioned her interest in the book, and that is when for some odd reason, I decided to give it a go. After some deal searching, I went to Amazon.com to get it. I read it in about 9 days. I am not a read-the-book-all-night person. I did stumble on more than I'd like, but I read it.

My quick review of the "Worldwide Best Seller" would highlight these main points:

Negative - or at least quandaries that bug me:

• This first novel was no winner of fantastic awards in literature writing talent in my book. Off and on it actually kind of bugged me... I mean you'd think the editor would have said something to tweak parts to help the storyline flow with ease.


• This is a "teen" novel. I knew this in the beginning - but I hadn't accounted for the situations that would be involved considering much of the time was centered on High School activities and teens hanging out. What was I thinking? LOL Duh, it is a TEEN novel, Marian! :-p


• Bella. Hmm, well I just don't know what to say. "They" say we girls all relate to Bella, but I cringed at her non-reluctance with associating so closely with a young/OLD Vampire. I still cringe. I mean I know she is clumsy and a teen that needs a bit more direction in her life, but I'd hope she'd be a bit more smart. I know... "But what about Edward's eye soothing looks and gaze?" ...


• Edward. Why would he be interested in a teen? I mean he's built all this time in his "life" gaining experiences that have matured him... why would that make him stop where he is in life to be with a human teen? Yes, I know he'd never been in love before, but ... well, I dunno - I'm actually a little puzzled about how I feel about this.

Positive:

• I've not read a vampire novel of any kind, so it was fun to delve into something new.


• The story becomes addictive. There is action, fantasy, drama and sappiness which encouraged me to keep reading!


• I love the back stories of the characters. I think this is one of my favorite parts. They all have their angles in life that add tremendously to the story. They are the story.


• I read the first novel (Twilight) - so it passed my anxiety test. That is something for myself and the author to be proud of.

If you'd like to know some of the details in the movie/storyline go HERE. There is a lot of info - and my favorite was stuff about Stephenie Meyer's vampires.

Metamorphosis

Brooke learned yesterday in school about the coolness of tadpoles turning into frogs = metamorphosis. From what I got from the teacher, they looked in a book showing the stages, and were told to draw the stages and the names of the frog in that stage.

The teacher hadn't looked at the drawings of the kids very much, so when Brooke was showing me hers, the teacher did a double take, "Wow, Miss Brooke, I should have used your pictures for the example instead!"

Here is Brooke's example of the metamorphosis of a frog:


She made sure to tell me I needed to take notice in the changes of color in each stage:
Tadpole is light green,
Frog with tail is a little bit of a darker green:

And the frog (check out the FLY!) is a dark green:

And here is how she set it up to make a "book". Fold down both the top sides, then have the backs of the bottom ones touch. When the left top side is folded down you see the "frog eggs". It opens backwards for a book, but I thought it was pretty cool she tried to make a book in the first place. :)

Mom, Bridger's Doing Something VERY Bad...

So, our mornings are crazy. But, any mom that has ever had 3 kids and herself to get ready by 8 am, then driven to 2 different schools (and I think this could apply to many mothers) can relate easily. Well, during this craziness, I gave myself 10 minutes to take a shower, get dressed and do my hair.

10 minutes is a very long time for a child... apparently. They can find the dardest things to do in only 10 minutes = 600 seconds!



For example:

• Bicker with siblings while hollering, "Moooooooooooom!"


• Eat an entire box of PopTarts


• Reprogram your computer


• Turn the TV channel to some awful "adult" show


• Let the dogs loose outside ... front or back


• Climb on the counter/table/dog crate/desk/etc


• "Do" the dishes


• Get crafty... This is fun stuff! Permanent marker, pencil, crayon, colored pencil, pen on walls, decor, important papers, electronics etc. Or etchings of your name works great too!


• I'd rather not add more because I am concerned for the fear I may be putting into potential mother's mind/heart. It is great being a mom, I promise!

So, for today, Bridger did something especially fun. He broke the alt key in half on the laptop keyboard, and removed 15 total keys on the left side. Yes, you read that right. I put the esc, shift and ctrl keys back in place, but you can see the shift key is at an angle. I can't get the others on...

Yes, I still love this precious Child of God. In fact, let me add this experience to add to this thought:

Wednesday, I went to the baby Dr (everything is great), then to the store with Spencer and Bridger. The boys were being a bit of a "handful", but not being screamy or horrible... I still had much patience with them. Anyway, we were waiting at the Deli, and this lady kept giving me "the look". You know, the one where you wonder if she ever had any kids of her own (turns out she did - 2 sets of twins a couple of years a part!). So, I'm just smiling though, and trying not to read into the stares.

She then says, "I almost feel bad for you."

I was taken back, but quickly smiled and replied, "Oh, don't feel bad, I love them."

And I do! ALL of them. :)

Six-Year-Old Brooke's Drawings October 2008

I don't know if I've mentioned it to you all, but Brooke LOVES drawing! Of course her favorite animal is a horse, so her drawings tend to start with a horse. She has other drawings of other animals - and I will make a video of them when I get a chance. But, this is current! October 2, 2008 she drew these. :)

Other YouTube videos of ours posted here:

http://www.youtube.com/user/maidmarian4

Flurry Day

So, this is delayed... but who cares, right!?
October 11, 2008 we had our first snow here in Utah! The kids were excited and ran outside as I ran to my camera. Here are the pics from that "storm".

Fetus Super Travel and 18 mth old Heights!

I just finished playing with the kids in "Brooke's room" (before, we had all three kids in one room, and used the other for a playroom. Now, we have the "Boys room" and "Brooke and the baby's room")...

Anyway, they had fun talking to the baby in my tummy. Brooke made a "scary" noise, and Spencer told the baby to run away.

I said, "Where is the baby going to run away to?"

Spencer replied matter-of-factly, "To your toes!"

I laughed, "There's no room in my toes for the baby!"

"Mom, it was a joke", Spencer stated.

.......In Other News........

Bridger has now mastered the ladder on the bunk bed! I'm terrified! We got the first bunk bed when Bridger was born. So, Spencer would have been 3 1/2. I've not dealt with a tiny 1 1/2 year old on one yet! Any ideas on detering him on either bunk bed (both have "built in" ladders)??? I'm thinking of adding some blanket or something that goes down the entire side. Except that doesn't work so well when the kids or I forget to put it down when they are not using it! YIKES!

April 18th

April 18th, 2009 my dad is celebrating his 51st Birthday! He doesn't even look that YOUNG! My mom threw the most fun 50th Birthday for him this last year at the SLC Bees game. He got special attention from the "Bee" him/her(?) self, got to play one of those halftime games along with some other stuff. Needless to say, I think he had a blast, and we all shared quite a memory with him. :-)

Well, little did any of us know that a year away, we would be welcoming a new addition to our family. Yes, we are expecting, and this baby is due on my dad's Birthday, April 18, 2009. I am about 12 1/2 weeks along and am finally feeling a bit better. I've found the things to stay away from so my tummy doesn't do any rejecting. I've also found that I can take a one hour nap, and still be really tired by 10pm. But, I get those naps about 1/week due to my busy schedule with the kiddos. :)

Ok, enough about me! I'll post the ultrasound that was taken this morning (I'm spoiled and get an ultrasound every visit). Have a super day! Gotta pick up Brooke soon to take Brooke and Spencer to the Dinosaur Park on the "last" "warm" day of the year! Bridger is spending his first night all by himself with my mom and dad. :)

Going Public

Well, I've decided to "go public". I'm a little nervous about the "outsiders" that may start reading my blog. I'm thinking most of them are harmless like myself that sometimes comes across a stranger's blog, but I still have my apprehensions about it.

But, I do know it is probably easier to find my new posts (not that there are many lol) and not have to log in or whatever it is you have to do. :)

So, I am spraying "creep away" all over the pages of my blog. Hope it works! lol

Cat Nap...

So, I laid Bridger down for his nap at 1pm (usually it is in between 11:30 am-12:00). I walked by his door about 20 minutes later, and heard contagious giggling. Afraid it may become too contagious and keep him from napping, I opened the door to see what was so hilarious.

It was Merlin. No, he's not exactly a wizard, but he is a pretty cool feline. He makes me think of "the cool kid on the block that was nice to everyone but had some suave style you just can't pin down". Well, at this moment in time, Merlin was being uproarlessly funny to Bridger. Merlin loves to play, so it was a little tough getting him to leave the room so Bridger could recover from the giggles quick and go to sleep. Luckily, that is what he did... another 20 minutes later. :)

An Inspiration, To Say The Least

You may have seen this before, but it doesn't hurt to see it again!

These lectures by Randy Pausch are incredible and very memorable. He has left a legacy to live by for people that don't even know him (including myself). I am attaching his talks titled, "The Last Lecture", "Time Management" and his surprise appearance at Carnegie Mellon's 2008 Commencement ceremony.

The Last Lecture:





Time Management:





Commencement Ceremony:





Lastly, ABC made a remarkable piece on him that is definitely worth watching:

http://abc.go.com/player?channel=125264&video=125213

Also, here is a link on his "Alice" project (pretty cool - and a free program): http://www.alice.org/

And here is his link Carnegie Mellon University has for him: http://www.cmu.edu/randyslecture/

Sincerely,
~Marian~
*A Tigger!*

It's True, Boys & Girls Are Very Different - Even At 4 Years Old!

So, I have been "shopping" for a new tent the last couple of weeks. I finally found the "best" one at Shopko during a sale. The kids have been so excited and patient. They knew I was going to get a tent because they saw me looking at some online and in newspaper ads. Finally, mom is going to get a tent to go camping in!

Well, the last day of the sale, I rush around doing errands. I had to complete 3 "mystery shops" that took less than 5 minutes each. The kids were great to wait while I ran in and out of the 3 different stores I had to evaluate ($8 each! Yeah!). Lastly, we went to Shopko. They were looking forward to this and kept asking me how long it will take to get there. :)

Finally, we park, and the kids break out of the car, tagging along my side.
"Where is the tent? Where is the tent?" they question me repeatedly.
I pointed the way, and they happily walked 12 feet ahead so they could help me find it. We finally got to the camping section of the store, and I showed the kids the tent that was in the ad. They help me place it in the cart, and then I move onto another area of the back of the store.

Spencer, puzzled, looked up at me, "Mom, what are we doing?"

Confused, I said, "We're shopping."

"But Mom, we already got the tent!" he insisted.

I started to giggle. Boy was my boy a boy in body and MIND!

"Spencer, I just want to look around."

"For what Mom?"

"Umm, nothing Spencer. Umm, I just want to look at what deals they have here."

"But why Mom, we have the tent."

"Spencer, I understand that this doesn't make much sense. Girls just like to shop. We don't always have much direction either, we just 'shop'"

"Ok." was Spencer's reply. However, I think it was more of a, 'Well, it still doesn't make much sense, but I'm here and having fun, so whatever you say is fine.'

• Girls= Shopping Queens - Get a great deal on something, then spend more time looking for more deals.
• Boys= Practical - Buy what you plan on buying, and leave ASAP.

"Out of the Mouth & Actions of Babes" at Grandma/pa's House

My dad recalled the cutest story about Spencer to me and I told Brian of my desire to see my dad's journal page on it. Well, low and behold, without my dad knowing of this desire, he sent me this e-mail:

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Having the grandkids over for the night, its’ early Saturday and they are still sleeping. When I got up this morning and got ready to leave for a walk, Spencer was just giggling as he slept. Funny to watch.

Yesterday I took off work. We are celebrating Brooke’s birthday. Have some presents and do what the kids want. So as we go and get the kids at Holland’s Spencer holds out some change that he has gathered up and says he is going to use it for a game. He doesn’t know what game it is, he just knows that the wants the change for when we play a game. Becky and I talk with him as we drove home about games we could play. When we get home we hurry to get on the road and he is either holding the changes in his fist or kept it in his pocket with his hand down in the pocket or over the top of his pants, holding the money.

We went (Amy, Grandkids and Becky) to the Pioneer State Park. I wasn’t really excited about it, had hoped to go to the zoo instead. But it was a fun thing and glad that Becky encouraged us to go there. I’ve learned long ago even if I’m not excited about something, just to keep it quiet and go along. Becky never leads me astray. Some things are more fun than others, but she never does anything to make my life worse and usually it is better.

At the Pioneer Park they have either brought in the old pioneer buildings from around the state or recreated them. They are many farm houses, (small wood frame buildings), social building, general stores, school houses doctors offices etc. All around the time of 1850 – probably 1880. They have people in the various buildings in period costumes and they will tell you stories about the time. Maybe about a specific person who lived and worked in that building or about the kind of life that a person in such a building would have.

The lady in the school house was about 45 years old. She (like others) was dressing in period costume and did a good job of “being” the school teacher. She described the school, when it was built, when students would come due to working their farms, how she got paid and where she got supplies. Each desk that we sat at had a small slate (chalkboard) used for writing. She told that there wasn’t money for paper and pencils and so the kids used the slates. And if she didn’t have enough slates the kids would go outside and with a stick draw in the dirt to do their school work. To get paper she would have to pay a lot of money and have someone carry it across the plains in their wagons, and she didn’t have that money.
Spencer raised his hand (being so quiet as he sat in the school desk) and she pointed to him asking what we wanted. He had the most pleasant smile on his face as he slipped out of his chair and walked to the front where the teacher was. He held up his fist and she held her hand underneath to take what he was giving – unknown to her what it was. Hen he opened his fingers and into her hand dropped 42¢ - all the money he had.

For a moment she just looked at it, very taken back. Getting her composure she then thanked him. He was already back in his seat, but she called him back and gave him a special present from her bag – a marble.

She said that she has been doing this for 17 years and never has anything like that happened. “That’s a journal entry” she said, speaking of her own journal.

More anecdotes added a day later in e-mail:

Spencer has a sun burn on his shoulders, probably from our work party the other day that they kids came to. Becky said something about it, asking if it hurt and then reminded him that he needed to remember to ask for sun block. Spencer says with some tone of frustration “I told my dad, ‘Dad, I need sunscreen!’” I suspect this conversation happened after the fact, but cute.

I had just showered, put a towel around me and went into the bedroom to get my cloths. Brooke was in the bedroom with Becky at the time. As I come out of the bathroom and Brooke sees my chest and back she says with big wide open eyes, “Grandpa! You have a lot of hair. You need to shave!"

I love my kids so much. Hope you read the stories, and got a kick out of all of them as I did. :)

Well, my grandparents are busy in the Nauvoo and Quincy areas of Illinois helping to hopefully prevent futher flooding - and trying to protect LDS sites from the waters. They are joined by "people working for Nauvoo Restoration Incorporated, (other) missionaries serving in Nauvoo, and members of the BYU Folk Dancers"

To read the whole story and see video coverage:
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=3562849

Please pray that those making efforts to protect homes, business LDS sites and anything else that they will be safe. I also hope that their efforts will not be in vain.

I am so proud of my grandparents serving an LDS Mission in Nauvoo. They are being such great examples to their family. I look forward to their return. :)

My Treasures on a Hunt!

So, when we got to Layton park (same day as the pictures below), the kids scurried to the merry-go-round, and Brian disappeared. I sat on a swing with Bridger and kept my eye on the kids. I had no idea where Brian had gone. I was getting a little concerned after it'd been about 15 minutes. Where the heck did he go? Why didn't he tell me what he was doing?

Well, after 20 minutes of disappearance, he reappeared! He was excited and intense while carefully hiding a paper in his hand. "Where are the kids?" I pointed out that they still hadn't left the merry-go-round. "Well, I've got to hide this somewhere." I am completely confused. "Hide what? Where were you? I was worried. Is everything ok?" He is pretty focused on something and just says, "Yeah. I gotta hide this though." I reach my hand so I can steady his. I finally see what he is frantic about (other than the paper part). It is a map he's drawn. "Awh, cute. You drew a map! Is this what you've been doing for 20 minutes?" Brian is still in a one-track mind set, and replies, "Well yeah, that is what I was doing. I told you I was leaving." I think he got that I was still a little confused. "I drew a treasure map for the kids. I need to hide it." I'm thinking, Awh cute. Wish I knew he was leaving me for 20 minutes, but this was worth the worry and confusion. What a sweet daddy move!

So, he takes Bridger and places him under the slide platform. After trying to bury the "treasure map" in 2 inches of loose sand, he gives up and hollers to the kids excitedly, "Kids, come here! Look what Bridger's found!" The kids come roving over, and when they look at the map, they get pretty worked up. Brooke congrats Bridger while Spencer starts to study the map. Brian points out the pictures and asks if anything looks familiar. "The slide is here." he remarks. Brooke takes her eyes to it, "Hey look, the merry-go-round is there too!" "Well, let's go there!" Brian says encouragingly.

At the merry-go-round Brooke immediately tells a brown haired four year old girl about the map her baby brother dug up. She is so excited, "You can come too. Want to find the treasure?!" I quickly let Brooke know that the girl's parents need her to stay with them.

Next, the map said to "dinosaur stomp" to the rendition of a bathroom. Stomp stomp stomp! Rrrrrr!

Where is the "W" shaped tree that this map shows??? Hmm... "Is it over there?" inquires Spencer.

Dad steps in, "I think it's over there, guys. Do you see it?"

"Oh yeah, over there!" they say as they run to the "W" tree.

Per map: "Run to the big pine tree."

Were running! But, there are many pine trees here, and they all seem so big! Which one?

"It's the one on the right, kids." directs Brian.

Okay. Now we are at the big pine tree. Where next? What does the map show?

Duck pond. Where is the duck pond? There is a duck in the grass over there!

"Kids go to the water with the ducks." Brian says.

Here are the ducks! Quack Quack!

Next: "Walk slowly over the bridge."

...Daddy looks like he is going to tip over with Bridger! Just kidding!

We are close to the treasure! Where is it? Not in these trees near the water.

Oh look! It is in the rocks! Skull and crossbones - must equal TREASURE!

What could be inside? What would pirates have in here that would be so special to them that they would hide it???

YEAH! Pirate "gold" and gum! Always what any pirate needs. :)

Thanks for going with us on this treasure hunt. I'll have to tell them about this post. They will be so proud that everyone knows what great treasure hunters they are. I think Brooke and Spencer will always make sure to tell others about this special treasure hunt.

I am glad to have such great treasures in my life; Brian, Brooke, Spencer and Bridger (and any other family member(s) in the future).

Happy "Treasure" Hunting to you!

Pictures at the Park

Here's some updated photos of the kids I took Saturday (June 7). Some of them are overexposed, but I'm too lazy to fix it.



Bridger (14 mths)

Bridger still has very red hair, but the sunlight made it look much lighter.

Crawl, walk, fall, walk again, eat dirt/grass rocks. All in a good day's work!


Brooke (6 yrs on June 18) The one decent shot I could take of her before she would morph into a snarling, sneaky tiger! Rarrr! She's going to pounce on Spencer now.

Spencer (4 1/2 yrs)

He did GREAT at the park with me clicking away constantly with my camera. He would even "pose" for me. Mr model boy today. :)

Like I said before, Brooke was being a goofball throughout the whole "shoot". I was lucky to get the one I got that I posted here. She wanted to just laugh pounce and dance around. No posing for her! lol Look at stoic Spencer posing though. Awh...

Brooke climbing a tree. She had tried to climb a different tree... but it had no limbs for quite some time. She didn't make it far! lol


Spencer tackling the tree. He got pretty far up but smartly said, "Dad this is dangerous - there is nothing to hold onto up there."

Memories Make Me SMILE! :-)

So, I got some pics from my dad of me and my siblings when we were kids. I had a great childhood! My parents were wonderful, understanding souls. Sometimes I was a little bit of a trial ... but they lasted, and I am better for it!

Awh! Wasn't I a cute baby? I think I was about 9-12 mths here. I don't remember much. Hmm... I liked cooing, smiling and having mom put me in cutesy stuff! My mom did say I was bawled for quite some time... so she always had a bow in my hair. Thanks Mom! :)

At approximately two years old, I was a terror. I had something called the "terrible twos". It was awful. I guess. Although I don't think I had it quite that bad... I mean look at my smile. It just melts you! .... Umm... sorry if you are all melted.

Christmas almost always had a piano bench fireplace. We finally got the "real thing" when I was a pre-teen. Anyways, my dad would always pull out the fireplace paper thing and wrap it around my mom's piano bench. I think we were always wanting to fuss with the set up, and my dad lovingly just put it back in place. I swear my mom and dad rarely got really mad at us.

...Isn't little chubby Shaun a cutie!? :)

Awh! Movie Star pose! I think this was a dance costume. 3-4 yrs old? I gotta ask my mom the ages on these pics!

I think my mom went to the same photo place for most of my young childhood. I wonder if it's still around?

Anyway, I'm guessing I am about 4-5 yrs old... although my mom must have been pregnant with Kyle at the time because that is about the age span we are apart. Shaun and I were/are always best buds. We played together like we were true bosom buddies. Again - couldn't you just squeeze those soft round cheeks of his??? :)

Speaking of Kyle... here he is! My mom and I are in it to... but my dad had other plans with the composition of it (he's actually a VERY good photographer... more to show later in another post).

So, we are all so cute here... but I hate my hair. My mom loved to cut my hair short, and my dad was not one of those silly men that demand hair remain long. But, contrary to my mom's taste, I despise my hair being short enough that I cannot pull it up halfway. Hey, when you are a mom though, you want your kids to look their best, and my mom thought I looked my best with short hair - so all the power to her! :)

I hope I am putting these in the right order....

I remember really liking the rose on this dress. I thought I looked so pretty in the dark blue and red rose with a red bow to top the number off. I was really proud of my looks! Oh, and I am giving up on the age guessing until I nab my mom about it! ;)

I love my eyes in this pic. I also love how relaxed I look. I really haven't been very photogenic my whole life. People say to say cheese and all I could think about was if I was smiling with my sparkly whites peeking out perfectly and my eyes open enough. For some reason, my eyes can go oriental in a second... so I used to try to open my eyes a little too wide at times.... :-P

You probably noticed from the previous pic that my hair is pretty poofy... but, I just had to share my other poofy pics. Maybe this is why my mom had my hair short! It is naturally curly and very thick. Many times it was a monster ... but we won't talk about that nightmare!

Note: See the cute gingerbread house all dolled up? And the very cute apron with the ruffled sleeves? Memories! :)

I'm doing the Scarface look here, but it is mainly here for three purposes: show how cute Kyle is, share the one pic I currently have of Amy as a kid, and lastly, BASEBALL!

When we lived in Canoga Park, CA, we went to the Dodger's games fairly regularly. My great half-uncle (my grandpa's half-brother) owns Kelly Blue Book, among many other things. He also has the privilege of having decent seats at the Dodger's stadium. When he chose not to go, we got to be amazed by watching men hit baseballs, bringing our own mitts in hopes of catching a foul ball, getting the freebie (hat, shirt, ball, key chain, magnet, or eraser etc) if we came soon enough, beg mom and dad a few times for the crazy people wandering around with toys for sale and most importantly, hoping our cute faces would show up on the big screen above the luscious emerald field. This was one of my most favorite memories of Cali-forn-i-a. I will admit that I came back with some "valley girl" tendencies, but we won't talk about that interestingness in my life right now!

Hope this compilation helped spring some memories in your own life. Here's to many memories of the past and more in the future for you and I!

Bridger is ONE on March 27, 2008!