Ever seen a grown man naked?

What I am about to share with you might make you uncomfortable but there is some true logic to the madness with which I live. 

Fact#1 Hotstuff has a machete

   We do not have guns in our house. Instead, Hotstuff has machete that can be found on his side of the bed. This is our only line of defense against bad guys who may break in or... want to date our daughter. 

Fact #2 Hotstuff sleeps naked

   Over the last year, Hotstuff has taken to sleeping naked. Though he has always preferred sleeping naked, this is something that has become the norm for him. 

 I know that this is something that you could have lived without but bear with me, there is a correlation between his nakedness and the machete. Now you know the facts we can proceed. 

Knowing that he is my hero and the man who defeats all scary monsters, I was worried about him sleeping naked. I mentioned to him that maybe he should not be sleeping naked. He simply shrugged his shoulders and asked: "Why not?" 

 

To which I responded: "Well, what if someone breaks into the house? You are not going to have anytime to put on any pants before the robbers kill us in our beds." 

And being the amazing husband that he is, he simply smiled and said, "Tell me something, if you wanted to break into someone's house you wouldn't want to be greeted by a naked man with a machete. Would you?" 

I cannot argue with that. 

An Evening with the Palmers

It's a beautiful spring evening.
The lawn is green and freshly mowed.
It's Friday with a three day weekend.
Dinner time has finally arrived.

So off I send my Hotstuff to the House of Caesars to fetch dinner. He returns home triumphant with to large pies of pizza and Beer made from root. As we all gather in the kitchen for a Moo Cow dinner, Bubba Jones begins grace. Remembering to ask God to keep us all safe... including the blonde Swiss Miss next door.

Translation: It's Friday and I am too damn tired to cook. So Hotstuff goes to Little Caesars  returns with two $5 pizzas and root beer. We all stand around the kitchen, like cows that are grazing, to eat our dinner. Bubba Jones says grace. You with me so far???

Even though we had completely thrown all manners... well most of them anyways, out the door the kids wanted to eat their pizza outside. I don't blame them, it is a nice evening. We, Hotstuff and I, tell them no and  to just eat their dinner here. When they are done they can go outside.

Bubba Jones is not happy about this. He begins to be a serious punk about the whole situation.

"Bubba Jones," my amazing Hotstuff says. "Do you want to be grounded?"

Then the sweet little voice from my beautiful 9 year old Miss May speaks from the corner speaks ever so softly: "Yeah, I'd be okay with that."

Bubba Jones, who doesn't back down from a fight, then threatens to throw his pizza in my face. This earns him and automatic five for fighting- off to time out he goes. With his face, somewhat facing the wall, Bubba Jones begins he ritual time out chant.

"Can I come out now?"
*Pause
"Can I come out now?"
*Pause
"Can I come out now?"
*Pause

"Well," Hotstuff comments. "You should give him credit for his determination.

Good Brothers and Mean Sisters

When the Sunday occasion calls for it, I will run down to the local convenient store and get myself a very large soda to get me through the rest of my weekend. Today after church, Bubba Jones was having a very hard time. Since Hotstuff and I went to Vegas this weekend, we had spent very little time with the kids.  I decided to take Bubba Jones and go get a soda together.

On the way to the store, I talked with Bubba Jones and got thing sorted out between us. He was feeling a lot better. We got to the store, got out of the car and Bubba Jones gave me a big hug. We went in and as usual I went for the soda machine. Bubba Jones didn't follow but instead went to the cooler. I found him getting a juice from the cooler but he had two of them in his hand.

"Mom, I am getting this one for me and this one for sister," he told me.

"You don't need to get her one. This is a special treat just for you," I said.

"I know but I don't want her to be sad that I got a something and she didn't," he replied. I gave in and let him get her a juice too.

"That is really nice of you to get something for your sister," I told him.

"Well, I am trying to be proactive. She is a mean sister but I am good brother,"  he said.

All I could think was: Yes, yes you are a good brother. Even when faced with a mean sister, you can still be a good brother.

Mawwwrige is what brings us togetha today!

My awesome Hotstuff and I will be celebrating 11 years of marriage this year. I am in awe. I am speechless. I am humbled.

Most marriages don't last as long as they are supposed to anymore. People just give up and don't try. They destroy what is great and joyful. Everyone deserves to be happy and every marriage deserves happiness.

Don't get me wrong there are some marriages that need to end. I have encountered a few of those along the way in my life. Those are the marriages that are destructive to (more than just) the husband and wife.

This week, Hotstuff and I had the opportunity to attend the wedding of Mr and Mrs Orgn Crushr; Hotstuffs younger brother. This was not the first marriage for either of them. In getting to know Mrs. Crushr I have learned a lot about her and things she has learned from her first marriage.

Watching this happy couple over the last month and even this weekend;  I discovered that there is so much more I could learn from my Hotstuff. I remembered the good there is in my marriage and the many things that are right about it. Just because we have been married for "a long time" doesn't mean we have reached a point where we have nothing else to learn, give or receive from one another. It means that we are just starting out in our journey of our lives. There are still conversations to be had, dates to still go on, discussions needed to be resolved and lots of cuddling to be done. Eleven years later, we are still newlyweds.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Years!

From our Family to yours:

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Years

 

We hope that 2012 has been a great year and that 2013 will be even better!

Love,
Honey   Hotstuff   Miss May   Bubba Jones

This Tooth Fairy is fired!

Bubba Jones is one awesome little boy. 

Yes, I am saying that because I am his mother and I did birth him. But he really is an awesome little boy.

A little over a week ago, Bubba Jones came in excited to tell us that he had a new wiggly tooth. Lets jump back to earlier this year when he lost his first tooth. He was at the Fabulous Miss K's house and he wiggled that tooth till it popped out. Instead of telling anyone that he lost the tooth, he tossed it on the floor (which was vacuumed shortly after he tossed it.).

No tooth= No tooth fairy.

His second tooth, he pulled out on his own, at home. Which was promptly lost in the garbage.

No tooth= No tooth fairy.

So last night, Bubba Jones comes to me really excited with another tooth. He waited and wiggled that tooth till it just popped out. With every tooth that he has lost, he has never cried. He was so excited that he had lost his tooth and the Tooth Fairy could finally come.

The kids got ready and crawled into bed. We said our good nights, complete with hugs and kisses and placed the tooth under his pillow. I was on the phone with my sister in law for a couple of hours and totally spaced my Tooth Fairy duties.

This morning, as I was getting ready for work, Bubba Jones was so excited!

"Mom! Mom! Guess what! The Tooth Fairy came last night because my tooth is gone!"

(Insert expletives I muttered here!)

Even with his tooth this time, this Tooth Fairy failed.

Dear Tooth Fairy,
You are FIRED!
Sincerly, Honey

Family Night

Once a week, our family gets together on a Sunday night for Family Night. We come together for family business (where we go over the calender and talk about anything we need to) and a spiritual lesson. Everyone participates, taking turns teaching a message.  It is a night that anything can happen!


So for example, from last nights family night:

 

Miss May: Speaking of Satan.... at school, there are boys in my class.

Mothers Advice

This afternoon I picked up the kids from Daycare. I asked how their day went and Miss May told me about her day and how the kids didn't get to go in the Pool because everyone of them were being naughty.

Miss May: I wasn't being loud. I was being quiet but because everyone else was being loud we couldn't go in the Pool. And I was being quiet but Bubba Jones was being loud.

Bubba Jones: Nu-huh! I was being quiet!

(Cue the sibling arugement!)

I told the both of them, that it didn't matter whether or not you were being good or bad. We shouldn't point fingers at who was good and who was bad. Sometimes it's about working together as a group to get what you want.

MOM points: 1000!!!!! DING DING DING!

Then Miss May told me all about how her friend J was being bossy and how she didn't like it.

Me: Miss May, she isn't the boss. You don't have to let her boss you, you know that? So what should you do when it happens?

Miss May: Go tell an adult.

Me: Well that is one thing but don't be a tattletale. Just Walk Away! You don't have to sit there and let her be mean to you. If she follows you then you can find an adult. God gave you legs so that you can walk away.

Shortly after I said this to her, I patted myself on the back for not only teaching my children twice in five short minutes but I had scored some MAJOR MOM Points. Then I realized what I said to my daughter: "God gave you legs so that you can walk away."

I have a feeling like this is something that will come back to haunt me.

love+marriage= baby

Honey and Hotstuff sitting in a tree!

K-i-s-s-i-n-g

First comes love

then comes marriage

then comes a baby in the baby carriage!

Family is the most important thing in our life. Hotstuff and I are LDS (mormon) and getting married and having children has always been what the two of us have wanted. LDS families are famous for being large but being LDS and having only two children, kinda makes us Black Sheep. When you consider a "small LDS family" is about 4 kids and a "large LDS family" is 8 kids or more, having only two kids really makes you the odd man out.

(I must remind you that this blog belongs to me, Honey and not the LDS (mormon) Church. Thanks!)

Hotstuff comes from a family of four but has 50 first cousins and the amount of great grandbabies has far surpassed that number. I came from a family of three kids and didn't have any cousins on my fathers side of the family until I was 15. I have first cousins that are younger than my kids. On my mother side of the family, there are only ten grandkids. I have always loved the idea of having a large family and with Hotstuff coming from a large family already it just seemed natural to have a large family of our own.
But for personal/health issues, Hotstuff and I closed up baby shop. We have two of the most amazing people as our children and I still have days where I am still in awe that I was even able to have them. It wasn't an easy decision to come to but we knew it was for the best. We both have moments of baby hunger but then I come home to the choas of the two amazing children we already have and think this is enough choas.

This was supposed to be a humorous post to begin with but when I started typing it, it got kinda serious. Sorry!
Hotstuff and I work everyday on teaching our children good principles. A few months ago, Hotstuff and I were on our way home from work and we picked up Bubba Jones from daycare. I don't remember how the conversations started (I think Hotstuff and I were talking about going on a date that weekend) but it went a little something like this:

Bubba Jones: You guys should go a date because I want you guys to get married so you can have another baby.

Hotstuff: Bubba Jones, we are already married.

Bubba Jones: Yeah, but I want you guys to get married every weekend so that you can stay together and have another baby.

Then a couple of weeks ago, Hotstuff, Bubba Jones and I went to Costco. On our way out to the car, I took a moment to tell Bubba Jones that I think his dad is pretty awesome.

Me: I think your dad is pretty awesome! Don't you?

Bubba Jones: yeah.

Me: I am so glad that I married him.

Bubba Jones: Well, I want you guys to get married again so you guys can have another baby.

Remember how I just wrote that Hotstuff and I are teaching our children good principles? Well, I can't tell if I have suceeded or failed as a parent. Bubba Jones understands that you can't have children unless you are married.  10 Parenting Points!!!! but on the flip side... we aren't having anymore babies so that means that my husband of ten years and I have been living in sin?

So I asked Hotstuff: do you want to get married again?

His reply: Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?

Happy 4th of July

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.
~Ronald Regan

Sculptor Slaps and State Fairs

I married an artist ya'll!

(Read that and weep!! )


And this year, Hotstuff competed in two art competitons. The first is the Helper Arts festival's sculptor slap. (Don't know where Helper is? Google it- it's on your way to Moab) and the other is the Utah State fair.

So Hotstuff took Georgia, our bearded dragon, to the sculptor slap and decided to make her a model. Here is what he did:

The second competition he did was for the Utah State fair and this is the piece he took:

Hotstuff took 4th place (Amature div.) and won $15!!!

I am proud of my Hotstuff and the awesome talent that he has.

I know... your jealous but what can I say?? I have one awesome Hotstuff!

Sculpture Slap!

She's HOME!

After 18 (and a half) months, serving a mission for the LDS Church (for more info go to lds.org) my baby sister returned home. She packed away all of her belongings, taking only what she needed and spent the last year and a half preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in the California Arcadia mission (East LA area).

She was sent on a spanish speaking mission and ended up learning and speaking 5 different languages. Spanish, Korean, Armenian, Samoan and English!!

She returned home to all of us last week!!! It is so good to have her home. Even my Momma C, came all the way from Seattle to be here for her.

Me, Momma C and Sister AwesomeSauce

Sister AwesomeSauce and her best friend CJ

CJ and her main man JP!

Me and My Momma C

Me and Sister AwesomeSauce

When she finally got off the plane!!!

Lucky #7

Miss May came into our lives 21 minutes after midnight, to be born on the 1st of February; Super Bowl Sunday. I was induced the on the 31st of January and with every confidence in the world, I would not be having this baby in February. She took her sweet time getting here but she made her entrance, on her own terms and has been doing so for the last 7 years.
This last week Miss May celebrated her 7th birthday. I took the day off and we girls had our day.
We went to Starbucks and started the day with yummy Vanilla Bean Creme, (it taste like homemade ice cream!), then went to Ogden and we got our hair done. Lunch was a pretzel from Pretzel Maker. With a quick stop at Ikea, she picked out a birthday present of crayons, colored pencils, water colors makers and paper. She is becoming the little artist! We had a yummy dinner at home, Crabby patties (which is really chicken patties). Later in the week, to keep the celebration going we went bowling. Her Grandma J and Papa Chuck, plus her Granny all joined in on the fun!

A very Happy 7th Birthday to Miss May!
The bowling alley gave Miss May an old bowling pin and signed it for her.

We all then took turns to sign it for her.

Bubba Jones got two strikes that night!!!

Our birthday girl!


Cookies and Creme Pie for her birthday!

She is growing up too fast!

Lost and Seek, Hide and Found

Forty years ago, Nana sat down and recorded my Grandfathers family history. Since then, all of our family records have sat there incomplete. In my last post I told all of you about my Great Great Grandmother, Mary Jane Neirocker.
This is whom I feel impressed to chase. I mean the woman is dead! She shouldn't be that hard to catch! Right?!?! WRONG!!!

New Years Eve 2010- The daunting task of microfiche awaited me in the large metal drawers at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. Knowing my task was something that I couldn't torture my children with, I found someone tall, dark and handsome AKA Hotstuff to help. I was suprised at his reply when I asked if he wanted to join me and help look through census records.

"You know, that actually sounds like fun!" was his reply. (I couldn't help but wonder what mickey had been slipped to him to get him to want to do this. I really wanna know, you know for future use for fun things like doing dishes, cleaning toilets and any other household chores).

Fun!! Microfiche, fun?? Well, who was I to complain? I had help. So once again we bundled up the kids, packed some snacks, the laptop (entertainment for the kids) and off we went to the Family History Library.

I set up two Microfiche machines (one for me and one for Hotstuff) and once again searched the 1905 Census for Mary Jane. Over three hours we looked and couldn't find anything. Finally, Hotstuff got motion sickness, the kids were starving and I was ready to cry. I couldn't find her and that was all I wanted to do.

Well, I thought, it's New Years Eve. I am in downtown Salt Lake, I should just enjoy my evening and their names will be there for next time.

We cleaned up, bundled up and headed to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building for some yummy food at the Nauvoo Cafe. Since it was New Years Eve, the LDS church had all sort of New Years Eve Festivites on Temple Square. We entered the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and passed through the Family Search Center. I noticed they had activities for kids and thought to make sure to pass through here on our way out. I wanted to help my children understand what I was doing and why I was doing it.

We enjoyed our yummy sandwiches at the Nauvoo Cafe then headed out. Passing by the Family Search Center, we stopped to let the kids play and explore. I still could not get my Great Great Grandmother out of my head. I was bound and determined to find her.

I walked over to the computers and ask a sweet little old lady for some help. We sat down and played around on the computer. Even she was baffeld at why I couldn't find her. After about 20 minutes of playing around on different sites.... I FOUND HER!!!!!!!!

I found my Great Great Grandmother Mary B. Hoehn on TWO seperate census records. I discovered that she had immigrated about 1850 and at one time she had a niece that lived with her named Laura Kramer who was a stenographer. I also discovered that she and her parents were from Switzerland.

For the last 40 years, her name has been lost amongst the thousands upon thousand of names stored amongst our Nations records. Even Hotstuff couldn't understand how one woman could be so hard to find ( I mean, he had no trouble finding me!). Why would she exist in one place and not any other?

My family has met some huge brick walls in trying to find out our ancestory. So I totally hit the Geneological Jackpot. ( It's the only kinda lottery Utah has!).

Now that I have started I can see a path of where to go. I have laced up my running shoes and with my inhaler in hand, I am off chasing the path that has been made for me.

Genealogist collect dead people

As you've guessed it, I am LDS (or mormon). Family is a huge part of our religion; our families that we have now, families that we will have one day and families that we have come from. To find out why, go to: www.lds.org for more information.

During the summer, we kids (my brother, sister, and I) were happily shipped off to Utah for the summer. We would spend up to and over a month with our Grammy (our paternal grandmother) and our Oma and Opa (our great grandparents). The three of us spent our summers riding bikes, going to the pool, playing with cousins and walking barefoot every where in the hot desert sun. Of all those summer vacation days spent playing, what I am now cherishing the very most is going to the family history library and looking at old records. Even when I moved to Utah to go to school, Grammy and I promptly headed to the Family History Library to research old records from Denmark. Though I know no Danish and speak very little German we managed quite well. Even as a kid and when I moved back, we would spend hours looking at Microfiche. I wonder how may people know what Microfiche is!

In this world of iAnything, mac, laptops, computers, cell phones, the Internet and everything electronic that feeds information and keeps me connected to my world, the possibilities can seem endless. You can Google just about anything and get over a million hits, Apple probably "has an App for that" and WebMD's answer for everything that ails you is Cancer. You can do something incredibly stupid and you become a hit on Youtube. If you are really lucky Auto Tune will make you a one hit wonder.

But in this incredible age of information I am always amazed at the amount of information found not on the Internet but on Microfilm.

About 40 years ago my Nana (my mothers maternal Grandmother) did her genealogy. It was something that even with out the Internet she was able to do. When she got as far as she could most of her records and her husbands records date back the 1500's. While Nana worked on her genealogy, she also started on my (maternal) grandfathers records. Nana had traced her family history back to the 1500's but my grandfathers family was a very different story.

My grandfather was born and raised in Rochester, Monroe, New York. He was the youngest of 5. He had a sister named Betty, who later married a man name Davis becoming Betty Davis (well not thee Betty Davis but she is my Betty Davis). When he was 17, he had a falling out with his parents then did what every normal 17 year old does when he has a falling out with his folks. He joined the Coast Guard and at 17 fought in WWII. After the war and when he was finally old enough, he joined the Air Force. He was stationed at Hill Air Force Base in Clearfield, Utah where he met my grandmother and they fell in love. The rest is a love story for the ages; more or less a scandalous one, but that is story for later.

My great-grandfather was also born and raised in Rochester, Monroe, New York; the youngest of 7 children. He later moved to Arizona and where he died in 1975.

My great-great-grandfather is where the line ends. He was born in Baden, Germany in 1827 and later immigrated to the United States. My great-great-grandmother was born in Switzerland in 1847 and also later immigrated to the United States. With a 20 year difference between them
when she was 20 and he 40 (about) 1857 they married and had 7 children together. He died in 1907 in Rochester at the age of 80. My great-great-grandmother died in 1934 at the age of 87.

In the age of information, I am able to look on the Internet and find out exactly where my great-great-grandfather is buried. Apparently, he was also catholic. But my great-great-grandmother is a complete mystery. One assumes, I could just plug her name into google and TA-DAAA! there she is buried next to her husband or found on some cemetery registry but I cannot find her anywhere!! This is who I am chasing.

So Monday, the kids and I bundled up, packed a lunch and headed up the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. When we got there, I headed to the second floor and immediatly to the help desk. A retired gentlemand who was now serving an LDS mission to the Family History Libray and a younger ( I am gonna say 19 years old) missionary helped me get started. Of course, I was thinking that I would find everything magically on the computer but to my dismay I was going to have to search microfiche for the answer. Both the older and younger missionary were suprised when I told them that I knew about microfiche and how to use the machine to view the records.

I was given 4 index numbers to the microfiche for the 1905 Rochester, Monroe, New York census. Another young missionary guided me through the large metal rows of drawers containing countless rolls of microfiche. As I walked down the metal row, I was in awe at the amount of information I was surrounded by. I felt so small and very insignificant. Contained in those drawers were the names of real people who once lived and experienced life.

All I could say was: " Look at all these dead people!"

The young elder just laughed and said: "Oh! I just got the chilies! You think this is a lot? You need to check out the vaults at Granite Mountain!"
( The LDS church stores 35 BILLION images of genealogical information in 2.4 Millions rolls of microfilm in Granite vault carved out of the mountain just outside of SLC)

I took my microfiche, set up at a machine, loaded up, turned on the light and page by page I began to make my way through the 1905 census. For three hours I stared at the pages displayed upon to white board, slowly turning each page by hand. Needless to say, I secretly wished my kids where old enough so that I could put them through the same microfiche toture that I went through as a kid and the same toture that I was now reliving. Once you have spent time researching on microfiche, nothing will ever bore you again.

Though I did not find my family (yet!), I was able to see a small glimpse of life of 1905 in Rochester, Monroe, New York. Their names are still hidden waiting to be found.

Finding my family won't change who I am but it can tell me where I come from and who I belong to. It can tell me about the lives of those who came before me and how they experienced their lives. Mostly, I am creating my own kinships with those who paved the way for me. Genealogy is a hobby and genealogist collect dead people. Looks like I have started a new collection.

OOOOOOO, You're my best friend!

Gotta love that song that the amazing Freddie Mercury once belted out:

You're my best Friend!

Ooo, you make me live.

Whenever this world is cruel to me

You help me forgive

Ooo, your making me live

You're first one when things turn out bad

You know I'll never be lonely
You're my only one

and I love

The things that you do

You're my best Friend

I have this very best friend named Bullfrog. There is probably some picture of the two of us from our school days in some memory box of mine stored out in my garage somewhere and that is where it probably should stay. We have known each other for a very long time. To tell you how long we have been friends and without revealing our ages... any child born in the year we met received their drivers license this year. Ya! We have known each other that long.

From the time we met in the 7th grade until we graduated high school, we talked twice on the phone. Kinda weird, huh?? But we saw each other every day at school. What's even weirder, my best friend wore a dress to school every single day! I saw her in pants twice! from the time we met in middle school until we graduated high school. It wasn't until we were in our 20's when I attended her wedding did I really see her wearing "normal" clothes. Bullfrog had... well, her parents were Bapstist and very strange.

We both had many of the same hopes, dreams and aspirations for when we grew up. We both suffered heart break and happiness together. She was there when my parents divorced and she was with me when my mom died. I was there when she had troubles at home, when her birth father came back and I was there when she married the love of her life. We had babies at the same time, six weeks apart. Bullfrog is 25 days older. She and my sister share the same birthday. Her step-daughter, who has the same name as my sister and I share the same birthday.

After high school and for a years after we've communicated mostly by email, facebook and phone. For the last couple of years we have only been able to communicate only by chat on Yahoo! or Facebook. Bullfrogs hubby is in the military and they live overseas. Acording to Google maps, in order to get where she lives one must jet ski across the Pacific ocean to get there. ( That is the honest to goodness truth! Some places in the world you'll need a row boat to cross the ocean.)

For Christmas this year, Hotstuff invested in a new laptop for the family. With this new fabulous toy comes a web cam and microphone. Hotstuff's brudder lives overseas also and communication doesn't come easy. In the last two years the only way we have been able to talk to "Mr. Teacher" and his family has been through Skype on some other family members computer. Skype, which is completly free, has been amazing. We have been able to talk and see our family who live over a world away. The second thing that Hotstuff did with the new laptop was set up a Skype account.

So last night as I was writing an email to my sister, Bullfrog dinged me on chat. The next thing I knew I was on Skype calling her. For the first time in years, I was able to have a face to face (via webcam) conversation with my best friend. I was able to met her girls in web cam person. We talked for over two hours!

I lived in Germany as a small child. I remember that talking with family in the states was very hard, far and very few in between conversations. I remember the envelopes with the blue and red stripes on the sides that were used to send letters oveseas. My mother would fly home every couple of years to see family and phone calls were made about twice a year because of the cost.

I think about all of the service men and women throughout the centuries. How there letters and communications we so rare and precious. The time that it took for the families to recieve them and the chances of the letters and packages ever making it to the soldiers would be a miracle for some. Even those who are bravely serving our country now, technology has changed communication so drastically that many are able to see their families webcam to webcam.

I started out by telling you about my best friend and have ended up talking about techonology. As a result of such wonders I am able to keep in touch with my best friend of forever and see her family and she can see mine. We are able to watch our children grow before our computer eyes.

I imagine a time when friends and family wrote letters by hand and sent packages covered in brown butcher paper. A response to those greetings took days and even months. Now we can recieve a response within seconds. With and without such wonders, my best friend would always be my best friend but now she can be closer than ever. Even on the other side of the world.

Oooooooo, your my best friend!

Christmas with a BANG!

My Christmas started off with a bang! more like a crunch, screech, scream and explode; all neatly gifted wrapped with a $500 deductible.

About two weeks ago I was in a car accident. I start work at 7 in the morning so when I go in, it is dark. I left my house and got the end of my road and stopped at the stop sign. It was raining, cold and dark. I knew to not only look for cars but to also look for lights from cars. I was going to cross the intersection and stopped at the the stop sign I looked to see if I could go. I was clear in one direction and further down the road I saw another car and his lights but I did not see the car in front of him or his lights. I thought it was safe to cross and as I went through the intersection, I was broadsided.

My airbags exploded and my entire body was jarred. The man who hit me was taking his kids school. Luckily, no one was hurt.

It was my fault and I felt so very stupid for the rest of the day. Two weeks later, I have my moments where I still feel stupid. The most embarassing part of all of this was the man who hit me... we both attend the same church!!! It is one thing to get into an accident with a total stranger.... you never have to face them once the ordeal is over but with some one you know!!!! I have to face this man every single Sunday!

After the accident, Mr. M (the gentleman in the other car) was very upset. Understandibly! But after a few minutes, he calmed down. Mr. M explained to me that he had just had a conversation with his son that Mondays aren't really a bad thing. They actually can be good. Then with a small smile on his face, Mr. M said: "Thanks for helping me teach him that lesson."

I felt very blessed later. Even though this accident had occured, Mr. M was kind. He never showed any anger, he never raised his voice and while I was waiting for Hotstuff to come get me, Mr. M's aunt had arrived to help him. The three of us sat in her Tahoe with the heater on full blast, while I waited for Hotstuff. Mr. M even called me later that day to see how I was doing! He also let me know that the kids were still okay.

I have now been driving Moby (our big white van) for the last two weeks while my G6 is in the shop getting repaired, (it should be done this week!!!!! yaaa!). I have struggled with driving it. It's not hard to drive and there are no problems with me or the van. So I posed the question on Facebook: "Is it possible to keep my "Hot Mom" status and still drive my van? or did that totally get crushed along with the passenger door on my G6?"

After two weeks, I am still wondering but no matter what I am driving.... ya I am still a Hot MOM!!

Our Family 2010

Thanks to the mad photog skills of one Miss Shanna Ormand, we were able to have our family pictures done! Our last ones were done when Bubba Jones was 3 months old....yep it was time for new ones! These are my three favorites!

Randomness

Just stopping by to post a few pics of the random things created in our lives! Bubba Jones and Miss May built this Monster.... inside is the lego man.
Hotstuff with his younger Brain House (who flew home from Germany for a couple of Days) and Lil' Brudder and Granny(aka Hotstuff's MOM).

Standing like Deacons!

(Dang I'm Cute! If I don't say so myself!)

I LOVE MY HOTSTUFF!