Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner....

Taylor won first place in the Science Fair.  It was kind of a surprise because there was another one that was almost identical to hers.  What?!?!?  Anyway, now I have fulfilled my duties as a mother by posting it on the blog for all to see.  Please keep your congratulations short as I am trying my darnedest to raise a somewhat humble daughter.  It is not working so far, but there is still hope.

Update.....

The fourth grade play was phenomenal.  I don't know why but I always cry during the songs.  They are not even sad songs, but there you have it.  Torey did fantastic.  To be fair I would rank her in the top 5, but because I am her mother I thought she did the best.  And her Grandma said so too, so that is an unbiased opinion.  Grandpa said they would have a hard time topping that performance, so they better not drop the ball next year.  Our school always does great with this play - it is my favorite elementary experience. 

Taylor's birthday was a raging success.  Here is a picture from the family party, as I had a hard time getting ten girls to sit still for a picture, I will just tell you that her friend party was a success as well.  Thank you all for your ideas and help.  The breakdown was averted due to your gracious assistance.  Thanks to all who brought gifts, made comments, etc.   As we move into these formative years it is good to know we have your support.  As a side note, who knew that mascara was so doggone hard to apply.  When you have naturally long eyelashes it is very hard not to end up with it in your eyebrows.
This is the crew waiting at the church to be shuttled to the Draper Temple open house.  What an amazingly beautiful building that is.  Even without being dedicated the spirit was very strong - for me anyway.  It is the first time my entire family has been in the celestial or sealing rooms in our mortal bodies.  It was kind of exciting for me.  Reed just rolled his eyes and said they were there the first time, but I said "mortal" bodies.  If you have not been, there is still time and I thought it was well worth the trip.  The artwork is amazing, the fixtures are beautiful, and the kids especially loved the baptismal font.
Well, that about wraps things up for us.  How are all of you doing?  Still loving the snow? Christmas lights still up?  Signed up for baseball yet?  Made Spring Break plans?  Let us know how you  are doing!

This Kid is Twelve... Happy Birthday Taylor!

Do you remember when you were sitting in church and you were up to your eyeballs in burp rags, bottles, and diapers and your sweet little baby just had a major blow out right in the middle of the meeting?  And do you remember when the sweet little old lady sitting in front of you turned to look at you and smiled and said, "Enjoy this time.  It goes by quicker than you think,"  and you just rolled your eyes behind her back?  Turns out that sweet little old lady wasn't smoking crack after all.  She knew exactly what she was talking about.  It does go by quicker than you think.  

Instead of posting twelve things we love about Taylor, we are going to post twelve of our favorite Taylor memories from the past twelve years...

1.  Taylor was a very rational kid.  She used to have a severe addiction to Welch's mixed berry juice, so much so that she would wake up in the middle of the night crying for her juice, and if you didn't have any you had to make some.  Well, Reed and I sat her down around two years old and told her that she couldn't have any more juice in the middle of the night, and she soaked it up because that is what she does.  Well, that night, about two in the morning she wakes up crying, and she is sobbing to herself, "No juice at night.  No juice at night."  Reed and I are in bed laughing at her while she is self-soothing.  She did that a few more nights and then she was done!

2.  When Taylor was little she didn't just watch movies, she interacted with them.  One year for Christmas, she was two, all she wanted was Prince Philip boots, and for her birthday we made her a Prince Philip cape.  We potty trained her that same year with the bribe of a fifty-cent foam sword, which completed the ensemble.  She would act out Mulan or Sleeping Beauty and when the kissing scenes would come on she would look around and the only thing available to kiss was a plastic ride-on horse so she would give that a good smooching!

3.  Taylor had a favorite pair of Winnie the Pooh snow boots and she wore them everywhere.  The problem was they had a giant velcro fastener which would catch on the carpet while she was going down the stairs.  She fell down the stairs because of those boots more times than I can count.  I got used to it, but one day when Reed was home she fell and he had a major come apart.  He grabbed her up, threw the boots, and they both had a regular fit.  She was hysterical about the loss of her boots, he was scared about the falling down the stairs, and I was just thanking my lucky stars he wasn't around for the last twenty times she did it.

4.  When Disney's Tarzan came to the theaters we took her to see it and she loved it.  When the movie was over she stood up and screamed "REWIND IT, REWIND IT" and threw a major fit because she wanted to see it again and again.  Many people at the theater had a good laugh at her expense.

5.  She got her first baseball mitt when she was four or five and she would stand in the dining room and throw herself pop fly's up into the vault.  She would stand there for hours throwing the ball up and catching it.  About this time the wheels started turning in Reed's head and it wasn't long before he was coaching and she was playing.  

6.  Speaking of sports.... When she was just a baby I would occasionally leave her with Reed to go somewhere and I would return to see her sitting in her high chair, and him sitting in his chair, sharing snacks and watching whatever game happened to be on at the time.  They were both completely zoned into what was happening, and neither usually noticed that I had came or went.  This still happens occasionally.

7.  We were camping one year with Grandpa Kerry during the bow hunt and Reed happened upon a deer.  He drew his bow, and she drew her "bow" and the poor deer left this earth.  She was so excited to hike up with him to retrieve their prize, but what she didn't account for was blood and death.  She has since been scarred for life, and I doubt she will ever hunt again.

8.  Taylor has always played ball with the boys and it has made me very nervous for her.  One day when she was in machine pitch a boy got hit with the ball and fell down on the base and cried like, well, like a little girl.  I told Taylor that since she was playing with the boys, she had to be tough, and please, for the love of pete, do not throw a fit if you get hit with the ball.  Turns out, she is like a ball magnet, and she has been hit several times.  She has had bruises shaped like baseballs, some even showing the lace marks.  She has never once cried on the field. She always guts it out and cries in the dugout later.

9.  Taylor is a lot like her dad when vacationing.  She goes for the full experience and does not want to waste a single second in sleeping or relaxing.  When we go camping with Grandpa Simper she usually wakes up around five a.m., sneaks out of the trailer, and goes up and has hot chocolate with him and enjoys the morning while the rest of us sleep. 

10.   When she was two I bought her a red ball cap from the Gap and that hat didn't leave her head for years.  When we moved into our new ward we were so worried about getting to church on time that I did not even really look at her until we were walking into the chapel.  I happened to look down and here she is bee-bopping into church with a cute little dress and a red baseball hat.  

11.  While recovering in the hospital after I had Torey, my mom called down and told me not to give Reed a hard time about what Taylor was wearing.  Apparently it had been a hard morning, a battle had ensued, and a compromise had been struck.  Not long after the phone call Reed and Taylor entered my hospital room and she is wearing a cute little yellow sundress, white sandals, and a worn out Dodgers t-shirt.  Reed looked at me with that "don't you dare say anything look" and all I could manage was "You did great with her hair!"

12.  She is the best big sister ever.  She has always been really great with Torey and Jake, and is a very good example.  We love her more than anything in this whole world.

Happy 12th Birthday Taylor!!!

It is a crazy week....

We have a lot going on this week.  Taylor has a science fair board due on Wednesday which must be original in thought, well researched, and a "work of art."  We had piano on Monday and a three hour shopping trip with Grandma.  Torey has three performances of her fourth grade play, which require hair and make-up of which she is ecstatic.  (Which reminds me - Will someone assure Taylor that mascara does indeed go on the bottom lashes?  Thank you).  We have a family party on Wednesday, as well as basketball practice, a friend party on Friday, activity days on Saturday as well as a basketball game.  And then my dear friend, Alice, reminded me that Valentine's Day is this week as well.  So, along with all of the running around for birthday paraphernalia, baking, and preparing, I must also get Valentine's cards.  As I was contemplating a physical and emotional breakdown yesterday, lamenting the fact that I have no time to get it all done, the little cherubs came home and announced that their classes were having Valentine Box decorating contests and what could I turn out for them? Torey wants an I-pod shaped box which is easy enough, and the little man has decided that a box shaped like Optimus Prime's head will suffice.  Taylor has yet to decide, but she is thinking of something in any shape but a box, preferably rounded, and including paper mache, and by the way, hers came in last place last year and let's not have a repeat of that again.  I hate the public school system.  Reed, sensing the tension emanating from my every pore, and correctly assessing the precarious nature of my nerves, immediately came to the rescue with this suggestion.  He said, "How 'bout a boot"....

and yes... He was dead serious.  Sadly, there were no takers and his feelings will never recover.

It's been a while....

so here is a list of what has been going on.

1.  I hate, hate, hate this stupid inversion soup we have been slow cooking in for the past few weeks.  I am on sinus "infection" three right now.  I blame the inversion.

2.  I hate, hate the science fair.  And not because it provides a valuable educational experience for my daughter.  That part I don't mind.  I just hate the process.  The running around trying to find the perfect border paper that is subtle enough to not overpower the subject matter, but bold enough to say "Hey come look at my board.  It's a winner."  That's the part I hate.  Oh, and the coming up with the subject matter.  I hate that part too.

3.  Welcome February.  You kind of snuck up on me.  But it's okay.  

4.  Taylor will be turning twelve in a week.  I'm still not out of the shock phase of my grieving process.  By the way, thanks for your ideas.

5.  Since Christmas break I have been on a purging frenzy.  Nothing is immune from a garbage sack in my house.  I have also been trying to use up the scraps in my fabric bin.  I have made four baby quilts, one table runner, a purse, three aprons, and I am still not done.  Currently, I am working on a monkey - so far just in my head.  Not on fabric yet.  The scraps are giving me a headache.  Oh, wait, that is the inversion which I hate.

6.  It is time to sign up for baseball.  There is still snow on the ground.  Why are we signing up for baseball?

7.  I need to go to the grocery store, but I probably won't.

8.  Basketball is going great.  Both of the girls are having fun.

9.  Torey has a play next week.  What are the chances that she gets the exact same part as her older sister.  It worked out great for the costume, but the middle child in me and her was a little perturbed.

10.  Jake will play the giant in an upcoming play of "Jack and the Beanstalk."  We are looking forward to that.  

That's the update.  How are you enjoying the inversion?

HeLp!!!!

This little sweetheart will be turning twelve in a few weeks and we need to throw her a fantastic "girl" party.  Taylor has undergone an evolution of sorts over the past year, deciding that girl stuff is not quite that bad.  She has decided that you can still be a very active, sporty girl and yet still embrace other feminine qualities and attributes.  So, we were thinking that a fun girls night is just what she needs to mark this auspicious occasion.  We need ideas as we are generally not a very girlie household - which is quite flabbergasting as girls outnumber boys 3 to 2.  We were wondering what such a party would entail.  Would we do a fabulous craft?  And if so - what?  Would it be scrapbookish, or involve fabric, or would we make accessories, or some other random craft? Or would we just do pizza and a movie?  Or manicures?  What are twelve year old girls capable of?  Can you tell I am a first timer?  HELP!   Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.  Please make your comments as lengthy as necessary to get us through this grand occasion.  Please, with sugar on top and a cherry!

To My Husband Whom I Love...

Thirteen years ago today it was the worst snow storm of the year.  We drove to Salt Lake where you treated me to a breakfast of Orange Juice and Whatchamacallit's.  We met a man who said "My name is Stringham," and as I sat next to you in the sealing room of the Salt Lake Temple your suddenly motorized arm made my teeth rattle.  I looked at you and asked if you were going to be okay, and you assured me that you were.  And we have been okay ever since.  Thanks for going through with it, baby, I love you more now than I did then.  Thank you for the past thirteen years they have been the most wondrous years of my life.

Love - Nat