why does my house inspire cross-dressing?

boys love to get all dolled up when they come to our house. i'm sure it's the lure of something they don't have at home. coupled with peer pressure, the desire to do what everyone else is doing. 'cause when you're here, everyone else is wearing princess dresses! my nephew is one who loves to come play dress-up. he has been known to where the dresses home, or take them off kicking and screaming! here are the two best buds, glamming it up!

my girl

it's been said that Anna is my doppelganger. sometimes, i think it's hard to pick out your features in someone else's face. so, i can't say that i look at her and say, "yep, that's me!" but in actions...oh boy, there's a resemblance. you may remember from earlier posts that Anna is a night owl. ditto. she's also the mother hen of the family. (uh, i can relate) is singing to herself (or others) all day long. (if you were at Costco today, you may have seen me doing this) twirls her hair. (no comment) and loves, loves, loves, loves, crafting! she would sit and color all day long if she could. throw in some stickers and jewels, Anna's own version of heaven. Michael's and JoAnn are favorite destinations. she is dying for her own sewing machine, and wants a camera for her birthday. here is her latest creation: now, we can play the nature vs. nurture game and argue that she sees me doing all of the above and therefore it's all learned behavior. and trust me, that's a valid argument, but i submit to you the evidence of my other daughters. Madeline loves to go to bed, she asks for it. does not twirl her hair. (this may be a logistical problem as it is way too curly to twirl.) prefers to let Anna do the mothering, so she can do the kid thing. (might be a product of sibling order) is luke warm on crafting. (sure it's fun for a while, but likes to move on.) needs extreme bribing to go to the craft store. and couldn't care less about sewing or photography. (so far) we'll see how time develops these two personalities.

youth conference!

i consider myself lucky to serve with the youth of my church! how else would i be able to go to a winter wonderland with 200+ teenagers to engage in team building, spirit building, friendship building experiences? this year's youth conference was all of that and more. contrary to what most the youth might think, we leaders are not all super confident and outgoing. no, you don't suddenly turn into someone who makes friends easily when you turn 20, 30, 40, or ever. so, when we got to the conference (we were staying in barracks, with an Army theme.) and learned that ward leaders would not be working together in a Platoon, I was just as apprehensive as any of the 14-18 year olds would be. what if i didn't know anyone in my group? what if no one liked me? what if i didn't fit in for 3 whole days? well, my fears were nearly immediately put to rest when i met some of the best kids on the planet, and had a very exceptional partner to lead my platoon! (thanks Brother Fuller!) and as if that weren't enough, Company A was a very friendly place to bunk! (i was the only leader in my company sleeping out with the girls, and it was a very fun experience! i stayed up way to late chit-chatting, but when do i get to do that?) the activities were fun and challenging, and the classes were uplifting and inspiring. do i really have to wait another year? (no, no quite! girls camp is just around the corner!!! hurray!!!)

"Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed. For the Lord, thy God is with thee withersoever thou goes." Joshua 1:9

my little leprechaun

was it really St. Patrick's day? this month is flying by. i guess time didn't stand still while i was on vacation......

happy birthday to me! the best week (and a half) ever!!!!!

my birthday started strong this year! i got together with the laurels and priests to make what would become an award winning film on dating! and the girls surprised me with my favorite treat - chocolate cake! you guys are the BEST, seriously, best girls ever! next it was off to Cali so the kids could have a 10+ day grandparent extravaganza! while Jason and i got a little r&r. so within one week, i went from this little outing:

to this BIG outing:

um, hello....this was the best week ever! i am totally spoiled!

so, Jason and I spent 11 days basking in his old stomping grounds: Oahu, Hawaii.

it was magical for oh so many reasons. a) we were back on the North Shore. i love to go back to Santa Barbara, the nostalgia sweeps over me instantly and I feel like a kid again. so i know this must be how Jason feels on Oahu. b) we were alone. that's right, no kids! wow. i'm not one of those people that needs a weekend away here and there to maintain sanity. so, i've never had one. but it was time, and it was awesome. c) the weather was perfect. if you've ever been to Hawaii, you know this isn't always the case. (right Cooks?)

the only downside was that the waves were less than perfect. poor Jason. five years since his last surf trip, and he was basically skunked.

oh well, that left us more time to do things we've never done in Hawaii before, new hikes, new tourist attractions, the South side (my future home, i hope), and a Magnum PI tour, courtesy of me and Wikipedia! i think i'll have to do random posts about our trip in the coming weeks, to remind me of how wonderful it all was. until then, Aloha!

sneak peek: Bates Fam

more to come.....