ReAl -vs- FC Dallas

So- even though we typically date our kids one-on-one, we decided to make an exception this past Saturday for Colby. Reason being- the date was a little more spendy than usual- so we made it a "double parent date" & all 3 of us went! It was so great! It was Real's last regular season game & was played in their new stadium- which is AWESOME by the way!! (Yes- that IS a picture of me holding a huge thing of icecream. What about it?!?) They had a few fireworks they set off during the singing of the national anthem which were cool. The fact that Real won the game 3 to 1 made the night even sweeter! By the way- the pizza we had there was sooo good!! It was a really fun date & I hope Colby knows how much we love him! He's a stud! Always helpful, loving, giving & thoughtful, & still kisses his momma, even in public! What more could you ask for in a son??

Scary Hill '08

Cam & I love the dates we have with our kids! We try to do them often (sometimes schedules get in the way)! However- there is really nothing like that one-on-one time you get to spend with your kids individually! We like to rotate between the kids and between Cam & I so we all get to know each other better! There's the little rules/guidelines involved with the dates: no radio in the car, no phone calls that aren't emergencies, and no negative topics. Just good 'ol fashioned fun together where we enjoy each other's company! Tonight was Jessie & I's date. They all get to choose their date destination. It was a hard choice between Olive Garden & minitature golfing for Jessie. Golfing won since she'd never been before! We chose Cherry Hill- now known as "Scary Hill" right now with their whole Halloween theme- which I personally think is very cute! Jessie thought so as well! Castles all draped in cobwebs, jack-o-lanterns & skeletons & vampires, etc! Very cute! Or shall I say "spooky"? Anyways- it was awesome to be with Jess! It was absolutely heart-warming to spend time laughing with her, smalk talking a little (nothing wrong with a little competiveness ;0), and encouragement!! We cheered each other on & gave each other big high 5's when we did well- which I must admit- we did!!! Granted- I've only been miniature golfing a few times in my life & this was Jess's 1st time- but we ROCKED! It was fun & of course, the night involved Frosty's from Wendy's! I may not be humble when it comes to gloating about how well we did- but I sure am humble when I think for 2 seconds how lucky I am to be blessed with Jessie as a daughter- as well as my other 4 kids! Wow- I love them!!! (Please forgive the not-so-great pics- they're from my Blackberry seeing as how the camera took 1 pic before running out of batteries!! - But at least I did a new post!! Took me long enough, huh?!?!)

Seasons

Can't remember exactly which day it was- but I know it was in this past week- but I recall the weatherwoman remarking about it being the first day of fall. YEA! I love fall! Love the color of the fall leaves on the mountain, love the little bit of "crispness" in the air, and love the fact I can start to wear jeans & hoodies again! Now as much as I love the change of seasons, I've gotten to thinking a little bit deeper about "seasons". (Forgive me- been a little more "reflective" as of late) I have sat & thought endlessly about the seasons of my life. When I look back on my 32 years of life, I think of all the different seasons I've been through. Some have seemed more enjoyable, some more exciting, some definitely harder w/more struggles, and some much, much more relaxing! Some of the seasons I've been through when I was a young teenager where I was more concerned about having a "good time" than anything else or when I was a young mom of only 2 boys & I was busy figuring out where I wanted my life to go- seem sooo long ago. Like a different lifetime. I feel like I'm now in the season of raising my children. Doing my very best to make sure they are well-fed, clothed, happy, healthy, smart, well-mannered, kind, & prepared for what life may have in store for them. But what's hard for me is this: I feel like I also have other seasons that also overlap this one. I am also in a season of trying to establish a new business while managing another, of being a huge support business-wise for my husband, trying to be there in many capacities for my extended family, trying to fulfill my callings to the best of my ability, trying to be the best kind of friend I know how to be and of being constantly busy! I never feel like I get to just sit still. I find that life has thrown things my way that I've overcome & they seemed so big- yet looking back now- I see they were so small. Many of my seasons have overlapped & continue to do so. I remember reading a devotional message on the topic of seasons & there was a phrase of being "seasoned to perfection". I just have one sincere hope & desire in relation to that: I hope that I can continue faithfully & diligently through this season of my life & all the seasons to come- until one day I am "seasoned to perfection". I hope I can gain understanding, empathy, compassion, faith, perspective, patience, insight, & many, many happy memories from all of them! I want to get all that I can out of each of my seasons- which means I might need to slow down enough to enjoy each of them for what they offer, instead of wishing the next one to come along sooner! So- here's to sitting back & enjoying my season!!!

Work, work, and more work!

The last couple months have been full of me trying to catch up on the mountains of paperwork that I had previously been avoiding! I set a goal to get caught up on all the Autoboss paperwork, Btfl condos paperwork, & get the pawn shop on an accounting system- all by the time we go to Hawaii at the beginning of November. I'm happy to say that I've done 2 of the 3. The pawnshop paperwork & accounting is a BEAST! It's new & confusing & I'm struggling to figure out the best way to track everything. I'm offering up some sure signs to support my conclusion that I'm working way too much lately!-
First: Cam's office chair has a permanent imprint of my buttocks! No joke!
Second: I've found that the paperwork follows me into my dreams! Seriously, who dreams about paperwork???
Third: Have you seen the state of chaos that my house is in at the moment? For those of you that have witnessed the aftermath of the Winquist children cyclone- I apologize!
Lastly: I'm soo unable to focus & do well at anything else! Can't get up in the morning for workouts (sorry again for sleeping in today Tami), can't be a good friend to all of you & do all the "neighborly" things I'd like to do, & can't perform well in the mothering department (yep, sent Sadie all dressed in orange w/her orange show-n-tell on RED day! oops- orange is next week!)And the worst part of it is this- I'm blogging about it due to the sad truth that I'm too exhausted to walk the 3 feet it would require to get the camera so I'd be able to blog about something somewhat interesting to all of you! Instead- you get this! By the way- it's 1:36 AM & I'm so exhausted, I can't sleep! Too much on my mind & can't shut it down. I think this will go down in history as one of the most pointless blog posts ever! Sorry- I love you all & thank you for your patience as I attempt to slay the paperwork dragon so I can come out & play again soon!

Welcome Home Asi!!

When people found out that Drew's biological dad, Asi, was coming back into our lives after being gone for 15 yrs (not by his choice- he would've given anything to have been here)- I got a lot of questions like "Is that going to be weird?" & "How do you feel about that?" It got me thinking about family. I'd like to share some of my own thoughts mixed in with some wise words from Pres. Hinckley's daughter, Virginia Hinckley Pearce.
The little nuclear family that is created by a man & a woman & their children is so uniquely different. They blend their personalities, temperaments, talents, & quirky ways into an identity that is uniquely theirs- their own family culture. This family then extends into grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, sisters, brothers, etc. Each family develops their own culture. Cam & I definitely have. The things we do, the things we don't do. The things that I worry about, the things that I ignore or overlook. The routine of my household. The mood rhythms. The way we handle money & the way we choose to spend our time. The way we interact with each other & with our children & our friends, neighbors, etc. I respect that we may be more or less playful/serious/focused/goal-oriented/casual/spontaneous/calm/wild- (you get my point) than other's families. The whole point of all of it is this: I believe there are many, many different ways to be a good, happy family. I worry that we sometimes look at others & narrow our ideas of what that may be. Some of us seem to think that all righteous families must follow the same family routine, they must all interact in the same ways, & follow the same behavioral prescriptions. C.S. Lewis said "Sameness is to be found most among the most "natural" men, not among those who surrender to Christ. How monotonously alike all the great tyrants & conquerors have been; how gloriously different are the Saints"! If this is true for individuals, I believe it is also true of families! When parents strive to keep their covenants, enabling the Spirit to work in their lives, every family will be wonderfully different. And we could be comparing less & celebrating more!!
I know that Asi being a big part of our life may seem "weird" to others- but it couldn't feel more natural to me. He IS my family. I love him, as does Cameron, Drew, & all my other kids. He loves us all & shows us constantly. I couldn't be happier to have him be in our lives. And although that may not seem so "normal" to some- I'll just say this: I've NEVER claimed to be normal nor strived to be! My family is unique (sometimes dysfunctional- although I prefer the term "flavorful" ;0)
I love my wonderful husband, Cam, & my sweet kids with all my heart! I"m proud to have them as my family! And that family includes Asi! Welcome home Asi! We love you!

"M" is for Mt. Timpanogos

"Crazy" is the word of the week! What was I thinking?! I really wanted to take the kids hiking up to the Timpanogos Caves- so when we knew we'd have the Harris kids at that time- I thought "the more, the merrier". Well, I grossly underestimated the amount of work it would take to get all 9 kids up the mountain!! Luckily, Drew & Colby are both big enough to help out rather than be a nuisance! The older girls, Jody & Ashley, both did well on the way up, but their shoes were really hurting their feet on the way down. The younger kiddos, of course, complained about how steep it was & hot & how tired they were! It was so busy that day that we had to wait for 3 hrs after buying the tickets for the next available cave tour! So, the majority of the kids & I headed down earlier, got the tickets, & then played around up at Mountain Dell while we waited for our time slot. Then Cam & Jody & Ashley drove down separately, arriving just in time to go on the hike! Let me just say- it was well worth the hike! It was so cool to be in there & hear all about the history & see all the cool features of the caves. Not sure I retained most of it (stalagmites, stalagtites, cave columns,??? it's all the same to me ;0) But it was really neat & the kids loved it! Parker got scared when they turned off all the lights to demonstrate how dark it'd be without any lights! Sadie tried to hike off & on, but spent most of the time in her daddy's arms! CJ got the best deal in the group by riding up in his pack on my stomach for a majority of the time, but Drew & Colby took their turns- happily!! It was cute- he was all smiles! Of course he was, his leg muscles weren't screaming for mercy like the rest of ours! I love the pictures I got of Drew looking down at CJ- the love & adoration are so evident! I would definitely recommend taking the cave tour to anyone who hasn't before! The hike is a bit scary & steep in a few spots- so be sure to keep a close eye on your little ones- but overall- it's such a cool experience!! (My calves & shins don't share that opinion ;0)

Saved by the Bell!

Just when I was sure I'd lose my mind because of all my children's constant bickering & fighting- school starts!! That's how it is every year at the end of summer! They have reached the point where we've spent SO much time together that everything everyone does gets on everyone's nerves- especially mine!! Please don't get me wrong- I absolutely love & adore my children! But a few hours of my own to work uninterrupted is purely priceless! Hooray for school- heaven bless the teachers who will spend their time giving my children an education! It means I can get work done and not feel guilty about neglecting my kids! I know where they are, what they are doing & more importantly- they're loving it too!!! I'm so excited at this point that I won't even belly ache about homework- YET! (That comes later on in the year when I begin to forget how glad I was school started & then we begin to look forward to summer! It's a vicious circle of emotions!) Anyways- excited for all the kids. As you can see- there are no pics of Drew or Colby. They were way too cool for that this year! Drew is now a sophmore at Davis High & loving it! So weird for me cause I swear it feels like yesterday that I myself was in high school! Colby is loving 8th grade! Jody is excited about 5th grade & of course Jessie is thrilled to be in 2nd grade! The weirdest change for me is Sadie baby starting preschool! She's going to Tiffiny's Flowerbox Preschool & yesterday was her 1st day! She loved it! She did so well when we dropped her off- no tears (okay- maybe a few from me!). Hopefully, this excitement & the novelty of being back in school lasts for a long time!!! (fyi Tami took the pics of my girls & emailed me them- I can't figure out how to make them bigger. But I will get it fixed later- until then, bear with me!!)