Bad Mom?

I have been feeling rather guilty lately. Peyton has been watching a lot of TV while I snooze on the couch. In fact, she says to me every day, "Mom, you sleep on the couch and I will watch my shows." I must be the worst mom using the TV as a babysitter as frequently as I am, but with how I am feeling with this pregnancy, it is kind of a necessity.

My guilt was eased somewhat last week, however. We were in the van on the way home from Holly and Brian's and it was late so Morgan and Trevor were asleep in the back. Peyton, who had slept on the way there, was wide awake and talking up a storm. The next thing Ken and I realize, Peyton was counting things and then she started counting in Spanish (in the cutest little accent, mind you). I was amazed when she got almost to ten. Ken and I were floored.

Maybe all the TV she has been watching isn't such a bad thing? :)

Excuses, excuses

I know I have been a pretty lousy blogger as of late, but I do have a good excuse. I am expecting our 4th child in September and this pregnancy is really taking its toll. Even though I am well into my second trimester, I am still feeling awful. The nausea is almost unbearable. I am also super tired and having to nap almost every day.

Ken is really going above and beyond! He has been doing in incredible job being Mr. Mom since I am so sick. (The couch and I have become great friends.) He is taking great care of all of us! My love and appreciation for him has really increased the last few months.

The kids are really looking forward to a new little brother or sister. Trevor is especially interested in how big the baby is now. They thought it was pretty cool when they got to hear the heartbeat at a recent doctors appointment.

Hopefully, I will feel better soon and be able to resume my usual blogging activity. I'm sure you have all been missing my witty insights into the world around me. :)

I heart NYC

I think I am addicted. Ever since going to New York City with Ken about 18 months ago, I keep wanting to go back over and over. I totally love that city. I am sure the biggest part of that is the wonderful friends that I am able to visit while I am there. I just got back on Sunday and I am missing the city already.

My dear friend Celia is a fabulous musician and singer. During the month of March she has a Thursday night at Arturo's Italian Restaurant and she asked if I would like to come out and sing with her. I had an airlines voucher that I had to use anyway, so I booked my flight. It was a thrill to sing with Celia and Dave, the bassist that plays with her. (It was a little tricky because for some reason, my ear was stuffed up and I couldn't hear very well and when I spoke or sang, it sounded like I was underwater. Ugh! It was the wrong weekend for that to happen!) In any case, we had a great time with the tunes that we performed together and I loved listening to them jam the rest of the time.

On Friday, Celia and I mostly hung around her apartment. It was so much fun helping her to get organized and do projects around the place. We talked and talked and even had fun together running errands. That evening, we went to Carlos' goodbye party at Uncle Charlie's. They had a section of the bar that was a piano room part and everyone had a blast singing. I especially loved getting to see some old friends from high school that have all ended up there in the city together. After singing for a couple of hours, Celia, Miriam, and I headed out for a late dinner on Times Square. It was such a beautiful evening and there were people everywhere!

Miriam, Celia, and I in Grand Central Station

In Times Square

RBHS Alumni singin' at Uncle Charlie's

Saturday we did the tourist thing and spent just about the whole day on Liberty Island and Ellis Island. It was fascinating learning more about the history behind the Statue of Liberty and all the immigration that happened at Ellis Island. We walked and walked -- boy were our feet sore! We got back up to midtown just in time to meet Brittany for dinner and then catch the Broadway show, Shrek. (I thought the show was cute and had some amazing talent in it. I love Sutton Foster!) Of course, we had to get some cheesecake on the way home to complete the NYC experience.

After our tours of Liberty Island and Ellis Island (can you see them in the background?)

Sunday we kept it rather relaxed. Celia wanted me to teach her a voice lesson and then we jammed a bit before heading out to walk around a have a delicious brunch. I was so sad when I had to head to the airport. I had missed my family, but it was certainly nice to get away for a few days.

Thanks so much to Ken for holding down the fort while I was gone. I am also grateful to my dear friends Brandie and Wendy for watching Trevor and Peyton so Ken could work during the day. And most of all, to Celia for inviting me out to visit her. I love making music with you -- you are amazing and I appreciate you sharing your talent with me!

Now...how long before I can go back again? :)

Spoiled...

Ken treated me to a wonderful Valentine's Day this year. During the day he watched the kids so I could take a nap. Then he surprised me with gorgeous, red roses, chocolate truffles, my favorite candy (red Swedish fish), and thin mint cookies. We took the kids to the babysitter and then we went out to dinner. It was so nice to have some time alone together to talk and enjoy each others company. At dinner Ken gave me one more gift.

About a year and a half ago we were moving our TV to paint and it smashed my fingers. Later that night, I noticed that my opal ring that I have worn everyday for the past 15 years was totally bent and smashed onto my finger. Ken was able to sneak it to a jeweler and had it reshaped and put a new opal in since the old one was chipped. The result is beautiful and I love having it (new and improved) back on my finger.

Most of all, I am so grateful for Ken being my Valentine for the last 14 years. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to get to spend my life with him. He is my perfect match and I know that he makes me so much better than I could ever be on my own. I can't imagine life without him. He does a great job on Valentine's day, but really he spoils me everyday. I love you Ken!

I can relate...

These were on my friend Paige's blog. I seriously laughed out loud! Enjoy!

Differences...

I love that my children, despite looking quite similar, are so very different. It is especially fun to watch the differences between my girls, Morgan and Peyton. Morgan is such an interesting mix. She has always gotten along really well with both boys and girls, but she doesn't really like to do the girly activities. No dolls, barbies, princesses, or pink for her. I remember the time when she didn't want to go to a "Princess Party" and would only go if she did NOT have to dress up like a princess.

Peyton is totally different. Pink is her absolute favorite color. Seriously, it borders on an obsession. She is a great mommy to all her dolls. She was thrilled to get her first pink Barbie doll at Christmas. She loves dressing up with her friends and has even been known to put on a princess dress a time or two.

So I guess I should not have been surprised at the difference when Peyton got a hold of a red marker the other night. I immediately thought of Morgan and the war-paint look she created for herself a couple of years ago.

Peyton had a different approach. In fact, I found out she had the red marker because she was asking for my help. She had "painted" her left hand fingernails and now needed help on her right hand to complete the task. Of course I helped her finish the job before taking away the marker. I have laughed and laughed about this experience and it made me love both of my beautiful daughters even more.

A Wondrous Gift is Giv'n

I was so blessed to conduct our stake choir to perform at the Second Annual Interfaith concert held by our stake. It was so much fun to select the music. I love the fact that I get to do the music stuff without having to worry about decorations, advertising, refreshments, etc. The night was a wonderful success and I was glad for the opportunity to work with Sandi from the Community of Christ Church and Maggie from St. John the Baptist Catholic Church.

The event even got a couple of write-ups in the local paper. You can go here and here to read the articles.

I think our choir did really well and I was so proud of their hard work and effort. It didn't hurt that we had Liz Nelson accompanying us. She totally rocked, especially on the organ stuff that was really difficult. We were only able to have 3 rehearsals and I had selected some tricky pieces, but everyone pulled together really well and we had about 60 or so in our choir. Of course there are things that I would still like to have tweaked with the sound, but overall I was really pleased. It was a wonderful experience and I am already looking forward to next year.

Sean McKell (our stake technology person) was able to record the concert using the podium microphone. The quality isn't that great and it was hard to control the levels with our bigger choir so the recording has distortion, but it was fun to hear what we sounded (mostly) like. You can download the mp3 recordings here. Sean divided up the program by choir and you can also hear the two group numbers at the end. Thanks so much Sean!

December wrap-up...

Ha ha! Get it? Wrap up! All the presents you have to wrap in December... okay, nevermind!


I know I have been rather negligent of my blogging duties the past month or so. With the holidays, rehearsals, performances and spending time with wonderful family and friends, the month seemed to evaporate. So here are some of the most memorable things from the end of 2008.



1. I was really busy with Triple Trio and had many performances of our Christmas program. I especially enjoyed visiting some of the nursing homes where they really look forward to our visit. It is kind of cool having "fans". :) We also did some community events and even had our picture taken for the local paper. I totally love the women in the group and what we create together!


2. I am grateful for the holidays and for the opportunity to reach out to friends and family and let them know we love them. I actually got our Christmas cards and Christmas treats before Christmas! I was feeling pretty on the ball, until...

3. ...Trevor accidentally knocked over the Christmas tree. He felt so bad, but I was glad I wasn't home at the time so that he lived to tell the tale. At the time I didn't want to deal with the mess and so I spent about a day rereading a favorite book. Finally 2 days later I spent a couple of hours and redecorated the tree. I don't think any of us, especially Trevor, will be forgetting that anytime soon.



4. We spent Christmas down at Holly and Brian's home in Highlands Ranch. It was great being all together! Holly made some delicious meals and we were able to attend a beautiful mass at their church. As usual, the cousins LOVED playing together, especially with the new treasures they had received for Christmas.

5. Our Stake hosted the 2nd annual Interfaith Choir Concert. I got to lead the choir again. It was a fantastic experience with beautiful music and the spirit. Check out my next post for newspaper links and a link to the mp3 of the concert.

6. The Allreds braved the snow and came to visit us from Utah. I can't describe how fabulous it was to have them here! We did fun things with the kids (WOW museum and Jumpin') and the guys got to go out and the girls got to go have lunch together. The kids played, played, and played some more. They also loved having "sleepovers".

7. The last night the Allreds were here we went out on a triple date with Holly and Brian. We had gotten tickets for Jersey Boys down in Denver. We met for a delicious dinner at Cheesecake Factory and then walked over to the performance. The show was fantastic (although they weren't kidding about the "authentic New Jersey style language") and we were singing songs by Frankie Vallie and the Four Seasons for days!

We were so blessed this Christmas season. We were able to spend time with friends and family, but most of all, we were able to focus on the real meaning of the season, the birth of Our Savior, Jesus Christ.

2,654...

...that is how many miles we drove during the Thanksgiving break.

We decided to do the Texas three step during vacation. Ken had negotiated for a few extra vacation days, so we had about a week. On Sunday we left after church and drove to Amarillo where we stayed the night. The kids loved spending the evening swimming in the pool. The next morning we began our drive to San Antonio and our visit with the Hansens.

San Antonio was where Ken served his mission and he was excited to be back in his old stomping (or should I say his old biking?) grounds. We drove by some of his old apartments and mission office, but the highlight was our visit to the San Antonio LDS Temple. It was beautiful and set up on a hill overlooking the city. It wasn't there when Ken was there almost 15 years ago and it was exciting to see how the church is growing. We walked around the grounds and enjoyed the spirit that was there.


After visiting the temple, we went downtown so we could see the Alamo and the riverwalk. It was so much fun learning more about the history of Texas. We loved the taking the kids on a cruise of the river and we were pleased that no one fell in. :) That night Jake surprised us by making arrangements for a babysitter so we could go on a double date out to dinner. And then Jake saved me by working on my back. (Thanks Jake! It felt so much better!)



On Wednesday, we headed up to Ft. Hood to meet with Cyle, my mom and dad, and Codi and Coby's family. We enjoyed a great dinner together and a movie night at Cyle's townhome. Thursday Uncle Cyle gave all the kids rides on his motorcycle. They all thought that was the greatest!


We got to have Thanksgiving dinner at the Mess Hall on Ft. Hood. They had decorated the mess hall beautifully and even had a pardoned turkey out it front. (Gobble, gobble!) The servers were all dressed in their dress uniforms. The best part was having Clint call us from Iraq while we were eating dinner. We all got a chance to talk to him. That really helped to put the day into perspective for me. We obvoiusly have so much to be grateful for. Most of all, our freedoms and the great land we live in.

Cyle gave us a quick tour of the post before we headed down to Houston to spend the rest of the weekend at Codi and Coby's. We had a fun weekend of the cousins playing, shopping, and just being together. It was so much fun!

On Sunday we started very early to make the long drive home. We are so lucky that our kiddos are so good in the car! We were making great time across Texas and enjoyed the drive and listened to The Westing Game and The Indian in the Cupboard on CD. Once we got into New Mexico we hit a snag. There was a huge storm and the roads connecting to I25 were closed and even I25 was closed because of all the accidents. We really flet like we needed to get home so we backtracked to Oklahoma and and went up the eastern side of Colorado. It was a long night -- we got home about 4:00 am.

It was a great trip! We visited great friends and loved the time we were able to spend with family. I think that made me even more thankful at Thanksgiving.

Twilight...

My birthday week continued. The big celebration was on Friday night when some friends and I went out to dinner and then to see Twilight. I had a blast! I loved being with my friends and making some new friends as well. We had a delicious dinner and talked even more than we ate.

After dinner we headed on over to the theater to see Twilight. Of course, the movie wasn't as good as the book. Overall, I would give it a B. It felt a little low budget, but I did enjoy it and I am looking forward to seeing it again.

I am constantly astounded by the amazing women I am blessed to call my friends! It was so fun going out with them and I was tickled that they would celebrate my birthday with me. I totally needed the night out and I hope they all had as much fun as I did.

A special thank you to Tirsa for my new Twilight shirt. It was nice to dress for the event. :)

Happy Birthday to me!

On November 19th at 12:42 am, I officially turned 33 years old. I seriously think that time is speeding up! I can't say that I am anxious about being older, or even looking older. I am fairly content about my life (most of the time) and am pleased with the things I have learned, accomplished, and experienced. So I guess I'll wear my age as a badge of honor of the life I have lived. Maybe I'll hit the panic button as I get closer to 40. :)

Ken had to be out of town for my birthday, but we celebrated before he left for Ohio. He took me out to dinner at Famous Dave's -- yummy ribs! -- and then we were going to go see the new James Bond, but I was too tired. (Maybe I AM feeling my age!) So instead we went home to watch something on PPV and Ken decided to give me my present a few days early.

For about the last 4 or 5 years I have wanted, okay, maybe really closer to coveted, a DSLR camera. Sadly, it never seemed to be in the budget. Well, Ken must have been feeling particularly generous and got me a great bundle deal from Costco; a Canon xsi, 2 lenses, memory card, and a camera bag. I responded appropriately by smothering him with kisses. :)

I am loving playing with my new toy and I am so excited to learn more and hopefully improve my photography skills.


I am grateful for wonderful friends that helped me feel so loved, even while Ken was gone. I received flowers (having fresh flowers makes the whole house feel more beautiful!) and Jen and Brandie watched my kiddos so I could go to a voice lesson (my lesson went really, really well -- I am so happy I am improving!) and do some shopping. It was a great day! Thanks everyone for all the fantastic gifts, but most of all for your friendship, love, and support. I think being 33 will be great!

Angels among us...

In fact, those angels decided to visit my home this morning.

My house was a mess! I have had a difficult time staying on top of things lately and with Ken gone, I had really let the house go yesterday. My plan was to come home from Triple Trio rehearsal and errands and do some major tidying and cleaning before my voice students started to arrive for the afternoon. I wasn't sure that I would be able to get it all done.

As I come in the door with my arms full of groceries, I noticed something was not quite right. Things were not where they were when I left this morning (which was basically all over). I walked into the kitchen noticed the clean counters that had been covered with dirty dishes and the dinner from last night that I had not yet put away. So instead of the mess I was expecting, there are beautiful flowers on my island. I was completely awestruck. I called my mother as I began to walk around the house. Toys were put away, the floor was swept and vacuumed (even the stairs!), and even my bathrooms had been cleaned! Tears of gratitude flowed from both of our eyes as I continued to discover all the things my angels had done. Trevor kept saying, "mom why are you crying? You should be happy." I explained to him that they were tears of joy and I was overwhelmed with gratitude.

So thank you my dear angels! Words cannot express the love I have for you. I have a pretty good idea who you are -- there are only a few people that know our garage code and Peyton found a beloved clue up in her room. :) Thank you for knowing me and loving me. Your charity has blown me away and I will never forget this beautiful example of service!

Change...

Change is not just a political slogan and it is an inevitable part of everyone's lives. Our family is having some changes. After almost 8 years at IBM Ken is starting a new job today. He really enjoyed his job supporting databases for Target, but he was ready for a change and some new challenges. He got a job with Brulant (that will become Rosetta in January) out of Cleveland, but he will be able to work from home most of the time. He is there this week for training and having his first taste of snow for the season. Starting in January, Ken will be supporting databases for the US Mint's web commerce. He will be traveling to DC quite a bit in the beginning, but it should settle down to about a trip a month.

I am really excited for him and the adventures that await him. I am so grateful for him working so hard to support our family. This new opportunity for Ken is a wonderful blessing for our family in so many ways. I think the biggest blessing is that we are able to stay here in Colorado. We truly love it here. With all the things that fell into place as our family made these changes, it strengthens my knowledge that Heavenly Father is aware of our family and continues to bless us. It is wonderful to know that we are looked after!

Rah, rah, rah...Go Cougars!

As a second generation Cougar myself, Ken and I are continuing the tradition of Cougar pride. On Saturday we took Morgan and Trevor down to Colorado Springs, along with some great friends and fellow Cougar fans, for their first BYU football game. (Many thanks to Holly and Brian for watching Peyton! We didn't think she would like the game or the cold that much.) We had a blast at the tailgate party, eating, face painting for the kids, and even running into old friends! We even got a picture with Cosmo the Cougar.

It was such a fun game to go to. The weather was great, which was a bit of a gamble with the game in November. It was especially cool having all the neat Air Force traditions to watch like the cadets in formation, the parachuting onto the field, and the super cool fly-over. Our Cougars played a good game and got the win. It was an absolute blast and I think we have a new tradition.

Go Cougars!

So blessed...

I am so thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who gives me the help I need, even when I am I too ashamed, prideful, embarrassed, and overwhelmed to ask.

You'll never guess...

but I LOVE Christmas music!

There. I said it. I'm sure this doesn't come as much of a surprise. This time of year I am almost giddy with anticipation of when I can "legally" start listening to Christmas music.

One of the perks of being a choir director was choosing music for the Christmas concert. It gave me the excuse of starting to listen in early October. It really helped me get in the mood and select some wonderful music. It has been some 5 years now that I have not taught at a school and I have missed the excuse to listen to Christmas music early.

This year, however, I have the privilege again of conducting our stake choir for the Interfaith Christmas Choir Concert. I feel blessed to have the opportunity to again work with talented and inspiring people. I have been listening to beautiful arrangements as I worked to select what we will sing. It is a bit of a balancing act. I want to choose something traditional, but not overdone and boring, lush, but not too "jazzy" or 20th century, memorable, but not too flashy. Most of all, I want the music I select to praise the Savior and His miraculous birth. It is my prayer that when our audience hears us perform that they will feel the Holy Ghost testifying that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer and Savior of the world.

I hope the choir will like what I have chosen to sing this year. We will open with a rousing arrangement of Joy to the World. It has very cool organ accompaniment that Liz will be fantastic on. Next, we will calm it down a bit and bring a different feeling in with a haunting arrangement of In the Bleak Midwinter. Our closer -- hold on to your hats -- is Wilberg's arrangement of Angels We Have Heard on High. I am so excited and hope that we have the turnout that we did last year. I know singing beautiful Christmas enhances my worship. I hope others will feel that way too.

I want to share a verse from In The Bleak Midwinter that really touches my heart. This is what I kept thinking of as I was choosing the music...

What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb.
If I were a wise man, I would do my part.
What can I give Him? Give my heart.

And the results are in...

We had friends over to watch the returns and it was wonderful having a houseful. Thanks to all those who came. We had wonderful conversations and delicious food. Sadly, the election turned out as I expected, but I was a little surprised that it was over so quickly.

I am not quite sure what I am feeling. A bit of resignation, but also the peace that comes with a difficult decision being made. Tonight during family prayers I took the opportunity to pray for President-Elect Obama. I am not thrilled about his politics, but I do think he is a good man. He gave a great speech that did a good job reaching out to all Americans. I hope what he does as President follows that same pattern.

Most of all, I feel so blessed to live in this great nation. I marvel at our political process and that so many people chose to be involved. I know this election was hotly contested, but the transition will most likely be a smooth one. I would guess that would not happen in many countries. This truly is a blessed nation and I pray that we continue to be a "nation under God".

My congratulations to President-Elect Obama. This is certainly a historical night.

I voted...

This morning I went to the county offices and turned in my absentee ballot. Many have read my political musings over the past year, so you know how I feel about this election and I won't really go into it anymore. However, I must say that I feel so blessed that I live in a country that I am allowed to vote and speak my mind. This election is very important and regardless of the outcome, I am so glad that so many people got involved in the political process. That in itself is a victory.

P.S. For those interested, Ken and I are having friends over to watch the returns on the news tonight. We would love it if you want to join us for some good company, stimulating political conversation, and yummy food. Contact me if you want more details.

A witch, pirate, and a cowgirl, oh my!

The weather for Halloween was absolutely perfect this year and we had lots of fun activities to attend. We started out with Morgan getting to wear her witch costume to school. This year she chose to be Elphaba, the wicked witch of the West. Trevor and I went to school in the afternoon for her class fall festival. It was so fun getting to see all her classmates in their costumes and there was plenty of yummy, but healthy snacks and fun games.

After school, we headed to the church for the annual "trunk-or-treat". The kids loved going to all the cars and seeing so many friends. Let me just say, you can get quite a load of candy in a fairly short amount of time when you only have to walk around a parking lot. On the way home we decided to stop by the Weingardt's home and check out their AMAZING Halloween display. I was glad we went while it was till light because Peyton kept saying "I scared...but pretend."

We got home and had a quick dinner. The kids were chomping at the bit to get out the door and go trick-or-treating. I got to be the candy-hander-outer and Ken and the kids joined some neighbor friends and canvased much of the neighborhood over the next couple hours. Before coming home, they went to the Halloween carnival at the elementary school, played some carnival games, and got a great goodie bag. The kids were pretty tired when they got home but they were on cloud nine and it took a little while for them to settle down. I guess that was to be expected after such a fun Halloween celebration.

What I am scared of this Halloween...

Happy Halloween!