15th Anniversary Celebration

Clint and I celebrated our 15th anniversary this year in September. We went on a simple date to a really bad Mexican restaurant here in town. Good thing the company was so good. We saved our real celebration for this month and went to Nashville for the Country Music Awards. We both like Country music. I know most of my friends and family don't. I was converted when I worked at the BYU library for 3 years and had to listen to it--it grew on me. I don't even make qualifications about not liking the twangy stuff. I appreciate it all--old and new. I think I appreciate that you can always understand the words and hear real instruments. Even if it doesn't represent my own viewpoints, it tells real stories of different cultures right here in America. Clint and I have watched the awards in their entirety the last three years, which is saying something because we rarely watch TV. We were really excited to see Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift and Sugarland, o.k. I'll stop listing--we were excited to see everyone on the whole program.

So we left the boys with Katie and Joey--the boys were so happy about that.

Talmage: Yay! I get to spend 3 days with Aunt Katie and Uncle Joey!

Me: Hey, are you going to miss us?

Talmage: Yeah. I'm going to miss you a lot more than you're going to miss me!

Me: O.k. Just checking!

I started to relax the moment we pulled out the driveway. I realized it's been since May 2007 since we've taken a trip alone. Too long. Do you see that expression on my face in the picture? That's what I look like when I'm relaxed.

The drive to Nashville was gorgeous and I loved Nashville moment we drove in! It is beautiful and clean and not depressed and scary like Memphis. I loved the hills covered in the autumn trees.

We checked into the Gaylord Grand Ole Opryland Hotel, one of the nicer hotels we've stayed in. And, hey, we've been around, ya know! It had 3 huge indoor gardens with waterfalls and rivers, one of which you can even take a boat ride on. It was awesome just to wander around leisurely and see the sights. Then we walked to the Opryland Mills mall next store and walked the mall and updated Clint's wardrobe for his upcoming birthday--every decade or so, we just have to do that. He has like 3 civilian shirts in his closet. We ate at the Macaroni Grill and got the cheapest ever couples massage in the mall. There were these things that looked like suntanning beds - you get in and there is this rubber sheet on top of you and these water jets move up and down your back giving you a massage. We got there 10 minutes before closing time and on impulse bought two 7-minute massages for $20. She gave us a full 15. I was very relaxed after that and felt so much better because after walking about 3 miles in that mall my back and legs were killing me.

The next morning we went for a run around the property --one of my top activities to do with Clint. We used to do it daily, now it requires a babysitter. Then went to the Pancake Pantry near Vanderbilt University. Heaven. Who knew something as simple as a pancake could be so divine? And the service was genuine Southern hospitality.

That night we went to the CMAs and it didn't disappoint. Favorites for me were Darius Rucker--AKA Hootie, of Hootie and the Blowfish. I've got to buy his CD. What an amazing voice and a genuinely nice person. Glad he got "Best New Artist". Best song of the night (and Clint's favorite) was from Sugarland--Jennifer Nettles' voice filled that auditorium, and that is saying something. The Sommet Center was so huge that even with our binoculars we could not make out faces on the stage. It was awesome to feel like we were backstage on the TV show and it was happening right there in front of us.

Our last morning we checked out of the hotel and went to see the Parthenon at Centennial Park. Amazing! As a humanities major, I'm a sucker for that kind of thing. But I have to say I never really got the big deal about the Parthenon till I walked inside and saw the statue of Athena filling the whole interior of that building, her helmet brushing the ceiling--41 feet tall! Apparently over the years this Nashville structure has gathered enough attention that many groups, even school children, have raised money to improve it. It was built for the Tennessee Centennial in the 1890s. In the 1920s the white plaster structure was so deteriorated that they rebuilt it with a golden-colored cement. It is built to the exact dimensions and is the world's only full-scale complete reproduction of the Parthenon. In 1991 the statue of the Athena was added to the interior and in 2002 it was gold plated with 24karat gold. It was so inspiring I thought I might convert! :) JK!

Last year for our anniversary we were at a restaurant here in Memphis and we started listing our favorite memories--they were all part of trips away together. Now I know this last trip will definitely make the short-list of best times together.

Halloween 2009

It was clear early in October that Cole was headed for a Star Wars Halloween.

Jack and the Pumpkin Stalk

Click to enlarge.

Lucky Leadfoot

All the suspense this past month has really messed with my concentration. I've been pulled over for speeding three times the last month, and each time I got off with a warning. I'm so stinking lucky! Lucky that is, to be married to the Navy. Every time those officers watched me pull my Tennessee (luckily) lisence out from behind my military I.D., I'd see them softening. This is a very red state. They'd ask me about Clint's service in the Navy then send me off with a warning. The second time I got pulled over I was late for a cub scout den meeting. After the officer asked me about the Navy he asked me to roll down the back window and he got a good look at all four boys in their seatbelts. There was Talmage in his full cub scout uniform, complete with hat, holding the American flag across his chest. We'd just folded it before we hopped in the car. Then Trace beamed at him as only he can do, and the the officer told me about his son the same age. The poor officer, he just couldn't give me a ticket. All I can say is it's a good thing warnings aren't recorded or they'd have thrown me in the slammer on the third one. Instead, the officer asked me when was the last time I'd had a ticket. I scratched my head and said, "I think high school!" I must have been pulled over 30 times since then! Phew! All I can say is I'm now being SUPER careful and use my cruise control to go the exact speed limit everywhere I go!

We're Moving to Utah!

August 2010. Clint will be the Commander of the Salt Lake City Reserve center at Fort Douglas on the corner of University of Utah campus. For all you Utahns, we're looking forward to seeing more of you!

Apples!

In September I volunteered to do a craft with Cole's 1st Grade class. My whole motivation for this endeavor was to make Cole feel special by showing up in his class. You know, give him some cool points for having the nice mom that comes in and does a fun craft. I spent weeks prepping for this. I decided on a theme of apples and tried out several ideas on the boys before settling on doing apple printing. I would make a print of their forearm for the trunk of the tree, and then print the green treetop and apples on the tree with the cut apples. To fill the hour I brought picture books about apples for Mrs. Rios to read while I took two kids at a time and did the fore-arm prints. I also thought an apple snack would be nice so, I brought caramel dip and Mrs. Rios asked all the kids to bring an apple that day. She wrote the parents in their weekly newsletter about it and also put a note in their agenda books the night before to remind them. Still, I felt nervous that some kids would be without apples, so my last stop before arriving at the school was to pick up a bag of 10 apples.
The craft went great. The kids totally loved it. And the books were good too, even the one by Madonna--a surprise (I guess tromping around the stage in your underwear doesn't automatically disqualify you from having brains).
Next I had the kids line up to hand me their apples to be cut. That's when the kids started buzzing, "But what about Cole? His mom forgot to send him an apple!" Apparently, all the parents remembered, but me. Mrs. Rios said to me. "They've been very concerned about Cole. I assured them that Cole's mom would bring him an apple when she came." Her assurances obviously didn't stick. They kept on saying, "Cole doesn't get a snack! How come Cole doesn't have an apple?" I said several times, "I brought Cole 10 apples!" and pointed to the bag on the table. One little girl had two apples and I asked her why, "My mom said I should bring two in case someone's mommy forgot to send them an apple. This apple is for Cole!" Through all this conversation Cole sat at his desk like a brave soldier while all the other kids lined up to get their apples cut. When we were down to the last kid and Cole still hadn't joined the line I said, "Cole why aren't you in line? I have an apple for you." Cole brightened and said, "I do?" Poor guy, but really! After weeks of planning and an hour in the class room, what was the impression left with the class? Cole's Mom forgot to send him an apple! I'm just glad I brought that bag of apples because I had to replace one kid's apple that was totally bruised inside--he must have a really sorry mom!

My Nursery Leaders are Cooler than Yours

Your nursery leaders might be a grandparents in their 60s like ours, but are they stock car race drivers? Ours are! They and their son race stock cars. I'm especially impressed with sister Kahler because she is one of 7 women out of a field of about 80 contenders on the track. Her favorite moment was when she was driving on the WALL of the track, "I looked out my side window and all I could see was dirt! I had a choice to slow down and fall on my roof or go faster and hopefull right myself." She chose speed. That manuever made it onto the track video screen. She also does all her own auto mechanics and retrofiting. She says her husband and son are busy on their cars, so she figures she should do her own. Right now, she says, her car is in pieces, the only thing intact is the engine block. I have two things to say about these people: I totally admire them, and no wonder they are always smiling! Gotta love the South!

Meet me at the Fair

We attended the Delta Fair last weekend, and our first stop was the Farmer's Market where we learned a little about the life of bees! A young man with many tattoos showed us this observation frame you can see behind the boys. He told us a lot of fascinating things like how the new queen chirps when she emerges from her cell, bringing on a confrontation with the old queen wherein they battle it out, and whomever loses is ushered out by the worker bees. Also, the male drones are kicked out of the hive every autumn. Pretty amazing stuff about them bees.

Here's Trace. I need to take more pictures of this cute meister. He's growing up so fast!

The boys crawling on a ATV on display next to the hall where the beauty pageant was going on. An interesting slice of Southern life.

Speaking of interesting slices of culture. We got our first exposure to the roller derby. These ladies are not so intent on being beauties. I'm pretty sure the aim is intimidation by scariness. Yes, that is underwear over the top of the red and black leopard leggings--it really completes the outfit. Clint and I were pretty fascinated by this punkette subculture. It is actually a sport. As far as we could make it out: two skaters race around the track to complete a certain number of laps. Meanwhile there is a herd of skaters that they have to skate through who block them, shove them down or run interference for them, depending upon whose team they are on. Kind of like mud wrestling on wheels. Once we figured it out it was time to leave. I was relieved to hear Cole say, "This is boring!" If he thought the girls were hot, I'd have felt really guilty for corrupting my son.

Next we checked out the helicopter rides which were only $10--unbelievable!! But of course it was broken down. Bummer. I've never ridden in a helicopter and I feel so jipped.

Next was the Jousting Tournament. "Carnies on horses," quoth Clint. We had a great seat and it was fun. But it was also really hot. Because the crowd was lethargic and didn't cheer on the good guy enough, the bad guy won. Shucks.

This was the only ride of the day. It moved so slowly I'm pretty sure it had no Gs at all, but the boys thought it was a blast. I'm just glad they are up for rides now, and glad they are not in a hurry to be too old for kiddie things. I'd rather they take their sweet time growing up.

We left before they got thrown in a real one of these. I actually took the older 3 boys back 2 days later--glutton for punishment. I saw the helicopter flying and I wanted to give it one more try. But this time there were 42 people in front of us. I figured that was at least a 2 hour wait in the hot sun with four boys. It wasn't worth it. I know a helicopter pilot. I'll just have to have him get me a ride someday. It would probably be cheaper to rent a helicopter than to pay any more admissions to a fair!

Conflict-free Gourmet Cooking

My belly is so fat and happy because tonight I made Tortellini with Chicken and Gorgonzola Cream Sauce. How did the kids like it? I wouldn't know. They didn't get any. I have a whole handful of "Mikey's." The most traumatic night in their life to date was the night I made lasagna--horror of horrors! Since then we've come to a grumpy truce. They don't have to eat anything I cook, but they are to keep negative comments to themselves and they get to get their own dinner. Still I usually try to make my meals so that at least half the pasta or rice is plain, etc. and it's left me not able to cook many of the yummy recipes I'd like to. Today I had a brain-wave. It was fast Sunday and the boys had all gorged on leftover pizza after church. That meant I could cook whatever I wanted for just Clint and me to break our fast. So I set a nice table for two and we enjoyed some whine-free dining. So here's the dish:

Tortellini with Chicken & Gorgonzola Cream Sauce
prep time: 15 min.
cook time: 15 min.
Serves 6 (or 2, three times!)

2 packages 9 oz. cheese tortellini
1 T. olive oil
3 Chicken breasts cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1 garlic clove minced (I always put in 4-6)
1 medium onion chopped
1 t. finely chopped sage leaves
2 cups fresh white mushrooms (or 1 can)
1/4 c. white wine
1 1/2 cups cream or half and half
1/4 t. salt
ground pepper to taste
1 cup. frozen peas
4 oz. crumbled gorgonzola cheese
finely chopped fresh parsely (optional)
1. Cook pasta according to package directions.
2. Saute chicken, garlic, onion, sage and mushrooms 3 min. or till chicken is cooked. Add wine and cook 1 minute more. Stir in cream, salt and pepper and cook 5 more minutes.
3. Gently stir together, pasta, peas, chicken cream sauce, gorgonzola. Sprinkle parsley, if desired.
Each Serving: 714 calories (with whole cream)

Saved by the J.W.s

Joey, Katie and Luke had just gotten home on Saturday after a mountain bike ride (my first in a year. I went with the Joey, Clint and Aaron, a friend from the ward). Suddenly, Katie and I noticed Trace and Luke were AWOL, but we also noticed that Joey was absent so we figured they were probably together. We found the three of them half a block away. Joey was curious how far they'd go and they'd taken him for a walk. So we all walked back to our house together, chatting about our independent toddlers. When we got to our house I bent down and pulled a half-a-dozen weeds out of our driveway while Joey and Katie hopped in their cars to go home. As they pulled out I thought, Wow! that was fast, they must have put Trace inside before they left. But when I walked in the door Clint asked, "Where's Trace?" I booked it back outside and ran into the street and there were the J.W.s who tract our neighborhood every Saturday, carrying Trace toward me. They said he'd gotten around the corner and was marching down the center of the street like he owned it. I tried lamely to defend my parenting skills as I grabbed Trace, but they still gave me an earful of preaching, and it wasn't about religion.

More Cole-isms

1. During a Family Home Evening lesson recently we talked about integrity. Integrity, I said, is doing the right thing even if no one is looking. Cole said, "Wow! I never heard of that trick before." This is very funny coming from Cole. He's an expert sneaker. He takes very literally statements like: "Don't ever let me catch you..."

2. Cole: Mom, when we get to heaven will we know everything?
Me: Yes.
Cole: Alright! (running off) Talmage, I've got good news!

Small Miracle

I think I've mentioned before that when we go for a family swim, Trace occupies himself patrolling the deck. His personal mission is to throw all objects into the pool. The brothers call this a game of "dropsy." Last weekend after a really great family swim I looked into the pool and shouted, "CAMERA!" Trace had dropped the digital camera into the pool and it had been there for who knows how long. I'd left it on some bales of cedar bark on the deck. I removed the battery, which had died earlier in the evening, and Clint put it in his shop on a shelf near his dehumidifier. And wonder of wonders--2 days later it works completely. Phew! We were so not ready for another $500 kick in the wallet.