LUCKY!

WOW I haven't blogged in forever, I guess since my "bad" week. Life is on the upturn and I have a wonderful husband who LOVES me and children who "tolerate" their crazy mother. I'm halfway done with last semester of Pre-requisites and will submit my application for NAU's Dental Hygiene program by Feb. 1, 2010. (Keep me in your prayers that the committee will like my application and accept me!) I will post more when I have the time, just felt like I had to move on from despair and appreciate how LUCKY I am to be alive and have such wonderful supportive people in my life!

PS-My hoodie says LUCKY so I thought that to be an appropriate title for this blog. Not that I just wanted ya'll to look at a wonderful picture of Elisa standing at the top of Lombard street!

Totally "WICKED"

This past August 5 Fred and I celebrated our 14th annieversiary. Fred decided to surprise me with a trip to San Fransisco to see "WICKED" and spend a few days away from the kids. A little bit of trivia for you- Fred and I have NOT been anywhere alone together since our honeymoon 14 years together in San Fransisco. We were due for a trip. I told him I would go, but I had to do some homework. (Who does homework on a vacation? Do you see how dedicated I am?) We flew in on the 5th and saw Wicked that night. I LOVED it! I want to go back, San Fran would make a great girls trip. Anyone want to go!

Cell Phone Pics, I don't know why we didn't ask someone to take a picture with both of us, next time I guess.

We had a great time we used public transportation or walked to everything. The wharf, Golden Gate Park, we even went to a Giants game! I think Fred had to balance his manhood out after sitting for 3 hours at the show!
At the Beach!
The Giants Game! Again another cell phone pic.


I LOVE Fred and I'm so glad he gave us the opportunity to "Defy Gravity" for 3 days! (My FAVORITE Part)

I NEED A NAP

OK so here goes, the last month has been crazy, crazy, we moved(new house pics later), Sarah and I went to Colorado, Sarah and Sydney graduated from 6th grade and Kindergarten and I was camp director for our Ward camp. Here are some highlights from the last month...

COLORADO(Four Corners, Mesa Verde, Telluride, Ouray Hot Springs)

Sarah sitting on all 4 states at one time...


Sarahs class at the 4 corners.


Sarah and I in a KEVA

Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde National Park

Telluride, CO

Sarah and I standing on SNOW, we camped out NO HOTELS!!! (very cold)

Ouray Natural Hot Springs


SIXTH GRADE GRADUATION--Can my first born be a 7th grader?

Sarah and her classmates...

The GRIZZLY Bunch

Sarah and Mrs. Laurie



KINDERGARTEN GRADUATION--What more can I say!!!




GIRLS CAMP-- Our theme this year was SURVIVOR...I was the Ward Camp Director and my good friend, Stacie Bean was the Assistant Camp Director, together I think we made a pretty good team and had a successful week.
Tuesday night it was just the YCL's and ME...Good night except we could've done without the wind and rain...


Learning how to use a chainsaw!!!


The First Years Skit

Our Virtue Climb...we unhurled our banner of Virtue...Camp was truly a great experience especially since I got to be there with Sarah...


The AWESOME leaders doing our dance to I'm A SURVIVOR!!!



All of us with the Bishopric in our Survivor shirts--we have a great group of YW in the Lake Mary Ward...WOO HOO

April 20

Wow- what a day so many things have occured on this day, some good and some bad. First, let's reflect on the month, April the flower is a Sweet Pea, and the gem is a Diamond. (I know specifically because of this I chose this month to be born) It's the National Frozen Food-Weight Loss-Humor-Child Abuse-Month (whatever that means) and I'm a Taurus. April 20 has had some famous people born on this date, and I'm not talking about myself. HA HA King Henry IV, Adolf Hitler (NOT SO GOOD), Jessica Lange and Joey Lawrence(WOOO)are among some of the few they you may be familiar with. TODAY I'm 34, not an exciting number, but a number worth mentioning. Today was non-eventful, Sydney stayed home sick, had a chemistry test (got turned into a Take-home test, best present EVER!) Sean got sick at school, and Fred came home sick from work. I did laundry, homework, Statistics test and now I'm blogging. I think as you mature (who wants to use the word old) you reflect on where the time has gone and how much you appreciate all you have. I appreciated all of the shout-out's on FB and my family for calling. I feel very privileged to have the family and friends that I have and I appreciate your kind words to me as I embark on the 34th year of my life!!!

PS- I had Sydney take a picture of me, so I could see how MATURE I look!!! (I had my hair done to cover up the gray UGH!!)

There's no Place like Home!

We had to leave the football game a little early, so we could get to our Halloween party. It's always fun to dress up one day out of the year and be anybody or anything you want to be. My friend, Stacie, had a Dorothy costume that she let me borrow (THANKS A LOT!)and we turned Fred into the scarecrow! We had a great time and ate lots of yummy but scary foods!
We had a great time and at the end of the night I tapped my Ruby slippers and POOF we were home!


Little Red Riding and You know WHO!--The White Stripes

Yummy Desserts! POOP and Blood Drenched Cake!


We had a great time!

I AM THE LUNCH LADY!

My kids are going to a charter school this year, so part of the requirements to be able to attend this school are the parents have to volunteer for 50 hours throughout the school year. I work with Sydney's class, Sophie's class and Sarah's LUNCH hour. Today I went up to the school and they assign about six kids to clean up after lunch. Well let's just say they are supposed to clean up and some of them don't really try at all. Can I just vent right here-do people not teach there kids how to clean anymore! I mean come on--LAZY, LAZY, LAZY! So here I come, being the lunch monitor that I am and I had to teach some basic cleaning to these kids! I showed them the correct way of wiping down a table,(just slapping the sponge onto the table never cleaned anything)folding the table and sweeping the floor. They probably thought we hope this lady never comes back,but guess what I'll be back every Monday from 12:20 to 1:00!!!! Hey at least I don't have to wear the HAIR NET! (no cafeteria at this school, they have to bring their lunches every day!)

Anyways, thought is was funny that I, Elisa was working in my daughter's cafeteria!

The BuMblebEE's

Do you remember in a previous post that I mentioned I was a soccer coach? It wasn't a JOKE! Well we just finished our season (Thank Heavens!) We had a great season, I believe we lost only 2 games and I say believe because at this age they aren't keeping score, just learning how to have fun! WHATEVER! Those little girls knew when we scored 9 goals and the other team scored 0. Seriously this happened at our first game, I kept thinking we are TOTALLY AWESOME and then I remembered that we don't keep score and it's for the YADA, YADA, YADA!

Let me just tell you how I got suckered into coaching, Sydney wanted to play soccer so I signed her and Sophie up, now I was just sitting at home doing my homework when AYSO called and said your daughter doesn't have a coach and would you be interested in volunteering. I guess I was feeling pretty good, because I went ahead and said yes, knowing that I would have a co-coach. So we have a first practice and all of the girls are doing really well except for Sydney, she kept complaining, it's hot, my feet hurt, can I get a drink of water? Let me just tell you this - Sydney got off pretty easy, because I didn't want to look like a total witch in front of everyone, although they could probably see the steam coming from my head from frustration! I think she egged me on because I was her Mother and she knew she could get away with it in public. She would also run off during the games and start playing on the playground. I would be looking for her to come and in and play and there she was or should I say there she wasn't.


Anywho, my bumblebee's were great and I'm so glad that's over for the season and I know next summer when I see AYSO on my caller ID, I'm not picking up the phone!


Bumblebee's L-R

Lightning Lexi, Bring it Brienne, Cool Catelyn, Mighty Maddie, Sassy Sydney, Bubbly Brooke, Awesome Autum, Energetic Ella


Gotta Love a Woman in Uniform!
Do I look Confused?
"Our Goal is the Other Way!"
"I can't wait to play on the Playground!"

Thank you Myndie for the pictures!

WhaT HaPPens in VeGas. . .

What does happen in Las Vegas? Apparently a lot when the Reese's are in town for 5 days. Fred had a conference in Vegas so we decided to take the kids on one last romp before school starts. We headed out last Friday, on I-40 and stopped at our favorite Route 66 dive The Snow Cap- they have great food and a fun atmosphere and of course, Sheriff from the Cars movie has retired there.



SATURDAY- We played with our friends, the Beans, apparently I didn't take any pictures at their house so you'll have to check out the Bean's blog! We had a great time catching up and enjoying each other's company. It was like we just moved away from each other yesterday! We also ran into our other Tucson friends, the Spalding's, they were lucky because they didn't have their kids. I kept telling Fred I wanted to go and watch Mamma Mia and kept singing the song-Sean picked it up and here is his rendidtion!!!



SUNDAY- YES-we were good and went to church with the Beans, with all of the sinning going on around us how could I not go to church! Fred and I had a dinner that night so I got to get all dressed up and we went to some "fancy" Wolfgang Puck restaurant and ate with some of the people that work at the Grand Hotel in SLC.



MONDAY-the Bean's came over and swam with us at our hotel, Mandalay Bay, we had a great time hanging out at the wave pool, the kiddie pool and the lazy river, OK to rent a tube there cost $20, now Sarah was the one who checked on the prices, so I can't verify the accuracy of what she was telling me, so we floated along the lazy river, actually it felt like a workout doing squat walks going around that thing a million times! (tiny exaggeration)



TUESDAY-We met the Beans and went shopping-let me just give you the equation and you can guess how it went- Two moms and EIGHT kids! Yeah that's what I thought! That night we went to the Shark Reef aquarium with Fred, it was fun, but jeez EXPENSIVE!! (am I sounding like a cheap skate-because I meant too!)



Video of the Shark Showcase, enjoy it so you don't have to spend thousands of dollars when you take your family there, just say we already saw it on Elisa's blog!


Then we took the kids to the M&M factory, more EXPENSIVE crap, so I let my kids get the $2 tube of mini M&M's. They were just excited to get their own M&M bag!



After the M&M factory, Fred had to go back to his closing reception, the Styx played and he caught a drumstick! So I decided to take the kids to see the Bellagio fountains play, I love them and I could sit and watch them forever! The kids loved them and had a great time watching them. Now I loved the Mandalay Bay, but Holy Crap that hotel is the last one on the Strip, so as were walking back to the hotel, I just kept telling the kids, just keep looking forward, don't look down, don't look around, just keep looking forward! I swear the next time I go back I'm not taking Kids! The NKOTB are playing Oct 11, anyone want to go! Loved them in HS!



The Bellagio Fountains!


So I didn't get to go to France for my Anniversary, but I did get to see the Eiffel Tower in Las Vegas, I bet it's even more grand in Paris and that's something I'm willing to BET on!