Grandparenting... it's the best!

One of the most wonderful epiphanies I ever had was several years ago when I had pushed my then little 5 year-old grandson into a melt down because I wanted to be his mommie instead of his grammie. It was then that I realized that I am no longer the Mommie-enforcer... I am the Grammie-spoiler. I love this new title. I don't have to make sure they eat their vegetables, do their homework, etc. I just get to love them. They still need to obey Grammie's rules, and they do when I am the one in charge. But that is the beauty... I am not usually the one in charge!

I got to spent 3 wonderful days at Disneyland with three of my favorite boys... Tadhg, Caden & Brock. How can life get any better than interacting with my grandsons at the "Happiest Place on Earth"?

This trip was the culmination of a wonderful 30-day adventure of visiting all 13 of our grandchildren. Sadly our grandchildren are spread from coast to coast. Luckily we can travel!

September found us in West Virginia visiting Makenzie and Preston. They are happily awaiting another sibling in May 2008.

Then it was on to Michigan to visit with Brandon, Melissa, Bryan and Braden. We got to go to their "fall festival" called Barn Daze and I ate quite possibly the best Kettle Corn I've ever had!

Fortunately, we have 3 little sweeties, Ashton, Christian and Roxie that are only 20 minutes from our house and we get to see them frequently.

We have another local married son and his wife that are expecting their first in May 2008. (Yes two in May 2008).

Then there is little Riley Tyler, what a sweet baby. I have been able to see him several times in his short little 5-months in our family even though he lives in CA... much too far away for this Grammie's liking.

So, I'm back to where I started... being a Grammie is the best! I love each one of these wonderful little people and I am so thankful that they each have mommys and daddys that love and adore them and discipline them and do all those hard things that I was doing not so long ago.

What flower am I?

I am a snapdragon... I liked the description. "Mischief is your middle name, but your first is friend. You are quite the prankster that loves to make other people laugh."

Cut my hair long!

I finally took the plunge... I have been telling Desi to cut my hair "long" for years now and she finally did! We actually did this over two weeks ago, but I have been slow in getting a good photo that I wanted to post. I am very happy with my new hairstyle. Many people tell me that it makes me look younger. I can like that! This photo was taken by Cindy at Jake and Cody Boucher's (my nephew) open house.





The funny/sad part is that Desi & I hadn't planned to do this. I actually went in for a perm and she had extentions so we went to Rock Star Hair in American Fork and bought the supplies. We went back to the salon and she worked on me until... you guessed it... HER OTHER APPOINTMENTS came!! I had to go kill 4 hours at the mall and Costco with a "mean-spirited-mullet". Definitely not my best look!



But I think that one of the interesting things about this new hairstyle is its similarity to one from long ago... as evidenced by this photo of Tony and I in May 1973. I was just a little pip-squeak of 20 and pregnant with Rebekah.

All Things Harry

So... I have started to read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows over again. I appreciate JK Rowling's writing style, her humor and unexpected plot twists.
As I am reading this again I see all sorts of avenues for her to continue the series or to begin a new series. I certainly hope that this is not the last we hear from her.

Finished HP7

I finished Harry Potter in just 29 hours from the time I purchased it at Wal-Mart at 12:15am on 7-21-07. I have never done this before... read a book this fast! I LOVED it. I stayed up until 5 am both mornings reading. (something else I've never done!)
So for those who haven't read it I won't put any details... but when you fininsh let me know and we can discuss it.

Harry Potter Maniac

I suppose I should be a little embarrassed by this, but I am a Harry Potter fan. I love the books. I have all of them! But tonight the 7th and FINAL book comes out! I have been in conundrums about this. I want to know what happens, but I don't want it to end.
I know that good will triumph over evil... but I know there will be losses. Probably Harry will lose more people who are close to him.
I have enjoyed this whole series of books so much. I love that JK Rowling adds in wisdom, morals (and the moral of the story is... too), and suspence.
I have all of the books on CD read by Jim Dale (love his voices). I never make a road trip without Harry. He has driven with me 1000's of miles. He has helped me work in the garden, remodel the bathroom, sew miles of quilts, and go to sleep at night when I can't shut off my brain.
I have to remind myself that this is just a story!

New Site...New Age

I finally decided that I wanted to have my own blog site where I can post my thoughts, scrapbook layouts, or anything else that strikes my fancy.