When 2 wrongs make a right!

Kayla was in a prom fashion show tonight.  She looked absolutely beautiful!

I ran into a friend from tennis at the show, and brought her over to meet Kayla.
She turned to me and said, "Oh my gosh!  Look at her!  How did that happen????"  I said, "I know, sometimes two wrongs make a right!" :)

I'm afraid Savannah and Addison may follow along that same path too!  (Though you can't tell from Addi's awesome hairdo here! :) )

Kayla and her cousin Elena who were both in the fashion show.

I do have to tell a funny story here though.  I drove through Sonic the other night (as I often do) and the guy at the window said, "Hey!  I helped you last week when you came through!"  I said, "Oh yeah, I think you did!" (whatever!)  Then I heard the girl working in there with him say something about Kayla.  I leaned out the window and said, "What did you say?"  She said, "Oh! Um, I just was telling him you look a lot like my friend Kayla!"  I said, "Kayla Cook?"  She said, Yes! How did you know?  I said, "uh that's because she's my daughter!"

Now, that is not a compliment to Kayla, but it sure is to me!  Funny that I don't see it at all, but some people do.  

So, not a whole lot of excitement to report from here.  Just doing little things to the new house to make it how we'd like it.  Driving all over tarnation (is that a word?) trying to find the perfect area rug or accessories is supposed to be fun!  Sometimes it is, and sometimes I wish I could wave a magic wand and have everything done how I want it!

I have to officially start training for my marathon, which scares me, but also excites me.  I've decided I am going to take the attitude of I GET to run 26 miles, not I HAVE to!  How exciting to set a goal and achieve it!  That's what I want to feel!

Tri Catching Cupid!

This morning I did my first reverse triathlon.  That means you run first, then bike, then finish with the swim.  Can I just say I really liked it in that order?  My favorite is the run, so starting off with fresh legs was kind of nice!  I ran the 3 miles in 23 mins.  (which is fast for me!)  Then reality of my less-than superhuman powers arise, and I am an average biker, and a slow swimmer.  So I finished the whole thing in 1:16:33.  I think that is my fastest tri.  I was 31st over all - I think there were about 100 adults is all.   It was a small race.  But I took 3rd in my "old lady" age group! :)

It was really fun!  I love doing races because you are able to push yourself and see what you really can do. Plus, it gives me another excuse to get together with my training friends!

Lisa and I did this one today.  I love doing races with Lisa, and she is always game to do a race, even though this one was particularly tough:  she is finally recovered from a broken foot, actually got ran over by a cyclist while she was running one morning and needed stitches in her head and bruised her ribs, and her sister died Sunday and they had her funeral Friday.  Wow, busy life, but she was a good sport and did it with me anyway!  I love that girl!

So of course with every race we do, we have to do the before and after pictures, so here they are:

Rested and ready to go!

I always have to crouch down, and Lisa stands on her toes so we can be in the picture together! :)

In other news, this is the crazy girl I've been hanging out with lately.  I just registered her for all-day Kindergarten in the fall.  Can you say happy, happy mom? :)  In the meantime, I will try to treasure her walking around the house saying, "I hate mommy, I hate mommy, she's so mean, I hate mommy!"  All because I made us do her hair before leaving the house.  And I PROMISE I didn't yell or raise my voice at all!  (New Year's Resolution to not yell at my kids)

 Still can't help loving the kid!!

A whole lot of doing nothing...

I'm busy.  I'm always busy.  That's just the way I am.  But, I still have time to do the things I need to do - laundry, dishes, clean up, tell the cleaning ladies what to do (;) ha!

But honestly, so many times I find I have wasted away the day doing a whole lot of nothing!  And I'm not wasting a ton of time on the computer either!  I really don't.  What do I do?  I think of a project to start, but I need something for it, so I decide to go to the store and get what I need.  While I'm out, I might as well do X,Y and Z as well right?  Don't forget the stop at QT or Sonic for my drink. :)

Then I get home and instead of doing the project I just got the stuff for, I see something else that needs to be done, so I will quickly start doing that instead.  Then I'll look around and find the things that really stand out that need to be done.  I figure if I get one or two of those things done - like hang pictures, put more stuff away, organize a room that is bad, etc. - Lane will notice that I did something and won't think I'm a lazy bum home doing nothing! ;)

Then, I'll decide I would rather talk on the phone to a friend, or maybe visit a friend, or get lunch with a friend, because all that sorting and organizing can wait, right?  So then I have managed to put off more unpacking and organizing even longer!  Man, if I keep this up, I could still have stuff to do a year from now!

BUT, the wild card in this is Lane.  He can't stand to live in clutter or with things unorganized.  Thanks to him, we have our entire storage room put away and organized.  The garage is stacked with stuff that is impatiently waiting for the cabinet company to come and put cabinets in the garage.  I think Lane is developing a nervous tic that won't go away until the cabinet company comes and does their job! ha!

No, actually, thanks to Lane we have pictures hung, new light fixtures hung, the office almost completely put together, the printer/fax hooked up, and all sorts of projects lined up, measured and in order.  Seriously, what would I do without him?  Though I would really rather not do these projects at 11 at night. :)

Next on the agenda:

Find a big area rug with the right size, pattern and new color scheme for the family room.

From that rug, I will be able to choose new towels and kitchen accessories with the same colors as the rug, and therefore family room.

Have a couch, loveseat and recliner, or high back chair made in coordinating colors/fabrics/patterns to go with the rug, and we will have our new Pottery Barn/Pier One - ish family/kitchen room.  Told you this house isn't my style!  But, I'm learning to change it, and actually look forward to a fresher, lighter look than the Tuscan we had in our last house.

We are getting a new iron front door - Lane is designing that and says he almost has a CAD drawing ready for my approval.  Big time stuff!

We are getting a new beautiful white limestone fireplace to replace the lovely mauve marble and white wood one. :)  So that is coming soon as well.

Get a new washer/dryer for the main floor laundry room.  I don't like hauling my stuff downstairs to clean it and hauling it all back upstairs when I'm done!

Then, there is a chance we may be letting some people use our backyard for a wedding reception, so we need to put in the fire pit and benches.  Some flowers, some cantera pots, and it will be ready!

Yeah, we have a touch of work cut out for us, and if I could stop daydreaming, dilly-dallying, eating too much chocolate, etc.  I might actually get some stuff done!!!!! Help! :)

Now I can't forget to mention that this Saturday I am doing a Sprint Reverse Triathlon.  You run 3 miles, bike 10 or 12, then swim 400 meters.  Easy, but I hate the swimming, and it is last, so I hope I don't drown!!!  I will also mention that I have gone swimming once in the last 5 or 6 months.  So, I don't plan on winning this race. :)  I also haven't ridden my bike since my great wipeout in December.  I did just pick it up from the bike shop and it has new tires, the handlebars were fixed, and it is ready to go.  I also just got my new bike shoes in the mail (the old ones broke in the fall).  So, I am all equipped, and hope I can just not embarrass myself too bad in the race!

There's the update folks.  I should download the picture of the first scorpion we found in our house.  YIKES!!!  Everyone says they are just a part of living in the groves.  Hope I get used to it!

Settling in

It has been 1 1/2 weeks since we officially moved in and started staying in our house.  If I told you everything was put away I'd be lying.  So, I will say we are about 75% there.  It hasn't helped that we've had workers in finishing the master bathroom, and I swear they are paid by the hour and were making a 20 hour job be a 100 hour job!  Ugh!!!  But, I can say they officially finished today!!!  We were able to move out the cardboard boxes and paper and everything covering our floors.

Tomorrow I may be able to do my hair and makeup without an audience!  That would be great! :)

On the other hand, we have a really cool steam shower now that hopefully will work when we turn it on! :)
We still have to get the seal-tight door for it.

Here's one of the great things about being Mormon.  We stayed here last Saturday night for the first time.  Sunday we went to Lane's parents for dinner because my sweet MIL knew I wouldn't be able to find a thing in the kitchen.  Monday I came home from running kids around in the afternoon and found a dinner on my kitchen counter ready to be cooked.  Yummy pot pie.  Then Tuesday I got a text from a neighbor in the ward saying she would be bringing dinner at 5:30.  Bbq chicken, potatoes, veggies, etc.  Yum!  Then Tuesday night someone else called and said they would bring dinner.  So a couple ladies brought yet another yummy dinner of pulled pork sandwiches and salad.  The Wednesday another 2 ladies brought dinner!  Geez!  I was starting to wonder if they thought I was totally incapacitated or something!  No, just a lot of really nice people in this ward who wanted to help!  That was so nice.  Then, Thursday night our awesome neighbors across the street invited us over for dinner.  We got to know them better and see their huge beautiful home that they just remodeled and added on to.  Wow.
Then Friday we had pizza, and Saturday those same neighbors had us over again, along with the whole ward for their son's after-baptism dinner.

So, Sunday was the first day I was able to actually cook in and use my kitchen!  (Not that I'm complaining!)

Can I just say we love it here?  Don't love the house, but love the neighborhood and our location.  The house is growing on me.  I really am so glad we made this move, and I just know it is right for the kids and us!  I am really excited to be here.

I also found out there are several ladies in the ward who do triathlons, and run and bike together.  Can't wait to get in that group!  And, we just recruited our bishop's wife to be on our tennis team.  She played in college and is really good.  Should be fun!

So that is what I've been doing lately.  Moving, unpacking, and still shuttling kids and all their stuff.  Man I am busier than ever, and I guess I wouldn't have it any other way.  BUT, if we are dreaming, I wouldn't mind a little time to sit and watch a TV show or read.  Wait, I do read every night, but I fall asleep too fast, as those early morning classes I teach come really early!!

Now, I need some guests to come and visit!  I even bought new bedding for the guest bed, so come on family and friends, come visit! :)

Merry Christmas 2011!!

Finally going to quickly throw Christmas up here. Here's part 1, and when I figure out how to download pictures from my new camera onto the computer, I'll put part two! :)

No great funny stories, no major happenings (other than we sold our house and were not finding another one we liked!)

Just good family fun, and appreciating all we have. I always get all sappy at Christmas and think about how blessed I am to have such a good husband and family. How can I ever complain? Yet once in a while I do. Gotta fix that, don't I?

Lane's parents took all the kids and grandkids to a farm here in Mesa where we rode mules and horses, played old fashioned games, and took a hayride, then had a bonfire and ate dinner, and Taylor and Kayla played a couple songs on their guitars for us. We did that the Saturday before Christmas. It was different and fun. The kids loved it! Lane's parents are great people, and really good grandparents.

Then Christmas Eve was the traditional appetizers at Bryce and Sara's this year. We did a small talent show, and of course had the little kids dress up for the nativity. Some of the cousins weren't there this year, so my kids were sad, but they got to be all the starring roles in the nativity though because they were the only young ones!

Then of course we do a small little Christmas Eve thing at our house before the kids go to bed - they open their new pajamas, and they open an ornament from me that depicts something about the year for them.

Lane got a Santa from Italy - for our trip. Kayla got a blinged out K because she is our diva :), Savannah got a small snowglobe thing with her name on it, because I couldn't find an absent-minded professor ornament, Conner got an ornament with Rocky on it - as that has been his obsession this year, and Addi got a Justin Bieber ornament because she is going to marry him! :)

Then we put the kids to bed, and started the herculean task of assembling the trampoline we got them. Wow, that was a job!!! I started at 10:30, by 11:30 Lane came out to help me (it was cold!) and we started cruising until we found out we did most of it wrong and almost had to start completely over. Not good! Anyway, at 1:30 in the morning, we came in, set up the gifts, and crashed in bed at 2. Never again. The hardest part was knowing that we had to move in 4 weeks and take it back down and set it up at our new house! But we couldn't really give them the trampoline box and say, Merry Christmas! You'll get this in a month!

Christmas morning at 7 am we ushered the kids into the living room where the screaming, laughing and discovery begin. Of course everyone was super happy with what they got, so that is always fun. I feel bad for Kayla though because the older you get, the more expensive your presents get, and the smaller your pile gets. :( That's how it goes though, right?

This year I got Lane a guitar, and had to take it back because it isn't a left handed guitar. I found a lefty one, and will pick that up, and he will start lessons in a couple of weeks, because that's what he wanted! He is the HARDEST person in the world to shop for because he doesn't need or want anything! Ugh!!! Besides that it was a book, tickets to a Suns' game, and a book light? Wow, contain the excitement.

Then of course, he always goes overboard on me and I feel bad. First, most of the stuff I buy myself in December I have to give to him to wrap and put under the tree, so I got a bunch of stuff I "needed". Like clothes, accessories, etc. Then, he got me a new digital camera I have been wanting, I got a new phone 2 days before Christmas and he wrapped that box for me (nice), a new perfume I love, then I got tickets to the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells!!!! I was soooo excited about that! It is a tennis tournament that ALL the big name players go to because they love it. I can't wait to go!

Then, I opened a small jewelry box that had a beautiful Tahitian pearl surrounded by diamonds and in gold. Wow! Super pretty, unique, I love it, and it is too small for my finger! Dangit! So, I have to take it to a jeweler and get it sized. Like I said, he always gets me way too much, and then I feel bad I hardly got him anything! Ugh! Some day I'll have him find a new hobby that I can buy him a bunch of stuff for.

OK. That's it for part 1. Part 2 comes later!

We are moving this week, yikes! So it is crazy busy. I hate packing and moving. I really do! I hope this is the last time for a looooooong time!

We bought a house!!! (In the nick of time too!!!)

Boy, oh, boy, oh boy.

That's all I can say.

Well, not really, I mean, it is ME, a woman of too many words, I'm sure. :)

I need to post Christmas and vacation and all that, but I have to skip and do this post first so the family can see our new house!

Last year when we sold the big dream house, we moved back into our old house and I always knew it would be temporary.  We just had to wait and see what was happening with Lane and his health.  Well, this fall we found ourselves with the miracle of Lane's remission.  Prayers really are answered!!

So, armed with the knowledge that he is healthy now, and we are sick of being in limbo, I put my foot down and said it is time to buy the house we will finish raising the kids in.  But first we had the huge obstacle of selling our house in this down market!  Fortunately we have a lot of equity in the home as we bought it 9 years ago.

So, we had our friend stick the sign in the yard, and we waited.  Do you know what a pain in the butt it is to show a house at any time of day or night with 4 kids?  If you don't, be thankful, if you do, feel my pain!!!  It was a pain, but miraculously, we got an offer, and agreed on a final price only $6,000 less than what we listed it for.  Huge blessing!

Here comes the hard part.  Trying to find/buy a house at Christmas.  Really, not very many people decide "I think I'll put my house on the market during the holidays!"  I sure wouldn't if I was in my right mind!  So, I started scouring the MLS listings, and the only things I liked were houses that already had an offer on them.

Then of course, we had Christmas and went to Utah, so I lost a week of looking there, but there were no new houses to see anyway.

We decided we would also look at the foreclosure auction lists.  Every night, this guy would e-mail us the list of all the houses going to auction the next day.  You look at them and let him know if you want one and what your maximum bid is.  Unfortunately, we have been very particular about what we want, so usually no homes fit what we are looking for.

You can get homes for a good deal, but you also don't know what you are getting.  Usually you can drive by the outside, but can't get in, so you hope there aren't major problems with it.  Most of the homes we looked at had been on the MLS at one time, so you can look up old listings to see bedrooms/baths and maybe what the inside looks like.

Here's where the story of buying our house starts.  It's long, but kinda funny.  I got the list last Tuesday night and found only one house that was big enough for us and in the right area.  Lane and I decided to go drive by it at 9 p.m.  It is a gated community, so we were ringing random people, and someone was nice enough to let us in.  I knew once we drove in I would love to live in the neighborhood.  When we pulled up to the house, Lane said, "Hey!  I bought my bike from the people who lived here a couple of years ago!  I've been to this house!"  Course he had only been in the front entry way.  Also, this home had never been listed for sale, so there was no MLS listing.

We snooped around the house the best we could, but were scared by all the "No trespassing" signs on the doors.  We snuck in the back and said, WOW!  This is cool!  No pool :( but .9 acres has plenty of room (and tons of orange trees!!)  We saw the best we could in the dark, then Lane went and knocked on the neighbor's door and got the scoop on the house/neighborhood, etc.  He is brave, because I would never have done that!

However, I was very thankful he did, because we found out that across the street lives a family with a 10 year old girl like Savannah, and an 8 year old boy like Conner! :) YES!!  Then, driving out, Lane saw the playground, tennis court and basketball court!  Double YES!!!

Well, the next morning, Lane calls our foreclosure bidder to ask him questions.  He says we really want to bid on this house, but are nervous to pay so much money if we have never seen it inside!  The guy then convinces him to use his locksmith to come over and drill through the deadbolt so they can break in and see the house.  It is going on auction in 2 hours anyway and the new owner would have to re-key it as well.

I can't believe that my super straight arrow, never done a thing wrong in his life husband broke down and did this.  The locksmith shows up, assures Lane they do this all the time, and they go around to the back to drill through the back door lock.  All he needed was to be dressed in black with his ski mask and I'd have a full fledge criminal on my hands! ;)  Suddenly they hear, "I wouldn't do that if I were you!"  Coming from inside the house!!  They both jumped back and went back around to the front.  Lane knocked on the door and the owner of the house came out!  Lane apologized profusely and explained the situation, they talked about how they know each other, and became sudden friends.  The man then invited him in the house and gave him the whole tour of the house!! Ok weird!!

So Lane decides to bid on the house.  He does it over the phone with the guy who is at the auction bidding for him.  They get to our max bid, and Lane decides to drop out.  There were 2 guys left bidding, and the house went for $7K over what we decided was our max.  Oh well, thought Lane, it wasn't meant to be.

Later that afternoon, Lane gets a call from the man who lived in the house and showed it to him that morning.  He said the investor who bought the house was having second thoughts, and having some trouble getting his financing in order.  He said the investor would let us buy the house for what he got it for if we wanted it.  Wow. Now what do we do?  Lane said he needed to let me see the house first.  So, we went over that night and walked through the house.  Again, I loved the neighborhood, but the house was not my style.  It is very French country inside, and if you love pink/mauve and seafoam green, you would be set!  But, paint can be painted over, right?

It is about 5,000 square feet, has a basement, 6 bedrooms, 4 1/2 bathrooms, and a huge yard.  Plus an office for Lane, tons of storage, 2 laundry rooms, etc.  There is tons of room, it just isn't my Annecy dream house we sold last year. :(  But for some reason, I just felt we really should go for it, and this would be a fantastic place to raise our kids.  The Junior High is across the street outside the gates, and the elementary school is just past that, and the church there in the middle!  What more could you ask?

So, we withdrew a massive check for half, got a loan for the other half, paid for the house, and got the keys right there that day!!!

Here is our new house - before we make all the changes.  Let's just say we will put a beautiful iron entry door, the wood floors will be stained darker, the kitchen and family room will be travertine or marble, the granite cabinets will be changed, and the downstairs carpet will be changed, and the whole house will be painted inside.  And, we will be adding a pool.  That is a MUST in Arizona!  I'm sure one or two of our 30 orange trees won't be missed if we clear them for a pool.

Curbside view

Obviously the kitchen.  White cabinets - can I get used to that? Sure.
Seafoam green walls?  No.

Pink, grey, white and black granite. Yuck!

Closer kitchen picture.  Love the big built in fridge.

entrance to the gazebo

view to house out of gazebo

looking down to the walk out patio from the basement!  

Yet another kitchen shot

Breakfast nook.  I kinda like that part.

looking into the family room from the entry.

I took a bunch of pictures tonight with my real camera, not my phone, and the computer won't read them!  Ugh!  I'll put more pics later.  I love Conner's room.  His bed is literally in a cave/hole in the wall in his room.  Too cool.

I am sure this is the right place to be for our kids and am so excited for them!

One other funny thing - we pulled up yesterday afternoon and two of the neighbor ladies were out there talking.  They called over to us, "Are you the new neighbors here?"  They came and introduced themselves and talked about how great the neighborhood is, etc.  Later that night, I got a text from my friend saying, "You are in my ward!  You are going to love it!"  Man, that Mormon grapevine sure moves fast!!! :)

More to come later .....

Cousins and Secret Santa

We had a visit from Aunt Meg and cousin Abby!  It's amazing how even though the kids have met once before, they are instant friends, just because they are cousins.  We frosted cookies, and the girls played with Abby like she was a new toy.

Girls playing dress-up and make up.

Enjoying the Christmas atmosphere

McCormick - Stillman Park in Scottsdale

We have to ride the carousel!

In front of the lit up train

The highlight of my Christmas, and that of the kids too, is doing Secret Santa for a family.  Every year we find out about a family that is especially in need this year, and we go buy presents for the kids and parents.  It is so much fun shopping for the family and hoping they will like what you got them!  (Sticking the receipts in an envelope to the parents helps too, in case we didn't get what they wanted!)

This year we chose a family with 4 kids.  Each of our children got to shop for one of their children, and Lane and I shop for the mom and dad.  It is so fun!  We told the kids they each had about $75 to spend on their person, so choose wisely.  They did math and had to make choices about maximizing their buying power.  It was really fun.

Tonight we wrapped all the gifts.  I love hearing them talk about how excited the kids are going to be, and how much they love doing this.  Giving is so much better than receiving.

The wrapping extravaganza!

The loot - ready to be delivered tomorrow night!