For all those who come to this happy place, Welcome!

This is Carla, Maryssa , Summer, Logan, Max, and Paige. They are the top students in her class and have all turned into great friends this year. It's nice to hear her talk about her friends and getting to know them individually has been so much fun. They are a great group of kids! This is Mrs. Christopher who teaches kindergarten at Whittier. She was the perfect choice for Paige. Deciding which school to go to and then trusting other moms about what teacher to have was so stressful at the beginning of the school year, but Mrs. Christopher was a the best choice. She is well organized, maintains order and schedule in her classroom, and keeps everything together (even when she had almost 30 kids this year) - She has an amazing amount of patience and Paige really loved her. Paige reads and writes so well and I'm grateful to Mrs. Christopher's teaching methods & homework sheets that started Paige down the road to where she loves books & reading. These are Mrs. Christ...

Just today my "Silly Grandpa" passed away peacefully & joined his wonderful wife after a 4 year separation. This is a picture of my handsome Dadders (Terry) & Silly Grandpa in the days before I knew either of them. Ray McKenna was my grandma's 4 th husband, but he is the only one I've ever known as grandpa and is the one sealed to our family. This is the "Silly Grandpa" that I remember, always surrounded by grand kids. This was such a special Christmas that I will never forget, to be with my favorite cousins & grandparents. The McKenna's became so special to me at an early age. I remember writing my grandparents a "thank you" note and having them respond with the sweetest letter. Grandma officially became my pen pal from that time on until after my mission. I have saved & treasure every letter. Pictured: (back) Maren, Jared, Allison, Jennifer, Kelly, (front) Tricia, Deanna, Sunny & Joey. Sean & Leslie pictured ...

It's summertime... It's in the 90's and the bathing suits have come out in full force! We don't have to look for an excuse to get in the water. Arizona actually means: "get thee to the water" The other cool thing about "the valley of the sun" is that there are splash parks all over & the public pools are chock full of water features that look like Willy Wonka must have created them. We went today to our favorite The Tempe Splash Park. It is actually a few weeks late in opening. The have remodeled & taken out the sand area from last year. I'm not that sad. The sand is like 300' degrees in the summer time. This is hands down the best way to cool off. Paige had a "play date" with our good friend " Libia " (Olivia) after school and played fast & furious for about an hour before we were ready to head home. It's only about 5 minutes from our house which adds to the good times. We headed home to enjoy a coupl...

Here's a tribute to the greatest Mother's that effect who I am: “She broke the bread into two fragments and gave them to her children, who ate with eagerness. ‘She hath kept none for herself,’ grumbled the sergeant. “ ‘Because she is not hungry,’ said a soldier. “ ‘No,’ said the sergeant, ‘because she is a mother .’ ” -Victor Hugo I love my mom and she has sacrificed more then I can possibly comprehend. She raised 11 (dad included) wonderful children that have grown into amazing adults who love and respect each other. I always look forward to going "home" because of the incredible people who also call it home. She learned to sew at a young age & made a large portion of my clothing as a kid. I get my passion for crafts, painting, home decor, and sewing from this creative imaginative woman . She taught me how to clean, work hard, take pride in my work, and always to do the best I can. I love you mom - you are everything that is "industrious" and ...

So this actually took place on May 2 nd and keep in mind that this was after the replacement fish "Sunny" died... But on this morning James came running into the computer room where I was effectively neglecting him and told me "Mom, Snow White's dead" and then made his dead fish face. (he kills me) I went & looked & she really was dead. Why do we have such crappy luck with pets? I called Jason and he said that he would stop on the way home from work & buy another one. We are not going through another Paige mourning ___________(insert dead pet here). It's too much for one little 5 year old to deal with, let alone feeling like a crappy parent knowing that 2 deaths were your fault. (3 dead pets within a couple weeks - let's not.) So, I scooped it out of the cage with a salad tong and put it in a Disney princess bag which I felt was kind of fitting considering her name and put her in the big black barrel. Then I prayed that if "Sunny...

The breakfast of champions... Maybe this was the cause of James being a 10lbs. 2 oz. baby. But somedays you just need it. My friend Christie made me the sugar cookies to celebrate Teacher Appreciation week. I felt pretty appreciated. She said I didn't have to share - so I didn't. Even when Paige was crying and carrying on for a cookie. I held out. My kids eat crap all the time. Just Wednesday I was out doing yard work after dropping Paige off at school, when I came in the house James was neked on the couch eating Bubblegum icecream from the carton watching TV. I understand icecream & TV... but really were clothes just too much to ask of one little boy?