SPT - Love Me

I have to be honest - this one was a little tough for me - I hadn't even given Valentine's Day a second thought - we've been so busy around here like everyone else I honestly don't have anything planned!

It's seems lately my husband has been the first to say, "let's not get anything for each other" - for Christmas he did that, our anniversary, oh and actually my birthday he said, I didn't really get you anything big - translation - not small either.

It really didn't bother me, you really can only use so much stuff - plus I like to pick out my own stuff - so I guess I will use the following as my own Love Me Gift....

I posted last week about taking the girls to a giant mall - well they had a Kenneth Cole store in the mall, my girl friend Michele and I couldn't resist! We were window shopping, then saw these great purses - they were all 50% off - we couldn't believe it - Kenneth Cole too - so I picked out this fun one and don't feel guilty at all!



Look - my hand has made it into the picture, I'm getting closer!! Mike just asked me if I could get a babysitter for V-day, I though wow, we might go to dinner, but it's actually my dance carpool night so probably won't work for me - ended up, he just wanted to go to the community pool and swim laps together.....normally I'd like that, but probably not on V-day....that is right up there when we were dating (he set himself up for this part) and I was probably still deciding if her was the one - on valentines day we planned on going out - mind you I worked 3 part-time jobs to put myself through college and had 2 scholarships, at night just at dinner time, I'd cook dinner and Mike would conveniently show up at my doorstep so I fed him all the time....

Well I thought we were going out to a nice dinner - and he pulled into the Kentucky Fried Chicken parking lot - I thought he was joking - NOPE! I said take me home, and I cooked myself food! But he must have made up for it becase here we are 18 years later!

Oh well - Saturday I did a 41 mile bike ride - it was a killer and a very tall mountain, but I did it! Slow & steady!

What will you all be doing this Romantic Thursday??

Cycle Time

Well - so our form isn't exactly like this yet but I'm trying! This week I was only able to do one ride - today with some friends. We repeated last Saturday's ride of 20-25 miles. We left at 9, got back by 11:10, drove home, showered and made it to the mall to meet Linda by 11:50... The only time I got to "work out" this week was when Lucas was in speech and I ran/walked for the 25 mins he was in with the therapist!!!

My goal is going to be to ride 3 times a week, even if it counts pulling Lucas in the Burley to preschool - it counts! And it gets me on the road... I'm just waiting for the weather to warm up a little - for us it is still cold at 60 degrees - but some morning are still frosty so I know I would warm up fine, but I'd hate for the little guy to have his face frozen off by the time I get him to school!

I had a little bit of road rage today too - I had to go to the middle school to pick up today - I don't normally, I do the elementary school and Tyler either has a ride or takes the bus - well I am so so sooooo glad I don't go there on a daily basis, it was mayhem! People converging on all sides, waving kids to "jump" into cars in the middle of the street while they block all traffic - I laid in on my horn to one lady who first - didn't even have her car on, and all the cars in front of her were moving forward, then as mentioned previously - when one of her kids did come, stopped all traffic to have them cross the street to get into her car, then she made an ILLEGAL U-turn across 2 sets of double yellow lines to leave the vicinity.....where are all the cops????

Oh well - Mike has his Tri training tomorrow also so it will be an early morning - I have to be ready to ride by 6:45.....better start getting the kids to bed!

Tyler Outing & SPT

On Saturday my friend Michele helped me take Tyler and her friends to the big valley fair mall in SJ - we went out to lunch and tried to go around the mall - it is so huge! We didn't even put a dent in it - we used to go there when I was in college and the place has become a Westfield mall so it has tripled in size! But good fun. I also started my training for the Cinderella Classic - it is a 65 Mile Bicycle ride for women - we did about 20-25 miles in the morning before this - we had to be there at 6:45AM, so I was a little tired after shopping with the girls too.


On to my SPT - the other day, i was in my _____________, and i noticed this _______________. my only thought was, "why do i still have this hanging around my house?!?"

The other day I was cleaning my hallway closet and found my old teddy bear... my only thought was, wow I still have this around my house!!! Two of my boys LOVE their stuffed monkeys - they carry them around everywhere. My daughter has her special blanket - and my other son - he has a few favorites, but not sure if he has anything he can't be without. This stuffed teddy bear has been around forever though - I loved it so - so I'm glad I found him!


The other day, I was in my daughter's room, and i noticed these old dance costumes. My only thought was, "why do i still have this hanging around my house?!?"

These costumes don't even actually put a dent into the amount we really have in our house! After 9 years of dance you can just use your imagination - she typically has 3-4 costumes per year. Yikes!!!!


The other day I was in my room, and I noticed these infant/toddler walking toys. My only thought was why do I have these in my ROOM let alone my house!!?? The things we hang onto - kinda crazy - I know part of me is like, well they are still in perfect condition, but heck - my little one is almost 4 now, I'm sure he knows how to walk! Plus I'm pretty sure Mike said the factory is closed. Okay, I'm still working on the Self Portrait part of SPT Tuesday's.....my skin is much better now - my eczema is doing better but I still am a bit camera shy.....

Pinewood Derby 2008/ First SPT

Chandler's pinewood derby was on Friday night - he called his car "The Darkest Night" - he did really well last year - came in 2nd - this year he also had a pretty fast car but as you will see below......
he lost in the semi-finals (he got 5th or 6th overall) to his BFF Greg - coincidentally last year's semifinals - he won over Greg! If you're gonna go out - it's a good way to go. The Cub committee did a great job, they had a great area set up for siblings with the movie Cars running and some hotwheels out for them to play with - it was very fun. I didn't know they only did this for three years and then move on....guess we better enjoy it! That is one calling I hope I don't get - Scouts.




This is my first SPT as well - okay, so it's only a semi SPT since the "self-portrait" part is being left out - I'm not feeling very photogenic these days - I'm feeling kinda old lady like - my allergies are really bad - I had a reaction to my allergy shots last night - stayed 2 hours! Had to have epinephrine and all kinds of jittery making drugs - my great neighbor went to the pharmacy for me to make sure I had an epi pen in the house! I found two more gray hairs and I'm tired.....

But onto my story - today's challenge - if there were 25 hours in the day - I would get to all my household projects - you see pictured are MY tools - that's right I'm Handy Holly around the house. I was going to keep it a surprise for my Hubby who hasn't seen it yet - but I changed the light fixture that broke in the hallway closet. I have a new toilet paper holder to install and caulk to fix in the shower - all the old men at church love me - they come talk to me about electrical & plumbing all the time....it's so cute!

My other project - or hobby is Stampin' Up - which I need to get my tail a-hoppin' - I have to create a bunch of stuff for a selection process for a stamp camp we're doing on March 8th - anyone want to come???!!

Oh by the way - I was finally released from the RS Presidency - I've been in the presidency for 3,5 years - but doing Homemake for 5 - yes ladies, not a typo - 5 years (with 3 different RS Presidents!) - at Tithing settlement I happened to mention to the bishop that I found a HFPE flyer in my computer dated 2002 - see it pays to go to Tithing Settlement.

But my new calling Christina - hold onto your hat - I still am in denial - Ward Choir Director - but here's the clinker - NO Pianist - hello!!??? How do you have a choir without a pianist?? Oh well - I'll just have the YW, YM, & the Primary go up every month!! I guess I'm going to try to hit up Fisher's mom to help me with Easter!!

What a loved man

I loved Gordon B. Hinckley - I was so sad to hear of his passing for so excited for him to join his wife in heaven - you could really tell he missed her these past 3 years. It will be so strange for me not to see him on TV at conference this year. I've only (gosh, I still say only!?) 17 years but he was the prophet for most of it and of course the only one my kids have known.

I loved how he softened tough subjects, how he made it seem so simple to do what is right and how happy he always seemed even when you knew he had many responsibilities or concerns for all of us. I always felt like he was talking just to me about things I wanted to know about. How fortunate we've been these last many years to have such a wonderful man teach us so many wonderful things.

Bon Anniversaire Tyler

I can't believe it - my sweet little girl is now 12!!!!! My how times flies. Tyler was my cute little Budha baby - she had rolls and rolls of fat all over and she was so heavy!! You wouldn't have known it by the size she was born, 7lbs 14 oz - but she was - of course once she figured out walking it all melted off....

Tyler is my best friend - I'm hoping we're foraging the kind of relationship where she can tell me anything. When my grandma died last week she was the first to comfort me. We have a shared journal - things we might want to talk about to each other but can't always do it verbally or just run out of time in the day - we write in it - put it on each other's pillow and take turns - well that night she wrote to me and left it on my pillow - she said she knew grandma was with Heavenly Father and that she was happy now.

She is so responsible and smart - she has lots of friends and tries to do what is right. We're so lucky because she has a core group of really nice girls - you can't always say that - with how catty girls can get - but all of these girls are just "nice"!

I can't do a day without her, Tyler helps me so much around the house and with the boys - she does more than her fair share around here for sure. I love having her as a daughter and am so lucky. Happy Birthday Tyler!!!

Happy Anniversary

Yikes - if you can believe it - it is my 15th anniversary today! Mike is so many things to me - we've been together since I was 20 years old - I met Mike on the steps of the apartment building we both lived at - he was in the apartment right below mine in college.

We had a marathon wedding - it was amazing - it was a week of the worst storms in ages - it rained hard night and day for a week, including the day before and the day AFTER our wedding, surprisingly it didn't rain during the whole day when we got married. We were sealed in the Oakland Temple - Mike's parents & many of their friends had come from Utah for it. We had a ring ceremony right after our sealing, then a regular open reception for our friends and church friends. Then that night we had a big Chinese reception - one with 8 courses in the meal - and dancing - we went to Mexico for our Honeymoon and flew First Class (Mike worked for the airline back then) that was the first time anyone had called me Mrs.

The next week we flew to SLC and had our 3rd reception there. It all seems like a blur now, but we still have many friends that say it was the best week worth of celebrating they've done!

I'm so fortunate - Mike is the nicest person you will ever meet. He's romantic, athletic, intelligent, and so generous. I am so lucky to have found him, he is my best friend and my support and I'm so lucky to have built a family with him. How lucky for me we are together for eternity!

Virginia Louie Chung Ho

Here are just a couple pictures of my grandma - actually her hair is a little longer than this now. I haven't posted until now or checked many blogs in the last few days as I've been a little caught up with things. Last Tuesday my grandma wanted to go home - so the hospital released her and set up Hospice for her at her home. My brother and I went out to visit her to see how she was settling in. Oh how I am glad we went. It was incredibly hard as I had 2 carpool duties and things to work out and Mike was working but as it ended up it was the last time I got to see my grandma. She passed last Thursday night at home. We thought we'd have a bit more time but I'm sure she is not in pain and she is with Heavenly Father right now.

My grandma was an incredible woman. She was widowed very young, as my grandfather died when he was 35. She raised 4 small children alone and didn't remarry until I was 8 years old. She worked in banking and finance for her whole life and even up until last year did taxes for other people. Her birthday was last Sunday - she turned 86. My grandma was extremely intelligent and I can't tell you how much I have looked up to her. She was a no-nonsense kind of lady so it didn't surprise me that she wanted to go home when she did - when she made a decision she always stuck to it.

I can kinda go on and on but what I want to say most is that I loved her and I'm so fortunate that I had so much time with her - I'm the eldest grandchild - and my kids were her only great-grandchildren. And my kids played bingo, mah jong and checkers and all kinds of things with her - I'm so lucky they have such good memories of her......

My parents are here now for a week - there isn't going to be a big funeral - she is going to be cremated and there is going to be just a small dinner banquet with the few remaining friends (she outlived most) and family. It will be a nice celebration of her life. Take care and kiss your loved ones and hold them tight or just send the ones farther away a sweet card or note - it makes all the difference.

Bunco!!!

I love going to Bunco - luckily I was invited to join my next door neighbor's group - she has great friends - and now they are my friends!! This is Pajama Bunco where you just come in your jammies and eat easy out of the package type foods and have F-U-N - I figure you'd spend more on going out to a movie (it's $11 here) and not talk to anyone else than the $10 it costs me to hang out with cool ladies - and hey, sometimes I win so I can pay the babysitter.

I brought my camera and took a quick pix at the end, it was funny they were saying, oh move the wine glass - yeah, let the mormon girl move the glass ha ha, that's why we're laughing so hard. Happy Day tomorrow is Friday!

Happy New Year!

I'm back! It seems like so long - so Happy New Year to everyone! We had a busy two weeks - I really thought I would have blogged way before now. Our Christmas was very nice, but also very somber - my grandma is still hanging in there, but I'm not sure how much longer. She will be discharged from the hospital tomorrow to go home, not because she is better though.

My grandma was stabilized Christmas day so we felt secure enough to go to Utah to visit Mike's family (sorry Brooke we ended up so busy to come visit your beautiful home!) we visited with Mike's old missionary companions, his HS girlfriend (or not, depends on the story) and his best friend in HS & Mike's Brothers. We were busy! I felt horrible though - the weather and the artificial heat are really really bad on my skin (lucky eczema girl) I looked like a zombie!!! (oh yeah, really good for seeing Mike's old friends) My eyes looked horrible, they were swollen and itchy - I felt like my skin was going to fall off!! It is so hard for me to go there in the winter.

But we did have a nice visit with his parents and friends - the kids got to sled most days and made a snowman in the backyard, we went to see Alvin & the Chipmunks, so fun, played Guitar Hero with Uncle Todd & Aunt Rachel, trips to the Gateway, Mike even went on a business trip in the middle of our trip! Centerville/Bountiful has this terrific new community center/gym - I wish we had one! They have everything there! Indoor/outdoor pools, classes, rock wall, running tracks, weights, cardio - so neat.

The airports were a nightmare - security is a joke and everything is so difficult! I hate the cattle call, so different when you fly international business class (for free)!

We spent New Year's Eve with Mike's parents and their friends (they call themselves the Six-pack) so fun - they are all lifelong friends and the 3 couples do things together all the time!

But we're back to the grind, it was so nice getting the kiddies off to school today but it is still pretty dampened now knowing my grandma is going home tomorrow - I'm not sure what is going to happen in the next two weeks but I am certainly happy and thankful for my family and friends.

PS - Melinda - Happy Belated Birthday! I have a little something in the mail to you - and thank you for mine!