Dear 2008...

I really can't say that I'm sad to see you go. Although we did have some good times, I've had to mostly look back and be glad you are gone. You have been a year of trials and lessons. Here are some things I have learned:

1) Being patient can be a hard thing.

2) Life goes by so fast you really have to savor the moments...even the tough ones.

3) You can't wait for tomorrow. You need to live today.

4) Always have a year supply of anything and everything you can think of. Especially money!

5) Remember that trials are here for a reason. Learn from them.

6) Be better at keeping a journal. I never know what people might learn from me.

7) Remember Elder Wirthlin's talk...Come What May and love it. (O how that can be hard sometimes.)


I'm sure I've learned a lot more, but that's all I can think of for now. So, my dear 2008, I'm glad you came. You brought me little Xander's first birthday, Aliyah's 2nd, a great family vacation, my 4th year wedding anniversary, and lots of family get togethers. However, I am more happy to see you leave (and hopefully take all the trials with you). Here's to 2009! May we always live for the moment and remember to love what comes.

Yours,

Anne

You haven't heard of a "Bilibo?"

So, my mom got the latest toy for the kids for Christmas. I hadn't heard of it. It's called a Bilibo and it's pretty cool.

You can stand on it.



Jump off it.


Spin in it.


And just sit...although it's kind of tipsy.


Thanks for the great present. It's given the kids lots to do. :)

And yes, Xander is wearing girl jammies. He's too young to care, and we're saving money. What can ya do?

mErRy CHRiStMaS!

We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

We are up north, celebrating with Family. It's been a little crazy with so many people to see and parties to attend. But we love both our families and we're glad we can be close to both sides.

Santa was good to us this year. The kids favorite present? Candy. I guess their going to the dentist soon. :)

Well, Merry Christmas to everyone. I'll get some pics up when we get home.

2 year olds don't know sound travels...

Yesterday I painted Aliyah's fingers and toes. Throughout the day when she would catch a glimpse of them she would yell out, "Mommy...PRETTY!"

It was so cute.

This morning she woke up early and came into our room.

I was not ready to get up yet. She was fine with that and went into our bathroom.

She always plays in our bathroom.

It usually means a mess.

This time I didn't hear her open any drawers, or turn the water on in the tub. I did hear a clicking sound.

I knew she was in something she wasn't supposed to have. I just couldn't bring myself to get out of bed and check it out.

Jace, however, did get out of bed.

He found Aliyah, hiding in the shower...with the nail polish.






Jace caught her in enough time that she really only had her hands covered.

But I have a question for all you super mom's out there...


What gets nail polish out of clothes...

And grout? I got it off the rest of the tile, but it's refusing to come out of the grout. :( Not so cool.

What the...

So, it's been snowing the last 3 days. What!?! In St. George!?! It has even stuck twice. So, this morning we took advantage and played in the snow. The kids didn't know what to think. Aliyah started dancing in it. Then she cleaned off every rock in our yard.





Xander liked to eat it. And he liked to pull his mittens off. But after he was done eating it he realized his hands were freezing. He didn't appreciate that very much.




The kids had fun. So, they are all prepared for when we go up north for Christmas. They now know what snow is. But, they don't really have the appropriate gear to play. :(

long overdue

We went out with the FABULOUS Dion for these pics. Thank you!

Pics taken November 18, 2008

why?

This was the work of my little boy. The one who never has to get into anything because Aliyah does it for him. Well, now the tables have turned. Aliyah came running to me and saying "Xanner plant!" I found him sitting next to the plant with dirt all over him and as you can see all over everything else. I was not happy.

Christmas Tag

1. What is your favorite Christmas song? O there are so many...Every song on my blog right now I really like. If I had to narrow it down...I don't know if I could. I'll say, my favorite CD would probably be "The Osmonds Christmas." We would listen to it growing up and I love every song on there.

2. When was your most memorable Christmas? Probably the year of the mountain bikes. Short story...I was in elementary, I think. We came down to see what Santa brought and my little sisters pile was HUGE! Amy and I looked at our meager piles and I'll say it, I was downright mad. Until Amy went to go to the bathroom, and hidden in the mud room were 2 mountain bikes. I got a big smile real quick.

3. What is your favorite Christmas treat? Hmm...probably cinnamon chip bread

4. What do you dislike most about the Christmas season? I'd have to agree with my sis and say that it starts before Halloween. C'mon people.

5. What do you like best about the Christmas season? All the lights. I like the feeling in the air. Everyone seems a lot happier and willing to help others.

6. Who is the hardest person to shop for on your Christmas list? Any of my in-laws.

7. If you could receive one gift without money being an issue, what would it be? new camera...lots of new clothes...a scanner for 12 x 12 paper...can I have them all?

8. What is your idea of a perfect Christmas Eve? Hanging out with family...a little snow once everyone is inside for the night, opening up Christmas jammies, having a cup of hot cocoa by the fire and hitting the hay.

9. Which do you like best, eggnog or hot chocolate? Hot Chocolate, hands down.

10. Do you prefer a fancy Christmas tree, or one decorated by the kids? I'll probably be like Monica on FRIENDS and let everyone help, but then turn my tree so that only the side I decorated is showing. :)

11. What is your favorite family Christmas tradition? Growing up, we couldn't go to bed Christmas Eve without listening to some of my dad's old records. The Hawaiian 12 Days of Christmas, I'd Like to Hitch a Ride with Santa Claus, Barking Dogs...to name a few.

12. Do you like fruitcake? Never had it, but with all the jokes I don't think I want to.

13. Do you prefer skiing or snowboarding? I've only been snowboarding like 4 times. So I'm not good at either.

14. Are you dreaming of a white christmas or do you say "Bah Humbug" to snow? I only like snow on Christmas Eve, and Christmas. The rest of the winter I saw "Bah Humbug."

15. What was your favorite gift from Santa when you were a kid? Umm, I can't narrow it down. Santa was always good at getting what I wanted. But I do remember one year when I was in elementary. Amy got a toy drum set and I got this awesome microphone and stand. We played for hours with those.

16. What is your favorite Christmas movie? Elf. This is also the movie Jace and I saw on our first date. Wow, that was 5 years ago. Time flies...

17. Have you ever eaten snow? Of course. Just not the yellow kind.

18. Who do you wish could be with you this Christmas? My grampy :( also Jace's grampy.

19. When do you put up your Christmas lights and decorations? Day after Thanksgiving. This year we were a little early, but only like 2 days.

20. Real or artificial Christmas Tree? Pre-lit artificial. That's the only way to go.

I now tag Courtney, Sara, and my Mommy.

Catch up

I've kind of been a blog slacker. A lot has gone on since Thanksgiving, but I haven't made it to the computer. So, we'll start with everybody's favorite day..."Black Friday"...AKA the day after Thanksgiving.

Nat went with me to the outlets. I was told they didn't open until midnight...but they really opened at 11. So we missed out on an hour of shopping...and the best part about going right when the stores open...all the extra savings and sometimes door prizes. O well. We got there and there were people everywhere. My plan was to just get the kids winter clothes, because they were in desperate need. So we looked in Gymboree for all of 2 minutes. They never have good enough deals and even with the extra mark downs the clothes are still too expensive for me. And the line was ridiculously long. So we went to the Children's Place because I love their boy clothes.

(Wow...I just realized I look like a total nerd in this picture. But, I hope you'll forgive me as it was 1:00 in the morning.)

Here we are at the very back of the line, which was ironically right by where it ended. At the front of the store by the registers. It wrapped all the way along the wall, to the back of the store and then up to the registers. :( We waited over an hour just to buy the stuff, but we came out with a lot. So, I like to think it was worth it. That's the only store we went to because I just couldn't bring myself to spend another dime. (Jace was glad for that.)


Sunday was a cold morning, but we didn't let that stop us from bundling the kids up and heading out for a walk. I really don't like having church at 1 and I am very glad we only have one more month of it. There's nothing to do all day and then when you come home it's late. Anyway, we finally thought of something to do before all of Jace's meetings. The kids had fun too. Especially when we raced down the hill with the strollers.



Aliyah tried a new hair style.



And Xander met a new friend. This guy is our porch snowman.



Then, we had a pajama party for Family Night and went to see the lights at the Temple. I'll tell you what...it's no Temple Square, but it was still a fun outing and got us in the Christmas mood.



Well, I guess that only gets me up to Monday of last week. :( I've been doing this all day though, and I'm spent. So, we'll try to catch up some more tomorrow.

Cruise Pics

Ok...so I've totally slacked at getting my cruise pics up. Not because I've forgotten or anything. But because I want to get them all scrapbooked up and cutesy before everyone sees them. Plus, we had 4 cameras going at almost all times (except when mine freaked out and decided to be retarded...). That's why I'm waiting to get all the pics from Friend, Mom, and Nat before I really do any scrapbooking. I have done a few pages which I shall share now, but only of pics I know they don't have.

If you're dying to see more (which I know you are) you can click here and here.

Enjoy.

Our Thanksgiving

A big thanks to Jace's aunt and uncle and cousins for letting us crash their Thanksgiving. It was nice to not have to make the 4 hour trip though. We wish we could've seen more of the family, but luckily Christmas isn't that far away. :)

HaPpY ThAnKsGiViNg!

I cannot believe it is already Thanksgiving. Jace and I were talking about how we are not ready for it to be this time of year. Don't get me wrong...I love it. Everybody all bundled in sweaters because it's freezing outside...the warmth of the family gathered together in a home...everyone happy. I just love it. But, really...it's already here? I just can't believe it.

So...am I ready for all the crazy "black Friday" shopping?

You Betcha! :)

We'll see you bright and early tomorrow.

TWILIGHT

Vernon and Vernon give it 2 thumbs up!

(And yes...we saw the movie in our jammies at 1:40 in the afternoon. We decided to be lazy for once.)

getting excited

Smith's on Bluff and the Blvd

funnies.

Yesterday while Jace was at work I was playing with the kids. Xander is obsessed with his dad...to say the least. That's pretty much all he says; well, that and eat.

All Xander was saying was "Daddy, Daddy..." and on and on for seriously 5 min. I kept telling him rather calmly that Daddy was at work. Apparently, Aliyah was a bit more annoyed with him because the next time he said "Daddy" Aliyah yelled...

"Zanner! Daddy's work!!!"

It was the funniest thing. And I'll admit, he was a little taken back with her tone that I think he stopped for a full minute before he started saying it again.

Dear Mickey Mouse...

We loved spending a WHOLE week on your boat with you and your gang. It was a lot of fun. We wish we could've gone to St. Thomas and St. Maartin instead of Cozumel and Costa Maya, but we understand the schedule change and didn't want to cross paths with the Hurricane.
The first day in Castaway Cay was beautiful and warm. Aliyah and Xander really loved playing in the sand.
We thought spending a day at sea would be boring, but we got to see all of your friends and dance with them and take lots and lots of pictures together. We really liked to swim in the Mickey Pool with all the other kids.
Cozumel was only ok. We went to Cancun last year for a vacation so we really weren't looking forward to going to Mexico again. The same went for Costa Maya. Mexico was really beautiful, but we liked staying on the boat instead and eating lots of pizza and hot dogs.
Another day at sea was next, but that didn't stop us from having a good time. We got to play in the Oceaneer's Club with lots of other kids. They had slides! and coloring and hula hoops! That was really fun.
The last day we got to go back to "Bickey's Island" as Aliyah calls it...or Castaway Cay. We were really excited to go back because of the true Caribbean feel. We had a blast in the ocean and sand and Aliyah and Xander had so much fun getting burried by their daddy.
We are really going to miss the Magical feel that your boat brought to us. And we're especially going to miss all the ice cream and room service and something to do at all hours of the day. Xander will miss Minnie most of all. They had a bond I've never seen...and Aliyah will miss you most. Mickey...we will never forget this fabulous vacation and plan on seeing you again real soon!

Love:
Jace, Anne, Aliyah, and Xander

(Just a quick post to update everyone...pictures will be coming soon!)

One word...

Tagged again...

1. Where is your cell phone? counter
2. Where is your significant other? gym
3. Your hair color? dark
4. Your mother? peacemaker
5. Your father? musical
6. Your favorite thing? bread
7. Your dream last night? forgot
8. Your dream/goal? missions (with Jace)
9. The room you're in? den
10. Your hobby? scrapbook
11. Your fear? sharks
12. Where do you want to be in six years? vacationing
13. Where were you last night? meeting
14. What you're not? skinny (almost there though)
15. One of your wish list items? computer
16. Where you grew up? Fruit Heights (sorry, that one's automatically 2 words)
17. The last thing you did? shop
18. What are you wearing? jeans
19. Your TV? nice
20. Your pet? none
21. Your computer? on...(I don't get the question)
22. Your mood? excited
23. Missing someone? gramps
24. Your car? Turbo!
25. Something you're not wearing? shoes
26. Favorite Store? Hollister
27. Your summer? hot
28. Love someone? yessiree!
29. Your favorite color? red
30. When is the last time you laughed? week
31. Last time you cried? Monday

I tag:
anyone who wants to give this a try

weekend update

DeVar Vernon 1932 ~ 2008

DeVar Mills Vernon passed away October 30, 2008 in the farm house where he was born on May 13, 1932 to Marie Mills and Grant Vernon in Hoytsville, Utah. He graduated from North Summit High School where he participated in FFA and raised a State Grand Champion ewe. He also played the trombone in the school band. He married LaVaun Geary on June 15, 1953. He loved his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. He loved the outdoors and spent many fall seasons trapping beaver. He was a second-generation mink rancher and had a great love for his farm and his animals. He loved watching the Utah Jazz, BYU Cougars and local North Summit High School sports. In the later years of his life, he enjoyed sitting on his front porch, whittling canes and watching his peacocks. Surviving are his loving wife, LaVaun and children: VaunaDe (Doug) Swensen, Jeff (Jeanette) Vernon, Chris (Lani) Vernon and Crae Vernon; a sister, Galeen Johnson; 12 grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be held Mon., Nov. 3, 2008 at 12 Noon in the Hoytsville Chapel. A viewing will be held Sun. at the church from 6-8 p.m. and Mon. from 10:45-11:45 a.m. Interment, Hoytsville Cemetery. Thanks to family and friends and those who cared for him: Dr. Wain Allen, Marcine, Cori Ann, Lynn, Audrey, and our faithful Jeanette.

Some of you might know that Jace's grandpa was pretty sick. He ended up passing away the day before Halloween. It was really sad, but almost better because he was pretty sick. I didn't know Dee very well. Whenever we went to visit he was always watching some sport on TV. Only once did we visit that he actually talked to us. He was a pretty nice guy. He did like his jokes. :)

So, Sunday was the viewing, we headed up for that. Monday was the funeral and I thought this might be one I could make it through without crying. Wrong. As soon as the family prayer started I was balling. Not just little tears and sniffles...all out balling. There was totally a feeling that went throughout the room because I wasn't the only one. As the funeral went on I found that I couldn't control my emotions. Even later Jace told my sister that I took it harder than any of his family did. Which is true. But, the real reason I was having such a hard time is I was thinking of my grandpa. He passed away 3 days before I had Aliyah, so we weren't able to make it to the funeral. I guess I never really got closure from that. I was thinking of my gramps throughout the whole service and couldn't even make it through the song all the girls had to sing. I'm sure people were thinking, "Who is this girl...she's not even really related."
The services went really well though. And I know it's still tough...especially for Jace's grandma. But I'm glad to know what we know about the plan of salvation and knowing we will see loved ones again.

Later that night we got to attend my dad's concert. I thought it was awesome! He did really well at arranging songs and even creating a few originals for big band and some strings. So, way to go Daddy! You're amazing!

Tagged...again

Sorry if you're getting sick of hearing all this random stuff about me...but I was tagged. And I like it. :)

So these are my 8


Favorite TV Shows:
1. Prison Break
2. Biggest Loser
3. Heroes
4. The Hills (I don't know why)
5. Friends...I still like it

I think that's all I watch. If you want me to add what I do watch everyday I'd have to say...
6. Dora/Diego
7. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
8. Backyardigans
Sigh...living with a 2 year old doesn't leave me with much remote time...but that's probably good.

Favorite Restaurants:
1. Pizza Factory
2. Texas Roadhouse
3. Red Robin (so excited we're getting one!)
4. Jimmy Johns
5. HoneyBaked Ham (MMmmm)
6. Boston's....(I think that's the name. It's in Layton & it's good!)
7. Larsen's
8. Olive Garden

Things That Happened Yesterday:
1. Trick or Treating at the Mall
2. Ward Trunk-n-treat
3. Took LOTS of pics of the kids in costumes
4. Stubbs visited
5. Nat and Ry visited
6. cleaned the kitchen
7. judged a costume contest
8. Hung out with ward friends

Things I Am Looking Forward To:
1. VACATION...happening in 6 days!
2. The money to come!
3. decorate my house
4. paint my house
5. pretty much anything to do with making my house look better
6. Thanksgiving
7. Christmas
8. Pretty much spending time with family. I love the holidays for that reason

Things I Love About Fall:
1. The WONDERFUL St. George weather
2. Changing my hair (I think it goes dark every year around this time)
3. All the holidays coming up
4. Leaves changing...although it doesn't really happen down here. You have to know where to go to see it.
5. The smell. The air outside just changes and I can tell a difference.
6. Dressing in new (well not worn since last year) clothes
7. Wearing a jacket at night and in the morning
8. Not sweating to death when you go outside.

Things On My Wishlist:
1. Things to decorate my house (we'll leave this subject vague)
2. new tires for my car
3. a trip to LA with my hubby and no kids
4. shopping spree for clothes. I haven't bought myself clothes since Jan. :(
5. Another personal trainer. :)
6. a pool
7. front gate so the kids don't run onto the road
8. my own computer for scrapbooking and making dvds

People I Tag:
1. Roz
2. Crystal
3. Jade
4. Andrea
5. Suz
6. Jen
7. Tammie
8. Cara

Wow...I found that 8 things were really hard for me. If you can do it, more power to ya. If you can't, you can change it to your 5 or something.

HaPpY HaLLoWeEn!

Aliyah and Xander 10.31.08

Aliyah is a lady bug...although she calls herself a "bugga bug" (in an episode from Dora) and Xander is a bat.



Be sure to scroll down a bit to see the winner of our pumpkin contest.

A WORD FROM JACE On the PUMPKINS

First Off I would like to thank Teriann and Whitney for voting for my pumpkin you both just won a life time of support from me. For those of you who did not vote for my pumpkin that is ok and you're all forgiven. I had my pumpkin carved and out on the porch before Anne even had the little stitch carved. It took her Three hours just to come up with little thing. I could have carved a whole city in three hours... Just thought everyone should know......
Until next time
JACE VERNON
aka Blog Stalker

The votes are tallied...

...and the results are in. Before we congratulate the winner of this years Pumpkin Carving Contest I would like to show you how our Family Home Evening went. Jace was sweet and got the pumpkins even though he wanted nothing to do with pumpkin carving. So, I guess to get himself enthused he decided to make it a contest. Jace vs. Anne. Here we begin...

The kids didn't know what to make of the pumpkins. They love getting into things and getting messy so I thought they would totally love to pull all the guts out. I was wrong.



Neither of them wanted anything to do with the pumpkins. They thought it was gross. Although Xander did eat some seeds that fell on the cement. Yum.

Here we are...We'd already gotten our patterns on and we're carving away.



I would just like to thank everyone who took the time to participate in our family contest. And to all of you who voted for mine...the winning pumpkin...way to go!

P.S. Jace got on the blog today to check on the results and he was totally stunned. He started coming up with a lot of excuses as to why I won and he didn't. (His template wasn't as good as mine...He didn't as much time on his...etc.) But he's just being bitter. :) I totally wasted him. Yay.

O - and Andrea...Jace said you could've totally redeemed yourself from the turtle incident if you would've voted for him. O well... :)

First Annual Pumpkin Carve!

And we need your votes!

Jace and I decided we were going to make our pumpkin carving a contest. So, we both found templates online that we wanted to carve and now we're leaving it up to you to vote on the best one.

Pumpkin #1

Pumpkin #2

Vote in the comments and we will tally them up to see who is the best pumpkin carver!

Thanks for your votes!

A visit from Aunt Mayme

Last week Aunt "Mayme" came to town. She stayed with Ry and Nat, but when they had school and work she came to hang out with me and the kids. She came bearing gifts that my great-grandma won on her trip to Lagoon this past summer.

I gotta say the bear and puppy were a hit and Aliyah is still sleeping with them both. Xander doesn't really get a say in it.

We played at the park with the kids and Amy just played and ran around with them a lot. The kids love you "Mayme" and we are all so glad you could take some time off work and come visit.



Aliyah said bye to you for at least 45 min. :)

Can't wait to see you again on the "Bickey boat!"

Fall

One of the things I really love about living here is the weather in the fall/winter/spring. Summer used to be my favorite season...when I lived up north...because it was warm and sunny and perfect. It would get hot, but nothing like down here. Now that I've lived here for 4 years, I would definitely have to say fall and spring are my favorite. The temperature is perfect.
However, I'm going to be a stickler about fall. I do not like how early it gets dark and how late it is in the morning before the sun finally decides to shine. This morning I didn't want to get out of bed because I was sure it was 4 or 5...nope...it was 7. And last night when I was so tired and I was certain it had to be at least 11, it was only 9:15. :( I just feel more tired and lazy in the fall/winter. And next week when we change the clock back it going to be even worse. Sigh...O well. I guess I'll just grin and bear it until spring finally comes. :D

sleeper

Aliyah was so good this morning. While I was busy vacuuming and cleaning and all that fun stuff she put in a DVD to watch in her room and sat there. She hardly came out. I mean there wasn't even a "Mamma, help..." or anything. I thought, "this is awesome. She's been involved with this for a good 30 minutes, I'm getting in the shower." Usually when I get in the shower and she's still awake she'll come for a visit. But this time she stayed in her room, which I was grateful for. (I mean, who really likes an interrupted shower?)
I got out, got all dressed, and I decided I hadn't heard from Aliyah in a while. That either meant she was asleep, or she was into something she shouldn't be. I thought it was the latter for sure. So I went in to check on her and I found her fast asleep in her little chair. She looked so cute I had to take a pic. :)

Staheli Farm

I thought I'd update super quick since this is more of a journal for me.

We took the kids to Staheli Farm on Monday for Family night. We met up with the Fenton's. It's always fun to go out with friends. Especially when they have a kid the same age as one of your kids. Aliyah is obsessed with Kate and Avery and asks to see them all the time, so it was good we went with them. :) The kids had a lot of fun (pics to follow). I think their favorite was the slide with the corn at the bottom. O, neither of them liked the slide. They loved playing in the corn at the bottom of it. Xander kept grabbing handfuls and covering himself and Aliyah enjoyed throwing it everywhere. I just watched them cringing in digust at all the dirt. Eew.
The animals were also a big hit. Both the kids pet the cow, they thought that was pretty cool. Xander kept trying to stick his finger in the chicken coop and was successful once. The chickens were all too eager to check it out too. But he didn't even care.
We also did the corn maze. Not too difficult. The boys followed the map to a T and we were in and out in probably 20 minutes. It would've been shorter if the kids didn't hold us up. But I'll tell you, they were on a mission.
We had a lot of fun and ended the night at Arctic Circle for some ice cream. Yumm!

bath time

It has been such a struggle to get Aliyah into the tub lately. So we've resorted to bribes.

I was tagged!

I was tagged by Jealin! Yay. I love tags...I don't know why, but I do. :)

Here it is: All you have to do is go to your 6th picture album folder, pick the 6th picture and post it. Then tag 4 friends.


March 5, 2008
The kids playing with a balloon. Xander looks so little. :)


Now I tag: Suz, Teresa, Cara, & Courtney

for faja

My daddy is in the Music Masters program at the U. He is taking his very last class this semester and has called on me and my "creative skills" to make a poster for his concert. So, I decided to post it here because this way he'll be able to blow it up and read the words and whatever before I send it.

So, I just want to say Good Luck with your music you are still writing...hope your concert goes well!

Love you Faja!!!

Not to Worry...

Thursday day Jace heard something squealing in one of those sticky animal traps that was in our garage. A baby mouse had migrated clear to the opposite side of the garage and gotten itself stuck in it...what is what is supposed to happen. Jace's little heart broke and so he brought it inside and tried to get it out. In the process I think he drowned the little thing in the water and soap he was using. And then I heard my blowdryer. Yep, he was drying the thing off! I asked him if he was seriously using my blowdryer and he said he was trying to revive him by heating him up. O my husband is hilarious. So, there went one baby mouse.
Thursday night Jace said he thought the Momma Mouse (MM) was moving the babies because he couldn't find some of them. (O yeah, there weren't just 3...there were 5...at least!) Well, that was comforting and not comforting at the same time. Comforting because she was moving them, and not because who knows where she's moving them to.
Yesterday afternoon I was going to run errands and before I left I went over to the corner in the garage to see if there were any still there and I found a dead one. It was kind of sad, but at the same time I was thinking "good, another one down." (Is that mean?)
Jace came home a bit later and got to cleaning the garage to see if he could find any more and to clean up the poop and nest. He found 2 more that maybe the MM just abandoned...we think. They were so weak and Jace even tried to feed them cheese, milk, and pancakes. (I know...) Well, he ended up having to just kill them because they were dying anyway.
So, to recap...at least 3 babies are dead. We still can't find MM anywhere. Hopefully she took her other babies far far away from here.

NOW RODENTS!

I feel like every other post I'm writing about some type of creature we've found in our house. Luckily, this one is in the garage. That only gives minor comfort though.
I'm pretty sure that ever since we moved in (a little over a year ago) we've seen mouse poop everywhere! By our front door and in the garage mostly. Well, for the past couple weeks...maybe months, Jace has been saying he sees a mouse running across our garage floor when we open the garage from coming home at night. I've never seen it, thankfully.
This morning I pulled in the garage after working out and there by the stroller is a baby mouse that seriously looked like it was dying. It kept flipping on it's back. So I ran in the house and grabbed Jace and he came out and picked it up!!! I about died. I think all rodents or creatures or anything like that are extremely disgusting and full of diseases. Jace saw my reaction and said, "The baby ones don't have diseases." I DON"T CARE! That's still gross. Not only did we have a momma mouse running around in our garage...now she's having babies!!!
Jace wanted to keep the baby mouse because he thought it was cute. It's eyes weren't even open yet that's how new it was. I told him he couldn't keep it and he had to get rid of it FAR away from our house. He wouldn't do it because it would die. (Wah.) So he spent the next 10 minutes out in our garage shuffling boxes around to find it's mom. Well, in the process we found the nest and 2 more babies. I'm so mad and grossed out! And I have a husband who might as well be an animal rights activist. I don't necessarily want him to kill them, but get them out of our garage...PLEASE!
As of now he "boxed them in" so they won't get away until he can deal with them tonight. But I don't think he noticed that a little farther down there is nothing blocking them from getting out and hiding somewhere else. And we definitely don't want that because I think these are "smart mice" we're dealing with because they have alluded traps for a good 4 months.
Wish me luck on convincing Jace they gotta go.

new hair

This weekend I decided to go darker with my hair. I'm going to put some blonde in it in a couple weeks. I decided to let it rest for a while just being brown. I didn't want it fried. So, for right now I'm a brunette. It's a little dark...it's darker than my real hair color. Jace really doesn't like it; he likes the blondes. But, for now this will have to work.
So, without further ado....My new hair:

I felt really dumb posing for this pic. so I look a little funny.

Weekend Up North

Once again we packed the kids up and headed to the cold land of Northern Utah. This time we had the newly weds with us to help keep the kids entertained. (Thanks Jalee and Kyle...I know they were a bit annoying, but we really appreciated the help.)
We left on Thursday to see Jaxon play his JV football game against South Summit. They totally won and Jaxon played awesome.
Friday was the Homecoming game for Varsity...which meant a parade. Those Coalvillers really know how to have a parade. :) We ate a spaghetti dinner at the school after.

Jaxon and Xander

Kyle and Jalee enjoying the food

The happy Vernon family...don't mind the hair. I just got it done that day and it's definitely different.

(I was a bit of a picture slacker this trip and this is all I took.)


We ended up watching the game on TV at Jace's friends. It was an excellent idea considering it was FREEZING cold outside and there was no way the kids were going to sit through that. The Braves won their homecoming game! Yay team.
Saturday we headed to my parents after the morning session of conference. The kids had fun with all the toys and grandma and grandpa. And later that night watched Iron Man. (Such a good show.)
We came home Sunday after morning conference. Once again Jalee and Kyle took on the kids. Xander was just so sick of sitting in his seat that he was WAY too fussy. I had to go in the back and sit by him. Turns out he peed out his diaper and it was all the way through his pants and shirt and his whole carseat was soaked. I'd be mad too.

Well, that's a brief synopsis of the weekend. Hope everyone enjoyed conference. :)

The stitches are gone!

Aliyah was such a good girl today when she got her stitches out. You can barely see the scar! - O yeah...she's better now. The doctor said it was probably just something intestinal. :(