Getting Old

I substitute junior high kids a few times a month and a conversation I overheard went something like this.
Student #1: "I need to start using face cream so I don't look like an old 35 year old."
Student #2: I don't know what she said because I was too busy thinking that 35 is not old since that is how old I will be on my next birthday.
I then thought of a teacher that I had in 9th grade who is now a counselor at Stapley, where I sub. I swear she was old when I had her. But now I look at her and realize she was maybe the age I am now, 35 or so. I am sorry to say but when I was a ninth grader I thought she was old. Now that I am almost 35 year old, she is not old and neither am I.
This is evident in my teasing poor Kate. Kate says Jay's name like this, "Yay." So of course I have to ask her "is it Jay or Yay." She will reply "Yay Then I say "Yay" and she gets mad and says "no, Yay." I think I do this to her about 10 times a day. It never gets old and I laugh every time. I also remember doing this to my nephew when he would say "goking" instead of "joking," and I swear that wasn't very long ago but it has to be because he is 19.
I can't be getting old because I am still a kid at heart.

My Valentine

I know Valentine's Day is a week over but I am just a little behind. I am married to a wonderful man and I need to give a shout out to him. He is a kind, caring, loving, fun, great dad and husband, priesthood holder, church goer, keep me grounded man. I am grateful to this man because he cares so much for me and my beautiful children. I love that he is willing to support me and the family. I love that he runs and stays active and keeps me active. I love that he reminds me that I need to do certain things. He is able to do this without seeming mean and negative. I love that he will do the dishes, change the laundry, change dirty diapers, vacuum, and even clean the toilet on occasion, without me even asking, he just does it. I am married to a wonderful man.

Kate

I don't think children should be allowed to grow up. This was my little girl and now she is turning two. I can't believe that two years ago I was preparing for a little girl. We didn't have a name we could agree on and we were not ready for three children. But Kate, after a vote in the hospital on her name, came into my life and it hasn't been the same.
She is the sweetest little girl ever. Whenever Jay is hurt or crying she will go to him and say his name, "Yay," then she will try to comfort him. She loves the color pink in fact pink is one of the few words she says. Everything that is pink is called pink. I am working on using the correct word so maybe she will talk more but so far it is not working. I think she says a total of 10 words. Lets see... mine, me, football, pink, NO, mom, dad, Jack, Jay, hot dog, drink (dink). That's all. I am sure she says more but those are the most important.
Kate loves to sing and dance. But since she says few words when I think she is singing "I am a Child of God" she really could be singing Taylor Swift. It all sounds the same. But when she wants to, she will sing it loud, just not clear.
Kate gives the best kisses. She puckers up and makes the kissing sound. I love it and so do a lot of other people. Should I be worried that she likes to kiss so much. No, she is only two.
Kate also likes to tattle. Whenever something happens that she doesn't like she will come up to me, say one word and then talk gibberish while pointing to her head or shirt. That is usually where she gets hit or hurt. Most of the time I can figure out what happened.
I am truly blessed to have a little girl like Kate. Now I hope I can only learn how to do hair.

Reading

I love to read. I can pick up a book and be totally engrossed in it and ignore everything else until I am done with the book. Because of this I have to limit my reading because nothing, nothing gets done. With this said after finishing "The Shack" I asked my brother Joe if he had any books for me to read. I know he is always reading and I trust his opinion. Joe came through with three books, "Team of Rivals, "John Adams", and "Truman". When he brought the books over I was a little overwhelmed. The books are huge. I had to do it, so I measured the books with a ruler. The books measure 5 1/4 inches in total height with a total of 2,392 pages. That is a lot of reading. Joe said his favorite is "Team of Rivals" I am not finding it great yet but am working through it. It is a nonfiction book about Abraham Lincoln so it has a lot of history. I hope to get these books read. I know they are good. Wish me luck.

Rain, rain, don't go away

I know it is weird for me to say that I don't want the rain to go away because I love love love the sun. But it was really nice having a week of rain. Yes, here in Mesa, AZ we had rain. We got so much rain that there was water in the river. Crazy!! I remember always seeing water in the river when I was growing up but it is a new experience for my kids. One Sunday Ryan surprised us with a trip to the river.
The first picture is on Alma School Road right here in Mesa. We call the water fall the Salt River Water Fall. If you look way in the background at the mountains you can see snow on them. I love it.

This picture is on McKellips Road. I think Mesa might be the only city that built a road through a river bed. My kids loved being close to the water and throwing rocks into the river. The City of Mesa won't appreciate the rocks when they have to clean the road but we had fun throwing them in.

Jack kept asking if it was a flood. I had to tell him no just water in the river. I love Mesa and the weather we get. I love our winters, falls, and springs. The summers get long but we try to be gone as much as we can.