Since I'm flashing-back...

I figured that, since I was taking a look back in time, I might as well look a little farther and see what I could find. I found A LOT of scary pictures of me which, hopefully, NEVER make it to the internet. But I also found these, which made me happy:

(Senior year of high school)

Eating dinner at the Pie... mmmmm... back when I could eat all I wanted and not worry about fitting into my pants the next day.


Can you see me in this picture? (We figured out a way that I could take the picture and still be IN the picture. We were so smart. And I think the reason Kristin looks so tall was that she was wearing my 4" heels. Why? No idea.)

Ah... Sharee and I were so tan...Now I look like a dark-haired albino.
This was our last final "hoorah" before everyone moved away for college, got married, etc. The only one missing of the "group" was Brittany, since she'd already gone away to college. We took a moment of silence for her.
Oh- and I don't see Laura or Kaija, either. Hm... Ok, so most of us were there.
The face I'm pulling in this last picture is quite frightening. I'm sorry for subjecting you to it.
I love my girlfriends. AND I love that I still stay in contact with EVERY single one of them.

Halloween flashback

From an unofficial "tag" (thanks, Sara), I decided to do a flashback of our family's Halloween costumes through the years. Are you ready? I know you must be, because I sure am.

Halloween 2002:

I really wish I could find a picture of this year, but I think it's buried in a box somewhere. Justin was an Oompa Loompa and I was Storm from X-men. If I find it, I'll post it. But for now, just try to use your fantastic imaginations.... Justin's face painted BRIGHT orange while wearing a bright green wig, a purple/white striped midget costume...waddling... yes, you see it now? I'm sorry for putting that image in your head.

2003:

Angel and disco-man.

2004:

His true character was revealed. I was so proud.
He won First place ($200) at a costume contest downtown!

Kennedy's first Halloween. Nanananananananana... Bat Girl!

(No costume for me, this year)

2005:
He won first place again at the costume contest, that year. He came up with the idea, and I made the costume- I even put one of my old bras in the woman side of it and sewed a necklace on that half... we also shaved his legs. It was awesome.

My wittow pumpkin.
And again, no Ashley costume.

2006:

Yes, my friends, that is Richard Simmons. We lathered him up with lots of fake tanner and shaved his legs (again), and I made those shorts as short as I could without having to reveal anything... unnecessary...? He played the part very well.

And I'm not really sure what I was. A disco girl? Maybe. I don't know. I needed a costume for our ward party so I just threw some stuff together. Meh. And of course, Kennedy was a cute little ladybug.

2007:

Justin was too busy to be creative last year, so he was just the nerd, again, which is always a hit. And Kennedy wanted to be Dorothy.

There's no place like home.

You've already seen a preview of our family costumes, this year (Kennedy's, at least), and yes, I am actually dressing up. Alas, you will have to wait for another week, or so, to see the pictures. Deal with it. :)

Is pride REALLY a bad thing?

I believe that, as parents, we have bragging rights. I mean, it's one thing to brag about your OWN accomplishments, but your kid's achievements are technically not your own, right? Am I right? Ok, I'm right. So on with the bragging.

Parent-Teacher conferences. I know that eventually I will probably not be excited to go to these, for fear of what the teacher may say. Luckily, Kennedy is still at the age where it is cool for kids to be smart and nice, so going to PTC is a highlight for my day. I think the whole "being dumb is cool" thing starts to kick in around the age of 11-ish.

So I sat with Kennedy's teacher last week. I went in, prepared to hear that I need to help her with blah, blah and blah. However, the teacher raved on and on about how much she loved Kennedy, how academically advanced she is, how she plays so well with the other kids and how she is just a joyful, fun-loving girl (everything a mother loves to hear). I'm so proud. I have such a sweet, smart daughter.


And since I'm already bragging, I'll continue. But just once more.

Lately, she has been in love with the Disney movie, Tarzan. There is a character on there, a gorilla named Terk (who we're not quite sure if it's a girl or boy, but whatever), who has been Kennedy's imaginary friend, recently. Well, Kennedy was "coloring" in her coloring book, today (when I say coloring, I actually mean "drawing" with a pen/marker on her coloring book), and was saying the name "Terk," over and over to herself. (Justin was home, not me- he relayed this information to me.) He didn't think much of it. Well, I get home from work and I see this on the kitchen table:

She had written her imaginary friend's name all by herself!! Granted, she missed a letter, but that is completely beside the point. She sounded out the letters on her own. Seriously. At 4 yrs old?? Maybe that's fairly common, but to me, she is an absolute genius. We are having blood tests done to determine if she truly is our child.

Fantastic friendly fall festivities

(Try saying that 10 times, fast. "fantastic friendly fall festivities....")

Last weekend we went to a friend's house for a pumpkin carving contest. Kennedy insisted on wearing her costume, of course. Her wig came off 4 minutes after we arrived.

(For those of you without kids, or who have never watched TV in your life, or for some reason you just don't know who this is, it's Daphne, from Scooby Doo.)

Let the party begin. Here we are in action:
Don't worry- I didn't really let Kennedy use that knife on a pumpkin. I merely had her pose for a picture for posterity's sake. ...And apparently I go cross-eyed on occasion.

Here is Sarah and the CUTEST little boy in the world, Camden (it's not Sarah's baby- it's Brody and Jackie's). I am secretly plotting to inconspicuously take him home with me, one day.

Justin was concentrating hard. This was, after all, a contest.
And there are the final masterpieces. Mine is the one with the owl, and Justin's was on the right of mine. Kennedy's was the 2nd to last with the heart nose (Justin did it for her).

And the winner is....

Kennedy and Sasha! We all knew an adult couldn't win, because we'd all fight and debate over who's was actually better and why. That's why adults shouldn't enter into contests. They're sore losers.

The prize was the biggest freaking Sugar Daddy ever known to man. Thanks to Garret, Kennedy was on a sugar high all night ("Here, Kennedy, do you want some MORE??"). We are just patiently waiting until he has a kid so we can get him back.

(I had a piece of the Sugar Daddy, too. There's no way I'm saying "no" to sugar. I tried to be sneaky about it, but it was caught on camera.)

After the exhausting competition, we sat around and watched Brody's favorite show: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.


And I told Kennedy she couldn't have any more candy.

Freedom in Park City

Justin and I hadn't had a night "away" (meaning without Kennedy and somewhere other than our own home) for about 4 years. We decided the world owed it to us. We wanted to go somewhere close, cheap, slightly romantic and fun.

No, not Tooele. Good guess, though.

Park City!! I found a nice little condo rental on www.vrbo.com (thanks, Mom!), and since we're still in the "off-season," it was pretty dang inexpensive.

After shopping for a few hours at the outlet malls, occasionally looking under coat racks for our child (it's a habit) who was not there, but with a babysitter (thanks, Janica), we checked into our condo and crashed for a few hours. Shopping wears us out. We must be old. What happened to the days when I could shop for 5 hours and not even break a sweat??

After napping, we went to dinner (steak- yum!) and then meandered along Main Street, only to find that all of the shops close early during the week, so we drove back to the condo and watched Seinfeld and the Notebook....among other things which grown-ups do when kids are not around. Like have pillow fights and play video games.

And what is the first thing on my mind when I awake in the morning? (Who am I kidding- it's always on my mind.) Food!


Delicious breakfast. The best hot apple cider I've ever had. They even put a little cinnamon stick in it! Some people are just so creative. Seriously.

We then walked up and down Main Street (luckily the stores were open, this time- and my butt is seriously sore from that enormous hill. How pathetic is that?), and looked in all of the stores and art galleries. One of them is a photo gallery, and all of the photographs in there were taken by a couple who travels all over the world. It really fueled our desire to go to Italy... and Norway... and France. Ok, so everywhere in Europe. But we both really enjoy art, so it was great to see all the things people can do that I suck at.

Aren't we cool? Yes, I thought so, too.

It was only a one night get-away, but it was a lot of fun. I missed Kennedy way more than I should have, but she had a blast with her bff Kaitlyn, and I admit it was really nice to be able to window shop without a whining child. I already had a husband whining about my excessive need to touch everything. Although his whining may be justified...

*Another Kennedyism:

She loves to sing. The other day, this is how her song went:

"I love to see the temple, I'm going there, someday, Yes, SIR!, Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer, had a very shiny nose...."

The "Yes, SIR" was very enthusiastic- and she didn't skip a beat as she started into the Christmas carol.

Forecasting the future?

Once again, Kennedy has embellished herself with the many adornments found in her wardrobe:

Should I be concerned or excited about this Miss America/beauty pageant-attire fascination?

**Added bonus- 2 Kennedy-isms for the week:

Kennedy: *singing* .... [something something] from my heart... [as she dramatically places her hands over her heart]
Nana: [singing-imitating Kennedy] From my heart...
Kennedy: No, Nana, not your heart.
Nana: Oh, ok. Not my heart. How come?
Kennedy: Old people don't have hearts.
Nana: *suppressing a laugh* Hm.... I see. Why is that, Kennedy?
Kennedy: They're just too old.


Kennedy: If a girl doesn't know how to ride a motorcycle, she just needs to get a husband.
Me:... a husband?
Kennedy: Yep. He will teach her how to ride it.

Sisters

This makes me laugh. I love Lawrence Welk.

Chair malfunction

Dear manufacturer of this chair:

I would appreciate it if you would please submit a recall on this model of chair, and then re-design them in a way so that it is not as easy for people to fall off of them and onto their (luckily cushioned) buttocks while they are reaching for a yellow highlighter that has fallen off of their desk and on the floor in their office.

Sincerely,

A.

Arts & Crafts

Every once in a LONG while, my creative juices start creeping up on me and they fight to get out. So, reluctantly, I let them out. To satisfy those juices, this weekend Kennedy and I decided to make some Halloween decorations ('tis the season). We went to one of those stores where I could easily max out my credit card, Michael's, and got some shtuff to paint.

I told Kennedy that, along with one Halloween decoration (the black kitty below), she could also pick out one item she could paint and hang on her wall. Her eyes skimmed the many wooden objects, hoping to find that ONE special thing to put in her room. A princess crown? Nah. A castle? No. A ballerina?? Nope. A flower?? Guess again. "A dinosaur!! Oh mom, those are my favorite!!" (Man, that came out of nowhere).

Of course it had to be pink and purple. She did the honors of lathering it with pink, and I helped her with the polka dots.


And this little foam kitty that Kennedy made is dedicated to Michelle and Fatness. There you go. This is the closest I will ever come to owning a cat, due to Justin's allergies. I think I will name him Foamness.


Well, now I'll at least have SOME decorations in my house until I can get my butt over to the storage unit to get the remainder of my fall decor out.

Babies, a spider and a beauty queen

I've had a busy week. First, I go see the babies (Ivy on the left, Kaia on the right). FREAKING ADORABLE. They are both healthy and mom is doing great, as well, besides getting little to no sleep at night.

Next, a ginormous spider decides he can make himself at home in MY house. Does he pay rent? Did I carry him in my womb for nine months?? Has he ever done anything to make me even remotely happy?? No. He can't live here.


But, believe it or not, he's a cute furry jumping spider and I couldn't end his life. So I caught him and let him go in my neighbor's garden (sorry, neighbors).

Then, I have a fabulous daughter who loves to make me laugh. Tonight she came out of her room in this:

Thank you, Kennedy, for reminding me why I love being a mom, so much. I love you :)