Cardinals, Super-bowl????

Kids praying for a miracle that the Cardinals would go to the superbowl.

God said: "DONE" (God can do anything!) LOL

History in the making.

When I was a little girl my parents were invited to an officers "meet and greet" the president. At that time, the president was our 37th President Richard Nixon.


I guess I was just the cutest baby there because he tried to kiss me. (I'm sure there are pictures in the white house somewhere of this event.) However, I threw up a fit. My Mom was a little miffed, I'm sure. What a moment to have your baby almost kissed by a president (who at that time had not had his little secret discovered yet). So I guess he patted me on the head and signed a card for my baby book.

(Picture here of signed card....opps forgot, my mother still has baby book.)

When Mrs. Nixon walked by, I put my hands up and went straight to her. (Still photos I'm sure in the white house to prove this story.) As you can clearly see I really am a name dropper. See last post, Keeping it Real.
Now today is REAL history in the making. No my little one has no kisses of claim to fame but we do have this.

Notice the perfect timing of the Bible and his hand raised! Of course the picture would have been better without the stinking pacifier and a smile on her face. But this is my REAL life, remember. LOL




Now today was historical. Yes, I who did not vote for the "YES I CAN" campaign, was still moved by today's speech. I am proud of this historical day, and excited for my new Commander and Chief. So our family will pray that he will lead with guidance from the Lord, and we will pray for his leadership. Good Luck President Obama, I really think your gonna need it. I am excited for this new, young, face in Washington.
(Weren't his girls just the cutest. I mean how can you not love them!)

Keepin It Real

I have been awarded the pristine award for being blog Honest! Yeah.. Thank you TUTU! So with that I get to tell you ten things about me.. I guess I have to keep it honest too.
FIRST thing I would like to share is my cluttered life. Yes, I admit I am clutter freak! I see an open counter and somehow I clutter it up. I have piles and piles around my house. I think I just don't care (until we have people over then I just lock the door to that room). LOL
TWO: I'm addicted to historical romance novels. I love how the big, strong, handsome man comes into save the innocent young lady!
THREE: My evil twin comes out right before school sometimes. Especially when my kiddos are not getting ready fast enough for school. UGH, I really hate my evil twin!


FOUR: I'm a volcano. Sometimes things boil inside me and then all of a sudden I explode. (Kinda into my evil twin.)
FIVE: I have no idea what is designer.
When people are talking about purses or shoes, basically anything with fashion, I'm clueless.


SIX: I think Oprah reminds me of the character of Nicoloae Carpathia in the Left Behind Series.

SEVEN: I peak during prayer with my kids because my two year old is so cute praying.
EIGHT: I sometimes can't sleep at night because I'm scared of the dark. I sleep with a bat under my bed like Tutu, but might have to get some hairspray too. LOL
NINE: I'm a name dropper! I used to live two doors down from Mark Consuleos. We also had last names both starting with C so I ALWAYS had to sit by him in class too. I'm so jealous that he is an actor because when I grow up that's what I'm gonna be.

TEN: I want to be a country bumkin. I'm hate living in the city. (See last post.)

Now to pass on the love I'm suppose to choose 5 blogs honest award worthy blogs…
AND THE WINNERS ARE:
Jen at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam, my friend who loves to share her bedlem.
Kelly at Africankelli, who has such a real perspective on life.
Michelle at Girl, Outnumbered Who just makes you laugh with her honesty! Seriously FUNNY!
Just a Girl is the opposite of me in the organizing department and has it together. (But admits she got in the wrong line for husband cleaning.) LOL
And the final award goes to Star, Laughing Through Parenting, a new favorite read in the blog world. She is a mom with great advice.
This was fun and I hope you all have gained a little more of who I am.

My own cowboy tale.

This photo is from Sept. 28, 1991. We started dating in Feb. 1991. (We were married in June 1993.)
UGH, I found a blog yesterday (the pioneer woman) that has grabbed me in and I can't get enough.

I'm a sucker for a good romance, and this is a good one. NOT to mention it has to do with a cowboy (YIKES just gets me all steamed up) and a city gal. I laugh, because I was a city gal looking for a nice cowboy, or farmer, to spend my life with. Of course, my dear sweet husband just came along and swept me off my feet.


Gosh, I love my man! But really, he totally gave me the wrong impression! He was wearing cowboy boots and a cowboy hat. He was tall, dark, and handsome. (Still tall and handsome, but his dark has turned into sexy silver.) He had cute little curls coming out the back of his hat (I used to love to play with), and he was two stepping. I wanted to swing dance, but he said the right song never came on, I should known then and there that he was no country boy!

HEE HAA! I thought I had scored! Little did I know, he was a city boy at heart. Luckily for me, I love him to death, and wouldn't trade him. I often wonder if I really could have handled being a country gal? Maybe some day we will have our front porch swing and sit and watch the stars. This is my little dream world after all.

A great find!

This year I wanted to bump up my daycare to a slash preschool! What does that mean? Well, instead of playing all day we now have some "organized" playtime. I setup a schedule for the day and really try to stick by it. (I would say 3 out 5 is not bad!) I have some little ones, but we still try to do some preschool activities. Here is my schedule in case anyone needs some ideas.
PRE-SCHOOL
6:45 - 7:30 Arrival - Breakfast
7:30 - 8:40 Self-Selected Play-time
8:40 – 9:00 Circle time/ Calendar/Music
9:00 - 9:15 Potty Breaks
9:15 - 9:30 Snack
9:30 –10:15 Art/Learning Center and Activities
10:15-10:45 Gross Motor/Outdoors Time
10:45-11:00 Potty Breaks/ Wash Hands
11:05 11:45 Circle Time/Story, Songs, Finger Plays,
Basic Concepts (Colors, Shapes, Numbers, Alphabet)
11:45 12:00 Wash-Up for Lunch
12:00 12:30 LUNCH
12:30 -1:00 Transition to NapTime - Video/Toothbrush/Bathroom
2:45 - 3:00 Wake-Up Time
3:00-3:15 Potty Break
3:15- 3:30 Snack time
3:30 – 4:30 Independent Activities/Clean-up/Preparation to go Home

I have found a ton of ideas on preschool activities from a FAVORITE website of mine. Shelley Lovett at childcareland.com! She has some of the best ideas! She has free videos to teach you how to teach your own kids. I am also signed up to get daily art projects sent right to my email! IT IS FABULOUS! Here are some of the things we have gotten from Shelley's website.


Coloring leaves for stick leaf songs.


Playing with shaving cream on table and drawing letters.

Sorting shapes, colors, ect...
There are so many ideas! Check it out.

Wordless Wednesday (w/title)

AZ Snow Man.... melted!


Current temp today 74 degrees! We are trying to understand what snow is???
Directions from Luckyme,

Mission: Please destroy photos when done....

I think my laundry room needs a makeover (besides having some actual laundry done). I totally believe I would get more laundry done if I actually liked the space the laundry was in. RIGHT??? Or is that really possible to like laundry, anyways, I digressed. I have seen so many cute things on
.
And if I had some nice black baskets like these from pottery barn I could make the top shelf actually look nice and ORGANIZED.Now I'm not really an organized kind of gal but this blogging thing is actually making me a better person. Truly! I made garland for xmas, I've made resolutions for new years, and now I'm actually going to try and organize this disaster. I really think it might just do the trick for my laundry. I think I need something like Kendra in the corner. I can get all the laundry done but the putting away seems to be a problem! I would also like the rest of my walls painted and finished with some nice black wall art. Like this....

And if I could just clean off my counter, it would all be beautiful
Now can you picture all that? Now if I could just have 2 days to do all that I will show you the results.

Testing, testing, hello, is this working?

Hello? Hello? Umm, this feels like a test. Since I gave my resolution to the public, written down, and in bold print even, I have been feeling this push to commit. I now understand why the dietary people who create diets for individuals make you write down a journal of everything you eat, or when planning a budget you have to write down everything you spend. What does it do when you write it down? It makes you accountable! Yikes, ACCOUNTABLE, meaning just because I wrote my new years resolution word of the year, COMMITMENT, means now I feel accountable for all of those silly little goals. (Funny thing my husband thought at first glance that I wanted to be committed, like in a crazy place.) HA HA very funny my dear sweet husband! ERRRR Anyways, this whole commitment thing, I feel like I have been trying. I have had a few discussions with God, so that means I must be praying and taking things to Him more often, right? And when a couple of friends this past week asked us over to a football game dinner, I said yes, and we went. (Even though my almost 2 year old tried to spoil the fun, we quickly adjusted the plan! BUT WE DID IT! Yeah, (You know, the whole committing to strengthening friendships commitment.) I committed to another Bible study, that sometimes just goes way over my head, but by the end God shows me it was perfect. However, I do feel like this must be a test. Do you ever wonder if God just puts things in our path to see if we REALLY mean what we say? I have felt like that today. I was picking up dinner (yes the heathy eating commitment hasn't really taken flight yet) when I turned off the radio and had a conversation, out loud, trying to sort through a new offer to commit myself to a big project. (Does anyone else do this or do I really need to take up my husbands advice?) It dawned on me that my first commitment this years was to God. WOW, and now he has given me the opportunity to maybe take that commitment to him to help others. I don't want to really say what kind of commitment this maybe be in the form of because there are actually a couple that God has place on our hands. Hope all my other blog friends are really working towards their resolutions for the year. Let me know, I would love to hear about them.

wordless Wednesday (w/title)

Tying chairs to table!


To prevent this! Humm, what will she do next?

Staying off the fence!

One word challenge.  A word to describe what you want 2009 to focus on.  The Tip Junkie has put up a great idea for focusing on this resolution.
 I think my word will be (drum roll please).... Commitment!  Yes, the big C word.  I would love to have an organized life where I could just commit myself to anything,  but just trying to pick a service time at church sometimes gives me an ulcer.  This year I'm trying to commit myself to many things.  Commit myself to God first and foremost.  I want to take everything to God first.  I want to commit myself to choosing joy instead of whatever emotion that seems to hit my nerves first.  I want to commit myself to live in the moment and to take in the precious life that God has given me.  I want to commit myself to all relationships not only my family but to friendships.  Commit to a healthier lifestyle and actually exercise this year. 

 

commitment |kəˈmitmənt|noun1 the act of committing or the state of being committed.• dedication; application : the company's commitment to quality.• a pledge or undertake

He did it with all his heart, and prospered.  

2 Cor. 31:21

Flashback Friday...2008

Ok, so I've taken a little time away from my new found obsession of blogging for the holidays.  I wanted to capture the fine memories of 2008 so my Dori mind won't forget them all.  BLESSED!!  That is the top of my list from 2008.  I started the year off with a two week notice to head for Munich on a last minute planned trip, by myself, to visit my brother for a week.  I'm not real sure how I got all the pieces to fit perfectly for me going, but I did and I'm so grateful I did!  While Chris was working, I was hoping on trains and roaming the country.  Munich was beautiful and the people were absolutely kind.   Spring break we got together with my brothers family along with my parents and went to Disneyland for a week.  It was a fun and CROWED trip.  The park was so full but our families had fun despite the long lines.  In May, I earned a free trip from my Once Upon A Family business to Jamaica for a whole week.  Tyler was unable to take the trip with me, so I headed to another country on my own.  I did meet up with some friends and had an incredibly peaceful week sitting on the beach, snorkeling, going for boat rides and winning an archery contest.  The women on this trip were some of the most amazing women, and we all had so much fun.  This summer we went with Tyler to San Diego for Basketball camp.  While he was coaching we went to the beach, harbor, and swimming in the hotel.  Later that month we went back to San Diego for Tyler's conference and the kids and I went to Legoland (were in an earthquake), to the beach (found the best beach!) and relaxed in the hot tub.  Tyler coached at an FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) Camp and we went up to Flagstaff with him and stayed in the dorms.  We didn't get too much camping this year, but have put it into the new years list of things to do. As you can see, traveling is one of our favorite things to do.  Soon I will be posting some of my New Year's Resolutions....