WhooHooo!!!

Party at my house!!! I just found out that I don't have to go sit for the final jury selection on Wednesday!! The guy plead guilty to voluntary manslaugher. We saw it on the front page of the newspaper today. So I called the Juror line, and sure enough, they tell me my civic duty is officially done! You do not know the relief I feel. I think I would have had a nervous breakdown if I had to sit on the jury of a murder trial. Could you imagine? Anyway, happy day!!! Even the rotten weather outside, or the fact I have cub scouts after school can't ruin my good mood!

Jury Duty Stinks!

To all those people who told me not to worry about jury duty, that I would never have to go in because everyone always settles before it goes to court, I just have one thing to say. WHATEVER! I have been called for jury selection THREE times in 2 weeks. And, I've been selected to sit on a jury once. I do not enjoy this specific civic responsibility!!! And, you'd think that with the end of the month being tomorrow, I'd be done. But, no. One of the times I was called to sit for jury selection was part 1 of a 2 part process. Last week several people had to come in and fill out a preliminary questionaire that the attornies and judge will look over. Then, according to those answers, they will excuse some, and call the rest in for a final jury selection next week. Wait a minute! That's February! My jury duty was supposed to end tomorrow! Arrrgh! Anyway, I'm hoping I answered all the questions right (or wrong, I guess) so I will be excused. This particular case is supposed to last 2 weeks. It's not a pleasant case, either.
Anyway, I'd like to share a few things I've learned from jury duty.....

1- Being 30 weeks pregnant does not exempt you from sitting on a jury. Unless you are in labor, you are free game.
2-The Bailiff is a very good person. Our's was FABULOUS! She told us her job was to spoil the jurors, and she did. She always had candy, water, pop, whatever we wanted, available to try to help us be more comfortable. She even bought doughnuts and fruit for us this morning. Unfortunately, even the nicest bailiff cannot make you feel comfortable about sitting in judgement of someone else.
3-Nobody wants the job of Jury foreman. That juror has to sign the verdict.
4-Listening to the same information over and over, for 2 days, is horribaly boring.
5-Listening to an attorny with no apperant personality is even more boring
6-Listening to an attorny who babbles about nothing during his closing statement is confusing, and boring.
7 -I picked the right profession when I became a nurse. I do not belong in the legal profession.

There you have it. That has been my week so far. Please pray for me that I don't have to go through this again next week!!!

Wind

Good Grief! The wind blew here in Twin Falls last night. I swear, I heard the wind blowing 100 mph, with gust of up to 1000 mph. When I got up to go potty, I looked outside, and we were still in Twin. I half expected to be up in the air, and see the wicked witch of the west flying past our window! It was the kind of wind that makes you think you may not have a roof in the morning. When I went back to bed, I couldn't sleep. So, instead, I lay there and let my worrywart imagination take over.
"What if the grill gets blown over, and the propane tank blows up?" (seriously, I was worried)
"I hope our garbage can didn't blow away."
" I hope the fence doesn't blow over" (it's happened before)
"What if the wind blows something into a window, and it breaks?"
I'm sure there were lots of other nonsense worries I can't even remember. But just to let you know these concerns may not be as ridiculous as they sound. A few years ago, for Mother's Day, I begged for one of those big, metal framed Gazebos. The ones with the curtains, and a place to hook up a light source on the ceiling. We don't have any trees in our backyard, and our patio isn't covered. So I thought it would help encourage us to spend more time outside if there was a reprieve from the scorching hot sun. We bought some nice garden chairs, and enjoyed it for about 1 month. Then, we had one of those freak summer wind storms, very similar to last nights. Our gazebo had been picked up (yes, picked up), turned on it's side, and thrown through the fence. THROUGH THE FENCE! Not kidding. That is the power that is the Twin Falls wind. We tried and tried to bend it back into shape, but it was never the same. It wouldn't stand up straight, kept falling over....defeats the purpose, ya know? So, when I say I'm glad our house is still intact, you'll understand! Hears hoping the rest of Twin Falls was as lucky.

President Hinkley

My sister just called me and said, "Did you hear about President Hinkley?" I said, "No, what?", but deep down, I already knew the answer. "He passed away tonight." she said.

Such mixed emotions that I'm feeling, now. President Hinkley was the 15th Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and has been since March 12, 1995. Whe was beloved by those he served. His sense of humor and ability to teach with love and compassion touched the lives of many. I'm so sad he has passed on. I was really hoping he would be the one to dedicate the Twin Falls Temple. Madi will be 12 when the dedication takes place, and will have the opportunity to take part in a celebration that thousands of youth will take part in. Kind of like a big production. The youth of Twin Falls and the surrounding areas will put this production on for the Prophet prior to the dedication. I know it will still be an amazing experience, but am sad Pres. Hinkley won't be there.
On the other hand, I'm so excited those on the other side, who have been waiting to be reunited with this great man. Especially his sweet wife, Marjorie, who he often spoke about. And his physical body must have been exhausted, so what a blessing that he is released from that burden. He will certainly be missed. Our sincere condolences go out to those he left behind.
I am so grateful to have the opportunity to have been on this earth while he was the Prophet. So grateful for his example of Christlike love, and his sincere love for us. So grateful for his testimony, and his spirit. How lucky we are to have been touched by this great man.

Civic Duty

Well, I have escaped jury duty for the month of January.....until today. Today was my first ever experience with the jury selection process. It was interesting to see how that whole process takes place, and kind of overwhelming to hear the judge and attorneys talk about the need to take even the simplest things very seriously, because the judgement the jury makes can be life changing for the defendant. Luckily, I was assigned a seat in the back, and after they weeded out about 25 others, there were still several people sitting in front of me, so I was NOT chosen to sit on the jury. However, I do have to go through the whole process again on Friday. One of the Dr's I work with told me the easiest way to get out of jury duty is to tell them I believe in capital punishment for everything....jaywalking, shoplifting, too many parking tickets....couldn't bring myself to do it. The worst part of the whole thing was the baby using my bladder for a trampoline. Not pleasant. But, I survived, and afterward, treated myself to a bagel sandwich from Zulu Bagel. You are right, Ashlee, that is a YUMMY place for a treat. It is a little spendy, but the sandwiches are huge! And so yummy. The customer service was superb, as well. I had to wait a long time in the drive through before my order was taken, so when I got to the window, the guy there gave me a filled punch card, so the next time I go, I get a free drink. Yea! Then, I took forever for them to get my sandwich made, so he came back with 2 "have a free bagel" cards, to make up for the inconvenience. Double yea! Apparently, they were short staffed, and it was smack dab in the middle of the lunch rush. I was just impressed that they tried to make it up to me. I love free stuff. If you go to Zulu Bagel, and you like garlic, I recommend the garlic bagel. It has lots of roasted garlic on top, and is very savory. What is your favorite bagel flavor?

A good find from Ashlee....

My buddy Ashlee shared this fabulous website on one of her blogs. She found it on one of her friend's blogs. I know we all like to read. It's called http://www.goodreads.com/ . You can go there and share your favorite books with your friends. You can read other peoples reviews of books, make lists of your favorites, review books of your own, keep a list of books you want to read. They have a ton of books listed on their site. Even lots by LDS authors. So, get signed up, and invite me to be your friend, because not only do I need friends, I need books to read. Lately all I've been reading are young adult and kid's books, like the Twilight Series, Percy Jackson series, Charlie Bone series....I think I need to branch out, don't you? My email is boncor@msn.com. Thanks for sharing this awsome find, Ashlee!

Funny 1st Graders

I got this e-mail from Cory's Aunt Rhinda. I've read this several times before, but it never fails to make me giggle. I love the last one! I also loved #2,#8,#15, #20, and #24. So funny!
A 1st grade school teacher had twenty-six students in her class. She presented each child in her classroom the 1st half of a well-known proverb and asked them to come up with the remainder of the proverb. It's hard to believe these were actually done by first graders. Their insight may surprise you. While reading, keep in mind that these are first-graders, 6-year-olds, because the last one is a classic!

1. Don't change horses--------------------------------------until they stop running.
2.Strike while the---------------------------------------------bug is close.
3.It's always darkest before---------------------------------Daylight Saving Time.
4.Never underestimate the power of----------------------termites.
5.You can lead a horse to water but-----------------------How?
6.Don't bite the hand that------------------------------------looks dirty.
7.No news is---------------------------------------------------impossible
8.A miss is as good as a--------------------------------------Mr.
9.You can't teach an old dog new--------------------------Math
10.If you lie down with dogs, you'll-----------------------stink in the morning.
11.Love all, trust----------------------------------------------Me.
2.The pen is mightier than the----------------------------pigs.
13.An idle mind is--------------------------------------------the best way to relax.
14.Where there's smoke there's----------------------------pollution.
15Happy the bride who-------------------------------------gets all the presents
16.A penny saved is-----------------------------------------not much.
17.Two's company, three's---------------------------------the Musketeers.
18.Don't put off till tomorrow what-----------------------you put on to go to bed.
19.Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and--You have to blow your nose.
20.There are none so blind as-----------------------------Stevie Wonder.
21.Children should be seen and not----------------------spanked or grounded.
22.If at first you don't succeed----------------------------get new batteries.
23.You get out of something only what you------------See in the picture on the box
24.When the blind lead the blind-------------------------get out of the way.
25.A bird in the hand---------------------------------------is going to poop on you.
And the WINNER and last one!
26.Better late than------------------------------------------Pregnant

Some of these make better sense than the original, don't you think? Which is your fave?

Popcorn?

So, Jake has been REALLY stuffy for the past couple of days. He sounds like his nose, and his sinuses are just packed. And he kept on telling me his nose hurt. It looked a little red around 1 nostril, so I assumed it was from the kleenexes. Can't really give him any medicine for a decongestant, because he's too young, still. I he hasn't figured out how to blow his nose yet, so that doesn't really help. He came into our room at 6:30 this morning. He was coughing and so stuffy and just sounded miserable. So I decided I was going to try to get him to blow his nose, and just see if I could help him at least breath a little better. The good news is he has learned to blow his nose. The bad news is , he blew out popcorn kernals. POPCORN! What? Why do kids feel it is necessary to store things in their nose? He has pockets. I don't know why he doesn't use them. Needless to say, he immediatly started breathing through his nose quite well. And he slept until 1030 this morning, so I guess the quality of sleep has improved. Boys! What am I gonna do with him?

Blog tag.

I've been tagged to play my very first game of blog tag. Ashlee tagged me a couple of days ago, and I've been a little hesitant to play, since I'm still so new at this. I don't have a whole lot of posts to choose from, so keep that in mind. So check out Ashlee . She's a wild woman, and has 3 blogs, all of which are awesome! Here goes!

Instructions: Go back through your archives and post the links to your five favorite blog posts that you’ve written under the following categories:

(just click on the highlighted words to take you to the posts)

1. Family- This is my favorite post about family. I still remember the feelings I had that day. My heart was so full of gratitude for our Ward, and my extended family. I love our ward, and hope we can find a house that is in our ward's boundaries. And, my extended family is close knit (Jeff and Wendy, I wish we lived closer!), and for the most part, we get along well. Since we'll be together forever, you can't ask for more than that!
2. Friends-This is my favorite post about friends. We've made a few close friends here in Twin, but then they move away. I'm so bad at keeping in touch with people if I don't see them regularly. But it was so fun to get a call from Lisa on this day. It brought back so many FUN memories of High School and Collage. Made my day. Lisa, you are awesome! And it made me set a goal to get in touch with a few people, and rekindle some friendships that really meant a lot to me.
3. Who am I?-This was a little bit harder for me. I chose this post because of the pictures of my kids. That is who I am. I am Mom. Most of the time I love it. There are days it's not so fun. But these pictures of my kids make me smile. Aren't they cute!?
4. What I love-This was also not so easy for me. So I will cheat just a little, and give you more than one link. I love to create, I love music, I love Lost, and I love to read. Sadly, I don't have a post about my fave books. I still need copy Ashlee, and do a post about my favorite things, because I have a lot of things I love.
5. Freestyle blogging (blog of choice)-Okay, another hard one. Like I said, I'm still new at this blogging thing, so there's not a lot to choose from. I guess I would have to choose this one. I think I choose this one because it is random in nature. This is what my brain does when I wake up in the middle of the night and can't go back to sleep. I just lay in bed, and the random thoughts that are flying around the room all hit me in the head, and then I try to figure out where they all came from. I blame a lot of stuff on pregnancy, and this is one of them.

So, there ya go! Now as part of the rules, I have to tag 3 more people. Unfortunately, I only know 1 person with a blog, that actually reads mine, and she's the one that tagged me. So I guess I'll just choose 3 favorites and let them know that they've been tagged. I hope this doesn't break any blogging etiquette rules!

1. Heather D White ( Love her blog!!! And she's so talented!)
2. Maurita (One of my collage roomies. I found her while blog browsing. Also a very talented lady.)
3. Kelly (Love this blog, too. And my very first comment came from her!)

Can't wait to see what you ladies come up with!

Lost

I love "Lost". It's my new favorite show. And, the season premier is Jan 31st. It's a 2 hour premier! I can't wait. Anyway, I found another time waster called "which LOST character are you?" This was my result:

You are CLAIRE LITTLETON. You are soft-spoken, humble, and kind. Although you could probably trade on your looks more than you do, you are attractive. You might be pregnant, Australian, and
beloved by former heroin addicts.

So, that's just funny. I like Claire. She's a good guy. And I am pregnant, so that was right. And in my early 20's, people used to tell me I looked like Nicole Kidman (minus the red hair), and she's Australian. But, I don't know any heroin addicts, so I don't know that I am beloved by any. At any rate, it was fun. If you are a "Lost" fan, you can go here and take the quiz. Let me know who you are!

I wonder......

Things that seem to be on my mind lately.....

1-Why don't we get Martin Luther King Day off? It seems every other school district in Idaho does. I'm sure I'm exaggerating, but everyone I talk to has Monday off. Bummer.

2-Will Jake's cough ever go away? It's been a month, already! Stop! Poor kid.

3-Will my kids ever stop coming into my room in the middle of the night to sleep with us? Last night, Jake came in (again), but this time, he whipped the light on before coming over to me and mumbling something unintelligible. Not the best way to be woken up.

4-Will I miss it when my kids no longer come into my room in the middle of the night to sleep with us? Probably.

5-Will our house ever sell? I sure hope so!

6-Why did I have a dream last night that I adopted a baby with 3 eyes? Weird. I hate pregnancy dreams!

7-Will I ever learn to like my calling in the cub scouts? I hope so, or I may never be released!

8-Do my kids know how much I love them? I really, really do.

9-Does my husband know how much I love and appreciate him? He's such a good provider for our family. Good man. I got lucky!

10-Does anyone ever read my blog. Thanks Ashlee, for letting me know I'm not a total loser. I appreciate the comments! Now, if anyone else reads, show me some love and leave me a comment!

Brag time

My kids are brilliant. Today was report card day. My two oldest both brought home straight A's! Mom's proud. I know pride is a sin, but I can't help it. Madi has worked really, really hard this quarter, and I'm just so happy for her. And Alex, my reader, is the #1 reader in the 3rd grade this quarter. He accumulated 116 AR points. He LOVES to read, and just soaks up the knowlegde. Gabby did well, too, but they don't have letter grades in the 1st grade. Her teacher had lots of good things to say about her. I just hope the kids carry this on into Jr. High and High School.

A nostolgic week so far...

Jake wanted to watch a movie, and this is what he picked. So I've been bopping around the house all morning singing School House Rock songs. My sister gave this to the kids for Christmas one year. I love it. It takes me back to my childhood. My bloggin' buddy Ashlee posted yesterday about smurfs. I loved the smurfs when I was little. So I guess this week will be a nostalgic one. I wonder what I'll come across tomorrow?

Also, yesterday, one of my very best friends from high school called me out of the blue. I haven't talked to Lisa for years. It was so fun to catch up and hear about her life. I'm so bad at keeping in touch with old friends. And then(I know. It just keeps going on and on...)yesterday when I took cupcakes to the school for Gabby's birthday, I ran into the science teacher, Mrs Peterson. She just happens to be the Mother of one of my other good friends from high school, Diana. After talking to her for a few minutes, I asked her for Diana's e-mail address. She said she would send it home with the kids. I'm so excited! I've decided to add on to the NY resolution list. My new goal is to get in touch and stay in touch with some of my old friends. Thanks, Lisa, for making contact and making my day! It was so good to talk to you!

Happy Birthday Gabby!

My baby girl is 7 today. I can still remember when she was born. She was by far my best and easiest delivery. So relaxed. She came out with eyes wide open looking like "what have I gotten myself into!?" And we are so glad she is here. She is such a sweet girl, and loves to make others happy. She also loves to tease. She takes after her Grandpa Manion in that way. But she is always willing to help out her family. I love you Gab, I'm so glad you're mine!So, since it's Gabby's birthday, it's Gabby's choice for dinner. She chose Golden Corral. I hate Golden Corral. But, it's her birthday, so I put a smile on my face and away we went. It actually wasn't too bad tonight. We opened presents before we went. I decided to start a tradition that Cory and his family used to do while they were growing up. We hid her presents, and then played "hot and cold" for her to find them. We sang "bula bula" loud if she was hot, and in a whisper if she was cold. Madi and Alex thought that was awsome to get to hide her gifts. And Gabby had a lot of fun searching for them. Cory even hid one up behind the window treatment. Took her awhile to find that one! She got a tamagotchi, which she has been wanting since Madi got one for Christmas. She also got a purse, an outfit, and a Littlest Pet shop thing. I think she was pretty happy with her "loot", even though she's not smiling in the picture. After dinner, we came home and had birthday cake. I used a molded silacone cake pan that Dr Adrian ( I used to work for her, before she retired) gave me for Christmas one year. This was the first time I've ever used it. It's molded to say "Happy Birthday" on top, with some balloons and stuff. I am not a baker. Using a silacone cake pan was not so easy. I had to do some carving so that it would sit flat on the cookie sheet. But it tasted good, and didn't look too bad once it was decorated. All in all, I think Gabby had a pretty good birthday. I sure hope so. We love you Gab!

Another time waster...

Who's Your Hollywood Mom Match?

My Result: Reese Witherspoon

Being a parent has never looked so classy! Understated and always tasteful, someone as timelessly chic as you isn't easy to come by. So it makes sense that your Hollywood mom match would be the super-sweet and ever-elegant Reese Witherspoon. Sure, you still deal with spit up and changing diapers: The difference is that you manage to look good even when handling the basics of momhood. And beyond your poise and appearances you still shine with the knowledge that no matter what, family comes first and if you don't have family you don't have much.

Somehow, with a million things to juggle, you always make it look effortless. So even if you're not from Hollywood, you can sure play the part. Now that's a class act!

Take this test >

Why am I wasting my time with these tests? I have so much to do! But I'm happy with these results. I love Reese Whitherspoon! And I do think that family is most important. Without family, you don't have much!

Happy Friday!

I'm so glad it's the weekend. I love the anticipation of getting to sleep in on Saturdays. Makes me happy. I can't believe we still have snow here! I thought Twin Falls had an aversion of sorts to the white stuff. It usually will just snow for an hour, then heat up and melt. But I guess the storm we had on Tuesday had other ideas. It hasn't even melted off all the roads, yet. All the residential streets are still covered, at least by our house they are. It's kinda fun. The kids love it, especially since they all have new boots (finally!) to wear that actually keep their feet warm and dry.
Well, I'm off to clean the house and take care of a sick child. Poor Jake is sick, again, and throwing up. He is not enjoying it! We have the realtor coming to meet with us today and talk about selling our home. Wish us luck! Hopefully it will sell quickly!

I'm green.

I don't know about that. I thought I'd be yellow, since it's my favorite color.

What's Your True Color?

My Result: Green

You're green, the color of growth and vigor. Good-hearted and giving, you have a knack for finding and bringing out the best in people. Green is the most down-to-earth color in the spectrum — reliable and trustworthy. People know they can count on you to be around in times of need, since your concern for people is genuine and sincere. You take pride in being a good friend. For you, success is measured in terms of personal achievement and growth, not by status or position. Rare as emeralds, greens are wonderful, natural people. It truly is your color!

Take this test >

Jesus has Jake for a Sun-BEAM!

My baby is officially in Primary! Jake graduated from Nursery to Sunbeams today. He looked so big and grown up sitting on the front row in Primary. He said he had a good time, but he can't remember what he learned. Oh well, sometimes I can't either. Our church now starts at 1:30. That's tough. Hopefully we'll get used to that. At least we will be on time every week! This is going to be a big year for us. Jake in Primary, Madi turning 12 and going into YW, having another baby, hopefully getting a new house that we can all fit in. Should be fun! Hope I can keep up!

I want a do over!

I feel like I have completely missed the first week of the New Year! We have been sick all week long! It's getting so old. I am tired of feeling like crap.

We went to Poky last Sat, and stayed till New Years Day. We had a blast. On Sunday we went and stayed with Cory's sister Felicia's, in Idaho Falls, so we could get up and go to the Rexburg Temple open house the next morning at 7am. It was so cold, and so early, but we had fun. The temple is beautiful! This is a picture from the back of the temple as we were leaving. The kids actually behaved pretty well, especially for it being so darn early. I think they enjoyed it. After the tour, they had punch and cookies in the cultural hall. They had little comment cards for you to fill out, if you wanted. Of course, all the kids wanted. One of the questions was "what is your religion?" or something like that. Alex (my 9 year old) actually came and asked me for the answer to that one. I thought, "We got up at 5 this morning to come out into the freezing cold for a temple open house. What religion do you thing we are!?!" I guess we need to have a FHE focusing on the name of our church. Perhaps it was still a little early for him. Anyway, we had a great time, and then my Father in Law took us all out for breakfast at Denny's. The grandkids all thought that was fabulous! We had quite a large group with us. Cory's Uncle Kent and his family were there, as well as Cory's parents, his sister and her family, and us. After that, we went back to Felicia's, dropped the kids off and went to the mall. I spent all my Christmas money on a few cute outfits at Motherhood Maternity. They have the coolest Maternity jeans, now. The panel is really thin, and can go all the way up to right under your boobs, and all the way around your back. It might sound wierd, but they are soooo comfortable. That night, we had our annual New Years Eve party at Apple Athletics in IF. It was fun. Lots of good food, swimming, games, and great company. All of Cory's family was there this year, which really made it fun. We drove back to Poky that night, so we didn't get to bed until 2am. That makes for a very long day. They rest of the week is pretty much a blur since I've been sick. I've slept alot, and done nothing, until tonight. Tonight we went to my niece's baptism. Congrats Kylee! She was so cute, and looked so happy. There's nothing better than right after they come out of the water. She was glowing. It was really fun to be there for that, even though I still don't feel well. I'm glad we went.

Congratulations Kylee! We are proud of you!