"Sticky little things?"

I always struggle with what I should call these tricky little things.  I even hide them sometimes so I won't have to try and define what they are...

I hate calling them tattoos because I am not a big fan of tattoos but...what else can I call them?  They stay on for weeks at a time and are very colorful.  They come in all of the cutest shapes.  I have tried calling them stickers but Aeva will not stand for that because, "they aren't stickers."  She, herself, even refers to them as tattoos.  I thought I would feel better about it if she would put them on her hand or cheek but nope.  She wants it right on her upper arm.  How does she even know that that is where a real tattoo goes?

I guess for now I will just have to be satisfied with them being cute.  So far no skeletons or cross bones.  I guess that will have to do.  Maybe I will put them up one drawer higher.

A Quote I Like...

The Dalai Lama, when asked what surprised him most about humanity, answered "Man.... Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived."

This quote reminds me that every day has the potential to be life changing...IF you pay attention.  Enjoy today and pay attention to the possibilities that surround you!

Darby is 18!

So, my first niece turned 18. This is the girl that was born when I was just over 18 myself. What has happened? How did little Darby turn into big Darby?

She ordered an evil and extremely large cookie for her birthday (I feel that she did this to personally tempt her aunt into eating lots of sugar).

Here I am trying to be in the way.  It didn't work...I just ended up being in the picture instead.

My girls LOVE Darby and want her to live at our house.  If they are lucky, the can coax her over to our house for a movie and popcorn.  Thanks, Darby, for being our niece, cousin and friend.  

Happy Birthday!

Seven Day Run

Troy works with a guy named Kevin McDonough. He is the lead singer of the band, Seven Day Run. He came into town a few weeks ago and did a "gig" for us. An awesome night and one amazing singer!  Take a look.

 I wish he lived closer, I could listen to him all night.
Thanks to Kevin and Carlos and Harley's for having us!

Our New Pool

I looked out my back window one day and saw that Mother Nature had blessed us with a new pool.

What do you think?  Maybe we can turn the slide into a diving board.

Poor Taco

Our neighbors have had a horse for the last couple of years. His name is, Paco. For some reason, Aeva, could never remember his name and always call him, Taco. 

Last week poor Taco died. I looked out the window and saw that they were digging a hole to bury him in.

I felt sad for poor Taco but thought the girls should know.  I told Gracie what was happening and she came over to watch.  Aeva saw the tractor but didn't know what it was doing.  When I told her, there were immediate tears.  She went over to sit by Gracie and cry.  They didn't know I was watching but I was.  Gracie is pretty sweet.  She put her arm around Aeva and started to tell her that everything was ok.  She explained that Taco was up in heaven with our Grandma Mary and that he was ok.  Soon enough Gracie had her giggling about how Grandma Mary might even by riding Taco.  I love these girls!

Goodbye, Taco.  You will be missed.

The Ultimate Play Date

Aeva goes to preschool with 3 other little girls. Today they planned the ultimate play date after school.

Let the fun begin!

Our Latest Book

Our latest book has finally arrived!

Nice to have it done! 

Aeva is a Skier!

I took the girls skiing for President's Day. This was a special day because Aeva got to come for the first time. They were so excited to have Aeva come along.



The end of her first run down the hill.  Little kids are great.  They just take off.

Grandpa Ken patrols at Powder Mountain.  We get to ski with him when we go.  Another special treat.

My sister, Cammie and her kids went skiing too.  It ended up being a small family reunion.

Darby.

Lunch in the lodge.

Grandma Rett brought Aeva up for the last half of the day.  

Suited up and ready to go.

Putting on her skis has worn her out.

Riding on the lift was a highlight.  It was a super fast quad lift so it was easily compared to Disneyland.

She tends to make all sorts of noises while skiing.  If you look closely you will see monkey lips.

A few crashes were inevitable but she did great.  Our final skier has joined the ranks!

Gags and Pranks

Maddie wanted a "Gags and Pranks" kit for her birthday. The other night she got it out and started playing pranks on people. This was one of the favorites.

Pretty impressive.  Looks like real blood to me.  We pranked Gracie and she was not happy about it.  Then she realized that pranking could be quite fun and joined in on the fun.  Daddy is their next victim.  He has no idea what's headed his way.

A New Hair Trend?

Maddie and her friends came up with a new use for pipe cleaners.

A possible new hair trend?

Flash Back

Our friends came up to hang out last week. Zac brought some old slides that he had found and we watched them. Look what we found.

Pictures from our trip to the Valley of Fire 4 years ago.  Aeva was only 6 months old.

Some cute pictures and a fun trip to remember.  Thanks, Zac, for bringing them up to watch!

New Suit

New Summer suits are coming out. Aeva couldn't wait to try hers on. 

 She wore it all day long.

Valentine's Day 2012

See these beautiful roses?

Troy gave them to me for Valentine's Day.  This would normally be a good thing BUT there is a problem.  We had a truce!  A Truce!!!!  Anyone know what the word truce means? 

Definition of TRUCE

1

: a suspension of fighting especially of considerable duration by agreement of opposing forces

2

: a respite especially from a disagreeable or painful state or action

So what does all of this mean?  It means that I received flowers and he got nothing.  It also means that Tiffanie = loser.  

What is a wife to do?

Belgian Waffles

My awesome mom surprised us with a new waffle maker. This is one of those flippy-do waffle makers that makes the big fat Belgian waffles. She knows my girls are big fans of a yummy breakfast. Last Sunday we decided to give it a try.

Happy faces.  Strong work, Grandma Rett!

High Hair

You will have to ignore the red eye in these pictures. I went to the store and the girls hung out here at the house. When I got home a few minutes later, Aeva looked like this.

She did not look like this when I left.  

No one seemed to know what happened to her.  All I got were a bunch of innocent smiles.

School Lunch

Aeva and I try to make it over to the school a couple of times each year to have school lunch with the girls. We hadn't gone yet this year and decided the time had come. We packed her a lunch and off we went. I'm not sure why I didn't have the camera out sooner. All I got were post-lunch pictures. Still a reminder that we made it to the school.

6 more months and Aeva will get to go to school every day!  She is ready to be a big kid like everyone else.

Bigger Bike

Aeva and I went on a bike ride. I noticed that her bike from last year was looking a little too small. When we got home I pulled out the next size bike (nice having older cousins that give you things). In a few minutes we had the training wheels traded over and she was ready to go.

Maybe this summer we can get the training wheels off!

Hollywood

We had to take Maddie's glasses in to get them adjusted. While we were there, the other two went glasses shopping. Here are the results.

I think we look quite famous in our new eyewear.  Too bad we had to put it all back before we left.  

I-phone master

Aeva is often found playing on my i-phone. In fact, if there is something I can't figure out...she probably knows how to fix it. She is truly a master of this little piece of electronics. She is always playing a new game here or there. I will often find things on my phone that she has done, changed or switched. Here is her latest creation.

She had turned herself into a Barbie fairy.  They don't get much cuter.