3 Year Old Dog Tamer

This video is a little dark, and has pretty bad sound, but it's just so darn cute. We make our dog sit before she can go out the door; D is insistent that she follow procedure. What a big helper he is!

Dial 'M' for Memories

This is "The Princess Phone". It was the most captivating thing in my grandparents' home when I was younger. Never mind the cuckoo clock, the pink room, Hungry-Hungry Hippos; not even the organ in the basement or the swivel chair could compete for my affections. The Princess Phone was my favorite. It sat on the master bedroom night stand (on Grandma's side, if memory serves) and I thought it was the embodiment of elegance!

I was so in love with that phone, that I eventually boldly asked my grandmother if I could have it... when she died of course - I didn't expect he give up such a priceless item so easily! I was probably nine or ten years old at the time. My grandmother - being the genuine, practical woman she was - took my request quite seriously. She made note of it.

About five or so years ago, my grandparents moved into a care facility. Their belongings were whittled down to what would fit in their new, small apartment and the rest was given to family or donated to charity. My mother sent me a box of books, blankets, a few miscellaneous items, and The Princess Phone. I was shocked, to say the least, when I pulled it out of the box and realized that my tastes had changed. What was beautiful and super fancy at ten, was now tacky and cheap-looking. Plugging the phone in to try it out didn't help sway my new-found opinion either - it's ring was deafening and their was no volume control. So, the phone was put back in its box and had been there until earlier today.

A couple of years ago my grandfather died. I miss him so, so much. He was to me (and just about every other person who knew him) the best man I ever knew. My grandmother has handled herself with such grace since his passing and I've grown to admire her more than ever. While my grandparents have always been special to me, in recent years I have come to understand their importance in my life. So, when I was cleaning out a closet today and came across the box with The Princess Phone, I decided it was time to give it its due place in my home; on my night stand. Unplugged.

As I was polishing up The Princess Phone, I came across a little piece of paper taped to the back of it. A list of names for the phone's memory dial. The names were just as I would have expected; Dr. So and So, a couple of neighbors, their three children, and at number seven... Price.

Price was my grandmother's brother; Uncle Price to me. My grandmother had several brothers and my grandfather a few as well, but the only brother on speed dial was Price. The significance of this is that Price was gay and my grandparents had been, their whole lives, very dedicated to the LDS church. My mother had told me many times how my grandparents were very close to Price - and Price to them - despite their differences. I realized the truth of this as I held that tacky piece of plastic and was suddenly flooded with emotion. I fell in love with The Princess Phone all over again. Not for it's beauty this time, but for the meaning behind it. This phone was used to call Price.

Religion and cultural challenges were not enough to drive my grandparents and Uncle Price apart. Where tolerance perhaps ended, love began. It must have been a challenge for them, but they loved each other enough to put the challenges aside.

My own family is full of challenges. We are, each of us, quite different and have many religious and cultural views that at times seem impassable. I'm so grateful to my grandparents and Uncle Price for showing me how to breakdown those challenges.

When it seems that tolerances end, love can begin - that is the lesson I learned from The Princess Phone.

Dog Will Chew

Wii-spastic

A Tent Rockin' Time

This week is our kids' Spring Break and R happened to have some vacation days that he needed to use, so he took the whole week off - hooray!

On Tuesday we decided - in "spur of the moment" fashion - to check out a National Monument a friend had told us about. We drove about an hour to the... northwest... I think... anyway, we arrived at the Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument pay station where you are supposed to pay a $5.00 entrance fee. We had no cash. We offered a personal check, but the guy was super nice (L's favorite word is "super", so I use it whenever possible because L is a trend-setter in the making - trust me) and allowed us to go through without paying.

After parking, loading backpack, loading kid in pack and getting dog on leash we trekked off to make a bathroom stop where we unloaded D from pack and took turns keeping track of dog, kids and other miscellaneous items so we could all start our trek with empty bladders. :)

We were all amazed with the scenery and instantly decided we would be returning to this place often. Total, the hike was 3 1/2 miles. Most of the trail was pretty easy, but there were a few difficult areas and a section with some serious gain in altitude. The kids handled themselves like seasoned explorers; minus a couple of spills resulting in minor scrapes. D walked off and on, depending on the terrain and his mood. The kids were literally climbing the walls until I spoiled the fun by bringing up the rules of the trail - I'm such a mom.

It was an excellent day - perfect hiking weather included - and I can't wait for the next one!

The Many Moods of D

D; sporting the "Rob Pattinson."

Give Me a Radical Break

I've decided that anyone whom tries to make you afraid for the future is not worth listening to. Give me REAL explanations of our problems; give me ideas for solutions; give me cautionary tales. Just PLEASE don't give me doom and gloom!!

I'm one of those "crazy" people that believe the world, as we know it, will someday end. I don't know when that will be, so I'm not too keen on obsessing over it. I'm pretty sure we are supposed to live our lives and plan for the future and not try to calculate when it will all be over - whether that means for everyone, or just me.

Didn't we learn our lesson with the Y2K thing?

New Blog

I felt like my blog was turning into a cake blog, more than a blog for my family - so, I started a cake blog. Someday, I'd like to make cakes for a little "dough" now and then. I figured a blog is a good place to start compiling my creations.

If you'd like to see any of my latest cakes, just go to http://mayflour.blogspot.com/.

I will , of course, still update this blog with non-cake type stuff :)

Roxy vs. Troy Bolton

I have to admit it's difficult for me to look into those soft, baby blues and imagine the horror that must have filled the last moments of Troy Bolton's life. I just keep thinking, of all the Barbie dolls, why would Roxy choose Troy to gnaw on?

If you are not familiar with who Troy is, I will simply say, "High School Musical".

L came to me, sobbing, with the remains of her precious Troy Bolton (I couldn't resist the urge to remind L that if she put her toys away, this wouldn't happen - though I also gave her a big hug and said how sorry I was it happened).

L will survive. This wasn't the first toy Roxy destroyed and I'm quite certain it won't be the last. I am a little worried about our little, plastic Gabriella - she will miss her little, plastic boyfriend desperately.

ekaCCake

My lovely friend was teasing me for not having made her a cake, so I got her back by making her a cake ;) I just got the grass tip, so I was eager to try it out!

Birds Welcome

Q made a very cool, little birdhouse at Cub Scouts. We put it up on the balcony in hopes a cool, little bird would decide to make a nest and lay some eggs. We had to put it in a place the dog wouldn't get to it. We learned this lesson after placing the bird feeder too close to the ground; Roxy pulled it off the tree and ate all the bird seed... all the bird seed. Let's just say poop-duty was very interesting the days following! :)

c.a.k.e.

This is a cake inspired by a charm on my bracelet - I call it Royal Tangerine :) While I have a lot of ideas in my head, it's been a challenge to make them materialize (due to lack of experience... I hope)! This cake is the first of my own design that has turned out close to what I pictured in my head.

A Little Late

I meant to post this for Valentine's Day (or Valentimes, as my kids say). These are the Valentine cards we made this year for school. It was our first year making them and I think it will be a new tradition. The only complaint from my kids is that the cards didn't have candy attached to them - perhaps we can correct that next time!

Cakeity Cake

My final cake for the third course of cake decorating classes. The gum paste roses took hours to make, but I like them so much better than butter cream roses!

May I Brag?

My daughter, L is amazing. She is funny, smart, stubborn and creative. She is more aware of who she is at six years old, than I am at 31. L is also one of the most complicated personalities I've ever known. Some day, she will be a powerful force in this world. Today, she is a powerful force in our home - some days she is a force for peace and happiness, other days she is a force for yelling and willful disobedience.

Whatever she is, at the moment, she is always a presence that cannot be ignored. I certainly don't tell her enough how much I admire her. Most days, I am simply focusing on how I can attempt to "raise" her without getting "run over" by her energetic will in the process!

I also should mention that L is beautiful - not that I need to point that out. She is my child, so I find her to be the most beautiful girl on the planet - and I don't think that would be any different if she had three eyes or a beard. L is lucky to have been given beauty, but she has bigger things going on inside her head.

L loves to do her own hair. She also loves to assemble her own outfit each day (make that four times a day). There are some limits, but in general I try to give her freedom to dress herself and style her own hair. Six year old fashion can be very interesting! I would be lying if I said that I haven't once or twice felt a little embarrassed by her choices. Because I want her to know that beauty is so much more about how you feel about yourself, than what you look like to other people, I want her to have that freedom.

Ultimately, I want L to be confident that who she is will always be someone that I admire.

Cake, Again.

Yet another cake I made in my class. This one was particularly fun because we used fondant and gum paste - I've been waiting for this part of the class. Hooray!

Which Side?

Today D was putting his pants on - or trying to - all by himself. He was debating where to start and asked me,

"Mom, which side is the bum side?"

Favorite New Game

This is what the kids have been up to lately at our house...

Everything But the Daisies

This is the most recent cake class creation. The assignment was to copy a specific cake, so I can't take much credit for the design (though I did "arrange" the flowers a little differently). After much practice, I am a little better with roses. I cannot do daisies, however, if my life depended on it (I don't know when that would ever be a likely scenario, but just imagine). So, this cake is missing its daisies. Oh, well - I'm proud if me anyway :)

Worth Watching

I just watched this documentary today. While I am "savvy" enough to know that these types of documentaries can be very one sided and should be considered somewhat skeptically, I was moved. I, obviously, am already a supporter of some Intelligent Design theories (I don't buy the whole seeding of life on earth by aliens :) but I got a lot more out of this than just reaffirmation in what I already believe. It was really interesting - particularly the second half. I also have to commend Ben Stein for putting himself out there and standing up for his beliefs. I've been impressed with him for a while; now I consider myself a fan.