The Romney Family

2012-01-07T07:23:00.000-08:00

Late night visit with my Johnny Boy.

(I finally got Instagram, and I love it!)

2011-12-17T13:22:00.000-08:00

I love when my teenagers hook up with friends

to see the temple lights.

2011-12-17T09:14:00.000-08:00

Me and Sammy at the 1st grade P.E. participation activity. :)

2011-12-16T06:38:00.000-08:00

Gingerbread houses (for the 18th year in a row!)

2011-12-09T08:23:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving 2011

For the first time in way too long Scott and I had all

seven (now eight!) of our children home for Thanksgiving.

It was wonderful! My mom and Scott's brother and sister and their families

were able to join us too. It's such a great blessing to

spend time together. We ate, shopped, went to a movie,

worked on a puzzle, and visited. I loved it! Next year we

will be off to Utah. While I love playing hostess, it's also

fun not being the one in charge!

2011-11-30T15:24:00.000-08:00

Joyeous!

2011-11-22T12:37:00.000-08:00

He comes home today!!!

2011-11-03T07:49:00.000-07:00

Halloween

2011-10-21T22:32:00.000-07:00

Dinner is served.

My two little bunnies (that's what I like to call them!)

had fun making me this yummy dinner tonight...chocolate cake,

a waffle, french fries, a cookie, a pickle, and water!

I love these boys. The BEST thing Scott and I ever did

was have two more children in our 40's. Seriously, life would be

pretty boring without them. As it is right now Mikey is on

his honemoon, Greggy is on his mission, Johnny is at work,

Timmy is at the highschool football game, and Jakey is on a

Scout campout. Thank goodness we still have Matty and Sammy

and that they are content to just hang out with mom and dad.

They keep us young, too. I'm not ready to be a mom of only

grown up kids!

*These little play dishes and play food we've had forever! Like since Mikey was a toddler!

All of my boys have enjoyed playing with this stuff...such great imagination playthings.

2011-10-21T22:29:00.000-07:00

Raingutter Regata

Matty and Enoch racing their boats.

2011-10-17T15:29:00.001-07:00

Some wedding day pictures...

2011-07-10T20:35:00.000-07:00

I'm getting a daughter!

Mikey proposed to Carina on Saturday!
We are all so excited!!!

2011-06-12T16:58:00.000-07:00

May Birthdays.

Matty turned nine,

and Sammy turned six!

2011-04-19T07:00:00.000-07:00

Twenty-five years.

Happy anniversary, sweetie!
Let's do another twenty-five.

2011-04-18T08:54:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Mikey!

2011-04-04T16:27:00.000-07:00

Sammy has Christmas on his mind in April. Silly boy.

2011-03-31T09:51:00.000-07:00

Jake turned 12 (a month ago).

Jakey LOVES to scooter and has spent a lot of time
and money "tricking" out his scooter. His favorite thing to do
is go to the skate park.
His next favorite thing to do is go fishing. Loves it!
He is playing majors in little league.
He's a quiet kid who is very observant.
Jake has been very diligent about reading
his scriptures at night. He is also currently reading
"Swindle."
He was excited to graduate from primary and move
on to the Young Men's program. I can't believe he will
be starting junior high this school year!
I love you, Jakey.

2011-03-27T16:00:00.000-07:00

Pinewood Derby Winners.

Matty and his best buddy, Enoch, took 2nd and 1st places
in their first cub scout pinewood derby!

2011-02-14T12:25:00.000-08:00

In January Sammy lost his first tooth,
and the Tooth Fairy brought him a dollar!

2011-01-07T13:55:00.000-08:00

The joys of turning sixteen...

Getting your driver's license!

Being asked to go on a date!

(We had to unwrap every tootsie roll to discover the letters of
the name of the girl who asked Johnny to Saddie's . And someone accidentally ate
one of the letters, so it took awhile to decipher who it was.)

2011-01-07T12:55:00.000-08:00

Jake had an appendectomy.

On Sunday night (January 2nd)
Jake's stomach was hurting. The pain
was centralized in the area around his belly
button. By the middle of the night the pain had moved
to the lower right side. It hurt mostly to move or walk.
He had no appetite (didn't even want dessert!) and was a little nauseous. I recognized
these symptoms as possibly being an inflamed appendix, since two of the other boys have had the same
experience. I called my doctor Monday morning, took him in, and they sent me
straight to the ER. By 3:30 PM on Monday he was in surgery. Jake was a trooper.
He didn't seem nervous at all, and he was a very easy patient. Not like Greggy and Johnny were, that's for sure!
The worse part for him was the sore throat from being incubated. We were home by
Tuesday afternoon, where he has been recuperating with the TV and X-box all
to himself. Back to reality on Monday.

2011-01-07T08:19:00.000-08:00

Our December birthdays.

Johnathon turned 16 on December 28th.
I was so excited for this baby, because we had waited so long for
another child to come to our family (over four years). He's a good, good boy who has great style
and helps me make a decision on what to wear with what. He's in the know!
He has a pretty smile too!

Timothy turned 14 on December 4th. He finally got his first
cell phone. Now he can leave mine alone! Tim is a go-getter and knows how to go
after what he wants. He still loves to play baseball.
He's a neat freak who keeps his room and drawers spotless.
Tim knows how to work. He's hyper and always needs to be doing something!
I love his freckles, but he doesn't.

I loved having a newborn in December. First, it really forced me to be super organized and prepared for Christmas; and Second, there's just something extra sweet about having an infant in the home during that special season. And we always make sure that their birthdays are celebrated...even in this crazy time of the year.

2010-12-27T17:05:00.000-08:00

Christmas 2010

2010-12-27T16:43:00.000-08:00

2010-11-19T08:11:00.000-08:00

One Year.

2010-11-19T07:52:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Greg reached his one-year anniversary in the mission. It's been the best experience EVER!

2010-11-13T08:27:00.000-08:00

Halloween 2010

2010-11-11T13:25:00.000-08:00

Happy Veterans Day to my favorite vet!

We are all so thankful that you are home safely.

2010-09-15T20:44:00.000-07:00

The boys and me...

went to the play, Mulan. I like to take them to live shows like that. It's not Scott's thing, so it's always a mother/sons date.

The sun was super, shiny bright when this picture was taken!

2010-08-12T09:30:00.000-07:00

Back to school.

Johnny: 10th gr.
Timmy: 8th gr.

Jakey: 6th gr.
Matty: 3rd gr.
Sammy: Kindergarten

*While I cried a little about Sammy being gone all day, every day, and the fact that this marks the end of a stage of life for me, I did LOVE the total quiet at my home. They all seemed to have a great experience. Matty said his class loves their teacher so much, that no one wanted to go home at the end of the day!

2010-08-02T12:00:00.001-07:00

TEAMWORK

That's what Matty calls it when he gets Sammy
to help him unload the dishwasher. Smart kid.

2010-07-28T09:33:00.000-07:00

It's good to have Mikey home!
(And he fills the empty spot at our dinner table.)

2010-07-17T15:01:00.000-07:00

Another way to expend all that boy energy...

Px90 (I know, I know...P90X - The boys are always correcting me!)
Greggy use to always do the ab ripper workout, and he was pretty cut before he left on his mission. That's all history now! Anyway, I'm running out of ways to keep them busy in this 115 degree heat. Is summer almost over yet?

2010-07-03T11:53:00.000-07:00

Twenty Laps.

Whenever the boys are getting too rowdy,

fighting excessively, or
complaining that they are bored,
I tell them, "O.K. twenty laps."
It really works (for awhile anyway).

2010-06-26T12:46:00.000-07:00

I Love Girl's Camp!

And who wouldn't?
Nice weather!
Hanging out with fun girls!
Three meals a day cooked for you!
A break from boys!
Thanks for a great time, G.V. 1st Young Women!

2010-06-08T17:11:00.000-07:00

Teenagers! Grrrrrr.....

This is John making banana bread.
He is smiling in this picture, but don't let it fool you...
He's not happy about it.

Here's our conversation...

John:"This is so dumb." Me: "You'll thank me later. In fact, one day after I'm dead and
gone, you'll think of me whenever you see banana bread."
John: "Why do you always ask me to make the banana bread?"
Me: "Because you are good at it."
John: "Mikey and Greggy never had to do this."
Me: "Because I had too many babies around to be able to take the time
to teach them important things like this."
John: "You are the only mom I know that makes their sons
do stuff like this."
Me: "Good. I guess I'm the winner then."
John: "I hate this."
Me: "Oh well."

Teenagers are so fun.
Believe me, it would have been much easier
to make the banana bread myself.

2010-06-08T10:17:00.000-07:00

Eight is Great!!!

(The boys aren't big cake eaters...so we make ice cream cake!)

Finally a cub scout!
(Matty loves, loves, loves going to den meetings
and reminds me often that he needs to be
working in his book. Ugh! I think I know this book
inside and out.)

Baptismal program photo.
Isn't he darling all dressed up?
I love this little boy!

2010-05-31T09:45:00.000-07:00

He's safely back in the USA!!!

Thank goodness!
Thank you for everyone's prayers and kind
words to me while he was deployed.
Can't wait until he's back in AZ...sometime in July!

2010-05-23T09:26:00.000-07:00

Dear Dad,

I'm so glad that you are baptizing me and that I will get all my sins out and that I will get the Holy Ghost in and that on Saturday we can have a good time when I get sucked down in the water and that you can say the prayer and that when you duck me under, you will not "dround" me like Johnny told me that you will. When he said that I got scared.

Love, Matt

2010-05-19T08:50:00.000-07:00

Six Months. (and it's gone by so fast!) We love you, Greggy. And we miss you, but there's no place we'd rather you be.

2010-05-10T11:20:00.000-07:00

Happy 8th Birthday, Matty!!!
You are tough as nails and yet sweet, affectionate,
and sensitive, too. You give the best hugs
and offer the best prayers!
You are so excited to be getting baptized!
We love you so much. Happy Birthday, buddy.
Love, Mom

2010-05-03T12:40:00.000-07:00

Lip Synching

Scott and I went waaaay out of our comfort zones and lip synced at our ward party Saturday night. He did "YMCA" from Village People. And I did "I'm gonna wash that man right outta my hair" from South Pacific. Scott kept threatening to be coming down with the flu, but he came through. While it's something neither of us would EVER volunteer to do, I'm glad that we both ventured out a little bit. Watching everyone else was so funny and so entertaining. I love my ward!

2010-04-17T03:30:00.000-07:00

Twenty-two years ago today...

Scott and I experienced our first miracle. When that baby entered the world, time stood still. I simply could not believe that you could love someone so much. I was scared to bring him home. I remember coming into our apartment, placing him in his bassinet, and thinking "o.k., now what?" And that has pretty much been our mantra ever since..."NOW WHAT?" :) There is always a special place in your heart for your first born. Happy birthday, Mikey. We love you. Hurry home safely. (Five more weeks!!!) We miss you. XO Mom

2010-03-23T09:50:00.000-07:00

We are counting down...
Nine weeks until Mikey is safely home
from his deployment to Afghanistan.
Please keep him and his fellow marines in
your prayers. :)

2010-03-22T14:01:00.000-07:00

Spring Break in Rocky Point Mexico! (March 2010)

2010-03-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

Matty missing his front tooth ... love it!

Jakey had a hard time putting this book down...He's really enjoying
the Percy Jackson series.

Quad riding in the sand dunes is fun.

We always have to buy new sunglasses from
the peddlers on the beach.

Best idea Scott had was to bring bikes.
It made getting around a lot quicker and easier.
Sammy loved being pegged by everyone.

2010-03-02T11:29:00.000-08:00

Update on Elder Romney...

Greg has been gone for 3 1/2 months already! The highlight of my week is receiving our Monday e-mails. I have to set the timer for 15 minutes to force myself to do something other than check my computer! It seems I can't focus very well, until I hear from my boy!

Greg loves Costa Rica. He's been humbled, obedient, faithful, and has lost 12 pounds due to his picky eating! He's having a hard time learning to eat things like cow stomach.

He says he can't believe how spoiled we Americans are. It's true.

His only request has been for us to send lots of candy! He finally received his care package this week. It took way too long to reach him...five weeks!

We miss this boy, but we are absolutely loving having a missionary out serving the Lord. He's such an example to our family.

2010-02-06T16:18:00.000-08:00

Today Johnny and Scott got the siding up on one side of the house.

The small window up top is my mom's bathroom. The two windows below are in the family room.

It's coming along, slowly but surely. (I wish it were faster and surely.)

I love when the boys work side-by-side with their dad.
John was a big help. Thanks, Johnny!

2010-01-29T13:49:00.000-08:00

SAMMY

My baby turns five this year! Five! That just can't be.
That's just crazy.

I love being home with just him, and he loves it, too.
We read stories together, just us.
We take naps together.
He plays in whatever room I'm in... content to be home with just me.
On the days that he doesn't have school,
we call it "a stay-home-with-momma day!"
(and he gets the cookie dough beaters all to himself!!!)

I thought that by the end of seven children, I would be
ready for them all to be gone off to school.
I'm not.

Gosh, I love this little boy. So, so happy I decided to
go for another one at the "older" age of 43!

2010-01-09T12:20:00.000-08:00

Christmas 2009

2009-12-18T11:33:00.000-08:00

Said by Sammy today...

"I don't 'yike' Mikey anymore, because he's taking a 'yong' time to come home!" (He pronounces his l's with y's.)

Someone is missing their oldest brother!:(

2009-12-18T08:04:00.000-08:00

The "King" has been served.
(I think he loves his time as an only child.)

2009-12-11T07:44:00.000-08:00

Sammy's favorite task.
Loading the candy canes on the bear...and then proceeding to eat as many as mom will allow.
It's becoming an every-day-ritual.

2009-12-08T11:28:00.000-08:00

20 things I'm thankful for.

1.) My family...one great husband, and seven beautiful, healthy children!

2.) My mother.
3.) My membership in the church of Jesus Christ.
4.) My Savior.
5.) The privilege of being a stay-at-home mom.
6.) Our home.
7.) To live in this free, great, blessed country.
8.) My neighborhood.
9.) My friends.
10.)My church calling working with the Young Women.
11.) My missionary!
12.) My marine!
13.) My health.
14.) My testimony.
15.) My extended family.
16.) The scriptures.
17.) Our living prophet.
18.) A temple close to home.
19.) Good children.
20.) My husband's employment.

I should have done this last month, I know. But Christmas is a good time to express appreciation, too.

2009-11-18T20:24:00.000-08:00

Greg's Farewell.

Out to dinner before he was set apart.

Leaving for the MTC!!!

Elder Romney and Elder Shreeve

We're going to miss this boy, but there is nothing else
we'd rather him be doing. We are so grateful for
his desire to serve and his worthiness to do so.

2009-11-05T14:23:00.000-08:00

Show and Tell
Today Sammy took his new toy gun to "show and tell"
at school. Daddy made it for him. I love when they
are little and so easy to please.

2009-11-01T08:17:00.000-08:00

Hope your Halloween was a thriller!!!

2009-10-14T18:36:00.000-07:00

I had to say goodbye to Mike today.
It was hard, but I did good.
It was comforting knowing that after this
deployment, he will be home for good!
I love you, Mikey.

2009-10-08T13:38:00.000-07:00

Fall is in the air!
We've turned off the A.C.,
opened our windows,
and I got new autumn
colors in my hair.
(I really didn't intend for that to rhyme.)

2009-09-11T09:45:00.000-07:00

This boy is coming home for a visit!
(On October 1st)
Mike has a pre-deployment leave, and then he will be off to
Afghanistan at the beginning of November.
Eight months later he will be done with
his four-year enlistment!!!

2009-09-09T10:59:00.000-07:00

Pomeroy's Men's Store!
Yesterday I had the privilege of
going with Greg, to shop for his
mission clothing. We went to
Pomeroy's on Main Street.
My good friend's father owns the
store, and after years of visiting Michel
at the store, it was my turn to shop there!

Michael Rudd was awesome with his knowledge and help!!!
Thanks, Mike!!!

Elder Romney is well on his way to
being ready to leave.
(And he paid for everything himself!!!)

P.S. If anyone needs missionary clothing, Pomeroy's really is the place to go!!! They know just what you need, why you need it, and they give a big missionary discount!

2009-09-04T13:05:00.000-07:00

I'm pretending it's Fall.

2009-08-31T07:15:00.000-07:00

On Saturday my mother was baptized.
She is so happy!
It's been a really great experience.

2009-08-27T23:16:00.000-07:00

Greg got his call today!
He will be serving in
the Costa Rica, San Jose mission.

He will be reporting to the
MTC on the exact day that
his good friend, Jake Shreeve, reports...
November 18th.

Costa Rica is exactly the type of place
I hoped he would go. It will be perfect for him.

2009-08-12T16:43:00.000-07:00

Back to School 2009
Sammy - Preschool @ Mrs. Spier's (or "Aunt Dawn")

Jake - 5th gr., Matt - 2nd gr.

John - 9th gr.,Tim - 7th gr.

I don't remember a summer going by as quickly as it did this year. It feels weird not to have any high schoolers and to have only two in elementary school. And its strange to have the house so completely quiet. But I'm not complaining.

2009-08-12T16:31:00.000-07:00

Happy 19th Birthday Greg!
We're so excited...he puts his mission
papers in this Sunday, and his
call should be here the 26th of this
month!

2009-07-17T16:31:00.000-07:00

Mission Prep Step #8Removal of four wisdom teeth.

(I'm off to get Greg a Jamba Juice for the second time today.)

2009-06-29T17:30:00.000-07:00

Matty Cat.
Matt thinks he needs me to post something
about him since the last post had a picture of Jake
and not him. Everything is a competition
around here, you know.

Well, Matty and I went to the library today.
Just the two of us! I love taking them to the library
one-on one. But I hate taking them all at the same time!
He finally got his very own library card and we picked out lots of 2nd grader books
for him to read. And I even let him pick out a drink from the vending
machine! He thought that was great. They are still pretty easy to
please at this age. He talked my ear off, too. And it was way too
hot getting in and out of the car. What is the temperature here today, anyway?
It feels like it's 110, but I'm not sure.

2009-06-29T16:57:00.000-07:00

Our summer "Point System."
I've had the boys doing this great little system
for about four weeks now. They have daily responsibilities
that need to be completed before they can play or go anywhere.
This system works great, because it really cuts down on the nagging
to get their "stuff" done. They just refer to their paper, mark
it off, and they are good to go. I love it and so do they. They
can cash in their points for things like grab bag pick (candy), Sonic run,
friends pizza/swim party, date night with mom and dad or save up for something
they really want.

Jake saved and earned 191 points for this
Diamond Backs hat that he had been coveting.
He was so excited when he finally had enough points to
get it! It took him exactly three weeks.

They can earn extra points by playing a board game with Sammy,
babysitting, extra chores, being reverent in church, working on their
scouting, "Faith in God," or "Duty to God," writing in their journal,
reading church magazines, finishing a chapter book, etc.

*This post is for you mom...(she asked me why I hadn't posted in a while!)

2009-06-14T19:52:00.000-07:00

Scott and the boys watching
the Lakers' NBA
Championship!!!
(Now maybe we can think about something else.)

2009-05-30T19:49:00.000-07:00

Our little carpenter.

Scott has been working on the addition a lot lately.
And Sammy loves to go out there with him
and set up shop, too. It's so, so cute to watch.

2009-05-25T10:19:00.000-07:00

Seminary Graduation

2009-05-25T10:02:00.000-07:00

Greg's High School Graduation!

Johnny, Mike, Greg, and Scott
(It rained the entire graduation!)

Me and my boy

Mike surprised Greg with a visit
from North Carolina.

Greg showing off some dance moves on the field
after graduation. This one is called "the jerk."

2009-05-15T16:28:00.000-07:00

Goodbye!
Have Fun!
Be Safe!
Don't Hurry Back!
(Ahhh! Now for some serious quiet time!)

Scott and the boys (all six of them!) are off to a father and sons overnight camping trip.

2009-04-17T13:34:00.000-07:00

Happy 21st Birthday, Mikey!!!

I miss the little boy that you were,
but I'm proud of the man you've become.
I love you more than words can say.
Wishing you were home to celebrate!

Picture taken September, 1991, in Santa Monica, California
(Mikey is three years old and I'm 29.)

2009-04-11T13:49:00.000-07:00

Somebody needs money for prom.

2009-04-01T22:28:00.000-07:00

We got a call from Mr. Mike today.
(That's Scott in the background talking to him.)
I went on a fun bike ride with my favorite Young Women girls.
In T-Dog's game tonight, he "went yard!"
And the weather was perfect.
It's been a good day.

2009-03-24T09:21:00.000-07:00

"Overboard"
Greg and Karen
at the Mountain View
Sadies dance.

Their day date consisted of going to the mud caves.
He said that it was so much fun. I had to just
throw away the clothes he wore, because they
were too muddy to ever hope they would
come clean again.

Plans are well under way for his last and final high school dance, prom!

2009-03-20T10:01:00.000-07:00

Spring Break
in
Rocky Point,
Mexico.
March, 2009

2009-03-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

2009-03-20T09:41:00.000-07:00

Scott always makes friends with the local children. The boys love to share our juice boxes and candy with them. And he will sit and talk to them in Spanish asking them questions and making them laugh.

2009-03-20T09:35:00.000-07:00

Inspecting a sand crab.

Ready for a banana boat ride.

The not-so-fun part...unpacking it all. Ugh!
I'll be at it for days.

2009-03-19T23:07:00.000-07:00

I guess we're not sleeping in our own bed tonight.

This is how we found our boys after our date tonight.
(Dinner at Costa Vidas, Barnes and Noble shopping, and
eight loads of bedding at the laundromat!)
The bed is totally unmade, because everything is
being washed clean from camping. I'm too tired to
move them all, and make the bed, so we'll each be in twin beds in Greg's room.
(Scott doesn't mind because the Bruins won some big game!)

I'll be posting our Spring Break in Rocky Point pictures soon.

2009-03-04T12:37:00.000-08:00

Peace.
From,
Matty

(excuse the dirty hands.)

2009-03-03T14:30:00.000-08:00

The family that works together...

Gets ice cream together!!!
(our family night last night.)

2009-02-26T18:40:00.000-08:00

This is where I'll be for the next three months...In the bleachers watching baseball games.
Five of my boys are playing.
Greg - Varsity @ Westwood
(John opted out this year)
Tim - Majors in Little League
Jake - Minors in Little League
Matt - Machine Pitch in Little League
and
Sam - Neighborhood T- Ball!

It's always a crazy time for us and
marks the winding down of the
school year.

You can catch me on my cell phone!

2009-02-24T10:52:00.000-08:00

Does this boy not remeber???It is interesting to me that Greg

will tell me "You spoil him too much." And I say
"What do you mean?"
He says that I let Sammy, my three-year old,
get away with too much. Like, letting him scream
when someone is bugging him.
Ha! Does he not remember his childhood behaviors?!?
I still have indentions in the dresser he beat the heck out of
with a metal fire engine when he was in time out! (I believe he was
three at the time.)
Or the time he threw himself on the floor of a department
store and threw a kicking screaming fit in front of everyone
because I wouldn't buy him a watch. He was four.
I'll have you know, I calmly walked away.
And there was the time he threw Johnny's bassinet mattress
in the street because he was mad about something.

Now I know he remembers being in fourth grade and getting
suspended for pulling his friend's pants down in front of the
class.

And surely he recalls (in 8th grade) punching his best friend in the face, knocking his tooth
out, and me having to take him (Greg) to the E.R. for stitches in his hand.
I was not calm about that one.

I remember having to explain the story over
and over to every attendant, nurse, and doctor
that day. I also had to hear a lecture on
"anger management courses" that were
available for "boys like him."

See, I have the picture to prove it.

I'm really looking forward to the full circle of all this

when they have kids of their own.
I think it will be very humorous.

P.S. He is growing up to be a fine young man.

2009-02-23T15:08:00.000-08:00

Happy 10th Birthday, Jakey!!!
(Matty, who loves, loves, loves to color came home from
school today and made this picture for him.)

We took Jake out to dinner on Saturday night.
He's been wanting to go to Red Robin because
he says their Mac and Cheese is so creamy!
Then we went shopping, but he decided to save
his money and think about what he really wants.
Tonight we will dedicate our Family Night to
him with pizza, birthday cake, and a movie of his choice.
Happy Birthday, buddy. We love you!!!

2009-02-17T15:10:00.000-08:00

Varsity Basketball Senior Night @
Westwood High SchoolBasketball is coming to an end.
I'm really going to miss watching
Greg play ball.
At least we still have the baseball
season left!

2009-02-14T12:54:00.000-08:00

Missing this boy.

(Mike, Camp Lejuene, North Carolina)

2009-02-13T15:30:00.000-08:00

Meet my personal shopper.

Matty loves to go to the neighborhood
garage sales. He comes in the house asking
for money, I have him do a little job, and then
he gets a few quarters. Well, the last two times
that he has hit up a garage sale, he has brought
me home a treasure...A new purse!
And they are pretty darn cute, too!
It's kind of fun to have yourself a personal shopper.

2009-02-08T10:32:00.000-08:00

Memory Monday

I have always hate, hate, hated my naturally curly hair.
I remember when, a long time ago, I had to go through a major routine
to achieve "somewhat" straight hair. First, I had to roll my wet hair in these big, fat curlers,
as shown in the above picture.

Then I had to sit under one of those huge, hot, hair dryers for over an hour.
It was a long, tedious process.

All I can say now is, "Thank goodness for flat irons."
Mine might well be the most prized item I own!
Where were these things when I was a teenager???

2009-02-03T11:55:00.000-08:00

Lunch Time.

Mike sent me a text message today
with this picture that said, "Lunch Time."
He's in the field (the forest) doing some
marine training for a week.
They wear the same camies and can't take
a shower for the whole week (ewww!)
And this is what they eat for food
every day...MREs (Meals Ready to Eat).
He brought some home once, and they
are actually very good. My boys like
to take them on their scout camping trips.

*I finally figured out how to send a picture from my cell phone, to my e-mail, and then to my blog!
I'm getting so high-tech.

2009-01-31T16:17:00.000-08:00

Winter Formal
Mountain View High School
Greg and Jessi Rau
January 31, 2009

2009-01-26T12:36:00.000-08:00

Our Wedding Party!
April 19, 1986
Los Angeles California Temple

Lori Remington, Nancy Green, Me, Christine Schaff,
Dawn Spier, and Victoria & Catherine Taber.

David Cooper, Scott, Howard Romney, and Danny Manalang.

Memory Monday
I had a request from an old friend
for a picture of my wedding party.
So here's for you, Cooper!
This was the best day of my life!
Still going strong 23 years later.

2009-01-21T16:32:00.000-08:00

Take your shoes off.I'm not allowed to wear my shoes in the house.

Not that I like to anyway.
But if I happen to have them on, Sammy tells me,
"Take your shoes off." And he follows me around
until I do. He knows that if I have my shoes on, I'm
probably leaving the house. When I take them off, he's safe
to go about his business of playing.

*This photo was taken on one of my girlfriend weekends. We had just gotten a pedicure. Girls do silly things like that. (even forty-something year old ones!)

*O.K., Mom. Do you recognize which one is your daughter's foot?

2009-01-13T13:52:00.000-08:00

A boy, hard at work...That's what I like.

2009-01-12T12:42:00.000-08:00

Memory MondayI've been wanting to do a "Memory Monday" for awhile
now. So, I'm starting today!
This is one of my favorite pictures.
It was taken in January, 1994.
In the photo are Mikey (age 5), Me (age 31), and
Greggy (age 3).
We were living at Scott's parents' house (gosh, I miss them)
and waiting to moving into our current home.
All of our stuff was
in their Arizona room. I remember that the boys loved that
their bunk beds were right next to our bed!
With only two children at the time, I was so good about
reading to them every, single night before bedtime.
I'm reading my all-time favorite book, "The Way Mothers Are."
Greg is sucking his thumb and holding his "baby."
And Mikey! Wow! He was such a cuddler. (If that's a word?)
They are now 20 and 18. I miss the little boys they were, but
am proud of the men they are.

*Now, are they not the spitting images of Matty and Sammy? I swear, they are! It's so cool!

2009-01-11T17:47:00.000-08:00

Our nephew, Travis, is visiting!
We are all excited to have his company.
And we're letting his wife and mom know
that he has arrived safely and has been fed
a good, homemade meal of lasagna, garlic bread,
salad, and milk. (He ate well!) Oh, and, Mikey, I
hope you don't mind that he's sitting in your spot at
the dinner table.
Soon, we will all be watching the movie, "Mummy."
I was very surprised he hadn't seen this yet, because he
is such a movie buff!

2008-12-29T08:52:00.000-08:00

Christmas Morning!