I'm going on Holiday

Why do Europeans say they're going on holiday instead of vacation? I like it. Sounds more official. Summer 2012 is the time for taking a 'holiday'. Let it begin.

April was our Europe trip
May was an expedition through Zions National Park and St. George
May/June marks our week long break to Laguna Beach and a surprise visit to Disneyland
June is one more trip to San Diego and then Rocky Point, Mexico

Alright, now breathe.

Europe or bust!

Nervousness, excitement, trepidation, elation, confusion, anticipation...

Ryan and I are going to Europe - take 2. Three years ago we went to Paris, London, & Rome and had the best tourist trip of a life time. When Ryan asked me where else I would like to visit, I said I wanted a repeat of our trip and chose to return to Europe. This time we decided to venture to Eastern Europe.

Our intinerary:

Friday...fly to Europe
Saturday...Prague, Czech Republic
Sunday...Vienna, Austria
Monday...Salzburg, Germany
Tuesday...Munich, Germany
Wednesday...Fussen & Garmisch
Thursday...Inssbruck & Zurich, Switzerland
Friday...Berlin, Germany
Saturday...Berlin, Germany
Sunday...Prague, Czech Republic
Monday...fly home

Exhale. What a trip! Can't wait to post pictures of our adventures.

Sisters

Sisters, sisters
There were never such devoted sisters...
Caring, sharing
Every little thing that we are wearing...
All kinds of weather, we stick together
The same in the rain and sun...
-from the movie 'White Christmas'

This ones for you, Sis!!!

About a month ago I received a letter in the mail from my one and only sister, Torie. It was handwritten and everything. She has beautiful handwriting...it's intimidating, actually. I type, and I type fast (which can also be intimidating). Therefore, I'm typing a letter to my sweet sister.

Jane Austen used to write to her sister. How fun that I also have a sister to write to. 12 hours of driving time between us will not keep us apart. Lightning speed emailing will not keep us apart. And definitely unexplainable, instantaneous texting will not keep us apart. Yes, that shows the complete devotion I have to my sister...who I have not written to since her first letter last month. It's not like I have any avenues. Why the complexity? ;)

So, my dear sister, here is my letter that I will forge for you. I love you and miss you. I can't wait to see you soon. Even though it'll be a brief hi and goodbye surrounding our trip, I'm excited for the experience. At least we'll have St. George; that's where the real fun will happen. I love that we have our get togethers. Our moments are spaced farther apart, but that just makes them more memorable. I love sharing those glimpses in time with you. Thank you for making my childhood sweet of sisterhood fun. Don't ever forget how much I love you. Please forgive me for the times I was a bossy older sister and didn't let you play with my barbies. I'm glad that you gave me unconditional love and that I got to be your sister.

P.S. Thank you for taking care of my angel babies. You are the sweetest sister ever!!!

Spring Schedule

With the warmer weather, our schedule is bulging. As if we weren't busy enough. On one hand, though, being busy with little kids reminds me that I get to enjoy this part of life that is so completely immersed with my kids. Gotta love it.

Mondays...
AM - I volunteer to teach music at the Elementary school
PM - I pick up kids and cousins from school; Trista/Trey have tumbling from 3-4; Family Night
Tuesdays...
AM - Preschool
PM - Tytan bball practce 3-4:30; Trey karate 5-6; bball/tball games
Wednesdays...
AM - My morning is free to do laundry.
PM - I tutor and teach piano 2:30-5:00
Thursdays...
AM - Preschool
PM - Tytan bball practice 3-4:30; Trey karate 5-6; bball/tball games; Tytan cub scouts 5-6
Fridays...
AM - My morning is free to clean, clean, clean
PM - I coach Trey's tball team & we have practice after school on Fridays
Saturdays...(this Easter weekend Saturday is packed)
AM - Easter party/hunt @friends' house 9:30-12
PM - Baptism in Holbrook @1; Baptism in Snowflake @3

Spring Break

The advantage of starting school early in the year (August 11th) is that we get a week long spring break. Woohoo! It's lovely having a week with no schedule...no karate, no wrestling, no scouts, no piano lessons, no tumbling, no cheer practice, no preschool, and (of course) no school.

Ryan and his brother-in-law adopted a project this week (because men can't sit idle for very long) and began work on building our raised garden beds. Another woohoo! I'm so excited to get some stuff planted this year. Potatoes, onions, peppers, carrots - mmmm, can't wait. I'm going to have each kid in charge of a section of the garden. They'll get to choose what to plant, but will be in charge of watering, weeding, etc.

Because of this BIG project, the kids' spring break has been a spring 'work' break. They've stayed outside from sun up to sun down playing with friends in exchange for assisting Ryan when needed. We did take a 'break' today and went on a hike, though. Tomorrow we might go play at the McDonald's play place, and maybe Friday we'll go on a picnic at the park. We've got to do something that constitutes a spring break right?

TWINS!

10 years ago February 19th, 2002, I gave birth to our angel babies - Ryanne Dee & Tamarrah Sue. The day was a whirlwind of confusion and sadness. My babies were born too soon and only lived a few hours on this earth. Tamarrah died first that first day of her life, and her sister, Ryanne, died in the early morning hours after midnight. I remember that night like it's engrained on my heart.

However, that experience is the foundation to my testimony. The whole plan of salvation rests upon the knowledge that I'll get to see my babies again and hold them in my arms. I miss them...but I know I'll always be their mommy. Eternity is real, and I'm so grateful for forever families.

My cousin just gave birth to twin boys a couple of days ago. They are healthy, and I am happy. I'm not surprised by the onset of my sad memory of my twins. It goes with the territory of losing a loved one, especially the loss of a child. But, I'm honestly more thrilled than melancholy for my cousin. I love hearing of happy reports of twins being born. Twins are fun. Twins are a lot of work. Twins are a miracle!

My only wish is that no one forgets about the other set of twins that were born a decade ago. Two precious girls who are up in heaven waiting for us. How lucky am I that I get to be their mommy and raise them in the millennium.

Yes, I am one lucky gal.

Pinewood Derby

I love watching my kids grow and experience new things in life (even though I'd love to keep them bottled up in a jar and keep them my babies forever :-). Tytan is now in Cub Scouts...and loving it. He participated in his first pinewood derby this past Saturday. He was so excited. We attended last year but only got to watch. He asked what he'd get if his car won first place. I loved watching his face light up when his number was announced to do his first race. And then I watched his face fall when his car came in 2nd and then in 3rd and again in 3rd and another time in 3rd. Overall, he was the 2nd to the last out of 18. :-(

Well, needless to say, this is also Ryan and my first pinewood derby experience. After Ryan talked to a few other dads after the race, we found out that you're supposed to prep the cars to run faster. For example, wheels are sanded, the spokes are greased, and weight strategically placed under the car. Who knew?

So, Tytan (as well as Ryan) are eager and ready to try again next year.

To all other 1st timers at pinewood derbies, do your research. ;)

'Wicked'...the best play ever!!!

Ryan and I took an overnight trip to the Valley last week. The kids stayed with Ryan's sister, and Ryan and I went and saw the musical 'Wicked'. And let me tell you, it was awesome. A lot of people said how good it was, and we were worried about having high expectation from what everyone was saying. But, it was even better than expected. It takes a lot to beat our already high expectations. The play was funny, it had a good message, the acting was incredible, and I absolutely loved how it tied into the story of 'The Wizard of Oz'.

This is the synopsis from Wikepedia: "Wicked explores the concept that the Wicked Witch of the West, here known as Elphaba, is a misunderstood, victimized person whose behavior is merely a reaction against the charlatan Wizard's corrupt government. It also displays her relationship with the beautiful and ambitious Galinda Upland, who ultimately becomes Glinda the Good Witch of the North."

Valentine's Day Present

Happy Valentine's Day!

As a sweet present, i received an email from my 'hopeful' publisher yesterday. This is what it said:

Dear Tarrah,

How are you? Sorry I missed your message. I missed several days of work last week due to illness, and I finally just found this message from the Friday before.

I’m glad you’re resubmitting I’m Not Cinderella...I definitely remember you.

As soon as I can, I’ll review the manuscript and let you know what I think. It will be at least a couple months, as I’m very behind in reviewing submissions. (I’m actually probably close to nine months behind, but I’ll try not to make you wait that long. :)



So, we'll see. As I've said before, patience is a difficult thing for me to endure. Cross your fingers.

Finished!

I am finished with the rewrite for my book, 'I'm Not Cinderella'. I decided to go with the original title and have the title 'Replaced' as a second option. I feel really good about the edits and other things I fixed in the book. The hook happens a lot sooner in the book and I altered the ending to be a more feasible ending for a teenage girl. So, I emailed it to my publisher and we'll see what they think. It's hard to be patient and wait for their response, though.

In the mean time, here are some cute Valentine's from the kids. They love you and miss you!

Music

I love music. Always have. Always Will.

On Mondays I volunteer to teach music to the Kindergarten and 1st grade classrooms for the past 3 years. It has been a lot of fun. I've gotten to know the kids and also gain a connection with my children's teachers. I've played piano since I was 8 years old, and I've taught steadily for the past 6 years. I love it. And I don't know what I would do without it.

Music is a part of everything I do. I walk to music, I talk to music, and I dream to music. My favorite is when I'm cooking dinner: I turn on the music and dance with my kids. Of course I'm molding their taste of what music they'll grow up to like, but they'll grow to appreciate my good taste. ;)

What I'm listening to now:
Hot Chelle Rae
Jessie J
La Roux
Cobra Starship
Lucy Hale
Cady Groves
Selena Gomez
Mindy Gledhill

Grandma, you'd love the last one (Mindy Gledhill). I'm going to burn you a cd and mail it to you. Enjoy!!!