A better Haircut Picture!

Well, Justin took me out for my birthday last week. He insisted on taking a better picture of my haircut. And I have to admit that this is a much better picture than the last one I posted. I have really gotten to love my hair. surprisingly, I am starting to prefer it short. I never thought I would say that. I have always loved my hair long, or so I thought! I thought it was so much easier and more practical...What I have found out though, is that this haircut really is super easy. It takes about 2 minutes to blow dry and I can flip it up, flip it under, anything. I can pull the sides up and it looks like I am actually trying to do something with my hair instead of just a ponytail. So I look like I put more effort into my appearance than I actually do! I love it! Anyway, the haircut has turned out great and everyone seems to think it looks really nice. It is so much different than anything I have had since I chopped my hair in 1999 when I first started at BYU. So it is a big change, but I absolutely love it!

Life has been really good to us lately...Justin spent a weekend in Louisville Kentucky for a AMSA conference last weekend (the 12-14) He came back last Sunday night and on Tuesday night, he took me out on a date for my birthday which was on Wednesday. On Wednesday, he dropped me off at the airport for a conference I was attending in Austin Texas. It was a very enlightening conference and I learned so very much from it. I thoroughly enjoyed it all. I have discovered though, something about the "Pride of Texas." As a lot of you know, Texans for the most part are very Proud of their great state. I hadn't quite hit that point yet...But this weekend, I think I gained insight into why. People are amazingly friendly here. I have never spent time in a place where people are SO consistently nice to you and so willing to include you as a part of their group. I was attending a conference for the spouses of physicians (and medical students) it was with the Texas medical association alliance. Everyone took me in as if I had been a part of their group forever! It was a wonderful experience. And while I don't have nearly the level of pride for the state of Texas, I think I am slowly developing a little more. Texas really is a great place.

Jaicie is busily enjoying her preschool. She has developed a problem with lying to her teachers, and I am not sure what to d about it. We have tried time and time to explain that the lying gets her in more trouble then the thing she is lying about. She just doesn't understand it. I wish I could figure out some way to make her understand it. I guess she will one day...why do children lie? It isn't like we make it a habit to lie to her. I don't understand where they pick it up from.

Felicity is continuing to grow like a week. She is actually getting to tall for her 24 month pants, before her waist grow out of them. She has begun singing her favorite songs...Oh McDonald had a dog...Mary had a little wam...ABCDEFG, HIJK, elemeno PQRS, Y and Z...It has been fun watching her learn new things, and an adventure having the extra time to spend with her. She is learning colors really well right now, and starting to understand the concept of letters, though she can't identify them yet. I keep telling myself next week I will potty train her, but alas...next week is here, and it won't be this week. At this point, it is looking like it will probably be January before we start. That way we won't have to worry about regression over Christmas Break!

About Christmas Break! We are planning a great 2 week adventure to Las Vegas for the holiday. It is going to be so nice to be able to see both of our families. And spend a holiday with them. We have missed out families so much and can't wait to see them all. And family---Don't worry, the Wii is coming with us...So we can play some games while we are there...

Aside from that...Everything is actually amazing! I feel more happy than I have felt since this school year began...with all of it's stresses. I think I put it "I am exceedingly happy!" Which I really am. I couldn't ask for a more wonderful husband, and two more wonderful children. We have everything that we need right now, and even some of what we just want! Life is good and I love it!

I think that is a nice catch up on our lives...I am not the best at blogging, still getting my hand on it! But it is fun nonetheless!

New Haircut!

Well I did it! I chopped all my hair off...well a lot of it at least! Okay, so here are 3 pictures! The first is my hair before. this was a few weeks ago at a fashion show that I did for the medical alliance. The second is the hair that was cut off. I am donating it the Pantene ProV Beautiful Lengths program. They make wigs for women with Cancer, who have lost there hair during Chemo. I would have loved my mom to have been able to get one of these. And they give them to them for free. So it is a great program! The third is a picture of my new haircut! I took it myself, as Justin is out of town this weekend, but It looks alright! maybe once Justin gets back, I will have him take a new one!

Million Dollar Baby

First of all--Don't read this if you haven't seen the movie and have any intentions of seeing it. I will be talking about the end of Million Dollar Baby and I would hate to ruin it for you.

So, i have been working on this project...no details, but regardless, i have been thinking a lot about my mom lately. It has been 18 months now, almost 19 since she passed away. Yesterday I was very somber, melancholy, whatever you want to use, but I couldn't figure out why. I couldn't even figure out what I was feeling. Anyway, last night, Justin and I watched Million Dollar Baby. I had no expectation as to what it wouold be like. I knew it was some boxing movie, where she wins lots, but I knew nothing else about it. Anyway, we watched it and near the end, She gets knocked out after the match is over and falls and hits her head on a stole and fractures her vertebrea. She ends up as a quadreplegic and stuck in a hospital bed or wheelchair. Near the end of themovie, she ends up with bed sores and eventually gangreen (sp) in one of her legs and they have to amputate it. Then she asks Franki to take do for her what her father had done for her dog (kill it when it was so sick) I broke down, completely. I balled and cried.

I guess I figured out what was bothering me. I miss my mom.

Long time

It has been a long time since I have posted anything here. Life has been, well, I was going to say busy, but really, it hasn't been. I have been reading a ton lately. In the past 3 weeks I have read about 15 books. I don't have a count for sure, but that sounds about right. I has been fun to get back into my reading. I used to read a lot and then that stopped in and after college. I don't know something about requiring someone to read a book. It was bad!

Jaicie is loving school. Her teachers came by recently for a home visit. They said, she and a couple of other kids will be starting on advanced learning. They are going to work with her on reading and math. Instead of just letters and numbers. Apparently she is doing really well and from everything I can see, she loves it!

Felicity is getting attached to being home with mommy all day. We have a lot of time just the two of us now and she actually gets pretty angry at Jaicie whenever she is home. It is a fighting time for about an hour after school everyday. It is kind of a headache. But it has sure been nice to have the time with her.

Justin is doing well. Getting close to finishing his neurosciences course. Boy will I be glad when that is over.

As for me. life is life. I am reading the Twilight Saga to Justin right now! He loves it as much as I do! Yes I got my husband addicted to Twilight! It is awesome!. I really enjoy reading books with him, so it is fun!

Anyway, that is it for now!

Books

I am not usually one to read books more than once. It is very common for me, to read a book and think it is amazing. Later I will start to read it again, and over the course of trying to, I restart it over and over again, and never am able to finish it. No matter how much I love Harry Potter, I have struggled with trying to read all the books again. I have read the 6th one twice, but only because I read it all really quickly in 2 days.

When I read Twilight by Stephenie Meyer (see previous post). I loved it! I was addicted to the book before the first chapter began. The preface, half a page of something later int he book, hooked me in about 1 minute. I immediately wanted to read the rest of the book...And so I did. When I finished that Thursday night (just over a week ago) I didn't have books 2 and 3. On Friday morning, I went out and bought book 2 and borrowed book 3...Trying to be thrifty and not spend TOO much money on books right now. I sat down and read book 2...When I finished book 2 later that day, i immediately started book 3...I finished it on Saturday afternoon. I loved them. I was addicted. I immediately sat down and started reading stuff on her website about the books. Then I found other sites that have stuff about her books. I started looking at videos that people had put together for the books. I started figuring out which actors i had pictured the characters as in my head. I was completely and utterly addicted and obsessed. Well, it wasn't enough for me. I hate the fact that I have to wait another year for the 4th book to come out. Monday (labor day) I decided that I hadn't gotten enough of Edward and Bella over the weekend and so I picked up Twilight...again and read it. On Tuesday i started New Moon, again. When I finished it on Wednesday, I felt releived. Surely I could take these books a little bit slower. I had returned book 3, Eclipse, to its right ful owner, and mine hadn't arrived in the mail yet! I was so addicted that over the weekend, I decided that I had to have my very own copy of Eclipse. I went out after finishing New Moon to check the mail. I wasn't expecting the book for another day or two...when i opened my front door...there is was on my doorstep! WooHoo! So after I got the girls down to bed, and Justin had settled into his studying for the night...I picked up Eclipse...and on Thursday...I finished it...again. So this time it took me 4 days instead of 3...but it was still not enough. As soon as I finished it, I wanted more. I wanted to pick up Twilight and read it all over again. I am insane! I know!

But to be good, I shelved the books...I put them away on the shelf, there to stay for at least a little while. Instead, I decided that I would get my fix some other way. I started researching Forks Washington. First Beach. Volterra. I researched everything I could think of about this book. I found where I think the Cullen house would be in Forks. I mapped it out on Google and found it. I found where I think their meadow is. I found Charlie's house and the ball field and the field 9 miles north where parts of Eclipse took place. I mapped it all out. Am i insane, YES! I do not doubt that. I am totally, completely, utterly obsessed with this book. I think that it is my new favorite series. I loved Harry Potter. I really did. I still do, I think it is an amazing series and Rowling amazes me. But something about Twilight makes it totally trump Harry in a way that even 2 weeks ago, I didn't think possible. I don't know what it is about Edward and Bella that make me want so much more out of these books. I don't want stephenie to stop at 4 books...I want her to keep going. I want the movie out now! I want someone to write a TV series with this...I want a weekly fix of this book that will keep me going...Surely there is more that can be added in to the story to make a whole series of...They have done it with Superman and Smallville, why not Bella and Twilight! I am sure that there will be a great conclusion to this book with book 4, but I want more...I want the whole series from Edwards perspective...Not just the first one. I just want more. I know, I am insane! And I have to wait a whole year to get more of them.

Yeah like i said...I can't read books more than once...

We see how far that got me with this series!

Twilight By: Stephanie Meyer

Here is a book that I have just read! IT IS AMAZING! To give you an idea, i got hooked on the half page preface as i got hooked on Harry Potter. This author is an LDS woman from Arizona. The book came to her in a dream, and then developed into this amazing book! Anyway, if you haven't read it, DO! It isn't a cheesy mormon novel, it is a great novel by a mormon. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer 3 books so far in the series, 1 more to come next fall (2008) It is a great book. Read it!

First day of School!

Well...Yesterday was Jaicie's first day at preschool. She absolutely loved it. Felicity wanted to be a part of everything. So here are a couple of pictures of Jaicie just before we left for school.















This is me walking Jaicie into school...she was excited! Anyway, just wanted to share our pictures!

Jaicie's school goes from 8-3 Monday-Friday.

Busy girl!