Best Buds

The other day Tommy and Graham were sitting on Graham's bed enjoying a few books together. They were reading Dr. Suess (whom we love dearly at our house) "Scrambled Eggs Super" and "Happy Birthday To You". They are each a little long but you got the love all of the creative characters and rhyming! They were also reading "Martha Speaks" and "Martha Walks the Dog" (it's a story about a dog -Martha- who can talk because she ate alphabet soup... Really cute!

Anyway, here are my two favorite guys...


A cute candid of Tommy and Graham... one of my new favorite pics!


Tommy and Graham on his bed (yes, it's a queen)

"Scrambled Eggs Super-de-dooper-de-booper; Special de lux ala Peter T. Hooper"

Both the boys reading Martha Speaks

Silly Graham hiding from me

The Parker Mafia

Well, I guess this is officially my first blog post, so give me a break if for some reason I break some "Blogger 101" rule, or if I don't use the proper "Blogger" lingo.

Last night my fantasy football team ( The Parker Mafia) made it to the play-offs in my league. While I am EXTREMELY confident that my team will win the Championship, I thought I'd brag a little bit about how I made it to the play-off round this year.

My team struggled a bit to begin the season (I went 3-5 the first half of the season). However, to make a long story short, I made some pretty good roster adjustments and was able to turn things around the second half, winning 5 out of 6 games. It all came down to last night's Monday Night Football game. I needed to score 45 points between two players in order to take over the #1 position in my division. Well, needless to say, those two players scored a combined total of 68 points, thus propelling me to the #1 position and giving me a ticket to the play-offs.

Now, I'm almost positive that 99.9% of the people that read this post could care less about Fantasy Football (due to the fact that most of you are women). In fact, I'm sure that most of you despise Fantasy Football because your husbands participate in it. But just remember, Fantasy Football is to men what "Blogging" is for women. So the next time you feel the need to give your husband grief about "Fantasy Football", think again!

As for the cool "Fantasy Football" picture, it's the only one I could find!

Go Raptors!

The Eaglecrest Varsity Cheerleaders are STATE CHAMPIONS!!

Okay, so I really can't take any credit for them winning (since I coach JV) however, I am still so excited for them, as many I have coached previously.

I was an Eaglecrest Cheerleader, holding 2 State Championships myself. I have coached there 4 years, I have watched it go from a very successful team, to a broken program. It is really great to see it successful again. Good Job Coach Mac!

TeePee

So this is a little late coming... But for Graham's birthday this year (October) I made him this TeePee. At first he wasn't that interested (because he got a train set too), but now it is his favorite hiding place. I am sure it will continue to get more and more use...

Normal Mormon Husband

Ok... this is a blog I came upon a while ago, and this guy is HILARIOUS!! He is constantly posting random things that are so funny. I could probably spend hours on his site....

See for yourself...

http://mormonhusbands.blogspot.com/

And he has some really funny posts about Twilight for all you Twi-Moms out there :)

'Tis the Season

I sure love this time of year! And for me the love starts around September. My favorite season is Autumn. I love the crisp cool air, and watching the leaves change colors (although I don't love it when they fall off the trees). Making Halloween costumes, Cooking Turkey and Candy Yam Casserole, and I love putting up my Christmas Tree!Last weekend we put up our tree and I kept telling Tommy that I wish we could keep it up year around. It just makes my front room feel so cozy (especially when the fireplace is "lit")... and to top it off we got our first real, stick to the ground snow. For me there is something nastalgic about the first snow of the season, and since this year it was much later than usual (it is usually in September, so it was 2 1/2 months "late"... but that's fine with me because I got to enjoy Autumn much longer than usual) it has really put me in the Christmas Spirit. And this year I am really trying to focus on the real reason we celebrate Christmas... Because Jesus Christ was born and he gave the greatest gift of all.So Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

What Did You Call Me?

This picture is a little old, but it is one of my favorites of Graham... It completely captures his personality

So, Graham is finally starting to use sentences when he speaks (many times words are completely out of order or mushed together to create new words, but he is still doing it; which after a lot of hard work and persuasion, feels really good) and he has started saying some of the cutest things. (They are probably just cute to me because I am his mom, but humor me!) Here are some of his favorite things to say and my favorite to hear... because right now his favorite things to say are "no" and "I don't want to..." but those are not MY favorite to hear... so here is my list:



Dat's cooool

Oh, tank you mommy (he says that to anything... makes me melt)

awwwwww man

I sad (I don't love hearing he's sad,
but it is so cute that he understands his emotions and tells us)



But by far the funniest is that he insists on calling Tommy "Tommy", not "daddy." I am constantly correcting him (he calls me Annie too, but not near as often) but he continues. And to top it off he is in a "I love daddy more than anything" stage and so he will ask "Where is Tommy?" all day long and my reply is usually "At work"
(it is really sweet, even if I am a tad bit jealous... I have been out of town for an entire week and not one word of where is mommy, but daddy is gone for two hours and he is concerned... he is definitely a daddy's boy!!)


Tommy usually gets Graham going in the morning (and lets me get a little more sleep. Yes, he is amazing!) So the other day when Graham was calling me to come get him, I had to go - since he usually tells me to go away - So, I go down to his room and do you know what the first words out of his mouth were?? "Good Morning", "Hi Mommy", "Taake Milk", "Waffo", a smile even??? NOPE, it was "Where is Tommy?" So, I got him some breakfast and then I went upstairs and notified Tommy that his son wanted him... I guess there are some advantages to being the "Black Sheep Parent"... I got to go back to bed!



But regardless of who Graham is clinging to at the moment, he is my little guy and I love him dearly. He is constantly making me laugh and he is such a happy boy! (minus the toddler breakdowns)

Good day, Rough Night

I just have to vent a little...

I was having such a great day... I got up early, 6:30 - and yes, that is VERY early for me - and got so much done. We met with our case worker... and let me just say, he is a total crack up! You would never guess we were doing serious interviews because we are always laughing... gotta love Dan :)... Anyway, then I went to practice...

Dum, dum, dummmmmmmmmmmmmmm....

Well, I can at least say that it started off good... unfortunately it ended with me lecturing/yelling at them to be respectful and kind to each other... You would think that I was coaching third graders... nope, high schoolers... let me tell you, this year has been non-stop DRAMA!! I just don't get it. And I feel really bad for the girls that are always there and busting their butts to get things done, while others gossip about their teammates... gotta love teenage girls... especially 16 of them...

And I feel so bad for Tommy because he dropped me off for practice and we went a half an hour over, so when he came to get me he was waiting in the car with Graham for 45 minutes (because he is awesome and was there 15 minutes early) and I didn't even have a 20 minute drive to cool off before I got home, so he got the full run down, screaming steaming pot and all. Tommy really is amazing and so supportive. I am lucky to have him!

Anyway, I just had to get it off my chest... I am better now... cool as ice... thanks to time and an Orange Fanta.

Dancing Queen

Okay, so ever since I can remember I have always danced when I hear music. I actually remember my dad telling me to stop "tapping" on the kitchen floor. To this day you could very well catch me in the act while driving in the car. I think it is just in my blood!

So, at practice occassionally I will "pull out" a move or two. My cheerleaders look at me all weird (like I really care!), like they are embarrassed of me...

Well, two Saturdays ago we were at a competition at Grandview High School and while the judges were tabulating scores they decided to have a "dance off" with the PARENTS of the cheerleaders. Well, needless to say, my cheerleaders pulled (and I mean pulled) me down from the bleachers to the floor. At that point I submitted to my fate. ( I kept saying that I wasn't a parent of one of them....) Then the MC said they needed a male dancer from Eaglecrest... Luckily I have a great husband and he joined me on the dance floor.

So, everyone warmed up together for 20 seconds, then we had to do a solo for 10 seconds. Then all the men danced 10 more seconds, and then the women danced for the last 10 seconds. Then the crowd voted... Tommy lost by default.... a middle aged man with a beer belly tried to do a back handspring and landed on his head... we figure he deserved to win for risking his life (or his ability to use his arms and legs in the future); however, I did win... yeah I am pretty cool (actually I am still a little embarrassed).

And thanks to technology, one of my cheerleaders recorded me on her phone and put me on YouTube... don't bother searching, here it is (thank goodness technology is not so great, as she didn't get a clear recording, but yes that is me)




And even with this incriminating footage, I will keep on dancing!

About Me

I got this in an email (thanks Christina) and decided since I haven't been super inspired to blog, that I would "reply" here....


Two Names you go by:
1. Annie
2. Mom
Two things you are wearing right now:
1. Cords
2. Sweater (it's cold today!)
Two of your favorite things to do:
1. Craft-pretty much anything
2. Relaxing with Tommy
Two things you want very badly at the moment:
1. A massage - I have had a crick in my neck this whole week and it is making my neck, back shoulder hurt :(
2. A healthy child
Two favorite pets you have had/have:
1. Sophie
2. Abbie
Two things you did last night:
1. Stayed up with a sick kid
2. Listened to Tommy read Breaking Dawn aloud
Two things you have eaten today:
1. Cereal
2. Left overs from dinner last night, Garlic Butter Chicken Tortellini, YUM!
Two people you last talked to:
1. Graham
2.Tommy
Two places you have been in the past year:
1. Las Vegas (3 times)
2. Florida
Two favorite beverages:
1. Since they are selling now, Egg Nog
2. Milk or water

TWILIGHT!!!!

Has anyone else been waiting with as much anticipation for this movie as I have???
Tonight at 12:01 (or tomorrow I guess) I will be watching TWILIGHT!! FUN FUN FUN

The Sanctity of Marriage

I wrote this and have been contemplating whether or not to post it. I do feel very strongly about this topic, so I decided to do it.

Growing up as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was not a difficult task for me. While I had Mormon friends, I had many more friends that were not of my faith. Each of my friends were supportative and tolerant of my beliefs. Many of them praised my ability to use clean language, to speak kindly of others, remain virtuous, and abstain from drugs and alcohol. I had heard stories of members in different parts of the country that did not receive the same type of tolerance, and could not imagine the reason for such injustice.

It was in college that I first felt any persecution for my beliefs, or being "Mormon". My roommate and I were at a friends apartment (who was not of our religion) and he had invited his neighbors over. We were playing card games and making cookies, when it was brought up that my roommate and I were "Mormon". The neighbor began saying the most awful things about us directly based on our religion. Our "friends" were laughing at what this guy was saying. I remember looking at my roommate like "Is this really happening?", "What are we supposed to do?". At that moment I said we were leaving. We grabbed our things as quickly as possible and left. Our two "friends" ran after us, obviously not realizing how upset those comments made us.
I remember thinking "Aren't we old enough and mature enough to be past this?" I seriously thought that as people got older they became more tolerant of differences between people; whether it be religious, racial, or any other. What I have found to be true is quite the opposite.
I understand why the Lord has taught us to become as children. They hold no prejudice or dislike, they are loving and trusting.

I have decided to write this post because of all that has happen in California with the passing of Proposition 8, making marriage legal only between a man and a woman. I know that there are many members of the church that are being persecuted because they voted yes. I have read news articles and editorials regarding this persecution, and I have felt very saddened for them and for the church. The Los Angeles Temple was vandalized, due to the belief of the "No on 8" proponants that it was the fault of the "Mormons" for the law passing. It is heart breaking to see and hear of such intolerance of our American right, to believe as we like and vote accordingly.
I would like to say that, while I do not agree with a homosexual lifestyle, I am accepting of them as people. Sexual orientation, race, religion (etc) would never be the deciding factor if someone was going to be my friend, and it would NEVER cause me to do or say hateful things.

Eventhough Proposition 8 was in California, not Colorado, I feel overwhelming joy and saddness from it. Joy that people believe in the sanctity of marriage, and believe God made man and woman to be joined together. Saddness because of the hatred directed at the church and its' members.

While some people may read this post and disagree (which you absolutely have the right to) I just had to take my own stand and agree with "The Family: A Proclaimation to the World" as it states:

"[We] solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children."

I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior and Redeemer. I know that he lived as a man and did many miraclous things. I know that he bled in Gethsemane and died on the cross, for me and for all mankind. I know that His church has been fully restored as it was when he walked in Jerusalem. I know that we have a prophet on the earth today that receives revelation, just like Adam, or Noah, or Abraham. I am grateful for the knowledge of the Plan of Salvation, that I know I can live with my family forever, even after death. I am grateful that from my childhood I was taught to act as Christ would, and though I am not always perfect at doing so, I am glad that in the face of adversary I have been given strength to do exactly that.

Here are some links if you would like to read more about Prop 8 and it's effects in California.
http://www.ldsmag.com/ideas/081110hate.html
http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/commentary/california-and-same-sex-marriage

Exciting News

We are

ADOPTING!

We decided to adopt the first week in October and have been working on getting all of our paperwork in. We are pretty much just waiting for our background checks to move forward. We are really excited for this whole new adventure. It is definitely different than when we had Graham!

Our case worker keeps telling us that the families that are more vocal and proactive about adopting usually have a baby placed sooner than others. So all you who are reading this... Tell your friends! :)

I will probably start an "Adoption Blog" for our family soon (if I can keep up with two blogs...) for birth mothers to look at. You will be more than welcome to browse and share it with others (however, most of it will probably be a repeat of stuff on this blog. It is mostly for protecting our privacy).

Anyway, just wanted to share our good news!

In A Rut

There have been MANY of you who have complained about my lack of posts...

My life really hasn't been that interesting lately. Let me recap the last month

We had a few friends over to carve pumpkins and make caramel apples, it was sure a lot of fun! (Sorry no pics)

We celebrated Graham's 3rd birthday, pretty low key, with family. Let me just say he is spoiled!

I have been in full swing with cheerleading (part of the reason why I haven't been blogging), practices pretty much every day, competitions every Saturday, and emails, study hall etc. that fill up any spare time I have (or so it seems!)

Graham broke (somewhat) our camera, and I hate posting without photos... it's just not as fun! It is not a complete lost cause... but it's close (it seems we have had some problems with our electronics lately, hopefully nothing else breaks!)

So, to all my friends who have been bugging me-
I will try to be a better blogger :)

Graham Has Never...

... Colored on the wall....

Isn't funny, as soon as you say something about your kids, they prove you wrong! Last week I sat down to do some blogging, and I hear Graham come up the stairs talking. I peek around the corner to find he is all black... along with the wall. I have to admit I lost it a little bit...

What I don't understand is how I missed this.... I was sitting just to the left of this half wall (where our computer is)... I guess I was really into what I was doing - or Graham is REALLY sneaky... it is probably both!

More black marker on the wall

Caught red handed...

or black handed, whichever.

Sitting in time out, knowing he is in trouble.

I was able to calm down a little, especially when I learned it was a washable marker and it was only on the wall (not on the carpet)

After sitting in time out, we washed Graham's hands and face, and then put him to work.

Cleaning the wall himself was supposed to be punishment; however, he seemed to think it was fun... oh well, the wall got clean. I guess that is all I can ask for.

When Tommy got home that night, I said I needed a vacation. He replied "Why don't you and Graham go somewhere..." I then said "I need a vacation from him!"

We all have those moments... don't we???

A Day Out With Thomas...

...no, not my husband... but

Thomas the Tank Engine!!!

As I told you before, Graham is obsessed with trains, especially Thomas and Friends! At the Colorado Railroad Museum, in Golden, you could go have "A Day Out With Thomas". We decided this year to go since Graham would love it. We went with Larissa and Scott (who is more obsessed with trains than Graham!) and had a lot of fun.

Trying to get a picture of Tommy and Graham on the bus to the museum. Graham was trying to humor me... saying "cheeeeese" while watching a Thomas & Friends episode on the bus TV.

Family picture in front of one of the steam engines

Me and Graham sitting on the Caboose

Graham watching one of the small engines go around in the "Round House". It is quite a cool contraption! There are "handles" attached to the track so you can push it around to line up with a different track. I pushed it by myself and the worker said that I was pushing 50 Tons around... It is amazing how if you engineer something right, you can move so much weight with ease!

Graham, Me, Larissa and Scott

Graham and Scott had such a fun time together. Scott would sit with Graham and give him lessons on what all the levers did, what type of train it was, and a bunch of other train knowledge. Me and Larissa kept teasing that we both brought our "kids" to see the trains :)

Scott and Larissa had to leave early, so after they left we rode Thomas. Actually it was a train pushing a car in front that looked like Thomas (not the fully functional Thomas...) but the kids don't know the difference. The entire time we were there, Graham kept saying "Thomas", "Thomas", "Thomas". He was SO excited! This is Graham and Tommy (with Thomas in the background) right before we left to come home.

Both Graham and I fell asleep on the way home!

What Happens in Vegas...

Many people vacation in Las Vegas, our family is no different. Okay, maybe a little different. We visit at least twice a year and don't even make it to "The Strip".

Tommy is a Las Vegas Native (and we used to live there), so we always spend time with family, rather than be tourists.

However, this Labor Day weekend we thought Graham might like to see the excitement. One of my favorite "shows" is watching the Bellagio Water Show. So we drove down to the strip and parked and walked through the Bellagio to get out front to watch the show. We did make a pit stop in the Bellagio Atrium. It is an elaborate garden that changes seasonally. When we went it was all about the trains... it was fate that we were supposed to be tourists this trip (as Graham is obsessed with trains at the moment).

You can't really tell but there is a "living" train behind Tommy and Graham - made of plants and such.

The Water Show
Graham wasn't so into the show... he just wanted to go back inside and look at the trains...
One of the trains
Watching the trains go 'round and 'round and 'round and 'round and.... you get the point.

Graham "lost it" when it was time to leave, but at least we know he enjoyed himself!

p.s. Tommy's phone actually broke in half on this trip (do you think it ws because of our charging method?!?). Luckily the day we got home his new phone - a working one - came in the mail. Good timing... if you have no idea what I am talking about, look down a few posts....

Face Lift

Tommy and I had been talking about replacing our carpet. Tommy decided that over Father's Day he would do that project (I was out of town). Tommy did the front room, dining room, kitchen, and Graham's room. It took a little to get used to, but I love it! It definitely didn't look like our house for a while.

Then I decided the "red wall" finally needed to go, so about a month ago I painted it an olive green-brown.

So here are pics of our homes "face lift"

Jerry-Rigged

Tommy's phone is on its way out... actually it has been on its way out for a while. We got it about 18 months ago and it is about to die...literally! He got a really thin phone, which he thought was really cool at first. That is until it was constantly in his back pocket and actually began to bend from sitting on it... And it is bending till it breaks!

We have been trying to go the cheap way, and buy a phone off eBay. So far we have bought 2 phones and returned 2 phones. It has been a little frustrating, especially when his phone is surviving day to day. This is what we have to do to charge it... and even when we do this it doesn't always work. Yep, that is two pens held to the phone with two hair ties, with a make up applicator stick to help. Yea, pretty ghetto, I know!

Sorry Ladies...

... but I have the best and most thoughtful husband ever!

Tuesday morning I woke up to this:

And it was just to remind me that he loves me. So, you may all argue your case, but I think I will still win!

Trooper

Last Monday (Aug 11), Graham had surgery to remove his adnoids, tonsils, and to get tubes put in his ears. I was a little nervous because they had to put him "under", and I get nervous when they have to do that to me...

He did so good while we were waiting in pre-op. He pushed Tommy around in a wheel chair to pass the time. And the nurses were awesome!

They allowed one of us to go in to the surgery room, to comfort him until he was out. Initially, I wanted to go, but being the "Daddy's Boy" that he is, he wanted Tommy to go with him. However, after Tommy told me how it went, I was glad it was him and not me. I guess as soon as they rolled him into the room he could tell something wasn't right and got a really big pouty face (he didn't cry though), then they put him under via gas mask. Graham wasn't having it! Tommy had to hold his head so they could do it. The surgery was about an hour, and they came to get us promptly. We stayed in recovery for two hours and then we were allowed to go home.

Before surgery, in his cute little hospital gown... and of course his blankie

(sorry the pics are not great, they are from my phone)

Tommy holding him in recovery... When we walked in and I saw the nurse holding Graham, I almost started to cry. It was hard seeing him like that. The nurses said he was doing a really great job. He slept almost the entire two hours we were in recovery.

When we got home we found a Get Well gift from the Griffiths. Noah gave him a Thomas the Engine blanket and he LOVED it (needless to say, now he carries both blankies around with him!). Grandma and Grandpa Easton came over later that night and brought some Get Well reinforcements as well... graham crackers (which he couldn't eat right away, but he wanted to), a Stewart Little movie, and Graham's favorite movie at the moment; Charlotte's Web (not the cartoon verson either). That really cheered him up a lot!

He didn't eat/drink very much that first day... of course the only thing that didn't hurt was ice cream, so he did get a couple bowls of that!

By day three, he was up and walking around, wanting to play. The doctor said he needs to lay pretty low for 14 days... we are on day 11 and he wants to get out SO bad. I did go and work out at the rec center on Monday, so he was in the child care and he seemed to be okay... but now he has what seems to be a cold. I am not sure if it is from the after surgery shock to his immune system or if it was the child care... we won't be going back for a while, just in case.

We appreciate all the calls to check up on Graham following his surgery, we are so lucky to have such wonderful family and friends!

Happy 6th

(Okay, I meant to post this the day of, I am a loser - I know - but I thought better late than never!)

August 10 was our 6th Wedding Anniversary. It is so incredibly amazing how fast time flies by! I am so lucky to have spent it with Tommy. He is such a kind, loving, funny, passionate (and even silly - sometimes) husband. He even lets me win "arguements" (as we are both super stubborn in thinking we are both right), now that says a lot :)

Usually we have a romantic date... a nice dinner, roses, Barry White music (okay, maybe not the music, but you get the point), and we switch off years planning our date. This year was my year and I thought it would be super fun to do all the things we did BEFORE we were married.

We first started by eating dinner at one of our favorite restuarants : Damascus Grill. It takes us back to when we were still in Las Vegas, and eating at a persian restuarant. It was so yummy! Kabobs, Hummus, Tabouli, Rice, and Pita Bread.

Then, Put-Put Golf

Then finding a bench and sitting quietly together, thinking how lucky we are

After that, bowling

And to top off the night, enjoying concession food at the movie theatre, watching an action movie - no chick flicks here. And not getting out of the theatre until 2am!

And of course, lots of kissing!

It was such a fun night and I am so glad I am married to Tommy. I am looking forward to many more years with my eternal companion!

Best Buds

Earlier this summer, I watched a friends' son, Noah. I decided to take them to the zoo.

In the car, ready to go...

And this is us leaving... (Unfortunately I didn't take any "during" pics, I am really bad about that!) You would think they had a terrible time... But, really they just didn't want to leave! We left pretty early, due to the fact that we skipped the entire west side of the zoo (so we wouldn't have the "Walked Past the Train and Didn't Ride It" breakdown)

Noah is Graham's Best Bud! Everytime we leave our house he asks for Noah (since Noah is just one building away from us). They are so fun when they are together!