Fun When Grandparents Come!

We took my parents out on a pontoon boat on Saturday for dinner and had a nice time enjoying the scenery and doing some fishing. Here are some pics. enjoy!

Grandpa waits paitently for the "big one" to bite his line.

Reese has been really into giving "zerbets" (raspberry on the cheek) since grandpa Hal has come to visit. She decided to give me one and even though it is a terrible picture of me, i just had to post it because I thought it was sooo cute how puffed up her cheeks got.

Awww....

The girls enjoying their dinner

Dad wishes this picture were of him bringing in a Bass and not seaweed. Reese loved the lures, she thought they were toys. At one point she kept saying, "I'm fishing too, look at me look at me, just like you mommy, look at me" Finally i looked long enough to realize she was just throwing all the lures overboard into the lake, thinking somehow she could get them back. At least they weren't expensive.
Quincy's life jacket was made for a 30-50 lb kid! She is only 15lbs and Reese is only 24lbs, so they were swimming in their jackets. Quin's was so puffy she couldn't reach to hold her bottle.

Oven Saga II Meg's Dad to the Rescue!

My air compressor died. We were reattaching the drawer tracks and it started smoking and then it totally died. I think i am cursed. Dorothy (little old lady and previous resident of our home) probably did some voodoo curse on my kitchen because i stopped forwarding her junk mail. But seriously, it's been 2 years and we keep getting junk mail for her and her dead husband (Guy) and they must have donated funds to every stinking John Hopkins, Southern Saints with Soul, March Of Dimes, AARP, Cancer Lymphoma Society, Dollars For Democrats, Red Hat Ladies, Leukemia Foundation, Bella Vista Nature Club, Old-People-of-America -Give Us-Your-Retirement-Alleluias-Chorus-Society here. (ok, I made that last one up, but the others are real and we get mail from them for her daily!) I just got tired of writing "please forward" on at least 3 pieces of junk mail a day and after 2 years having it all come back to my house still...with my please forward written on it! So now my kitchen is cursed and this is why i am stressed.


Remember that beautiful tile? We found out that because it was the control panel in the oven that died, there was no real guarantee that our oven wouldn't die on us again...making the $350+ it would cost to fix it a total gamble. PLUS, the back row of tile would have to be torn up to get access to the part of my STUPID drop-in oven that needed to be fixed.


So we decided to replace the oven...not so simple! Apparently, the size for drop in ovens was only standardized in the last couple of years, meaning that a new oven would not fit in the hole cut for the drop in--EVEN AFTER RIPPING OUT the cabinet it was set in....we were still several inches short....so I couldn't even drop the $1200 and just get a new Drop In if i wanted to!

That's my dad, he's my hero.

Soooo....we (meaning my dad) took a Saws All to the inside of my cabinets and made the hole bigger. it is EXACTLY 30 inches now...as big as i could go without tearing up more tile. I actually cried when we tore out that back row because it took me HOURS to get those measurements right and make those cuts. BUT, now it's all ready for my new oven to go in. You should have seen us "cook" dinner this weekend without a stove or oven...everything was microwave-able!

By the way, have y'all tried the country crock mashed potatoes? Awesome! The cinnamon apples also soooo good!



Here it is almost finished nice and ready for a FREESTANDING oven, which start around 400 bucks for a glass top...after i took this picture we secured the floor, sanded the sides so it has a finished edge, and painted everything with the black cabinet paint. Everything will be covered up completely by the new oven, especially the tile edge...but at least it has a floor AND it looks nice for all the crumbs that will fall down there that I never intend to sweep up.


So there you have it. My dad is the coolest dad ever. He pretty much took over-which was great because it was unexpectedly very difficult emotionally for me to tear up part the kitchen I had spent so many months remodeling. So problem solved...but watch out for a major nervous break down if anything else dies in my house. Thanks dad! And thanks mom for watching my kids the WHOLE time we worked on it...we couldn't have done it without you, either! We had a great visit with you and will miss you when you go back home.

Circle to the Left....the old red wagon!

No we aren't missing! We took a road trip up to Missouri this weekend to show my parents some church history sites since we live so close by. Unfortunately we had to RENT a van, because ours is STILL in the shop (going on 9 days now) with little hope of being finished any time soon.

We stayed at a really cute B&B in Jamesport, Mo, which is a great little town with a population of 505 people, and happens to have the largest Amish community in Mo. It happened to be town festival day, which meant lots of singing, clogging, horse drawn buggies, antiques and GOOD FOOD! yay!

These people are for real.

So are these people!

The B&B was fabulous, and only $120 for the 3 room suite! It also came with a huge breakfast (mmmm, banana pancakes) and a welcome basket with sparkling cider, bottled waters, apples, grapes, cheese, crackers and chocolate...all free! (I LOVE free stuff!)

They also had a trunk full of toys upstairs for reese to play with, a selection of movies, popcorn, playing cards (I beat mom at a mean game of 500) and a nintendo 64. It was great!

Reese loved the buggy ride we took around town.

As usual, my dad takes advantage of the opportunity to cop a feel on my mom.

That sign says, "no hitching"...i just thought it was ironic.
My mom stayed outside of this house with her camera to "sneak" a picture of the little Amish kids that had brought the buggy into town. The girl turned her head away when she saw the camera. Mom you're going to burn for stealing that poor girls soul!

After Jamesport, we drove out to Adam-ondi-Ahman. It was beautiful, and this was our view along the way! It's hard to tell from the fuzzy picture because i took it while we were driving, but those are not mustard plants, they are sunflowers!




At Adam-ondi-Ahman, we visited Tower Hill and Spring Hill. Adam-ondi-Ahman was once the Garden of Eden, and it is the place where the Savior will to meet with prophets of every dispensation when He returns for the 2nd coming. It was beautiful. There was an incredible feeling of peace there, and we truly could feel that we were walking on hallowed ground.









aHere we are at Liberty Jail. The church has built a great visitors center here. Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Lyman Wright, Alexander McRae, and Caleb Baldwin were unjustly charged with treason and imprisoned here from Dec 1838-April 1839. I can't believe the sacrifices they made to protect their families and their beliefs. The dungeon where they they were caged wasn't quite tall enough for them to stand up straight in.


After Liberty, we went to Independence to tour the church visitors center there. They had a play area that Reese just loved!




Reese and Quincy were SO well behaved. I was totally proud that they were MY kids! I guess I'm so used to having the really noisy and naughty kids when we go places...but they were totally perfect! It's amazing what a difference a grandma makes!

Comprehensive Coverage

Living in Bella Vista has really given me a new appreciation for nature. I've always appreciated the beautiful scenery our planet has to offer us, but I think that's mostly because I grew up in such a beautiful place. When I moved to Utah I learned to appreciate rivers, really really, green grass, and the mountains. And I discovered that I hate snow. I learned in Boise that I REALLY hate snow... and in Wisconsin, I learned that snow is punishment for people too stupid to not live in places like Green Bay. Most people who know me, know that when everyone else is giddy and blissful about the first snow of the year, I am at home cursing under my breath and putting on my pink sweatpants. But moving here has really helped me come to an agreement with the snow. I no longer LOATHE the "heaven sent, fluffy white, cotton blanket-like, candy-land, winter wonderland, sugar sprinkled (these are all euphemisms that snow-lovers use in their feeble attempts to change my opinion when they hear of my distaste for the weather) scenery the way I used to. Now that I live here, where it snows for 2 days, stays for 2 days, then disappears for 12 months, I can appreciate snow a little.

Unfortunately, this means I have had no place to direct all my anger for the last 8 months. I used to blame everything on snow...(well, snow and cub scouts, but I got released from cub scouts when I had Quincy) so now I REALLY don't have anything to complain about.

Until saturday night.
I have a new foe.

I used to like deer. They are meek and mild (just like the primary song about Jesus) They don't make obnoxious noise. They don't get close enough to stink up your yard. They make nice decor for my friend's nursery (yep, in arkansas it's socially acceptable to hang a deer head above the baby crib...right next to the gun cabinet...seriously.) I've eaten venison a few times at friends houses (usually disguised as taco salad or tater tot casserole) and it tastes like beef...so again, no complaints. You are probably all thinking the same thing...what problem could meg possibly have with deer? I mean, how cute are those little guys in the Christensen's yard?

I know your next thought too. BAMBI. How cute is that little fella? No one could possibly have a problem with Bambi, right?

WRONG!!!
LOOK AT MY CAR!!!

We were on our way home from the football game (and making pretty good time, too) when out trots Bambi onto the Cherokee Turnpike! Oh yeah, he froze LIKE A DEER IN THE HEADLIGHTS...what a stupid line...(remember I hate deer now). So Aaron slams on the brakes and veers way over to the left to avoid hitting him, then here comes Bambi's twin brother! He ran right into us. We rammed right back into him going 50 miles an hour. To quote Lynda, we didn't hit the deer, the deer hit us!

The driver's side door no longer opens, the grill is trash, the hood is trash, the fender is trash, the bumper is trash, the headlight is lying somewhere on the 412, along with a lot of paint, car pieces and probably a DEAD DEER. We wouldn't know, we didn't even stop. Sadly, we could have brought him home...our neighbor probably would have cooked him up in his Fry Daddy, along with some deep fried squirrel, okra, and hush puppies for us on the side.


Anyway, the van will be in the shop for 5 or 6 business days getting fixed since, according to my insurance company, it is technically "undriveable" in it's current condition.

I hate deer. They are stupid...we counted a total of 20 deer right on the edge of the highway on the way home that night. Of course we were terrified we were going to hit another one so we drove pretty slow the rest of the drive and didn't get home until after 2 am.

Another reason to hate deer...they ate all the blackberries of the bushes in my backyard, and they ate the Hostas back there too. Stupid deer. Also, bambi was stupid too... he was friends with a skunk. NOBODY likes skunks.

FYI -in case you come into a situation in the future where you have the opportunity to swerve into a ditch, tree, or fence to avoid hitting a deer. JUST HIT THE DEER. Your insurance will only give you comprehensive coverage if you actually hit the deer. If you hit something else to avoid hitting the deer you will have to pay a higher deductible for collision. Sad for the deer, lucky for us... we will only have to pay 100 bucks to fix all the damage he did. stupid deer.
SO i guess my fight with snow is over, i have a new scapegoat for all the problems in the world.

Rah! Rah! Rah Rah Rah!

"Rise all loyal Cougars and hurl your challenge to the foe.

We will fight, day or night, rain or snow.
Loyal, strong, and true
Wear the white and blue.
While we sing, get set to spring.
Come on Cougars it's up to you. Oh!

Chorus:
Rise and shout, the Cougars are out
along the trail to fame and glory.
Rise and shout, our cheers will ring out
As you unfold your victr'y story.

On you go to vanquish the foe for Alma Mater's sons and daughters.
As we join in song, in praise of you, our faith is strong.
We'll raise our colors high in the blue
And cheer our Cougars of BYU!
Rah! Rah! Rah Rah Rah!
Rah! Rah! Rah Rah Rah!
Gooooooo Cougars!"

How about those matchie-poo t-shirts we're sporting? Reese and Quincy have some too, but some friends of ours offered to keep the girls for us, so we favored leaving them at home. Thank goodness we did, it was a very late night...but i have to say i was hoping to get a photo of us all in our matching shirts for the scrapbook. Aaron always makes fun of those families who wear matching old navy t-shirts on 4th of July, so i know being "twinners" for the game was a huge sacrifice for him that probably wouldn't have happened at all were it not for the cougar pride deep inside him. (Plus, i threatened to wear a Boise State shirt if he chose not to participate)



The game was on saturday night...the same night as our stake conference adult session. Our stake president actually made a comment regarding the game in a leadership meeting the previous week and said, "I am aware there is a big football game the same night as the saturday night adult session, but I know the faithful will attend" ...Aaron figures that statement can be interpreted either way, and we had our game tickets long before conference was scheduled. We spotted the 2nd ward bishop at the game, the centerton ward bishop, our ward high council representative and eighteen other families from our stake at the football game, so we may not have made the right choice, but we did make a popular one!


And this is why big hair should really be confined to the states of Utah and Texas...nice view, huh? The only thing more annoying than her big-mormon-mom-hair was the fact that she harmonized with the cougar fight song. Seriously, who does that?

Sadly, the cougars ended up losing a very close game, but we had a great time and it was definitely worth the trip to Tulsa...it gave us plenty of time to think about the poor little deer we hit going 50 miles an hour on the drive home. more to come on that...

Appliance Revolt!

My oven died, and I think I killed it. My garden produced a zillion tomatoes this year, so I decided to be all domestic and can them when aaron's mom was here to teach me how. (thank you Lynda! I now have 19 beautiful jars of stewed tomatoes in my food storage closet...am I Suzy Homemaker or what?!)

Anyway, we were almost finished and my stove started making this terrible buzzing noise, so we turned off the burners...and now my oven beeps. After 37 seconds it beeps once and flashes E2 F1 on the display. THEN, 24 seconds later it beeps 3 short beeps, and sometimes then the display says E1 F0. My range works fine, but the oven doesn't work AT ALL, and the beeping is driving me MAD! I looked up the owners manual online and it says that if you have a letter F followed by a number you need to call the whirlpool service people.

Sooo today i have someone coming to look at it today to give me a "diagnosis". The REAL problem? When I grouted my beautiful new countertop i think i cemented the range top in place. It is a built in, so i guess i didn't realize that even hard-wired build in range/ovens can slide out so you can service them when they break. oops. Looks like i'll be ripping up a row of tile so we can fix the oven....if it can be fixed! The cheapest slide in that i have seen so far is $950...but most run anywhere from $1200-$1800! That better be one fabulous oven if i have to replace it!

Oh! And my dishwasher stopped working suddenly too! Now it only runs if you put it on the pots and pans setting...which i guess i can live with, but it still takes WAY more water and energy than necessary.

So there you go, my appliances hate me! I'm just hoping for a positive (meaning fixable) diagnosis from the oven guy this afternoon. He'll be here sometime between the hours of 1 and 3 today.

"they survived on wild berries, Locust and honey"

THIS is what is keeping me awake at night! Not just the sound they make...but also the nightmare that one might take a jackhammer out from behind his enormous wings, drill through my bedroom window and then eat me alive. This guy was on our front porch...i'm certain he died waiting for one of my kids to go outside unsupervised, so he could swallow her whole and disappear unnoticed. The plate is there for a visual effect of just how big these suckers are. Now i understand why we have such big birds here.

Blurkers Day

Blurker: {BLRR-krr} noun: one who regularly reads blogs of others without making oneself known to the blog author. See also: sidetracked bloggers, aaron and meg's invisible fanclub, people who can't live without me, "anonymous said...", everyone i go to church with, and people who consider themselves not funny enough to come up with witty comment for my very witty posts.


It's ok, step 1 is admitting you might have a problem. I too was once a blurker until I started my own blog. After that it seemed like every conversation I had with anyone included the words, "i was reading your blog...", or "oh yeah, i read about that on your blog", or "everyone at my office reads your blog" or "my sister in japan reads your blog"...you get the idea. After that i vowed to show myself to all blogs i read (yes, even I don't know the person. Let's face it, blogger. com has provided everyone in America with access to their very own stalkers)
So as a tribute to our many friends, family, enemies, fans, potential stalkers, and everyone else who might be reading Aaron and Meg's Blog...I hereby dedicate today as Blurkers Day!

Seriously...who actually does read our blog? How did you find us? Do I know you or are you just an adoring fan of our commentary on the bizarro things that happen to us from day to day? Are we related? Do we know the same people? Were we friends long ago? Do you want to be our friends? Do you babysit? Blurkers, show yourselves so the rest our readers can blurk on your blog as well...who knows what we might be missing! (I leave comments.)

Creepy Things

After several encounters with REALLY BIG unidentifiable creepy crawly things, I've decided to start a new series to showcase all the Creepy Things we run into down here in the sticks.




We've run into several versions of this little fellow. Yes, that IS a spider. And YES, his body IS the size of a Quarter...and YES, I'm quite sure he could eat one of my children if they were to get stuck in his web. That is a cricket he is feasting on in the picture.





We watched this little brother take down a cicada twice his size one evening while we ate supper. Talk about a redneck dinner theater! It was like watching wild kingdom live. The only thing more entertaining was watching Aaron try to kill him without getting attacked. I looked him up on the internet and he is a Yellow Spotted Orb Weaver Spider and relatively harmless (meaning you won't necessarily die if he bites you)

More to come...the locusts are out...as soon as we catch one i'll post a picture...they look like something right out of star wars. Kind of gives a whole new meaning to that old music video by The Cure.

Reese Retaliates

Remember that scene in Daddy Daycare when Eddie Murphy goes into the bathroom after the kid says "i missed" and he just gets that look of horror on his face and the theme from Psycho is playing in the background?

Today Reese woke up after only napping for an hour. That is VERY out of the ordinary. Plus, she was hysterics that even I couldn't have interpreted. But when I finally did recognize a word and heard that the word was "YUCKY" I decided to go in and check things out. My reaction could have been replaced with the scene from daddy daycare and at that moment i actually wished i WAS Eddie Murphy because in the movie there really was no mess and in the movie Eddie wouldn't have had to clean it up because there would have been some film school intern to do it, and in the movie Eddie Murphy's DAUGHTER WOULDN'T HAVE POOPED IN HER BED AND FINGER PAINTED ALL OVER THE WALLS AND CRIB WITH IT!!!

I couldn't even speak. I picked up Reese with two fingers and carried her straight into the tub (clothing and all) and scrubbed her down. I refused to speak to her...mostly because i feared that this would be the moment my daughter would learn every expletive imaginable and then she would later use them against me....like by shouting them as they passed her the sacrament in church tomorrow, or while I hold her on my lap during my next recommend interview. So i remained silent as we cleaned up the (NASTY GROSS) mess, aired out her room, and I put her back to bed. I wonder if she woke up later thinking she'd dreamed the entire thing. I guess we'll never know.

Oh, and if you're reading this and thinking that the only children who would play with their own poop are the kids who end up in therapy later in life, do me a favor by keeping your comments to yourself so I can hold back a few more expletives.

What a day! I'm sure this is her form of retaliation I cut off the last chunk of latex on her pacifier last week and now all she has is a little stump that she holds between her lips. Reese, justice is served.

Sleepytime Conversations...Trespassers!

Meg: "Aaron, come to bed."

Aaron: "Ok, I'm just waiting"

Meg: "waiting? ...for what?"

Aaron: "the trespassers"

Meg: "Aaron, wake up. Come to bed"

Aaron: "SHHH! ...they're coming. Leave the light on."

Meg: "Don't shush me. wake up. you're talking crazy in your sleep."

Aaron: "HEY. MEG. QUI-ET"

Meg: "Seriously?! don't get all mean, just come to bed."

Aaron: "you should take some of that advice yourself."


Meg: "Hey Aaron, the trespassers are coming."

Aaron: "Uh yeah, I know....write their names down."