Sunday Mornings

Sunday mornings in our house are a frenzy filled fiesta with a little frustration on top. These mornings usually consist of the children destroying the household, yet occasionally some peaceful affection blossoms--but I emphasize OCCASIONALLY. Brett has meetings before church, so it is up to me to get everyone fed, dressed, and in the car (in that order.) Oh, and don't forget the task of upholding happiness, cleanliness, and holiness of the Sabbath Day.

One Sunday morning I walked into the kitchen to find this...


Yes, that is my garlic press. Yes, that is play-doh.

Then after cleaning it up and lecturing them, I asked them to find a less soiling, more spiritual activity. A few minutes later I walked into the office to find this...

Yep. Wilson had taped Maisy to the chair. She was completely constrained.

At this point, I pretty much felt like Maisy's expression in the above picture. Oh well. Whatcha gonna do when your garlic press is crammed with play-doh and your daughter is masking taped to a chair?!

Guitar Hero: World Tour

Introducing *Unstoppable*. (I did not choose the name of our band.) With Coug as lead...

Midori on bass guitar...
Eduardo on the drums...

And finally our number one groupie.
Right now we are playing local gigs in Texas. Next stop--Tokyo, London, Nashville etc.

Featuring:

"One Way or Another"
"The Joker"
"Livin' on a Prayer" AND
"The Eye of the Tiger"

Response to queen E

A friend has a weekly prompt on her blog. This week it was to post your favorite poem and tell the first time you read or heard it. I decided to take this challenge because I like poetry.

Infant Joy by William Blake

"I have no name;
I am but two days old."
What shall I call thee?
"I happy am,
Joy is my name."
Sweet joy befall thee!

Pretty joy!
Sweet joy, but two days old.
Sweet Joy I call thee:
Thou dost smile,
I sing the while;
Sweet joy befall thee!

*I first heard this poem when I was was in a class at BYU. It was a class on literature during the Romantic Era. It didn't mean that much to me then, but now after having children--it means so much more. It's hard to express exactly how much my children mean to me. They really are joy. (Of course, if you know William Blake, his "Songs of Experience" are a hard hit of reality on the flip side. Not my cup of tea really.)

If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain.

by Emily Dickinson

*This one--I can tell you the exact day I read it because I wrote in my journal. It was August 23, 1999. It was a couple of months before Brett and I got married. It was a hard time for me because, sometimes I felt my identity slipping. This poem always brought me back.

Sorry E! I couldn't choose between the two.

Family Pictures

So over the course of the recent holidays--we did some major family photo sessions. Fortunately, we were able to reap some pretty aesthetic pictures.
This first one is with the Gustavesons in Page. Very good-looking family!
This is me with Brett and his brothers. I know! His brothers are soooo handsome and they are available. Any takers??
Here's one of Maisy. I have one of Ace and Wil too, but I can't find them. I have to ask Brett to help me. Also I must recognize our fabulous brother who was the master mind behind all of these photos. Thank you for your astounding photography skills, Brian!


Here's one of the Ming family over Christmas. Yet, another good-looking family. We are so blessed with incredibly wonderful families. Love you guys! Thanks for making our holidays so memorable and exciting!

A Big Ol' Family Christmas

We experienced the pleasure of having the entire Ming family at our house this Christmas. There are way too many fun experiences to be able to explain them all, but here are some highlights:



Christmas Eve pizza with Grampie and Grammie

A pretty sweet rendition of "Rudolph the Other Reindeer"


An original and creative retelling of the nativity story


Stayin' up past our bedtime with the cousins


A learning-filled adventure to the Nature and Science Museum



Celebrating the grandparents' birthdays with a great cake (thanks Delaine)



Family picture adventures

Rockin' out with Guitar Hero World Tour

A jaunt to the Dallas Zoo


As you can see, we filled up our Christmas break with lots of frantic fun. We enjoyed having our family members here, and made some great memories. Happy new year!