PULPIT POUNDER

That's what my husband called me after I gave a talk in Sacrament Meeting yesterday. I had no idea I was so forceful. I KNOW for a fact that no strong contact came from my hand to the pulpit. I have to admit that I did feel a bit preachy, but I always do when I speak. I am far from perfect and so is my family (I spoke on Strengthening Family and Home) and I know it.

Anyway, it wasn't a good feeling. I have yet to feel great about a talk I have given. Why? I can't believe I am so insecure. My husband is great at feeding my insecurities without realizing it. Here's the link to my talk on YouTube. You can watch and tell me what you think.... JUST KIDDING!! HA HA HA

RESORT SKIING

Yesterday we took off and went skiing as a family. There is a resort up above the town of Beaver called Eagle Point. It used to be Elk Meadows and before that, Mount Holly. They struggle to make the resort go because it is out in the middle of no where, but we LOVE to go there.

We feel like we have our own private resort because no one is ever there. Here we are on the chairlift all alone.

Princess P had a blast! We couldn't get her to slow down. I'm afraid she has a lot of Gordon blood in her.

Some of our friends went as well and the kids all had a blast together.

D and I on the chairlift. I don't get many photos of us together, so this one is fun (even though he's too cool to smile).

There is a long cat track to get to the other part of the resort, so Big C had to help Princess P.

This is Little C and his buddy, M, on the chair lift. It got a little cold in the afternoon, but we still had so much fun! I am so glad we went.

This is D on the terrain park (his favorite place in the whole world). I have a stack of $15 off coupons if anyone wants them. They gave them to us to pass out to our friends. I hope they can keep the resort open. It is a great place for families!

COLLEGE GIRL- PART 2

I can't look at my daughter's photos and not think of my own experiences my first year at the same college. It just doesn't seem like it was that long ago, but the photos do not lie- it was a LONG time ago...

Me (in yellow) with two of my roommates at a Buddy Dance. Love those mullets, boys!

Here I am again (right), with more roommates, listening to my Walkman (probably INXS or New Order). Don't we look stylin'?

This last one is a gem. I can't even remember why we put pantyhose over our faces, but we did and I have a photo to prove it (I am on the right again). Good times in Fern Young A-4! My room-roommate (C) is with me in all these photos. We have way more history than just college. We've know each other since we were 5 years old. It was a VERY fun year! I am so glad I had that opportunity to be in an apartment with these amazing girls who are still my friends to this day.

COLLEGE GIRL- PART 1

My cute, oldest daughter is in college. She is living in an apartment with 5 other girls and is LOVING IT. I just had to give you all an update on her life and the fun she is having.

This is a photo shoot she did with her roommates in Maple Canyon for Christmas cards. (She is the one in the skirt).

Here she is (in yellow) at a football game with some of her friends. SO much fun!

This is how her roommate studied for anatomy (she is the one on the far right). Very clever... (Definitely something we would have done- huh Crista).

During Labor Day weekend I never heard from her. She took off with some friends and flew to California! I was blown away. She didn't tell me because she 'didn't want me to worry.' (Didn't want me to tell her she couldn't go). Is that a college-age thing to do, or what? One of the whole reasons she moved out- so I don't have to know about the midnight drives to Denny's, the flights to California, the staying out all night and never coming home, etc... Works for me. I sleep so much better.

STAYING INTERESTED

I love to read. I have since I was in about 8th grade and my mom gave me my first Regency romance novel. (Romance novels were just about romance back then, not sex). I was hooked and have been ever since.

But lately I have had a rough time finding something to read (besides my beloved romance novels) that can keep me intrigued. For example:

Another 'Paranormal Teen Romance' (I read somewhere that the name of this genre is redundant- ha ha ha). It just kept going on and on without anything 'happening.' I gave up.

I didn't make it far through this book at all. Too much perversion, sex and swearing. Yuck! I wish someone had warned me.

This book seemed pointless. A man and woman are engaged and he cheats on her. I couldn't get into it, so I confess, I read some reviews on GoodReads to see if it was worth finishing. It wasn't. It ends badly- very badly.

I guess I ask too much of a book. I want decency, but also intrigue. I want romance, but I don't want to have to read the sex. I want gritty, but not bad language. I want to go somewhere and get there quickly. I want to be entertained and escape, but not somewhere depressing. (I can go watch the news if I want depressing).

"The good ended happily, the bad unhappily. That is what fiction means."- Oscar Wilde

If anyone has any great recommendations, I'm all ears...

FROM GREEN TO GREEN

My favorite color in the world is GREEN and has been... pretty much my whole life. The shades of green change, but my devotion to the hue remains the same. Case in point, my bedroom. About 6 or 7 years ago, I chose a minty/hospital scrubs green (by accident) for my room. I have lived with it ever since-- I was too lazy to paint again (we all know how much I 'love' to paint).

This time, however, I got it right. My sage green is PERFECTION- and I love it!

My children, not so much. As I painted last night I got lots of negative feedback:

• Princess P: "That's not green, it's gray."
• D: "It looks like MUD!"
• Little C: "I liked the other green better."

Well then, I guess it's a good thing it's not their room!

P.S. New carpet in the bedroom tomorrow... almost DONE!

WESTERNS

I am a sucker for a good western. Everyone who knows my aversion to Country music may find that strange, but it is a fact. My dad made darn sure we grew up with a good appreciation for westerns- especially if they had John Wayne in them. We watched many videos (probably on Beta) for Family Night, staring The Duke, himself. But that was not enough, so we also visited Old Tucson (repeatedly) and Tombstone, AZ.

'True Grit' (the Duke's one and only Oscar role) was one of our favs and I have even made sure my children have seen it (for Family Night, no less)...

... so I knew when the remake of 'True Grit' came out, that I was going to need to go see it. I also knew it wasn't going to be as good as the original, but I had to make sure they didn't ruin it either. I was not disappointed. It was too gory with a bit of unnecessary violence (what a surprise for a western), but I really liked it. The girl who played 'Little Sister' was amazing (and of course, we always enjoy Matt Damon). I approved.

MY FAVORITE JOHN WAYNE MOVIES: (in order)

1. The Searchers
2. True Grit
3. The Cowboys
4. Rooster Cogburn and the Lady
5. Rio Lobo (filmed in Old Tucson)

PAPER WREATH

A few years ago I saw these printed paper wreaths in a Pottery Barn Catalog and knew I had to make one. I LOVE BOOKS- reading them, making them, collecting them... I just knew this wreath was for me.

Last night I got around to making one. As I said, I collect books. If I go to a thrift store I come out with a least a few old books, so I had some to choose from. I also found some old sheet music for cello and piano. The old copy I had of my favorite book added some sheets to the wreath as well (just got a new copy on Amazon).

Does anyone have any feedback for me? I am going to do the ribbon as well, I just don't have it yet. Does it deserve to hang on a wall in my living room or does it still need work? I'd love some comments.

REDO

It has been a LONG week. I have had a horrible head cold, lost my voice and painted almost my whole upstairs. May I just say how much I hate painting walls? NOT my favorite activity. Anyway, we are finally on the road to recovery-- both my house and my throat.

Here is our stripped living room. I just had to take a photo.

I remember getting new carpet in our house growing up. We came home from Hawaii and it was there. Quite a different experience for my children...

Big C had the kids up at the crack of dawn pulling out the carpet and the pad, hauling it out, getting up all the staples, so I could have it ready for the carpet layers.

And here we are with the new carpet and paint. I rearranged the furniture too, so it has a new feel which is fun. I am still not sure about the new shade of red I chose...

I am happy we are almost done. We still have a bit in the bathroom, so I'll show that when it is completely done, and our bedrooms upstairs. The light is at the end of the tunnel...

CONSTRUCTION ZONE

It all began with the decision to get new carpet... now my house is torn apart! We decided to paint since the carpet was going to be out, then Big C realized he'd better get the tile in before the carpet, and now we are living in a disaster area! It will be nice when it is done, but this week has been a trial.

We pulled up the carpet for Family Night on Monday. See the lovely particle wood floor? Pretty classy.

Big C is almost done cutting the tile for the bathroom. He hates having to come home and work more after work, and I don't blame him. It really looks nice though and I am excited for that new floor in there! We've needed it for a LONG time. Well, I'm excited for it all, I am just struggling with the living conditions. I'll post after photos next week (hopefully)...

RINGING IN THE NEW YEAR

We commandeered the upper canyon road on Saturday for our traditional New Year's Day celebrations. Usually we ski, but it was so cold (I think the high was 6 f that day) we decided to just go sledding.

The road was nice and packed for us, but it wasn't super fast, just good enough to be fun. That's me in the blue coat.

Grandma G took Princess P quite a few times. They had FUN!

The cousins had a blast together.

Here they all are, piled on the 'BUS'- an extra large sled built by Big C's brother.

It was a VERY COLD day, but we all had a good time!