The Pitcher's Mound

New Year, New Dreams

2012-01-02T05:19:00.001-07:00

Ok. So the dreams are not so new but I hope that this is the year of great adventures! Whether the adventure is small or grand, they can all be great! I am very much a dreamer, not a resolution maker. I love to reflect on the past year and what will come with the new year.
I videoed the kids about this past year and what they are excited about this year: Disneyland! Yes we are kicking off 2012 right by going to California in February, we all can't wait! It will be a great adventure!
So adieu to 2011 and hello to 2012! It will be a great adventure I can just tell!

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Top Ten 2011

2011-12-23T10:07:00.001-07:00

We have been incredible blessed this year. So here are the top ten highlights from 2011.

1. Justin being hired at Midvale Elementary as an assistant principal.
2. Justin being called as bishop for our ward.
3. Our month long summer vacation, which included Starnespalooza, Yellowstone, and rafting in Wyoming.
4. Justin rafting the middle fork of the Salmon River and then catching rafting fever.
5. Ashley rafting the Rogue river with her mom and also catching the fever.
6. The boys starting Kindergarten!
7. Justin riding in the Rockwell Relay. A crazy adventure with great friends.
8. Ashley finding her love of running and creating a wonderful friendship because of it.
9. Taking the kids on their first multi day rafting trip in October. They loved it, Maci constantly says, "Grandmas boat fun!"
10. Celebrating Makayla's birthday by going to California and getting an American Girl Doll.

We have been so blessed this year and the scripture D&C 82:3 where much is given, much is required has played through my head constantly lately. I know that with all our blessings it is important that we give back to help bless the lives of others. I love this time of year where I can reflect and feel the love of our Heavenly Father.

Merry Christmas!

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Rockwell Relay

2011-06-13T11:51:00.001-06:00

We had too much fun doing the Rockwell Relay! It is 530 mile bike relay of some of the most intense terrain one can ride. It was epic!
Some of the highlights:
Getting to drive over 20 hours of the 33 hour ride!
Watching Justin fly down Cedar mountain- love watching him do something he loves.
Meeting new people and becoming great friends.
Pretending to be a nurse for road rash kid. Really all I did was hand Danielle band aids!
Seeing a miracle.
Seeing God's hand in all the little things that led to that miracle.
Knowing my kids were happy and safe while Justin and I acted like teenagers again!
Staying up, getting no sleep and having a great time doing it.
Watching people pack and unpack the car 150 million times-it never got old!
Winning a 6 month supply of vitamin water for a silly game! The best part was "shorty" contesting my win, he must have really wanted that v water!
Cow v. Deer who would win? It still remains a mystery.
Sleeping in a koa cabin like it was summer camp.
POONIS!
And much more! That I am sure I am forgetting because I am still very sleep deprived.

Thanks for letting me tag along Team Lucky Girl it was so fun!

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It's TIME!! GO VOTE #25!!

2011-04-30T09:15:00.002-06:00

Okay so here it is time to vote tonight at midnight!

Head over to Vintage Revivals (click on link above) and vote #25.

Don't make me beg people, because I will, I am NOT too prideful.

Okay Fine, Here I am on my hands and knees begging you, pretty, pretty please with sugar on top!

Go and vote!

Funky, Fun and Fabulous- For a Fantastic Giveaway

2011-04-21T09:28:00.011-06:00

Take my CRAP and make it CRAPTASTIC!

That is what I am looking for Fun, Funky and all around FABULOUS. Don't you love alliteration- it makes me feel clever, cute and quirky! (there it is again!)

Okay so I am entering a giveaway that I SO desperately want to win and totally feel deserving of (but don't we all!!!). Over at Vintage Revivals (love it, love it, love it) Mandi is going to pick one lucky gal and redo a room for her! (Insert flailing arms and me yelling "Oh pick me, pick me!!")

Do see all the chicken decor- yeah we now OWN chickens so I am TOTALLY over chickens!

So there is the room: A great room- that ain't so great!

It has LARGE and in charge walls that we should just call Marge! Large Marge sent me!
It has annoyingly small cabinets with a HUMUNGO space above it. That I have no ideas what the H to do with!
It also has a lot to hold (people and furniture) and it is not huge.
Do you see this beauty- I love it and it is super useful but I am too afeared (that is Shakespeare for scared) to redo it.

So this is where Super Mandi comes to the rescue. Is it a Bird, is it a PLANE, No it is Super Mandi! (ps if I win I will totally make Mandi a cape because every super hero needs a good cape!)

But mostly I am tired of it and it is BORING!
These curtains:

yep those things are older then my first born! ok so ALL the curtains in this space are that old. Sad I know you can shed a few tears for me too!

Isn't she stinkin' cute!

I made them looking like this:

7 months along! Yuck I know!! look I am handy even when preggo!

Why have I not done anything in the last 7 years to update my space well lets be honest my husband does this:
He doesn't stand on desks, he teaches!

So we don't have a ton of this:

And we have 4 monsters to feed!

So here it is I need me dear friends to go vote and help me get Mandi to mi casa! Because I love her guts and I know she would love mine and we would be BFF's- I can just feel it!

April Fool's

2011-04-03T13:27:00.001-06:00

We celebrate April first by having an April fool's dinner. This crazy tradition started by my sister when she was 9 or 10. We don't eat on plates, use weird utensils, and drink out of measuring cups. We have fun talking and playing silly april fool's jokes. The best part of this meal is that it is reminiscent of the worst mission meal Justin ever had.

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Converse love Affair

2011-03-30T12:04:00.001-06:00

I have a bit of a love affair with Converse. I always have. I had a pair of baby pink ones in high school. They were hard to find but when I did I wore them every day. I loved them. They smelled and were holey but oh how I loved those shoes.
I still have the same feelings about those shoes but now my girls wear them. Makayla has had two pairs both bright pink and she wants high tops for her next pair. Hers are wearing out! Maci has a pair of green and pink high tops. Oh there is nothing cuter then watching Miss Maci run around in those! I get many compliments for her cute converse. She wears them with dresses, pants and about any outfit. I love them on her!

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2011-03-14T09:01:00.001-06:00

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Birthdays!

2011-03-14T08:49:00.001-06:00

CelebratedWe a had a small birthday celebration for Makayla on her birthday. She wanted a spaghetti dinner, so that is what we had. She had a few friends over for cake and ice cream. A good time was had by all! One of our family traditions is the birthday hat and lights. We have always celebrated with them. We had a birthday plate that had a sad end but one day I will replace it.
For my big 31 it was a pretty simple day. My family made me my favorite breakfast, french toast! The night before I said to justin since you did not get me anything you should au least buy me flowers. I had a beautiful bouquet of flowers for my birthday. But I was VERY wrong about not getting something from him. He is a turkey! He is never been one to surprise, he doesn't keep a secret well. I was a TOTAL surprise! My present was on my plate at breakfast and when I opened it I was shocked! He gave me a Kindle. Yeah I know best hubby ever! What was so surprising is that I usually know when something is up but not this time. His cover story was that his school was going to purchase a class set and start a pilot program using e readers for curriculum. I was on board and thought it was a great idea. I told him if I were to get a reader it would be the Kindle. So alas a Kindle now resides in the pitcher home. Oh how I already love it!
I taught in relief society. Most of you are thinking not a fun birthday gift but I love teaching and love the opportunity to study in depth on gospel subjects. I really do love my calling! It was a great day at church. I was wished many happy birthdays and the talks and lessons were awesome!
After Justin came home from his meetings we headed over to my parents. We had a delicious corn beef dinner and a fun birthday celebration. I love my family! I received many birthday calls.
It was a great day!

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California dreamin'

2011-03-07T13:56:00.001-07:00

Before I had children I dreamed about taking my daughter to the American Girl Store. I thought of how exciting and fun it would be with byu little girl. After I had Makayla I looked forward to the year she would be old enough to enjoy a doll. We decided 7 was the perfect age. So this was the year. My mom and I have been planning this trip for closer to a year.

I wanted to surprise Mak so we did not tell her. We picked her up from school and checked her out. She was full of questions. I handed her a box that had a picture of an american girl doll. She instantly knew where we were headed. She was way excited! When we arrived friday morning after an over night pit stop in Vegas we arrived at Newport. Friday we played on the beach ate at Bajio and swam at the hotel. I enjoyed reading and the weather! Saturday was the big day! We woke up and had breakfast on the beach. Makayla collected sea shells and played in the surf. It was a Wonderful morning! After our morning at the beach we went back to the hotel to change for the American Girl Store. My mom gave makayla a dress that matched the dolls. So cute! We headed to LA and like any day on california freeways it was packed. But we arrived all in one piece!

The store is AWESOME! It was amazing and fun. When you oh and aah over the catalog for so long the store is incredible. We walked around and Makayla decided on her doll, Ruthie. Makayla also bought another outfit that she had been saving for. We then had a late lunch there also. We ate on the balcony and had a lovely lunch with a fun question game. Makayla was sung to and blew out a candle. It was so fun. We were there for more then 3 hours shopping and we could have stayed longer. After the drive back we played at the pool and with Ruthie. Makayla loves her and dress her and play with her and do her hair.

I would say it was a successful trip and birthday! I could not have dreamed up a better birthday celebration!
Love you Mak Happy Birthday!

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Valentine's Day Traditions

2011-02-14T19:32:00.001-07:00

I don't love Valentines day. It is NOT my favorite holiday. But I have traditions that I love. Since Justin and I moved to Utah we celebrate our day of love on the slopes. I love this tradition we only missed one year because we had a nursing 2 month old. I love it because it is fun and not mushy-not a huge fan of the v day fan fare. The second tradition that I love is the valentines under the plate for our family dinner. We all make valentines and slip them under each persons plate. I get each person a gift and put it under the plate along with a little love note. Then I fill our candy buckets full of yumminess. Because lets be honest valentine's is all about the candy.
I love these traditions! We grew up doing the plate thing since I was a little girl. I remember very vividly of getting so excited to peek under the plate.
Maybe I like Valentines Day more then I thought!

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Body Parts

2011-02-07T12:52:00.001-07:00

There is nothing funnier then talking with your children about body parts. The boys have had some interest lately and today as I was changing Maci we had a funny conversation. Kaiden asked what Maci's penis was called. I told him and we moved on with our day. About 10 minutes later Keagan said to me, "mom you have a china and we have a penis and a poonis." I tried so hard to not laugh in his face. I quickly corrected that he does NOT have a poonis just a bum. I think about it now and I still chuckle!

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Maci's Shiner

2011-02-07T09:55:00.001-07:00

Poor Maci got her first shiner this week. She was on Makayla's bed and hit her eye on the headboard. It was instantly puffy. So she now looks like she has eye shadow on one eye. Hopefully it will be gone soon.

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Being comforted!

2011-01-27T10:18:00.001-07:00

Well I have been feelling a bit disheartened, overlooked, and lost in the mix. (I can share this because I know I only have about 3 people read this blog anymore. Which is fine with me!) I know this happens to us moms but it was really getting to me. So you know what, I went to enrichment (or meeting or whatever you want to call it) and the Spirit touched me. I knew that moment that God loves me and knows me and understands my needs. I am so grateful to have poured out my heart and be comforted. I am thankful for amazing women who could be God's hands and help comfort me.

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Ten years, really?

2011-01-20T10:50:00.001-07:00

Yes it has been ten wonderful years. Justin and I celebrated our 10 year back in December. We had a wonderful day snow shoeing. We went out to dinner and had a quiet evening at home with no kids.
I asked Justin what he has learned over the last 10 years and he said that I was a better woman then most. I tried to dig further but no luck. But I can tell you I have learned a ton the last few years. Like learn to let go, don't be so critical, have fun and just be in the moment, it doesn't have to always be done my way, love more deeply then I new possible, to say I am sorry, to say I was wrong (that doesn't happen often) and ask for what I need. I can't say if it was just being married or if motherhood also helped but I can say I have grown. I am so grateful for my best friend and for all that we have been through. Love you Pitcher!

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Maci's First Year

2010-12-04T08:47:00.005-07:00

From this:To this:
In one short Year!

Maci turned one!

Maci's Milestones

Rolling- 6 weeks for her tummy

Crawling- 6months

Teeth- bottom two came in at 7 months

Standing- pulling herself to stand at 7 months

Talking- 7 months

Walking- First steps at 10 months but a full walker at 11 months

Favorite Things

Food- anything, she loves to eat

People- Her dad and siblings but her favorite non-family are the neighbors Kathy and Audra (they give her food)

She loves her brothers and sister. She gets excited to see Makayla when she comes home from school. Maci runs to her dad when he is around.

Words she says- Dad, Mom, Lala (makayla), What's that?, No, Down, Night night, bye, hi and she will copy just about anything you say.

Maci folds her arms during prayers. She leads the music when people sing. She is a happy and funny baby to be around.

Nickname-Destroyer

Loves her blankie!!

Maci brings so much joy!

I am Grateful!

2010-11-17T21:58:00.002-07:00

There are so many wonderful things to be thankful for during this season. You name it I could put it down but I won't. Every year I put a large piece of paper on the door and the kids are able to write or draw the things that they are thankful for during the entire month. This is a fun tradition and love that it is sometimes things that are unexpected that at that moment we are most thankful for. Here are a few of the things thus far the kids are grateful for: Keagan is thankful for his knees. He is glad that they bend so he does not have to walk with straight legs. Yes me too! Kaiden is grateful for our house so we are not homeless. Me too! Makayla is thankful for this beautiful Earth. Yep! I love to see the funny little things that they are thankful for. They are too cute! Even the chickens made the list.

I love to read all that everyone is grateful for and hope that all can have a wonderful and thankful season!

My First Born

2010-03-06T18:08:00.002-07:00

My baby that made me a mom turns 6. I can hardly believe that I went through the difficult, terrifying labor 6 years ago with Makayla. I love that girl to pieces. She is sweet, fun, loves to help, and be active. She is so like her dad in so many ways but looks alot like me okay so she acts like me too! I hold Maci and can't help but think of when Mak was this little (they look identical to each other). She has always kept us busy and on our toes.

Her are some of her favorite:
Food- green beans
Place to visit- any ski resort
Book- Fancy Nancy
Movie- Hannah Montana
Sport- skiing but after watching the Olympics she was digging the ice skating
Singer- Taylor Swift

When she grows up she wants to be a teacher like her dad- but this changes on a daily basis.
She looks forward to learning to play the violin, skiing more, and when she gets to ride her bike to school and summer to play on the neighbors slide.

She keeps me laughing and pulling my hair out at the same time.

I watch her grow and can't help but wish that time would slow down so that I can keep her little a bit longer!

I love you LaLa! Happy Birthday!

Random Thoughts on Music

2010-02-20T05:19:00.003-07:00

I love music. I grew up in a home with music. I have been blessed to have parents with amazing voices. My mom would play the piano for FHE and the Christmas talent show. My sister was blessed with the gift of music. She at a young age learned to write music and play her songs on the guitar. She too has a beautiful voice. I over the years have been surround by many friends that have been blessed with musical talents. I however was not blessed with such a talent- oh I can sing and hear notes I have what one would call a choir voice decent but I ain't no soloist. I over the years I have COVETED (yep bad I know) the musical talents of others. There is a story in the scriptures about burying your talents- I wished many times that I could dig up others and steal their talents. Hey if they are not going to use them why can't I use it.

Nothing speaks to your soul like music. Nothing makes you enjoy cleaning like music. Nothing can make your body move like music. Music makes me happy, sad, feel the spirit, remember moments, and been a great companion. Simply I love music.

My favorite singer- My dad. One time he sang the song "His Hands" (also one of my favorite church songs) and Bret who is deaf was signing the song while my dad sang. It was beautiful, one of my favorite performances by my dad. At the end Bret told my dad that he heard him sing it still brings a tear to my eye when I remember that moment.

My Makayla so badly wants to learn to play the violin. I am thrilled! My kids will all be learning a musical instrument- it makes you smart and good for when they go on missions. I learned to play the piano (7 years of lessons) I am not good- seriously. I can plunk it out usually right hand only but at least I know notes on a sheet of music. I think I was a great disappointment to my teacher and parents- one word EVERGREEN!

So to all you with musical talents PLEASE SHARE THEM! Use them or I may come along and steal it. You bless the lives of so many around you with your talents. Yes I wish I had a musical talent, I don't, but I am grateful to be able to hear the talents of others and even more grateful that people are willing to share their talents to bless my life!

Random thoughts on music- Don't know where it came from it just came to my head and I couldn't sleep!

Maci's Blessing Day

2010-02-08T16:41:00.006-07:00

Our Sweet baby Maci!

We blessed Maci on Sunday. It was a wonderful day. We had family and friends over before the blessing and had a nice spread of soup, salad, yummy rolls, and lots of treats! Maci was so cute in her beautiful dress and bonnet. When Justin was blessing her Maci rolled out of there arms almost falling on the floor good thing there were lots of arms to stop her. Not just once but three different times (it is because she tries to sit up when she is laying down). Our Bishop ended up holding her head down so she wouldn't try rolling out of their arms again. It is a Pretty fun story to tell her when she is older.
The girls sweet little hands. I love them to pieces! My mom made matching bracelets "sister bracelets" like Grandma Arloa and her sister Aunt Sue.

We appreciate all those that could make it but many people were missed also!

Hopefully more pics to come I have to get these from other people because the camera still hasn't come home.

2 months

2010-02-05T03:53:00.002-07:00

Our baby turned 2 months this week. I can hardly believe it- I had to box up her 0-3 month clothes and it makes me a bit sad to see those go. Well here are her stats:
24 inches (75th percentile)- don't ask me where she got her height Justin and I are both short.
12 lbs (50th percentile) Justin's reaction, "there must be some HUGE babies out there."
She rolls over from her tummy, talks ALL the time, loves to smile and generally so happy, tries to sit up while laying down and is pretty much amazing. She is healthy and doing well. We love her and enjoy her so much- I wish the time would slow down so I can enjoy the newborn and baby a little bit longer. I am relishing every moment with her knowing she is our last baby and it makes me sad to think about that.

This is where I would post pictures of our cute bug but alas the camera has sprouted legs and walked away to never be found again SO I am now saving up my pennies to replace my camera. So if anyone finds it send it back to its home!

It's a Wonderful Life

2010-01-08T15:29:00.002-07:00

This year I have "resolved" to be more grateful in all that I do. I tend to be a little critical and am tired of that being a dominating characteristic. So in that effort I am here to say I love my life! There are many reasons for this:
1. I have a wonderful family. I am grateful for my 4 sweet, healthy kids. I am grateful for my husband that works incredible hard for us. I am grateful for my extended family- they rock!
2. I have the gospel in my life.
3. I have great friends that I can count on near and far. They also help me to be a better person.
4. I have a home. A place to protect us from the world our safe haven.

So those are just a few of the many things I am blessed with to make my life so wonderful!

Baby Announcement

2009-12-24T01:32:00.002-07:00

The baby announcement that I created and may or may not be sent out!

Maci's Photo Shoot

2009-12-23T22:52:00.004-07:00

Just a few from her photo shoot of our beautiful baby Maci!

Here is Maci at one week old. We are just all enjoying her so much!

She is HERE!

2009-12-02T14:01:00.003-07:00

MACI ELIZABETH PITCHER

Maci Elizabeth Pitcher finally graced us with her presence on 12-1-09 at 12:03pm.

She came in at 8lbs 9oz, 21 inches long. She is a big girl and oh so cute! I never would have thought that my baby would have out weighed my others by 2 and 3 pounds! Maci is healthy and such a good baby. The delivery was rough but we got through it with out medication. Maci came out sunny side up and that was not fun for anyone! I will post the whole story later!

We are all just loving her every second!

The kids are so excited to finally have their sister here! Kaiden is even dreaming of her!

2009-11-25T13:29:00.003-07:00

I am STILL Pregnant!!

Fort Knox is keeping Maci in for more time- I suppose for bad behavior. My doctor has schedule the induction for Dec. 4th (he won't let me go past 10 days over due) lets hope I have her before then.

Black Friday

2009-11-23T13:08:00.003-07:00

I am a little bummed that this baby didn't come last week. Not because I am still pregnant but because my favorite shopping day of the year is coming upon us which means I most likely won't be able to go. I LOVE Black Friday- seriously the crazies, the good deals, the running and grabbing, the shouting and anxiety of getting what you want, the plotting and planning. Oh it just makes me so excited just writing that, oh but wait if this baby comes before that day I PROBABLY won't be able to make it. But oh if this baby isn't here yet yes I will be the overdue crazy pregnant lady running through Target! Seriously so here is hoping that she waits until Friday at noon when the madness is over and I can venture to the hospital with all my good deals neatly stashed away! For all out there that enjoy Black Friday like I do- elbow a little extra hard just for me!

Our Halloween Happenings

2009-11-04T21:32:00.007-07:00

We had a great week of Halloween. My mom is so cute she did a Halloween dinner for us and it was super cute and gross. She made mummies , head stones, coagulated blood with veins, roast, eyes and juice, and more. It was so fun and tasty!! The kids loved the eyeballs. My dad was the best when he chowed down on his coagulated blood and veins (red jello with worms) it was just the perfect texture to gross anyone out. I love my mom because she puts so much work into all the different holidays- when I grow up I want to be just like her. We also enjoyed a chilly and rainy afternoon at Cornbellies. The kids loved the corn maze and wrestling with the corn stalks. It was fun to hang out with just us and spend sometime together.

Justin rode the mechanical bull. He did pretty good but I am glad that he is no cowboy!

The kids loved the slides. I think Justin did too!

My pirate crew! They were all so cute. It is always a bit stressful trying to get everyone fed and in their costumes all the while the doorbell keeps ringing but it was super fun. My fam came over and had award winning chili, games, and fun. It was a great night to trick or treat the weather was SO nice! This is Brody my nephew (Clay's baby) is he not the cutest chubby baby monster ever. He also had is monster walk down! We just love having him around he is SO much fun! He went trick or treating with the kids for a few houses and then was done but oh so cute!!!

Field Trip

2009-10-19T10:30:00.003-06:00

I was able to chaperon Makayla's class on their field trip to the Discovery Museum. The kids had so much fun. We had a great bus driver and the kids were all so excited about their first bus ride. Makayla has been on a bus before with her dad so it wasn't that exciting but still very fun for her. But when I was sitting there the seats were SUPER tiny I don't think I have grown that much since I have been on a bus. Maybe these were special elementary school buses.

I am trying to get as much volunteering in as I can before the baby comes. I just love her teacher and think she is so perfect for Makayla. I love having a kid in school because I love school and it is fun to view it from the outside. I love watching Makayla blossom and become more academic but she is still the total socialite.

In an effort to be a better person (in many areas of my life) I am going to try to blog once a week. The better person thing probably won't stick but maybe being a better blogger will.

Funny Fortune

2009-07-03T06:38:00.002-06:00

Well not too long ago I got a fortune that read,"A short stranger will be entering your life." A funny fortune indeed but it is all too true. Short stranger #4 will be joining our family at the end of November. We are all thrilled. I had my ultrasound yesterday and the baby (YES there is only one thank goodness) is healthy and perfect! Plus, it is a GIRL! We now round out the family and Makayla is SO excited. I am glad that Heavenly Father listened to her prayers because I am sure she would have felt like returning it if it was a boy. Plus Kaiden and Keagan wanted to name a boy baby Tractor and I didn't want to have explain that that name just wouldn't work. I know many people will think we are crazy because we will have 4 children 5 years and under but hey you have to be a little daft to have children in the first place right! So here is to our short stranger #4 Maci.

One day older and wiser??

2009-03-14T08:03:00.002-06:00

Well, I am officially 29! The remaining year in my twenties. It is unbelievable how did I get here?? My sweet younger sister said to me the other day "Are you sad that you are so old?" You see she is 21 and doesn't realize that with age you only get better (I guess I am like wine!) Well I thought for a minute because my initial reaction was well yes but I then realized that in the last 29 years I have accomplished a lot. I have done all the many things that I have set out to do in my life in these past few years, 29 is not that old! I have graduated college, become a home owner, taught school, became a mom to 3 amazing kids, helping my hubby get his masters, became a ski instructor(I have now taught for 6 seasons), and many of the smaller milestones of personal growth. All these wonderful things I did while I was in my early twenties so do I FEEL old No Way I still feel like I am 21 (my mom tells me that is how she feels too). When I look in the mirror and I see the few strands of grey hair (I have had them since I was 22, thanks mom and dad) and the older and wiser face- I am not sad because I have accomplished so much and proud of what I have done! So here is to new goals and accomplishments and to many wonderful and OLD years!!

Need a good laugh

2009-03-03T09:36:00.003-07:00

So I found the FUNNIEST blog ever.

cakewrecks.blogspot.com

I was laughing SO hard my kids were asking what was so funny. Just take a minute and experience the wonderful world of BAD, I mean really BAD professional cake decorating. People paid money for these that is sometimes the funniest part of these cakes!

WARNING: Do not read at work or while others are expecting you to be doing work, loud laughter is a side affect of this blog. Often times this blog will leaving you rolling in your chair. Side splitting laughter if often a result of viewing of this blog! If your laughter persists for more then four hours consult a professional and you can have him/her laughing too!

Check out the fireman cake on the side bar. I am crying I was laughing so hard!*

Sticky Situation

2009-02-11T14:15:00.003-07:00

So I debated on sharing this but it is just too fun not to share.
On Tuesday morning I was getting ready and doing my hair. The kids are playing in my room and I think nothing of it, mind you I can't see them I can only hear them. Well, in our house there is a mom and dad drawer in our room NO KIDS ALLOWED (if you know what I mean). The boys found the drawer and the contents hidden in a box with in the drawer. They unwrap a contraceptive and throw 2 of them on the floor. Well Makayla walks in and puts them on her hands. I hear, "ooh they are sticky" I instantly know something is up so I walk into my bedroom. There is Makayla with two condoms on her hands like gloves and asks "What are these?" stupid and unoriginal mom responds. Now this is a stupid response because all kids love balloons. They like seeing balloons and blowing up balloons and playing with balloons. So very stupid if you want to move a child on to something else. So what do I say-"they are balloons" I hurriedly take them off her hands and tell her to wash them. She asks, "How do you blow them up?" Yet again stupid and unoriginal "you don't." So I change the subject which works like a charm.
Sorry if you are offended but hey life happens. And I know some of you will get a good laugh off this one. I sure do every time I think about it!

Kaiden the other day says to me "Mom you have a big bum. We (refering to Keagan and himself) have little bums."

A True Christlike Example

2009-02-08T14:56:00.003-07:00

On Saturday I attended a funeral service for Casey Vongsawad Stolze. Her son was one of my friends growing up in California, he was an adopted brother. I have been very impacted by her passing and felt that if I wrote about her I would feel better. Casey is one of the most incredible women I have known in my short life. She was warm, loving, charitable, Christlike, contagious laugh and the best shining smile, a voice of an angel, and so fun to be around. Despite the hard lot of raising her son on her own she excelled and triumphed. Her son Tyler is one of my favorite people. I have always loved Casey. Now I don't just love her I have such respect for her and all that she accomplished. As a mother I have tried to emulate how she raised Tyler. I would love for my boys to be as awesome as him. I tell them that they are too sweet of boys to act like that, Casey used this on Tyler. Her service was beautiful and was a complete celebration of Casey. My dad sang Face to Face and there were many wonderful speakers. Tyler did a great job celebrating his mom's life. She was truly an amazing women and if I could be just a tenth of what she was I would be pretty good. Casey will be missed but I am grateful for my association with her, I am a better person for knowing her.

Green Purse

2009-02-06T11:44:00.003-07:00

I have a new purse. It is green and I love it! There are a number of reasons that I love it. First, it is green and I love green- it is a pretty mossy green. Second, it is big- I can fit two kid sweatshirts in it and still have room left over. Third, because it is a cool green it matches or doesn't match but it doesn't look too weird. I no longer worry about my black purse not matching my brown outfits! It looks good with my red coat that I love. Fourth, it is simple- I think that I am a simple person and it reflects that about me. Lastly, some of my favorite people bought it at one of my favorite places. My mom and my aunt Susan picked it up at the OC swap meet. Yes, I am grateful for my large green simple purse and the people that bought it for me!

Are you too cool?

2009-01-29T20:55:00.004-07:00

FOX on Demand
I am too stupid to figure out how to save just the clip but on the website above if you scroll down to Lying Statistic #8 you will see what I am talking about. But if not you can just think I am dumb and that this is a stupid post and I am cool with that.

Seriously so funny! Are you too cool or do you exaggerate so people think you are cool? I must be too cool because I am pretty honest just ask oh the hundreds of people that I offend every day!

Does that mean 44% of you lie on your blog???

Prince Charming

2009-01-28T13:43:00.003-07:00

This morning Makayla was all dressed up and ready for her wedding. She says to her brothers "Who is going to marry me?" They both answer not me. I tell her she will just have to wait for Prince Charming. She looks at me very serious, "Do you have a Prince Charming Mom?" Yes I do it is Dad! Makayla was then very concerned in typical 4 year old girl way, " Did you have a princess dress?" Yes my white wedding dress. She was glad to learn that I was totally prepared with appropriate dress and shoes for my Prince Charming! I am lucky to have an amazing Prince Charming! For us we are lucky enough to have a Happily Ever Afer!

Sweet Reminder

2009-01-25T19:20:00.003-07:00

I had a wonderful reminder this week from one of the 10 year old neighbor boys. The boys and I were out playing and shoveling in the snow when the neighbor boy came along. My boys talk to everyone and like to tell people "stuff" This time Kaiden and Keagan were telling the NB (I didn't ask his mom if I could post about him so I am respecting privacy and will refer to said neighbor boy as NB) that they have really cool shovels and that the shovels are awesome. NB tells me, "When ever I see your boys they tell that they have a new cool thing. They are always excited about something they have snow boots, shovels, or what ever. It is neat that you have kids that get excited over everything that they have." Such true words from a 10 year old. My boys do get excited over everything especially the seemingly small things. I was asking them the other night what their favorite thing of the day was and it was having "Pink chocolate milk." I love those two they remind me often to appreciate all that I have especially the small things!

Working on the office

2009-01-21T14:24:00.003-07:00

We finally started on the office. We are turning the front "living room" into a more usable space- an office. My bro. in law is a master builder and helped Justin frame it in 2 hours. We put up some of the dry wall yesterday. Look Ma I helped! We are now waiting for the electrical work to get done. I am planning out the furniture in my mind. I think that with my great ideas it will be a place Justin will want to study and a place I will want to work. I can't wait for it all to be done!

Pics to come!

Do you know your name?

2009-01-13T14:44:00.004-07:00

The boys when they were 3 months old.
For the longest time the boys did not know if they were Kaiden or Keagan. They didn't get it until after they turned 2. Well, I am not so sure that they actually know who they are. As I was getting ready for church Kaiden walks in and I told him to go have Dad help him with his shoes. Kaiden says, "Dad is talking to Kaiden." I look at him and say you are Kaiden. then he corrects him self. "Dad is talking to my brother." Then we are driving in the car the other night and Kaiden says, "I am Keagan and my brother is Kaiden." Oh no he is SO confused. I correct him and have him repeat his name. One day they will know who they are!

Playing at the Cabin

2009-01-03T19:35:00.003-07:00

My mom wanted to go and check on the cabin to make sure that it was okay after all the crazy storms we got the week of Christmas. So we headed up to the cabin to play and do our duty. It was a good thing that we checked because we needed to fix the board that keeps the snow from killing the small deck. Luckily my mom is smart and invited us along because Justin was there to rig and climb on the roof. He also shoveled the deck with a few good helpers. But after all the work was done we played and had a good time. Justin pulled me and the kids on the sled behind the snowmobile. SUPER FUN!! We had a chili and hot chocolate and then headed home. I am glad Justin is a great snow driver because we drove down Parley's and you couldn't even see the road Scary! But is was so fun the kids just love playing in the snow!

Our 8th Anniversary

2009-01-03T16:57:00.004-07:00

On December 29th Justin and I celebrated our 8th Anniversary. I can't believe that we have been married that long. I still fill like we just met but then I have a hard time remembering my life before him. I married the best man in the world, he puts up with me and that says something. I love that he is so hard working and doesn't bat an eye at "jobs" not only mine but my parents and his parents. Let's just say his "honey do" list is extra long with all the things other people ask him to do. He is a fantastic dad and loves to play with the kids when ever he gets a chance and they love to spend as much time with him as they can. We are lucky and so blessed to have the wonderful marriage that we do and I am grateful every day for him. To celebrate our union 8 years ago we went to Rodigio Grill and enjoyed lots of meat and delicious food. It was fun to quietly sit and talk with each other. Then we headed over to Body Worlds and LOVED it!! Even with Justin's ADD he still enjoyed it. It is so amazing so if you get a chance before the 11th go. The best is seeing the babies during the gestational period. You get a new respect for your body and God's talent for creating such an amazing thing.

Our Christmas Celebrations

2009-01-02T08:28:00.006-07:00

We had a wonderful holiday season. It was busy and fun filled!

We love to visit Santa at the Gateway Discovery Museum down town and then head out to Temple Square. The kids sat on Santa's lap to let him know all that they wanted. Isn't he a great Santa. After we sat and chatted with Santa we headed over to Temple Square and to see the lights. The kids really loved seeing the Nativity and the Christus statue. I love that we live so close to temple square to be able to enjoy such a neat family tradition. Every year Justin picks his favorite, being the resident light expert, tree and we take a picture in front of it. This is the same tree as last year but it was purple last year.

The kids all dressed in there Christmas best! Aren't they so cute for church! I love Makayla's HUGE bow she looked like a cute little present!

We had a Starnes traditional Christmas Eve with the Talent Show and Nativity acted out by the kids. It was so much fun. I was the angel and didn't get any pics of the kids in the nativity so family send them to me:) Makayla sang Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer and Justin closed the talent show with his magic which the kids all thought was cool.

My brother Clay bench pressing the boys for his talent!The boys did the snowman song!Our traditional holiday chime playing. It is so fun with everyone trying to play Christmas Hymns especially the little ones.

Christmas Eve we open our PJ's, they are such hams!

Christmas morning was SO fun with all the kids so excited to open presents and excited that Santa came. The few things that the kids wanted Santa did a good job of coming up with it.

Justin got a badly needed new ski coat! No more ugly turquoise!
Makayla really wanted a jewelry box and got it!

We spent Christmas afternoon at the Pitcher's and enjoyed Christmas all over again. We had a great time with everyone.

Grandma Pitcher made Superman capes for the boys aren't they cute.

Kaiden with his firetruck.Keagan and the car carrier.We had a wonderful Christmas and hope you all had a great one too.

Twilight Movie

2008-12-05T16:28:00.003-07:00

I finally saw the Twilight movie. I was expecting to be disappointed however I wasn't. I actually liked it, even enjoyed it. I would venture to say that I actually liked Edward and Bella's relationship better in the movie. The book seemed to just portray them as lusty teens that had no substance to their relationship. I have always cheered for Jacob NOT Edward. But in the movie I like them together and put their relationship in a better light for me- they seemed to connect and actually talk to each other. It is weird that a long book has less character development of a relationship then a 2 hour film. So now Edward and Bella aren't that bad but hey I will still cheer on Jacob even though I know how it ends. My fourth book would have ended much better then Stephanie's but oh well.

100 Facts- some are about me

2008-11-19T13:05:00.002-07:00

Copy the list and highlight the ones (mine are red) that are true about you :)

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a Praying Mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch- does digital scrapbooking count?
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21.Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted Charactures count right??
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen- In Mexico and we served squid gross!
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Talked your way out of a ticket

Disney Dames

2008-11-19T12:43:00.002-07:00

I thought that this was a funny cartoon. Even the Disney dames could complain about something if they wanted.

It is Done

2008-11-09T13:48:00.004-07:00

It is done I suppose. The boys decided to be potty trained. I HATE potty training, not because of the mess or the frustration of accidents but because of the inconvience. I would rather have them in diapers- it is easier! But for what ever reason my kids like to get'r done when they are 2. They started wearing big boy underwear this week and now they are potty trained. Do we have accidents- yes but hey they are only 2. I know grown women that have the occasional accident:) We did however make it through church with out an accident! Well I am proud of my boys and being SO big. Good Job Kaiden and Keagan!

Family Photos

2008-10-30T13:24:00.005-06:00

We had our family picture taken up Little Cottonwood by one of Justin's athlete's Mom. She is great and took a ton of pictures. So here they are! Do you like our engagement picture? After 8 years and 3 kids later I guess we will finally make the commitment and get married! It is hard to post only certain pics because so many are so good. Oh and that is what my hair looks like now. I cut it the night before we took these-brave I know! I love the pic of my boys (all 3) aren't they so sweet! I hope you enjoyed our photo montage. Thanks Vina for the great pictures!!

Wizard of Oz

2008-10-21T09:02:00.002-06:00

My children's latest new obsession is the Wizard of Oz. Makayla now wants to be Dorothy for Halloween after the butterfly. I guess next year I will be the wicked witch and the boys can be my flying monkeys! I pulled out the movie because I haven't seen it in forever and I was bored on Sunday. I think that they have now watched it 5 times in 2 days- can you say Mom of the year!! It is funny I thought that they would think that it was a little to scary at the end but they like it. They just call the Wicked Witch the "scary girl". My kids are finally getting better at watching movies. They have a more sophisticated movie palette no animation for them.

New Job

2008-10-15T19:49:00.002-06:00

I have a new job okay not so much a job but a thing that I am doing. I am an Education Consultant for Discovery Toys. I really love the products and thought hey I should get a discount instead of paying full price! So if anyone needs AWESOME toys give me a call. I am having a party at my house on October 29th at 7:00pm. Come one and all!! Now that you have been solicited don't you all feel better. Seriously the toys are awesome and you can check them out at my website. www.discoverytoyslink.com/ashleypitcher

Now to the important stuff. I cut my hair not just cut but chopped it off I LOVE IT!! I will post a pic soon!

I am just Boring

2008-10-14T14:23:00.002-06:00

I know many of you would like my life to be so much more exciting then it is. Well sorry to disappoint it isn't. We have not done anything very exciting lately. Over Conference weekend we spent the weekend at our family cabin- I love that place. But I have 0 pics of the fun weekend. The girls even got tons of cute cards done, thanks Mom. It was fun having my sis down for the weekend. It is so beautiful up there. I stayed an extra day with my mom and we enjoyed the best weather up there on Monday last week. Funny thing last week we were at the farm and they have a fake cow you can milk. Keagan comes running up to me and yells "Mom I just pulled on the cows peepee." It was pretty funny. Justin also had region last week and his team placed third. It is a tough region and his team is the fastest team Alta has ever had. They have state next week- Go Hawks! We had Super Saturday this weekend and it was so fun. Everything was darling! I always enjoy a long day of crafting with the girls. So that is waht the Pitcher clan has been up to. See boring now you are saying that maybe I just shouldn't write any way! or that you are now dumber for having read this!

My New Love

2008-09-25T22:56:00.004-06:00

I have discovered digital scrapbooking. After a nearly three year sabbatical from scrapbooking I am back. I love that I don't have to get all my crap out just for my kids to get into. I know that I am slow to get into the digi thing but I had to get a small tutorial before I really jumped in. But in the last five days I have scrapped about 15 pages. This is amazing because it is SO quick and easy. I am loving it. Here is a page I have done! It is taking forever to upload the pages so just enjoy the one for now until I learn how to post things better.

So Sad

2008-09-25T08:37:00.005-06:00

We were watching High School Musical and Keagan points at the shot of the high school and said that is where Daddy lives. So sad but all too often it seems true that he lives at the school. He is gone more then he is home but hey it is the price you pay for working, going to school and have a time consuming calling. The kids can go days without seeing Justin. We appreciate his hard work so that we can have all that we do. Here is to you and living at the school Justin!

Some of our Summer Fun

2008-09-18T13:09:00.001-06:00

Make a Smilebox photobook

For Give Me Blog World

2008-09-09T20:42:00.003-06:00

For Give me blog world for I have sinned. It has been two months since my last confession I mean post. I have also not read anybody's postings in nearly two months. I will update and continue to update for my sins to be absolved. Well I will do my best but I will probably have to confess my sins again. We have been super busy with summer stuff and I have just been trying to live my life and enjoy it. But Justin is back to teaching and going to school, I find that I have more time in the evenings. I also try to kill time to make the time go by quicker. Well lets see I will post the fun summer stuff when I have the pictures. I will update you on the boring stuff. Summer Rocked! Justin finished his first semester of Graduate school. We are one step closer to being done with school! Justin was released from Ward Mission Leader (a very busy job), yeah! He was given the calling to be with his family- because the man has NO time. But a week later was called into the Elder's Quorum Presidency. Bye Bye Justin! Well it could always be worse!! The kids are cute like always and life is good. I know that this totally sucks for a post that was long over due but hey I am a little rusty and I don't want to post about our rocking summer until I have the pictures. I know you all won't leave your computer now that I am back on. I know tears were shed over my lack of posting but no reason to fear Ashley is here (again)!!!

Guitar Hero Addiction or just good fun???

2008-07-08T15:19:00.003-06:00

Is it a sign of a problem when you are listening to the radio and a song comes on and your kids shout, even the two year olds, "Hey this is on Guitar Hero"??? Well we don't even have a game system or TV but when I am at my parents we LOVE (or just I LOVE) to play Guitar Hero. Makayla knows all the words to Slow Ride. It came on the radio the other day (yes I listen to Classic Rock) when it was over she asked to have that come on again. I am beginning to notice songs on the radio not for the songs own merit but because I have played it on Guitar Hero. When I was watching my aunt and uncles kids we were up till wee hours of the morning play Rock Band. I was supposed to be the roll model and example. I guess like one of my brothers friends said when he watched me play guitar hero "You are a cool Mom." Of course my sister in law can school just about anyone in Guitar Hero- she rocks. Staci could be a total Rock Legend! But I do love the game and spend too much time playing it and ignoring kids when I am at my parents. Is this an addiction that I should be seeing someone for???

The Story of My Dad with an Old Lady Injury

2008-06-30T23:17:00.005-06:00

My Dad likes to ride his bike. He thinks that it is fun. He likes to ride in group rides. Sometimes people are dumb and not good at riding bikes. My dad rode in Logan this weekend. He was having fun and doing really good. Some dumby cyclist ran into him. My dad fell down and broke his hip. He had 6 hours of surgery after 32 hours of waiting. My dad now has a metal plate and 2 screws in his leg. My dad has an old lady injury. He has to use cruches and a walker to get around for the next month and a half. My dad is a strong guy so we know he will be okay. We love my dad.

THE END

Thanks to all that were praying for him. He is doing well and in good spirits! Justin gave him a beautiful priesthood blessing before he went into surgery. It was such a comfort- I love the priesthood and so appreciate having a worthy preisthood holder in my home.

The Quest to Post

2008-06-23T20:20:00.008-06:00

So I took a short break but not because I am tired of blogging but because I have three VERY BUSY kids. So this morning I made a valiant effort to be instantly thwarted off my quest of posting. With in ten minutes of this dangerous journey my two dear ones (those two are as thick as thieves) created mass destruction. Here are the photos to prove it:

This is not a photo of just a dirty bathroom but my boys emptied a NEW roll of toilet paper and stuffed it in the toilet put it all over the floor and walls- just disgusting I know! After the bathroom they decided to destroy the wall with some crayons Mak left out. I heard strange sounds coming from the family room so I went in there and back tracked their path of destruction. They successfully delayed the posting but I do put them to bed sometime! SO I WIN!
Anyway here is what has been going on here lately or in the last month.

This is what we did over Memorial Weekend- it was wet, cold and rainy. We know how to make our own kind of fun! What cute robots!

I finally cut the boys hair in May. Yep after the 6th or 7th person asked if they were boys or girls I decided it was time to cut it or I would give my boys some sort of complex. They did pretty good Kaiden was jazzed about the plane. Keagan was not too excited until they pulled out the sucker- it turned into a hairy lolly (yum).

It took some getting use to but they are cute and I didn't take a ton off because I like the long shaggy surfer look- its a Cali thing:)

After Justin got out of school we headed to Vegas to watch my aunt and uncles kids. We had a great time visiting old friends in our old 'hood and eating my favorite foods (In N Out and Capriattis)! I love Vegas it will always have a special place in my heart. We had some great times there and created friendships that will last a life time. But we were so blessed to move when we did and to get our house sold, before the market dove. We had fun with the kids swimming, hiking, and going to the children's discovery museum. We love visiting with Brian and Becky and the kids we always have a great time. We had a great father's day there.

Most recently we have been putting up our long awaited fence!! Justin has worked so hard to get it done- despite his cornea scratch. We are just doing the gates and the fence looks so awesome making our yard look HUGE!! This is our neighbor Chris he is awesome!! He came over everyday after work and helped out up the fence for the whole week. We have had help from about 6 or 7 neighbors- I know you are all jealous that I have the best neighborhood in the world (yep I can make that statement because it is totally true).

Look Mom it's a fence, and I helped! Then this week our dishwasher pooped out on us! So instead of investing in our old crappy one I bought this new one that I love and works great! Eventually all my appliance will die and I will buy new ones that will be stainless steel!

So it has been an eventful month and I am sure that I forgot many things but that's just how the dice fall!

Four Year Olds

2008-05-18T14:37:00.002-06:00

Now I was under the impression that children turn four and they become understanding and angelic. This is when your rotten two and three year old pay you back with wonderful moments of sweetness. I find this to not be so. I had an awesome two year old- Makayla was great we would go shopping, she would nap, she would even listen when I asked her to do things. At three she grew more stubborn but Love and Logic helped me to control this and be a better parent. I don't know what has happened but she has turned into a tantrum throwing, Why asking, alphabet learning, obstinate monster. Note: she did not throw tantrums like this EVER! I swear I don't know what to do anymore. I thought sweet four we are doing great- two wasn't hard, we had our moments at three, but I am ready to be locked up in the loony bin at four. If every year gets harder I am done for it. Just lock me up now and throw away the key! She can be sweet and SO much fun and she is always funny but help me! I need all the advise I can get with an overly dramatic, power hungry four year old.

Friend Up

2008-05-02T08:41:00.002-06:00

When people are dating they are told to marry up or marry above them self. This makes you a better person because you are striving so hard to keep pace with that awesome person that you married. I know this first hand because I married Justin. However, I also friend up. I find people that are WAY better then me and con them into becoming friends with me. Sometimes it is family and they don't have a choice, sometimes I invite people over and have a great party, and others it is with my wit and humor. So this is a shout out to all those people that make me a better person by sacrificing and being friends with me. So to all my friends in the past, present, and future (I am sorry that I conned you) thanks for putting up with my self absorbed, selfish, obnoxious, judgemental, and opinionated behavior. I am trying to change and that is why I am friends with all of you!

But seriously you all are awesome and I am greatful for the many great examples that I have in my life!

Catch Up

2008-04-27T14:53:00.009-06:00

So I haven't posted much of anything lately because my computer isn't reading my SD card and some things just aren't fun to post about unless you have a picture. So I have Justin's computer and I am going to play catch up on my posts. Sorry, I will try to keep it brief.

I guess I filmed it sideways. Just turn your head :)

Makayla is playing t-ball and loving it. I know most kids get bored and pick at the grass but not Makayla. She is out there hustling for the ball it is pretty funny! One boy was upset because he couldn't get the ball and a parent told him to run after it, he responds "I can't she is too fast." It is true she must be a Pitcher with that leg speed!

This week we moved the boys into big boy beds. They were both climbing out and I was afraid someone would get hurt. We borrowed beds from my parents until my brother claims them. We don't have cute bedding for them YET but they love their beds! I was expecting HORRIBLE nights for a while but they have been surprisingly good. Makayla would kick and scream and never go to sleep but the boys are pretty good. They ask if they can "sleep with brother" and I will find two of them in one bed. They will stay in their room and play with each other and then finally go to sleep. At night we just say good night and they go right down. The only down side is that they wake up too early now 5:30 or 6:00am. Oh well!

My brother, Clayton graduated from the Fire Academy this week. The boys loved the fire trucks. Congrats Clay!! Anyone need a well trained, good looking fire fighter??

When I was watching Parker, our cousin, we went to the baseball game. The kids were pretty good considering how long baseball games are. Tickets were like a dollar, good cheap family entertainment. Makayla loved the Bumble Bee and so I got a picture with the cousins and the bee.

Logan (bro in law), Mak, Parker, Dallin, and Kelsey (my sis) enjoying sweet COLD seats at the game!

It was brief!! Yeah for me!

Princess??

2008-04-18T16:05:00.002-06:00

I love boys that dress up and mine do ALL the time!

My Boys are Two!

2008-04-15T06:12:00.003-06:00

My home boys Keagan and Kaiden.

Kaiden and Keagan turned two on Friday. We had a fun family get together to have cake and ice cream. These boys have been a wonderful blessing in our family. There are many reasons why I just love having twins and my boys. They have a neat relationship that no one can replace or take away- it is the ultimate love hate relationship! It is like watching puppies play and wrestle. They do the sweetest things for each other like feed each other or say please so they will share a toy. My boys are just fun!

Here are some interesting things about them individually:

Kaiden

1. He is a momma's boy. He will get sad the minute he knows I am about to leave him.

2. He runs away when I am going to put him in bed. But the second he lays down he is out.

3. He has the most expressive face and crinkles his nose so cute when he says certain things.

Keagan

1. He can jump out of cribs and pack and plays. We lowered the bed and he did it once and hasn't tried it again. He must have hurt himself- well at least he learns from his mistakes.

2. He gets this cute naughty face, that you can't help but love, when he knows what he is going to do is wrong. It is pretty easy to tell when he is up to something.

3. He is quick to say sorry when he hurts someone or does something wrong. It is so sweet.

They both ask to "rock a minute" before they go to bed.

They are 38 minutes apart.Kaiden was first.

They both love their sister and think she is awesome.

They both bring me such joy.

They both cry during the closing song of sacrament because they know they are going to nursery.

They are in different nursery classes.

They love to ride bikes and play outside especially to dig in dirt.

They always want what item the other one has.

I dress them alike because I can!

I have always been able to tell them apart. Justin figured it out when they were about 15 months old but still mixes them up, only occasionally.

They sit in time out.

They give each other the cutest hugs and kisses.

They bite each other.

They love hats.

They are a ton of fun and I love having them. Happy Birthday Boys we love you!

Fraternity Formals and Proms

2008-04-05T07:43:00.002-06:00

We had some unexpected visitors drop in on us on last Saturday. Our friends from Cedar City Steve and Gina dropped by to drag us along to Justin and Steve's fraternity formal. We had so much fun hanging out with them. It was at the Depot in the Gateway, not home depot, where we had this great dinner and laughed. I really should have asked for the recipe! After the men visited with all the other fraternity boys we went to the capital to Alta's Prom. It was so funny to be walking with Justin, Mr. Pitcher, Pitcher, or Pit. The kids were yelling out his name like he was a celebrity. We danced, laughed, and hung out with Pitcher the high school celebrity. We had a great time seeing Steve and Gina we are so glad that they just dropped in on us to drag us off to a fun evening.

Hard Easy

2008-03-27T21:04:00.003-06:00

One of my favorite colors is red. I love red it is all over my house. Well, we might have to change it because at our house we now bleed BLUE. Justin was accepted to BYU's graduate program. We are thrilled!! He starts this summer and will work on it for 2 years straight. When he first applied he asked if I believed in miracles I said of course. Well it is true miracles do happen. All joking aside he will be great they couldn't have asked for a more qualified hard working candidate. I can just see him as this cool young administrator telling kids to get their acts together. I love it! So when I am complaining that I never see my husband and that he doesn't have time to put his dirt clothes in the basket remind me HARD EASY. It is a saying we have in our house it can be hard now and easy later or it can be easy now and hard later- I choose hard easy every time. I wish that it could be easy easy but thats life!

A rose is a rose is a rose

2008-03-15T13:33:00.003-06:00

What is in a name?? If a rose were not called a rose would it smell as sweet? I don't know lets find out.

1. )YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: Kizzy Sequoia (Your first pet/current car) I think that I should start touring and change my name
2.)YOUR GANGSTA NAME: chocolate snickerdoodle (fave ice cream/fave cookie) that is more porn star then gangsta
3.)YOUR FLY GIRL/GUY NAME: A-Pit (first initial of first name/first 3 or 4 letter of last) Fly??? Whatever!
4.)YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: Green Tamarin (fave color/fave animal) or instead of the rock star I will become a detective
5.)SOAP OPERA NAME: Arloa Ogden (middle name/birth city) pretty dramatic! Let's here it for O-town!!
6.)STAR WARS NAME: Pitas (first 3 letter of last name/first 2 of first name) Yum! Any one up for a star wars pita??
7.)SUPER HERO NAME: Red Water (2nd fave color/fave drink) well maybe I will be a superhero rock star that does detective work on the side. But then were does that leave me with my name???
8.)NASCAR NAME: Darwin Charles (first names of grandfathers)
9.) WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: Ann Irvin (mother and fathers middle names) I think maybe I will scrap all that other stuff and join the witness protection program.
10.)TV WEATHER ANCHOR NAME: Grisham Greenvalley (5th grade teachers last name/city that begins with same first initial) Lindsay is that how you came up with your name??
11.)SPY NAME/BOND GIRL NAME: Summer Gerber Daisy (fave season/fave flower) Oh the choices!
12.)CARTOON NAME: Pineapple Ringy (fave fruit/something you're wearing plus -ie or -y at the end)
13.)HIPPY NAME: Cake Maple (something you ate for breakfast/fave tree) yep I ate some cake for breakfast!
14.)YOUR ROCKSTAR TOUR NAME: blog painting snowy tour (fave hobby/fave craft/fave weather element + tour) just wierd

Well maybe I will just stick with what my parents gave me because a rose is a rose is a rose. I would still be me even if I went by Red Water because lets be honest I pretty much am a super hero!

Birthday Marathons

2008-03-12T17:37:00.004-06:00

Makayla's Birthday was more of a marathon then a day celebration. We started on Thursday with a family ski day. It was so fun for Makayla to ski for my parents, Clay, and Justin. She received her present from us this day too, a nice new ski helmet. It is a Dora Helmet and she loves it! The cutest thing I have ever seen is her skiing down the mountain and singing at the same time. I think she was making up a song because I didn't recognize it. She is an awesome little skier and just a natural athlete. On Friday we had the family party. It was fun to have her aunts and uncles and grandparents and some of our really good friends over for a little celebration. She loved having everyone over and getting presents from everyone. I think she loves her new purse from Clay and Brittany (it is pink with some serious bling) . She took it to church with her lip gloss and dolls in it. Then on Saturday morning we had the friend Princess Party. It was so fun we had a pink carpet for the girls to walk in on with a grand entry. We princessed the entire downstairs with toile, pink flowers, pink balloons, and disney princess stuff. We played Princess Bingo (I made it), pass the magic wand, the girls made tiaras, and ribbon dancing. The girls came in their princess dresses and they all looked so beautiful. We had a special guest come Belle. The girls thought it was fun to have her come but Makayla new that she was one of Dad's runners so it wasn't quite as fun for her. The girls had a great time and they were all so cute. My mom made an amazing princess cake. You can judge between the family cake that I made and my mom's cake who the skilled cake maker is. Justin asked my mom if she was as crazy as I am about parties and she said no but Lets be honest I think that she is the reason that I love to do cute themed parties at home. There is something personal and fun about it!! Plus you don't get to do this kind of stuff very long they grow up too fast and don't want you around eventually.

Okay pictures to come. My computer is being dumb!

Makayla is FOUR!

2008-03-06T20:15:00.003-07:00

If you know her, you know how awesome she is if you don't take some time and spend it with her. I could stop there but since it is her birthday I will elaborate. Makayla is a fun and energetic child that could talk your ear off. She makes me laugh, get frustrated, and laugh some more every single day. I love to do things just with her because she is SO much fun. She is dramatic, creative, imaginative and thoughtful. She is a pleasure to be around most of the time. I just really feel so lucky that I have such a great kid. She is AWESOME!!!

Some interesting things about Mak:

1. Every night she asks me to tickle her back but it is her armpits that she likes tickled.

2. She draws pictures for other people everyday and folds them up really small to deliver them.

3. She is a child always busy doing something. She has yet to watch a feature film (Any Disney Princess movie included) all the way through. When she is about half or three quarters of the way through she is bored and moves on to doing something active.

4. She loves to sing. You can catch her making up he own songs all the time. She even Sings and Skis, now that is talent!!

5. She has the most amazing memory. She can tell me details of a story that I have forgotten. She remembers names, faces, birthdays, and anything we have discussed.

I love you Mak, LaLa, Mak Attack, Makayla!!!

Happy Birthday!!!!

Winter Fun

2008-03-04T14:05:00.000-07:00

These are some random pictures from this winter. Sledding, snow forts, polar express and elk refuge. It is just a reminder to myself that the winter does bring lots of fun things even though I am ready for HOT weather. I think that it is the Vegas in me. Good times!

Watch out Peekaboo Street Here Comes Makayla

2008-03-02T07:03:00.005-07:00

This week I took Makayla skiing for the first time. She did amazing!! By the end of the day she was skiing in here little pizza and turning down the hill. We went to Brighton on Thursday, we ditched preschool, what am I teaching her already?? It was a beautiful day for skiing. It was warm, sunny with great snow. We started the day on the flats and practicing straight runs and before 10:30 we were up on the hill skiing down. I would ask her if she was tired and needed a break but no she just wanted to keep skiing. "I want to go on the roller coaster again mommy." When we were on the lift the first time she asked if we would have to jump off not with concern in her voice but more like excitement. We had so much fun together skiing and she was just fun to be with. We took a short lunch break and skied all afternoon until 3:00pm. She got in the car and fell right to sleep. Now every morning she asks if she can go skiing, I think I have created a monster!!! But I would be more sad if she hated it. So when she is 16 and ditching school to go skiing I guess I can only blame myself. Maybe I will tag along :)

On the lift ready to jump off!

Ski Bunnies

Myrtle Beach

2008-02-25T14:19:00.003-07:00

We went on a little vacation to Myrtle Beach (which is in South Carolina most west coasters don't know where it is) last week. Justin was presenting at a teacher conference and so the school district was paying for everything for him. It is not too often teachers get paid trips so we took this opportunity for me to go with him. We had a lovely time together minus children and being in a warmer climate. The beaches there are beautiful and full of awesome sea creatures. We created an awesome collection of shells, coral, anemonies, a conch shell (Justin is teaching Lord of the Flies it couldn't have been better timing)broken sand dollars, and even a shark pod.

We had some great dinners all you can eat crab legs and breakfasts watching the ocean. We went to these amazing gardens that had this great art work through out it. We just had a great time being together and enjoying a warmer area and beach!

Oh plus, Justin did great on the presentation and want to thank Jordan School District for such a great trip!!!

Stuff and Stuff

2008-02-12T18:55:00.001-07:00

So obviously it has been awhile since I have posted so this is just an update on the latest and greatest.

We went to Rexburg to see my sis and go to the Rexburg Temple Openhouse. We had a blast and my fam is CRAZY!!! It was so awesome to have Makayla understand what a Temple is all about. She kept saying that she was going to get married there. When we were in the sealing room she asked when she got married if I would sit by her. I said of course, it seems so far away but I know it will go fast and that makes me sad. We stood in the mirror and I am so glad that we are an eternal family. It was a neat spiritual experience for our family. Now every time she sees a temple which is often in Utah she gets VERY excited about it. We drove to Jackson and saw Elk at the refuge. The kids were done all of them having meltdowns with 15 other stranger (that is so fun) and it was way cold but WARM for that area. We (the adults) had a great time seeing the elk. My favorite thing is what Mak told Kelsey: "Kelsey, you need kids." she just tells it like it is :) We had so much fun- thanks Kelsey you are a great Hostess- we definitly enjoyed the finer parts of Rexburg!!

Winters at Hogle Zoo

2008-01-13T13:12:00.000-07:00

My brother in law Roy gave our family a season pass to the Hogle Zoo for Christmas, so we wanted to go and use it. I love going to the Hogle Zoo in the winter. I remember as a kid going to Hogle Zoo during the winter. We would always see the elephants and the giraffes and whatever else was out at the time(the polar bear before its death, the hippo before they sold it, and a variety of others). There are many advantages to attending a zoo during the cold, snowy winter months. First and most obvious there is NO one there. I love this!! You don't have to jockey position with others to get a view of the animals. You get front row parking; no mile hikes before you even enter the gates of the zoo. No stroller congestion. I have a large double side by side plus a stroller for Makayla, stroller congestion levels are crucial to a good time. Secondly, you don't have to spend zillions of hours there because you can breeze through everything so quickly or as slowly as you like. Third, my kids don't want to get out of their strollers because they are nice and bundled and warm in their lovely strollers. This is a particular bonus for me because I don't have to carry or chase or pickup anyone. Lastly, if you pick a relatively warm day there are many animals out. We saw just about all of them. You brace yourself for just seeing the snakes and lizards but you are pleasantly surprised when the elephants, lynx, leopards, and many of the other animals are out. We had a great day. Some of our highlights were: the oldest monkey on earth making friends with Justin. He came over and touched Justin's hand through the glass and seemed to want to tell Justin his life story but Justin doesn't speak monkey so they were at an impasse. The baby giraffe was so cute I think she is about a month and a half old. The baby monkey sleeping with the mommy monkey. The male giraffe drinking the female's pee like it was a drinking fountain. It was actually one of the grossest things I have ever witnessed. Another highlight was one of the howler monkeys singing so the entire zoo could hear. It was so much fun and it was a reminder as to why I still love the zoo in the winter. Try it you will like it but don't spread the word then people will be there and where does that leave me with stroller congestion and long walks to the zoo.

Ode to Justin

2008-01-10T08:03:00.000-07:00

This time of year is always a little crazy for us. We have Christmas, our anniversary, New Years, and Justin's birthday. All with in just 2 weeks of each other. So as you know we had a great Christmas. A fantastic 7th year anniversary. A wonderful New Years (even though I hate new years eve). And a fun birthday for my hot 32 year old!! I know people never believe me when I say how old he is. They say he looks way too young which is true but sometimes I wonder if it because he is so youthful at heart.
Ode to My Justin
(okay not so much an ode but hey I think you are great!)
There are many reasons I love you and think life is great with you.
You are funny, kind, and friendly to everyone.
You are an awesome dad and a fantastic husband.
Did I mention you are hot and have the best legs I have ever seen.
Your eyes are amazing and you have a sparkling personality.

You are an incredibly hard worker so that I can play hard.
You are lots of fun to be with too.
However, you can't do the robot like Brittany but you do have some awesome white guy moves.
Well I love you and hope you had a great 32nd birthday!

Christmas

2008-01-02T10:49:00.000-07:00

So I am finally getting to post about Christmas it has been a little busy as of late. I feel like I haven't been home for a week.

We kicked off Christmas on Sunday with the classic Starnes Christmas Eve. We had an awesome dinner Prime Rib of course with the classic mint dessert my favorite. We then had the annual talent show and chimes. Makayla memorized a poem and was awesome. I think that I just said it about 20 times and she had it memorized by just hearing it. The boys did their ho ho ho for their talent it was pretty cute. We read Christmas stories and the story of Christ's birth. We then put them to bed and hung out and played games. It was a fun night because I love the classic Starnes Christmas Eve. It reminds me of growing up I can't wait until next year the kids are old enough to reenact the Christmas Story :)!!
The actual Christmas Eve was fun. We fondued with Justin's family. We got completely stuffed! We opened the Christmas pj's. The kids were really cute. They opened a gift from Justin's aunt Leanne and Norman. They gave the kids tooth brushes and toothpaste. It was just what they needed and I have never seen three kids get so excited over oral hygiene. It was a nice evening with the Pitcher Clan.
Justin and I went home and finished setting up the house for Santa. We listened to Christmas music and sipped on our Martinelli's and got things all together. We went to bed and I just couldn't wait for the morning to see how the kids reacted. So I had a dream about Santa eating our delicious candy cane cookies (another of my favorite) and drinking milk. At that moment I woke up and remembered we forgot to put the milk out oops (Mak specifically asked that I do that so it had to be done). I get out of bed at 1:00am to put the milk out. I go back to bed and at 5:00am I wake up to check on everything. Everyone's still sleeping, Santa had arrived, and all was well. Back to bed I go. At 6:00am I am awake and waiting for the kids to wake up this is their normal arising time. However, not a child is stirring only an excited mom. Instead of waiting and doing nothing I begin to get the food for our big brunch ready. Finally the kids wake up at 7:00 this is serious sleeping in for my kids. They now have to wait for me to finish my food prep and sit on the stairs. It was so fun to see them come in. They were excited about their bikes. The kids had a great time opening the presents well Makayla doing the majority of opening. The boys just wanted to sit on the bikes and open presents. The boys high light presents had to be the shake cars that Makayla gave them. Makayla's highlight had to be all the baby doll stuff she got along with her new favorite baby. After present time we had a brunch at our house with some friends and family. I really enjoyed having everyone over and making all the yummy food. And the rest of the day was a food fest. We went to my parents opened more presents and ate yummy turkey sandwiches with all the fixin's. The boys played with their helicopters (the big boys). We went to Justin's parents and opened more presents and ate more food. It was a day wrapped in shiny paper filled with tons of food. Wow we were really spoiled by our families this year! Pics to come I am slow on the down load!

Why can't people spell??

2007-12-26T21:25:00.001-07:00

Okay just a minute I have my moments where I can't spell too but come on this is crazy. Now that you are going what are you talking about I will elaborate. I was on my site meter and thought that I had a large number of random places visiting my site, mostly back East and Europe. So I wanted to know how they found me. The site meter tells me what word searches people use to come to my site. Here are a list of some of the words used in these random people's searches.

real santa pitchers

pitchers of santa

coler pitchers of santa

I am pretty sure that these people mean PICTURE so please you crazy East coasters lets learn how to spell P I C T U R E!! And the last one I believe is color but whatever.

Santa Snob

2007-12-22T15:31:00.000-07:00

I am a self professed Santa Snob. I now have seen a variety of pictures of Santas that do NOT look like Santa. First, Santa wears a hat. I am tired of Santa's that are lacking in head gear it is crucial to painting the picture of the jolly man in his sleigh. I believe he would get VERY cold with out it. Second, Santa's suit is red. It is in no way multicolored, green or otherwise. Makayla has a book that clearly illustrates why Santa's suit is red and not anything else (afterall it is his favorite color). Third, Santa is fat. Not slightly skinny but plump. He is a round jolly man that is the essence of Christmas. Fourth, Santa says ho, ho, ho. Just ask Kaiden and Keagan they can tell you. If anyone becomes offended by this maybe they should evaluate their life. Fifth, Santa has a real beard. No fake beards I think that kids are smart enough to see through this so do everyone the favor and grow a nice white long beard. Now if you have any question in regards to what Santa should be Coca Cola has created a clear picture of what Santa should be and look like. Each year I go insearch of the right Santa. South Towne Santa does not meet my expectations. So this year we found him at the Gateway. He had a great high pitched voice with a fantastic ho, ho, ho.There were no lines to wait for him and he had the appropriate head gear and suit. He was awesome the kids loved him. Well okay just Makayla as you can see in the picture.

The Polar Express

2007-12-22T15:23:00.000-07:00

sorry this is an old post but I thought that I should post it anyway.

My in-laws invited us to go on the Polar Express in Heber aka the Heber Creeper. This is so much fun. If you ever get a chance to go, do it. You sit on a really old train and travel to the North Pole where Santa is and he jumps on the train and then talks to all of the kids. The kids loved it we sang, drank hot chocolate, ate a cookie, read the story, and enjoyed being with family. Makayla was even asked to sing Jingle Bells for Santa which of course she jumped at the chance microphone and all. It would make a great family tradition but it is pricey!

The First Black Eye

2007-12-16T09:55:00.000-07:00

About a week ago Kaiden decided that he would dive off of a chair and land into another one with his eye. So the result of eye-chair contact was a very bad black eye. It finally is clearing up! It was sad he would touch his eye and say ouchie. But he was a trooper he woke up the next morning with a smile and these are pictures of that happy black eyed Kaiden!So Sad!!

Snow and skiing

2007-12-07T07:14:00.000-07:00

Most of you know that in my college days I was a professional ski instructor. Well now that I am back in Utah and I have a willing mother in law I am a ski instructor once again. I will be teaching skiing at The Canyons with my mom. I will be teaching just one day a week (a nice break). I was on snow on Tuesday for the first time. I was afraid I had forgotten everything but it all came back. Justin and I will be able to actually do some skiing this year. Between his rec club that he takes and the passes that I get we might get some really good days on the hill. It will be really fun to teach Makayla how to ski, she asks me constantly about her skis!

I wish it looked like this. Maybe after this snow storm this weekend!

Crazy Black Friday Shoppers

2007-11-30T16:42:00.001-07:00

Yep I am one of the crazy people that likes no loves to shop on Black Friday. It isn't the shopping or the great deals (which I do love) but the excitement and thrill of the adventure. I am a stay at home mom and this is one of the few things that I can do with little fear of getting hurt and still having that rush of adrenaline. So this year I was at it again only some how my sisters and mom decided to come along too and it did not take too much prodding and poking. But instead of the normal 2:00 am wake up we pulled an all nighter. This was awesome; normally I can't sleep anyway because I am so consumed with the excitement of possible near tramplings or fists and elbows flying or vicious words being said. But with the all nighter I don't have to try to fall asleep to just wake up in a few hours. I would highly recommend the all nighter method of Black Friday. So we hit the Mod Bod sale at midnight- it was fun and I love it when people get upset and crazy at the cutters (life really doesn't change from 1st grade). We got some great deals and we were in the right spot for the line so we really didn't wait that long. We then headed to the mall because it opened at midnight. I got some great deals on clothes. I got Christmas pj's for $4 normally $12. That was the steal of the night. If anyone can do better then that I would like to know. We all had a great time just being silly and laughing the entire time with each other. One of the other reasons I love shopping on Black Friday is that my family is sleeping and I don't have to worry or feel guilty or hurry to get back, it is awesome. So after killing time at the mall and recharging our batteries with a Dr. Pepper we headed to Kohl's. I like to hit Kohl's every year because all the toys are 50% off. Now here is the trick have a list of everything that you want split up with your friends or family and is someone sees anyone's items they grab it. You can ditch the doubles later or buy two if it is that good of deal there are always birthdays that come up the rest of the year. Let's just say there were some angry folks at Kohl's because again like last year they didn't open the side door when they opened the front doors. This is when the excitement happens. People are swearing and pounding on the doors Mob mentality is great!!! So they eventually let us in but we all grab our stuff and I head over to the check out at customer service which is always faster then the other lines. We get out and head over to Target wait in line for the hour before it opens. This was well worth the wait because the security guys were just funny to watch. This guy has a reflector jacket and shiny ( I mean he polishes them every night shiny and they are his pride and joy shiny) shoes which helped with his credibility with the line people. He even kicked a lady out of line (her husband was there still holding their spot) that stepped off the side walk and went to the bathroom. He even threatened to have her removed for trespassing. We all tried to vouch for her but the crazy security guy wouldn't have any of it. So they opened the doors and we dashed through Target like crazy women on a mission. We checked out at the pharmacy and we were out of there in 15 minutes. I would say we had a very successful shopping day no NIGHT!!! Hope you all had as much fun as we did!

Thanksgiving

2007-11-28T08:31:00.001-07:00

We had a great Thanksgiving with lots of family. My siblings from Idaho came down and we had a wonderful time. We have so much to be thankful for and I love Thangsgiving for the opportunity to reflect on our many blessings. Grandma and Grandpa Whitaker came up from St. George it was such a pleasure having them with us. Since they are getting old it is hard for them to travel and be away from home. I enjoyed just being around them. I love to watch Grandpa work the man never stops he kind of reminds me of the energizer bunny. We had a great time eating and shopping and playing guitar hero. The shopping experience deserves its own post check back soon for the post.

Halloween, at last!

2007-11-14T14:55:00.000-07:00

One of the kids spilled some M&M's ("emmeems" pronunciation by Mak) so they were all laying on the floor eating them off the floor.

We had a great time trick or treating. The kids were cute and it was fun to have the grandparents stop by for the fun. I love seeing all the kids from the 'hood all dressed up. The boys won yet another contest, The Cutest Boy Costume Contest at the ward Truck or Treat. Makayla was a beautiful princess and my prince frogs will have to wait a LOT longer to be turned into a prince.

This is a special shout out to all the Pimps in the 'hood.

Pumpkin carving

2007-11-14T14:34:00.000-07:00

We carved and painted pumpkins the kids had a lot of fun. Their pumpkins turned out really cute. Makayla helped pulling out the pumpkin seeds with Justin. The boys decided to help me and try to sneek a few into their mouth gooey gung and all.

The future band of KISS- they have some of the makeup down!!

Makayla loved her odd shaped pumpkin so much it had to be displayed in the house!

Yep, those are power tools. Every year he pulls out some sort of power tool, maybe it makes the whole experience more manly. I must not give him enough jobs at home!
We are no expert carvers (like our friends the Carron's) but we have a good time and I love to eat the pumpkin seeds after.

Pumpkin Picking at HeeHaw Farms

2007-11-14T13:49:00.000-07:00

Because I am dumb and have wasted lots of time trying to figure out how to add a slide show to my post here it is. You have to left click and then click on view in new window to see the pictures in the slide show. If any one out there is smarter then me (that is a lot of you) help me to correct this problem.

Early October at Thanksigiving Point

2007-11-13T08:25:00.000-07:00

In early October we went to the farm at Thanksgiving Point with Dallin, Parker, Landon and Staci. The kids had a great time this is just a little clip of the kids dancing. Don't worry it just happens to be a dancing saloon.

Here are a few fun pics of the kids, great fall pictures.

Keagan absolutely loves the camera so the majority of photos of the "boys" happen to be Keagan.

Kaiden just doesn't let me get any good pictures of him. So he gets a blurry one, maybe that will teach him!

6 Things about Me

2007-10-22T10:41:00.001-06:00

Thanks Lindsay for the tag back. I am pretty boring but I can make it up right!

The rules: Player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves. At the end of the post, player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blog and posts a comment letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read our blog for the rules.

1. I am very politically minded. It all started in Elementary school, I was in student government and enjoyed the power!!! I also was in student gov. in College it was awesome. I love the fact that little ol' me can make serious changes by speaking up with the power to vote. I am still very vocal about my political views, just look at my front yard. We are extremely opposed to referendum one. If you want to know how to vote on 1 just say NO!

2. I have only had detention three times in my life. The first time I got it for spit water at a boy that I liked in the second grade. The second time I was in the library in third grade and I yawned, apparently really loudly but not on purpose. I didn't even know that I did it but despite that I was assigned detention. The third and final time I walked into the bathroom after some girls had been throwing the wads of wet toilet paper on the ceiling. I had nothing to do with it but I was assigned yet another detention. I was unjustly accused but what is the point to argue with a superior when they have their heart set on just giving someone a detention it doesn't matter who.

3. I was a Professional Skier for 4 years. Okay I was an instructor but we are considered professional skiers we get paid to ski. My best tip was from an hour private, they paid me $100. It was awesome. I would love to teach skiing again one day.

4. My first car was a Toyota Corolla. It was a total piece! This car lasted through 3 teenage drivers and over 200,000 miles. It was an '89 it finally died in '01. There were many exciting moments in that car possibly death defying.

5. I read the obituaries in the newspaper. I skim them to see if anyone died from something interesting or if they were young. Sick I know I just can't help it.

6. I make up stories about people when I don't know the real story. I have quite the imagination. If someone if pulled over I write a personal story about what happened to that person. It helps me move on. For example, there is a person that is on the side of the road and I decide that they are waiting for their family to show up because they lost them and the other car doesn't have the directions and their cell phones are dead. Weird I know! I blame my family I recently found out that my sister and mom both do it.

I am going to tag, drum roll please, Melissa Bowman pay back sucks! Kelsey Jones you need something else to do other then school. Erin Mohler because four kids doesn't keep you busy enough, now you have to deal with obnoxious tags. Courtney Derrick because you need a little substance on your blog, right? Lindsey Brewster for no good reason but to be annoying. And last but not least Melanie Young for all the mean super pokes on facebook.

2007-10-19T08:55:00.000-06:00

Being a mom rocks. I was driving down the road the other day and thinking about all the little bonuses that make being a mom that much sweeter.
Well first of all carpool lane. I was driving with 3 sleeping kids during rush hour and I made it through the traffic in no time. I feel like a cheater because the kids have to go where I go but oh well there are not age stipulations on the carpool lane.
When I want a treat I can just blame it on the kids. The kids were just so good that I need to get them something. (Really I am so good I deserve a treat)! The kids also need to learn how to cook what is better then making a yummy batch of cookies to teach important math and cooking skills.Of course I eat almost all of them later.
There are places that you can go that would look funny if you didn't have children with you. For example, the large bounce house play gyms. They are really fun but if you show up sans child people look at you funny. I would take Makayla to one all the time when I was prego with the boys. Imagine a very large woman climbing up the slide with her almost 2 year old and then add 2 more prego women with children. It rocked!
When something doesn't get done just blame the kids. Dads use this all the time- moms can use it too. I am sorry that I didn't get to that the kids were just on one today!!
I am my own boss and make my own hours (sort of- the kids do have a big say on the hours). I worked full time before being mom and I would not trade doing what I want when I want for better pay. We will see if I ever go back to teaching.
It is fun. I go to the zoo, museums (which I love), farms, aquariums, parks, and other "educational" activities for the children. I probably enjoy it just as much or more.
Naps- need I say more. Often times we tell our children to come lay down because they need a nap but it is really mom that needs one.

Yes, there are days that just stink but for the most part it is fun. I am lucky I have great kids and we all enjoy playing together. Plus, if my house is not spotless and dinner is not on time it means that we probably had a really fun day.

Changing Backrounds is Hard and Time CONSUMING!

2007-10-15T16:58:00.000-06:00

So obviously I changed the background of our blog. But because I am so dumb I lost some of my widgets and I don't know how to get everything back. But I do like the background. I really love this time of year! So if you are smart and can help I would appreciate it because I am going to have to change the template when it is no longer fall.

I normally don't do things like this but...

2007-10-09T21:57:00.000-06:00

My sweet Melissa Galt tagged me so I thought I would play nice and do it. Here it is enjoy it!

A~Attached or Single: Attached
B~Best Friend: Justin is my best and eternal but Diana is a girl that I can always dish with she rocks! No matter what I can call her and it is like we have talked everyday.
C~Cake or Pie: Let them eat CAKE
D~Day of Choice: Saturday- family day (usually at a track or Cross country event)
E~Essential Item: Food- I just love it. It is surprising that I am not 300lbs.
F~Favorite Color:Green
G~Gummi Bears or Worms: Gummi worms
H~Hometowm: Eagle Mountain, UT
I~Indulgences: Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate- scrapbooking is too
J~January or July: January I get to ski but July I live outside- hiking, basking in the sun, Justin has more time for family, I love fireworks and bbq's
K~Kids: 3- the cutest kids in the world. Makayla 3 1/2 Kaiden and Keagan 18 mo.
L~Life is Incomplete Without: Family
M~Marriage Date: December 29th, 2000
N~Number of Siblings: 2 brothers and 1 sister- they freakin' rock
O~Oranges or Apples: oranges- I did live in ORANGE COUNTY!!
P~Phobias or Fears: I hate heights but I will muscle threw it to see cool and amazing things.
Q~Quotes: Families are Forever- lame I know but lets be honest what else really matters.
R~Reason to Smile: Open mouth kisses from my boys, Makayla just being her- she has my comedic timing and wit!!
S~Season: I love the summer because I live outside but I love fall for the beauty of the changing leaves and I look much better in fall clothing. Winter for the skiing. Spring because I know that summer is coming!
T~Tag Three: Staci Starnes, Rachel Gillie, and Lindsey Storrs
U~Unknown Fact: I love to eat home made cookies or treat of any kind- If I cook a batch I will eat ALL of it by myself with no help from anyone else. I guess I just don't have any self control.
W~Worst Habit: I think that it would have to be that I brag about my kids ALL the time. I think that they are pretty much awesome. They are one of the best parts about me!
X~X-Rays or Ultrasound: I have had many x-rays: I broke my leg when I was 6 from skiing (it is a wonder I still love it) Makayla and I got in an accident about 2 years ago. I had my leg, knee, shoulder, hand, ankle, and elbow x rayed. This is also how I found out that I was pregnant. Ultrasounds: a mother of twins has one about a gazillion times a week. I have soooo many of those little pictures that I don't know what to do with them. I also had a few at the end with Makayla because the cord was around her neck 4 times. Scary!
Y~Your Favorite Food: Italian because I always wish I was Italian. I love garlic- yummy!
Z-Zodiac: I am a Pisces

A Night at the Circus

2007-10-09T20:47:00.000-06:00

I feel lost when I don't post more often. Too much happens then I feel like I need to play catch up. It is like missing school- you miss and then you are lost and behind.

The men with the kids. We went with the Garn's and Short's.

Back in the end of September we went to the Circus. I was feeling like it might be fun for the kids. I found the tickets for $3 they were total nose bleeds (notice in the picture NO ONE is behind us) but who cares for 3 bucks. Anyway, I told some friends and we all went. It was great the kids loved it, the parents loved it, everyone had a great time. I was thinking that the boys might not do so well but they were great they just stared watching the acts the entire time. The winner was the elephants by far for the boys. Makayla loved the horses and the flipping, jumping dogs. It was all so amazing.

The boys were digging the popcorn. It is pretty cute to watch your little ones just light up with excitement and by that I mean Justin too.

Makayla thought that it was down right awesome!

Old Friends Reunited

2007-09-27T20:22:00.000-06:00

Well I spent Monday morning with a good friend from high school. We haven't talked or seen each other since I was married (nearly 7 years ago) She found my blog and she was coming into town so we got together. Melissa Galt was a great friend in high school; she was the girl I saw Titanic with when everyone at the time had a man and there we were with each other crying our eyes out. It is sad but true. She was the girl that I would randomly go to random places with like Orange or Anaheim or something. Good times. But how could one ever forget the Taurus. It was mighty! Quilt tieing with Mama G. Lunches with the El Toro crew! Dances need we say more. Well enough of the history. She came into to town and we were able to do brunch at Mimi's (Yummy). Then we went over to the aquarium. We had a great time catching up. She is just the same which is so nice. She has a darling baby Ava and a Makayla too, she wasn't able to come out but I am sure she too is darling. I am sad that she lives so far away but now we can reunite often in Utah. Because everyone comes to Utah for one reason or another.

I have to give a shout out to Mama G and her Orange Juice- just don't mess with Mama G and her OJ!!

My First BYU Game

2007-09-23T18:19:00.000-06:00

On Saturday Mary and Brent, Justin's parents, took us to the BYU game. What fun! Since I never attended BYU and never lived in Utah county before I have never attended a BYU Football game until Saturday. It was a fun game and we could see the game better then on TV. (Of course we don't have TV so you really can't compare us to that statement but to the average American that does have a TV). It rained and that is the only way one should watch a game. It just says fall- football and cool rainy weather. It was a good game. But the highlight wasn't the win or the rain but seeing President Monson shaking hands and getting into his car after the game. That was pretty cool! But I had a thought as I looked around the sold out stadium- how odd that thousands of people will gather to watch twenty year olds play a football game and treat them like some sort of gods. It was just a thought and I do think that American culture is funny that way. Sometimes our priorities are screwed up like we will pay teachers pennies but athletes, that lie, cheat, use performance enhancing drugs, and numerous other moral issues, we will pay millions for just a few plays in a game. But I diverge from my message. It was a fun Saturday. Thank you Brent and Mary for allowing us to join you! And a HUGE Thanks to Clay for handling the three crazies kids for a few hours on your own.

Go Cougs!!! I guess that makes me a fan since I have been to a game.

It was a Walk Off!

2007-09-18T22:01:00.000-06:00

So I did it. I took the kids into a modeling agency. I sent in a picture of Mak and they called me back to have Makayla come in for an interview and a walk on the runway. I asked if I could bring in the boys and they said absolutely for twins. So we went. I had my mom come and as we were walking in I said to her it is like walking into a wierd twilight zone with amazon women and men that spend more time looking in the mirror then I do. I was so glad she came with me because being the baby wrangler for my three is quite the job. Well Makayla was awesome on the runway she walked down smiled and came back- like an old pro. (She keeps telling me that modeling is fun.) Kaiden however was not so thrilled, let me explain about the runway. It is close to chest high on me and it is glass. Not the best thing for a baby to think that he is going to fall down from this high platform that he can see the ground through and his crazy mom is making him do it. So instead I had Keagan go first and he just ran down it to Grandma he thought it was great. Kaiden followed him and it was all good. They did get many oohs and aahs. They are cute. So on Monday I got a call from the agency and they want to represent them, all three. It is still wierd and I am not sure we will do it but hey, I now know for real that my kids are cute. Watch out Zoolander here come the Pitcher twins!!

Spamalot

2007-09-14T07:42:00.000-06:00

On Tuesday we went to the play Spamalot. It was awesome. I have been a Monty Python lover since junior high. We would rent The Holy Grail and just laugh and laugh. I love British comedy there is nothing funnier, I do miss having late night PBS (that is when Are You Being Served and Mrs. Bucket are on). Well back to the play. I had so much fun enjoying the music and laughing at the spoofs. The music is awesome, fun and catchy. The Lady of the Lake has this incredible vocal ability with such diverse music. We had a great time!! Before the play we were trying to get some food but had a hard time finding a place that was fast enough to still get to the show. We ended up at this cool little coffee shop type place. Justin got this great panini and it was yummy, I probably ate more then he did (typical). Mom and Dad thank you so much for the fun and enjoyable evening. Dad and Justin always have way to much fun together, more then a father in law and son in law should have. I think there are rules about that sort of thing. Thank you Tommy and Jamie for watching the three monsters!

I am not dead yet. I am getting better. Your mother is a hamster and your father smells of elderberries. Go away unless I taunt you a second time. I'm not old I'm only 27. You said I was old. Dennis. Brave Sir Robyn he ran away he bravely ran away away.

Friday Night Lights

2007-09-09T22:46:00.000-06:00

We took the kids to the Alta football game on Friday night. It was a total slaughter not very exciting. However the half time show was amazing. At half time the dancers came out and Makayla began to copy every move. Everyone around us was watching her and laughing, pretty awesome. You are all jealous of her skills. This is the phone video it isn't great quality but it is still funny. She is dancing with our neighbors daughter and her best friend Ashtyn.

A year in Utah

2007-09-05T21:51:00.000-06:00

We have officially lived in Utah for a year now. Here is the past year in review. It is fun to see where have gone and what has happened the last year.
August 2006
We moved to Utah and live in the family cabin with my parents. The boys are still waking up and not sleeping through the night. Makayla becomes potty trained. Justin begins his new job at Alta. He also gets the Cross Country Head Coach position.
Sept. 2006
Nothing really. Still waiting for our home in Vegas to be sold. Still living in the cabin. Justin's heat goes out in his car. He has to pour warm water on the windshield to deice. He sits on his hands to keep them warm while driving.
October 2006
My parents home is finally finished. We get an offer on our house. We are living between the cabin and my parents new house. We begin serious house hunting. Justin gets a ticket in the Jeep going 92 up Parley's Canyon (yea right, it shakes over 60).
November 2006
We close on our house and move out of our Vegas house it was hard to say goodbye for real. We move into our new home in Eagle Mountain. It is a great neighborhood and awesome neighbors.
December 2006
Christmas time is always fun. Boys first Christmas. We do all the Christmas things possible. I love this season.
January 2007
Justin begins to coach indoor track. My first experience at Utah State not very stroller friendly or spectator friendly sport. Life is beginning to get more normal.
February 2007
I ski for the first time in 3 years. Having children and nursing really messes up snow sports. I got out of the snow and went to Vegas to watch my aunt and uncles kids. It was fun to see my friends and be in warmer weather.
March 2007
I turned 27 and makayla turned 3. We had a fun pink party for her. You know how I love to throw parties. I got my china hutch for my bday. It is fun to finally see my beautiful china that we have had since we were married but only able to use maybe 3 times.
April 2007
Boys turn 1. We had a great Construction party for the boys. I stopped nursing!!! (yep I nursed the twins for a year, it can be done). It should be warm but it is not. The boys begin to walk. We go to Boise before Staci has Landon. It was fun; I also saw my good friend Kim who moved away from me:(
May 2007
Track season is coming to an end. We are still busy. Baby Landon is born on May day.
June 2007
End of school! Justin and I go to Havasupi, what fun we had.
July 2007
We go to Boise for baby Landon's blessing it was fun. We go to St. George to enjoy a weekend at a condo given to Justin as a thanks for being a great teacher and coach. We went with our friends the Garns and had a great time. We were total lounge lizards at the pool. We drove through the big fire that shut down the 15 it was incredible I have never seen hot spots like that. Went to Montana for the family reunion. It was really fun to see everyone.
August 2007
Justin had his high altitude camp. I had a girls weekend in Cali with my mom and sis. School starts.

Wow so much happens in a year. Nothing all that exciting just busy!

Busy Week in Review

2007-09-02T09:39:00.000-06:00

What a busy week. I am tired from all the fun we had this week. My sister in-law Staci came down for a visit with her three kids. We had a great time. These are the only cousins that Makayla and the boys have so it is always a ton of fun for the kids. We visited the Children's Discovery Museum. We had a great time playing. There is a ton to do for all ages. The boys really enjoyed the water and driving the cars. Makayla loved the store and house she likes to do anything where she feels big and grown up. Everyone loved the news station. Dallin made a great weather man and Makayla just loved to watch her self on the TV (Watch out Lindsey your job could be in jeopardy with these young and rising stars!!) It was a blast. We were all so tired after but my day didn't end there. I had enrichment which I thought was really good other then the STINKY bath salts. I don't know what happened to them but B.O. with bubble gum is never a good combo. Thursday we went to This is the Place Heritage Park. They have really upgrade since I was there last (7 years ago). The kids loved the train and the pony rides. The play houses for the kids was a ton of fun the babies even loved it. It was SO hot but we had a good time. We then went up to our cabin and enjoyed the cool evening there. The kids played in the sand box and had a great time so need less to say everyone NEEDED a bath. The kids loved the four wheeler rides. That's all that Kaiden and Keagan wanted to do. We said goodbye to Staci and the boys. Dallin was sad that Makayla wasn't going with them. Then Mom and I with my 3 kids went to Swiss Days in Midway. It was hot and busy but I ran into my friend Erin from Vegas and that was fun to see her. Makayla asked why we were there and Grandma said because we are crazy. I think so! Then my sis came into to town to get a new car, it is nice! Her and I hung out Saturday. Logan watched the kids by himself while we went to IKEA. Logan changed his first diaper, ever! Lets hear it for Logan that is quite the undertaking. Makayla was a good help to him teaching him all the basics in child care like how to change a diaper. It is a good thing we left Logan in such capable hands!! It was a busy week and I don't know if I am ready for the 3 hour wrestling match at church. We only have 5 more Sundays until Nursery!! Can't wait! All in all it was a good time had by all and fun to see everyone!

Children's Museum

Keagan using the cash register.

Makayla shopping

Parker, Kaiden, and Keagan driving.

Future news anchores.

Our little Pilots Dallin and Makayla

This is the Place Heritage Park

Wagon ride

Train Ride

Photo by Makayla

Kaiden in the cottage

The Beginning of a New Year

2007-08-24T14:36:00.000-06:00

My life is ruled by the school year. Some are driven by the fiscal year or the calendar year but not the Pitcher house. I don't know what it would be like to not have the school year driving me forward at the end of each August. My life as long as I remember is driven by the beginning, holidays, and the end of the school year. I attended school for 16 years, taught school for two, and married a school teacher. There is no escaping it. Maybe I should do New School Year Resolutions and stay up until midnight to let the Ball Drop. I guess that seems a little unrealistic when you need your sleep to do well in school. Yep, that is right on Monday Justin is back in school. We have already had our first Cross Country meet and he has been at school all week without students. It is the beginning of the madness. Justin's gone long hours coaching and at meets, grading papers, going to school functions, taking road trips with athletes, and all that is required of an under paid and over worked teacher. I guess it could be worse, like track season- the meets take days instead of hours. He loves it and I guess that is all that matters. Plus, what does a person do at the end of August when you don't have to get ready for school? I don't think I will ever know!

Mullets, Miniskirts, and Mayhem

2007-08-18T21:42:00.000-06:00

The Pitcher Clan ventured to the Salt Lake County Fair this weekend. Justin was really feeling the need to go and I wasn't so sure. I finally relented and we sally forthed to South Jordan for all the exploits the county fair offers. Let me inform you first I haven't really been to a county fair unless Orange County counts which in the tales I am about to share it doesn't even come close. You must be wondering what the title has to do with a harmless county fair, EVERYTHING! We went on a night with the Demolition Derby so every mullet, missing toothed, tattooed man came from every corner of West Salt Lake County. It was interesting I have never seen such variety in the lack of teeth and mullet styles. I thought the people coming to the fair were on the scary scale until I glanced at the booths with the "carnies". How is it that parents willingly send their innocent small children into the clutches of the "carnies". I am sure they are decent hard working people??? or just about the scariest people you could meet not in a dark ally. We walk through Carnie Land and end up enjoying a Lumberjack show. It was all so weird. A 75 year old guy, Speedy, chopped a log in half in under a minute. If I could do that today let alone when I am 75. Impressive! Then we saw the animals which smelled and Makayla was not all that thrilled about. She did like the bunnies. We walked into the area where the entertainment was, if you could call it that, it was a bad 80's band with a rotten dancer. This poor girl wasn't even dancing well maybe interpretive dance but what ever it was it was BAD. I was embarrassed for her or maybe it was a dare with high stakes?? It was just bad I am sure I will have nightmares about the girl. We walked around the booths and were told numerous times how cute our twins are (I really can't blame the onlookers, my boys are cute). But oh the people I saw at the fair: Pat- with the s/he mullet down to her/his waist. The old lady in the miniskirt and the biggest hair ever, I swear it had to be 10 inches off her scalp. The countless other people that didn't look SO bad after you took a look at the scary carnies. I don't know what I was expecting at the County Fair but it certainly paid me back in dividends for interesting Twilight Zone entertainment. I really hope that I don't have too many nightmares about the County Fair. It was fun I swear; I am sure you will catch me at the next one! :)