go cougars!

My blood runs true blue, through and through. It's no wonder though--my sisters and I represent a third generation of BYU graduates. My Grandpa Allred loves BYU. I have numerous memories of him watching BYU football. If I remember correctly, he earned both his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from BYU. My parents also attended, met, and graduated as Cougars... as did several aunts, uncles, and cousins. And although Rich loves OU more and Dad perhaps loves UT we still all love BYU. Why wouldn't we? For one, we all met our spouses there! William, at age 2, already knew the fight song. (I'm brainwashing him... and proud of it!)

My mom and I were talking about the hardships and sacrifices that went into making Brigham Young University what it is today. It's pretty amazing. I'm proud to be part of that legacy.

And this past weekend another sister joined the ranks of family members who are proud to be Cougars.

Congrats Elise! We love you!

five little speckled frogs...

Really, there were only 2. Technically they were toads.... but you get the point. William and I were in the front yard weeding yesterday and as I dug in the dirt I unburied two toads! They startled me a little bit when they jumped out but William had a great time telling me the play-by-play of everything they were doing. And as we were out Rich finished up his run and brought us a surprise--a little tiny turtle he had found in the road. William named the turtle "William." We had to protect poor William the turtle from James who just wanted to throw him around.

Later on we decided to take the boys out to Express (Rich's work) and let them feed the geese. It was fun to see the little babies!

We had such a fun (and exhausting) day with all the local wildlife!

quilt giveaway

Don't you just wish this quilt was in your house? I heard about this giveaway and thought that I would pass it along. Although if I'm completely honest--I hope that I'm the one who wins it! Visit http://web.mac.com/cjroskelley to enter. All you have to do is leave a post telling her where you are from and where you like to buy fabric... and mention that you heard about it from me! You have until May 1st. So HURRY!!!

just because

Ever since Rich told me about the ear wiggle story that President Monson shared in the Priesthood Session of Conference I've wanted to see it. And wouldn't you know it... YouTube has the video. So for all you women who missed out as well--here you go. William LOVES this video!

what's up doc?

In the past year or so Piedmont acquired a medical complex. That's right we have one doctor's office now. Before you feel sorry for us let me tell you that we lucked out. Dr. Corman was recently featured in U.S. News and World Report. In case you don't want to read it, let me sum up. Dr. Corman is all about about customer service and wanted to be an old-fashioned, small town doc. His practice is also being studied as part of a two-year experiment by the American Academy of Family Physicians testing out the "patient-centered medical home." Sometimes there are perks to living in a small town. This just happens to be one of them.

motherhood

1. Typically what time do you wake up? Lately? 2:00 am, 4:30 am, 6:45 am, and then finally between 7:30 and 8:30. That may be a bit of an exaggeration... but not much! I wish someone could remind James that, until 6 months ago, he used to be a good sleeper!

2. On a good night what time are your kids in bed? Most nights it's between 6:30 and 7:00. Rarely later than that... except nights that we are at my in-laws or decide to go on a "family date."

3. How long have you been a mom? About 3 1/2 years... 4 years in November.

4. How old were you when you became a mom? 23 years old.

5. What is your favorite kid TV show/movie? Charlie and Lola is a super cute show. And on Sundays I like to watch VeggieTales with William...

6. What is your least favorite kid TV show? Thomas... so boring. Caillou... I'm convinced that kids become more whiny after watching it. It's a Big, Big World... I really dislike that one. Oh. And Barney... I think that comes from having to watch it with Rachelle when I was in 6th grade.

7. What is your favorite chore? Growing up I liked to clean the bathroom... I have a feeling that will change when William finally gets potty trained. I don't really know if I have a favorite chore now.

8. What is your favorite meal to cook? Anything easy. I like making pizza because Rich likes it so much.

9. What is the meal you cook most often? I don't know if I cook anything too often. I like trying new recipes and I try to mix it up a bit.

10. What is your kid’s favorite meal? Mac and cheese, chicken nuggets, grilled cheese since that's about all we can get William to eat. Oh he really likes pancakes and waffles. Everything else is a battle just to get a nibble. Just today he told me that he didn't like food. James on the other hand loves anything but especially chicken nuggets.

11. What is your favorite thing your husband does with your kids? I love that Rich gets up with William on Saturday mornings... and most every morning... so that I can sleep in a little bit. He also plays with the boys all the time--they LOVE their dad. He even comes home at lunch time to be with us.

12. What are 5 things that make you smile when you're being a mom? When James puts his little head on my shoulder. When William tells me "Good job mom!" "Mom is beautiful" or something equally as nice and sincere. When both boys are asleep. When the boys are playing nicely together for an extended period of time. When my boys are laughing.

13. If you could take your kids anywhere where would it be? I want to take them to the beach. Our first beach excursion, last April, was no good. It was a giant sand storm... and freezing! We're hoping it will be more successful in July. And, like Katie, I've been thinking it would be fun to take them to Disneyland one of these days.

14. When was the last time you went out without your kids? We are actually pretty lucky that we get to do this nearly every week--thanks to Rich's parents. Thursday Rich and I went to a dinner party for the 25th anniversary of the company Rich works for. It was a great dinner and we got to hear Col. Oliver North speak. It was incredible! Then on Friday night and Saturday I went to Time Out For Women and listened to some good music and amazing presenters. One of my favorite religion professors, Camille Fronk Olson, spoke which made it even more fabulous!

15. What is your favorite past time/activity to do with your kids? Lately we've enjoyed taking bike rides (William rides his trike while James and I walk).

16. Name 1 thing you said you'd never do as a mom. I can't think of anything except what Katie said. I'll never put my kids in daycare.

17. What is your favorite quality that your mom has? My mom has a million great qualities. She is really great at finding fun in everyday things... especially for little kids. I wish I could do that better with William.

18. What is your advice for new moms? Oh goodness. I remember some advice that was given to me before William was born. She said "You can have a clean house next year." Don't worry about having a perfectly straight house. Don't focus on 'what did I accomplish today?" Spend time with your little baby because they grow up way too fast!

19. What is the scariest or most heartbreaking moment as a mom? I remember laying in the operating room and realizing "He's not crying. William was screaming his head off." Then Rich pointed him out to me across the room and explained that he was unresponsive. I couldn't believe it. The first time I really saw him he was hooked up to a million tubes.

20. What is your most joyful moment of being a mom? There are so many. It could be when William was born and I officially became a mother. It could be when they released James from the hospital on the same day as me--much earlier than expected.

21. When was the last time you were told 'I Love You' by one of your kids? I'm sure that William has told me at least once today.

22. I tag: Amy and whoever else would like to play along.

emerging artist

I have a bunch of these little workbooks for William that focus on colors, shapes, letters, what-have-you. Today he was really into them and drew this picture. If you can't tell, it is a "long-neck" (and a tree)--or for those of you who don't speak Land-Before-Time-eese--a brontosaurus. And it is the first picture that I could tell what it was before being told. And that's all I have to say about that.

Jamesy-boy

Yesterday I took James to get his 1-year pictures. I'm a pretty big slacker at getting my boys pictures taken... but I do manage to get a 1-year picture. I set up the appointment for right after his nap in hopes that he'd be in a spectacularly good mood. Didn't really work out like that. He just wanted to make "his face" (see picture to the right) the whole time. And I swear this boy does not hold still for a single minute! We managed to get a few pictures of him not making his face.

The thing is this: I totally expected a repeat of taking William to get his pictures taken at 1 year. He had a blast and we had so many cute pictures that it was impossible to choose just one!

Here are some fun facts about James while we are focused on him:

*He is a little scavenger... he wants to eat whatever anyone else is eating.

*At his one year doctor appointment he was in 50% for height and 25% for weight.

*He thinks he is a big boy and wants to do whatever William does.

*If we were ever to lose his blue blankie we'd be in HUGE trouble.

*He loves to dig in the trash... much to my dismay.

*He has fallen/tripped/been pushed more than any kid I know. It doesn't phase him at all... he just gets up and keeps on going.

*He's never watched more than 5 minutes of a show (and that's when he was sick) because he just won't hold still.

*He loves cars... he can turn anything into a car.

*He also loves phones... anything that's not turned into a car is probably turned into a phone.

*He knows that he is the cutest thing ever.

*Recently, he's turned into a daddy's boy.

*He has no fear. Nothing will stop him from doing what he thinks is fun.

we are he-man woman haters, we feed girls to alligators...

I don't know where or when William decided that girls are yucky--but he did. I knew that this would happen one day but I guess I didn't expect it quite so soon. Sometimes I'm included in "what girls can't do" and sometimes I'm exempt because I'm a mom.

In the last few weeks I was told that girls can't watch Transformers and that he and Rich couldn't share an apple with me because I'm a girl. Apparently girls can't eat apples either.

Sometimes his distaste for girls works in my favor though. He was in desperate need of a haircut. I told him that his hair was getting "like girl hair" and people would tell him "oh! what a cute little girl." He certainly didn't want that... so he allowed me to give him a haircut.

And then, a few weekends ago we went on a "family date"--first stop: McDonald's. (Or as William calls it "Old McDonald's".) William loves playing with the other kids that are there but this time there were girls. And not just any girls... kissing girls! These girls were probably 5 or 6 and were chasing all the boys around. We saw them corner William by our table, trying to kiss him, while he managed to fend them off (and their mom's looked on and said "don't kiss those boys!") But up in the tunnels it turns into Lord of the Flies with no parental supervision and one of the girls managed to kiss him on the cheek. As we got the boys into the car we asked him about it. He said that he didn't like girls to kiss him. Rich teased him by saying "I like mom to kiss me." William then conceded that it was okay for mom to kiss him... just not friends.

And, for now at least, I'm okay with being the only girl who can kiss those baby soft cheeks.

pastry woes

I know this is silly, but ever since last year's pie fest I've been looking to redeem myself and reclaim 1st place Apple Pie status. I've been searching the local paper for entry calls and pondering over which pies I should enter this year. I was even going to have a poll to let you help me decide. Yesterday I finally emailed a few people. In return I was told that they are "taking a break" and that the person who handles the pie fest had "something personal she needed to concentrate on this year." WHAT?!? Oh well. Such is life in a small town. But next year my friends, next year, I will get that blue ribbon!

what's in a name?

I was tagged by Traci to explain why we named our kids what we did. Rich and I have the hardest time coming up with boy names--girl names, no problem--but boy names are hard! Basically both our boys got the names they did because they were the only ones we could agree on.

William Richard

When we were looking for names I liked the idea of picking a family name. I started looking at my pedigree chart. William Sydney Smith Willis was an ancestor of mine on my mom's side. He was in the Mormon Battalion and ended up in California. According to family legend he actually discovered gold first at Sutter's Mill but didn't say anything until he was certain that's what it was--unlike James Marshall. He gave most of the gold he found to Brigham Young and kept only a few nuggets with which he made earrings for his daughters. I always thought that was a cool story so I suggested the name William and Rich liked it.

I wanted the middle name to be Richard but Rich thought that it was egotistical to name our son after himself. Since I was the one giving birth I eventually won out.

James Anson

Again, we had a difficult time picking a name. We finally agreed on James which is my paternal Grandpa's name.

Anson Call was an ancestor on Rich's dad's side of the family. I believe he was a body guard to Joseph Smith at one point and settled Bountiful, UT. Rich really liked the name and I thought that "James Anson" had a nice ring to it... and I liked the family history it involved. I don't know much about Rich's ancestors so it was fun to research that a bit.

I tag: Lori, Carrie, Crystal, and Melissa.

follow the prophet

In honor of this weekend's main event I planned a "Get to Know the General Authorities" night for Young Women. We played concentration--matching the name to the face. Then we put them in order of seniority. And perhaps the most challenging: I read three facts about each of the Brethren and the girls had to guess who it was. I think they had a good time and learned a thing or two.... and hopefully it makes Conference a little more interesting for them this year. In case you are interested here are the facts that I used:

Thomas S. Monson

He was called as a bishop at the age of 22.

He was called as an Apostle at the age of 36... he has been either an Apostle or in the First Presidency for over 44 years (over half his life!)

He loves to use stories to teach.

Henry B. Eyring

His Dad was a world famous scientist.

His daughter lives in Oklahoma. (Maybe this is only of interest to those of us who actually live here.)

He likes to bake bread with his family.

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

He has read Harry Potter. (How do I know this? I happened to be at a fireside at BYU and he mentioned this... the girls thought it was pretty cool.)

He was an airline pilot for 35 years.

He is the only living Apostle who was not born in the United States.

Boyd K. Packer

He likes to paint and make wood carvings of birds.

He taught seminary.

He was unable to serve a mission because World War II broke out.

L. Tom Perry

He played volleyball.

His nickname was "Stretch" because he's so tall.

His favorite scripture story is Joseph being sold into Egypt.

Russell M. Nelson

He has 9 daughters and 1 son (his son is the youngest).

He was a heart surgeon and performed surgery on President Kimball.

He loves to ski.

Dallin H. Oaks

He was raised by his widowed mother. His dad died when he was just 7.

He was a judge on the Utah Supreme Court.

He worked as a radio announcer (which is how he met his first wife).

M. Russell Ballard

His two grandfathers were Apostles (Melvin J. Ballard and Hyrum Mack Smith).

His great-great-great uncle is Joseph Smith and his great-great grandfather is Hyrum Smith.

He was a car salesman.

Joseph B. Wirthlin

He played football in high school and college and was known as "Mr. Touchdown."

He had a nice singing voice and sang in operettas in elementary school and junior high.

History was his favorite subject in school.

Richard G. Scott

He enjoys jazz music and can play the clarinet and saxophone.

Was encouraged by his girlfriend to serve a mission. They were married two weeks after he returned.

He was a nuclear engineer.

Robert D. Hales

Played baseball in high school.

He was a fighter pilot. His squadron unit's motto was "Return With Honor" which was painted on the side of their planes.

He plays the piano.

Jeffrey R. Holland

He lettered in four sports in high school (baseball, basketball, football and track).

He taught institute.

He served a mission in England and his parents were called to the same mission while he was there!

David A. Bednar

His dad was not a member of the church and after Elder Bednar was married his dad asked him to come home and baptize him.

He met his wife while playing a game of flag football. (She caught his pass and says it's the only one she can ever remember catching.)

He loves to teach. Even when he was President of Ricks College he taught one religion class a semester.

Just a side note... when Rich was at Ricks he had dinner with Elder Bednar several times.

Quentin L. Cook

He was mission companions with Elder Jeffrey R. Holland.

When he was 16 he met Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, and Gerald R. Ford.

In high school he played football and basketball and also participated in debate and politics.

Hope everyone has a great Conference weekend! We're excited to see who the new Apostle is!

And for the cutest version of "Follow the Prophet" click here.

of cake tops and tricycles

A few weeks back I made a cake for our Enrichment night in celebration of the Relief Society Birthday.

A week later I made a cake for James' birthday.

As I cut the tops off the cakes I was reminded of large tupperware containers full of cake tops the sat in my Grandma Allred's kitchen as a child. My grandma made beautiful wedding cakes.

This is the famous "Lace Cake."

During the times she was decorating cakes, we grandchildren were not allowed to go in her office or run through the dining area. If we were to bump a cake table we'd probably get a stern warning. But we were allowed to eat all the cake tops we wanted... which, in my opinion, are the best part. And Grandma would undoubtedly decorate our fingernails with frosting roses that we could lick off one by one. If we were lucky we'd even get to eat some of the frosting roses she was using on the cake. When I was around 12 years old I was granted the privilege of helping her transport the cakes and assisting in setting them up. I thought I was pretty special.

I can only hope that my children have such fond memories of their childhood. I hope they remember the excitement of racing their trike down the street.

William has recently found the joy of riding his bike. It is so fun to watch him ride up and down our street!

Or of tasting chocolate covered strawberries.

James loves chocolate... actually he loves anything that someone else is eating!

"Memory is a way of holding on to the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose."

What are some of your fondest childhood memories?