Aiden's Latest Obsession

When my little Aiden decides he likes something, he REALLY decides to like it...to the point where it's almost a little bizarre. If you've been reading our blog for awhile, you know about his fascination with the movie "Cars" and the TV show "Yo Gabba Gabba". But in the past few months...believe it or not...something else has managed to trump both of them. Unfortunately for the rest of us, that something is just as annoying...if not more so! Aiden's latest passion is...(drum roll please)...Mr. Bean!

Mr. Bean??? I'm sure you're asking yourself, "How does a two-year-old become obsessed with Mr. Bean?" It all boils down to one man...Poppy. A few months ago when we were over at my parents' house, my dad had on a Mr. Bean episode. When Aiden walked into the door, my dad invited him to come sit on his lap and watch it with him. Aiden quickly ran over and sat down. I thought to myself, "Right...we'll see how long this lasts. It's not a cartoon and it doesn't involve scary looking puppets, so I'll give it about...oh, two minutes!" Well, much to my surprise, Aiden sat through the entire 30 minute episode and enjoyed every minute of it! When it was over, he quickly said "Poppy...watch more Bean!" Since that moment, the boy has been hooked. Almost everyday for the past two months, Aiden has come to me and said, "Mom...go Poppy's house...watch Bean!" He would be so sad on the days I would tell him no. On the days when we WERE able to go to their house, Aiden would run through their door shouting "Poppy...Poppy...watch Bean...watch Bean now!" In fact, I don't think there has been a single visit to Nana and Poppy's house in the past few months when we did NOT watch at least one Mr. Bean episode.

So, when Christmas was coming around, my parents decided to give Aiden his own copy of the new Bean movie "Mr. Bean's Holiday", and Mike & I decided to give him his own collection of the "Mr. Bean" episodes...BIG MISTAKE! Our DVD player deserves overtime pay for all the usage it's received this past week. I think Aiden's obsession has reached a new peak. He eats, sleeps & breaths Mr. Bean! As a mom, this slightly concerns me. First of all, aren't children only supposed to watch an hour of TV or less per day or they'll end up with a low IQ or something? Well, if that really is the case...this past week will put my child on the pathway to having an IQ of -20! Second of all, don't children emulate what they see? Mr. Bean is not exactly the kind of role model a mother envisions for her child! And, third, it's just plain annoying for the rest of us! So, I've tried several techniques to protect my family from the evil effects of "The Bean". At first, I just turned it off after awhile and dealt with the screaming & crying...but that didn't work for very long because Aiden learned how to operate the DVD player. I would turn it off, only to find it back on a few minutes later! After that, I started turning it off and putting the movie away in the DVD cabinet. Well, Aiden quickly figured that trick out too. So, I started turning it off and putting the movie up high somewhere. Next thing I know, (yep, you guessed it) Aiden is pulling a bar stool over to it, climbing up & grabbing it. What a kid! :) So, like the horrible mother that I am, I have decided to surrender to my two-year-old. It's just too much work to keep him away from his beloved "Bean". All I can do now is sit back and hope this bizarre "Bean Mania" doesn't last too long! --Lindsay

The Gingerbread House War

Yes, I know that Christmas was three days ago...but we just got around to doing our gingerbread houses for the year. I bought the kit (yes, a kit--do you really think I have the "domestical talents" to make gingerbread from scratch??? Please!) back in November and then kind of forgot about it until Mike's brother gave the boys another kit for Christmas. I didn't want them to go to waste waiting until next year, so we decided that it was okay to decorate gingerbread houses AFTER Christmas. As you can imagine, with three little boys (Mike is included in this group) and a very un-crafty mom, it was not a pretty sight! In fact, halfway through, Connor said, "This is just embarrassing!" Haha! He speaks the truth!

Since we had two kits this year, we decided to have a little friendly competition Mike and Connor on one house; Aiden & I on the other. Well, that's not totally correct...Aiden decided a few minutes into the process that I was going too slow, so he switched over to Connor & Mike's team. Then, a few minutes after that, he decided that decorating gingerbread houses was kind of a boring process and left (with a mouth full of candy) to play with toys...so it was really Connor & Mike versus me.

As we decorated, we found that both teams had very different decorating "styles". Mike & Connor used the "load it on" method...the more candy the better apparently (probably to cover up all the mistakes--evil giggle--What? Did I say that?). I, however, took the "simplistic" method...using candy in moderation...not wanting to take away from the house itself (who would want to cover up perfection? Evil giggle again...). The final products are below...Mike & Connor's is on the left (of particular note are the candy "tower" on the roof & the gumdrop man in the front yard)....and mine is on the right (which, let's just admit, is absolutely flawless and has way too many extraordinary features to point out just a few!). ;) So, who do YOU think won the war of the gingerbread house? As if I even have to ask! Just kidding! --Lindsay

Six Days of Christmas Fun

Christmas has been a week-long event at our house. We decided that one day wasn't enough for all the holiday cheer, so we dragged the festivities out for SIX days! So, let me tell you what we've been up to...

Friday: On Friday, we had a little mini-Christmas party with some of our good friends, the Jensens. Sheyenne and Bryan lived in our ward a while back and we became fast friends. However, they decided to turn to the dark side and move a few blocks away into, not only a different ward, but a different stake. You always think that a few blocks won't make a difference, but it always does. You don't see each other nearly as much as you did before. Well, as if a few blocks wasn't bad enough...they decided to move out to the town center about 4 months ago. That meant they were almost 10 minutes away! If we didn't see each other much when we lived a few blocks away, then a few miles was going to be much worse. So, we figured that if we were ever going to see each other again, we would have to put a date on our calenders. So, we planned a little Christmas get-together. It was a lot of fun! Sheyenne made a really yummy dinner and our kids just all played. It was a really fun night and we'll have to do it again...soon!


Saturday: Saturday started out with a Primary Christmas party. Mike took the kids because I was still on my way home when it started. Aiden even got to participate because the nursery kids were invited too. Sweet!!! The kids had a blast. They played games, made some crafts, ate breakfast & had a visit from Santa Claus himself. The boys had a great time! Later that night, we had our ward Christmas party. We had a really yummy dinner and a Christmas program about the birth of Jesus. It was a really nice night!

Sunday: We started a tradition several years ago on the Sunday before Christmas. The kids get to open one present...which just makes their month since they've been staring at the presents for weeks on end. The present is always their Christmas church outfits, so it's not that exciting...but, hey, it's a present, right? Before I started this tradition a few years ago, I would just buy their outfits and hang them in their closets, but opening them seems to be much more exciting for the kids and helps let out a little of that pent up Christmas energy. After church, we headed up to Ashlee's house for a "Christmas Eve Eve" party. She was spending this Christmas with her husband's family, so she wanted to have a chance for my parents and the cousins to be able to exchange their presents. Ashlee made our family's famous broccoli cheese soup (I think it's my Aunt Kathy's recipe and it's delicious)...which is basically a heart attack in a bread bowl. It was fabulous and we had a great time!!!

Monday: Monday was Christmas Eve...my favorite day of the year...and (wouldn't you know it) I got deathly ill!!! I had a horrible stomach bug that made me lay in a ball, moaning in pain for a good majority of the day! It was awful! I always look forward to my mom's Christmas Eve party. She makes the best food and I was so sad that I wasn't going to be able to go. I called my mom and she told me that if I felt good enough, I should still come. So, I dragged myself out of bed and over to her house. I was there in body...but that's about it! I was so out of it and in so much pain that it was pretty much pointless for me to be there, but oh well...the parts I do remember were fun! The kids played bingo for presents which is a tradition in our family. It was started by my grandma a long time ago. She would go to the dollar store and buy all these gag gifts and wrap them up as bingo prizes. It was so funny to see the prizes...sometimes it was just better if you didn't get a bingo. Haha! Anyway, this tradition has somehow evolved into real presents. This year, there were light sabers, dinosaurs, gummy bears, etc. The boys had a blast with it! After that, the boys got to open a few presents from my parents and (of course) their Christmas PJs. Then it was home to bed so Santa could come...

Christmas Day: Christmas morning was a lot of fun! I was feeling much better now that 24 hours had passed...stupid flu! Why Christmas Eve...of all days? Come on... Anyway, the kids slept in until about 8:30 which was nice too. Connor woke up first and started booking it into the family room. Mike had to turn him around and tell him that he needed to wait for Aiden to wake up before he could go see what Santa brought. Connor was surprisingly patient, and Aiden woke up a few minutes later. The boys ran out and were both jumping out of their socks! Connor was so excited because he had gotten the "Darth Vader/Death Star" transformer that he's "always wanted his whole life" (even though he only saw it about two months ago) and a new bike, along with a Star Wars "Battle Scene". Doesn't that sound thrilling? I will never understand boy toys. Aiden got the "Cars" Mountain Track that he now refuses to turn off and a bunch more "Cars" cars...just what this house needs, right? We had started opening presents when my parents and Kristin came over to see the boys. A few minutes after that, Mike's parents & his brother Brian & sister Kimber came too. We had a big party with both families and it was really fun! We decided to continue the party over at my parents' house, so I could sample some of the yummy food I had missed the day before. Mike's parents stayed for a few hours and then took off to visit other people, so we spent the rest of the day at my parents' house. The boys went sledding that afternoon and had a great time! They were FROZEN when they came back! While they were gone, Kristin and I battled it out "Guitar Hero" style...and she totally kicked my butt! I'm not bitter or anything...I'm actually glad that Kristin finally beat me in something for once! It may truly be a first...just kidding Kristin!

Today: We spent today with Mike's family . Mike's little brother couldn't make it into town until this morning, so we decided a few weeks ago that we would just pretend that today was Christmas. It was a fun day. We had the traditional Storrs' Christmas prime rib and all the yummy fixings. Then we opened presents and just hung out. It was a really fun day and now, I am extremely exhausted. Six days of Christmas can really wear you out! --Lindsay

Christmas Tag -- Not Just For Gifts Anymore!

Well, I've been tagged again! This time by my friend Valerie...and then again by my friend Heather. And, this time, it's the Christmas edition. I know you are jumping out of your socks because you are so interested to learn more useless facts about me, but what could I do? I didn't want to bring the wrath of the "tagging gods" upon my blog! So, for your enjoyment (and the sake of my blog) here are my responses...along with the lucky few who get to keep this tag going...

1.Wrapping paper or gift bags? Paper. Although, I am so sick of wrapping gifts at this point that if I have to wrap one more thing...(fill in the rest with your imagination, my ending is not becoming of a lady).

2.Real tree or Artificial? Fake all the way! One year when I was little, we hiked up in the mountains and cut down our own tree...a beautiful spruce. By the time we got back to the car, we were all frozen! Then, we got home and started decorating the tree and realized how pokey spruces can be. I think we were all bleeding by the end of the night. We bought a fake tree the next year and I've had one ever since!

3.When do you put up the tree? Day after thanksgiving...you all heard my lovely rant about that fabulous experience!

4.When do you take the tree down? Usually New Years Day...if it's up a day beyond that, I go nuts! (But, I'm usually kind of nutty anyway, so really, there's no difference.)

5.Favorite gift received as a child? During the "Cabbage Patch Craze Days", my mom made me a homemade cabbage patch. I don't know if I asked for it too late and there weren't any left in the stores or what, but she decided that if she couldn't buy me one, she would make me one. It was awesome and I will never forget it!

6. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes. It's one that my grandma made. See these talented women that I have descended from? Why didn't I get any of the "domestical talents"...or the boobs??? Well, that's a different story for a different post. Back to Christmas & G-rated things...

7. Hardest person to buy for? Both sets of parents...they already have EVERYTHING.

8.Easiest to buy for? My kids...they give me a list about a mile long.

9. Mail or email Christmas cards? Always mail. By the way, did everyone get a card? If not, let me know and I'll send you another one.

10. There was no number 10. It's like the child that Santa forgot... How sad!

11.Favorite Christmas movie? "A Christmas Story" all the way! That kid getting his tongue stuck to the flag pole never gets old!

12. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Absolutely...and an etiquette expert who did my show said it's okay... Rock on!!!

13.Favorite thing to eat at Christmas and dinner? All the finger foods...lil' smokies, cheese balls and crackers, fondue, etc.

14.Clear or colored on tree? Both...red and clear. Yes, you know that story too. But, I'm not bitter or anything...

15.Favorite Christmas song? All the ones you are listening to right now. Kay Starr's "The Man with the Bag" is probably my favorite...or Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song"...or Colbie Caillet's "Mistletoe". Oh, I guess I don't know...

16.Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home. Do we have anywhere else to even go? Both our families live here. We're boring!

17.Open presents Christmas eve or morning? Both. PJs on Christmas Eve...everything else Christmas Day.

18.Favorite ornament theme or color? Mismatch. They are the best!

19.Most annoying thing about this time of year? Rude people...but they bug me year round.

20. What I want for Christmas this year? Peace on Earth & good will toward men...Haha, yeah right, as if that will ever happen...

Okay, here are my lucky three: Christa Kelley, Lyndsey Faulkner & Kristy Barlow. You KNOW Kristy is cursing my name right now! Haha! I just do it because I care! --Lindsay

Bizarre Things that Happen When I'm in the Shower!

I got out of the shower this morning to find Aiden missing his pants and wearing a pull-up diaper. Here's what was said:

Me: Aiden...where did your pants go? And, where did you get this diaper? And, where is the diaper that you had on before I got in the shower?

Aiden: Connor change Ainen's (Aiden's) diaper!

Me: Connor changed your diaper?

Aiden: Uh-huh...Ainen poopy.

I went out to the family room and found Connor.

Me: Connor, did you really change Aiden's diaper?

Connor: Yeah...he was poopy and stinking up the house and you were taking too long in the shower, so I changed him. But, I couldn't find his normal diapers so I put him in my old pull-ups!

Me: Wow! Good job Bud! (Smelling) Where did you put the poopy diaper?

Connor: In the garbage.

From the lingering smell in the house, I could tell that he didn't mean the outside garbage...

Me: Which garbage?

Connor: The kitchen one...

Haha! I had to laugh! The smell had bothered him enough to change the diaper, but it didn't bother him enough to actually take it outside. But hey, I still couldn't believe that he had taken it upon himself to change a poopy diaper! Most grown men won't do that!!! What a great kid! He'll make a great husband and dad someday (as long as we can get him to remember to take the stinky diapers OUTSIDE)! Haha!

I also wanted to post a few pictures of Connor at his Christmas program yesterday. It was so cute and Connor did a great job! He sang his little heart out and said his part so well! Good job Connor! You are one awesome kid! --Mommy

Our little elf before the program started. Notice who he's sitting by...yep, that's Savannah. Hey Savannah, he changes diapers! He's a keeper!

This is Connor saying his part which was "Are the reindeer ready?" Sorry it's so dark!

I'll Build You a Rainbow

Disclaimer: If you are easily offended...please do not read the following post (You're intrigued now, aren't you?):

When we're in the car on Sundays, we usually turn on one of the radio stations that plays church music...just because it doesn't seem quite right to be listening to Fergie or Dashboard on your way to church. Most the songs are okay, but there is one song that I really can not stand...it is WAY over the top with cheesiness! The song is "I'll Build You a Rainbow". If you've heard this song before, you know EXACTLY what I am talking about. If you are one of the lucky ones who has not heard this song...let me tell you a little about it...

The song is half sung/half spoken. It tells the story of a mom who decides to stay at home with her child instead of going to work. All the kids in the neighborhood are jealous because they wish their moms would stay home with them too. Then, one day the 11-year-old child is brought home from school early to find an ambulance in his driveway. He walks inside and is told that his mom is dying. He goes to talk to her and tells her that she can't die. She tells him that's it's okay because she's spent more time with him in 11 years than "those other moms" will have with their boys in a lifetime. Her son is still having a hard time with her dying so she tells him that every time he see a rainbow, it is her smiling down on him. Then she dies and a rainbow magically appears over their house. The end. GAG!!! I seriously throw up a little in my mouth every time I hear it! It is the CHEESIEST song on the planet. And, the fact that it is half sung/half spoken makes it even cheesier!

Anyway, I was telling my mom and sisters about this song last night. Neither of my sisters had heard it before, so we got online to try to find it. What we found was a family that OBVIOUSLY feels the exact same way about this song as I do. They made a parody "music video" for the song to send to their son who was serving a mission and posted it on Youtube. My family and I were laughing so hard that we were in tears, so I decided to share it with you. --Lindsay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfwDyVNwbaA

p.s. Let me apoligize in advance to those of you (if there are any) who may like this song.

Four Storrs & Seven Years Ago

Well, Mike and I have been married for seven years today! WOW!!! In some ways, it doesn't seem nearly that long. It seems like we've been married for about three years or so...which doesn't make much sense because we have a five-year-old. In other ways, it seems like we've been married forever! Mike and I were talking about it yesterday, and both of us have a hard time remembering life without each other...it just seems like we've always been together. Anyway, we're pretty darn proud of the little family we've created and are pretty content with our life right now! (Knock on Wood, right?)

To commemorate our seven year anniversary, our "Families Together" segment on my show (where a marriage and family therapist comes on and talks about various issues that couples and families face) was all about the "seven-year-itch". The doctor said that it is a fact that divorce rates spike at around 7-9 years because marriages kind of hit a rut. Wow...thanks, just what I wanted to think about on my anniversary! :) As I thought about it, I decided that this hasn't been the case for Mike and I...in fact, I think we both love each other 100+ times more today than the day we got married. That sounded really cheesy, but it's true! So maybe seven can be "lucky number seven" for us, rather than the "seven-year-itch". So, we figured seven years was worth a little celebration.

Mike surprised me by getting a babysitter and taking me to Lugano!!! It was so awesome! Greg Neville, the owner and executive chef, does our

"Sunday Brunch" segment on the show once a month...so he and I have become quite good friends. When Mike made the reservation, he asked the gal to let Greg know that we were coming and boy did he ever take care of us! When we got there, he had a great little table set for us in a really nice area of the restaurant. In fact, guess who was sitting at the table right next to us...Robert J. DeBry (the injury attorney and my dad's competition). Haha...I had to laugh about that. I almost thought of saying, "Hey...how about those 'One Call, That's All' guys" but I refrained! Anyway, I think Mike and I stuck out like a couple of sore thumbs...plus, we were the only ones that didn't have a $100+ bottle of wine on our table. Darn those standards! :) Anyway, dinner was delicious! Mike had the salmon and scallop ravioli (which he was more in love with than me, I think) and I had a lemon and red wine chicken breast with parmesan mashed potatoes and grilled zucchini! It was heavenly! I had to laugh though because as I looked at the menu, I realized that I had eaten half the stuff on there FOR FREE...this was the first time I had to pay for Greg's divine meals, but it was worth it...it was delicious! After dinner, our waiter brought out a slice of the famous Lugano chocolate torte, compliments of Greg as an anniversary present. It was an awesome dinner! Mike did a great job of planning a fabulous surprise! I loved it!

On our way home, we decided to go visit Mike's brother, Brian, at his Starbucks store in Taylorsville to get our favorite drink. It's their hot carmel apple drink. It's steamed apple juice, a shot of their cinnamon syrup, & two shots of their carmel syrup...topped off with a TON of whipped cream! It is to DIE for...and I'm sure it has enough calories to kill you anyway! We just hung out for awhile, listening to the good music and enjoying our drinks. It was a fun end to a great evening.

And, to top it off, I got up early this morning to go to work and found a bag on top of the counter that said, "Breakfast to Go Bag". Mike usually makes me breakfast in bed on our anniversary, but because I had to work this morning, he put all my favorites (at least the ones that were portable) in a bag that I could take with me to work. He is so sweet!

I just feel like the luckiest girl in the world. I am married to one of the greatest guys on the earth...I really am. In fact, I feel bad talking about him sometimes because I feel like I'm bragging! I never have anything bad to say about him! He is the most thoughtful, giving, loving, forgiving, caring person I think I have EVER met...and I get to keep him forever!!! How cool is that??? I love you Mike! Thank you for making me feel like a princess everyday the last seven years! I don't think I have gone even one day without a smile and a good laugh because of you! You are wonderful and I love you more than anything!

Love,

Lindsay

p.s. Sorry the rest of you had to suffer through my sappy love letter to my husband!

I Finally Finished It!

Okay, okay, okay...for all of you who have been bugging the crap out of me lately about being the slowest person in the world to ever read the book "Twilight", I have now officially finished it! YEAH!!! And, it only took me 3 months! Haha! This really was a great book. For any of you who haven't heard about it yet (if any of you even exist), let me tell you a little about it--without giving too much away.

It's the story about a girl named Bella who goes to live with her dad in a little town in Washington named Forks, where she meets Edward Cullen. Edward has a dark secret that she is determined to figure out (and if you've heard ANYTHING about this book, you know what that secret is). As she and Edward get closer, his secret starts to put Bella and those she loves in serious danger...and that's when the book gets REALLY exciting, so I'll stop talking right now.

The first 100 pages were intriguing but were a little on the slow side. The next 200 pages were all about the romance and (being the anti-PDA person that I am) were a little over the top for me. But, the last 200 pages were AWESOME!! I had the hardest time putting the book down! I don't know if I've ever read a book with so many twists and turns in the plot! You TOTALLY do not see any of them coming! I loved it!

So, now I'm on to the second book in the series, "New Moon". I'll let you know what I think of that one when I finish. And, hopefully, it won't take me another three months! --Lindsay

Connor Vader

Well, if you know Connor, you know he is OBSESSED with Star Wars. So, he was in heaven the other night when we went to my parents house and my dad pulled out a "real light saber" and a life-sized darth vader helmet. He bought them at Sharper Image for a skit he was doing at work. The light saber is one that makes noises when you move it or hit it on something and the helmet was made from the mold of the original from the movie. Connor was on cloud nine! I had to put the below picture on here because I think it looks so funny. Doesn't he look like a little oompa-loompa darth vader? His body looks so little under that huge helmet! Haha! --Lindsay

The Angel Tree Party

Every year, my station sponsors the Salvation Army Angel Tree. The Angel Tree is a program to help provide children and senior citizens, who otherwise couldn't afford it, with Christmas presents. On the second or third Saturday of December, all of KUTV's employees and their families go get some of the angels who still haven't been adopted. And, the station even gives each family a $50 prepaid Visa card to use toward the gifts too. Later that day, after you've done all your shopping, everyone meets back up to turn in the gifts and have a Christmas party. This year the party was held at Hogle Zoo. We had a dinner and looked at the Zoo Lights. More on that in a second...first of all, I need to tell you about our "angel".

This year, our angel was a little two-year-old boy. As I looked at his wish list, I was amazed at how short it was...and how many of the items were basic necessities. The only toys on it were a Spiderman and some cars. The rest of the list was just essentials...like a coat, shoes, socks, undershirts, etc. I thought about this sweet little boy, who is probably Aiden's age or a little bit older, who may be walking around in shoes that are too small or a coat that is too thin. It made me almost cry (and I don't cry often) just thinking about it, and made me feel very thankful for everything our family has been given.

We took our list and headed out to find our gifts. We talked to the boys in the car about the little boy and how he might not get any Christmas presents this year if we didn't buy them for him. Connor got really excited about helping him out. Our first stop was Old Navy for some clothes. Connor picked out a camouflage parka for him because he thought that the little boy liked army men. We also picked out some cute clothes and tennis shoes for him too. Then it was on to Target for some socks, undershirts and (the best part) the toys. Connor and Aiden made quite the effort to pick out the best toys for him...although Connor was QUITE disappointed that this little boy didn't like Star Wars or Transformers toys. They finally decided on several Spiderman action figures, a box of matchbox cars and some "Cars" cars (bet you can't guess who's contribution they were). We had a great time!

I hope the boys will remember how great they felt doing it! One of my best memories growing up was buying some Cabbage Patch Dolls for some little girls in our neighborhood who didn't have much money. We put them on their doorstep, then went back home and my dad called them. When they answered, he said that he was Santa Claus and that he had put some early-Christmas presents on their doorstep. After that, we quickly tiptoed out our backdoor and around to the side of our house to see their reaction. I will never forget hearing those little girls squeals when they opened the door. Hopefully, my kids will be able to remember this experience in the same way that I remember mine.

After shopping, we had some extra time before we needed to head over to Hogle Zoo, so we stopped at Burger King, ate some lunch, and let the kids play FOREVER! Maybe after all the shopping, the boys were feeling the holiday spirit because they played so well together the whole time! The play area was really tall and had lots of levels. It was set up so that the kids would have to pull themselves up to each level. This was kind of hard for Aiden, so Connor stayed by him the entire time and would help him by lifting him up (it was by his crotch and didn't look very comfortable, but--hey--he was helping him). It was so cute!

At 4:30, we headed over to Hogle Zoo, where we turned in our gifts and then headed to the monkey house for our party. It was so much fun! Santa was there and we had a yummy dinner. Sterling was doing weather live from the party and he put Connor on TV and asked him what he wanted for Christmas. It was the first time that Connor has actually said something on camera, rather than running as far away from it as he can get. (He's usually VERY camera shy) Unfortunately, the boys didn't want to eat a whole lot of their dinner because all they wanted to do was look through the window at the monkeys, but oh well. My sister, Ashlee, and her family even came. Earlier in the day, when we had picked up our angel, they told us that they had a lot of extra tickets to the party and to see the zoo lights and asked if I had any family members that would like to come. So, I invited Ashlee and her family. After dinner, we headed out into the cold to look at the zoo lights. It was pretty cool. There are lights in animal shapes up all over the zoo. A lot of them were animated so it looked like the animals were moving. Unfortunately, it was so BLASTED cold and snowy and windy that we couldn't stand it for very long. Let me describe it to you...it was 29 degrees and snowing...but it felt more like 15 degrees and the snow was coming down sideways because the wind was blowing out of Emigration Canyon at probably 20+ miles per hour. It was absolutely miserable...so we basically just saw the lights that were on our way back to the parking lot. It looked pretty cool though, so Ashlee and I decided that we should try to go again next year on a night when it's not so cold. Do I sense another holiday tradition in the making???

Overall, it was a great day! I think our entire family was really able to feel the true spirit of Christmas. And, I can't wait to do it again next year! --Lindsay

The Annual Girls Night Christmas Party

Last night was the 2nd Annual Girls Night Christmas Party. For those of you that don't know, (how you couldn't at this point, I don't know--I blog about it every four weeks or so) I started a Girls Night group several years ago. Back then, it was just three of us, but it has grown into quite the little club. One person would invite another person and then that person would invite someone else...and now, every month, I send out an email to almost 70 girls telling them what our activity will be for the month! Back when it was just the three of us, we got together and scrapbooked every month...but we got bored of that really fast. So, one month we decided to do something a little different...we went out to a movie. The next month, we decided that--since we had had such a good time the last month--we would not scrapbook again. This trend continued. We decided to start taking turns being in charge of a month. When it was your month to be in charge, you could do anything you wanted and the rest of the girls would tag along. If you wanted to go to your favorite restaurant, the rest of us would come along. If you wanted to do a game night at your house, the rest of us showed up on your doorstep. It's been a really fun tradition and a LOT of us look forward to it every month...in fact, in many cases, our MENTAL HEALTH depends on it!

Last year, I was in charge of December's activity...so I decided to do a Christmas party at my house. I made the main dish and then everyone else brought side dishes, drinks, desserts, etc. We also did an optional gift exchange and ornament exchange. It was such a fun night...so fun in fact, that I had several people ask me if we could make it a yearly tradition. Fine with me...as long as I didn't have to host again. Well, after asking multiple times if anyone else was interested in hosting...and hearing multiple ho's and hum's in response, I decided that I would host again this year. It is always a lot of work, but I really don't mind too much. I was raised by a woman who probably should have made a profession out of being a party planner, so I think it's in my blood. (Although, I don't think I'll EVER be able to throw a party quite as well as my mom can!)

It was a great night...better than last year, I think! We had 23 people this year! Yikes! Not very good when you've only set out 22 place settings...but we worked it out! I made my mom's really yummy chicken cordon bleu recipe for our main dish and it ACTUALLY TASTED LIKE HERS!!! That may be a first...me making food...and having it actually taste right! I was so happy!!! I had a lot of requests for the recipe so I'm going to post it on the Girls Night Facebook group, so check there if you want it!

This is a picture of my house right before everyone started showing up. I had great intentions of taking a picture before, a picture during, and a picture after to create a sequence. But, I was having such a fun time during the party that I forgot to take a picture. (What's new, right?) And, I was cleaning too hard and fast afterwards that I again forgot to take a picture. So, this is the only one I have...but I thought the house and the tables looked really pretty, so I decided to post it anyway! Overall, it was a great night and I can't wait for the THIRD Annual Christmas Party. But, maybe next year, I can enjoy going to someone else's house (hint, hint girls)! Just kidding! --Lindsay

Our Square Tradition (Trolley Square & Temple Square That Is)

Every December, my entire family plans a night to head up to Salt Lake. This has been a tradition in our family for almost 30 years...ever since I was a little girl! It's changed slightly over the years, mainly because we went from being a family of 5 to a family of 12...but the basics are still the same. We all meet at Trolley Square first. Mike and I always try to go up early so we can have a lot of time to shop. (How can you not when you're talking about some of my favorite stores...Pottery Barn, PBK, Williams Sonoma, Basket Loft & Restoration Hardware?) The kids always whine the whole time we are in the "mommy" stores...so usually halfway through, Mike takes them to PBK to play with all the toys (I secretly think it's HIS favorite store too) & I continue to shop. That way...everyone is happy!

After shopping, we all head over to Old Spaghetti Factory for dinner. There are a lot of cool restaurants at Trolley Square, but it is still our favorite...and we go there every year! I found out this year that you can buy a quart of their Pesto House Dressing to take home!!! I love that stuff!

After dinner, we all head over to Temple Square to see the lights. Since the ZCMI Center and Crossroads Mall (and their respective parking garages) are gone, we decided to park at Gateway and then take TRAX over to Temple Square. I think riding the train was the kids' highlight of the night!

Temple Square was nice. It wasn't too cold or crowded. Unfortunately, it appears the church is cutting back on the number of lights they put up because there were a lot of bare trees...a fact that REALLY bugged Ashlee...we actually made fun of her a little bit and said "Oh man! If EVERY tree on temple square isn't decorated...it MUST mean the church isn't true!" Haha! It was all in fun though! :)

After the lights, we took TRAX back to Gateway...where a very bizarre thing happened to Kristin, she developed webbed feet...


She was obviously BRILLIANT in her choice of clothing for the night when she decided not to wear any socks! What a weirdo! Her feet were freezing, so my mom put her gloves on Kristin's feet. It's a good thing our train car wasn't very full...people would have thought we were a tad bizarre (which of course we are NOTHING of the sort)! :)

It was such a fun night! I love having holiday traditions like this and I hope we keep doing it for at LEAST another 30 years! --Lindsay

The Great Engagement Conspiracy

My sister, Kristin, and her boyfriend, Dan, are engaged! Yeah! Getting them engaged though has not been an easy task! Let me explain...Kristin and Dan have been talking about marriage for several months now. They were basically informally engaged...but Dan still needed to formally pop the question. Dan wanted Kristin to really be surprised when he asked her to marry him. This is not an easy task when you're dealing with Kristin. She's very smart and very good at detecting surprises. She always says that she can tell when Dan is up to something, so Dan was bound and determined that he would truly surprise her this time! To accomplish this feat, he came up with quite the little scheme...

He decided that he wanted to ask her to marry him on television...at the end of one of my shows. This is a little difficult to accomplish since I only work at the crack of dawn (literally) on Saturday and Sunday morning. How do you say to your girlfriend, "Hey! Let's get up at like 3:00 in the morning to go watch your sister's show" without looking suspicious? So, we decided that we needed to do it when I was filling-in on an evening show. I knew that I would be filling in on December 1st (yesterday) for Sterling, so we picked that date almost a month ago. Then, Dan planned to take Kristin to dinner at The Melting Pot (which is only about a half block away from my station). It was my responsibility to get the whole thing approved through my station and then come up with a random reason to call Kristin that night at 6:30 pm. Once I got her on the phone, I was supposed to ask what they were doing. When I "found out" that they were so close, I was supposed to say something like, "Well, since you're so close...you should come over here after you're done and visit me." Not too difficult, right? WRONG!!!

When 6:30 came, I called her cell phone...no answer. What?!? This wasn't in the plan! Trying not to look too eager, I waited 45 minutes and tried again at 7:15. Still no answer. So, I decided to try Dan's phone...he didn't answer either. Oh my gosh! What was I going to do???

Finally, I got a text message from Kristin at about 7:30 asking what I wanted. I told her my lame excuse for calling (which was that I was wondering if she had brought some paperwork down to my parents' house that I needed to sign) and then asked what they were doing. She told me they were at Melting Pot. I wrote back that it wasn't fair that she was at Melting Pot and I was sitting at work eating a mashed potato bowl from KFC. At that point, she asked ME if they could come see me after they got done. Sweet...she did half my job for me! Things were looking up!

They showed up around 9:30 at the station. I gave them a little tour...trying to stall time until the 10:00 show. When we were about 5 minutes away from showtime, I asked them (again...trying to not look too eager) if they wanted to stay for the show or leave. Kristin said she thought it would be fun to stay and watch. Sweet...she did my work for me again! Things were going swimmingly!

We did the show and at the very end we headed outside for the closing shot. I told Kristin and Dan to come outside with us. My reason...if security saw two random people standing in the middle of the studio, they would probably freak out...so they needed to stay close to me. So, they headed outside with us. If you want to see what happened, click on the youtube link below! :) I think Dan's little scheme worked out pretty darn well! --Lindsay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDAWUlXdaAY