to one skinny guy...

Happy Birthday, Joe! Here are two lists just for you.

Five things that Joe finds funny (but most others do not):

Himself.

Giving nicknames to everyone. Often these make no sense, since the cultural references are a little dated. No one is safe from a nickname. As an adult, I've run into people Joe knows and realize I don't even know what their real names are.

Passing gas while in a truck crowded with 9 kids on a LONG trip to Denver.

Teasing all of us relentless...about anything and everything.

Asking our boyfriends/girlfriends to say family prayer, even if they don't pray.

Pretending we might have drumsticks for dessert and then offering canned cherries. Also, offering drumsticks, knowing that we will think it's cherries and get excused from the table, and then actually getting drumsticks out of the freezer.

Five things that Joe enjoys:

Watching TV and movies...even if the TV show is terrible and the movie is cheesy.

Boys night out.

Dancing.

Western clothing, decor, activities, music, etc.

Family.

Embarrassing his children.

Driving.

The country.

Wyoming, Montana, rural Idaho, any place that is remote and empty.

Being teased back...just kidding, he hates that.

Double Your Pleasure...Double Your Fun

My twin sisters are having their birthday today. I wanted to wish them happy birthday in order: first Kimberly and then Katie (since Kim is some 10 minutes older than Kate) however, blogger had another idea...so, here is a happy birthday being wished from youngest to oldest. I love you two and hope you had a wonderful day!

The important thing about Katie, is that she is interesting. She loves old books, movies, and home décor. She can turn any odd garage sale find into something fabulous for her home. She makes me laugh. She is a quilter. She is the mother of three girls and one new baby boy. She has a fetish for red shoes and cute coats. She is consistent. She writes a funny blog. She likes me and calls me on the phone. She is witty. She buys coloring books in bulk. She is up for new adventures. She plays the piano, so I can sing. She has good taste. She is faithful. She is a great friend and sister. But, the most important thing about Katie, is that she is interesting.

The important thing about Kimberly, is that she gives.

She seldom thinks of herself, when she knows something needs to be done.

She likes to have fun and wants to make things fun for everyone else, too.

She throws a great party.

She experiments with interesting recipes.

She is a wonderful mother, aunt, and teacher.

She is the glue that holds a lot of the family together.

She puts up with family when they are at their worst.

She likes to give gifts…good gifts.

She is kind hearted.

She loves to try new fashions, hair styles, and home décor.

She can put up with a lot (broken house, three kids, crazy family, etc.)

She would do anything for you.

She is creative and talented.

She is strong.

She is faithful.

She is a great friend and sister.

But,

the most important thing about Kimberly, is that she gives.

Happy Birthday to my favorite twin sisters!

In Honor of my Sister

Today is my oldest sister's birthday. She lives in Alaska, and I am terrible about sending packages. The fact that she is fantastic about sending cards and goodies, makes me feel even worse. For my last birthday she sent me a card with an older naked woman on it, with strategic areas covered by a flower pot. She said it reminded her of me...how do you top that?

So, in honor of my beautiful sister, here is a top ten list of things she has taught me:

On the lighter side:

1. If you think it sounds like a great idea, you will probably get in trouble. However, the fun you have along the way, just might be worth it.

2. Babysitters are meant to be tortured. It is very important that you make them earn every quarter they may recieve for each hour they have to spend watching 6 incredibly horrible children.

3. Never underestimate the power of a good money making scheme. Many people are gulible and will give you money for things that should most likely find a home in their garbage can.

4. Toilet papering your own house is only a good idea if you do the front yard. If you toilet paper the back yard, your parents will somehow realize it was you.

5. Torture your younger siblings as much as possible; it will make them stronger in the future.

On a more serious side:

1. Have fun--life is meant to be enjoyed.

2. Laugh, often--it helps you feel great, even if you don't.

3. Be creative--there are a million things you can make with your hands.

4. Play with your kids--those memories are the ones they'll remember.

5. Be a fun big sister--eventually your younger siblings will look back and laugh at all the fun you had.

Happy Birthday Tam! I love you.

To My Mother: A Tribute

Happy Birthday Mom!

To a young daughter, a mother
comforts her when she's scared,
holds her hand when she crosses the street,
reads her stories,
sings her to sleep,
feeds her when she's hungry,
and curls her hair for Sunday.

To a school age daughter, a mother
fixes treats for her classroom (ghosts made of white chocolate),
creates perfect Halloween costumes,
sews stylish clothes,
teaches her to ride a bike,
lets her walk to school with her best friend,
and curls her hair for picture day.

To a teenage daughter, a mother
tells her no when she wants to hear yes,
makes sure she eats a snack after school,
tells her to finish her homework,
warns her about boys and dating,
shares her own experiences about girl's camp,
deals with her mood swings,
and resigns to her wearing combat boots and dyeing her hair.

To a grown up daughter, a mother
inspires her as she raises her own children,
talks to her like a friend,
sympathizes when she has to clean up after sick children,
calls once a week to check in,
reminds her to be a patient, loving wife and mother,
offers advice,
brings countless goodies to her door,
and notices when she cuts her hair.

To me, you are the best mother a daughter could have.
I love you; Happy Birthday!

December...January...February

I'm not one to back track, but since I just unloaded the camera and found all the fun things we'd done over the past few months...I couldn't resist.



These are January Birthdays. We'd gone to Chuck O' Rama for our annual "I-Can't-Believe-Dad-is-Buying-Dinner"lunch before we ended up at our place to celebrate Christy and Addison being born.


This is Christmas at the Morgan's. Francis knitted all of us a BSU stocking cap.

This is our Christmas morning. If you look closely, you'll see our LIVE Christmas tree. It's a Norfolk Pine and can live indoors for several years. It was a compromise between Jay and I. We could get a living tree, if it was small and didn't look like a Christmas tree. It was nice to have a slightly larger tree this year. :)

And Finally....the heart shaped pizza for Valentine's Day. They look excited, right? :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

I used to be more creative. I would take time to work with the boys to make Valentine's for the grandparents, decorate the house, and frost Valentine's cookies. I learned this from my mom, who was excellent at holidays. She would put little notes in our lunches, let us decorate cookies, make pink heart shaped pancakes with red hots, and the list goes on.

At the Morgan home, this year, it looked more like this:

• Totally thrown of schedule by Valentine's Day being on a Monday.



• Spent last Saturday trying to get house back in order and get piles of grading done...therefore, did not take cute picture of boys with heart pillow, as have done in all years past.



• Decided to have boys use potato stamps to decorate paper that would then be made into cards. On the 13th, scrapped this idea and printed HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY on cute pink scrapbook paper that will never be used otherwise.



• Printed old photo of boys, from Christmas, spelling out LOVE with their little bodies (very cute).



• Had boys work in sweat-shop-like conditions to sign all cards and glue pictures onto the front.



• Let boys roll out heart shaped cookies...ran out of time to frost.



• Quickly made little valentine's for the boys at 11:00 at night, before retiring to bed.



• Forgot that spouse would probably like one, too...quickly made one at 6:00 in the morning before heading to work.

If you would like to see what good parents do for Valentine's, check out my sisters' blogs.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Bicycling

Our Pontiac has not been in great running condition for months now, so I have officially become a bike commuter. In the past I have tried to ride as often as possible...however, if it was too cold, rainy, or if I had loads of work to bring home, I would choose to drive. Since the choice to drive has been taken away, I have enjoyed endless days of biking the 3 1/2 miles to and from work every day...no matter what. So, I've decided to compile a list of things I love and don't love about commuting by bike:

Things I Love:

1. Feeling refreshed and ready for my day.


2. Knowing that if I don't get another workout in, at least I've done my 30 minutes.


3. Time to think and enjoy the great outdoors.


4. Knowing that I'm doing something great for the environment.


5. Improving my fine motor skills while weaving in and out of traffic.

Thinks I Don't Love:

1. Riding when it is below 25 degrees.


2. Rain, snow, and fog.


3. Dodging cars who don't look both ways before proceeding.


4. Bad hair days...every day.


5. Remembering to get both my skirt and shoes in the bag, so I look professional while at work.

We had a gorgeous day last weekend and decided to go for a bike ride together as a family. Nikolai rode his own bike and I took Aleksi on the tag-along. We rode down to the north end and took some back roads to avoid traffic. We stopped off to see our good friends, Cynthia and Mike, enjoyed a nice stroll with them, and then headed home. All in all it ended up being about 13 miles. Jay and I felt like terrible parents, since Nikolai hasn't ridden his bike for quite a while...but he was a trooper and we had a great time.

We're hoping for some warmer weather and more chances to get out on the bikes.