Christmas in Disney!

I love Christmas in Disneyland. The kids and I packed up Sunday (14th) and left Aaron at home to work. Sounds cruel, right? He is working at M Resort and they had a big turnover so there was no way he was able to join us. We stayed at the Anaheim Hilton and had an awesome view of the park.

Highlight #1 - Alivia is now over the 40" mark so she was able to ride Space Mountain (loved it!), Thunder Mountain Railroad and pretty much everything else!

Highlight #2 - No crowds on Monday because of the rain. Didn't scare us off. We just headed out with our ponchos and umbrellas. Walked on to all the rides and even rode them more than once.

Highlight #3 - My kids were troopers. No complaining from anybody!

Highlight #4 - Being with some friends and having time with my kids.

Highlight #5 - Free tickets! Can't beat that.

Highlight #6 - Making it home. I woke my kids up at 5am on Wednesday because that big storm was coming in. I drove in the snow from the Cajon Pass all the way past Barstow. For those that don't know, it was far! Especially for me, the Nevada native. Notice their pants. We were very wet. In fact, I could squeeze the water from Alivia's socks.

Since being home, we've been busy. We had our annual progressive dinner with Aaron's family, the Gifford party, a few other parties and of course...shopping!

Cute, right?

Aaron built a schoolhouse for the Schoolhouse Rock play my kids were in,so instead of them throwing it away, we built this:

Our very own gingerbread house.
We made the snowman and Santa a few years ago. Handy husbands are so....well, handy!

We had a yard sale on Saturday and I couldn't believe how well my kids handled it. I thought they would be trying to sneak things back in the house but they didn't. Actually, I let them help label things with price tags so they were eager to find things to put out. We ended up making almost $300.00. That means we had too much junk and as I look around there is still more junk we could have sold!

We started our yard sale at 6am because Alyson had to be at the soccer field at 1 pm for her last tournament. She did well and even scored a goal. This was it for the season. I am so impressed with the progress Alyson has made with soccer this season. Her coaches are great! They coach for the love of the game and not out of parental obligation. Neither one of these guys has a child, niece, granddaughter or any relative playing on the team. Coach Larry and Coach Al with Alyson. Impressive,right? I know I would never be that generous.
That's Alyson in the purple. Man, I wish my camera had a better zoom!Every year Aaron's Aunt Jamie does a Christmas video of the entire Gifford family (88 members thanks to Aaron's grandma and grandpa Gifford). She puts it to music and we are assigned different parts of a song. This year Aaron and I were assigned "I saw Mommy kissing Santa Clause." It's a lot of fun to watch the video and see all the different pictures.
Well, I would like to say I have all my Christmas shopping done, but I can't. I am running out of time but it will have to wait because the girls and I are going to Disneyland for a few days. We were able to land some free passes so off we go! Dad will have to stay home this trip because he has an important job, I guess. Sorry Dad!

Why we love our kids....

We all have a past....

Since, I just posted a few high school pictures on Facebook, I thought this tag was fitting.

1 Did you date someone from your school? Yes
2 What kind of car did you drive? A Lincoln Towncar - big ole' boat
3 Did you pass your driver's license test on the first try? Yes, even though the seatbelt didn't work, the horn didn't work and I didn't have to parellel park
4 Were you a party animal? Not really. More after high school.
5 Were you considered a flirt? Yeah probably
6 Were you in a band, orchestra or choir? No we didn't have that in Alamo...LOL!
7 Were you a nerd? This was the '80's. Being a nerd was cool.
8 Were you on any varsity teams? I swam for Clark's Varsity swim team until I moved to Alamo. Then I was a cheerleader.
9 Did you get suspended or expelled? Nope I was a good girl....Had them fooled.
10 Can you still sing the fight song? Sure can.
11 Who were your favorite teachers? Mr. Anhder - no question!
12 Where did you sit during lunch? Usually at my house or somebody else's house.
13 What's your school's full name? Pahranagat Valley High School
14 What was your mascot and colors? Panther.Blue and Gold
15 Did you go to homecoming? Yes, I was homecoming queenMe with Stevie Ingram and Michael Stewart.
16 If you could go back and do it all again, would you? Yes(parts of it), it was a blast!
17 What do you remember most about graduation? The stupid story some lady read and it took FOREVER. Brandon, Rachel and Guy...LOL Rachel, Me, Kitten and Susan.

18 Where did you go on your Senior Skip Day? We painted the P mountain and then Cody Whipples and then went back to school for an awards ceremony.
19 Were you in any clubs? Yearbook. Alamo didn't have many "clubs"
20 Have you gained some weight since then? Yes,I don't want to think about that.
21 Who was your prom date? Guy Davis
22 Are you planning to go to your 10 year reunion? I am way too old for this question!
23 Did you have a job while in high school? I worked a little at Shumway's grocery store and at the Motel.

Good Times!!!
Tag all of you!

Tis' The Season...

Since we will not be giving any of our money to Disneyland this year, I thought it would be fun to do all the festive activities Vegas has to offer.

So, last night we jumped in the motor home and headed to Town Square to see Santa and watch it "snow". We needed propane in the motor home so we decided to fill the tank at the truck stop since we were already going to be in the area. We grabbed some pizza and sodas and headed out. I thought the line might be long to see Santa so I didn't really plan on it but there was nobody in line. We saw Santa and then waited for it to snow. It snows (soapy water) for about 10 minutes.


The kids had fun and it was nice to get out and do something as a family. Oh, how it made me miss Disneyland. Nothing else can compare but we'll have to wait until next year...

Soccer Season is over

I always look forward to the end of soccer season but then I usually end up missing this...



Abby, Quincy and Leilah

We had a rough season playing mostly club teams but we did great and the girls learned so much.

About Me....

Tagged Again

About Me Tag.

 I AM: A wife, a sister, a friend, a daughter, a granddaughter, mom to my 3 girls, a soccer coach.
 I WANT: season passes to Disneyland, new carpet in my house,to lose 15 lbs, a 1 story house
 I HAVE: a great husband,active kids,lots of nieces & nephews, cool sister in laws.
 I MISS: swimming, my friends in Alamo, being young sometimes, my kids when they are at sleep overs.
 I FEAR: haunted houses, the economy getting worse, confrontation, something happening to my kids.
 I HEAR: Silence (I am home alone)
 I SEARCH: the internet, for the bottom of my laundry basket,for sales and coupons
 I WONDER: how my kids will turn out, if we are stuck in Vegas forever,if I will get better at running.
 I REGRET: not finishing college when I was younger, losing touch with some friends
 I LOVE: My family and Aaron's, my van, my mattress and pillow
 I FORGIVE: but have a hard time forgetting! Myself for some bad decisions.
 I ACHE: right now because I have an ear infection, cold sore and canker sore, for my grandparents.
 I ALWAYS: hate getting dressed for church, wait until the last minute to do things, tell my girls I love them.
 I TRY: to be organized, to be involved with my kids and husband, to go to bed early, to not watch too much TV
 I AM NOT: liking my hair or my clothes
 I SEEM: lost at times.
 I KNOW: how to talk to my kids,what I am getting everybody for Christmas
 I FEEL: sick and tired and I need to sneeze
 I DANCE: when just my kids are home with me
 I DREAM: about some weird stuff
 I GIVE: the finger to people sometimes when I am driving
 I LISTEN: to all kinds of music. Even some rap now and then.
 I SING: to myself, in the opposite dirrection of the person beside me so that they cannot hear my voice. (I really wish i could sing)
 I LAUGH: at Alivia a lot (she says the funniest thing),not enough
 I CAN'T: draw or do anything crafty
 I WRITE: in my journal about every six months or so (I always forget)
 I CRY: when my kids are hurt, when a family member is sick
 I SLEEP: with Aaron in my bed
 I AM NOT ALWAYS: organized, nice to my kids,patient
 I SEE: very well thanks to Lasik surgery
 I NEED: to stick with the running schedule,throw a bunch of toys and clutter out
 I SHOULD: be more motivated to do the things that I want to do, work out, eat better, be more grateful.

November,right????

It's hard to remember with a forecast that looks like this:


I'm not complaining too much since we still have one more soccer game and Alyson has one more tournament. For weeks I've been wanting to put away shorts and stuff but we are still wearing them!!! I love our weather here in Vegas and I often wished I lived somewhere else until I really think about the 9 months of pretty good weather we get here in Vegas.

Well, since the weather has been so nice our ward is still do their park days. Last Friday we were privlaged enough to see this little addition to our play group:Yes, we were shocked to see a bobcat in the bushes not too far from where the kids were playing. We watched him for a minute until he jumped over the wall into a backyard. On my way home I called Animal Control but have no idea if they ever found him or not.

So, I am soooo sick of hearing about this :

PREGNANT MAN HAS A BABY


First of all he is not a man! He is a she. I wish the media wouldn't make such a big deal about it! I had to explain to my kids last night the meaning of transgender. Not an easy task!

Tagged...

8 Things

8 TV Shows
1. Biggest Loser

2. Grey's Anatomy

3. Desperate Housewives

4. Little People, Big World

5. My Name is Earl

6. Amazing Race

7. Survivor

8. Deadlist Catch


8 Restaurants

1. Macayos, a must for every great childhood (i agree with Diana)

2. Bajio

3. Cheeburger, Cheeburger

4. In-n-Out

5. Applebee's

6. Blimpie

7. Joe's Crab Shack

8. Chili's


8 Things I Did Yesterday

1. Took kids to school

2. Did some visiting teaching

3. Ran

4. Went to Ross and Walgreens

5. Made dinner

6. Laundry

7. Picked kids up from school and play rehersals

8. Went to a coupon class

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To

1. Going to Disneyland

2. Getting better at running

3. Using coupons the way I was taught last night

4. The Holidays

5. Good sales after Thanksgiving

6. Soccer season being OVER!!!

7. Doing our 5k

8. My hair growing out a little


8 Things on My Wish List

1. Some new towels

2. Some warmer running clothes

3. New mats for my van

4. To be more organized

5. Season passes to Disneyland

6. That Abby's eyes would stop changing

7. That we could find a small (but not too small) town to live in

8. To pay off my house


8 People I Get to Tag

1. I

2. don't

3. know.

4. If

5. you

6. cant

7. think

8. of anything else to blog about or if it's been a long time..

I love our police scanner....

About 2 years ago we bought a police scanner and let me tell you, it's addicting. We go through stages of listening to it all the time, to not listening to it for weeks. Well, last night we were on our way home from Cory's (Aaron's brother) and we had the scanner in the van so it was on and we were sort of listening to it. While getting the kids in the house we heard the dispatcher say our street name. What??? Wait!! What did he just say? So,we watched outside for awhile and nothing happened so we were all getting ready for bed when all of a sudden all 3 girls came running down stairs saying that the cops were out front telling us to come out of our house that the house was surrounded. Poor kids were shaking with fear and secretly so was I. Well, Aaron walked out front while the kids and I ran upstairs to look out Alyson's window. They were not at our house but across the street trying to get the young kids (home alone at 10:30pm) to open the door. Of course I had the scanner upstairs with me so I could hear everything going on.

Sadly, the 7 young kids were home alone and would not open the door. The cops kept telling them ,loudly on their speaker system, to unlock the door and let them in. The cops finally called for a locksmith and animal control (they have 3 pit bulls, nice!). After about 1 hour (still no locksmith) I guess the kids were brave enough to open the door.

Let me tell you how sad it was to see these young kids taken from their home late at night by Child Protective Service. Little babies being carried out asleep by strangers and young kids running back into the house to get formula and medicine for the sleeping babies.

I'm not sure where the parents were or how the cops and CPS knew the kids were home alone but it made for an eventful night and like I said, I love our police scanner!

Bit of a slacker....

Last weekend we went to Quail Creek to get our motor home and bring it back here to Vegas and decided to make a night of it. We didn't have soccer games so we left Saturday afternoon and headed to St. George. It was a fast trip but it was fun. It was just us so we did some fishing, played some games, drank some yummy A&W Root beer, and the girls and I saw High School Musical 3 in St.George on Saturday.
This year was Halloween burn out for me. We had our ward carnival on Wednesday, school party on Thursday and actual trick or treating on Friday. Friday night we also went to Aaron's Mom and Dad's house for some home made doughnuts and other yummy food. Alyson dressed as a baseball player, Abby as Cinderella and Alivia a witch.
Alyson played in a all-star soccer tournament this weekend and did very well. She played 3 games on Saturday and two games on Sunday. They lost on Sunday to the Utah Wildcats. I didn't take any pictures but she's playing in another tournament this weekend so I will take the opportunity to take lots of pics of her playing. On Sunday we also went to this cuties baby blessingMaeve Iris Egbert. Kevin and Tiffany's little girl. SOOOO Cute!!

So, I am on week 3 of a 5K training program. It's so much easier when you have a goal and a partner to train with. Alivia is going to preschool 4 days a week now and loves it. She goes Mon-Thurs. 12:50 to 3:20. Abby and Alivia only have 2 soccer games left until the end of the season. I can't wait because I am burned out!

Campaign Slogan...

Alyson likes to be involved in EVERYTHING. So it was no surprise when she told me she wanted to run for Historian at school. Historian is in charge of taking pictures at certain events and also helps out with the yearbook. We need to make 6 campaign posters to hang up in the hallways and I am in need of a catchy slogan.

Of course, there is always....

Alyson Egbert

Egg-cellent Choice for Historian.

or

Got Alyson? She does a student body good.

or

Always Alyson!!!

I don't know! It is hard to rhyme with Egbert. Well, that's what we will be thinking about over the weekend. They can start campaigning on Monday.

What to do???

So we have a weekend with no soccer games, no birthday parties, no church meetings, no nothing!!!!

What is a family to do?

Go to Alamo (we haven't been since early August), Go camping at Quail Creek (in St. George), stay home and do nothing??? I mean there is plenty for us to do at home. We could clean the garage (we would need more than a weekend for that!), we could take off our solar screens and clean them (btw...we've never done that!), there is always yard work to!

Such a tough decision!!!

Debate...

Just turned it off to watch My Name Is Earl..

What a shame!

Trick or Treating is going to suck this year....

Thanks, Jill!

New Addiction....

So, I really need to blog about my trip last weekend but I am waiting for some pictures. I didn't take any good pictures with my own camera so I am waiting for Jenny to send some to me. (Jenny, if you are reading this could you please send me some pictures...)

Also, I've been sucked into Facebook. I've had an account for awhile but didn't realize that's where the party was!!!!


Okay, back to the girls trip. What a blast!!!! We did a lot of laughing, eating and most of all we discovered her.... Joy on My Name is Earl was playing on this very cool airline....JetBlue has satellite TV and radio playing at every headrest in the plane!

So, after watching Joy on the plane on the way to Salt Lake, I knew the weekend was going to ROCK!!!!

New Playlist

Put some new songs on...Turn it up and take a listen.

Unless you don't like any of them, then turn it down....

Update on Gramps...

I thought I would post a quick update on my grandpa. He's been home (in Alamo) for over a week now and is doing better. He was in the hospital for 17 LONG days and some of those days were pretty grim. He's a tough ole' goat and the doctors call him a miracle. Of course he is a miracle, he's my grandpa!!! So many people were praying for him and we continue praying for him daily.

We've been staying pretty busy. Alivia is in preschool 2 days a week (across town), gymnastics and soccer. Alyson is still in piano, soccer (0f course), achievement days and she has a solo in their school play. She would be involved in everything if she had time. Abby is still doing soccer, pulling straight A's and is also in the school play. I am coaching Abby's team still and help out with Alivia's team too. Aaron just works and goes where we tell him...LOL!!! Also, now that the weather is cooling off, the girls spend any extra time outside riding bikes or jumping on the tramp. Life is good!

I love this quote and makes it all worth it...

"Little you can give each other in the family is more powerful than the gift of time, laden with personal interest. It say's "I am here for you. I give you my time.""

This weekend....

You can find me here,

Jackson Hole, Wyoming via Salt Lake City.

Girls weekend, no kids!!! YEE-HAW!!!

It's about time.

Election...kind of a joke....

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Happy Birthday Shout Out....

1988 The twins were 2 years and 8 months(it's written on the back). Samantha was 13 and Andrea 8.

Happy Birthday to the twins, my 1st cousins (Jamie and Jessica)! I can't believe you guys are 23 years old either! Make me feel really old. I remember your mom going into the hospital to have you.

Hope you have a great birthday!

Pros and Cons

I know you all want to see a picture of my new hair, but it's really hard to take a picture of yourself. I will try and remember to have Aaron snap a picture in the next few days.

So, about twice a year I go through this thing of really wanting to move to Alamo. Usually the urge goes away after I realize I am (for the most part) happy to live in Vegas. The girls have good friends, good teachers, and we are comfortable here. I thought I needed to make a Pros and Cons list of moving to Alamo. So, here it is...

Cons
Limited activities for kids
Not having amenities close by
Traveling for Dr. appts. (trips to urgent care at 2am)
Leaving friends we have now
Aaron might have to commute for awhile
Kids get bored and in trouble (just like Vegas)
Favoritism by some teachers and coaches
Some of the teachers scare me
No soccer or swimming or rec. centers (i would sooo miss those)
No Fast Food!!

Pros
Close to lots of friends I've had since H.S.
Pay off all debts (if we could sell our house)
Help my Grandma with my Grandpa
Smaller schools
Space to roam
More trees and grass
Mom in same town
LDS community
One hallway High School
Community looks over their own
Family
Community is growing a little
Slower pace of life
No Fast Food!!

Alamo is a great place and I loved going to High School there. I think the girls would like it there too. It's a big decision and I don't think I will EVER make up my mind!!!!

Short Hair....

I am so doing it!!!! I have such thick, course hair that trying to grow it long is just STUPID!!! I like all 3 of these so what do you think?

short, layered, wedge haircut is what I will be going for.

Wish me luck, I am going tomorrow!!!! Plus, short is in!!!! YEAH!!!!

Soccer, Soccer and more Soccer

Soccer season is in full swing....(SIGH!) This picture of Alivia is before her first practice.

We were at the soccer field Saturday from 7:15am to about 2:30pm. Aly's game was at 8am, Abby's at 11am and Alivia's at 1pm. Aly's team won 9-0, Abby's team lost 5-3 and who knows about Alivia's team. At that young age, they don't keep score.

My Grandpa had 8 inches of his colon removed Saturday because they found more cancer in his colon. They also removed a tumor out of one of his lymph nodes. He is not out of the woods yet but is doing much better than all the doctors expected him to. It has been an emotinal rollercoaster for all of us.

The best part of this whole deal is that my 2 uncles stayed with us for a week. That never happens since the majority of our family are right here in Vegas. I was thrilled to have them stay with us, just wish the circumstances were a little different.

Preschool....

Alivia started preschool last Wednesday and LOVES it. What a relief!!!! Most of you know she was proud of the fact that she was a preschool drop out last year, so this is huge for us....
She also started soccer this season and is by far the smallest on her team.
Alyson and Abby have both started soccer as well. Which means our Saturdays (and Tue. and Thurs. nights) are spent at the soccer fields. This Saturday Aly has a game at 8am, Abby at 11am and Alivia at 1pm. OUCH!!!
Labor Day weekend we went to the 51's game. Here's some pics of us sporting the new hats we got.
Aaron bought me a new scanner the other night but I haven't had much time to play around with it. I have a huge box of pictures just waiting to be scanned. My sister in law throws away the pictures after she scans them. I don't know if I can do that???? Anyways, here's a picture that Aaron scanned for me of my grandpa and I two years ago. We were at a family reunion (camping, of course!) and it just happen to be on our birthday's(6/11/2006). This was the last day of our camping trip and I look horrible but I will treasure this picture FOREVER!!!!

Great Grandma....

Hazel L. McVay

McVay, Hazel L., 97, passed away peacefully Sept. 3, 2008. She was born Feb. 23, 1911in Idabelle, OK, to David Anthony and Pearl (Goodman) Morris. She was a homemaker and married Charles McVay on Dec. 31, 1938, who preceded her in death. Also preceded in death by parents, infant daughter, Bobbie and grandson, Patrick. Left to celebrate her life filled with memories are daughter, Jerry (Kenneth) Bean of Wichita; sons, Ben (Linda) Tidwell of Alamo, NV, Tom (Ann) Tidwell of Desert Hot Springs, CA, Charles Jr. (Barbara) McVay of Wichita; 17 grandchildren; several great-grandchildren & great-great-grandchildren; companion, Aaron Taylor. Celebration of life 1:30 p.m. Monday, Old Mission Mortuary, family and friends gathering at noon for visitation. Final interment at Old Mission Cemetery, Garden of Love. Memorials: Faith Chapel, 6808 E. Harry, c/o Food Pantry, Wichita 67207. Condolences: www.oldmissionmortuary.com.

She lived a great life full of service to others and her church. I hope if I am lucky enough to live until 97 years old, I can be as healthy and active as she was.

My Grandpa, her son, is in the hospital and we are not sure what's going to happen. I am terrified of losing him. Does he know how much I love him? Does he know the summers spent with him were my favorite? Does he know how grateful I am that he's lived in Alamo for the last 15 years? Does he know that I could sit for hours listening to him tell stories? Does he know how much my kids and husband adore him? Does he realize the little things that will be etched in my memory forever?

Mixed Feelings....

I have so many mixed feeling today.

1. My Great-Grandma, 98 years old, died today. She is my Grandpa Tidwell's mom and lived in Kansas. I didn't know her too well because she's always lived so far away. I remember her coming to our house to visit a few time. What a great life she lived!!!!
2. My Grandpa Tidwell will be in town again today for some more testing. Poor guy, I know he's not up for it.

3. We have our first soccer game on Saturday and I am way NERVOUS. We've only lost 1 game in 3 season but I think this season will be different. The league moved us to the highest division so we play mostly club teams. We scrimmaged another team last night and got trash kicked bad!!! I know at this age it should be about having fun, but I really hate to lose.

4. I am struggling with Alyson's soccer team. She is on the same team as last season but the girls are not nice and she is having a hard time. This team has lost several GOOD players because of a few "mean girls". I didn't want Alyson to switch teams because I know in life you have to learn to deal with these kind of people. It breaks my heart though because Alyson is such a sweet, loving,easy going kid. I got in bed with her last night explaining that these girls are not going to make or break her life. Plus, she's a better soccer player and can outplay any of them!!!! I am regretting my decision and wish I would have made the switch like a few other players did.

5. Alivia starts preschool today!!! WHOO! HOOO! She dropped out last year but is way excited about going this year. She only goes 2 days a week for 2 hours but it's better than nothing. I plan on going to the gym while she's at school.

6. We are only a week and few days into school and I am already SICK of homework. I guess it's the days we have soccer that are the hardest. It seems like Alyson is always dragging her feet and never finishes it all before we have to leave for practice. She's got plenty of time to get it done. I feel like I am always nagging her to hurry up.

You're Gonna Miss This or Then They Do by Trace Adkins is what is running through my mind right now!

Let's....

Change the subject!!!

So, we missed out on going to the Gifford Reunion this year. We had a few different reasons for not going. My grandpa had his appt. with the Oncologist on Friday and I didn't want to be out of town in case they admitted him to the hospital. Well, they didn't do the biopsy right, so they have to do another one next week. HOW IRRITATING!!!!! We had a couple other reasons for not going too. My kids were pretty bummed we didn't go. I guess they like looking like thisand like this
The kids get extremely dirty and they love it!!!!

Instead we had a BBQ and went to a 51's game with some friends (no names to protect the innocent, LOL!!!). We have never been to a 51's game and Saturday night was fan appreciation night so we scored some coupons to Carl's Jr., free ice cream sandwich, some hats, and a very cool firework show. Yesterday, I met up with my mom and the kids went to Alamo. They took the kids to Pioche yesterday for some more fireworks. Aaron and I sat at home and watched National Treasure 2 and 21. We are getting ready to go to breakfast ALONE and do some shopping.

McCain must want to lose.....

Although I am a Joe Biden fan, I can't believe McCain did not pick Mitt for his running mate!!! I think Obama did a GREAT job picking a running mate. The Delaware senator has held two of the most important jobs in Washington -- chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

I dont call myself a political expert but who is Palin?

The Plunge

Well, most of you know that I was a competitive swimmer for lots of years growing up. I lived at swim practices and swim meets. I was Top 16 in the nation and a Junior Olympic swimmer in several events (I really need to fix my scanner because I have some really neat pictures). Anyways, I went and worked out at the pool today. The whole time I was swimming, I thought to myself, "Why haven't I been doing this everyday of my adult life?" It is such a great way to exercise since it works every muscle in your body. I know why!!!! I kept thinking "I will go when I get skinnier" and since that is not happening too fast, I took the plunge today! I guess, with age, you stop caring what other people are thinking.

I am swimming with Christian, our friends son, because he really enjoys swimming and wants to improve. So while I am getting in a little exercise, I am also helping him become a stronger swimmer. The lap swimming times are a little crazy at Desert Breeze so we are going to shoot for at least 3 times a week for now. I can't believe how great I feel this evening. I am already planning to go to the gym tomorrow morning and also swimming tomorrow before soccer practice.

I would LOVE to start my own swim team! I'm always asking myself "What am I doing coaching soccer?" I love soccer too but with my knees, I don't think I could play on an adult league or anything.

Well, time to sit down and read Harry Potter with Alyson. Who, by the way, asked to read Twilight. WHAT????? Yeah, right!!!!! You are 9 years old. There are a few girls in her class reading it. Whatever happen to Little House on the Prairie or Tales of the 4th Grade Nothing????

School...what did you think????

AHHH....

First day of school.
Alyson with her "girls"
Abby with her BFFI would like to do a better post but I have the worst sore throat,so I am off to bed!!! Can't tell you the last time I was in bed before 10pm.

P.S. Please keep my Grandpa Tidwell in your prayers. He was just diagnosed with stomach cancer and I am heart broken. I was born on his birthday and was his first granddaughter and for those reasons I have always felt a special bond with him. He is 80 years old and cherished by many!!!!This picture was taken a few years ago on our birthdays at a family reunion.