Christmas 2009

This year it was the kids turn to spend the actual holiday with their other parents. So we had our Christmas celebration on 12/20/09 instead. We went up to the Hoggle Zoo on our pseudo Christmas Eve for Zoo Lights. It was perfect weather for walking thru the zoo and spying on the slumbering animals. We would highly recommend it for next year!

Shakierra got a new iPod, Myles got a "touch" phone, Brad and I just got plain spoiled :)

Brad and I spent Christmas Eve with the Alexanders. Heather made the most delicious ham!! So we ate until we could eat no more and then moved onto the gifts. Both Jane and Grace are into Princesses, so that was the theme of their gifts. I think you can tell by this picture that Janie approves of my gift selection :)
Mom was admitted into the hospital on Christmas Eve. Her platelet levels were so low that she was bleeding internally. The bleeding in her brain was causing pressure and terrible pain. They are giving her tons of platelets and whole blood. She will be having a bone marrow biopsy tomorrow to give the doctors a better idea what they are dealing with. Mom is doing much better then when she was admitted, but still no word on when she can come home. So keep her in your prayers and get out and Donate Blood!!

Indoor Training

Our goal for 2010 is to try and participate in a cycling event at least once a month (during cycling season). Our first ride is in St. George in February. So Brad got us this great indoor trainer. It is took stinking cold (and slick) outdoors for riding, but now we have no excuse.

The indoor trainer has been great for Myles to learn to use the clipless pedals. He is hooked now, guess we know what he will be getting for his b-day :)

"It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of county you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle." Ernest Hemingway

Poor Heather

After viewing these few pictures, I think you too will be thinking "poor Heather". Here is undeniable photographic evidence that she lives with a bunch of crazies!! Good thing we all love them so much :)

Here we have Joe sporting some of the magnets from Brad's groovy Christmas gift. I think this is a great look for Joe!!

And here the girls are lapping up all the ketchup that they can :) We took them to lunch at Chadder's and they started in on the ketchup, I couldn't resist taking a pictures. I think our fellow diner's thought I was off my rocker!

Time Fly's

Time fly's when your.......stressing to the max, working to many hours, running around like a chicken with it's head cut off!! Take your pick, and that will explain my drastic lack of blogging. Work has been insanely busy due to ill employees. Everyone seems to be on the mend, but I will be losing another employee to maternity leave any day now. I am blessed with work, that is what I keep telling myself!

Thanksgiving was great. I actually cooked and the only thing that didn't turn out was the gravy. So I was pretty proud of myself. We had Brad's family over for a total of 14 people. It was fun to finally host a Thanksgiving dinner at home :)

Thanksgiving was also Evie's birthday. She is 3 now. Our little devil is growing up! :) She got a new sweater and powdered donuts for her b-day. I think she would have preferred no sweater and more donuts, but she is only a dog after all!!!

Tomorrow night is my work Christmas party. I will breathe a huge sigh of relief once that is over with. We have lots of people in from out of town, making for an extra stressful time for me.

Brad is driving to Cedar City and back everyday this week. So he starts at 12 midnight and gets home around 2-3 pm. The poor boy is working his tush off!!

"Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes everyday. Rich people cant buy more hours. Scientists cant invent new minutes. And you cant save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you have wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow." - Denis Waitely

Halloween 2009

Work Halloween Pics

Paperwork

Who knew that getting hit by a car can cause so much darn paperwork?!?! We have finally been able to gather all of the bills from Myles' medical treatment from when he got hit by a car in August. Sheesh! Some places take forever and a day to bill you!! But I regress...tonight I am gathering the last of the documentation for Myles' claim. I have printed out pictures and everything. So watch out for this mad Momma!

Work is insanely busy right now. The boys have been troopers and not complained about all the extra hours I am having to put in lately. I am hoping that this coming Sunday will be the last Sunday I have to work for a long while. Myles has even been coming in and working with me. He thinks I am a bit of a slave-driver, but I think that is a good thing :)

We are getting excited for Halloween (can't believe it is nearly here!). This year I am going to be a black cat, Brad has a very realistic Gorilla mask, and Myles is Captain America. I will be sure to post pictures.

"I'll bet living in a nudist colony takes all the fun out of Halloween." ~Author Unknown

I want a Giraffe

I saw this pictures while checking the news this morning. Isn't he the cutest!! I totally want one. So Brad, take note, this is what I want for Christmas :)

Things have been non-stop busy for us. Brad's shoulder is slowly healing. He is back to work. He wears his sling whenever he isn't working. Myles had 4 lacrosse games this Saturday. He scored two goals!!! He is getting more aggressive, which is fun to see. And I am just crazy busy with work. So there you have it. We haven't fallen off the face of the earth, just barely have time to come up for air let alone blog these days. :)

Fire!!

ok, first off I just have to share this...I am getting logged in to do this post and Johnny Cash singing "Burning Ring of Fire" comes on my ipod. LMAO What timing!!!


Anyway! Friday night after Myles' lacrosse game we decided to take advantage of being in Provo and decided to hit our favorite Chinese food place. We had delicious sizzling rice soup at China Town. Then as we were driving north on State street ande we saw smoke. Well Myles insisted that we pull over and see what was going on. We got a front row seat to an amazing fire show!! It turns out it was an old barn/garage. No one was hurt, so we felt ok being total gawkers!

Here is a shot I took with my phone. The power lines were right above the garage, so their were sparks flying like mad! Myles was walking around talking to everyone, trying to get the full scope. He could so be a reporter :)

Busy Weekend

As if this week hasn't been busy enough, we have an even busier weekend planned. Tomorrow Myles starts things off early with a lacrosse game in Provo at 330pm. He is still looking for a kind soul to get him there early if possible, so give me a shout if you want the honor of driving Myles to Provo :) Then he has at least 4 games on Saturday, with the possibility of 6 games. They will play more games if they keep winning. So the poor boy wont be worth much by the end of all that!!
Saturday I am going to Myles first 2 games and then Brad and I are heading up to SLC. We are going to go to the Gateway for the afternoon and then a charity dinner in the evening. It is a fundraising dinner to build schools in Mali, Africa. This will be our 3rd time attending this function, it is always a very nice event!
Sunday we are joining up with Brad's family at the Zoo......ok that came out totally wrong!!! Sadie and Seth are having a b-day celebration at the zoo. We are excited to go, as we haven't been in years. I am hoping for improvement. The first time I went to the Hogle Zoo I thought it was soo sad. I guess after growing up near the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park it kinda spoils a girl :)

"It is an important and popular fact that things are not always what they seem. For instance, on the planet Earth, man had always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much - the wheel, New York, wars and so on - whilst all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more intelligent than man - for precisely the same reasons." ~Douglas Adams

Myles the Man

Myles' nick name of Myles the Man has new meaning now.... drum roll please....Myles has started shaving!! Recently Myles' peach fuzz has gotten to be a bit much. His upper lip was driving me crazy. So we broke down and bought a full shaving kit. Brad thinks I went a bit overboard, but heck I don't shave my face, so I wasn't sure what he "needed". So Myles now has a top of the line razor, extra blades to last till he graduates, shaving cream, after shave, and steptic (SP) stick. So next time you see Myles be sure to admire his baby soft, freshly shaved face!

This weekend we did a whole lot of nothin and loved it! I have been crocheting my brains out. I have a baby shower for twins on Friday. I waiting a little too long before starting the blankets :) Brad caught up on his sleep. The kids cooked us dinner one night. We watched Pet Semetary. Just a great "quality time" kind of weekend!!

"A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor's book." ~Irish Proverb

Dog Lake

A man and his dog...need I say more :)

Look at this view, totally worth all the huffing and puffing!!

Here we are at Dog Lake. I loved all the colors as the trees are turning for fall.

Brad and Evie

Saturday afternoon Brad, Evie, and I headed up Mill Creek Canyon for a hike. We hiked to Dog Lake, which is 3.6 miles round trip. It felt more like 10 miles, but at least I survived. I am sure Brad could have made the hike up in half the time if it weren't for me needing to take a breather every 10 steps!! The weather was perfect, Evie was well behaved, and there was no fee for going up the canyon that day...who could ask for anything more!


After the hike Brad, Myles, and I went to dinner at Outback. It was soo yummy. This was Myles' request for having perfect parent/teacher conferences. His history teacher said "Myles is a handful, but he is also one of the brightest students I have ever taught." Wow!! That is music to this Mother's ears.


"The dream begins with a teacher who believes in you, who tugs and pushes and leads you to the next plateau, sometimes poking you with a sharp stick called "truth." ~Dan Rather

LAX

Myles played his first two Lacrosse games this Saturday. It was fun to watch him play a new sport. After watching I think lacrosse can best be described as soccer meets football with a lot of stick hitting!! Myles did great and even scored a goal in the second game.

Myles is # 30. And look at the sky in this picture. Was it a gorgeous day on Saturday or what?!?!

"We didn't lose the game; we just ran out of time." ~Vince Lombardi

FFA

Seeing how Myles is such a country bumpkin it only seemed natural that he would want to join FFA...NOT. I was a bit surprised to say the least! But he paid the club fee himself, so I knew he was serious. Then I find out he gets to miss several days of school while out on field trips with the club...ah ha now it makes sense. Here's a shot of him after coming home from playing football in the mud with the group. (How this applies to farming I don't really know)

"In youth the days are short and the years are long; in old age the years are short and the days long." ~Nikita Ivanovich Panin

Racing Cane 3K

On Saturday the 19th Brad and I ran in a 3K in Orem. This was part of the weight loss group we are participating in. It was a gorgeous morning and we had a great time. Shakierra went along to take pictures, but the batteries died :(. After the race they had different activities for runners and their families. Brad got a great massage and Shakierra got her face painted. Then they had a kids race that was two laps around the track. It was too cute to watch some as young as toddlers running their little hearts out!

"Jogging is very beneficial. It's good for your legs and your feet. It's also very good for the ground. It makes it feel needed." ~Charles Schulz, Peanuts

Books

I am proud to admit that I am a book worm. I don't read much non-fiction. I read to escape reality and to be entertained. It would be interesting to know how much I have spent on books thus far in my life. I am sure the figure would be astonishing!! The last book in the Outlander series comes out next week. I was actually looking at my calendar today trying to think when I could pencil in time to read (pathetic, I know). Here are a few of my favorite authors in no particular order:

Dean Koontz
Judith McNaught
Patricia Cornwell
Mary Higgins Clark
JD Robb / Nora Roberts
Diana Gabaldon
Thomas Harris
Tami Hoag
There are tons more, but those were the ones I thought of first.

I will pretty much read anywhere; at work during lunch, in bed, in traffic, while giving blood (doing that tomorrow).

So tell me, who are your favorite authors and where do you prefer to read?

Quickie Post

Life seems to moving along a light speed these days. So sorry for the drastic lack in postings. But here are the haps around our house:

1- Brad and I are in a Biggest Loser group. The children are already complaining over the lack of goodies around the house.
2- Myles is playing Lacrosse now. Hopefully he likes it, I had to sell a kidney to buy all the gear!
3- My office is leaking from all the rain. If this place gets anymore ghetto I will have to start packing heat!

Almost time to head home and change for Step class. See ya!!

Barbie!!

Every time the girls come over they have to find miscellaneous household objects to play with, seeing as we don't have little ones anymore. So Brad and I have been trying to build a small toy stash for them. So this weekend we bought Barbies!! It was so fun to watch the girls play for so long with the dolls. It brought back great memories for me. Grace and Jane loved their dolls and now have real toys to play with when they come over!!

Here Grace is playing with the bathroom set. Barbie even has a flat panel screen to watch TV in the bathroom. And my personal favorite was the purple and pink toilet..man, where can I get one of those!!

We have had a fab long weekend. Friday night we went over to Becky & Derick's for a Rock Bank / Phase 10 Party!! And then Saturday night we went out with B&D to Cucine Toscana, where we ate until we thought we might die!! The food was oh so yummy!! Then we hit the Tavernacle for some duelling pianos. Nothing like see Brad get his groove on to make it a truly wild weekend!!

Tomorrow starts another round of Willowpark Fit. So we are back on the wagon as of tomorrow. We will be eating right and sweatin' to the oldies. We have totally been feeding our faces all weekend long in anticipation of the upcoming diet. So wish us luck!!

Inside some of us is a thin person struggling to get out, but they can usually be sedated with a few pieces of chocolate cake. ~Author Unknown

Course De' Lure

Today we took the dogs to a cool fundraiser for the Utah Humane Society. They brought in a group that sets up an obstacle course for dogs. This course has been on Animal Planet. There is a lure that is pulled through the course to encourage the dogs to run at top speed. It was a hoot to see all the different dogs running the course. Lucy ran the course once and Evie ran it 4 times. Evie got the best time of the day, finishing just over 11 seconds.

I loved seeing all kinds of people with their furry little friends out having fun for a great cause!

Sorry, didn't realize I didn't get any good shots of the actual course. But trust me, it was way cool!

We had a nice quiet weekend. We watched all of season 3 of Dexter and of course, some NCIS. Brad is back to working nights starting this week. So we will actually get to have dinner together again :) Myles is feeling much better. He was able to get around for short spells without his crutches. He will still need them to get through a full day of school, but the improvement is good to see.

"A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than you love yourself. " ~Josh Billings

Xterra Vs. Myles

Most of you have heard by now, but Myles was hit by a car on Saturday. He was out skateboarding, heard the car approaching, pulled over to the left of the road and kicked up the nose of his board and stood to wait for the car to pass. The driver of the car wasn't paying attention (lighting a cigarette) and cut the corner. Myles looked up just as the car was about to make impact. Myles' left side took the brunt of the injuries. His board got lodged under the wheel of the car and is pretty much toast. His shoes don't look too bad but the inside of the left shoe is torn up (that is the foot that was run over). His shoe was thrown off, he hit his head on the hood, his hip broke the blinker light, and Myles flipped before landing on the street.

Colton heard the accident and came out to see Myles on the street and came running to get Brad and I. Lots of neighbors showed up to see if they could help (thanks everyone!!). Myles was taken via ambulance to American Fork Hospital where they did a slew of x-rays and CT scans. Miraculously no broken bones!!! His foot and ankle are very swollen and banged up, so he will be on crutches for a while to let that heal up. His elbow and hip got some road rash and nasty bruising. But the doctor was amazed that his injuries weren't worse.

I took some pictures with my phone, so I will post those as soon as I figure out how :) Being how school just started, Myles had brand new clothes and shoes on. He was so peeved about his clothes being cut off and his shoes being ruined!! But I promised him insurance will cover all damages and he can go out shopping for a new board and a new outfit :)

We have had many concerned friends and family calling and stopping by. Thanks for all of your concerns and offers to help. Myles is currently happily doped up on Loritab. Tomorrow will be worse I am sure, since I wont give him the "good" meds during school hours.

"If I'd known I was going to live so long, I'd have taken better care of myself." ~Leon Eldred

First Day of 9th Grade

Myles is officially a Freshman now!! Thursday the 20th was the first day of school. He is in his last year at Willowcreek Middle School and then will be going to Lehi High School next year. He loves his new classes...well except for seminary. But honestly, who really ever "liked" seminary???

Shakierra started school on Friday the 21st. She is going into 7th grade, so it is her first year in Jr. High. It was confusing, but the first day usually is. Her goal for next week is to make it to the correct lunch break :)

Today we are deep cleaning. So our house smells oh-so fresh. Now only if it would stay that way! Later we are taking Grace and Jane for a while. It has been a bit since we had them, so we are looking forward to spoiling them all afternoon :)

"As long as there are tests, there will be prayer in schools." ~Author Unknown

2008 Ford Edge

Big news at the Jolley house.......we bought a new (well new to us) car!! I was so very sad to say good-bye to my dear Sequoia, but it was the right decision. Financially it was just the right time to make this jump. It is great to drive and roomy for all passengers. I love the metallic red color and Brad loves that I gave-in and bought a Ford.

So if you see a sassy young blond cruising through Lehi.....well give me a call because that means Myles has hi-jacked my new ride!! But if you see a frizzy haired lady driving around who looks like she doesn't know how to turn off her wind-shield wipers, then that is probably me :)

Plus, a huge HAPPY B-DAY to my Mama!!

"Put a grain of boldness into everything you do." ~Baltasar Gracian

Torrey 2009

We survived another Family Reunion. Those things can be touch and go at times...but no worries, we made it thru unscathed! :)
As usual we camped down in Torrey, Utah right outside of the Capital Reef National Park. We spent 4 fun filled days getting dirty, eating too much food, and getting to know everyone even better.

Here we find Myles stuck trying to get down form a rock he had scaled. We were all busting a gut watching him try to get down.

This is a good shot of most of the gang.

Myles, Riley, and Shakierra on the "Chimney Rock" hike.

Daddy-o making another of his miraculous no-match fires. Bear Grills would have been so proud!!

The potato-sac race

The Wheel Barrel race. Notice how Joe decided to carry his wheel barrel aka Gracie.

The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together. ~Erma Bombeck

Youth Conference

Things are crazy busy around here. This past Friday and Saturday Brad and I helped out with Youth Conference. It was exhausting but rewarding. We did a Service Project Thursday night and had a camping retreat on Fri & Sat.

Here is a shot of the kids staining a fence for the service project.

Saturday the kids did an awesome ropes course. Here's Myles jumping for the trapeze.

There are tons more pictures to come. But my keyboard batteries are dieing, so that's it for now folks!!

Moving on Up

This past Sunday Myles was ordained to the office of a Teacher within the Aaronic Priesthood. Now Myles gets to help set up and prepare the sacrament. He is stoked, but can't wait till he is a Priest and can actually bless the sacrament. But that isn't until he turns 16, so he has a while to wait still. Brad even got to do the blessing, so that made it extra special!

We went out and bought Myles all new church clothes this weekend. That boy seems to grow out of things before he even breaks them in. He is now in a size 9 shoe and 30x30 slacks. He isn't a little boy anymore by an stretch of the imagination.

Tonight Shakierra was a good sport and helped me with a project. We made 3 dice for a game for this coming weekends Youth Conference. You know when you envision how this grand idea will turn out ... and then once you are done it is nothing near as cute as you had planned. That is how the dice turned out. At this point I am just hoping they survive the game.

Tonight when Myles got home from riding his bike he mentioned he wanted a haircut. So I grabbed the car keys and drove off with him before he could change his mind. It was 830pm, so I knew we didn't have much time to get in before everyone closed up for the night. We hit 4 barbers before getting in. But the Great Clips by Albertsons did the best job on his hair that I have seen in a long while. So I am happy that I have my clean cut boy back.

Poor Brad is working non-stop these days. He is still at work as I am typing this. He has been there for 13 hours already. So my hats off to all those truck drivers out there delivering all the goodies so that I can keep shopping:)

"Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter which fork you use." ~Emily Post

Kenny Chesney Concert

Last night Heather, Becky and I went to see Kenny Chesney, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert (yuck-o), and Sugarland (they were a no show due to a sore throat). It was a million degrees outside, but we had a blast, so that made the heat more bearable. Here we are pre-concert getting our beach groove on. (We so look like we know what we are doing...not!)

Kenny was a great preform er. At one point during the show a fan gave Kenny his U of U hat. So when he came back on stage for his encore he was sporting the good old U. He got huge cheers for that. He stuck around after the concert for a long time signing autographs for those close to the stage.

This concert definitely got two-thumbs up!! I would for sure go see him again!

"Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without." ~Confucius

Weiner Mobile

AND YOU THOUGHT YOU HAD A BAD DAY?!?!?

Cycling 101

We survived the 20 mile ride on Saturday!! It was great! It was a challenge of course, but we really enjoyed it. Brad did great and stayed with the main group of riders for the majority of the ride. I on the other-hand fell behind early. Those hills just kill me! But the up-side of being the hill-flunky was that I got tons of 1 on 1 advice.

Apparently I have a ways to go in proper riding form. First off I let me knees fall to the sides, a big no-no. Next my seat was way too low. Also my saddle (aka seat for you non-cyclists) was totally wrong for me. I sit too far forward and thus put too much pressure on my hands (hence the sore hands and neck).

So now I am carefully monitoring my form when riding. I am the proud owner of a new ladies saddle. They even measured the width of my sit-bones to make sure I got the rite size seat. I went out on it tonight and what a difference!! So much better!!

So we are for sure joining the group ride again this Saturday. It is every Saturday morning at the AF Trek store. If anyone else wants to join in feel free, anyone is welcome.

"Ideals are like stars: you will not succeed in touching them with your hands, but like the seafaring man on the desert of waters, you choose them as your guides, and following them you reach your destiny."~Carl Schurz

Friday Rundown

I haven't blogged all week because I don't think anything wildly exciting has been going on around our house. But yet it seems we are on the go non-stop... so we must be up to something. If any of you know, please let me know!!! :)

The work week is through (thank the stars!) and I am fully into my weekend routine. I am already in my jammies (@7 on a Friday night, sad I know), have started laundry, started the grocery list, blah blah ... you get the idea. It will be a nice quiet evening with just the dogs and I :) Myles gets home from camp tomorrow. I have missed him, but I am sure he is having a blast!

Tomorrow Brad and I are going on our first official "group-ride". We are going with the group from the Trek store. They have someone bring up the rear so that no one is left behind and lost (I am sure we will be buds with that dude!) It is a 20 mile loop through American Fork and Alpine. It should be a fun ride!

Well off to switch the laundry...oh what a glamorous life I lead!!

"Cycle tracks will abound in Utopia." ~H.G. Wells

Biker Brad

Brad doesn't get to spend near enough time on his bike as he would like. The poor guy works non-stop. So the other day when we had the girls over, he wasn't about to let that keep him from hitting the road. Grace jump on board with a bag of cheez-its & her water bottle and was game for anything. They hit 3 different parks before they returned!!

Myles is off at Scout Camp. He has been looking forward to this for months. The boys always have so much fun out there doing Man-Stuff!

Brad & I are helping out with Youth Conference this year. We are excited for the challenge. Though Myles wasn't too keen on his parents tagging along. Oh well, he will just have to get over it. So if you know of any totally awesome games for the youth to play in the great outdoors let me know. We don't want to be know as the "boring jolley's"!

"Being a child at home alone in the summer is a high-risk occupation. If you call your mother at work thirteen times an hour, she can hurt you." ~Erma Bombeck

4th of July Birthday Bash

This year for Myles' 14th birthday we went to a 4th of July BBQ at Rob & Sri's home in Mantua. It was absolutely gorgeous weather! We had tons of family to hang out with, which made the day perfect. As you can see, Myles wasted no time getting down and dirty on the trampoline!

McKenna & Sierra were great to share their horses. Shakierra absolutely loves horses, so she was in hog heaven!

It took Myles three shots to get this picture. He kept cutting our heads off in the photo and thinking he was stinking hilarious for doing so. Heather and I were about ready to give him a tag-team beat-down!!

I loved this shot of Grace and G-pa. Dad looks just as happy and carefree as Grace!!

Jane loved being on the horses. She loved all the different animals the Kline's had. (goat, horses, dog, bunny...)

And you can tell that Grace loves her Uncle Brad. He was protecting her from candy thieves while she munched away on sweet-tarts.

I still cant believe that my baby boy is 14 years old already! He is a laugh a minute...(most of the time.)

Thanks again to the Kline's for hosting this great shindig!!

"A characteristic of the normal child is he doesn't act that way very often." ~Author Unknown