Connoisseur

so due to budget cuts at the Brown house we had to change our brand of dog food to what ever was on sale and I have a coupon for. I received gripes and complaints for this change on the menu. AND NOT FROM THE DOG! It was from the boys. Yes, the very same boys that refuse to eat 90% of the food I actually prepare with love and resentment. Last week I bought some Kibbles and Bits remembering how happy Raquel would be because the dogs and the commercials were always so happy to eat it and woof out the theme song. For those of you too young to remember I posted a link. http://www.evtv1.com/player.aspx?itemnum=8088

But what I got was a list of complaints about the lack of flavor and texture from the boys. One in particular who shall not be names because he is always has a weapon on him somewhere and I really don't want to be on "that list."

What they wanted back was Costco's brand of dog food. In the lamb and rice flavor. Well they are just gonna have to wait for a coupon for me to purchase it just like the dog.

Now on to another topic, dog treats. also a debate in our home. Papa and Grandma like to spoil Raquel and bring her goodies when they come over. Shhh, it is mainly Papa that does this. Tee hee.

Here is the review from the snackers. They said that although Beggin' Strips smell just like bacon they do no taste anything like bacon. In fact they taste really bad. So no Beggin' Strips.

But Pup-peroni gets five stars. They said not only does it smell appetizing, it tastes really good too.

So folks, there you have it. You and I both learned something today. I learned that I am knocking myself out cooking gourmet meals for kids that would rather eat dog food and you learned how to make your pooch one very happy, well fed doggie.

Disney on Ice

A very good friend, who insists on hanging out with us even though she knows my kids, took the girls and I to Disney on Ice last night. We have never gone to something like this. I did not tell the girls until 30 minutes before we left, which turned out being 30 minutes too early. Diane brought her grand daughter along too. Turns out three 5yr olds is the perfect age for this. They clapped, squealed, and were on the edge of their seats for the whole two hours of the show.
This is Anna just after Arial, her favorite princess, took to the ice. I think she may have peed a bit in her panties.

This is Maria after Ariel took to the ice. I love how excited they were.

And of course Ariel and her Prince.

Clapping after the performance.

This is a lousy picture but it has all the princess sitting around the fountain with the fairy godmother on top.

Thank you, thank you, thank you Diane for a wonderful evening. The girls did not pass out till 10:30 last night. They were so wound up. But I am positive they had the best dreams ever.

November 14,1966

This is the day Dan was born. This would have been his 44th birthday. I let the kids plan what to do to celebrate his birthday. I personally would have liked to have done nothing. Sounds awful I know, but I am really good at avoiding hard situations and hoping they will just go away.

The kids were so excited to plan his birthday. They decided on getting Dan's favorite cake, a four layer chocolate monstrosity from Costco. It is so rich and chocolaty. He loved that cake. Well really he just loves cake, but this one was is favorite. They also wrote notes with birthday wishes and we went up to the grave site. Now I will be honest with you, I have been there once shortly after the funeral and have never been back. Sounds terrible, but I honestly don't care what you think. The kids released balloons with their notes and watches them go up into the clouds. I was fine as long as I did not look down. Later I found out that Daniel really wants to go out there more often so I need to suck it up. We came home and had cake and ice cream.

My sister, Kathryn, came down from Republic. She said she was here just for a visit. Now people of the internet, in all my 12 yrs of living here she has never stayed just for a visit. I know she was a spy my mother set here while she is away in sunny California. But I must admit that even for a spy she was really nice and I enjoyed spending time with her alot.

I did think of taking pictures of our activities but the bile rising in my throat let me know that was not a good idea. So this post will just have to be pictureless. Someday I will post a picure. He site is beautiful. He is at the top of a huge hill that over looks miles and miles of fields. It looks over the road he ran on as a highschooler and the hills he and his sisters used to sled on as kids. It is a familiar place to him. okay, that is all i can write. bye

A Whole New Respect.

Jakey got this gun for his birthday. It is a really cool gun. At least until a dart gets jammed in it and it locks up. Then it is not a cool gun at all. It is a @#!&% gun. You see this gun is held together by 23 screws of varying sizes. Wednesday afternoon I gained a whole new respect for the children in China that put these guns together. I had to take it down into the smallest of pieces to get the two jammed darts out. I was rather proud of myself when I put it back together and it worked! Granted it took 45 minutes to do. I proudly told Jakey when he came home from school. He responded with a shrug and a mumbled, "thanks mom." I wish I had the gun in my hand at the time. Grrr.

jakey's baptism and birthday party

Yep it was a pretty exciting day for Jakey. Our very dear friend and former Bishop, Dennis Dipo did the honors of baptizing Jakey. He and Dan had been good friends for years and Dennis was there with me constantly for Dan's last days. He is truly a good man. And it does not hurt that he has a connection with Cyrus O'Leary Pies. Mmm.

I really struggled posting any pictures of myself because I truly hate them. But, I know that this post is not about me, (for once) it is about Jakey!

While I had the kids all looking respectable, and trust me that does not happen all that often, i thought that it would be a good idea to get a family picture. I wanted to do this before the baptism but time got away from us. So here we are and yes, I know my face is a mess. Yes, I cried, but seeing Jakey so happy really lessened the pain.

Now on to the PARTY!! And Jakey loves a good party, especially when it is for HIM!!

The present of the day was his DSi XL. what? you don't know what that is? go ask your kid or grandkid.

The nerf wars in our house get pretty rough so Ike and Daniel got Jake a new semi-automatic nerf gun that hold 35 rounds. Poor kid still does not stand a chance.

Here is Grandpa Reneer and Papa Brown.

It really was a fantastic, bittersweet day for our family, but I can't help but think that all of our fantastic days will be bittersweet from here on out. I am so thankful for the gospel, I am so very thankful for the Atonment and very much grateful for the plan of salvation. It brings me great peace to know we are and always will be a family.

Lonely?

How weird is it? I am in a small house surrounded by "my" five little darlings. Well okay, darlings is stretching it a bit. And I have found myself getting lonely. Not just bored. I mean ya, we all get bored with the day to day grind. But I am missing my companion in the day to day grind. Someone to whine and complain to about being bored. I am missing laughing with others. Turns out I really love to laugh. It makes me feel so much better. I am trying to keep busy. I am working on my needle point like I am suppose to, but turns out needle point does not talk back. And it rarely makes me laugh. If I had the chance I would go out everynight just to talk and laugh with other people. No worries, I am not going to do that. This is just another adjustment for me. One, that for some stupid reason, I did not predict coming. Heck, we have not even talked about it in counseling. So for the time being I need to relax and take it one night at a time. Just like everything else. I am sure this too shall pass. I am so blessed to have so many friends around to put up with me.