Back to blogging and starting quilting!

So, I have been off of my blog for SO LONG!!!!! However, while I may have lost the few people who followed me, I am still going to give this another go. This spring I took a sewing class (made pillowcases table runner and a bag) and found that I am in love with it...more specifically, quilting! My class wasn't on quilting, although my teacher is a fantastic quilter. I bought a book "Quilting for Dummies" and started watching quilting videos on Youtube. My first quilt was using my leftover material from making a rag quilt comforter. I just kind of tried to make a pattern...with the help of my lovely husband. It was so much fun! Lots of errors and a great learning experience. I love it! 

I have now started working on my second quilt. It has taken me a lot less time than the previous one. I guess I did learn something! lol If I could spend all of my time quilting, I certainly would. However, my  little squirts and life dictate that I don't do that. I will be blogging about my quilting experiences in addition to my life as well. I can't wait to see any progress that I make!

This is the front of my first quilt. I LOVE the colors!

This is the back!

I did diagonal lines around the borders and stippling in the middle.

My sweet mutt, breaking it in!

Folded up and ready to go!

My second quilt top, pieced, pinned and ready to quilt!

The quilting pattern is squares and lines

My Grandma

Last night my sweet and wonderful grandma left this earth to go on to the next to see her mom, dad and sisters. I do not have words enough to express the sorrow and loss that I feel at her passing. The only thing that makes this a little easier is my knowledge that her spirit still lives and I will see her again. She was such an amazing woman. Every part of my life is filled with memories of her. When I was four I moved across the street from her and I grew up running back and forth from her house to mine. I always knew that she loved me unconditionally and it only increased my love for her. She was always positive and had something good to say about everyone. She always tried to get me to look at the positive in each situation. She had such an amazing view on life.

She was the love of my grandpa's life and they were childhood sweethearts. During high school they were cheerleaders together. How great is that!?! I have heard about how when raising their children they would push the furniture against the wall and cut the rug dancing. For any sentence you said she seemed to be able to come up with a line in a song that pretty much said the same thing. She exercised almost every day of her life which ended up saving her life later on by giving her a strong enough heart to withstand the blood clot that went to it.

She taught her kids and grandkids how to take care of their elderly family members. Both of my great-grandmothers lived with her while she took care of them. What a great legacy she left us and my uncle, aunt and mother were all able to reciprocate in kind.

I have so many memories of her. Camping, sitting by her at church while she played with my hair and back. talking about books that we had read, discussing dates, walking through Hinckley and hearing about what she did growing up and seeing where it took place, talking about joys and sorrows. The list is too numerous to write even a small part of it. She was one of my best friends in addition to being my grandma.

I also remember how much everyone felt loved by her. My friends all absolutely adored both her and my grandpa. They didn't call them by their first names or even Mr. and Mrs. Warner. It was always 'grandma and grandpa'. I remember always feeling sorry for anyone that didn't actually have them as their grandparents. haha

I think that the thing that I learned most from her was about the gospel of Jesus Christ. I knew, by how she lived and things she talked about, that she had a deep and abiding love for the Savior. There was never a doubt in my mind about how she felt. She not only believed in the Savior but believed that you needed to live those beliefs and she did. She was and still is a wonderful example of how to live a Christ like life. I am grateful that she taught that love to her children and that my mom and dad in turn helped me to gain my own love for Him.

She was a wonderful wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. I will miss her so much and wish that she could be here with me always. I am so grateful for all of the many years that she was in my life and will treasure the 40 years of time and memories that I had with her. I hope that one day I can be half the woman that she is.

I love you, grandma!

New Year!

It has been way too long since I have been on here. This year I plan on writing on here much more.

So, I was running this morning with James and had the plan to run to a particular street out in the country. I was excited. I knew I could make it. As we were running and about 1/2 of a mile from said road a stupid German Sheppard came charging towards us. He sounded totally ready to defend his territory! I let out a blood curdling scream (big dogs make me extremely nervous since Chancho's two dog attacks). James shoved me behind him and we started back the way we came. Luckily there was a small lateral (water to flood the fields) that he did not want to get in. I personally think he could have jumped it, but James didn't seem worried about that. However, if we had gone a few more yards we would have been at the drive way crossing and he would have had no barrier between us to worry about. My poor heart was pounding and I had a lot more adrenaline coursing through my body. We headed back the way we came, just short of my goal. Stupid dog.

It's For You

The other night at around 3:00 a.m. James' phone started ringing. I shook him awake to let him know. He got out of bed to answer it and said "It's your phone." I figured he was still sleeping and I knew it wasn't my phone ringing because it was on the bed next to me. I said "It is your phone so just answer it" and he did and said "Hello? Temaire?". Hahaha!!! In my sleep I had rolled over my phone and dialed his phone! hehehe Really, it would have been a lot funnier if I hadn't missed out on some sleep because of it. So, if I accidentally call you in the wee hours of the morning......sorry!

The Vests Have It

This week has been bad for running. By that I mean that I haven't done it. Poor Parker has been so disappointed, so I made sure to get up early enough this morning to go. Last Saturday he got new running shoes and I bought us both some reflector vests so we wouldn't get hit by a car. Today while we were running out by the fields I could see some lights coming up behind us. Five bicyclists came up behind us yelling "Great reflector vests!" and "We can totally see you because of your vests! Way to go!". Parker was over the moon about it. I was glad to know that they worked. On our way home as we turned on to the last street I let Parker go in front of me (instead of by my side) and he lit up like a Roman Candle. So glad that they work!

Pounding Feet

Darkness all around. A plethora of stars in the sky while farm fields surround me. Music sounding in my ears and my feet pound the pavement. Cool air caresses my skin as the dark shadows of my husband and son move in front of me. My new love.

That Is Just Wrong

I am in my room. Sliding door open. Front door open. Listening to the dog bark at the lawn care workers laying down our winter grass seed. All of a sudden I start gagging. The stench that was coming through the sliding door in my room was overwhelming. Turns out that in addition to the seed that was being spread was Steer Blend Manure! YUCK!!!! If you have not had the joy of smelling that smell you are so lucky. You can bet the doors were all quickly closed! As James and the kids walked out to the car to go to school and work everyone was plugging their noses and the kids were making gaging sounds. The workers laughed and said "It will only last a day". I am hoping that they are correct in their statement! It is so bad that the dog won't even go near it! We better have beautiful green grass this winter!

You Were Expelled?!

Last night my dad was talking on the phone with each of the kids. When they were finished I got on to say goodbye and my dad asked me if Ireland got expelled from school. I told him no and this is the story that unfolded.

Dad: Ireland said she got expelled because some boy called her a name and so she hit him in the face.

Me: Did you believe her?

Dad: Not at first, but she was adamant that this happened and she never changed her story so I was not sure.

Me: laughing.............no, she did not, she is pretty funny.

Dad: Tell her I am going to get her back.

We ended the conversation and I went in laughing to tell James. As I am telling him the story Parker bursts out in hysterical laughter saying 'That was me!!!!" He had pretended to be Ireland pretending to have been expelled! I laughed so hard, but nothing like Parker! It made his night!

I called my dad back to let him in on the joke. He said that he was going to get Parker back. We will see if he is successful. The joys of having a jokester in the family. My mom would know (my brother and hers), my grandma would know (her husband and son, grandson and great grandson). I guess our family has no hope!

I Hope No One Was Watching!

Last night I was working with the beginners at gymnastics when Parker came up and informed me that he and his friend accidentally locked my keys in the car. I would like to point out that they should not have even been in the car. This had to be taken care of quickly because in less than an hour I had to take Parker to soccer and then go the the Back to School night. Plus, I did not want to have to pay the after hours fee. My friend in the office called the locksmith for me and he came out pronto to fix the problem. $55 that I would have rather spend elsewhere. The problem then got bigger. I was informed that Parker and Cameron tried to open the door by putting a metal device in the lock and when that didn't work they tried a plastic spoon. The plastic spoon shattered in the lock thus rendering it completely useless. Did I mention that I broke my door clicker so I can't unlock it automatically? The only way in is through the back door. As a side note it is going to cost between $75-$100 to fix that particular problem.

So, on with my story. This morning I was at Pep Boys fixing something else wrong on my car (the lock still is not fixed yet) and I asked the workers not to lock the car when they were finished. Of course, being just like my children, they did not listen and locked the door. Now, I can climb in through the back window, but today it was full of boxes and toys to take to our new house (yes, we are moving....again) and so to get in I had to climb over said boxes. They rose almost to the top of the car, so there was a little wiggle room. I climbed up, and promptly lost a shoe to the great outdoors. Now that I was up to the top I had to get down to the bottom of the second row. Unfortunately, being so high up I slid down, face first, like I was going through the luge! I squealed as this was happening and I am sure I looked absolutely ridiculous! I then had to hop on one foot to go and find my flip flop that flopped to the ground. I know my face was beet red and I tried to avoid looking around, hoping that no one was watching. This better not end up on YouTube!

Where Am I?

Last night, around 10:30-11:00, I was sitting in our family room watching t.v. I heard one of the kids get up and come walking down the hall. It turned out to be Kearney. She was looking really confused and disoriented. I told her hello and asked her what she was doing. She just kind of looked at me and started playing with the waistband of her pants. I asked her if she needed to go to the bathroom and she turned around and walked in to the kitchen. Our family room is connected with the dinning room and kitchen. Kind of a wide open great room with a countertop in the middle. I stood up to see what she was doing and low and behold I saw her with her pants down, the garbage can lid up getting ready to sit on the garbage and go to the bathroom! I started yelling her name over and over and I ran over to get her. I guided her in to the bathroom while telling her that was the kitchen she was in. I was laughing so hard! She sat down (on the toilet this time) and finally started to wake up a bit. I told her what had just happened and she sheepishly started to laugh. I was laughing so much! It cracked me up. I know it has probably happened to all of us. We wake up, are disoriented and can't figure out where we are or what is going on. I am sure when she is older she will be thrilled that I posted this, but it really was great!

Yuck!

Yesterday Kearney and Ireland and I were sitting out in the car waiting for Kylee to come out of the gym. Kearney had leaned up by me and all of a sudden a gross smell came drifting through the car. I wrinkled up my nose, looked at her (she was so guilty and you could see it by the look on her face) and said "stop doing that by me!". She giggled and then Ireland said "She does it all of the time at school". Apparently, during class, while surrounded by many students (there are 4 to a table), she just passes gas left and right! She doesn't care who is there! She laughed and laughed as Ireland told the story and was completely unrepentant. I tried to tell her how gross that is and that people don't want to be smelling her, but I don't think she cares! Yuck!

My Loss

For my birthday this June I hinted to James (told him) that I wanted a Kindle. I was pretty positive that I was going to get one and then James made a comment that made me sure he was not getting one. I remember thinking that if he didn't I was going to go out and buy me one. Well, on my birthday I was informed that I was getting an IPad! I was excited because I got all that went with it in addition to my Kindle! I loved it and so did my kids. Well, today, it slipped off of my lap and the screen busted in to a million pieces! I was talking to James on the phone (he is in Tucson) and I broke down. I was missing Utah and really not wanting to be away from family and then I added the loss of the IPad to that. I could not stop crying! I went in to the store where I bought it and found out that we had purchased an accident protection plan. Whew! The only problem was that almost as soon as we had purchased the IPad I realized all of the things that we could not do on it, and our computer was so old it wouldn't do anything. So, today I upgraded my IPad in to a MacBook Pro. I really do like it, but I am not able to have a kindle on it. The one thing I really wanted for my birthday is now gone. All of the things that I can do on this computer are great, but I can't read my books! I was in the middle of a wonderful book, and I am stuck not finishing it! So now, I am telling the kids to hint to James (i.e. tell him) to get me my kindle as a present for Christmas. Keep your fingers crossed!

So Bummed

I thought my kids school started on the 29th of August but I just found out it starts on the 22nd. Do you know what this means?! I have to go back to California a week early! I am not sure why, but that week seems like a big deal to me. I don't want to go back then. Here are some of the things I am going to miss. My family, a race that my sister and I were going to run (this would have been my first race....sob), my family, my baby nephew being born, my mom and sister-in-law's birthdays, less time in El Centro with James gone (he is going to Tucson for work), my family, the cool weather and did I mention my family? I am really bummed about this. So bummed that in am close to crying. 4 more weeks is all I have left. :(

Picture This

I have a story I would like you to picture. A day with 8 children. During the day there is playing, fighting, teasing, screaming, crying, laughing and sometimes complete disobedience. The children are out swimming in the warm summer sun (you know it is not in El Centro because I did not say 'hot summer sun') when one of the many is getting a lecture from their mother. In the middle of said lecture the child turns around and just jumps in to the pool. The mother, having lost all patience jumps in to the pool, fully dressed to haul the child right back out. As she is jumping in she hears gasps from all around, one of which came from her mother, the child's grandma. The mother throws the child to the ladder, (really, it was not a throw because water is up to the child's chest, so it was more of a push) and unceremoniously hauls the child out of the pool and reads them the riot act as well as the other 3 that belong to her about minding, not screaming and fighting. One of the nieces says "Aunt so and so, did you know that you jumped in to the pool?". Haha. Welcome to a moment in my life.

Bring On Summer

Summer in Utah. Warm weather (not scorching). Days at the Rec Center. Parades. Fireworks. Dog shaking in fear because of said fireworks. Bar b ques. Shrimp boils. Family, family and more family. New babies (not mine!). Swimming and tans and sun screen. I love summer!

Moving

James came in the other day and informed me that our rent was going to be raised effective June 1st. I was not thrilled with the amount that they were raising it to. Really, I don't want to pay more in rent that I would pay for my own mortgage. You might wonder why I don't just go and buy my own house then. Well, I don't want to live here forever. Our goal is to get back to Utah ASAP!!!!! If we buy a home down here it would be harder to just pack up and go when that glorious day comes. So, we have decided to just rent. James moved in to this house a year ago this June, but the kids and I didn't move in until the very end of August. We have only been unpacked for 8 months! That has not even been enough time for me to feel like this is home, and now we are having to move. My first thoughts were "Man! I should not have spent all of those hours pulling gigantic dandelion roots out of the yard" and "I am so glad I did not pay to have spiders and weeds killed!". Heaven forbid I improve on someone else's house! lol Really, my first thought and comment was "Lets just move back to Utah since we have to move". Unfortunately, we need money to live and as James doesn't have a job in Utah, my plan went down in flames.

So, renting in the Imperial Valley is not an easy thing. It is hard to find a place. Luckily we know someone who has a home that they are trying to sell that we are going to rent. We will be moving in the next few weeks. I know, it is risky. The house could sell quickly and then we would need to move again. I am keeping my fingers crossed that it takes a while and my eyes opened (and uncrossed!) for anything else. I am also not unpacking any unnecessary items. Don't want to have to pack it again in the near future. We also are going to have to buy school uniforms. Again. The kids haven't figured that out yet, and that are so not going to be happy about that. Just add it to the list.

Yay! Yay! Yay! I Love It!

So, I am in my second week of instructing the adult boot camp class. It is safe to say that when I first started I was TERRIFIED!!!!! I was very lucky that James was working days, so I had him there as emotional support. Each day has gotten easier. When I first started I was not doing the counting for everyone (just kind of letting them do their own), but I have found that they do the exercises better (less cheating) if I do it for them. I have also found that I am not nervous as I instruct them on what to do. The first day that I did the class I had a friend say he was going to come just so he could make fun of me (he was in the class with me when I was a participant). I told him to go home. He thought I was serious and did! haha!! When he found out I had been kidding he said that he would do the next class but didn't really think I would be able to work him out hard enough. First of all, can I just say rude!? However, I kind of felt the same way. At the end of the next class he was dripping sweat and totally out of breath! I had done it! I knew that if I could work him out hard (he is in pretty good shape and young to boot) I would be okay.

So, yesterday comes and I have a hard workout in mind for the class. I was worried that it would be too hard and I wasn't sure I would be able to do it! James had the day off, so he came and I really worked the class out. I even had James sweating, and that takes some effort. I have found that I push myself so much more in leading the class than I ever would just exercising on my own. I have also had people from the class say that it is harder than before I started doing it! Wow! I have had parents from the sidelines (some of these people look like they are in extremely good shape) say that the class looks so hard, and the lady who ran the class before (remember, she is pregnant) told me that when she comes back she wants me to do a class once a week so that I can work her out! I about passed out. This woman's body is in FANTASTIC shape (besides the little baby filling up her tummy! lol)! It was amazing to hear her say that she wanted me to work her out! I can't believe how much I am loving doing this class. I am surprised that I am capable of doing it, but I am thrilled that I am. It feels so good to be able to push myself and others so hard and to succeed! It has been an extremely rewarding adventure and I am looking forward to doing it for the next few months! Yay, yay, yay!!!!

April Fools

This is not an April Fool's day joke, but it certainly could be! Last night I found out that the gym I go to was going to cancel the adult class until later this summer. The coach that runs the class is pregnant (due in June) and having contractions. She has been told to just rest. None of the other coaches want to do the class (they have other classes that they are running). As the coach was telling me she looked at me and said "It will be canceled starting next week.....unless you want to do it!". So, low and behold I am subbing for her until I leave to Salt Lake this summer! That is about 30 classes!!! Holy cow! My whole entire life I have detested exercising and now I am running a class 3 times a week! Who would have ever thought that would be a possibility?! See, it could be an April Fool's day joke! I have to say, I am very excited and extremely nervous. I am worried that I would be able to make it fun or hard enough. And what if people walk in and look at me and say 'yeah, right! Like she can teach the class!'? Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Worries

Do you ever look around and wonder who is really happy and who is hiding sadness or pain? I have often wondered that. We can look at someone and think that they look like their life is wonderful but reality might be the extreme opposite of wonderful. It is so hard, impossible really, to truly know how someone is feeling or what their life is like.

I have had times when all I want to do is cry or curl up in a ball, but don't really have that option. There have been several times in the past week where I have just wanted to cry but because I am helping to coach little squirts I have had to be happy as a clam. Who knew I could be such a good actress. I did notice that when I was focusing on the girls I wasn't focusing on my own worries and problems. I suppose there is something to learn from that. Maybe when we are feeling down we should try to focus on serving others and see if that helps us with our own problems. It may not take them away, but might help us to have a better attitude when dealing with it. Just a thought.

Aches and Pains

What is up with my poor, almost 39 year old body? I am still having issues with my ankle (back to no exercising right now....sad.....), and now I am having issues with my wrist! I am not sure what I did to it (James thinks it is from gymnastics -doing it and spotting kids doing it) but it is in mind numbing pain all of the time. Really?! Come on body! Give me a stinking break! (and I don't mean my bones!)