tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33634820275789477802024-03-13T04:47:38.407-06:00Lane & Lari Funk FamilyThe Chaos and Confusion that is my Lifelarifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.comBlogger486125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-24397398543891288732016-08-03T18:11:00.001-06:002016-08-03T18:12:32.976-06:00Jalapeno Popper Casserole<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hDthW_XwzKE/V6KDBuxy0yI/AAAAAAAAC9Q/KtSjMed7X9s7IcCiKvVzMyVDaB_v2tFxQCLcB/s1600/popper%2Bcasserole.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hDthW_XwzKE/V6KDBuxy0yI/AAAAAAAAC9Q/KtSjMed7X9s7IcCiKvVzMyVDaB_v2tFxQCLcB/s320/popper%2Bcasserole.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here is my Jalapeno Popper Casserole. Just a heads up - I have tweaked this over the course of about a year to get it just right . . . FOR ME. Which means that some of the ingredients no longer have valid measurements. So if you are going to cook it up, you may want to do some tweaking of your own.<br />
<br />
So here we go (insert drumroll sound here) with my version of this tasty dinner:<br />
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Makes 1 13x9 inch pan<br />
<br />
<b>1 8 oz package of cream cheese</b><br />
<b>1 cup sour cream</b><br />
<b>2 cups shredded cheese, divided</b><br />
<b>1 lb bacon, cooked and crumbled</b><br />
<b>4-6 Jalapeno peppers</b><i> (depending on the size of the peppers and how much of that flavor you want. Just keep in mind that once the seeds are out, they aren't as hot as you might think),</i> <b>deseeded and diced</b> <i>(after I deseed the peppers I throw them in that food chopper attachment thingy that came with my blender. Also, I use latex gloves for the seeding and all touching of the peppers, because . . . you know . . . I'll get that stuff in my eyes for sure)</i><br />
<b>1 bag of hash browns</b> <i>(I don't know the size of bag, enough to fill the bottom of the pan, and I use the cubed kind)</i><br />
<b>Green onions</b> <i>(quantity depending on your love - or not - of green onions) </i><br />
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Preheat the oven to 425. Fill the baking dish with hash brown, and put them in the oven until they are warmed up. While the hash browns are warming, cook the bacon and crumble it into small pieces. Dice the peppers and slice the green onions. Mix the cream cheese, sour cream, 1.5 cups of cheese, green onions and bacon (keep some bacon and green onions for sprinkling on top). I use a hand mixer to blend it all up. Spread that mixture on top of the hashbrowns. Top with the rest of the cheese, bacon, and green onions. Bake at 425 for 20 minutes.<br />
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<br />
It takes 2 of these to feed my family. My family of 4. 2 pans. 4 people. I'm not kidding.<br />
<br />
Yes, one of those people is Jack, but I'm not sure that 1 pan would satisfactorily (is that a word?) take care of the family sans Jack. We kinda like it. It's yummy. And warms up nicely. Or so I've heard. I've never actually had any to warm up for myself. But that's the rumor.<br />
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<br />
The actual recipe that I started with uses twice as much cream cheese and tater tots instead of hash browns. It was too much cream cheese, in my opinion, so I kept whittling it down until I got to where we are now, which is perfect. Someone else would probably like the full cream cheese portion. And lest you ask, you could probably use the low fat cream cheese and sour cream. I've never tried. Why would I do such a thing? Low fat = low flavor = sadness for everyone.<br />
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-84705950724228910102016-05-19T16:19:00.001-06:002016-05-19T16:19:55.471-06:00Kids These Days . . .One of my favorite things to torment my kids with is the old parental stand-by, "When I was your age . . ." We've got it so much better than our parents, so much more variety, and our kids are positively appalled at how things were in the "olden" days. My goodness, we answered the phone without knowing who was calling! We had to go to the LIBRARY to do a research paper! We had to stand up and walk across the room to change the channel on the TV! Gasp! The inhumanity of it all!<br />
<br />
But then when I stop to think of the things my kids will never experience, at least not on the scale I did, it makes me kind of sad. My teens and pre-teen kids never hung out at the mall on Saturdays, seeing how far they could stretch $5. My kids have never walked a mile (plus) to get a snow cone and then eat it while walking the mile (plus) back home (uphill). And sadly, my kids have never - and probably will never - have the wonderful experience of a drive-in movie.<br />
<br />
As a teenager, I went to the Timp Drive-in in Orem regularly during the summer. It was just what people did then. I usually fell asleep before the second movie began, because I'm exciting like that. <br />
<br />
A group of friends of mine bought an old car (I don't know what it was, but it was reeeaaalllly long), and they cut the top off it and put seats in the trunk space. It could seat about 13 people, although if it rained it was not so cool. We would take that thing, lovingly called "The Vert" (as in conVERTable) to the drive-in, park it sideways, and we could get 6 speakers on it that way. Ahhh . . . good times.<br />
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The Timp Drive-in was also conveniently located next to a Winchell's Donut shop. That was handy. Sadly, the Winchell's Donut shop is also gone, and apartments sit in its place (also the drive-in). <br />
<br />
I remember going with my friend Shauna to the drive-in once. It was just the two of us, everyone else must have been on missions at that point or something. Anyway, the double feature was Dead Poet's Society and then Beaches. Who's idiotic idea was that? That is surely the worst double feature ever. We could barely see to drive home, what with the red, swollen eyes and all. That was the worst. Whoever dreamed up that double feature should be taken out and shot for poor decision making.<br />
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Also, no northern Utah county youth at that time could grow up properly without going to the movies at the Towne Cinema "Sticky Shoe" theater in American Fork. That was the theater I most frequented back then. It was a first run theater once upon a time. That's where I saw Footloose and E.T. (I'm thinking 1982?) The only movies I remember seeing at the fancy University Mall Theater was Star Wars (as it was known then, but now I have to specify A New Hope), but I could be wrong. But it seems like most of the movies of my youth were at the Timp Drive-in or the Sticky Shoe.<br />
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I don't think there are any drive-ins left around here (if I'm wrong, let me know), so I don't know my kids can experience that thrill. But the Sticky Shoe is still alive and well. If I can drum up the nerve, I'll take my kids over there so they can fully appreciate the name.<br />
<br />
Then in my teenage years, the video store came into it's glory days. My kids have some memories of Blockbuster, but they will never appreciate the days of having to call ahead to Adventureland Video in downtown PG to reserve their one copy of Holy Grail for a Friday night. Everything had only one copy. And now thanks to instant streaming and cheap DVDs, kids today don't know the anguish of going to the video store on Friday or Saturday, and finding that everything is out except for a copy of "Thouroghly Modern Millie" which was to be avoided at all costs because it was a - GASP - musical, or maybe a movie in black and white. And every kid of the 80s knew that if a movie was in black and white, it couldn't possibly be any good.<br />
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My kids don't know the torture of dragging a hose around the backyard during the summer months, moving it every 30 minutes, because now we all have sprinkler systems. They don't know what it's like when the President speaks on TV and he's on Every. Single. Channel. Thanks to Spotify, they will never know about trying to record a favorite song off the radio, only to miss the beginning of the song and have to wait around for it to play again. They don't have to worry about having a dime on hand at all times to make an emergency phone call. Other than their parents having access to their grades at all times (thank goodness that didn't exist in my school years!), kids today have it pretty good, I guess.<br />
<br />
But thankfully, my kids also don't know the agony of trying to choke down a lima bean dinner. Too many lima bean dinners prepared by my mom made me swear I would never, ever, EVER serve them to anyone I loved. Because, let's face it, that's just abuse.<br />
<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-87912661856415237092016-03-30T20:08:00.003-06:002016-03-30T20:08:49.481-06:00I think I can . . . I think I can. . .So I'm back to 5k training. Sigh. Once upon a time I could run almost the whole 3 miles and then . . . and then . . . I don't know. I just stopped. Periodically I would feel enough shame to take myself down to the gym and run some on the track or treadmill. I can still run for about 2 minutes, or almost a quarter mile. Humiliating as that is, I remember back to the first 5k training and running for 1 minute was almost impossible, so at least I'm not back at Square One.<br />
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<br />
I went down to the gym last night, and all full of motivation, I hopped on the treadmill. I got my 5k app running, my Spotify workout playlist going, and then realized that the gym has gotten new treadmills and I didn't even know how to start the dumb thing. Not wanting to look more stupid than I'm sure I already did (people of a certain weight and age really shouldn't wear running tights) I fumbled around for a while, trying to look like I knew what I was doing, until I accidentally started the thing up. Thankfully it starts very slowly so I didn't get sucked off the back. That would have been terribly impressive, running tights and all.<br />
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So yesterday was to run for 1 minute and walk for 90 seconds (stop laughing at me. I know my shame), repeated 8 times. It went very well, I stepped off the treadmill 30 minutes later happy, proud of myself, and perhaps a little cocky. I told Addie on the way home that training this time wouldn't be as bad as last time, and we laughed about the frozen vegetables bags on my legs back then. <br />
<br />
I knew that Thursday's aren't good for me gym-wise, and I had to come home from work early today because our satellite needed readjusting, so I thought, "Hey, yesterday went so well, I'll go back for Day 2 today!" despite knowing from past experience that back-to-back training days are a bad idea. But I was confident.<br />
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Turns out 2:30 is a great time to be at the gym. It is pretty much empty and, more importantly, I got a great parking spot. So I got on my treadmill, started it successfully and without humiliating myself, started my app, started my Spotify, and I was off. I did just like I did yesterday: walk at 3.6 mph, then jog starting at 5.1 mph and increasing that jogging speed on each run to max out at 5.8 mph. It went perfectly yesterday, so it would go perfectly today too, right?<br />
<br />
Well, mostly yes. It went fine until the last run. 60 seconds has never been so long. I kept telling myself if it didn't end soon I was going to throw up. I wanted to turn down the speed. But I held on to the end (the end of that WHOLE 60 seconds - stop laughing at me) and was pleased with myself. I shared the workout to Facebook for accountability purposes, and went to get stuff to wipe down the treadmill.<br />
<br />
I couldn't walk. My knees almost buckled just stepping off the belt. "Great," I thought. "I'm going down here in a heap, and I'm still wearing these ridiculous running tights." But somehow I hobbled over and got the machine wiped down. Next problem: walking down the stairs. There's an elevator right there. Why didn't I take it?<br />
<br />
The silver lining was that I coincidentally had a massage scheduled for 3:00. Thankfully, Vanessa would save me. And she did. She always does.<br />
<br />
And she didn't even act offended with all the sweat.<br />
<br />
That's true friendship.<br />
<br />
And now it's 8:00 and I'm back to feeling fabulous.<br />
<br />
But maybe that's because of the Cadbury mini eggs I can't stop eating.<br />
<br />
<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-67405591414555903652015-08-04T19:19:00.001-06:002015-08-04T19:22:37.384-06:00Another Jackism List<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I realized that I have acquired many more Jackisms since I last made a list, so this brings us up to current. (See original Jackism list February 22, 2013). I really have to wonder what he says when I'm NOT around. :)</span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This list also includes a Laneism and a Taylorism.</span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Enjoy!!</span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #50:</b></span> Me:<span class="apple-converted-space"> Jack</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">, when you find yourself in a hole it's best to just stop digging.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Jack: Not if you have a jetpack.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #51:</b></span> I like smiling. But I
don't care for the other emotions.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #52:</b></span> (while watching Return
of the Jedi) The stormtroopers really need to upgrade their armor. It's
extremely ineffective.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><b><span style="color: red;">Jackism #53:</span> </b>Dots and licorice aren't
movie food. You wanna know what IS movie food? Tacos.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #54:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">(spelling is not Jack's super power)</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: How do you spell "hors d'oeuvers"?</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: Eu . . .<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: Eu?<br />
<span class="textexposedshow">Jack: Yeah, because they are French.</span><br />
<span class="textexposedshow">Me: So what?</span><br />
<span class="textexposedshow">Jack: France is in Europe. Europe starts with
"Eu." Duh.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><b><span style="color: red;">Jackism #55:</span> </b>My milkshake tastes like
magic and sunshine.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><b><span style="color: red;">Jackism #56:</span> </b>I want bongos for Christmas.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #57:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Me: You need to call Brother Merrill.</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: He's not home. I just saw him drive by in his
car, and he was headed Orem-ly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #58:</b></span> (Jack's Facebook account got hacked: F</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">or any
one who saw the picture that was shared on my profile, i am sorry<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>i think my facebook has been hacked because ive not been on since saturday and
I didn'<span class="textexposedshow">t share that gross picture</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><br />
<span class="textexposedshow">Ive changed my password and uped computer security
sorry</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">so
heres a picture of gandalf<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #58:</b></span> This song is terrible. I
can feel my IQ dropping. (The song was Need a Little Love by Depeche Mode)</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #59:</b></span> (when we passed his
history teacher riding a bike while we were out for our nightly walk) Well,
that was a big bag of awkward.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #60:</b></span> Jack</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">: Oooooh! Steak!! (leftovers in the fridge)</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: Hey! We're going to be having a big dinner in
a little while, you know.</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Jack: I know. That's why I'm just eating one steak.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #61:</b> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Me: What if the girl you marry isn't as nerdy as
you?</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: Then I'll have a lot of explaining to do.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #62:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Jack: Can I borrow your (portable) speaker?</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: No. You never bring it back.</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Jack: Please! Please let me borrow your speaker.</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me? Will you bring it back?<br />
<span class="textexposedshow">Jack: Probably not.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #63:</b></span> Lane</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">: Who ate all my Oreo's?</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: I ate the last 7 in the package.</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: You ate 7 Oreo's?</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Jack: No. It was actually 10.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #64:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Me: I'm coming upstairs.</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: Don't come yet. I have something on my floor.</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: Something? Only one thing? What is that
"one" thing?</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Jack: All of my clothes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #65:</b></span> (at parent teacher
conference)</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">English Teacher: You are doing very well. Let's
discuss your skill set.</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: I can't spell. I'll just put that out there now.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #64:</b></span> (me trying to get a
reluctant Jack to help me string lights on the tree)</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: A Scout does not procrastinate.</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: A Scout also knows his limitations. And that is
not in the oath.</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: Ok, a Scout is helpful.</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Jack: I'll be helpful tomorrow.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><b><span style="color: red;">Jackism #65:</span> </b></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Me: name the 7 dwarves.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: Sleepy. . . Dopey . . . Biscuit . . .<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #66:</b></span> What's that smell? It
smells like broken dreams.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #67:</b></span> Jack</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">: when is dinner? I'm starving.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Me: didn't you have a snack after school?</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Jack: yeah, but I only had 4 eggs and 2 sandwiches.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #68:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Me: Here, Jack. Try my new [ball] massager.</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: But balls don't feel good . . . I should have
worded that better.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #69:</b></span> Lane</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">: Pour out this lemonade and fill the glass with
milk.</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: Ewww NO!! You can't cross-cup!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14.0pt;">Jackism #70:</span></b><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></span><span style="background: white; font-size: 14pt;">Apricots are just disappointing peaches.</span><u1:p></u1:p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: red; font-size: 14.0pt;">Jackism #71:</span></b><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">I hate this song, but I can't turn it off.
It's like the train wreck of songs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: red; font-size: 14.0pt;">Jackism #72:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 14.0pt;"> Lane: Jack, don't eat it all. I want
to have a piece later.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3363482027578947780" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6ztvj0vzCVc/VcFk00D-lsI/AAAAAAAAC8w/W3zc-O8zDyU/s1600/dessert.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6ztvj0vzCVc/VcFk00D-lsI/AAAAAAAAC8w/W3zc-O8zDyU/s320/dessert.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #73:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">look at this action figure. I can make him twerk.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #74: </b></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Me: You just cut off that car!</span><br /><span style="background: white;">Jack: I'm sorry! That's what happens when I'm driving
while hungry!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #75:</b></span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Chubby's is not centrally located. It's left-eastern.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: lime;"><b>Taylorism:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Me: what operating system is on your laptop?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">Taylor: Toshiba.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><b><span style="color: blue;">Laneism: </span></b></span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Addie</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">: what city is Jane (from Tarzan) from?</span><br /><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: windowtext; cursor: pointer;">Lane</span><span style="background: white;">: Pittsburgh<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #76:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white;">I asked<span class="apple-converted-space"> Jack </span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white;">to make
new folders on the computer for music I just downloaded. He made 2 folders and
named them Gumflangle and Shibbityboo.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #77:</b></span> I need a drink. And by
drink, I mean a banana.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #78:</b></span> Did they just kill Henry Blake? That really
sucks.</span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #79:</b></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Addie: (looking at a baby picture of Jack) what
happened to that birthmark on your head?</span><br />
<a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100001625875511" href="https://www.facebook.com/jack.m.funk" style="cursor: pointer;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: windowtext;">Jack</span></a><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">: it's on my leg now.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Jackism #80:</b></span> I always do better at this
game (trivia crack) when I'm on the toilet.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-1768952208435022552015-07-17T19:31:00.001-06:002015-07-17T19:31:04.268-06:00Cruise 2015<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So . . . I'm way behind on the blogging. You know how it is, kids activities, church callings, family stuff. Plus I'm lazy. Yeah, it's mostly the lazy thing. So now if I hurry and do this I can finally cross it off my to-do list instead of just moving it from day to day . . . to day.</div>
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And if it looks like we mostly just sat around taking selfies, that's probably because we just sat around taking selfies. We're just exciting like that.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DK2GV5ifXvs/VamnSw6Ng-I/AAAAAAAAC68/IFwKakHRsQA/s1600/IMAG0215.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DK2GV5ifXvs/VamnSw6Ng-I/AAAAAAAAC68/IFwKakHRsQA/s320/IMAG0215.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Apparently he's going for the Jaba the Hut thing. And for the record, he worked really hard to get that much chin. He's kind of a dork.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7K21Sp-mS4E/VamnS7OsSsI/AAAAAAAAC7A/K5PPbs84tYQ/s1600/IMAG0222.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7K21Sp-mS4E/VamnS7OsSsI/AAAAAAAAC7A/K5PPbs84tYQ/s320/IMAG0222.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I've waited so long to blog about this, I don't even know what's in the background. Somewhere in Mexico. That's all I've got.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-boqXfeVcSto/VamnS6nShGI/AAAAAAAAC64/k-5lE2arqNQ/s1600/IMAG0230.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-boqXfeVcSto/VamnS6nShGI/AAAAAAAAC64/k-5lE2arqNQ/s320/IMAG0230.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S_AVbAFtlcg/VamnTjVlsGI/AAAAAAAAC7I/BIBCejjXimc/s1600/IMAG0275.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S_AVbAFtlcg/VamnTjVlsGI/AAAAAAAAC7I/BIBCejjXimc/s320/IMAG0275.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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3 stops in Mexico and we took 1 shore excursion. We had planned on going whale watching, but it got cancelled. So we took a little ride around the water at Mazatlan. It was ok, I guess. It was short, the guide was entertaining, but we've been spoiled by the other Mexican coast.<br />
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So lest you mock us for doing nothing, that's what we like about cruises. All the doing of nothing. Plus, when everyone is off the ship, that's the best time to hang out at the pool. (Which we did, but there is no photographic evidence of it for good reason. You may thank me later.)<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7j-cWEdKSnw/VamnT4D6LfI/AAAAAAAAC7U/ueKzcBGVy2A/s1600/IMAG0279.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7j-cWEdKSnw/VamnT4D6LfI/AAAAAAAAC7U/ueKzcBGVy2A/s320/IMAG0279.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I have no recollection of the beads. There must be a reason?</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SSidTKAMt70/VamnUJLzXfI/AAAAAAAAC7Q/cufArLy_P1k/s1600/IMAG0295.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SSidTKAMt70/VamnUJLzXfI/AAAAAAAAC7Q/cufArLy_P1k/s320/IMAG0295.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AblJTFXuEZc/VamnVMZxbOI/AAAAAAAAC7k/4VxyB4ggcw0/s1600/IMG_4380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AblJTFXuEZc/VamnVMZxbOI/AAAAAAAAC7k/4VxyB4ggcw0/s320/IMG_4380.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Looking back at Mazatlan . . . </div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nPoLwpGB2M8/VamnVvwwZxI/AAAAAAAAC7s/lefl9DSl_fk/s1600/IMG_4392.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nPoLwpGB2M8/VamnVvwwZxI/AAAAAAAAC7s/lefl9DSl_fk/s320/IMG_4392.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
I found it terribly amusing that at our final stop in Mexico, what's the first thing people see? A Sam's Club and a Walmart. Meh.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TUy9CkR9Nac/VamnWL_yTII/AAAAAAAAC7o/AAMgo6I_O4o/s1600/IMG_4393.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TUy9CkR9Nac/VamnWL_yTII/AAAAAAAAC7o/AAMgo6I_O4o/s320/IMG_4393.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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And the US Coast Guard.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JPxL4XiOSpg/VamnX2nnBOI/AAAAAAAAC8E/Vn-tDVAxreM/s1600/cruise%2Bpic%2Bstairs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JPxL4XiOSpg/VamnX2nnBOI/AAAAAAAAC8E/Vn-tDVAxreM/s320/cruise%2Bpic%2Bstairs.jpg" width="248" /></a></div>
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This was a longer cruise - 7 days - so it included 2 formal nights. This is the second one. We didn't do any pictures at the first one. We're lame, what can I say? But at least I got 2 pictures of him not pulling a face!<br />
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Final review of the cruise: Ship was great (Carnival Miracle). I would sail on it again. It was a weird layout from Carnival's other ships - all the main public areas (except the pools) were down low (decks 2-4) instead of where we are used to (decks 7-9). It was not as Las Vegas-y as other ships, which was a nice change. Our room steward was the best we've ever had, but our dining room wait staff was only so-so. I wouldn't do this itinerary again, mostly because we've been spoiled by the lush, jungle-y Cozumel side of Mexico and the west coast is not so much. Frankly, the only reason we took this one was because air fare to Florida was crazy high, and air fare to California is much cheaper, but the cruises are more expensive. So we got the 7 day cruise (suite included) for the same price overall as a 5 day cruise from Florida. But I probably won't do it again. At least not any time soon. One last thing: I remember why we go in September. Spring is too cold. Ok, so it's not super cold, but when I'm on a cruise, I want it to be hot. And this wasn't. And that's also why you won't find me on an Alaskan cruise. I'll stick to the warmer, beachier ports. And I'll go back to September cruises. No more of this spring stuff. But this spring cruise did coincide with our 23rd anniversary, so that was cool.<br />
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The best thing was that about 2 weeks prior to sailing Carnival called me to say the ship wasn't full and would I like to upgrade to a suite? It cost a little more, but less than half what it should have so I took it. The room was about twice as bit (cruise ship rooms are tiny, so twice as big is still tiny), but the bathroom had a double vanity and a bathtub. There was also a separate dressing room. So yeah, a suite is pretty sweet. Would I pay full price for it? Probably not. But it was fun to try out once.<br />
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-37856053421710700752015-05-15T21:45:00.001-06:002015-05-15T21:45:41.929-06:00Snow College Class of 1990 - Can you believe its been 25 years?!?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Once upon a time, a long, LONG time ago I set my heart on going to Snow College. This came after going to a Youth Conference there between my Junior and Senior years of high school. I had never been to Snow College prior to then, and as soon as I set my foot on campus that first day of Youth Conference, I knew that was the place for me. I'm not sure why, but it just sort of . . . fit.</div>
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When I told friends at school where I had decided to go, I got one of two responses: "Where?" and, more commonly, "Why?" I understood the Where, but the Why hurt. Not everyone was destined for BYU, or even the school of the day, UVCC (which of course later became UVSC, then UVSU, and currently UVU, although it could easily be called BYU West).</div>
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So off I went in September of 1988. I knew 3 of my roommates from high school, but the other 2 were unknown. I can still remember how nervous I was for the whole college experience, but how excited at the same time. Living away from home and all that. Having friends to live with helped that transition immensely.</div>
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So we all got settled in to Pinetree #15: Me, Heather, KyLee, Toni (who later became Crissy, who later became Tricia), Lori and Becky.</div>
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I really lucked out, roommate wise. We got along really well and had a blast living together. I think I've mentioned before that we get together for lunch once a year or so, but I think I've dropped the ball on that. I think its been 2 years since we last got together. I better get on that.</div>
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It was so much fun, my Freshman year. Honestly, I can't think of a more fun school year in my life than my Freshman year at Snow College.</div>
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Sure, we had some "moments." Cleaning out the fridge was always a horror. Why was there always so much tuna fish? I refuse to eat expired dairy, so my milk etc was up for grabs as soon as the expiration date rolled around (apparently that's a weird thing). And lest we forget, my absolute refusal to play intramural softball. Once I was needed to avoid a forfeit, so I angrily stood in right field, refusing to move AT ALL. If a ball was hit my direction (and a few were), I just stood there and let someone else get it. But we did avoid the forfeit. And in case you are wondering, it was Becky's fault. She was late to the game. Stupid boyfriend. Whom she later married.</div>
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But the best thing to come out of Freshman year was a sweet guy named Lane. Funny thing is I remember seeing him all the time, all over campus. But we never spoke. Then when Tricia moved in in January, guess who came to visit her? That guy I saw all over the place. Turns out he was a friend of hers from West Jordan High. So that's how we met. </div>
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I wasn't looking for anyone at the time, I dated a little, but only a little. I was waiting for a missionary at the time. But they say when you aren't looking, look out.</div>
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So we met not long before my birthday, and after that when he would see me on campus he would say "Happy Birthday Larry." He knew my name wasn't Larry, but he did know it agitated me. </div>
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And here we are, 23 years later. And he's still agitating me.</div>
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Funny thing: of the 6 of us in the apartment that year, 5 of us married our missionaries. Ok, KyLee's missionary was from high school, but the rest of us met our guys at Snow College during that year and married them. And are still married to them. :)</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OWjeI2h4KHQ/VVaxtIOAu1I/AAAAAAAAC5o/DwkPvHjmbjs/s1600/SC1%2BHalloween%2B88.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OWjeI2h4KHQ/VVaxtIOAu1I/AAAAAAAAC5o/DwkPvHjmbjs/s320/SC1%2BHalloween%2B88.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>Halloween 1988</i></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9jHl8hS7ewo/VVaxwax6l6I/AAAAAAAAC5w/BcwBavqOb78/s1600/SC2%2BSpring%2B89.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9jHl8hS7ewo/VVaxwax6l6I/AAAAAAAAC5w/BcwBavqOb78/s320/SC2%2BSpring%2B89.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<i>Innagural Ball, 1989</i></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mKvq8LAFM_I/VVaxybtez3I/AAAAAAAAC54/k9SorDUO5Ag/s1600/SC3%2BSpring%2B89%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mKvq8LAFM_I/VVaxybtez3I/AAAAAAAAC54/k9SorDUO5Ag/s320/SC3%2BSpring%2B89%2B2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>Lane had annoyed us somehow, so we convinced him and his roommate Mark to come stand under my apartment window so I could take their picture. Stupid boys - they came and stood under the window while my roommates dumped water on them from our 2nd floor apartment.</i><br />
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So off Lane went on his mission (so I followed up my waiting for a missionary with waiting for another missionary), and back I went to Snow College for Sophomore year. I lived again in Pinetree #15, but only Lori and Heather returned. New roommates were RuthAnn (replaced by another Heather), Jennie Lin, and Wendi.<br />
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Again, we had a great time. But I was missing Lane and preparing for a transfer to BYU so I was a little more accademically inclined that year and didn't spend so much time goofing off.<br />
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That year I cut Heather's leg badly (or was that Freshman year?) and had endless frustrations with Lori who wouldn't write her term papers in a timely enough manner for me. Seriously, that was the worst stress I ever experienced in 2 years down there: knowing she had a term paper due that she hadn't even started yet. You see, I was the sort of student who started on a paper the day it was assigned. I still can't do things last minute, and I need those around me to not do things last minute either. I think Lori would intentionally push me to the edge just to see if I would actually write the paper for her, just to get it done. (Just kidding Lori. You know I love you.)<br />
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But I made some great friends that 2nd year at Snow. We lived across the hall from a bunch of guys on the baseball team, and they were so much fun. I actually went to baseball games that year, getting sunburned on more than one occasion, and learned a few things about the game, which prepared me for living with my baseball-loving husband (I might understand the game a little bit more, but I still don't like it, Its so slow!) Lori and I even drove to Helper to watch them play once. I'm not sure why. Helper? Really?<br />
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Also that second year at Snow, I drove from Ephraim to Nephi for salt and vinegar chips because there weren't any in Manti, Ephraim, Moroni, or Mount Pleasant. Sometimes you just gotta have some chips.<br />
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<i>Halloween, 1989</i></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hMnu1G8Ofm8/VVax2r4QTWI/AAAAAAAAC6I/FnL6n2QrBSM/s1600/SC5%2BManti%2BTemple%2B90.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hMnu1G8Ofm8/VVax2r4QTWI/AAAAAAAAC6I/FnL6n2QrBSM/s320/SC5%2BManti%2BTemple%2B90.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<i>Tricia and KyLee came for a visit and we apparently decided to spend some time being disrespectful at the Manti Temple</i></div>
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<i>Graduation day</i></div>
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<i>June 2, 1990</i></div>
larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-8490636003899737722015-03-29T10:38:00.000-06:002015-03-29T10:40:20.142-06:00Dear Old Friends . . .Sometimes on a lazy Sunday morning, like today, when I am wide awake not inclined to get out of bed, my mind wanders. Today my wandering mind took me to old friends.<br />
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Some of my old friends I have kept up with through the years. I bump into them occasionally around town, or I get a Christmas card with a long letter (some people hate those letters, I LOVE them!) telling all about their families.<br />
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My college roommates, particularly those from Freshman year, I have kept up with. We get together now and then for a lengthy lunch at a restaurant and catch up on all the happenings in our lives. <br />
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My besties from my childhood I keep up with. I know what Laura is up to, although she has moved from PG, Nichole lives close by and I see her regularly. Jennifer is now working with me so I get to chat with her daily over lunch. Heather also falls into the college roommate category, and is a frequent Facebook poster.<br />
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But what about those friends who are only in our lives for a short time? They still have an impact, at least they have in my life and I think about them from time to time.<br />
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There was a girl in elementary school. She was tall, like I was. Not as tall as me, but she was probably the closest to my height. I was/am a slow runner, and I thought that meant that tall people couldn't run fast, because all the fast runners I knew were short. I remember watching her run the 50 yard dash for that Presidential Physical Fitness thing they used to do, and she was super fast. There went my theory. I found out I was slow just because I was slow. No excuses. What a let down. We were pretty good friends in elementary school, and drifted some in junior high and even more in high school. In fact, I'm not sure I remember her in high school at all. I'll have to consult the yearbook on that one. Her mom drove a Volvo and always wore her hair in a bun. She was the only mom I knew who wore her hair that way back then. But as for Elizabeth, she was a good friend and I miss her.<br />
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I had a lot of good friends during my 2 years at Snow College. I remember after leaving Snow, some of us got together for some reason. One guy in the group was my ride home, and as we drove home he made some sort of not-thinking, off-the-cuff comment that hurt my feelings badly. Luckily it was late at night and dark, and I spent the rest of the ride home quietly crying in the passenger seat. He never knew I was crying. He just kept jabbering away. And knowing this person, I'm absolutely sure, then and now, that he never intended in any way to hurt me. But he did. And although that was extremely painful, that moment was a life altering one for me, for the better, and I still consider him a dear friend, even though I haven't seen or talked to him in years, and only follow him through his occasional posts on Facebook.<br />
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There are others, friends who drift in and out of our lives, leaving marks (hopefully for good) upon our hearts. Even though Facebook has made the world smaller, it would still be a wonderful thing to be able to track down these good people and have a long talk with them. A frank and honest talk. One in which I could have the courage to say to my friends that even though they have been gone from my life for a long time, they have impacted my life in ways that still matter to me today. A talk when I could ask them, and they could be honest with me: Has life been good to you? Are you happy? What has happened to you in the intervening years that have made you stronger? What is the most important to you?<br />
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To my readers: please know that each of you has impacted my life for good. I am grateful for you. And even though I don't keep in touch like I should, I still think of you.<br />
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I hope life has been good to you. I hope you are happy. I hope the years since I have seen you have brought you experiences that have made you stronger. And I hope that the things that are important to you are the things that bring you the most happiness.larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-51247123289844155792015-03-24T18:26:00.001-06:002015-03-24T18:26:38.898-06:00Pedis, Facials and Movies<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3arR0OBKo5A/VRH8cmyjJSI/AAAAAAAAC4g/Jkb_TQBXYgI/s1600/cinderella.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3arR0OBKo5A/VRH8cmyjJSI/AAAAAAAAC4g/Jkb_TQBXYgI/s1600/cinderella.jpg" height="181" width="320" /></a></div>
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I never go to the movies. Typically 1 per year. Maybe. One year Lane and I saw 4 movies. It was weird for us. <br />
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So far this year I have seen 2. I don't see anything on the horizon that catches my fancy, so that might be it for 2015. <br />
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Lane and I went to see McFarland USA on a Saturday evening. It was good, I recommend it highly. But its . . . you know . . . a typical predictable, feel-good type movie. And that's just the kind of movie I like. I don't watch the super hero stuff. I must be too stupid to follow it or something because I just get confused with too much going on. I'm pretty simple-minded about most things, particularly movies.<br />
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Then the next Tuesday I took Addie to see Cinderella. I was wise to leave Lane at home, because he would have HATED it. But I loved it. It was so well done, and I liked how they included small tributes to the Disney animated version, rather than pretend that classic doesn't exist.<br />
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Including Cinderella, I've had quite a girly month. Taylor was home for a few days for her spring break, so we went for Pedis. I haven't had one in a long time, and apparently she never has. She went off-character even and opted for the glitter toes. It was a fun afternoon and now my toes make me smile.<br />
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Not to leave out Addie, she and I went for facials later that week. I haven't had a full facial before, just a mini-facial. And believe me, what a treat that was! I could do that all the time!<br />
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And so continuing on with my good March karma that seems to be going, Taylor has decided to transfer to UVU this fall. So she will be come home to live for the summer and then (hopefully) she'll move in with her cousin Stephanie and go to school. I'm so excited to have her so much closer than Logan! Hoping all the small details will fall into place, and that she will be able to find an affordable car for her since hers (apparently named Eileen, as in "Come On Eileen!") has died a very sad and tragic death (transmission).<br />
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And finally, today I printed off my cruise documents for Cruise 2015 which is coming up shortly. So excited! We are doing a 7-day for the first time ever and I'm beyond excited for the time away from home and work and all the stuff that comes with home and work . . .<br />
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Jack's drumline is in its final stages, so we'll be able to see him now and again. He's like a boarder who just rents a room and comes and goes in the dark hours of the morning and night. He and his friend scored a 95 on the FCCLA project this year, but sadly that wasn't good enough to qualify for Nationals. Apparently for the type of project they did, only the top 15 in the country qualify for Nationals, instead of taking the top scorer in each state. I was bummed out because its in Washington DC and I really wanted to go. He's bummed too, I'm sure, but again it's really all about me.<br />
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-68727968838725121882015-02-14T09:07:00.001-07:002015-02-14T09:07:16.935-07:00I'm Sad<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_e5rC9_sZuY/VN9wlPxKNLI/AAAAAAAAC3g/s0MfGqz3D8s/s1600/chuck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_e5rC9_sZuY/VN9wlPxKNLI/AAAAAAAAC3g/s0MfGqz3D8s/s1600/chuck.jpg" /></a></div>
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Ahhh. . . Netflix. What would we do on Sunday afternoons without you?<br />
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We binge watch TV on Sunday afternoons. We don't get to watch a lot of TV during the week with everything going on, so Sunday is Our Day. We squeeze in whatever is on the DVR and whatever is our current passion on Netflix.<br />
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Chuck was our passion.<br />
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But now its over.<br />
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And I'm sad.<br />
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I have no recollection of Chuck being on TV. But apparently it started in about 2007 and ran for 5 seasons. 5 glorious seasons. <br />
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But now its over.<br />
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And I'm really sad.<br />
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We started watching it on a whim after we finished something else. Life, I think. Preceeded by The Glades. <br />
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But now its over.<br />
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And I'm really, super sad.<br />
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I really enjoyed The Glades. It was a good murder/crime type show. Life was good. Another murder/crime type show. But Chuck was easily the best. <br />
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But now its over.<br />
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And I'm really, really, super sad.<br />
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And Chuck himself, as Addie (always the Disney princess) pointed out to us, is also Flynn Ryder. Another reason to love him. I mean, to love the show.<br />
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But now its over.<br />
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And I'm really, really, super, duper sad.<br />
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P.S. I may have a deep and abiding crush on Flynn Ryder.<br />
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-81096866709515125712015-01-03T13:32:00.001-07:002015-01-03T13:32:35.202-07:00MC Clap Yo Handz<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Geek Hierarchy as found on Pinterest </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rpGtrUZWu_M/VKhQJnmBIqI/AAAAAAAAC3A/ikUOeX_g7Eg/s1600/princess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rpGtrUZWu_M/VKhQJnmBIqI/AAAAAAAAC3A/ikUOeX_g7Eg/s1600/princess.jpg" height="320" width="257" /></a></div>
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The Princess subway art, again as found on Pinterest </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TqqsDez80mA/VKhQ1mRz2qI/AAAAAAAAC3M/8zxPEnnAaHA/s1600/Burton%2BGuster%2Bnicknames200.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TqqsDez80mA/VKhQ1mRz2qI/AAAAAAAAC3M/8zxPEnnAaHA/s1600/Burton%2BGuster%2Bnicknames200.jpg" height="320" width="251" /></a></div>
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Burton Guster's nicknames</div>
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Whether found on Pinterest or not, I did all the typesetting, etc myself. The top 2 were easy, the nicknames, not so much. It took quite some time to track down the Psych font and get everything to work out with justified margins and spacing. I wanted to incorporate a pineapple somehow, but I just couldn't get it to work out right. </div>
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And why is MC Clap Yo Handz so big? Because it's my favorite, that's why.</div>
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My art, my way.</div>
larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-37180066802516832212015-01-03T13:17:00.001-07:002015-01-03T13:17:33.789-07:00I'll need more flannel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Jack playing the bells</span></div>
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For Christmas Eve it is our custom to have a musical presentation by each of the kids. Typically, that means that Jack has to do more presentations since he can play more stuff. Weird thing, he "accidentally" left his trombone at school rendering him unable to play that instrument for Christmas Eve. As punishment, I had him do a vocal number with Addie. I think he won't "forget" his trombone again.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Addie and Jack singing "Silent Night," Taylor accompanying</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Addie on the piano</span></div>
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It is another of our custom that the gifts between the kids be homemade. Supposedly by them. Meaning: Mom makes the gifts.<br />
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Jack "made" for Taylor a full list of all the Burton Guster nicknames from Psych. Taylor loves Psych. Actually, we all love Psych, but Taylor loves it extra much.<br />
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Addie printed off some Disney Princess coloring pages. Taylor still loves to color. Shhh, don't tell.<br />
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Addie "made" print of the Geek Hierarchy for Jack. She found it on Pinterest.<br />
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Taylor made (no, really. She actually did this on her own) bowls with Jack's and Addie's names on them.<br />
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Apparently not photographed is the Princess subway art type thing that Jack "made" for Addie. I'll have to include it in another post. It turned out really cute. Another Pinterest find.<br />
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Actually, Pinterest was my best friend this Christmas. For once I actually made some stuff I had pinned, and it even turned out!<br />
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Addie in her Christmas pajamas, with doll pajamas to match.</div>
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Doll clothes I made . . .</div>
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. . . and more doll clothes that I made (Pinterest) . . . </div>
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. . . and an apron and chef's hat (Pinterest) . . .</div>
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. . . and still more that I made . . .</div>
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. . . and yet even more that I made.</div>
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I sewed more this Christmas than I have in recent memory. I had all kinds of fun, paced myself well, and got it all done with time to spare. In fact, the matching doll pajamas weren't part of the original plan, I just found myself with extra time. Crazy!<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Taylor asleep</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Jack playing a new video game</span></div>
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I made this Christmas tree skirt. I had been thinking about it in my head for a year, but couldn't figure out how to get the angles right so it would actually make a circle. So I asked Jack. He figured it out in about 2 minutes. It was embarrassing.<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Again the doll apron and hat</span></div>
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And finally, the doll sleeping bags and pillows I made. (Pinterest)</div>
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I also sewed aprons for both my girls. Addie's, of course, matches her
doll's. And I made some oven mitts to match Taylor's apron. I used up
tons of my fabric scraps, so that's always good. <br />
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Jack does stuff just to get under my skin. He argues with me for no reason. He, in short, pokes me with a sharp stick just to get a reaction. Case in point: Who would EVER eat a Kit Kat like that? It's just wrong beyond words. Just looking at the photo is painful.<br />
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Lane is officially a graduate of U of Phx. It's been a long, long journey filled with plenty of weeping, wailing (Statistics) and gnashing of teeth (Photoshop). As it turns out, the timing was perfect since the job he went back to school to be eligible for became available in December. He applied, interviewed, and was offered the job. He is now the Plant Hygienist. I'm not entirely sure what that means in English, but I know it means this: He can get up with me at 4:45 am and go with me to the gym. And he get to have an office with real walls and everything (he calls it a closet). Funny how it all timed out so perfectly. Further evidence of how blessed we are.<br />
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During the Christmas break while I was off work I sewed up a baby quilt for a friend who had her first baby. It turned really cute. Cute enough that the new mom was impressed with all the hard work I had gone to to make something so nice. Truth be told: 5 hours of work, including the time spent shopping and cutting out the squares. It's the worlds easiest and most forgiving quilt. <br />
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The Favorite Family Quilt is dying, so I guess I'll make this type of quilt to replace it. Maybe more than one since everyone fights over the Favorite Family Quilt at Sunday Afternoon Nap Time.larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-49487943773756712112014-12-12T21:57:00.003-07:002014-12-12T21:57:39.765-07:00There is still time for Panic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This dog is hillarious. He loves this stupid squeaker toy that Santa brought him last Christmas. It's really hard to take him seriously when he is squeaking like crazy. The kids (and Lane) love to throw it for him to fetch because he can't stop (or start) very well on the wood floor. He slides into stuff when he can't stop or looks somewhat like a cartoon character when he tries to go fetch: his little feet are moving wildly, but he doesn't go anywhere. It's so much fun to watch. The dumb dog has now decided our wood pile is his personal chew toy and has dragged wood all over the yard to gnaw on. Well, I guess that's better than digging. He gets upset when I'm in my sewing room and barks at me through the window. I think he's freaked out because I'm underground. Who knows? I think our dog has serious mental problems. We've already established he has some degree of separation anxiety. And then there's the whole cowardly thing which I've addressed at length. Its also fun to put Taylor on the speaker phone. He can't figure it
out. He must be thinking, "Where is she? I can hear her, but I can't find her. And I need her to pet me." He looks all over. Stupid, cowardly dog. But we love him.<br />
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The week before Thanksgiving was the Trans Siberian Orchestra concert in SLC. Sadly, Taylor couldn't get away from school to come with us. We went up early enough we had time to visit the City Creek Center and Temple Square. They had some lights on at Temple Square. We took Trax up and back, which is so much better than trying to drive around downtown this time of year. <br />
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The first 2 years we went to this concert they did the same story and music, albeit with different backgrounds. This was a different program altogether. I liked the story better. The other one was a little bit depressing, even though it ended happy. This was a happier story and the music was amazing. Of course there are always some familiar favorites thrown in, and they always end with the wildly popular Sarajevo (their version of Carol of the Bells). Hearing it on the radio or Spotify just isn't nearly the same as seeing it live. For anyone who has never been to this concert, I would highly recommend it. We enjoy it so much! It's a perfect way to kick off the holiday season. <br />
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After Thanksgiving we got our tree decorated. I didn't get as many new
ornaments this year as last, to Lane's delight. There was brief
speculation we were going to add another Christmas tree, making 5, but
that didn't work out. Again, to Lane's delight. <br />
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I got a "Texas" ornament as my souvenier from my trip to Texas last July with Jack for FCCLA. <br />
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I fell in love with this one, the game Sorry, when I saw it in the Hallmark catalog that gets mailed out in July. Yes, July. Yes, Hallmark catalog. It's one of my favorite pieces of mail in the year. I spend waaaayyyyy too much time going through the catalog, dog-earing pages and making careful notes. <br />
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Another Hallmark special: Olaf. I loved the movie (although it's no Tangled) and Olaf made me laugh ("I don't have a skull. Or bones."). So it seemed a good addition. <br />
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Although I have taken on quite a few sewing projects this year, and it is December 12, I have paced myself better this year than in years past and am on track to finish up on time as planned. I may even have time to squeeze in one or two more things, as long as they are small. <br />
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No Full-Blown-Christmas Panic this year.<br />
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Well, not yet.<br />
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But its only December 12.<br />
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-9238656943981507222014-10-28T11:48:00.000-06:002014-10-28T11:48:25.192-06:00Family Pictures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Isn't she cute?</div>
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Taylor was home recently for Fall Break and so we got some family pictures done. Thanks so much to Brandon and McKenzie Clark and Nanette Clark for sparing some time on a lovely Sunday afternoon to get this done for us. </div>
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Brandon was falling out of a tree while trying to shade the sun for the picture. It provided for excellent entertainment. <br />
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She's so pretty.</div>
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I guess this is his official family picture shirt. He's worn it more than once. We're so proud of him.<br />
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Lane finally, FINALLY, finished up his degree. It has been a long road for him, but now its done. Which means he can't use "I have homework" as an excuse to get out doing stuff he doesn't want to do anymore. That came in handy for him. But what a relief for both of us to have that out of the way and done. Now we are hoping that the degree will open up some new doors for him.<br />
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The Marching Band season is finally winding down. The Band leaves for their Tour this week. This year they are going to Disneyland. Since we are terrible, non-Disney parents, this is Jack's first trip to the Happiest Place on Earth, and he is super excited to go. In their last competition of the season, the drumline took First Place against 9 other bands. The Marching Band took 3rd place overall. He was beyond thrilled with the 1st place win. Winter Drumline starts up in November, so he will have a little break before he's back at it again. But thankfully, Winter Drumline doesn't take up nearly as much time. 3 of his school classes are band stuff: Symphonic Band, Jazz Band, and Percussion. So yeah, music is a big part of his life. He is really enjoying the independence that a Drivers License brings, and so am I. Its so nice not to have to drive him around so much. In fact, now I make him drive me around.<br />
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Addie is turning 12 at the end of this week and had her last day in Primary on Sunday, which happened to be our Primary Program. What a nice week to have be the last one. So she is off to Young Women starting on Sunday. Then at the first of the year she will be part of our Sunday School class. She wasn't too happy with that realization.<br />
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Taylor is busy at USU with 18 credits this semester. She got a job at Kohls up in Logan and started this week. My hope is that she won't spend her entire salary on boots. Sadly, the job will prevent her from being at home as much over the holidays, but we are grateful she found a good job, so we will just enjoy whatever time we do get to spend together.<br />
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It is now time to start making Christmas plans. I did very few projects last Christmas, and with my chauffeuring hours cut way down, and no longer being in Scouts, I think I might be able to take on some projects this year. I have been pinning away like a crazy person on Pinterest, finding ways to use up my piles and piles of scrap fabric. I always prefer to make gifts rather than buy them, as much as possible. I'm not sure the receivers have that same preference, but I guess that's the price they have to pay for the joy of knowing me. Unfortunately, everything comes with a price. But this price, for my poor loved ones, may be too high. Well, at least they are kind about it. To my face, anyway. <br />
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-9240389181648836072014-09-18T17:55:00.001-06:002014-09-18T17:55:52.915-06:00I'm Only HumanThere is a Murphy's Law that says "If everything seems to be going well, you obviously don't know what the heck is going on." Knowing this, I've been waiting for some sort of catastrophe because things have been going really well lately. Really well. Unbelievably well. <br />
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Scary well.<br />
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I knew it when I went to Stake Conference on Saturday night. A member of our stake presidency gave an amazing talk . . . so amazing it touched my very soul and made feel a "hmmmm. . . . "<br />
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I knew it when I went to Regional Conference on Sunday morning and Elder Scott spoke on prayer. <br />
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The details of my trial don't matter. What matters is the following:<br />
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1) The Lord knows me so well that one of the ways He manifests His love is by sending little events in preparation for what is looming. Sometimes they are subtle, but sometimes, like now, they are huge and hard to miss. I am grateful for my knowledge and testimony of this Gospel so I could recognize the preparation and warning that was given to me, and hopefully be that much more ready to deal with the fallout.<br />
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2) The Lord has blessed me with a tremendous support system in the way of a loving family and compassionate friends. They bear me up when I am weak. <br />
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3) The Lord sends tender mercies to help me cope. One of those tender mercies came this week in the form of 2 songs that played on the radio as I drove to work one morning this week: <br />
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"Human"</div>
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by Christina Perri</div>
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'Cause I'm only human<br />
And I bleed when I fall down<br />
I'm only human<br />
And I crash and I break down</div>
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I can do it<br />
I can do it<br />
I'll get through it </div>
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It may sound stupid now, but that song was what I needed to hear, when I needed to hear it. It reminded me that because I am only human, I need to rely on and put my faith in my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. </div>
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"I'm Already There"</div>
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by Lonestar</div>
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I'm already there<br />
Take a look around<br />
I'm the sunshine in your hair<br />
I'm the shadow on the ground<br />
I'm the whisper in the wind<br />
And I'll be there until the end<br />
Can you feel the love that we share<br />
Oh I'm already there</div>
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And this song was to remind me that He is always with me, His love surrounds me.</div>
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So while I work my way through this current course of events, I am praying. A lot. And I am learning some important lessons along the way. Lessons about pride. And about love. And about patience. And most definitely about faith. I guess those are all things I need to do some serious work on.</div>
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In the meantime, I'll just take it one day at a time, and hope that each day will be a little better than the one before.</div>
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larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-52862158152294961402014-08-10T18:42:00.000-06:002014-08-10T18:42:06.956-06:00The Love of a Good (but cowardly) Dog<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Despite our best intentions we haven't gotten out for our Saturday morning hikes this summer. We finally made the time for it the last 2 weeks and went up in the PG foothills, taking Rex along. The first time we went, Lane got brave since there was no one around and let Rex off the leash. I expected the dog to bolt. But I was once again wrong with regards to this dog and he stayed right in line. He meandered off the trail a to explore, but always stayed close by. He insisted on being the leader of us and he would always look back to make sure we were still there and safe. In some places where the trail is narrow and we can't walk side by side (that means I'm in the back because I'm slow), Rex would walk all the way back to me to make sure I was still safe too. It really made my heart fill with love to know that he cared.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Me and Rex</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">North Utah Valley from the foothills</span></div>
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But this week I remembered that our dog is not brave. Not even a little bit brave. So I have decided that instead of Rex looking back to make sure we are safe, I think he is actually looking back to make sure we are still there to protect him, perhaps even from his own shadow. Our dog is a bit of a coward, but he does love his People.<br />
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We took a longer hike this week, about 2 1/2 miles on this favorite trail of ours. Rex was still so well behaved I was more than a little bit shocked. Once again I'll have to credit Lane for knowing what he's talking about. He's done a better job of training the dog than I thought he did.<br />
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We got the good news - the very good news - this week that Lane only has 2 classes to go. Each class lasts 5 weeks so he should be done by October (fingers crossed for no surprises!). What a relief it will be to have that journey complete.<br />
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We are gearing up for the start of another school year. I got the fees paid and the clothes bought. We got the kids rooms cleared out and all the old stuff tossed or taken to DI. We are moving into my favorite time of year, which means I had better start gathering my jars for all the applesaucing and tomato souping/saucing that is coming. Oh, and grape jamming and juicing. I have done several batches of berry jam over the summer to replenish that supply. Its still shocking to me how much jam we go through in a year. I somewhat suspect that Camaron is breaking into my house and stealing jam. He knows the garage code. Its a reasonable assumption given how fast we go through jam.<br />
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So here we go back into the busy time of year, after a mostly relaxed summer. I have started filling things in on the calendar and its filling up quickly. Sadly, the Legacy Music Alliance where Jack has been taking his trombone lessons has indefinitely suspended the music lessons due to lack of funding. Although this will be one less thing on the schedule, it has been so beneficial to have those extra lessons. I'm sad to see it end. And Addie will be turning 12 in a few months so she will be a little busier as she starts participating in the youth programs. And of course I'll go back to missing Taylor desperately. <br />
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Soon it will be just me and Lane and Rex rambling around this old house. We'll have to invest in some rocking chairs for the porch so we can really live it up.<br />
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larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-10214653519484885032014-07-26T22:34:00.002-06:002014-07-26T22:34:25.336-06:00I found something to sayI have nothing to say.<br />
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No really. I have nothing planned to post here today. So we'll see where my meandering thoughts take me.<br />
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Its just that I finally unwrapped my July issue of the Ensign and was reading through it today and there was an article on keeping journals. Kinda hit home because I'm truly sucky at journal keeping. Well, maybe not as sucky as some; I write in my journal sporadically. I will be really good for a period of time, and then it all falls to pieces until I get the yen (read: guilt trip) to write again. <br />
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I was super good at it when I was a kid. I started around 8 years old and wrote nearly every day. And wrote just about the same thing every day. I was still pretty good about it in junior high, except all my entries are dumb things about dumb boys, which makes 44 year old Lari really frustrated and annoyed with 12-15 year old Lari. Things started to wane some in high school, even more so in college, and turned non existent when I got married, except for the aforementioned periods of feast preceding the famine. <br />
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My blog would be an excellent journal, if I would just post in it. But I get busy. Or I forget. Or (and seriously, this one is the biggest problem) I can't get my hands on a computer with all the other members of this household. I refuse to attempt to blog on my phone.<br />
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So in the spirit of catching up, here goes:<br />
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Lane is finally, FINALLY on a day shift. Its been such a long time coming. Its been nice to have him home, mostly awake, and especially nice to have him coming to church with us every week. And speaking of church, we are no longer Webelos leaders, but have been moved to 12-13 year old Sunday School teachers. They boys are our former Webelos and we are really enjoying the class. The kids actually participate rather than staring off into space or writing notes to friends like we did in youth Sunday School.<br />
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On an unrelated note, I would like to apologize to all of my youth Sunday School teachers, one of whom is our current Stake President who walked out on us once for behaving so badly. I'm grateful he signs my temple recommend in spite of that.<br />
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Why do summers always fly by so fast? It hard to believe that July is nearly done and the kids are back to school around August 20. Jack is finally done with the big FCCLA trip and all his scout camps, but now its time for Marching Band to really get going, so there is no let-up with him. Plus we have to try to fit in the remainder of his driving hours so he can get his license close to his birthday. Bad mom that I am, I refuse to spend any more time than is necessary chauffeuring him to all his stuff. And naturally, as my luck would have it, now that Jack is at the high school, marching band has been moved back to the junior high because of construction at the high school. Seriously, can you believe the timing? So he will need almost daily chauffeuring to the junior high, plus he has early morning jazz band, his music lessons, and hopefully some sort of job that will fit in with all that.<br />
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Taylor is anxiously anticipating getting the heck outta here and back up to school. She is living off campus this year and is hoping to find a job in Logan, which means she is likely to come home even less than she did Freshman year, if that's possible. She has changed her major from elementary education to secondary (English and deaf ed). We've enjoyed having her home this summer, but I think she is not a huge fan of living at home again after the freedom of living away.<br />
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As for Lane and I, we are both just muddling through this parenting thing, trying not to do anything to really screw our kids up too much. Some damage is done, we know that. Jack is a butter snob. I turned Taylor into a soda addict. And all 3 are under the impression that pancakes is a typical American "Sunday Dinner." <br />
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Well, looky there. I found something to say after all.<br />
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-77149420684590740502014-07-15T15:59:00.000-06:002014-07-15T15:59:24.958-06:00Don't go in July<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Another Strawberry Days parade. Jack was with the marching band again, but this year he is in the percussion section (tenor drums) rather than the trombone. He had such a blast with the drum line last winter, he decided to stay with it for marching band this year. The drums weigh about 45 pounds, so it was rougher than carrying his trombone.<br />
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Taylor was off work and was able to join us for the parade. We haven't seen too much of her this summer, and its hard to believe that in just a month she'll be going back to Logan. :(<br />
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Jack and his friend Derek won the FCCLA state competition in Entrepreneurship (Junior Division) and earned themselves a trip to the FCCLA National Leadership Conference in San Antonio. I went along for fun. <br />
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Here's everything I knew about San Antonio before this trip:<br />
1) San Antonio is in Texas.<br />
2) It's hot there.<br />
3) The Alamo is there.<br />
4) It's hot there.<br />
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It was VERY hot there. Although I really liked San Antonio, and I would totally go back, I wouldn't go again in July. It was sooooo hot and humid. Our last full day there wasn't so hot, and we did spend a lot of time inside the convention center, but still . . . . so hot. <br />
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Jack and Derek on the plane as we left from SLC. We flew on Southwest. I hate Southwest, only because they don't assign seats. Seriously, in this age of technology, how hard is it to assign seats? When I book my own flights, I rarely even bother to look at Southwest. I would rather pay for my luggage than not have an assigned seat. <br />
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Shortly after we arrived in San Antonio, we headed for dinner and the Alamo. I really liked the Alamo, but it's much smaller than I had imagined. It also looks really out of place just plopped down in the middle of a busy, modern city. The line to get in was very long, probably because all the other FCCLA people (there were 7500 FCCLA people) all had the same idea. Since we had to walk every where we went, we passed the Alamo many times, and I never again saw a line like there was when we went for the tour. <br />
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We arrived on a Saturday afternoon, but the Conference didn't actually begin until Monday. We spent part of Sunday at the Schlitterbahn just outside of San Antonio. I spent the day sitting in the shade while the boys had all the waterpark fun they could fit in. Somehow even with sitting in the shade, I managed to get sunburned. I haven't figured out how that happened.<br />
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We had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe one day as part of one of our tours. My opinion of theme restaurants remains unchanged: overpriced "meh" food, small portions, and mediocre service.<br />
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Jack and Derek presented their STAR event on Tuesday morning. This is right after they finished. I attended a lot of the meetings with our group from PGJHS. It made for very long days, but I'm glad I did. I learned a lot about the FCCLA organization that I didn't know. I even got to judge the Nutrition and Wellness event on Monday. That was a great experience!<br />
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We went to the Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum and the Guiness Book of World Records Museum on Wednesday. Here is Jack as the Fattest Man Ever. (the lighting was terrible in both museums)<br />
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Thursday morning was the Recognition Ceremony. Jack and Derek were awarded a silver medal.<br />
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Dinner Thursday was at the Rainforest Cafe (sigh - theme restaurants). Jack got so full . . . "food coma" full.<br />
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The San Antonio Riverwalk</div>
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Thursday night we finally had time to take the boat ride on the river that goes through town. It was really fun and I was glad we were able to fit it in. After the boat ride, we went back to the hotel and went to bed early; everyone was exhausted from such a busy week.<br />
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One last selfie at the Alamo on our walk back to the hotel.</div>
larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-22420159497856478052014-05-12T20:32:00.002-06:002014-05-12T20:35:47.769-06:00Finally . . . Officially . . . Ceremoniously . . . An Eagle Scout<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I come from a long line of Scouters. I'm not sure who came before Grandpa Calvin Walker, Scout-wise, but I do know this: Grandpa Walker was a big-time Scouter. And all of his 5 sons, to the best of my knowledge, were also big-time Scouters. One of the things I remember best about Grandma and Grandpa Walker's house here in PG - besides the saloon doors on the kitchen and the white rug that we won't discuss because it still hurts - was a photograph hanging near those kitchen saloon doors of Grandpa and all 5 of his sons all Scout-Uniformed-up. I wonder who inherited that photograph? I wouldn't mind having a copy of that.<br />
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Anyway, growing up a Walker in Pleasant Grove is a unique experience. Every year on the first day of school as the teacher (or teachers) would call roll, and come to Lari Walker, I would inevitably get the question: "Which Walker are you from?"<br />
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And I would answer, "I belong to Jerry, who belonged to Calvin." And then the teacher would sigh, and say something like, "Oh yes. Calvin. He was my bishop/principal/scoutmaster." Being a descendent of Calvin automatically set the bar high, and I knew I had to measure up. Plus my mom, who is not native to Pleasant Grove like all those Walkers, but might as well be, was the editor of the town paper and seemed to always be in the know about daughters who were up to mischief. Luckily, it was usually my sister Sabrina who was up to mischief. I was the good child. I can say that because Sabrina doesn't read my blog.<br />
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But back to the Scout thing. We finally got to have our Eagle Court of Honor (yes, I do mean OUR). So now Jack can carry on the tradition of Scouting in the footsteps of his Great-Grandpa Calvin, his Grandpa Jerry, and his Uncle Calvin Walker. We rare so proud of him. He worked really hard to achieve this goal, and although he didn't quite make it by his 14th birthday (my goal, not his) he did by his 15th birthday. And now I have a full set of BSA pins on my Scout shirt, because it is, after all, all about me.<br />
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Jack's Uncle JD (also and Eagle Scout) gave the Eagle Charge </div>
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Lane (not an Eagle Scout, but my family is nice to him anyway) presented the Eagle Award </div>
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Dressing him up in his Eagle neckerchief</div>
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Getting my Eagle Mom pin!!</div>
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(I worked REALLY hard for this one) </div>
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Lane getting his Eagle Dad pin</div>
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Jack selected his cousin Henson for his Mentor Award. Henson (also an Eagle Scout) has been an excellent Scouting example for Jack, and he is also responsible for introducing Jack to Timberline. Jack spent one year as a Timberline participant, and the last 3 years on Timberline Staff. <br />
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We are so proud of Jack! And at the end of the day - I'm really glad I only have one son.<br />
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-91671399917909315902014-04-17T19:47:00.001-06:002014-04-17T19:47:36.851-06:00Cruise 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Due to some strange (meaning, strange to me) Ultimate Music Festival, there were no hotel rooms available in the area of Miami beach I like to stay. So since we flew into Fort Lauderdale, we just stayed the night there and then went down to the Port of Miami the next morning.</div>
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We stayed at a Hilton in the marina area of Fort Lauderdale, which was lovely, and you can't really go wrong with a Hilton, right? Well . . . </div>
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Our flight left SLC on Sunday morning at 1:00 am (what was I thinking??). We flew from SLC to Detroit (a surprisingly nice airport), and were only in Detroit for less than an hour and then off again to Fort Lauderdale, landing there at 10:30 am. I had requested an early arrival (noon) at the Hilton since we were coming in so early, and I also requested a tower room. So we took our taxi to the hotel, only to find that the lobby was a madhouse for the people checking out of the hotel to catch their cruise out of the Port of Fort Lauderdale. We got to the hotel around 11:30, and they told us our room wasn't ready, and they didn't know when it would be because they were so busy. I asked about my early arrival request, and they said they would get to it as soon as they could. Would I rather wait for my tower room or take the first available room? Since we were on very little sleep, I asked for the first available room, which wasn't in the tower. I shouldn't complain, I wasn't charged for a tower room, but it was disappointing nonetheless. We got something to eat at the hotel restaurant, which was still serving breakfast, and then went right to sleep as soon as our room was ready. It was a nice enough place, but not nearly as nice as the South Beach Marriott, to which I've become accustomed when in Florida. Also we were pretty much forced to eat all meals at the hotel restaurants because there was nothing we could find within walking distance of the hotel. Kinda annoying.</div>
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The hotel was right at the marina so there was lots of fancy yachts around, but no beachfront. :(<br />
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So finally on Monday afternoon we were happily on the ship. We sat here on the deck for about 45 minutes, which it turns out is exactly the amount of time I need to get a good sunburn going: farmer sleeves and capri pants legs. When I did put on my swimsuit, I looked extra ridiculous.<br />
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BTW- Blogger won't let me put my pictures in the order I want, so ignore the out-of-order-ness.<br />
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Grand Turk. Lane and I don't snorkel, so we took an excursion on a semi-sub. The lower deck was all glass windows so we could just sit all nice and dry and lazy and look at the fish. We even got to see a tiny (about 5 foot) shark.<br />
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Grand Turk. He just has to be silly in pictures. Always.</div>
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On the ship, in the lounge, waiting for the comedy show to start.</div>
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This is where my pictures get out of order, due to some being on the camera and some being on the phone, but whatever. We flew home from Fort Lauderdale through JFK in New York. I've never been to NY before, so I thought maybe I could see some skyline or something. No. Nothing. I have no geographical knowledge of where JFK is in relation to NYC so perhaps I was expecting too much. Now, I don't claim to be any kind of world traveler or anything, but of all the airports I've been to (and there aren't that many), JFK is the weirdest, most non-sensical airport I've ever been to. And I was stuck there for 4 hours. During that 4 hours, our connecting flight gate changed 3 times. There was hardly anywhere to plug in a cell phone, and really - 6 bathroom stalls for the whole area? I expected something completely different, not to mention it didn't look anything like the airport on Friends.<br />
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Plus, what's up with the pigeon? No one seemed to notice or care that it was there, but I thought it was more than a little bit disgusting.<br />
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So we flew out of JFK at 8pm, and I did get to see the lights of whatever that is. They went on forever and ever. It was pretty cool, even if I never did see the skyline I was looking for. Yes, I'm waiting for someone familiar with that area to mock me.<br />
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Back to the cruise. This is Half Moon Cay. We did a hike and bike here. Last time I came I did the bike ride with Jack, which was fun, but now they only offer the hike and bike. It's not much of a hike. The high point of the island is 60 feet, or 61 feet if you stand on a rock to take a picture. It was a good walk though, and the bike wasn't quite the deathtrap as the bike I had last time. This one at least had brakes that worked some of the time. Not that brakes are needed that much, its pretty flat.<br />
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Starfish and stingray at Half Moon Cay</div>
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Some beach time at Half Moon Cay. We sat in the shade since I certainly didn't need any more sun. We went in the water for a minute, but it was much colder than when we were there before (September 2011)<br />
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Still out of order, back to Grand Turk. This ship was pulling up alongside us at the dock. I thought it was amazing how they can steer those huge ships right into place.<br />
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So now we are back to the real world, which is always disappointing. Especially due to the fact that I lied when I said Lane was switching to days. Yep, they pulled the rug right out from under him despite what had been promised and he's still on nights for the next 8 months. Then he'll go on days for a year or so. Of course, this is all contingent on no further changes, which I am unwilling to bank on.<br />
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Things seem to be winding down, at least for a short time. Jack's winter drumline finished up on April 5. That was a huge time commitment on his part, which paid off well since they took 1st place in all their competitions except one, when they took second. Not bad considering this is PGHS's first year participating in winter drumline. So Jack now gets to come home from school every single day at the normal time. Until the 28th, when he starts drivers ed after school. Then Marching Band starts up again early in June, so I'm enjoying the downtime while it lasts. I keep telling myself he'll be driving in September, which will be a huge burden lifted.<br />
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Taylor finishes up at USU sometime the first week of May and she'll be back home for the summer to work to pay for her sophomore year. I'm thrilled at the prospect of her coming home. Her? Not so much, I think. She wanted to stay in Logan for the summer, but an empty bank account changed her mind. She has done well her first year up there, although I have missed her desperately. She doesn't come home often enough for me, but she is better about texting more often or using Google Talk to check in. Or to ask us to send money.<br />
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So here I find myself on a Thursday evening with nothing to do. It's a delicious feeling considering how evenings around here usually are. I cleaned my kitchen, and even mopped the floors. My little plants are still growing, but some have died so I got the dead ones tossed out. I have the windows open and am enjoying the fresh spring air, while watching the dog chase a bird, hoping he doesn't get it.<br />
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My job is going well, things at home are going well, my kids are healthy and happy, and Taylor will be home soon. Its quite a beautiful life.<br />
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larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-50045718191730503912014-02-26T21:35:00.002-07:002014-02-26T21:35:42.470-07:00Finally - First Shift!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
So naturally on a warm day like this, my thoughts turn to Christmas pictures not yet uploaded. So here I give you, the rest of the Funk Family Christmas:</div>
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Although Taylor was home for the Christmas holidays, her job kept her from joining us for our trip to Temple Square. It was as beautiful as always, and every bit as cold as last year.<br />
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Seriously, this is the only picture of Taylor on Christmas, and I won't even discuss the lack of quality photos from Temple Square. On an unrelated note, I'm banning Lane from taking photographs. <br />
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Sometimes I find weird, unexplained pictures on my phone. I'm guessing it was a bad day?</div>
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We found a giant bone for Rex. It's so huge he can't flip it around to play with like his other bones. He could barely pick it up. He also is currently using it as a ramming-rod to try to break down the door and come in the house. He's a very social dog who loves his people. And if you've ever seen us out walking him, you know he loves ALL people and is truly offended when people just go by without stopping to pet him. Also, he's still afraid of the stairs and Addie's scooter.<br />
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My work finally made the move to our new building out in Lehi. The office is amazing, so much bigger than what I got used to in our temporary home in the Provo Riverwoods. My department was lucky enough to be placed on the 4th floor, and even luckier am I for sitting in the corner where I am surrounded on 2 sides by windows. Lots and lots of natural light and lovely views to the north and (kinda) to the east. It has added about 5 minutes to my commute, but I have gotten used to it and it goes by fast. If I go to work early enough, I get to enjoy driving by the temple, all lit up before the sun comes up. If I am going in later, I have learned not to go that route because that same road down by Lone Peak High School is a bit of a zoo that time of the morning, and I hate driving enough without all that extra aggravation.<br />
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Taylor stays busy at USU and doesn't come home as much as I wish she would. I miss her terribly. School gets out for her the first week of May, and she'll be home for the summer to work and work and work. Jack is as busy as ever, mostly music related. He's still doing the FCCLA thing, but had to drop Track this spring because of his band commitments. He has his 2 band classes as part of his regular day, plus his early morning Jazz band, and now he's added Winter Drum Line, which takes up 2 weekday evenings and part of Saturdays. He heads off to Phoenix tomorrow for a drum line competition. Additionally he has his private drum and trombone lessons. I can't wait for him to get his Driver's license! Addie and I have been taking a yoga class together, although the last 2 weeks we haven't made it. It's something active we can do together. We'll get back at it next week, I hope. Jack's schedule is so cram-packed, it throws off everything else. Just getting him to drive should free me up for 2 hours or more some days, and at least some time every day.<br />
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We are eagerly anticipating our cruise. Its been a long 2 1/2 years since our last one. It's just the two of us this time, after the last few being with family or friends. We sprung for the balcony room this time, in what was supposed to be a celebration cruise for Lane's graduation. Well, we got the timeline off a little bit, so it's a pre-graduation celebration I guess. Either way, we're getting away for a week. <br />
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But our most exciting news of all is that after about 15 years of working graveyard shift, Lane will be switching to a day (-ish) shift in April. I say -ish because he isn't sure yet of his exact schedule, and its possible he could start as early as 3:30 am. He should also be more free to come to church with us, another huge - and welcome - change. It remains to be seen how smooth this transition will be. It's been a long time on this schedule, and I'm old and set in my ways. It's best if he adjust to fit my schedule rather than the other way around. I'm firmly entrenched in my habits and do not much enjoy change to my routine. Or really any kind of change. Or even spontaneity, unless it is carefully planned out well in advance.larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-56190617495983703862014-01-14T18:44:00.000-07:002014-01-14T18:44:52.477-07:00From My Phone<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Crap. I think there might be pictures on Lane's phone too.</div>
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We have this blanket. It was a gift to me in about 1999 when I released as YW secretary in a former ward. It is the family's most beloved - and clearly most worn - blanket. It's just the right size, just the right weight for curling up in or taking a nap. Everyone wants that blanket. Sometimes a person (and by "a person," I mean Jack) will wait for another person (and by "another person," I mean me) to fall asleep and he will take The Blanket, replace it with a less desirable one, and take The Blanket for himself. Ah, well. Who can blame him, really? It is the best blanket.<br />
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Addie got a new Barbie house for Christmas . . .</div>
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. . . and Jack was very happy to get some new drumsticks. Have I mentioned that he drums All. The. Time? Sticks are not required. Dashboard of the car? He drums it. Hymn book in church? He drums it. Back of my head? Yep. He drums it. <br />
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All in their new Christmas jammies. Taylor's are super warm fleece - she lives in Logan, after all. Addie's match mine - Cupcakes, of course! And Jack's are Marvel comics. I'm not sure why Addie looks so sad. It did take me a bunch of tries to get a picture where most of them don't look too dorky. This was the best of the lot. Maybe she was tired of standing there. Maybe she was hungry. Maybe Jack had just drummed her head. </div>
larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-15440527918812095782014-01-14T18:28:00.001-07:002014-01-14T18:28:15.497-07:00Christmas Lights and Candy Canes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Crap. I forgot to get the pictures off my phone. Well, I guess that will have to be another blog post. </div>
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It seems like Christmas came and went in a blur this year. I didn't take on any big Christmas projects, so the Full Blown Christmas Panic was entirely avoided. It was weird - I kept feeling like I had forgotten something. Thanks to a handy Gift Giving app on my phone, I easily kept track of everyone's gifts, from the planning stages right on through wrapping. So that inevitable part of the Christmas wrapping "I forgot I got this!" was also entirely avoided. Again, it made for a very strange Christmas. I avoided the temptation and went with my store-bought Christmas cards, but somehow I was later than ever about getting them mailed. Weird. I made 3 pairs of Christmas pajama pants. I didn't make Taylor's and Jack's, not because I didn't want to, or even because I didn't have the time, but because I found some great ones at Kohls. Without my annual Full Blown Christmas Panic, this was the most leisurely and enjoyable Holiday season in some years. But I already have project plans for next year, so Full Blown Christmas Panic is sure to rear its ugly head in 2014.</div>
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Wilson Family Christmas Party</div>
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Once again, Lane's candy cane was broken. See how he's trying to hide it? Not even Jack believes that it's unbroken. Maybe someday Lane will be a good boy all year and deserve an unbroken candy cane. But not yet.<br />
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We didn't get to see much of our Taylor during the 3 weeks she was home for Christmas break. She worked a lot, which is good since she is poor, but we missed her. She was around for most of the important stuff. She had to work on Christmas Eve, but got off a little early. And she missed out on our trip to Temple Square. It was nice having her home, when she was.<br />
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My candy cane was perfect. In fact, Santa gave me 2 because I was so good.</div>
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Yeah, Jack's was snapped in 2. Shocking. Santa knows how Jack keeps his room. </div>
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2013 Scarlett O'Hara by Hallmark. I already have one of her in this dress, but this year the dark green part of the dress was fabric, and the ornament was porcelain again. For the last several years they have been plastic. Hallmark, if you are listening: I prefer the porcelain.<br />
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For our Christmas Eve concert, Jack played something on his trombone (that's why you shouldn't wait 3 weeks before blogging such things) . . .</div>
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Addie played "Silent Night" on her recorder . . .</div>
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and Jack played "Carol of the Bells" on his bells.</div>
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And sadly the time came to take all of Christmas down and shove it back in the closet. I love the Christmas lights most of all, and I left them plugged in while I took them off the tree, and then snapped a parting photograph before I unplugged them and put them in the box, making sure they were extra tangled for Jack next year. </div>
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<br />larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-49838023128288194402013-12-07T19:59:00.000-07:002013-12-07T19:59:18.869-07:00The Evidence of the Sickness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
And I bring you the 2013 additions:</div>
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I never could resist a brand new box of crayons. Especially when it was the BIG BOX. A few times over my years of kid-dom I got the BIG BOX, and that was like the Motherlode. More often I got the 24 crayon box, but life was truly good when you got the BIG BOX, what with the skin tone crayons (well, peach and apricot) and the always confusing orange-red AND red-orange. The sharpener never worked very well - or maybe I was just too dumb to operate it properly. Life is too good for kids now - they don't know the joy of the BIG BOX of crayons.<br />
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The bell from The Polar Express, complete with a golden train ticket. I so love the story of the Polar Express, and the amazing illustrations in the book. I actually bought 1 too many copies of the book last year, so I have a brand new, still-in-shrink-wrap copy if anyone is in need of one. <br />
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We always put my collection of Christmas story books (mostly from Scholastic, but some nicer ones) under the Christmas tree. My lovely copy of the Polar Express - a favorite gift from Greg and Tara Funk some years ago - gets the dominant spot in the front of all the books.<br />
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I saw this one at Kohls and just had to have it. (I use that phrase a lot in terms of Christmas Everything: "I just have to have it!") It looks just like our Rex, except in his mouth he would be carrying a chewed up chunk of what used to be our garden hose . . . or what used to be Jack's sock . . . or pieces of what used to be a rubber chicken . . . or the recently severely mutilated Sock Monkey, who now only has one leg.<br />
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In addition to ornaments, I also have a tremendous weakness for Nativity Sets. I added this one this year because I just couldn't resist the little sheep - he's so tiny! I sent Addie to count my nativities, and she tells me I have 8. That doesn't include the one I didn't even put out this year because I couldn't find a place for it. I have 3 in this room alone. Lane tells me I'm going to have to enact a one-in-one-out policy, because there's getting to be too many. He's wrong, of course.<br />
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We've been bringing the dog in more since its so cold and snowy. I couldn't get a picture of Rex trying to share his bone with Lane. Lane finally put his hat over his face because the bone was so wet and slobbery. It was funny to watch. Rex has gotten so much bigger - nearly full-grown we think - but he is still totally a puppy. He loves to rough-house with Lane! It's fun to throw a toy for him to fetch in the house, because he can't stop himself on the wood floors and slides into things. Yeah, we're pretty mean owners sometimes, but it's incredibly amusing!<br />
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Normally it's hard to get a good picture of Rex, he moves around so much and seems to be camera-shy, but I managed to finally get a decent one. Funny thing, this is about as close as he'll get to the stairs. He'll go upstairs all the time (naughty dog!) but is terrified of the stairs going to the basement. He'll walk the long way around the ottoman, under people's legs, to avoid walking past the open door to the stairs. I once inadvertently placed a laundry basket blocking his way around the ottoman, which would have forced him to walk past the stairs. Yeah, so he opted to sit in the laundry room instead. Wouldn't even come in the room. Stupid dog.</div>
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He's also scared of the vacuum.</div>
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And his own shadow.</div>
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We feel so safe with him around. :)</div>
larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-25592763094494900462013-12-04T17:47:00.002-07:002013-12-04T17:47:31.932-07:00I have a sickness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
We went to the Trans Siberian Orchestra concert again this year. I got us better seats, better seats than the photos suggest. It was the same show as last year, but they changed out the stage this time, which I liked better. We took Addie with us this time, but since it was on a Wednesday, Taylor was unable to attend. Maybe next year . . .</div>
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Why do the Christmas lights always get so tangled? </div>
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I put Jack in charge of stringing the lights on the real tree this year. Christmas Tree lights shall never wrap around any tree of mine, and it took some time for him to do it correctly. There are 7 strings of lights on that tree, and he did a good job of it . . . after taking some lights off and making him redo it. If the tree looks like its leaning, that's because it is. Not good. It fell over not long after all the lights were on. So I made a trip to Walmart to get a new tree stand, hoping that was the weak link. WARNING: DO NOT GOT TO WALMART ON THANKSGIVING SATURDAY. THERE IS NOTHING YOU NEED THAT BADLY. It was a mess. Luckily I got in and out without too much trouble, but it was really, REALLY bad.<br />
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Here is our tiny tree in the entry way. </div>
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After the tree fell over -- not once, but twice -- we finally got some bricks to stabilize it. It's really not leaning in this picture, the whole photo is crooked. It hasn't fallen again. There were a few glass ornament casualties as a result of the falls, 2 more of my "bubble" ornaments among others. I started with 6 bubbles many years ago. We lost 2 the year Addie pulled the tree down and 2 more this year. Makes me sad, they are favorites.<br />
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After we got all the trees (4) decorated, I realized that either I need to stop buying/acquiring ornaments or I will need a 5th tree soon. We all know that there is no chance I'm going to stop getting ornaments, so I will start shopping the after-Christmas sales for that 5th tree sometime soon.<br />
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We got a delightfully huge snow storm yesterday. Well, it was delightful once I drove safely home from work and promptly changed into my jammies. We missed Jack's trombone lesson and I missed yoga, but there was no way I was going out again. Lane started a fire and we spent a pleasant evening at home. <br />
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Well, pleasant for me. Lane had to drive to work in it that night. <br />
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Why can't it storm only on the weekends?larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3363482027578947780.post-37879905719172729202013-09-24T20:10:00.000-06:002013-09-24T20:10:04.915-06:00Remember to notice my hair<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So it's that time again: The Annual Funk Family Photo Shoot. We decided to honor Taylor's school this year. We got all matching shirts when we moved Taylor up to Logan (whoo hoo! Only $6 per shirt!)<br />
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I don't know why he does that. I just don't know.<br />
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So this is the one going out with Christmas cards this year. It's not even November yet! I love it when I (seemingly) get my act together. Having Taylor gone has forced some degree of organization on me, having to plan around her schedule and all. </div>
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Plus, the day we had scheduled to have these pictures done threatened to be rainy and miserable. Not only would that mean having to wait three weeks until Tay came home again, but more importantly, I was having a good hair day. Who knows when that will happen again. Luckily, the clouds lifted and both Taylor and my good hair were able to be photographed.</div>
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Sometimes things get a little silly . . .<br />
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before we come up with a lovely photograph of an even lovelier daughter.</div>
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Sometimes the handsome photograph . . .</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E9SsPC0fM7Q/UkJDVk-XzaI/AAAAAAAACjc/A-ROQeSvkO0/s1600/040.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E9SsPC0fM7Q/UkJDVk-XzaI/AAAAAAAACjc/A-ROQeSvkO0/s320/040.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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gives way to the silliness.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-44Ir6zKYVuw/UkJDWFw0vjI/AAAAAAAACjo/6atdptyoe7Y/s1600/046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-44Ir6zKYVuw/UkJDWFw0vjI/AAAAAAAACjo/6atdptyoe7Y/s320/046.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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And some girls are just adorable in every single way.</div>
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larifunkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10937064606044649193noreply@blogger.com0