Okay, can anyone tell I've got way too much time on my hands?  I was going to post a photo of my knee so I could explain my endless blogging after being "off-blogging-line" for 4 months but I can't find the dang charger to my camera that has gone dead.  I hobbled around for an hour trying to find it but no luck so you'll have to visualize my ugly stitches.  I had knee surgery last Friday to repair and fix my patellar tendon.  I've not been able to get around too well so I'm making up for lost time and getting some blogging in.   To be honest, I'm bored out of my mind.  My good buddy Leslie came over today and got me set up again and now I can't stop.  I'm out of control.  I'm cracking myself up looking at old photos and I swear, Craig thinks I'm high on dilad (morphine) and I keep insisting I haven't had any pain pills today.  

Sorry for so many posts!  I'm sure I'll go back to my old ways again soon of no posts for weeks at a time!

Halloween Flashback

Did someone say "junk in the trunk?"  Oh yeah, nice booty baby.  Snap!!  Halloween 2005.  We went to my friend childhood friend Kerin's house for a good old costume party.  I laughed the entire night.  Notice I got to be the dr.!!  Snap!!

Brownie Baby

Maddy has all sorts of stories about brownies.  She LOVE LOVE LOVES them.  She loves chocolate (like her daddy) but she can't get enough brownies.  Can you tell???  She's 3 in this photo and wanted me to help her make brownies.  Did someone say raw eggs??  

Cameron Flashback

I figured I'd go back and do some favorite photos of my kiddos.  I love this picture of Cameron.  He was about 2 1/2 here.  We were in Missouri at the Lake of the Ozarks on a family vacation.  We were living in Kansas at the time and went down there for a week for a little vacation.  Isnt' he so cute?

Mariners with the Munks

Craig and I invited the Munks to go to the Diamond Club with us.  I think we were all hurting on the way home from eating too much.  How many hotdogs can one person eat in a sitting?  Chocolate milkshakes, cotton candy, pizza, the buffet, nachos, unlimited soda and whatever you want.  Uuugh, can someone say "gut ache"!  Oh, was there a baseball game?  I was so distracted by the good company and food that I forgot we were at the game!

Montana Cabin

Won't you meet me in Montana.........I wanna see the mountains in your eyes....   As sung by Marie Osmond!!  

I'd do anything right now to escape to Montana.  This is our little cabin in Polaris.  It's in the Pioneer Mountains not too far from the Idaho border.  We love to go here to escape from the world.  There is no cell service here and if your lucky, you can get dial up on the internet.  No TV, I guess you could get radio but I haven't tried.  On Star doesn't even work out here, that's how remote it is!!  The skiing here is a mile up the road and is pure powder.  In the summer, it's so nice to just listen to the sounds of nature.  There were a lot of forest fires last year and you can see the smoke in the summer photo.  Who wants to go to Montana???  Meeee!!!

A couple weeks ago, Craig's Grandma, Louise Taylor Jolley passed away.  She meant a lot to me and it's been hard knowing we won't be seeing her again, at least in this life.  The funny thing is, when she first met me, she was not sure about me.  She was a little bit old fashioned and never hesitated to speak her mind.  When Craig told her that he had met a "divorced, pregnant girl" her response was "Well, why would he want someone that has already been someone else's?"  She didn't know much about me so who can blame her for having that response.  After all, Craig was the oldest grandson who had never gone off the straight and narrow so this was a big shock to say the least.  No one ever thought that Craig would end up with a divorcee who was pregnant.  I don't think that is what any mom or grandma wants for her "perfect" son!!  

Well, we did get married and over time, she came to like me and then as time went on she came to adore me and it meant so much to me that she not only accepted me but that she grew to love me as much as I did her.  She lived a long and prosperous life with so many grandchildren and great grandchildren that I've lost count.  She and her husband, WC or Bill as some called him were the cutest couple.   He was the more passive partner and she called the shots but it worked for them.  

When I was leaving for Africa, I called her on the way to airport, knowing she wasn't doing to well and told her that she had to hang on for me for at least 2 weeks so I wouldn't be gone if she passed on.  She had asked me to sing at her funeral and I told her if she wanted me to sing, she had to wait!!  Well, she waited and gave me a few days to recover before we headed down to SLC to the funeral.  I was able to sing for her along with my brother-in-law, the song that she chose and it was a wonderful funeral where we celebrated her life and all the good that she brought into our lives.  Craig gave a talk and talked about her influence in his life.  When she called him a few days before she passed and could still talk, she told Craig that he had brought so much joy to her life and he responded "right back at you, Grandma".  She did bring a lot of joy to all our lives.  She has been a big influence on us and our children.  My kids know her as the Grandma that makes strawberry pie and the one that reads to them.  How lucky we are to have had the privilege of having them come stay with us a few times in the past few years so Craig could work on their teeth.  I will cherish those days forever as will my kids.  What a blessing she has been to us.  

Louise Taylor Jolley, you were quite a woman, mother, friend, and to me, a wonderful grandma and example of so many things that are good and admirable.  Her family meant everything to her and she showed that with her actions.  Her love for everyone in her family was always apparent and she always had time to talk or listen.  We'll miss you Grandma Jolley!!!

Madalyn Goes to the Daddy Daughter Dance

April 19th is Craig's birthday.  He thought he was going to get a hot date with his wife.  Not so fast says Maddy!  It's the Daddy Daughter Dance and we are going!!  No exceptions.  So, while Craig was out buying his new golf clubs (he hasn't golfed in at least 2 years!!) me and the kids made him a pork chop dinner with potatoes and gravy.  We set the table nice with all the pretty green dishes and candles too.  They left for the dance and had a wonderful time.  Craig hates to dance (big surprise) so he had to get out of his comfort zone and boogie the night away.  Maddy was so happy to get to have that special time with her Daddy and even though Craig didn't get the hot date with me, he still had a great time!

Sister Suzy

In 2006, I went to Chicago for a business trip and to visit my sister Suzy.   Lucky for me, Suzy is the master of getting Oprah tickets and was able to get us in to the show.  They taped two shows while we were there which was really cool.  The guests were Ricky Martin (oolala!!) and the CNN Middle East correspondent Christian Amoumpour.  The show was about stopping child sex slave abuse trade which Ricky Martin is an advocate for.  He performed a couple songs and shook his bon bon for us.  We then left Oprah and went downtown and had us some Garrett's carmel corn (my favorite) and then we went and saw "Wicked" where we had balcony, back row seats.  Suzy again, scouted out two vacant seats towards the front and during intermission, we moved down after talking to all the people around the vacant seats and determining that they were empty.  It's always and adventure with Suzy!