Images From Disney World!!!

Our Trip to Disney World: Day One

What a week we have had! For our family vacation this year, we decided to go to Disneyworld in Orlando. It was awesome! Our first day, we flew out there (obviously) & the boys absolutely LOVED their flight! Connor was 3 the last time he was on a plane & Aiden was 9 months, so they didn't remember a whole lot about what was going to happen. It was awesome to see the looks on their faces when the plane took off. It was priceless! Four hours later, we landed & took Disney's "Magical Express" to our resort. We stayed at the Disney Pop Century Resort. It's a hotel that is themed on the decades between the 1950s & 1990s. Each building is themed around a different decade & has memorabilia and larger-than-life toys from that era & they are always playing the greatest hits from each decade too. It was so fun! Our room was in the 70s, so we had platform shoes & 8-track tapes all over the place. The boys had a good time playing on the huge toys that surrounded our building...a gigantic fusball table, big wheel, Mickey phone & Twister board. After checking in, we headed straight over to the Magic Kingdom for some fun. First, we went on a few rides in fantasyland and then headed over to our first character meal. We had a "Colonial Feast" with Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, and Chip & Dale. The boys had a blast meeting all the characters and spending some one-on-one time with them. After dinner, we watched the Main Street Electrical Parade (or ElectroMagic as it's now called) and then watched the fireworks show over Cinderella's Castle. It was a great start to the trip!

Disney World: Day Two

On Day Two, we headed over to Animal Kingdom & started the day with a Safari Breakfast with Mickey, Donald, Daisy & Goofy. The kids had a blast playing African instruments & doing African dances with the characters. After breakfast, we went to the petting zoo and on a bunch of cool rides. Or, should I say Connor & Mike went on a bunch of cool rides, Aiden & I had to sit a lot of them out. Some of the favorites were the Jeep Safari (where the boys got to see a lot of cool animals up close & personal), the Kiki River Rapids (where the boys got soaked head to tail) & the Dinosaur (a roller coaster that takes you back in time to the dinosaur period. It was apparently pretty freaky). After a long day, we headed back to the resort for a little twister & water fun. The boys played in the kids fountain & then headed to both the big pool & the kiddie pool. They loved it. And, yes, in case your wondering...I did muster up the courage to put on the maternity bikini (with the cover-up of course...I'm not that brave) and did a little sunbathing...or should I say, sunBURNING. After swimming, we ordered pizza to our room for dinner. The boys thought that that was the coolest part of the day!

Disney World: Day Three

On Day Three, we headed back to the Magic Kingdom since we only had about a half day there the first day. Connor had a blast going on all the rides he was too short to go on a few years ago when we took our trip to Disneyland in California. His favorites were Splash Mountain, Runaway Train & Space Mountain...little daredevil! After a morning of rides, we had lunch with Winnie the Pooh and all his friends & had fun joining in on a little parade around the restaurant with them. The kids had a ball following the characters & waving their napkins above their heads. It was pretty cute! After lunch, it was time for more rides. Aiden's favorite was (of course) the Buzz Lightyear ride & we went on it several times in a row for him. He would get off the ride & yell "again, again, again" and then take off to get back in line. It was too cute!

Disney World: Day Four

On Day Four, we headed over to Epcot. We started out the day with a Royal Breakfast with some of the Disney Princesses. When I originally made our reservation for this meal, the girl said, "And how old is your little girl?" I replied, "Uhhh...29. Is that okay?" This was totally MY breakfast. I figure if I can't have a little princess of my own, I might as well just BE the princess myself! My boys were NOT happy when I told them we were going to have breakfast with a bunch of princesses, but I think they may have actually ended up having a good time...mainly because Mary Poppins was there (& I think Connor has a serious crush on her). Mike was quite fond of the scantly-clad Jasmine. And, I enjoyed Snow White & Belle myself! On top of meeting the princesses, the breakfast was a Norwegian breakfast in a Viking castle...which was fun for me since I'm 1/4 Norwegian. Anyway, it was a BLAST! After breakfast, we headed back to Future World (since that's where all the good rides are...and they boys weren't very excited about visiting the different countries in the International Village). When I asked Connor if he wanted to visit the different countries, he asked "Are there awesome rides there?" When I told them they were mainly educational rides & movies about each country, he was not impressed & insisted that we head back to the "cool rides". After some "cool rides", we headed over to The Coral Reef for lunch. This was the coolest restaurant! It was a restaurant inside an aquarium! Every wall you looked at was filled with fish, sharks, sting rays, etc. I don't think the boys ate a single bite of their food because they were so into the sea life. Oh, we also had a meltdown moment when Connor found out that Mike was eating fish for lunch. He cried & told Mike that fish were FRIENDS not FOOD! He's also started having problems eating meat of any kind lately. He just cant bare the thought of animals being his food...little tender heart! Do I sense a vegetarian on my hands? Nah...he'll have to starve in this house before we go veg! :) After lunch, we went on the Finding Nemo ride & then went to the show "Turtle Talk" with Crush from "Finding Nemo". It's an interactive show where Crush talks to members of the audience. He picked Connor out to talk to him. Connor was so brave & just sat there having a conversation with him. It was so cute! After a few more rides, we headed over to the "Garden Grill" for a B-B-Q with Mickey, Pluto and Chip & Dale. It was an awesome restaurant. It actually spun in a circle as you ate. It was an extremely slow spin...so slow in fact that you could hardly even notice you were spinning, but it allowed your view to change every few minutes. It was fun. We ended the day with me getting a horrible migraine. Tons of fun, eh? It was seriously one of the worst headaches I've ever had in my life...which is fun when you can only take Tylenol & put an ice pack on your neck. It eventually got so bad that I threw up at around 3:00 am. But, the next morning it was pretty much gone. Okay, not that you wanted to hear about my medical problems. Let's move on...

Disney World: Day Five

On Day Five, we headed to Hollywood Studios & started our day with a breakfast at the Playhouse Disney Dine & Play where we met JoJo & her lion Goliath, as well as a couple of the Little Einsteins. Leo, who is Connor's favorite Einstein, pulled Connor up to dance with him. It was pretty cute! After breakfast, the big boys went on several "AWESOME rides" (like Star Tours & Tower of Terror) while the pregnant woman & crazy two-year-old attempted to save them seats at the Indiana Jones show...not something I recommend (FYI)! Afterwards, we headed over to the "Jedi Training Camp", a show where they pull kids out of the audience and "train" them to be Jedis. At the end of their training, the kids get to fight Darth Vader. Connor just watched the first time, but wanted to go back a second time to try to get picked. Unfortunately, that didn't happen & we had one sad little boy on our hands. (If you know Connor & his OBSESSION with all things Star Wars, you'll understand why.) We told him we would come back for the last show of the day later and headed off to find other things to do. Later that day, we ran into a couple of Aiden's IDOLS...Lightning McQueen & Mater. They were going back home right as we saw them, so we had to take pictures from afar, but Aiden still thought it was cool to see a couple of his "best friends"! :) We also stopped to see all the Power Rangers for Connor, so that was cool. After that, we headed over to watch Block Party Bash...a really fun parade that the boys LOVED a couple years ago at Disneyland. It was a lot of fun! Connor actually got picked to play a game of Duck-Duck-Goose while we were waiting for the parade to start & he had fun doing that. After the parade, we headed back to the Jedi show and...Connor got picked!!! He was THRILLED...but didn't smile a whole lot while he was up there. When I asked him why he didn't smile, he said he was "trying to look cool". I will never understand men! Anyway, here's a couple of clips. The first is part of his "Jedi Training". The second is when he actually fought Darth Vader:

After Connor became a full-fledged Jedi...with a diploma and everything, we headed over to the "Lights, Motors, Action" show for Mike. It was a really cool car stunt show that showed how they do all the cool car chase scenes that you see in action movies. Mike was in seventh heaven! After that, we went on the new Toy Story ride that just opened this week (LOVED IT) and then ate at Pizza Planet (which the boys thought that was awesome)! After dinner, we decided to bop back over to the Magic Kingdom for a little bit. We got there right as the SpectroMagic parade was starting, so there were NO LINES at any of the rides. The boys (especially Aiden) wanted to keep going on Buzz Lightyear over and over and over again! Aiden would jump off the ride and shout "Again, again, again!" and then run back to the front of the line. Eventually, the people working there got to know us & told us that we could just stay on the ride if we wanted to. In total, I think we rode that ride at least 15 times in the space of an hour. The boys were in HEAVEN! It was an awesome, but EXHAUSTING day!

Disney World: Day Six

Day Six was our last day in Florida. We asked for a late check-out, slept in & then let the boys swim for a couple hours. Connor met this cute little boy named Ben who was from London & they became fast friends. Connor said he talked like the kids on "Mary Poppins" which I laughed about! Those two spent pretty much the whole morning together! Ben told us that he and his family had been at Disneyworld for 22 days & were going to be there for about another week. Those Europeans know how to travel!!! After swimming & eating lunch, we boarded the "Magical Express" again and headed back to the airport. Aiden slept almost the entire flight home. I think we wore our kids out! It was such a fun vacation! We loved every single second of it & hope that we can do it again sometime (preferably when I'm not pregnant and it's not 95 degrees with 70% relative humidity)! --Lindsay

Summertime--Here We Come!

We're kicking Spring out & ushering in Summer with a couple big advance-ments in the Storrs' household! First of all, today was Connor's last day of preschool! Here's Connor with the two little girls we carpool with, Bailey & Ella...oh & Aiden too! Anyway, I can't believe school is over already! Where did this year go? It seems like I was just going to "Back to School Night" a few weeks ago! Crazy!!! Connor was pretty excited for the school year to come a close this year (as compared to his "cryingfest" last year)...mainly because it means KINDERGARTEN is right around the corner! I can't believe everything Connor has learned this year...he knows & can write the entire alphabet, he knows the sounds that each letter makes, he knows & can write his letters up to 20, he can do simple addition & subtraction problems, if you ask him to write a sentence--he can sound out each word pretty good & write it out, and (probably his biggest accomplishment) he is now reading on a 2nd grade level!!! Awesome, huh?!? I can't believe what a little smarty pants he is!

Of course all the credit goes to his excellent teacher, Mrs. Bahr. (And a big apology goes out to Mrs. Bahr for this picture...I didn't realize until we got home that her eyes were closed) Anyway, Connor has absolutely LOVED her! She is the perfect balance of work & play...and she really loves the kids she teaches. In fact, when I picked Connor up for the last time, she started to cry and gave us both big hugs! So, if any of you have kids that attend Learning Dynamics and you're trying to decide what 4-year-old teacher to request, I totally recommend her! She is AWESOME!!! Because she's so awesome, we thought she deserved an awesome teacher gift...and my friend Lynetta gave me a great one. (Thanks Lynetta!) Here it is:

The little note says:

Mrs. Bahr,

To find out what kind of teacher we think you are, you have to sort and count the M&Ms. If there are more:

Yellow--You're Mediocre

Orange--You're Medieval

Red--You're Magnificent

Green--You're Moody

Blue--You're Mental

Brown--You're Mad

(Turn Over)

Then on the back it said:

On second thought, don't bother counting. We all know that you are MAGNIFICENT!

Thank you for all you have done this past year! I will miss you!

Love,

Connor Storrs

She absolutely LOVED it! So, if you're still looking for a teacher gift for the end of year, it's a really cute & creative one...and gives them a lifetime supply of M&Ms (and who doesn't want that?)!

This weekend also marks another big advancement--my transition into my 3rd trimester! Again, where has the time gone? Here's my six month picture. Yes, you can say it, I am HUGE! I can not tell you how many people have asked me if I am due next month...in fact, even my news director got confused and thought I was due next month. (Don't I wish!!!). At my last appointment, I measured two weeks ahead of where I should be. With both my other boys, I always measured right on time or slightly behind schedule. What the CRAP is going on here!?! My friend, Jessica, described my expanding belly very well the other day. She said, "It looks like a big peanut M&M is just sticking out of you!" Haha! I laughed so hard because that's TOTALLY what it looks like. I'm not a perfect circle like with the other boys, I'm more of an oval this time around. Weird!!! Anyway, another difference is that this baby is sitting quite a bit higher than the other boys did...as in RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF MY LUNGS!!! I've had other friends complain of shortness of breath during pregnancy, but I've never had to deal with it because my babies sat so low. Apparently, Heavenly Father wanted me to experience the lovely sensation my friends have experienced because this baby can definitely take my breath away...sometimes right in the middle of a weathercast (which is always a joyous experience)! Other than my breathing (or lack thereof), I actually have felt pretty good this past month. My heartburn has pretty much gone away & I don't feel quite as uncomfortable as I did last month...or maybe I'm just getting used to this ginormous addition to my front side...I don't know.

Anyway, so we're all pretty excited about our new accomplishments & are looking forward to the summer ahead! Now, if only it would warm up & STAY THAT WAY! --Lindsay

No More Training Wheels!

Mike has been trying to teach Connor to ride his bike for several weeks now, but Connor just couldn't get it. After several very discouraging "teaching" sessions, Mike decided to have Connor try riding his old bike. (Connor got a new bike this past Christmas that is still a little too big for him...that's the one Mike was originally trying to teach him on.) Well, when Connor got on his little bike, he just took off! No problems whatsoever! Too bad we didn't try that about a month ago...oh well! We'll let him ride his old bike for a few weeks to get used to it & then try the big bike again. After that, Aiden gets Connor's little bike...a fact that he is EXTREMELY excited about! (Of course the training wheels will go back on for him.) Anyway, Connor's now riding his bike like a champ & loving every minute of it (I only see him maybe once an hour or so when he stops at home for a drink or snack)! Good job Connor! You rock! I love you!!! --Mom

There's One Thing This World Needs More of...

...And that one thing is more HOT MEN! Let's be honest, there's a serious shortage out there! Since Mike & I apparently can't produce any girls, it is OBVIOUSLY our calling in life to produce these hot men, therefore increasing the beautiful boy population for all the world to enjoy. Just take a look for yourself:

And here's our younger offspring...although this one didn't want to have an entire photo shoot like his brother, so there's just a few shots:

And, I just thought this picture of Mike & Aiden mowing the lawn yesterday was flippin' cute, so I decided to throw it in too!

I have a tough life...living with three of the hottest guys on the planet! What's a girl to do? --Lindsay

An Impromptu Dance Party

Last night, my entire family (excluding Mike who is in D.C. until tomorrow) got together at my parents' house for dinner & to watch the newlyweds open their wedding presents. After all the gifts had been opened, the boys & Poppy went into Kristin's old room/Poppy's future music room (which is currently empty) and had an impromptu dance party. It was actually a "freeze dance party"...my dad would play music & they would "dance" (if you can call it that); and when the music stopped, they would freeze (again...if you can call it that). Connor asked me to record them and then (in his own words) "we could put it on the blog, so EVERYONE can enjoy it!" So, for your "enjoyment", here's a minute of their "freeze dance party"! Pay particular attention to the serious "butt crackage" going on with Connor. I swear that kid's pants wouldn't stay up with 17 sets of suspenders holding on (he inherited his lack of curves from his mommy)! --Lindsay

What a year! What a Mom!

Hey, this is Mike. Life at the Storrs’ house has been a little crazy this year. Most of you who are kind enough to read our blog probably know all of this, but I wanted to do a little recap. These are a few of the things the Storrs family has enjoyed this past year: an MBA (non-existent husband), new job, enrichment, pregnancy, furniture restoration, preschool, baseball, soccer, real estate, weddings and showers, girls night, and much, much more all topped off by our two year old energizer bunny! I'm amazed that we survived! I'm even more amazed at how many smiles, and how much fun we have had along the way! I have to admit, I was not around enough to take any credit for maintaining a functional family let alone a happy one. Luckily, I happened to trick a very capable and rather amazing woman into marrying me. Yes, it is Mother’s day, and I get to brag! I am a lucky man! Lindsay is an amazing mom! She has been our chauffeur, maid, cook (the kids love pizza night), book reader, designer, party planner, weather bunny, CEO, financial officer, baby oven, FHE teacher, crafts maker, diaper changer, photographer, blogger and family historian. What a Mom! I would say that you have earned a little recognition, and a really long back rub! Thanks for making life possible! You’re the best! We love you! Mike, Connor, Aiden, and Cohen

My Baby Sister Gets Married!

My baby sister, Krisin, got married yesterday! I still can't believe it! In my mind, she should still be this little five-year-old playing with dolls! But, alas, she isn't five-years-old anymore...she's a grown woman, and now she's a MARRIED woman! The guy she married is absolutely FABULOUS! We love him to death! His name is Dan Walker, he's from New Jersey, served a mission in Alaska, plays rugby for Utah State, he treats Kristin like a queen...and he's even willing to put up with her bizarre family (and act like he likes us) to be with her! He is just flippin' awesome! It just seems like he's always been a member of the family! The first time I met Dan, he walked up to me, gave me one of his huge bear hugs and said, "What's up Linz?" just like we'd been friends forever! He's just great & we love him to death!

Anyway, yesterday was a great day! Kristin and Dan got married in the Bountiful Temple and their ceremony was beautiful. I love going to weddings because it reminds me of the covenants & promises Mike & I made 7 1/2 years ago. Our wedding day is such a blur to me! I was nervous, happy, excited, scared & on cloud nine (all at the same time)! Needless to say, I was too busy staring into Mike's eyes to really listen to & comprehend the words that the sealer was saying. So, I love going to weddings that AREN'T mine, so I can really listen! Anyway, it was a very nice ceremony!

Afterwards, we all had a party outside the temple while we waited FOREVER for Kristin & Dan to make their grand exit. I swear that girl was primping in the brides' room for over a half hour! Finally, they emerged and then we proceeded to take about 47,384 pictures! Which, by the way, is not a fun experience for a pregnant girl wearing a non-maternity bridesmaid dress. I felt GARGANTUOUS! Anyway, by the time we were done, I had a faint tan line around my neck where my dress had been. It was a beautiful day, although it was a little on the chilly side for me...low-60s (I LOVE the heat...even when pregnant) & of course the famous "Bountiful Breeze" kicked in from time to time, but the sun was shining & everything looked beautiful!

After the photo session, we headed over to The Point Reception Center at the Huntsman Cancer Institute. Kristin didn't want to do a traditional reception (She likes to be different in every single way possible...hence why she got married on a THURSDAY and in the BOUNTIFUL temple), so she decided to do a "dinner reception". When the guests arrived at 6:30, they walked through the traditional line (where some very cute "present boys" dressed in mini-tuxes took their gifts...see slide show) to meet & greet the happy couple and their parents. After going through the line, they were seated at their table for dinner. We started out the dinner with some toasts...first by the Best Man, known to everyone only as "Ferrell", and then by one of the "Junior Groomsmen", Connor. Connor stood on his chair in his cute little tux and said, "I love Ta-Ta (that's what all the boys call Kristin) & Dan is cool! Congratulations!" Then he raised his glass like a little pro & everyone toasted Mr. & Mrs. Walker. It was super cute! Then, during dinner, we passed the microphone around each table & everyone introduced themselves & gave the couple their congrats or any advise they may have had. Connor wanted to participate in this as well. He stood on his chair again and announced, "I'm Connor Michael Storrs & I hope Ta-Ta has fun tonight!" It was pretty darn funny! Of course, he had no clue why all the adults in the room were laughing at him, but he was pretty proud of himself nonetheless!

Overall, it was a GREAT day...a little exhausting (especially for a couple little boys)...but great nonetheless! Now Kristin & Dan are on their honeymoon in Cancun...although I'm assuming their not soaking up the sun as much as the other tourists. :) Congratulations Dan & Kristin! We love you very much! --Lindsay

My Sanctuary is Finally Done!!!

Those of you that have been to my house anytime in the past five months know that our master bedroom has been totally torn up...well, the furniture at least! I haven't redecorated my bedroom since my senior year of high school & it was in desperate need of a makeover! I've wanted to re-do it for a long time (in fact, when we moved into our house four years ago, I only put a few things up on the wall in that room because I was SO SURE that I would redecorate it soon), but something always seemed to take precedence over it. Well, in November, I found some bedding that I absolutely FELL IN LOVE WITH! It just SCREAMED "I belong in Lindsay's house"! So, I took the money that I had been saving for the boys' bunk bed & put myself (and my neglected bedroom) first for once! Here are the before & after pictures:

BEFORE

AFTER

Can you believe it?!? Just LOOKING at those "before" pictures makes me want to throw up a little in my mouth! What a difference! I absolutely LOVE the way it turned out! And, yes, if you're wondering...that IS the same furniture in the "before" & "after" pictures. After I bought my bedding, I started looking for a new bedroom set, but I couldn't find one that I liked well enough to validate spending $2000+ on it. We were in our 17th (or at least that's what it felt like) furniture store when Mike said, "Why don't I just refinish the furniture we already have?" I hadn't even thought of that before. I liked the style of my bedroom furniture, but HATED the fact that it was oak wood. Mike went on to tell me that he could fill in the grain & paint it...& then you'd never be able to ever tell that the wood was oak. I was a little concerned at first. Mike hadn't done any woodwork since...well, I don't know when. He's really good at making frames & mirrors and things like that, but I had never seen him do an entire furniture set. He ASSURED me that he could do it...and promised me that if I didn't like the final product, he would buy me a brand new bedroom set. I reluctantly agreed. For the next five months, whenever Mike had a spare minute (in between work, school, homework, etc.), you could find him doing this:

Out in the garage (turned painting studio) working on the furniture! He started out by stripping & sanding the furniture down to bare wood, then filling in the wood grain with grain-filler. After that, each piece was sprayed with several coats of primer (sanding in between each coat). After the primer, came about three coats of the actual paint (again, sanding in between each coat). Once the pieces were painted, they were antiqued with a glaze & the edges were sanded to give them the "old-fashioned" look I was going for. And then finally, they were sprayed with several clear coats to finish up. It was quite the process & I have to say that I have been very impressed with Mike's wood-working talent (who knew?)! I swear EVERYTHING that boy touches turns to gold! I love him! Here's a close up of part of the dresser, so you can see what a great job he did & just how detailed he got with everything:

Didn't he do a great job!?! Anyway, I just absolutely LOVE my new room! I think I'd rather be in my room than any other room in my house nowadays! In fact, I do spend more time in my room! If I ever find myself getting stressed out or feeling like I'm going to scream at my kids, I go lock myself in my room & give myself a "time out"...just five or ten minutes to myself. I call it my "meditating time". Now, I'm not really "meditating"...you won't find me sitting cross-legged with my thumb & middle finger touching. But, you will find me reading a book or watching TV or praying or whatever I need for that day. I love it! Five months ago...you would NOT have found me taking a time out in my room...because just BEING in that room would have stressed me out even more! :) So I love, love, LOVE my new room! It's just such a happy, bright, fun room & every time I walk into it...I just have to smile! So, what do you think of our version of "Extreme Makeover: ROOM Edition"? --Lindsay

The Graduate...Part Deux

Mike wasn't the only member of our family to graduate this past weekend. My little sister, Kristin, graduated on Saturday from Utah State University with her BS in Public Relations. She is the third person in our family to graduate with a degree in the field of communications (my dad has a degree in PR as well & my bachelors degree is in Broadcast Journalism), so I guess it runs in the family! Being that this was the boys' second graduation in as many days, they weren't thrilled about sitting through another LONG commencement exercise...so they amused themselves with the camera!

After the graduation was over, we all headed over to Cafe Sabor for dinner, but I forgot to take a picture. It was pretty good though...if you ever find yourself in Logan or Park City, stop and eat there! It was a fun day! Congratulations Kristin! Love ya! --Lindsay

(More Pics)

The Graduate!!!

Well, he did it! My husband was hooded yesterday! Mike graduated from the University of Utah's Eccles School of Business with his MBA (Masters of Business Administration)! I really, truly, can not believe that yesterday actually happened! I keep pinching myself...worried that this is a dream. I keep thinking, "What if I wake up & he's only in his first semester?!?" In some ways, it seems like these past two years have flown by & in other ways, it seems like they have crawled along at a snail's pace. Anyone who has been through these past two years with us knows it hasn't been easy. For Mike, he would get up at 5:30 in the morning, go to work from 7:00 am to 5:00 pm, then head to school from 6:00 to 10:00, & finally get home at 11:00 at night...faced with a TON of homework to do (sometimes staying up until 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning to get it done)! For me, it meant being a single parent (and more importantly...sole diaper-changer) for sometimes three days out of every week. I remember going to the MBA orientation dinner right before Mike started. The professors and advisers were giving a rundown of what the next two years would be like. I don't remember a whole lot from that night, but I do remember the head of the department saying, "This program has been compared to the first two years of medical school. Be prepared to devote your life to it." And another advisor announcing the creation of a "MBA Spouses Support Group" to help wives get through the two years. A few days after that...when Mike was at one of his first classes...my parents (probably out of pity) invited me & the boys out to dinner with them at Chili's. I was talking to them about my fears of trying to be a mom & dad to my boys for a good majority of the next two years, while trying to keep my sanity, when my dad said, "I had a friend who got his MBA. He and his wife ended up getting divorced because it took such a tole on them!" I just remember thinking (excuse my french), "What the HELL have we gotten ourselves into!?!"

But, I have to say that the past two years haven't been as hard as I thought they would be! And, there is only ONE reason I was able to make it through...Mike. I know these past two years have been EXTREMELY stressful for Mike, but you would never know it to look at him. He has handled it so well. He never ONCE brought the stress home with him. He would get home at 11:00 at night, after working a nine-hour day & then going to a four-hour class, walk into the house with a big smile on his face & say, "How was your day, hun?" He never once complained to me about being tired or overworked...he was just concerned about how I was holding up! Several times, on a day when he didn't have school, he would come home from work & ask me, "Is there anything you need me to do to help you?" I, thinking that he had nothing to do & was bored, would tell him he could help me clean the bathrooms or mop the floor or whatever needed to be done. He would do whatever I needed & then say, "Anything else you need my help with?" When I'd say "no", he would say, "Okay, well I better work on this 30 page paper I have due tomorrow then." I would reply, "If you have a huge paper to write, why were you offering to help me with housework?" He would say, "Well, I'm not home a whole lot, so when I am, I want to make sure I help you so that you're not doing everything all by yourself." He would then stay up until midnight or later working on his paper! I learned very quickly that when he asked me if there was anything he could do to help, that I asked him how much homework he had that night before I started giving him a "honey do" list.

Mike is just a completely amazing person! He's SERIOUSLY one in a million! It's definitely because of him that I have been able to get through these past two years. Congratulations Mike! Thank you for ALWAYS putting me & the kids first during the two craziest years of your life! I am truly the luckiest wife on the planet! I love & appreciate you more than you will ever know! --Lindsay

(More Pictures from the Happy Day)

(Dinner at Old Spaghetti Factory after graduation. When Mike started school, we knew that we were going to have to rely on both our families to help with babysitting, etc. So, we decided back then that on the day Mike graduated, we would take both families out to dinner to say "thank you". So, this was our "celebration/thank you" dinner!)

Are You a Survivor?

Last night was our 2nd quarter enrichment... and it was a blast! The theme that our Relief Society presidency gave us was "Temporal Preparedness". We decided that the theme for the night should be "Are You a Survivor?" (based around the reality show that is now in its 462nd season). We split the night into three mini-classes "Surviving a Medical Emergency" (CPR & Heimlich Maneuver training on adults, children & infants--taught by the fire department); "Surviving an Earthquake" (Tips on how to prepare for an earthquake, what to do during an earthquake, & what to do right after an earthquake--taught by our very own neighborhood fireman, Todd Butterfield); & "Surviving a Job Loss" (Tips on getting your family financially prepared in case your family income suddenly disappears). It was a great night! When the ladies got to the church, they went first to the "Survivor Sign-In" (made by my handy engineer husband--see picture above) where they wrote their name on the roll & were given a wristband that divided them into "tribes".

They were then led to their "airplane" to fly to their different destinations (aka mini-classes) where some extremely lovely "flight attendants" (aka enrichment committee members) served them an in-flight snack of peanuts & their choice of water or lemon water. Yes, those are TRULY the only beverage choices on "Survivor Airways"!

They were also greeted by a very handsome pilot (aka Mike).

Once everyone had boarded the airplane, they were given the "safety instructions" for the aircraft & a brief rundown of the night & mini-classes. (Oh, and by the way, a big thanks to Mike's dad...who is a pilot for Southwest...for getting us all the airplane goodies!) Then, our airplane landed at "CPR Beach", where the first tribe got off the airplane and went to their first class.

Similar stops were made at "The Quivering Keys" & "Prosperity Point" where the other tribes deboarded and went to their respective classes. The tribes rotated through the different mini-classes until about 8:30 pm, when the tribes "merged" in a fun luau. Here's a picture of the gym before everyone got in there.

Once all tribes had merged, we feasted on some "survivor delicacies". First there were the "snails" (a sliced ham, cheese & spinach wrap for the shell & half a sweet pickle for a head).

Ladybugs (a Ritz cracker topped with a cream cheese/sour cream spread, two quarter cherry tomatoes for wings & a half an olive for a head). By the way, both the snail & ladybug ideas came from my old college roommate, Jackie. Thanks Jacks!!! Love ya!

Dirt Cake (Chocolate pudding & crumbled chocolate cake in a cup with a gummy worm on top).

Fish in a Dish (Blueberry jello with swedish fish embedded within).

Gorilla Poop Cookies (Oatmeal & Chocolate Chip Cookies...we all agreed that they looked too yummy to be gorilla poop).

Caterpillar Cakes (Cupcakes, topped with frosting, green coconut & M&Ms, laid out on a cookie sheet that is smothered with crushed oreos).

And Swamp Water to drink (a mixture of fruit punch, 7-Up & Lime Sherbet)

It was SUCH a fun night! I think everyone got some very useful information that they can really use...plus, had a great time while doing it! I just have to say a huge "thank you" to my committee! I have the best committee on the PLANET! They are such hard working girls & I love them to DEATH!

Also, on a totally separate subject, I had several requests for pictures of our "creations" from girls night...so here they are (well, some of them...the ones we could get our hands on for a picture)...

The chip & dip platter was made by Melanie Young, the ginormous cereal bowl was made by Karin Chamberlain, the large vase was made by Layla VanTassell, the salt & pepper shakers were made by me, the small vase was made by Mindy Kopelson, & the spoon rest was made by Audra Armstrong. Good job girls! I think we should go into the "ceramic painting business"...or maybe not! Oh, and by the way, the black bowl with the white flowers in the background...I would love to say that it was one of our creations...but it's just the bowl I keep in the middle of my table all the time...I just didn't move it out of the way far enough. Anyway, good job girls!!! --Lindsay