THANK GOODNESS FOR TRAMPOLINES

Thank goodness for trampolines. Cara and Ryeligh love to jump and I love it for the simple fact that I can get a lot done (even if it's gossiping with friends) while they play. I've been working on a few projects in our backyard right now and it's so nice to have entertainment for them. We have a coi pond in our backyard and I've been working on getting it put back together and cleaned up before the summer season ends. I'm proud to say that I got the pond back into ship shape order all by myself. I actually amaze myself sometimes. If I'm determined enough I can usually fix almost anything. Pictures of the almost fixed coi pond to come.

FIRST GAME OF THE SEASON

Last night was Carson's first game of the season. They played the Saints. Carson had another wonderful game. The first play was passed off to him and he ran 60 yards for a touchdown. The score was Raiders 19-0. I'm proud to say that all 19 points were scored by Carson. Carson loves it. He has the best time out there on the field. I see an excitement in him when he's playing that I've never seen before. He is very determined and has a love for the game. Go Carson!

WHO'S EXPECTING?

MY BROTHER AARON AND HIS WIFE ANGELA, AND MY SISTER ALYSON AND HER HUSBAND GREG ARE BOTH EXPECTING. YEP, BOTH COUPLES THAT WERE MARRIED THIS PAST YEAR. I'M SO EXCITED FOR THE BOTH OF THEM. I'VE KNOWN FOR A WHILE BUT WANTED TO WAIT TO SHARE. I THINK BOTH COUPLES ARE REALLY EXCITED AND I THINK THIS IS A WONDERFUL BLESSING FOR THE BOTH OF THEM. WHO CAN COMPLAIN ABOUT HAVING CHILDREN. IT'S THE MOST REWARDING THING THAT CAN HAPPEN TO ANY TWO PEOPLE. GREG AND AARON PUT ON YOUR RESPONSIBLE SHOES, HERE COMES FATHERHOOD AND THE REALITY SHOCK OF YOUR LIFE. ALYSON AND ANGELA, GOOD LUCK, KEEP THE TUMS IN STOCK, AND EAT ALL YOUR LITTLE HEARTS DESIRE!

THE GLUE THAT HOLDS US TOGETHER

Okay so I take lots of pictures, but this is definitely one of my favorites that I have taken this year. I think my parents look awesome. I owe them both a lot of credit and want to praise them for the great job they have done as parents and grandparents too. Thanks Mom and Dad!

SUNDAYS...NOT ALWAYS A DAY OF REST

AN OVERVIEW OF OUR NOT SO REVERENT SUNDAY.......
Mom wakes up to Cara asking for juice
Mom goes into the kitchen to find that Cara has already poured herself some juice and it's all down the refrigerator door and onto the floor.
Mom attempts to take a shower in peace....not so successful.
Ryleigh wakes up covered in pee...so of course her sheets need washing.
Kids in bathtub to get ready for church...Cara puts towels and full bottle of shampoo in the tub with her. One big,wet,sticky mess.
Mom irons, dresses kids, and realizes Ryleigh's and Carson's church shoes don't fit. Hmmmm....funny how they fit last Sunday. Mom irons different dresses to match shoes. Crazy Mom!
Mom does girls hair while listening to them fight over the squirt bottle the whole time
Where's Dad?????????????????????sleeping
Kids eat breakfast and actually do it without spilling. Go kids!
Mom starts lasagna for dinner.
Mom gets dressed and does hair.
Mom gets church bags, treats, crayons, and lesson together.
Where's Dad????????????????????????sleeping
Dad hears Mom stressing and finally wakes up.
Mom leaves for church and lets Dad bring the kids.
Sacrament....spent in the hall.
Sunday school......Mommy daydreaming.
Young Women's.....Mommy teaching in hopes that the girls get at least one thing out of her lesson.
Church over. Mommy gets new calling. That to come next week after sustaining.
Home from church and off to cooking Mom goes.
Mom looks over lesson for next week
Dinnertime
Ryleigh off to bed.
Mom cleans dinner.
Mom finally gets some down time to blog, look at a book, and maybe but most likely not take a nap.

Okay so now that I've shared my day of rest, how about you? Was your Sunday as hectic as mine?

DANCING QUEEN

Cara at Ms. Erica's dance class

Cara showing us her silly side with her mouth wide open.

Cara teaching Ryleigh a new dance routine.

As I wrote in a previous post, Cara is definitely our little dancer. She loves it. She loves to dress in her leotards, wear her ballet slippers and even put her hair in a tight ponytail like the ballerinas. I'm pretty sure watching the full series of the barbie "Dancing Princesses" has done this to her. I wish I could say she's graceful but that's something we're still working on. Her favorite routine(one she learned from Ms. Erica) is pleay, pleay, super jump, splits and leap. She has got Ryleigh into the routine and loves to dress Ryleigh up and play dance. This is when I love being a mom to girls. It's so fun to buy the dress-ups, fancy shoes, and obnoxious jewelry for them to play with. Cara will be dancing with Ginny Mount studios this fall and her first recital will be in December. Pictures of that to come in the future.

SWEET AND SALTY PRETZELS

I love this recipe and promised to share it with some of you. It's great for snacking on and not too bad for you either.

1 T. Honey
1 T. white corn syrup
2T. butter
1/3c. brown sugar

Microwave for 1 minute, stir. Put back in microwave and cook for an additional 1 minute. Take out and add 1/8 tsp. baking soda. Pour over pretzels (10 oz. bag). Put back in microwave for another 1 1/2 minutes.

Take out and spread on non-stick sprayed wax paper. Let cool and enjoy!

BLADDER INFECTION AND WARTS...OOOO GROSE!

I took Carson and Cara in for a doctors appointment today. Cara has been using the bathroom non stop and has complained of a belly ache. Poor Carson....the kids left hand is covered in warts. So Carson had his warts burned off and we found out Cara has a bladder infection. They were both super brave and hopefully after some antibiotics we'll get both problems cured up shortly.

CARSON'S FIRST FOOTBALL JAMBOREE GAME

All I can say is that I have a good ball player. I was so proud of Carson at his first game last night against the Vikings. He is such a strong player and loves the game too. He made the only touchdown for the team and I can't even tell you how many times he pulled an opposing players flag. Here are some of the comments we heard his coaches and other parents telling him last night-

"God bless you Carson."

"Carson, keep up the pretty plays."

"Carson, you had a great game."

"Carson, has wheels attached to those legs."

"Carson, start taking water breaks before the games, because I need you for every second of the game."

No, I'm not a proud Mom or anything. Dave too. We couldn't stop our nerves from getting the best of us the whole game. It's hard when you have a strong player and when a big part of the game rides on his shoulders. It's stressful but yet very rewarding too. Carson has definitely found his game. Go Carson!!!

POOL PARTY

"TGIF"

We spent our Friday afternoon in the pool at our friend Shauna White's house. The girls had a great time playing with their little primary and nursery friends and Mommy had a great time chit chatting with my Mommy friends. I've been really lucky to make some good friends in Collierville, not only at church but in the neighborhood too. I still haven't found my Shalana, Heidi, Jennifer, Anne, or Jenalynn yet, but I've realized that this is a different time and place in my life and it's time to start new relationships and make new memories with the great ladies I have met here.

THE "DOG DAYS" OF SUMMER

So I thought I would introduce all of you to my new best friend, yep you guessed it....my sprinkler. Does this sight look familiar to any of you? Brown spots all over? I am constantly watering the lawn and it does not seem to be helping at all. Oh and just a side note to anyone of you who are reading and are interested, don't ever buy a corner lot. We thought it was the greatest and made our house look so nice, but what we didn't think of was the added extra work. It almost adds another hour on to cutting the grass and watering too. I know it's hot and my neighbors think I am crazy for even trying but what they don't understand is that I'm used to that nice lush, green grass I had in Utah. I miss it. Although from what it sounds like I wouldn't have that in Utah right now either. I think the heat has taken over the country. It's still 110 here and I'm still constantly sweating. I think I need underarm botox! Anyone else? I don't know if I'll ever get over this humidity. I love working in my yard. It's a hobby, a stress reducer, and a goal for me to get my grass back to normal. I know I'm nuts! Happy yard working to the rest of you!!!!

AARON AND ANGELA SAY "I DO"

My darling little kids, loved the girls dresses, and Carson looks quite dashing too.
Natalie's family. Baby Collin, Abigail, and Carter

Ryleigh and Carter
Our kids loved dancing. They partied all night long!



The bride and groom with the Hooper grandkids.

Us girls with our Mom. Doesn't she look nice?

Matt and Dave wondering when this whole thing will be over.

So I finally got all of my pics organized from Aaron's wedding. Aaron's new bride is Angela Adam's. They met working as servers at Mimi's Cafe in Orem, Ut. Angela is the youngest of five daughters and her parents reside in Highland, Ut. Angela likes to dance, shop, and has a great personality. We as a family knew the moment we met her that she was the one. Angela as you can see is beautiful and I think her and Aaron make a handsome couple. We're excited to have her in our family. Good job Aaron!

CARAANN.....MY WILD CHILD

Okay So I've decided to share my experience that I had over the weekend being a mother to Cara. I have to share otherwise I might just sit down and cry.

Friday:

Mom wakes up by finding a Mtn. Dew in her hands

spills her cereal

decides to paint her rug in her room with craft paint

finds Carson's school supplies

puts on her 10th outfit by noon

spills Mom's Diet Coke on the kitchen rugs
colors on her shirt with purple marker

colors on Carson's homework

colors on Mom's passport application

Saturday:

spills apple juice all over the kitchen floor

spills her chocolate milk on the garage floor
gets gum and milk in her hair

has Tyler over and together they climb the pantry to find more gum

dumps all of her Lego's out and yes, spills her juice on those

Sunday:

writes in her scriptures

spills gold fish all over the chapel

drops her drink at the ward potluck

floods the flowers in the backyard

writes on the kitchen cabinets

has an accident in her pants

takes rocks out of the coi pond and throws them in the neighbors yard

teaches Ryleigh how to climb the pantry

gets chocolate pudding all over her dress

pulls down all of the DVDs from the shelf

It's a good thing she's cute. Dave blames it on her being girl. Hopefully Ryleigh isn't like this. I don't think I can take anymore. I promise I watch her but lets face it, we can't be our children's shadow all of the time.

JEANETTE...THIS ONE'S FOR YOU

Catherine and Jeanette (friends from Cottonwood) thanks so much for calling me. You two can always put a smile on my face. Gotta go, it's 5:00 somewhere.......

I HAVE A FAMILY HERE ON EARTH. THEY ARE SO GOOD TO ME. I WANT TO SHARE MY LIFE WITH THEM THROUGH ALL ETERNITY. FAMILIES CAN BE TOGETHER FOREVER THROUGH HEAVENLY FATHER'S PLAN. I ALWAYS WANT TO BE WITH MY OWN FAMILY AND THE LORD HAS SHOWN ME HOW I CAN...THE LORD HAS SHOWN ME HOW I CAN.

MY FAMILY

A few of you have asked how my family is doing. Here's a picture to show that we're all doing great. This is one of the most recent pics I have where most of us are together. We're at The Pizza Factory. Any Pizza Factory fans? All of us and our spouses are there except for my Mom and I of course, the two ladies married to pilots. Most of the grand kids are missing too. Just a run down around the table clockwise. Alyson and Greg: married last October and have son Tanner. Alyson and Greg just returned from selling Pest Control in Bakersfield, California and are currently starting life again in Cedar Hills, Utah. Aaron and Angela: married in June, also took the awful task of selling Pest Control and are now residing in Orem. Aaron is currently in the Air National Guard and they are both staying busy working at Mimi's and going to school. Natalie and Matt are in Billings, Montana where Matt works for The Home Health industry and Natalie is a stay at home Mom. Their children are Abigail, Carter, and Collin. Myself, Abigail, and my Mom. My Mom and Dad are still in Alpine, Utah. My Dad is the General of the Utah Air National Guard and still flies for Northwest Airlines. My Mom keeps very busy as Relief Society pres. and when she's not doing that she's usually backing my Dad up at events or visiting one of us. So there it is in a nutshell. We're all healthy and happy and even though miles apart we're all still connected at the hip!

TOP TEN REASONS WE LIKE MEMPHIS

1-Tara Oaks Elementary School
2-Youth Athletics
3-Granny Janny
4-The BBQ
5-The Collierville Ward
6-The humidity....psych
7-The Blues
8-Elvis
9-FedEx
10-Our beautiful home..we couldn't afford in Utah

THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM

If you haven't seen it, see it. It's a great movie and of course Matt Damon is always good to look at too. Just a bit of advice if you need a date night this weekend.

WHILE THE BOYS ARE AWAY THE GIRLS MUST PLAY

Now that Carson is back in school and Dave has been working a little more I decided it's time to just veg out and let the girls do their thing. This picture pretty much explains it. As I gossip with neighbors, drink my fair share of Diet Coke, and bake in the heat my girls pretty much tear the house and yard apart. I give up though! The heat is killing me and it's all I can do just to stay awake during the middle of the afternoon. Thank goodness for caffeine!

FOOTBALL IN THE SOUTH

Carson just found out he is on the RAIDERS football team. He is starting his football experience with Coach Madden. Sound familiar to any of you gamers? Yes, he is cousin to John Madden. We hope he can keep up. There's nothing like football in the South. Carson is playing flag football and they even held a draft for that. When they held evals last Saturday, Carson was the fastest runner out of 331 kids. We hope he keeps it up. Mom and Dad would love to retire off the coast of San Diego one day.

CARSON'S FIRST DAY OF SECOND GRADE

Carson was so excited for second grade. He had ants in his pants all morning. So far, he loves his teacher Mrs. Marsh. He is excited to be back to his school routine and believe me Mom is too. He told me yesterday I don't need to worry about him anymore because that's his teachers job now. I wish it were that easy. Props to all teachers. He also told me that next year he wants a backpack without any pictures on it because he's getting older and the big kids have plain backpacks. Here, I thought I was the cool Mom, because my son was the only one in his class with a "Transformers" bag. Oh well, so much for coolness.

Pics of Pensacola

Danny and Amy
Danny and Carson swim with the Jellyfish, while I get stung by one. Ouch!

If it has to do with makeup, Cara's all in

Our future cheerleader

Like I said in my earlier post, we took a a weekend to go see Danny, Dave's brother and his wife Amy. This is a picture at the Pensacola beachfront. My kids had a great time. Thanks again you two.

Cara and Ryleigh, best little buddies!

Cara and Ryleigh are getting to where they are best little friends. They love to play dress-up, watch movies together, and of course eat. I don't know about anyone else's children, but mine are constantly eating. I feel like I can't keep up. Maybe I just feel like it's constant because I'm always sweeping, mopping, and vacuuming. Oh well, life goes on.

CONFESSION

I have decided to confess......I am married to an addict, a World of Warcraft addict. Anyone else? It SUCKS!!!!!!!

GIRLS CAMP 2007

I loved being camp director. I can't think of anything more rewarding than spending 4 days with these wonderful Young Women. I learned so much about each one of them and myself. I hope they had a wonderful time. I know I did. That's me on the far right in the black with my 25 special girls.

Dani and Lacey, if you get this, HELP!!!! Still not sure what I'm doing.

My friend Lacey got me hooked to her own blog, so I decided to give this thing a try. I hope it makes sense to you, because it's not making sense to me.

WE MADE IT 10 YEARS~ AUGUST 7, 2007

Dave and I just celebrated our ten year anniversary. If we can do it...you can do it. No really though, it's been a fun ride. We've made some great memories together. Dave and I are definitely each other's best friend. We unlike most couples, spend a ton of time together. We've really learned a lot about one another this past year. We've had many heart to hearts on the couch as we contemplate going out and doing yard work together or not. Dave and I are both two very independent people and it really works in our marriage. We've lived in 5 different houses and now call Tennessee our home for a while. Whoever thought (Natalie, Lacey, Katie) the days of Sigma Chi and Alpha Chi, fun times at Pineview and Utah State would have ever brought such a wonderful thing. Dave thanks for not only being my husband but my best friend and biggest fan. I love you tons! Nicole