Busy Week - Random Pictures

This is our last week of school and we've been very busy building up to it. So, this week's post is small bits of our week and random pictures.

Last Sunday was Mother's Day and I got spoiled! I got 13 long stem roses (one for each year Kal's put up with me). The kids had a large assortment of homemade cards. Kaleb even set up a display with signs and a cup that used to have Oreos. I thought it was very considerate of him to eat the Oreos for me since I've been trying to cut back on sugar. Kalvan made super yummy whole wheat waffles with strawberry puree and sugar-free whipped cream (oops, that was his first time making whipped cream and he didn't know you have to add sugar). For our dinner he made fabulous chicken kabobs. They were so good and best of all, I did none of the work!

I think Karter wants to be a photographer when he grows up. On a regular basis I'll turn to see him pointing the camera at me and yelling at me to smile. Then, he demands that I take a picture of him. Of course that sounds easy until you figure in that he's a moving target. He never holds still for a picture. He wants an action shot.

On Monday, Kaleb had his second piano recital. He did a really good job. Cub Scout Day Camp started on wednesday and went through Saturday. It's amazing all they accomplish at those camps. They did everything from archery, crafts and sports to cooking, carpentry and bicycling. The toughest part was that it was at least 90 degrees the whole time. Fortunately

, the stake leaders are wise and make kick ball into slip and slide kick ball. Water is an essential element of outdoor activities here in the desert.

Backing up, we have to mention that Sage started piano lessons on May 6th. She's super excited and we can't get her to do much other than "practice" even though what she's playing has nothing to do with her lesson or the music in front of her. We're hoping her enthusiasm will continue and sooner or later she'll see the necessity of practicing the actual lesson.

SWEET GET AWAY!

This weekend we had the priviledge of having 24 hours away from home, kids, callings, responsibilities, and work. We have some fantastic friends who volunteered to take our kids for 24 hours so we could have a little time to ourselves. I was so excited to get off on this little adventure, I was actually giddy when I came home from work Friday after having the worst day on record. I never would have guessed I could be in such a good mood after a day like that one.

Anyway, Friday afternoon we took off for a little Bed and Breakfast in St. George, UT called Ava House Inn. It was adorable! From the guest book we learned they even have a ghost! I can't say we saw anything though, bummer. It was a great get away, we did nothing. You heard right, we did nothing. We didn't go out to eat, we didn't take in a show, nothing. It was wonderful to get a whole 9 hours of sleep and not be woken up at 6:30am by a thirsty 3 year old! By noon on Saturday we decided we'd go to the temple and visit Kal's childhood best friend. The most responsible thing we did was come back and get our kids only an hour late. Thanks so much Ben and Terresa for taking our kids!

Auto Insurance Rant

OK, so is it industry standard for auto policy rates to hike every year? We switched insurance companies a couple years ago because our last company (Allstate) kept hiking our rates every renewal without cause (no tickets, accidents, or claims of any kind whatsoever). Now our new company (Liberty Mutual) started doing the same thing (still no tickets, accidents, or claims of any kind).

I thought maybe it's time to shop around again and get some new quotes. But then I thought of all the hassle it brings and really didn't want to do that. So I thought, alright, I'll call Liberty Mutual and ask them to lower my rate on my existing policy, you know, give me a new quote. I got the guy on the phone and he says, "Let me verify your information." He starts reviewing my policy to see if everything is correct, says he doesn't see any other discounts available to us, but then he asks how many miles we put on each car, so I told him what I thought we put on the cars. BIG MISTAKE!!! He then says to me that they had the usage on the vehicles lower than what I told him. I ask, isn't that just an estimate anyway? So we went to visit Grandma twice this year instead of once! He says that he has to enter the new usage into the computer, our rate will go up over $100 something dollars (I wasn't really listening at this point to hear the new rate), and that we would be receiving the new policy in the mail within 7 to 10 days. Then he asks if there is anything else he can do for me today? At this point I'm trying not to think bad thoughts! I told him Liberty Mutual SUCKS, I was going to find another insurance company, and, of course, politely said goodbye.

Now I have the hassle of finding a new insurance company to insure my autos before I give anymore money to Liberty Mutual. Had to get that off my chest. Please, someone, tell me if this is just a Liberty Mutual problem or an industry wide problem?

Warm Springs Camping

On April 24th, we went camping up at Warm Springs (map). If you haven't been there, Warm Springs is a piece of property owned by the church that they have developed with a couple of swimming pools and a nice camping area. It is an hour drive north of Henderson. There's also a beautiful stream that run directly behind the camping area. The water is warm, I think about 85 degrees. You have to go as a group and have reservations and it is a great little oasis in the desert. We went with Families Supporting Adopotion (FSA). We have been there a couple of times a few years ago, but haven't been back since.

Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate. It was very windy and kept us awake most of the night. The morning was cold and rained a tiny bit after we broke down the tent. We still had a great time, though, visiting with the others in our group around the campfire and just being outdoors. This is the best place to camp near Las Vegas. If you every get the chance to go, be sure not to miss it!

Don't get the genie mad at you

A few years ago, a very thoughtful friend of mine bought us the Disney Aladdin Special Edition DVD as a Christmas gift. It got watched several times at first, but eventually sat on the shelf with small collection of DVDs we have...that is until Karter discovered it! Aladdin happened to be the movie selected for the day and Karter just could not stop laughing at the part where the genie gets angry at Aladdin for insulting his genie power as played out in a trick to get them out of the Cave of Wonders. Karter asked to watch Aladdin everyday forever it seemed just to see that part of the movie...until he started using the lines on us. Thanks again Janice! Now you get to see it too...

The 16 second scene from original movie version as found on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFfG8C9Ap9w

And Karter's rendition (April 2009):

New Shutters

This month of May marks our fourth year of living in our house. Today we finally got a start on window coverings. I say "a start" since it will probably take a few more years of decent tax returns to finish the rest of the house. I was hoping, with 5 willing estimates, the time would be right to get a screamin' deal, but every which way I look (home improvement, travel, food), I certainly don't notice any "good deals" due to the recession from my point of view. Same expensive prices everywhere. Everybody seemed eager (desperate, one told me) to do the work, but nobody is willing to lower their prices to my expectation. We looked at (in order of cost) vinyl, composite, foam, and wood shutters. We ended up choosing the foam ("Polywood") shutters. I think they will hold up the best. I'm sure my kids will put them to the test!

I admit that after four years I had gotten used to having the windows uncovered and liked it. I like being able to see out of the windows day and night, like nobody can sneak up on you. But it also gives you the fish-bowl feeling when you have indoor lights on at night and everyone can see in, too. I think we lasted this long because we have nothing to hide! Anyhow, we started with the downstairs living space windows (living room, office, and entry). Here are a couple of before and after shots of the living room.


We got the 4.5 inch louvers to let as much light come through as possible during the day, but the difference is still very noticeable. When they are folded open, though, it's not so different. I'm sure we'll have them folded open most days to let the light in and not obstruct the view of the backyard. They do look good!