All About the Argyles

It was better than the book. And I loved the book! We all cried like a bunch of babies. Poor Reagan was uncontrollably sobbing through the last ten minutes. We want to go back and see it again. yes, it was THAT good.

Today, I am NOT going to concern myself with.... dirty dishes floors in need of vacuuming new toys from Santa strewn about achieving laundry nirvana - (it doesn't exist, btw) getting the car oil changed preparing for my pres. mtg later this week TODAY I am going to... do Brady's new puzzle with him watch a movie with Jensen Play Hannah Montana on Wii with the girls shoot some hoops with Tanner write a couple of thank you notes to people who enrich my life ...and ENJOY my family being home!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

So we found this under the tree..... Brady wanted to join in on the gift-giving spirit but funds must have been limited, I guess. He asked Reagan to write "To: Reagan, From: Brady" on toilet paper and then picked out one of his trucks to give to her. He wrapped it in the toilet paper and stuck it under the tree. Too cute.

I was suffering last week from a bout of blog-negligence due to the time hog that my calling has recently become. I will be back in full swing soon, though. For now, this will have to suffice: Haley asked for teacher gift ideas. Here is a favorite of mine. Go to your local Blockbuster and get a large popcorn bucket and fill it with goodies for the movie. We like the pretzel Dips and Hot Tamales but they have EVERYTHING you can think of. Then throw in a Gift Card for a movie rental ( or two or three or ten - if you REALLY like your kid's teacher). If you wanna go crazy you could add a GC for dinner somewhere too. I have always gotten good feedback from teacher' s when we give them this.

I was so touched by this man who lost four loved ones to a tragic accident. Such a Christlike reaction, so immediate. Read on and be touched: A korean whose wife, two young daughters and mother-in-law perished when a military jet crashed into his house says he doesn't blame the pilot who safely ejected. The Marine Corps fighter plane was returning from an offshore training mission Monday when it clipped a tree and slammed into homes about two miles from its base. Two homes were incinerated, and three others were damaged. Three generations of a Korean family died in one home. The family's pastor, the Rev. Kevin Lee of the Korean United Methodist Church in San Diego, identified three of them as Young Mi Yoon, 36; her 2-month-old daughter, Rachel; and her mother, Suk Im Kim, 60, who was visiting from South Korea to help care for her daughter's newborn. The body of 15-month-old Grace Yoon, Rachel's sister, was found in the home Tuesday, Fire Department spokesman Maurice Luq...

What a wonderful day! It far surpassed my expectations. We had so many loved ones and friends there. It meant alot to us that so many took time out of their Saturday to come celebrate with us. When I got home I realized I didn't have any pictures of me with MCkinley! :O( I am hoping my dad got one. I didn't get a pic of him with her either! He and I were taking all the pics. If any of you have pictures that you took, please email them to me! Here are a few of the folks that showed up.... Lindsey and Kyle (my sister and her hubby)..... The Fredericksens (friends from C2) made it! We were so happy to see them! Memomie (my Dad's mom) came from Saginaw for the big day! That is my mom with my sister. Papa Jack came and gave the closing prayer. We love him so much! Grandaddy (my Mother's father) and Lila came. McKinley's middle name is "Ilene". She is named after a very dear friend of mine that died about 14 years ago. Her oldest daughter, Lynsi, came. She to...

We went to playgroup today with our friends, the Sallaways. On our way out we stumbled upon the big guy himself! He was hanging out in Nordstrom of all places and there wasn't a line or anything! This is a perfect example of why I am glad to have a camera small enough to carry with me all the time. BTW, We had to take this pic of Brady and Ashley holding hands. They do it all the time. We have decided we will put it out for all to see at their wedding reception in about 20 years.

I saw this tag on jessica's blog. It looked like fun. I am one of the few people in the blog-o-sphere that actually ENJOYS tag. I like to do them and I like to read them. I am supposed to do it in a word but that is HARD! I tried my darndest. I actually filled this out on Sat. and scheduled it to go out today so that is why it says we went to the temple last night (Ward Temple night was Friday)..... 1. Where is your cell phone? charging 2. Where is your significant other? home 3. Your hair color? blonde-ish 4. Your mother? atypical 5. Your father? generous 6. Your favorite thing? family 7. Your dream last night? sad 8. Your dream/goal? salvation 9. The room you're in? office 10. Your hobby? reading 11. Your fear? illness 12. Where do you want to be in six years? better 13. Where were you last night? Temple (and "Uncle Julio's") 14. What you're not? patient 15. One of your wish list items? trainer 16. Where you grew up? Carrollton 17. The last thing you did? sh...

We had a nice Thanksgiving at my Aunt and Uncle's house. Here are some pics. This is my Aunt, Sharon. She is one of my best friends and favorite people walking the planet! Everyone chipped in to help. Reagan sets one of three tables. We had ALOT of people there. My Uncle, Greg. Gettin in the mood for the holidays with some reindeer ears. This is my little sister, Lindsey. Everyone says Reagan looks (and acts) just like her. I brought a Tomato/Mozzarella Salad. It is my new fave. and a Granola Chocolate-Chip Pie. It sounds weird but it's divine! "Chief" Brady made sure the Native American population was represented at our Thanksgiving festivities. He made this at pre-school for their party and insisted on wearing it again. "Gigi" ( my grandmother) with the girls. They played dominoes while we waited for the feast to begin. Check her out in her black leather coat. She is the coolest and I just love her so much. Every year I wonder if this might be my las...

I love this talk! I found it years ago. I was having a trial because of someone who had been less than kind to me over an extended period of time. This talk provided alot of peace and comfort to me. I keep it in a file of favorites to study every once in awhile. I especially love the story at the end from the life of Elder Talmadge. He was the author of "Jesus the Christ". After reading this, it is no wonder he had such an understanding of the Savior's nature. He exemplified it in his own life. If you don't have time for scripture study today, read this post and then reflect on it while you spend time with the kids, cook, grocery shop, clean the house and it will edify you. I promise. I often wonder why some feel they must be critical of others. It gets in their blood, I suppose, and it becomes so natural they often don’t even think about it. They seem to criticize everyone—the way Sister Jones leads the music, the way Brother Smith teaches a lesson or plants his ga...

When Tanner got his brown belt - right before he got his Black belt. Can you believe how much he has changedin 4 short years?

TA DA!!! Why did Santa come early? Because I was grossly negligent with my last camera. A really nice one that my dh gave me LAST year for Christmas. I dropped it while taking pictures on the first day of school and even though my dh took it in to get it fixed- it was never the same. I wanted one that was small and could fit in my purse. That is also the reason I haven't posted much this week. Never fear dear friends!! I will be back in the saddle as soon as she is done charging up!!!! Have a great weekend Folks!

My cousin posted this pic when she mentioned that she had some changes in her life that would require some stretching on her part. It got me to thinkin' about all the things that have helped me stretch over the years. Here are my top five, in order. 1. Brent's illness 2. Being married to a Bishop while trying to raise 4 young children 3. graduating from College while working, being a newlywed 4. My present calling 5. being raised as a step-child I am a different person today because of all of the above and I am so glad I made it! What is the thing that has made you stretch the most and why?

Don't know what to do with all those pictures, certificates, ribbons, etc that your little guys come home with all the time? I had an idea once and now when other moms come over they comment on it so I thought I would share (sorry about the picture quality, I am having camera issues again but you get the idea)... Some of you are so talented - you could doll your brag boards up but since I am not crafty mine are just plain.... You can put anything on them. I have pictures of my girls when they were flower girls at my sister's wedding, Tanner's certificate showing he is a black belt in Karate, notes from the desk fairy proclaiming desk cleanliness, swim team ribbons, original artwork, etc.

I love this kid. Sometimes I marvel that 1/2 of him came from MY gene pool. Brent and I secretly refer to him as our little Nephi. He is such a good boy. No he is a GREAT PERSON. One of the BEST people I know. Today he suffered a disappointment. It broke his mother's heart. I went in my room where noone could see and shed a tear. I love him so much and ,as his mom, it is hard for me to see him experience disappointment. Not making the team doesn't really seem like a big deal but when you are in the 7th grade it can feel like it. Not this 7th grader, though. He walked through the door with a big smile on his face, announced the bad news, and then went outside to shoot some more hoops. He is not the least bit upset. Even when he told me that one of his "friends" who had made the team kind of rubbed it in ( SO not cool ) he said it didn't bother him. I really don't think it did. I think he was happy for the guy. I love that about him. There are kids that seem lik...

I used to have a little corner in our bedroom for my desk but got a wild idea to move it upstairs to an area off the game room. Now I have more space and the added bonus of being able to see the tv in the media room while I pay bills, scrap, e-mail, blog, etc...What do you think? The big pink boxes hold all of my scrapbooking supplies. Zeus thinks the green rug on the floor was purchased just for him to lie on when I am up there working. It needs paint but I haven't decided yet what color. Any suggestions?

We took Jensen's friend, Caitlin, to see HSM3 on Saturday - she hadn't seen it yet -and we LOVED it and wanted to see it again. Then we suprised McKinley with a suggestion after the movie, "since you are turning 8 tomorrow do you want to go get your ears pierced?" If you have a little girl wanting to get her ears pierced I recommend Libby Lu - they make a much bigger deal about it and are so good with the girls AND they were ALOT cheaper than Claire's (where we got Jensen's pierced last year). She was so nervous! And a shout out to my bud Tanner who was a trooper sitting in the front of Libby Lu (for all to see) watching our purses and bags during the big event. That had to be sheer torture for a 12 year old boy but he was a great sport, as always.

We were coming home from dinner in West Plano tonight in the heavy rain. I was driving. All of a sudden the car completely hydroplaned and we literally spinned twice completely around on the toll road. I can't believe we didn't roll. It was a miracle. Noone was hurt. We were all pretty shaken up, realizing how close we came to rolling and who knows what else... We immediately went to our knees when we got home and said a prayer of thanks to Heavenly Father for keeping us safe. I know he kept me calm in the midst of it all so that I could think clearly. I know he kept us from hitting the barrier or jumping the barrier or rolling the car with the 6 most precious things I have in it. Miracles DO happen.

At our awards ceremony on Friday Reagan was recognized for achievement in Language Arts (she is a big time reader like her mom) and again by the Art teacher for achievement in Art (which she MUST get from Dad cuz' I haven't got an artsy bone in my body and we seem to have a few kids with that ability). McKinley was recognized with the certificate of citizenship for Outstanding Behavior.