Easter 2009

Happy Easter, 2009!

You Wanna Be Friends With Her? not so much.

It's April and Spring has disappeared!
Spring where did you go? Why have you left me? You seemed to have started this relationship off really strong. Why have you given into your white, cold, fluffy friend?It seems she may be influencing you to do things. Don't get me wrong, I like her. She is a welcomed comrade...just concerned she has overstayed her welcome this time.... And don't think that I am jealous, 'cause I'm not! I'm just concerned about our friendship and think that maybe you need to think about where your relationship with her might lead you. Maybe you should hang out with a few other friends for awhile. How about I have a party and you can invite a few other friends to join us? I like that bright, warm, yellow one you have! If you invite her, I'll BBQ outside on the patio! Tempting isn't it?

Was that too Dramatic? Maybe? Well, I can't help myself. I have so much planned this month I can barely stand it! Maybe we ALL need a party or 2 or 3 or 12 to attend or... Boutique Shopping is always a good way to cure Spring Fever Right? (sorry to link to my other blog but these shows are super cute and fun if you are into shopping or looking even...AND I'm poor so go buy my stuff!)

5 years old!!

On January 30th Sophie turned the BIG 5-....well just that, the BIG 5! We decided a few years ago that we would only do birthday "Parties" on significant birthday years. So like 5, 8, 12, 16. So Sophie got to have a party this year and we wanted to make it extra special. She had told me that she wanted to have a "Princess Pony Party", whatever the heck that is. So we began planning...

We started the day off with presents from Mom and Dad...
A pack of gum!... since our children are not allowed to have gum until they are 5! She was thrilled! We could have stopped there but we didn't...

Sophie got dance clothes and dance lessons... 2 leotards with matching skirts and tights and both tap and ballet shoes!!!Her first lesson was THAT day!But not until after a little breakfast... I always TRY to ask the kids the night before their birthday what they would like for their Birthday Breakfast...They usually choose a stack of Birthday Pancakes (a stack of homemade pancakes w/ sprinkles and whipped cream) and that is what she wanted!

Check out her pack of gum sitting there...she is still carrying it around in her backpack!

Sophie and Nora both were excited to get dressed for dance lessons even though Sophie was the only one actually going...Nora accessorized well this day and all by herself.

Sophie was a little nervous to be going to dance but as you can see, that gum in her cheek kept her calm until we arrived at Mrs. Dena's and I made her spit it out!

We had planned to have her party the following day but later in the day I became VERY sick and ended up at the Urgent Care...I found out I had Strep and Meningitis so the party had to be postponed until the following week.


We started the party off with a few games like Horse, Horse, Pony and Pin the tail on the Pony....but only after everyone put on their very own"ponytail" that I made out of yarn...they tied them around their waists and took them home as party favors along with several other "pony" items.

I spent most of the morning making this cake...I didn't have a pattern but as many of you know, I think I can do anything and so I did...You can see how the icing fell into the cracks after I moved it from it's original spot...Oh! well. They are only 5 and the kids thought it was FABULOUS!!!


I think she got ALL five candles on her first try! Lots of air for a 5 year old!

All of the girls enjoyed their cake and ice cream...


Then we opened presents! and watched a princess video. Sophie loved her party and I really think it made her feel special. She told me that now that she is 5 she can make better choices!


I love her dearly...I can't believe she is 5 already. She is growing up so fast! Love you Sass A Frass!

Sophia Wood - Photographer

I found these pics on my Iphone one day...I don't when they were taken exactly but I do know who took them. Sophie is obsessed with fashion, modeling and photography! Check out her version of a Fashion Photo Shoot.







I have found a few other "photo shoots" that I was unaware of...I will post more pics as they become available!

Gettin' the Boot!

Last night I went to dinner with a few friends (for my birthday). As we talked we discovered that most of us our bloggers (do you have to be good at it to be considered a blogger, right? cause I'm obviously not). Anyway, a few of my friends told me that if I didn't update SOON that I would be removed from their precious sidebar space because I NEVER update my blog. SORRY! I didn't know anyone even read my blog, much less that I had landed a spot on the sidebar! So...here ya go girls!

Where should I begin? Let me check to see what I last posted about....HOLY CRAP! It has been a long time... at least since I "really" posted.

November 30th I loaded all of the kids into the Odessey and hit the road. I had been wanting to go to California to see one of my dearest friends & her family for YEARS! We had been talking on the phone alot and she was aware of my business so she called and asked me if I wanted to come out and do a show at THE CLUB we worked at together when I lived out there. She also said she would have an open house at her home.

It took us 11 hrs. to get there. The kids were exhausted and shy. It only took 5 minutes for them to warm up to their new California friends...They spent the next 2 days hanging out with their long lost cousins, Nitz, Nitz and NiNi Holladay! They loved every minute of it. Then, I took them to the Golden Gate Bridge...



IT WAS FABULOUS!!!! As you can see the kids were super excited to be there. Ladd was very brave and Nora was an absolute dream...Sophie on the other hand, was a little protective & bossy! lol! HOLY CRAP! am I the biggest idiot inthe whole world or what? I don't think we even made it past the waters' edge. Mybe next time. Here are a few more pics form my iphone.



The sun was fading fast and we had not yet been to the BEACH!! We ran back to the car but, not without ANOTHER potty break and headed for the nearest "beach". With the help of the Garmin we made it to China Beach with just moments of sunlight left.

The Following pictures are of our experience...the photo above is by Ingrid Talar. I hope you don't mind that I stole if off the interenet...


Once again! It was Fabulous...The lkids wouldn't even step foot onto the sand. The waves were crashing, dark was upon us and "those big Rocks were Freaking us out.."

The kids loved the Palm Trees..Ladd kept saying "I can't believe California has Hawaii Trees!"

I tried to explain to them that the Bridge was the one that we had just come from...They didn't care. They just wanted to leave. There were no crabs or sharks to be seen so what was the point of us being at a scarey beach.

The Pacific Ocean!
Next time we go to the beach, there will have to be LOTS of sunlight! The way we all prefer it!

So, Ladies...that is all I have time for at the moment...Stay tuned, More Blogging to come!!! Am I still gettin' the Boot?

Demi-Dos is having a Sale!

Open House
Tues. January 27th
10-6 p.m.
2068 West 2180 North

We are booking parties and debuting our Spring line of Flower Clips and coordinating Sashes! We are having a 25% OFF sale as well. All scarves and gloves are going to be on sale! Tell all of your friends and come checkout all that demi-dos has to offer. Don't forget, anyone that books a party on Tues. January 27th will receive a sash of their choice...just for booking a party! See you there!

Help us Save Handmade!

As producers of handmade products we are looking to our supporters to help us SAVE the products that we make!

The Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act is going to go into place in February of 2009. This Act will close our business as well as ALL other handmade businesses!

Please read what Cool Mom Picks has to say and join us in our efforts to SAVE HANDMADE!

i hate today...

Do you ever get up in the morning and just not feel good? I'm sure we all do. Today is one of those days! my body aches, i got a nasty text message from a customer, my house is a wreck, i tried to take a nap which seems to have made things worse, i gained 2 lbs., jase and i had an argument, etc...

i have been reading other people's blogs and everyone is so positive. I think i want to barf. I am seriously in a nasty "funk" as Rosemary would say. So, as i have been reading, I've been thinking "why do we blog"? Is it to show off our cute kids? fill a void? inform others? teach a lesson? journal our lives? communicate with family? why do you blog? I'm not really sure why i blog? maybe a little bit of everything?

This post is because I want record how stupid I can be. As. I've been sitting here I have come to realize that I don't have to hate today. I can decide to love today. oh weird! as I was just typing that. the room lit up....the sun just came shining through the cracks in the blinds. let's see what i can make of the day...1st thing on the list, ibuprofen!

Annee & Harvey

Today is Nick and Annee's Anniversary. I have had Annee on my mind all weekend. Saturday was the anniversary of her passing. I miss her.

For those of you that don't know...Annee is my sister-in-law. She is Jason's brother Nick's first wife. She passed away on Nov. 8th, 2005 from Primary Liver Cancer. She had be diagnosed a year and a half prior, just after giving birth to their daughter, Alli. She died just 2 days before Nick and her's 4 year anniversary.

I wonder what she is doing and if she is pleased with what "we" are doing? I have especially been thinking about Becky (her mom) and her siblings these past few days. It is amazing the progress that we can make after having gone through such a difficult trial. I think about Nick too. I know that he is happy even though she is gone.

Friday was the anniversary of my Brother-in-Law, Harvey's passing. He was my sister Dodi's, first husband. He was diagnosed with Colorectal Cancer just a few weeks after Annee was diagnosed.

I think about him in a different way than I think about Annee. I wonder still what he is doing? I wonder if he is happy? I wonder if he is still in pain? and if it is more than what he experienced here? I miss him too. I also wonder about his family and all that has happened since he died. I pray that Dodi and her family can be happy now that he is gone.

I imagine that over the coming years I will still continue to think abou these 2 people that are family of mine. I imagine that even though we won't speak about them at family functions, we are all thinking about them. I imagine that we will all go through similar experiences with our own wives/husband, in-laws and more and I hope that we will all be stronger for having done so.

Annee and Harvey, I am still thinking of you!

Diaper FREE?

We went to Costco 3 weeks ago to buy the necessities. While we were there we chose carefully the items that we had coupons for. Diapers were on our list but, were still VERY expensive! As Jason pushed the Large box of size 5's under the cart I looked Nora in the eyes and said "LAST BOX CHICA!" she looked at me with a smile and said "yes, mom."

So, here we are 3 weeks later and look what Nora has been doing for 2 weeks now. She had her first pee accident today. I blame myself. We were in Hollywood looking for a movie for the kids. I should have known better. Anyway, she is doing great. I can't believe my baby is out of diapers!

Here are some funny pictures of the turkey showing me her big girl panties!

This was one of the first ones I took. I said "Show me your panties!" and up her nightgown went! If you notice there is another person there trying to show her panties too! That would be Sophie! What a little Stinker! She just can't get enough attention.

Here's our BIG GIRL showing us her BIG GIRL panties and a little more.


Making sure they are really there. This is so exciting for ALL of us. We have never been diaper free! Well, at least not since Ladd was born.

Car...something

So, since I talked about my car in my last post I started thinking about all of the cars that I've ever had. I decided to write about those cars and dedicate this post to "all the girls (cars) I've loved before".

Maybe you noticed that in my last post I referred to my car/van as Carleen. I name all ( most) of my cars.

My first car was a 1974 Toyota corolla. She wasn't all mine(she was a family car) but, I drove her nearly everyday. She was Red, Hot and Rollin'!( had a sticker on the back window exclaiming so). She was paper thin and with only a 12 horsepower engine she maxed out in 4th gear at 55 MPH! I loved this car. She had only 20,000 miles on it when I got it in 1991. It had been sitting in a garage in Morehouse , Mo. for nearly 20 years and she was still sporting the original tires! What a gem. She looked kind-of like this and I called her Car.
My next car was a gift from my dad just before I left home for my second year of college. She was a 1988 Mazda 323. Blue, with a sunroof and some phat gold rims. She had a few battle wounds from her days spent in East St. Louis, Illinios. But, a few bullet holes didn't stop her from driving across the country 4 times! She had a nice stereo and the sunroof kept me sitting with her for hours. Through boyfriends and breakups she was always there for me. "Cari" left me in Provo, Utah after suffering a blown engine. I would see her occasionally parked in a parking lot near the University Mall in Orem. I still think about her often.
This pic shows a small likeness...those gold rims really brightened her up compared to this one.

After the loss of my beloved Cari I was blessed with Carlene (not the same as Carleen).Carlene was a 1990 Toyota Camry, Light Blue. She was good to me but, we really never seemed to bond. My Dad provided me with this car as well. He even drove it to Utah for me after selling Cari to that nice Hispanic man for $400.00. I gave my dad the $400 Bucks and he presented me with Carlene one day while I was working at Barnes and Noble in Orem. He had driven her all night and all day from Southeast Missouri and hitched a ride back to MO via SWA after spending a few days here with my brother and I.
Carlene had been in our family awhile and had quite a history. She was originally my oldest sister's car and after a devastating accident my dad bought the car from my sister at a greatly reduced price. He did some repairs and then, she was all mine. Thanks Dad! I drove her back to Missouri when I moved back there in '98? and Missouri is where I left her. I moved to California after a while and Kimberly (little sis) inherited her, I think.


The next car I had was the whole reason I am married to Jason. Apparently, the first time he ever spoke to me...he asked me about my car ( I don't remember that well). Carly was her name and she was definitely the funnest car I ever had. She was a 1995 Mitsubishi, Eclipse, RED! She was totaled at one point too and I actually had to buy her from my Dad. He was driving her when I came home from California and I decided that I HAD to have her. I made $250 a month payments to my dad and was able to pick her up in Missouri when My little Brother, Adam, came home from his mission. We put her on a trailer and drove a truck(for a friend from Utah) from Missouri to Utah with her towing behind. Then drove her from Utah to California. She then moved with me to Utah when I finally moved back and soon after is when I met Jason for the first time. I sometimes think he married me for my car. He obviously didn't know what he had gotten into. The car was NOT worth it( she fell apart and ended up selling her to Jason's stepdad! However he lucked out with the girl! Carli added so much to my life at that time. I dated a ton and loved cruzin around with my girlfriends with the sunroof open and the music blaring! lol now, it seems so silly. Anyway, she prepared me for Carla. I knew I needed to settle down after her.

The next car I had, was actually "ours". It was the 1st big thing Jase and I bought together. We actually still own her. Carla is her name and she is wonderful! She is a1997 Nissan, Altima Champagne in color. She is 11 years old and is still kickin! Jason drives her to Salt Lake everyday now and she has been there for us when we had NO OTHER CAR to depend on.
She is more mature than Carli was. She really knows how to treat a girl right. After all she is a girl! She also prepared us for the big one!

Carleen (named after Jason's mom, Kayleen). She is a dream. I never thought I would love a mini van but, holy cow! She has heated leather seats, a DVD player for the kids and she is a lot bigger than Carla but, still gets great gas mileage. We got her just before Nora was born. A friend of a friend of ours was selling her and we were in the market. She wasn't in perfect shape but, that was ok cause it made her price just right for us! I love that I can put on a movie for the kids and they will be quiet for 2 hours while I drive. We can stretch out on a long trip or haul all of my demi-dos stuff and/or a friend of mine and her kids too. We have driven her to Missouri (a couple times), Texas and New Mexico and soon to be California! We love her!