fashion advice...

we're trying to decide if we should take the plunge into plastic frames for michael. could you please vote yes or no for plastic and rank the frames shown on our young man below..?

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aaron's family...

this week we were lucky to get aaron and his family out during our waning days as california residents...and what else did we do, but stimulate the economy in anaheim california!

our kids loved having aaron out. each of them had their moments with him during the trip and from the looks on their faces, they have definitely found at least one friend on whom they can call once we reach utah...

aaron's aunt and uncle came along and we had fun getting to know them better. here they are featured evidencing their jedi knight skills...


our kids love the honey pots. more than the honey pots though, they enjoyed getting more one on one time with aaron...


bekah took a special liking to jonny this trip. the evidence of that budding relationship is clearly seen in this photo [my favorite of the weekend.]

amy's been wanting to spend the big bucks on a professional photo shoot on the beach before we leave so-cal. i wasn't against it, but it never worked its way into our budget or our timeline. however, jonny did our family justice here in front of the haunted mansion. maybe our last family photo as california residents..?

the joy of the weekend is made clear here by aaron and his parents as they celebrate the sweet weekend we had with them in our final california days...

the pelosi predicament...

pelosi's prevaricating is important. she and the democrats have been feigning moral outrage over enhanced interrogation techniques and it comes now to light that she new about it definitely by 2003 and possibly by September, 2002. it is important because it points to the idea that during this extraordinary time in america, both sides of the aisle were sufficiently perplexed by the unprecedented terrorist threat in america that they were willing to move outside of the time-honored box.

if pelosi knew and allowed torture to happen for the broader good at the time she should be ashamed of the now partisan witch hunt she leads to punish bush officials whom she came to loathe over the years. leave jay bybee alone if you're not willing to step down yourself.

i'm not commenting here on whether water boarding should have been used. i'm saying that if you want to play the 'blame and impeach' game then you've got to be sure you weren't complicit or you will get bitten.

if you don't belive pelosi is lying, enjoy this written sketch on her most recent press conference and watch that same conference here: (the video is 25 minutes long. skip to minute 21 when she stops talking about health care and tries to leave. it would have been better for her if she had left rather than return to the podium and talk herself into a knot so thick even a fat-cat tort lawyer would have a hard time untying it...)



some very salient commentary on the issue can be found here. from his opinion piece, "On the morality of waterboarding and other "torture," Pelosi and other senior and expert members of Congress represented their colleagues, and indeed the entire American people, in rendering the reasonable person verdict. What did they do? They gave tacit approval. In fact, according to Goss, they offered encouragement. Given the circumstances, they clearly deemed the interrogations warranted.

Moreover, the circle of approval was wider than that. As Slate's Jacob Weisberg points out, those favoring harsh interrogation at the time included Alan Dershowitz, Mark Bowden and Newsweek's Jonathan Alter. In November 2001, Alter suggested we consider "transferring some suspects to our less squeamish allies" (i.e., those that torture). And, as Weisberg notes, these were just the liberals.

So what happened? The reason Pelosi raised no objection to waterboarding at the time, the reason the American people (who by 2004 knew what was going on) strongly reelected the man who ordered these interrogations, is not because she and the rest of the American people suffered a years-long moral psychosis from which they have just now awoken. It is because at that time they were aware of the existing conditions -- our blindness to al-Qaeda's plans, the urgency of the threat, the magnitude of the suffering that might be caused by a second 9/11, the likelihood that the interrogation would extract intelligence that President Obama's own director of national intelligence now tells us was indeed "high-value information" -- and concluded that on balance it was a reasonable response to a terrible threat.

And they were right.

You can believe that Pelosi and the American public underwent a radical transformation from moral normality to complicity with war criminality back to normality. Or you can believe that their personalities and moral compasses have remained steady throughout the years, but changes in circumstances (threat, knowledge, imminence) alter the moral calculus attached to any interrogation technique.

You don't need a psychiatrist to tell you which of these theories is utterly fantastical.

The Dentist Office: Filled to Capacity...

It was time for the kiddos to have their teeth cleaned again. This time I scheduled all of them (except Ella) for the first appointment time at 8am.

I don't know why, but it was so funny to me as we took this family trip to the dentist office. It was like we walked in and overwhelmed the entire place. They each took one of the three chairs, and Paul and I kept zig-zagging to check on progress and encourage.


It was actually a delightful trip. The kids were excited. It seems like preparation is half of the experience, and we had talked about it excitedly the day before. We love our pediatric dentist here. And the office is a fun place for the kids. They actually loved it.


Michael always likes to be a "good patient." His six-year molars are coming in, which made him especially proud.


Abby was a crack up. She was very social as her teeth were being cleaned, and loved all the attention. Her favorite part was the spit vacuum thingy (whaddayacallit Petey??). She would close her lips around it and laugh and laugh and laugh.


I was a little worried about Bekah because she's been a bit particular lately. But she focused on the "be very still" part, and barely moved. Then Bekah saw what Abby was laughing about and caught on quickly. The hygienists were nice enough to let them play with these new "toys" for a bit. What a fun place!!


Ella loved looking at all the sights and carefully watched as she heard new sounds. What a good, calm, patient baby she is.

So my kids loved their dentist appointments. What a fun family outing! We liked it so much I think we'll do it again in another 6 months! :)

what can i say..?

there's no way to top what amy just did. so i'll settle for posting one of my favorite scenes from HSM...complete with utah's mountains in the background:

'High School Musical 3' Can I Have This Dance? @ Yahoo! Video

To My High School Musical Lover...

In honor of his birthday... I'd like to dedicate this ridiculous Jib Jab to my husband, Paul... who happens to be the biggest High School Musical fan I know.

No Joke.

I can't believe I'm posting one of these, but I just can't help it. It encapsulates Paul's favorite scene:

Troy: "Right now I can hardly breathe."
Gabriella: "Oh, you can do it... just know that I believe."
T: "Then that's all I really need"
G: "Then come on"
T: "Make me strong"

"It's time to turn it up! Game On!"

Yeah, Baby!!!

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Oh, the cheesiness. Yes, I posted it. Right here on this very blog.

Laugh. Go on.

Doesn't Paul look good in that jersey??

Another Year Older and Wiser, Too...

Happy 31st to my wonderful man.

You make life fun, spontaneous, and full of happy memories.



You work hard, play hard, and help me get through hard days.



You are supportive, loving, and have true empathy for others.


Your son idolizes and adores you.


Your daughters feel like princesses around you.



And I feel like the queen of a kingdom with a very bright present, future, and eternity.


Love you, love you!!

Happy Cinco de Mayo...

Hooray for Hannzah!

Last weekend was a Hannzah Bonanza!


Paul's little sister, Hannah, came down to spend some time with us and lend a little hand with the beginnings of packing up our house. What a wonderful time we had with her.

Hannah... it was a joy to have you come. We loved being at Sunset Beach with you. As you played sand football with Michael, collected pretty-pretties with Bekah, and admired Abby's many sand angels, I realized how blessed my children are to have family members that truly love them. Thank you for kissing away tears, wearing dorky 3-D glasses, singing and dancing, and just sitting down to play puzzles or princesses.


Thank you for giving me a day to just focus on beginning the job of packing up our house. I have been overwhelmed by the daunting task of packing a house when Paul is so very busy (and so very gone), and my hands are full of the usual tasks with the kiddos and keeping things going each day. I've wondered how I would do it without feeling like I am neglecting my children. You were happy to spend fun time with the kids while I made a big beginning dent in packing up the house. Paul's side of the garage is filled with packed boxes--he gets the driveway from now on! :)

Ella says: Thank you for being the only person (besides Paul) I go to willingly when my mommy is around :)

Abby says: "I'm Sleeping Tootie. You love Abby. Mulan, Belle, and princesses are laying down and they almost stuck. I want to do Hannah cookies!"

Bekah says: "I like to wear the silly glasses like Aunt Hannah. I love you, too. I like to do my puzzles to you.I'm all done with the movie and we watched the movie."


Michael says: "Thank you for playing with me at the beach. And it was fun to go to the 3-D movie with us. You looked silly in the glasses!"


Your quiet help meant so much to me. It was heaven to come downstairs after putting the kids to bed to find dinner and the kitchen all cleaned up. And, as always, I enjoyed your company and our talks. Having you around makes me feel like the college student I still feel like inside... and yet you ask for advice from the 30-year-old that I am. You are a fun influence on our home, and we all loved having you here!

Thank you, and we miss you! We look forward to many Hannzah Bonanzas to come!