Polky Dots

The other day Lexi and I were walking out of the house into the garage to get in the car and head into town.  As we were going down the stairs she turned right around, looked up at me while she was pointing to her cheeks and said, "Look!  I have polky dots!"  She was so matter-of-fact, and I realized she was talking about her freckles.  So cute!  Before we got in the car I had to get a picture of her pointing to her freckles so I can always remember her "polky dots." 

A Must Post

I got a box full of tomatoes from Mom Israelsen, and sitting right up on top was the funniest tomato I have ever seen.  I finally gave in to the urge to dress it up a bit.

Here is Allie with her new tomato friend.

Yes!  For reals!  It's a tomato!

Love it.

B-Day

The first Saturday in October Jacob surprised me with a little getaway.  As we drove away and I was wondering what in the world we were doing, Jacob handed me a blue envelope where he had written me a sweet little note and told me that it was B-Day:  Brittney Day!  It was a day all about me and we were going to do whatever I wanted to do.

Holy smokes!  A day all for me?!!

Um.  Hmm.  Let's see...  

Me?  

What do I want to do?

It took a minute for the shock to wear off.  The haze had to lift a bit.  No laundry?  No groceries?  No cooking?  No refereeing?  No time-outs?  No way!  I have no idea what I want to do! 

Jacob was adamant that I lead the way and he was my faithful companion for the day.  

Well, okay then.  Off we go!

Our first stop was Brigham City for breakfast at a quaint little cafe in town.  After a full belly, we continued on down the interstate where I was starting to get into gear and decided I wanted to stop in at Tai Pan Trading.  Nothing like a little home decor shopping!  Jacob was so cute.  He was all for it.  He paraded around the aisles of Tai Pan like a champ. 

After this we decided to head over the mountain to Park City for the afternoon.  We spent some time at the outlet stores, grabbed some lunch, then decided to go for a drive toward Heber and listen to the afternoon session of Conference.  This was SO fun.  We just drove and drove on back roads through beautiful October scenery.  I decided this is the way to do Conference!  I feel like I got more out of this weekend of Conference than I have for a long time.  As we were coming out of our canyon drive into Heber there was the most beautiful and unique rainbow I have ever seen.  The picture doesn't even begin to do it justice.  It was like a quick thick brushstroke with each color being really wide and vibrant.  A sign for my awesome day!

After the afternoon session had ended and we had made our way to Heber/Midway, Jacob had yet another surprise up his sleeve and we pulled up to the Blue Boar Inn.  So when Jacob and I were first married, a work friend of my Dad's gave us a one night stay at the Blue Boar Inn as a gift.  We ended up going around our 6 month anniversary in October.  It is a beautiful European themed little bed and breakfast amidst the beautiful backdrop of Midway.  Jacob and I absolutely LOVED our stay there and have always wanted to go back.  Well, here we were!  It was SO NICE.  Beyond perfect.  We just huddled in for the night and kicked back to watch the Priesthood session together.  Now THAT was the way to do Priesthood session!  It was so very good, too.  After Priesthood, we ventured out one last time for a bite of dinner and a stop for a hot chocolate to take back to the room.  The ending of an absolute perfect day!  I didn't want it to end!

The Inn comes with an amazing breakfast.  Sunday they do a really nice brunch which has about 5 courses!  I was stuffed after about 3.  So delicious!  After breakfast we got our bags all packed and headed out for another scenic drive and listen to the Sunday morning session of Conference.  Once again, this was so wonderful.  We had some amazing views.

     

We took our time listening to Conference and worked our way back home.  It was beyond perfect.  The talks were amazing and it was so fun to enjoy each other and the beautiful canyon drive.  We even managed to get into some pretty bumpy spots and just giggled with each other as we bounced all over the truck.  Thank you Jacob for such a great weekend!  It was a perfect (and much needed) B-Day!!  And a humongous thank you to Mom Israelsen for taking the kids and making this possible.  All of the Israelsen clan, in fact, helped out.  I realize it is no easy feat, so it is extremely appreciated!!

So, next weekend....B-Day again?

(smiley face)

Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk

I'd like to meet whoever coined that phrase.

You see, I do.  I DO cry over spilled milk.  I want to release my inner 3 year-old and lay down on the floor and kick my legs, flail my arms, and SCREAM at the frequency with which we deal with spilled milk in my kitchen.

Perhaps it's because we seemingly manage to get more milk on the floor than we do in our digestive tracts.

So after the umpteenth time I have to clean up spilled milk...in a day....I have to use every ounce of restraint from every cell in my body to keep from crying.  Or screaming.  Or lashing out in unintelligible gibberish.

So in order to keep from losing my cool, I figured I might as well just take a picture.  And count to 4,237,966 to keep my cool whilst I wipe up the white sugary liquid off my kitchen floor.  The following are from 2 separate events, mind you.

(Sigh).  Okay, fine.  I relent.  Maybe it's not that bad.

-I am grateful for milk to drink.
-I'm grateful I don't have to milk a cow twice a day.
-For that matter, I'm grateful I don't worry about where my next meal will come from.
-I'm grateful for 4 healthy little ones who fill my kitchen with their giggles.
-I'm grateful for 1 big one who works hard to ensure we have all the milk we want.  Even if we spill a cup gallon or two.
-I'm grateful for a kitchen floor.
-I'm grateful for mobility to get down on my hands and knees to wipe up a mess or two.  Or forty two.
-I'm so grateful for paper towels!

I really could go on.

Ya, maybe it's not that bad.

But there is room for improvement in the milk preservation department around these here parts.

And I still might cry inside when milk gets spilled.  Just a little.