What I like about you.....

Just about fourteen years ago, while completing my graduate studies in Kentucky, I wandered into a bookstore called Joseph Beth Booksellers. As I perused the mountain biking magazines, I ran right into a handsome man and quickly scurried off. Later that day, I exited the mall to find a note on my car from that man proclaiming that he was NOT a lunatic, but merely wanted to get to know me. I believe my father's advice was "You stay away from those Kentucky boys".


Against my dad's better judgment, I called the number on the note nearly a month later. Long story short.........I married that lunatic 13 years ago today! (you think i can make this stuff up?)

Thirteen sounds like a lucky number to me! At the risk of being ultra cheesey and saying something really lame for all the world to read, I want to share some of the many things I like /LOVE about that man to this day!

1) He still claims to adore me!

2) He tolerates my "YES" disease and supports all of my wacky ideas.

3) He is a loving and adoring father....which is truly an understatement.

4) He does that funny stretchy thing with his arms every time he tries a shirt on to make sure it fits his long arms. Makes me giggle every time!

5) He is almost always the voice of reason in our home. (someone has to be!)

6) He is always willing to snuggle with me and keep me warm (surely his motives are never pure, but let's pretend they are for this exercise!) :)

7) He GET's me ...I believe in fate and soulmates!

8), 8, I forget what eight was for......just kidding.........He usually knows what I am going to say before I even say it.

9) He picked me! there is a long story here.........but he picked me and I will never forget that.

10) He still quotes FLETCH to me and it still makes me laugh!

11) He has crazier hair than me in the morning and we sit and laugh about it together!

12) He has a pure and tender heart that loves unconditionally!

13) He is kind and gentle and generous.....

Jamesta, thank you for growing old with me and continually assuring me that I don't look one bit older! (see item 1 above). I am truly blessed to have you in my life! I have heard it said that the best way to enjoy life is to savor the passing of time............I celebrate every moment I have had with you! You inspire me, you make me a better person, you have given me four beautiful children to love and a wonderful life! I am so thankful for you! I love you the most!!!!!

Happy Anniversary!

I confess

ahhh december begins!  The greatest time of year, the craziest time of year....here goes!!  I know it's only the 7th, but I predict I will go under before Christmas.  Time will tell.  

With that being said, I have a confession.  I never realized this before, but it was sometime this week that I realized I am a 'screener'.  Say it isn't so!  

Normally, I am thrilled when the phone rings, being a talker and all.  But lately, more often than not, I am truly unable to get to the phone.  I hear the phone, then if I can find the phone, t I check the caller ID.  "who could it be".....'what could they be calling for"...."oh , i love them , but I will call them back".  That's about how it goes.  I hate to admit it, but many of you (if anyone reads this) have probably been screened out this week. (I might add, in my defense, that I have spoken to many this week without screening too!!!)

 Let me just say right here, right now, that I LOVE and ADORE my friends and family and love to visit with you, so please don't take it personally.  I will always be there for any of you, it just might take a second for me to get to the phone.  Just know that if I can't get a shower, i most certainly am unlikely to get to the phone. Admitting that i am a screener is difficult for me as I used to give my friend Nan grief for screening, and now look at me.  Maybe it's just a phase, maybe I won't always be a screener, but for now I am "one of those" and I am sorry!

With this confession I also leave a PROMISE that IF you leave me a message...I WILL call you back.......

after I catch a shower!

Love you!  

Happiest Place on Earth???

So, I know I start almost every post with an apology for not posting often enough, but this time I have a decent (not good, but decent) excuse........We went to Disneyland!!!

What was special about this trip is, it has been planned for months and our children had no idea, nadda, zilch, zip! As far as they knew, we were taking them to "this is the place park" one Saturday morning for an afternoon of fun and Halloween festivities. Little did they know that Jamie and I had stealthily packed the car with their clothing and goodies for the airplane and were sneaking them off to the airport.

The morning went smoothly as most do.......haha! and we finally got everyone in the car and ready to go the 'park' only 25 minutes behind schedule! We drove for some time and when we started approaching the airport, the questions began.

Q: "Mom, are we going on a trip anytime soon"

A: "maybe, we just need to run in and grab something"

Q: "Why are we at the airport"

A: " I don't know, daddy, why are we here?"

Q: from daddy- "if you could go on a trip, where would you want to go"
A: K- Disneyland, N-Colorado (ok, we're getting warm)

Jamie and I were so excited to deliver our big surprise............................(drum roll)

"actually, we are going on a trip.........to Disneyland.........TODAY!!"

Squeals and screeching ensues from the second seat (Sierra, Kendall), Noah has no clue.......Kendall is overly concerned about having clean underwear and clothing for the trip...Sierra figures out why the Thule box is on top of the car and the tears of joy begin to flow! I believe they were truly surprised! YEAH for mommy and daddy.

Parker, however........is pissed!

"You said we were going to 'this is the place'........you TRICKED me!!!! I am NOT getting out of this car! You lied to me!!!" Seriously? Is this really happening? " I don't like it when you TRICK me!" " I am not going".

After about 5 minutes of persuasion from Daddy, Parker joins the family for a fun filled vacation at the "Happiest place on Earth"..........

our babies.....refillable diet coke cups that lasted the whole trip! precious cargo!

(Jamie and I joked about how it was Diet Coke prison.....if you wanted one, it was $3 for 20 oz......it's a long very expensive day at that rate! Then we found the nectar at a fountain in Downtown Disney! ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!)

A wonderful time was had by all!!! We met the Kener family at the airport after they pulled a similar TRICK on their kids! We had a blast! The weather was 80's each day and beautiful! It was a fun year as Noah was able to go on almost all the rides. More puketronic action for mom and dad! Oh goody! I really do love Disneyland! After 3 days and a weeks recovery.......I can finally tell you about it here!

enjoy the photos!

pooped Keners!

gotta love getting soaked in October and having it feel good! 85 degrees every day!!

my night owl party animals! The girls and I closed down the park!

A favorite was the Trick or Treat party at California Adventure! Lot's of fun!!

best sign of a great trip.........sleepy kids!

A page from your book

When I was very young, I was blessed to have two VIA's in my life. Very Important Aunts! Mary and Ca were legendary among family and friends as the greatest Aunts around! When I think of them, I am reminded of unconditional love and the sweet little 'nothings' that they were continually doing for us to make us feel out- of -this- world important.

I bring them up because I need to borrow a page from their book! I haven't blogged in over a month, mostly because I have been so busy and have little to blog about. BUT.....yes there is a BUT....I also haven't blogged because I have been running a little low on unconditional love and have been having difficulty being all sweet and nice about my offspring lately!

There, I said it! Is that legal in Bloggerville? They have been absolutely driving me nuts! At first I blamed it on PMS......but as the weeks wore on, this excuse lost it's validity. It is the entitlement, the whining, the infighting and the lack of respect that I get regularly from my brood, who BTW just returned from a surprise trip to Disneyland ..(hopefully I will be able to blog about the trip nicely very soon!).

What is a mom to do?

One day, when I was quite young, I remember standing in my VIA's kitchen and decided I would whip them up a delectable treat. Saltines and Peanut Butter, with a smattering of salt and pepper (I'd seen my mom shake this stuff on everything, it had to make this better, right?). I proudly displayed my creation to my VIA's and my mom and they dutifully nibbled on the treat, never once indicating that they wanted to hurl. They discreetly salvaged the unpeppered peanut butter and clean saltine edges for their dining pleasure. I was so proud and always felt so loved. This was no exception.

How can I dutifully salvage the 'good' in my children right now and show them that unconditional love (and not the door?). I love, love love my children with all my heart. I think that is my problem.......I am disappointed in our recent home life and want my cute, sweet, fun to blog about family back!

So, I blog on............I move on! I try to steal a page from the VIA's book. How I wish they were here to put me in my place! Anyone have a page I can borrow?

I have to believe that this too shall pass!

P

Whenever you talk to a parent, they will likely make some comment referring to how quickly their child is growing. I cannot tell you how many times I have said "(insert child's name here) is at such a fun age....I wish I could just keep them just like this!"

Pman could be my exception. I have been anxious for many of his stages to pass in hopes that his fiery little temper would pass with them. Inevitably, when the dust settles, there stands that sweet little redheaded boy that I just can't get enough of (ok, sans temper). I want to and should cherish the fact that he doesn't like to do ANYTHING without me by his side. (We all know that won't last.) I want to preserve the boy who is anxious to please and eager to help me pick up the living room, and wants me to sit with him at the piano and teach him to play. (NO, I don't play!). The sweet boy who ALWAYS colors pictures of me with grandma hair, but always colors him in the picture with me. I celebrate that boy!

Having just turned 6, I can see that he growing so fast. Maybe, just maybe, he will outgrow his temper (dream on!!) I see his increased maturity when playing sports and playing with friends. I see a boy who just lost his first tooth, and who refuses to stop sucking his fingers. I see a shrewd negotiator and and awesome little mountain biker and crazy daredevil!!

I love you pman, Don't grow too fast!! (and if you pitch another fit while your dad is out of town, I will rescind every word of this post!) haha!

AYA

A few years ago, Jamie was riding with a (much younger) friend who made the comment......and I quote....



"dude, I hope I can ride like you at your age!"

Needless to say, that stung a little and Jamie derived great motivation for all of his riding that season from this comment. Jamie even went so far as to tape the letters "AYA" to his stem on his bikes. Just a good old fashioned piece of motivation, a carrot if you will! Something to strive for! Jamie has grown used to being the oldest one in our cycling group, my oldest child, etc....AYA was just a brutal reminder of this fact everytime he got on his bike.

Yesterday, Jamie celebrated his 40-somethingth birthday (I can't totally rat him out!) and I think he's great at any age!! Yes, some days I want to kick him in the shins for micromanaging me and the household and generally, just driving me NUTS.......but I still love him with all my heart!

Jamester, you are my best friend, confidant and companion of many years and, with any luck, many more to come. I can only hope to be the object of your sweet affection, caring and kindness at any age (AAA).

Happy Birthday Jamester...............you're forever my oldest child!

LOST and FOUND

LOST:  one mid-sized, middle aged (ok, close) mind!

Last seen in August somewhere in Utah.   Doesn't take up much space and exhibits frequent memory malfunctions. 

If found please return to owner:

Whit 

SOS!!

Oh Happy Day!

Did I just say that out loud? It came out wrong! Well, you know........school started today so for me it was a bittersweet kind of happy day!

Let's just say it has been a long, very fun summer with a super messy house 98% of the time and bickering kids in the background a good portion of the time too! whew! I am ready for some peace and quiet and some crowd control. Careful what you wish for..........

This year P-man is starting Kindergarten finally, and will be there all day. This is definitely the bittersweet part. Although he takes great delight in griping at me and all, he is truly a momma's boy and deep down I know I love that about him! I love that he hates to leave my side because I know it won't last so I must savor the moment. He was so excited this morning, he who sleeps until 9, and was up and dressed by 7:30. We'll see how tomorrow goes!! Oh how i love that boy!

As for the girls....this was the bitter part. As usual, we are taking part in the annual first day of school photo shoot and it was GONE! No matter how hard I tried........GONE.......what is gone you ask? That twinkle in their eye when they are so excited to being going back to school.

GONE!!

Anyone who knows Kendall will see that the twinkle is obviously absent this morning! So,so sad! And so young. What a shame. Sierra was just happy to be in front of a camera ............but surely the twinkle in her eye is unrelated to any of today's events!

And, Noah.....we took his picture too, just so he didn't feel left out.

Oh happy, bittersweet day!

Baby girl

So!! For the whole summer I have been about a month behind. Kendall turned 8 years old in early June, her party was on the 27th. Noah turned 4 in July, his party is in 2 days. There is a pattern here. There is, however, a couple of events that I have great remorse for not blogging on much, much sooner. Those events are Kendall's 8th birthday and her baptism.

Kendall was baptized on June 7th. It was a beautiful day among family and friends. Everything went so smoothly, and she just oozed a sweet, loving spirit. While I am not good at articulating how overwhelming it is to watch your child make the choice to be baptized, I must say this is the epitome of a pure heart. I was so touched by the whole experience. I absolutely love watching her as she conitnues to strive to do what is right.

Kendall is my second girl. She continually reminds me that she is my 'baby girl'. She is my shy, quiet, calculated child who has a weeee bit of a temper on her. (I just wanted to be realistic!) But what I love is her sweet demeanor (most of the time) and the quiet stares I frequently get from those enormous blue eyes. I have wanted so badly to capture those eyes, and that stare on film... in her baptism dress........for so long. (For whatever reason, I waited for her to get a haircut first. Oh wait, she hates doing her hair.........just tuck it behind the ear and go!)

My simple, complex, sweet, fiery tempered, beautiful, loving, kind, nuturing, fight picking, music loving, piano practice hating, lanky, creative, intuitive, accepting, afraid of the dark, junk collecting, organizing, mother hen, school teacher, independent, dependent is captured in some of the most adorable photos taken my by friend Kelly( http://www.kellymccaleb.typepad.com/ (shameless plug)). Kelly truly captured the essence of our Kendall.

So beautiful, so simple, so uncertain of her own beauty on the inside and the outside. I only pray that as her mother, I can embrace that essence each day and let Kendall know how very much she is loved! I love you my sweet baby girl!

Happy Birthday Mr. Magic

Happy Birthday to YOU!

I know I have blogged about how Noah magically entered our lives, but now I am struggling with the reality that my 'baby' is 4! Four years ago, my 9lb 5oz 'baby' entered the world as a near toddler (ha!). He who walked at 8 months and now argues with me because he can read his clothing tags and refuses hand me downs that exceed his size ........(whatever!!) is now a little man! Many of our biggest giggles and greatest quotes come from Noah these days! I feel a little guilty about his birthday as we spent most of it in the car on our way to Colorado and he didn't complain at all.

Happy Birthday Mr. Magic, Mr. Mischief, Mr. Batman, Mr. ________............anyone who knows you can probably insert their own word behind Mr.. We love you!

Yes, that is Noah sleeping in the closet in Breckenridge! Guess he's not all grown up after all!

Grueling and Heinous

Breckenridge

Hard to believe we were just the arrival of warmer weather and NOW, we are writing about celebrating the 4th of July! YES, these events were in such close succession!

This year we decided to road trip it for the 4th and head to Breckenridge, CO. Additionally, we were persuaded by our crazy alter egos to participate in a 50 mile mountain bike race called the "Firecraker 50". Once we arrived in 'Breck', we took a small pre-ride and LOVED the trails. We were feeling pretty good about things, until race day. We obviously pre-rode the best parts of the course. Don't get me wrong, it was some superb single track...mixed in with some truly wicked (as in HARD) terrain. In the course description it specifically states:

"Come see what the local mountain goats ride every day. Each 25 mile lap has 5400' of climbing. Fortunately for you a bunch of that is on the climb out of Breckenridge on the old narrow gauge Railroad grade. The race starts the 4th of July Parade in a neutral start format by start wave. From there the odyssey sends you into the Backcountry. There are a couple of grunty little climbs , a couple of long lungbusters , some absolutely rippin' descents and plenty of contouring flume and singletrack for you to mash on your big ring (or your only ring if your sick enough to go singlespeed, right Jamie Pogue? (ok I added that part)).Take my word for it, the course is a full-on MTB course. It has it all and it's no gimme!"

Funny!!?? No where in there did I see the words 'grueling or heinous'! Trust me, it matches the description, minus these two adjectives!! OK, maybe I exaggerate a little bit, (very little) but it was tough and dirty! It's always bad when you finish a race and undress to find dirt INSIDE of your clothes. (Much less, if your children don't recognize you by anything but the color of your bike.) Our faces were so dirty (i love how the dust cakes on your teeth)! SADLY, NO ONE took any pictures! Toni Pilling was an amazing support crew/babysitting service but not one of us thought to take pictures until we had all showered off and were ready to sleep!

It shouldn't go without mention that Jamie and BP both finished way ahead of me, although equally dirty.

BP- 4:48 and some change

Jamie- 5:01 (that's my honey!)

It was a great day in the saddle and a tremendous challenge to my legs and lungs and my MIND! Somewhere in the middle of my second lap I simply checked out.....I didn't know if my legs would allow me to finish! As I came through the turn, I remembered Toni saying to me "Brad and Jamie said "Don't let Whit Quit".. so I pressed on. 5 Hours and 46 minutes later..........I finished! only problem..no photo proof (try these links to photos taken by the local photogs, we really did take part in this race!)

http://www.photoreflect.com/scripts/prsm.dll?PhotoCard?id=07D800030009000200070016MBZLLETE

http://www.photoreflect.com/scripts/prsm.dll?PhotoCard?id=07D80003000900010010001BMBZLLETE

http://www.photoreflect.com/scripts/prsm.dll?PhotoCard?id=07D8000300090001000C0018MBZLLETE

My favorite part was crossing the line with my fan club all right there! All the kids, BP and Jamie and Toni all cheering me on as I checked this off my life list.!! (no picture of that either!)

I told Jamie that it is sort of like having a baby. Once the suffering is over, you'd do it all over again........I think I'd love to do it next year so I can take some pictures!!

(OK...I have one picture of my jersey when we got home. After 3 days in a laundry bag, still smelled quite ripe and still filthy! check it out!) Oh, if blogging had smell!!

We did get some great shots of the kids geocaching and messing around! What a beautiful place!

the kids geocaching! Behind them is a big cave/mine shaft. They sent the daddy's in looking everywhere for the treasure when all along, it was right beneath these big sticks right at the front of this picture! ha!

At Last!

At last, dare I say, summer is here. Right up until the last week of school, my kids were wearing windbreakers and dealing with 60 degree weather. DUH!! So unlike Utah weather. My, my how things change. One week later and we are roasting at 95 degrees and my lawn is grasping at it's last thread of life. Ahhhhh summertime.

One of our favorite things about summer is the family trip to Lake Powell! This year we took the plunge and purchased a share of a houseboat. It all happened so fast and just like that BOOM.........we were on the lake having the time of our lives! I love Lake Powell because you are isolated and forced to spend quality family time and simply enjoy the most amazing landscapes around. Take a look and see for yourselves.

Pogues at Rainbow Bridge

girls of summer

!

all in a days play!

the biggest kids there were the dads!

our little patch of heaven!

Many thanks to the Pilling and Kener families for joining in the fun and making this trip FABULOUS! I know it took it's time, but I am happy that summer is here at last!

P.S. I know I am terrible at posting, but hopefully summertime also means increased posting frequency! No promises!

xoxo to all!

Speed Racer

Let me preface this entry with the fact that it is OK to be Pogue and not bike! Kendall doesn't love it. The jury is still out on Noah and Sierra is, well...., Sierra. She loves any challenge!

It is a big moment in the Pogue family when the training wheels come off and the kiddos learn to ride a bike! This weekend, Parker decided to take it a step further. He took on the challenge of his first mountain bike race. He rode his 16 inch mountain bike single speed.

I have to admit, it was one of the the cutest things I have ever seen. To begin the course, there was a steep hill (I had to ride it twice in my race and strongly disliked the time spent on that hill). Pman just stood up and pounded it out! Then away he went! With daddy right behind him all the way, he completed 2 laps in 10 minutes and 23 seconds for a 13th place finish! He was beaming with pride at his accomplishment, and I must say......so were we! It was really sweet. Go speed racer go!!!!

Pogueisms

I have come to the conclusion that I am a terrible blogger. Terrible at actually writing on my blog, and not so effective conveying what I want to say when I actually do. So .......there you go! Even though no one really reads this blog I am still here.........on occasion. This week, however, I have had 2 requests to post. Here goes!

It's Mother's Day and I have sequestered myself in my room for a 'nap'........(because it's Mother's Day and I can!). We went for a short hike with the kids today and it was so cute to listen to my kids gab my ear off the WHOLE time. I chuckled to myself at the cute and funny things they say. They are, after all, the reason why I get to celebrate Mother's Day. So in this entry I thought I would share some. I shall call them Pogueisms.

How many times do your kids say something funny and you think........"I need to write that down". These little Pogueisms are less of that nature and more of the speech impediment type that make you sad when they finally fix it and start speaking correctly because then you know they are growing up.

My favorites Pogueisms include:

Renember- synonomous with 'remember'....even if we cannot remember how to say it correctly.

Last Day-the day before, otherwise known as yesterday. Used in a sentence it would sound like this.."Mom, last day, her was fixing my hot chocolate and didn't renember to heat it up".

Telled- meaning I already said that. Used in a sentence: "I telled you, I sleeped on my leg hard and now it hurts!!!"

Ditty- we all know this is Pogue for BLANKET.

Melmo- 1) Red, 19 inch stuffed doll, imperative for sleep at night for Parker or 2) the starting Center for the Utah Jazz.

Cimanom- mixed with sugar, makes a pretty mean piece of toast!

Suwa- not 'Bostonian' for sewer...but an adaptation to the name Sierra, unfortunately for her it stuck!

Manlooker- looking for something the way a man would....by NOT actually looking and completely missing it even though it is right in front of you!!!

Dendall- our second child......Kendall!

Wachel- my sometimes sixth child, best friend to Dendall. Used in a sentence, "Can Wachel come over after school?" Sorry Wach, this one stuck too!

Cold- older brother of Wachel. Used in a sentence, "Cold, chase me down the hall!"

Sitster- a female sibling. "Suwa is our big sitster".

Crown (with a long, long w)- wax like coloring tool. Outside our home, referred to as a crayon, but not in the house of Pogue. ( I went a long time wondering why Parker always wanted a crown...what in the world.)


"what in the whaled?"- Parker speak for "What in the world?"

Kidsaputer- the kids computer of course! Used in a sentence, "Mom, will you log me on on Webkinz on the kidsaputer?". To which, I usually tell Noah, YES!

Lub- LOVE! Used in a sentence, "Mommy, I lub you", or "I'n goin give you a lub", usually followed by the best hugs and kisses ever!!!!

That about sums up many of the greatest Pogueisms of all time. While to you, the reader (if there are any) they may seem strange, it is our strange way of communicating and showing endearment over here!

Poguey's .........I lub you, no matter how you say it~!

p.s. if i have omitted any favorites......please comment and share! haha!