Annual Family Photos

Coordinating outfits, the perfect hair and make-up, kids who are all smiling and looking at the camera at the same time, not ending up in those Awkward Family Photo greeting cards.  All these are goals of getting family pictures.  Also all these are just a few of the reasons that I experience anxiety when it comes to thinking about getting family pictures done, that is unless you count the annual Pioneer Village Old Time Photo shoot.  Why is it that we look forward to this so much?  We pay for parking, drive 35 minutes out of the way, pay a near fortune for the pics...Oh yes, I know why, because it is awesome!  Nothing can bring a smile to my face quicker than these little gems!

Perhaps it's because we are so out of character?  Maybe it's because we aren't that out of character? Maybe it's because I just love to dress up and be crazy?
What ever the reason, we have had our fun!  Now to get them blown up and displayed for the world to see!

Relay for Life!

We recently participated in the Relay for Life in Price, UT.  This is a fundraiser for Cancer Research.  Participants set up teams and work to earn funds.  Walkers are then set to walk to track from 6:30 pm until 7 am the next morning.  A member of each team needs to be walking the track at all times.  My sister, Jenny, organized a team in honor of my dad this year.  Last Ocotober he was disgnosed with Prostate Cancer.  After 4 very intense radiation treatments he was declared cancer free in January. We walked in his honor! 

At the walk survivors are honored and get to take the first lap around the track.  This year the survivors were lead by Riley(3) and Brailey (2), 2 little children in the community who are fighting cancer.  They also asked for those who had just found out this year that they had cancer to lead, so my dad, towering over the crowd, lead the Survivors Lap!  The purple shirts are worn by those who are fighting cancer and surviving!

Round and Round the track we went!  We ran, we walked, we tracked our laps with beads.  There was a dunk tank that wasn't being used, so we asked if we could try it out!  Domenic wanted to volunteer.  Sure said the committe member, and up he went!

 I tried knocking him in several times, even hit the target, but to no avail.  A little adjustment to the seat, a few teenage boys tossing the balls and "SPLASH" in went Domenic!  Hold up says a new committee member, they have to be 18!  Oh well, says our original worker.  Next lap around and the dunk tank was drained!  Our little trooper was the only one to get to use it!  Lucky!

At midnight they started a dancing competition that went on until nearly 2 am.  Skyler was going and going, and one of the youngest participants and few boys.  He bounced ping pong balls out of his kleenex box like a pro, then he showed how he could Gangham Style like the best of them!

The moon was almost at Super Moon phase (1 day away), but it was bright and beautiful.  My babies were troopers and stayed up so long, selling cupcakes, playing, dancing and enjoying the party feeling.  Domenic alone trudged around 6 miles worth!  Finally around 3 am they crashed, sleeping out under the canopy.

In the end I completed 17.5 miles.  I was exhausted by the end of the trek.  I really do not know how people can just run marathons in 6 hours or less and survive!  Amazing!  I trudged on for nearly 12 hours.  We had such a great time!  I went a total of 47, 804 steps!  I won a prize for it, yippee!!  It was such a fun night!  The kids loved walking, staying up late, and being a part of the teenage crowds!  What a great way to celebrate life!

Kaboom!

I decided to clean the bathroom this morning.  I know, that sounds like a crazy task, but I did!  So, as I clean I post in my mind.  I find that I blog in theory often, just not in actual print.  Sure, sometimes I post on Facebook what we are doing, put up pictures, but I find that more people ask about my blog than anything else.  I have been bad about it.  There are such great examples out there: Leisy Miller, Michelle Jensen you two rock!  Even my good friend Marci is better at it than I am!  So here we go again.  It will probably be years before people start reading me again, but oh well.  At least I will say what I needed to say!

Back to the bathroom!  I bought a new cleaner called Kaboom!  It is a mildew/mold remover.  I needed this, but have tried many cleaners that fail to get rid of the mold that seems to grow rampent in the shower.  This stuff is AMAZING!  I recommend it to everyone!  It cleaned better than anything else that I have bought in the last 10 years that we have lived in this house!  I wish I had taken before and after pics, but I had no idea it would clean this well! 

As I cleaned and contemplated, I am reminded of a long time ago when my friend posted that she had cleaned her house walls for the first time since they had moved into their house 6 years earlier.  Julia, I am jealous of you every time I clean my walls (which is at least twice a week)!  We are so dusty, and then the kids and their little fingers and now the puppy!  It's a never ending battle to keep them clean!

So there you go!  The first post of hopefully many to come!  It's time to clean house and share my life achievements with the world!

Exactly One Year Later

1st Day of School ~ 4th grade and 6th grade

It seems that I feel the blogger buzz around the same time each year!  I haven't posted for exactly one whole year!  That is crazy!  Of course, with my job I have have been extremely busy which keeps me away from the computer (for recreation purposes).

For today I will post about the days biggest event: the First Day of School!  Hard to believe that my baby girl is going to be in 6th grade and Domenic will be in 4th.  Only a week away and we will have not only a child in the oldest grade of elementary school, but our baby will be in Kindergarten!  He so badly wanted to start with his brother and sister this morning, but has to wait one more week (kindergarten assessment is the first week).  He goes for his assessment on Thursday and has been studying to get ready!


Domenic wasn't sure that he wanted to go to school.  He has been nervous and scared and worried that certain boys would be in his class room and would tease him.  Yesterday we discovered that his best friend is in the same class with him again this year (these 9 year old boys spent 2 hours on the phone together!).  This morning we also found that the boys he has been unsure about are in the same class as well.  Instead of problems though, they ran up excited to see him, gave him big hugs, high 5's, and spent the rest of the time in line chatting about all that they had done over the summer.  I think that my boy just doesn't realize how much everyone loves to be his friend.  I left happy and sure that he was going to have a great day!

Alexis squealed like only a sixth grader can and she and her friends created a "weirdo's" club, wearing their 1990's florescent outfits (I swear they looked exactly like I did when I was in 6th grade!) and were ready to rule the school.  Scary!

Now I am sitting at home with only Skyler again, listening to my Wicked CD and trying to start blogging again!  I also need to get to cleaning up after a summer of 3 kids at home, and get into an exercise routine as well.  Don't forget that work needs to fit in here as well.  *sigh* So much to do, where is the motivation to do it?  But the excitement of a new school year, getting back into routines, and learning is enough to get me going!  So here's a cheer to the 1st day of the 2012-2013 school year!

Alexis the 6th grader

Waiting for the bell with her friends in the same class!

My handsome boys!


Ready to walk to school!






Check out Brandon' Blog!

Brandon has decided to start a blog! Watch for his weekly writings on "Morbid Curiosity." He will be writing weekly posts about the musing and going-ons that happen at work! I know that you are all excited to know just what he does at work! This will be the perfect opportunity for you to find out!

Be sure to get on and read, comment and most of all, share his site with friends and other family members! His goal is to get out there and to start sharing his love of writing, and of course, the humor that can be found in the exciting day to day routine of the medical examiners!

Here is the link: www.brandcall.wordpress.com

A time to reflect

It seems that I have gone from great blogger to hit and miss. Considering the fact that I have only posted 8 posts this year, verses 61 from last year. I wish I had excuses (of that I have many), but I think it all boils down to priorities.

That said, I have been thinking a great deal about what matters most to me lately. I love my family! I have had to spend time away from them recently and it has made me realize how happy they make me. Sometimes I think it becomes easy to take our family for granted. We get in a daily routine and forget about spending time together. I love spending time with Brandon and the kids. It makes me happy. The more meetings that have come up, the more the time flits away, the more I come to appreciate the time that I have.

The season is upon us to be grateful. Be grateful for the life that we have been given. For the blessing that it is to be together, happy and important in someone's life. I would hate to wake up one morning and realize that it was all gone. I cherish every little blessing that has been sent my way!

Kennecott Copper Mine

Kennecott Copper Mine did a family free week the last week of July. It had been years since I had been (since like 4th grade!) and Brandon had never been, so we decided to go and take a tour. It was so much fun to go and see how they are mining the copper and other elements. It was very windy that day!

Here is the open pit mine! It is 2 3/4 miles around the top, and 3/4 a mile deep. The hugeness of it was amazing! It doesn't look that big in comparison with Domenic, but it was very vast!

There were displays and a giant tire that you could take pictures in front of. The boys loved climbing on this little mine trolley.

Domenic really loved the copper trucks on display. They represented all the trucks that they have really used in the mining process. Domenic and Skyler were in little boy heaven!

My dad was the one who first had the great idea, so we went with them! It was so much fun to get together! This giant tire was amazing! There are six of these on each of the trucks that haul the rock. They are 11 feet tall, cost around $25,000 each and last about a year. That is amazing! Glad I don't have to put these tires on our van!!

Domenic's Big Week!

Happy Birthday Domenic!!

Domenic just turned 7! What a lucky boy he was too! We had nearly 5 days of partying just for him! First, he got a new Build-a-Bear! He wanted a Dragon so bad, that we secretly bought it back in April (because it was only a limited release) We went and stuffed it for him on the 3rd of July though. He was so excited, as you can see from his face. He picked out an outfit for it, and named him Max.

On Wednesday my family came up and brought him a cake. We opened presents and went to Kennecott Copper Mine (photos to come later!) David smashed Domenic's face into his cake! It was very funny!

On Thursday his Uncle Nick flew home from his mission. That was an exciting time! We went to lunch, visited and had a good time. There was a Callor family Reunion on Saturday, so we enjoyed good food, cousins and fun again. That night we spent the night in Price. Sunday was Domenic's birthday! We woke up early and went to hear Uncle Nick report from his mission. The rest of the day was spent visiting, playing, and Domenic got another birthday cake! It was lemon, yummy! We took Domenic to see Toy Story 3 for his birthday! It was great, and he absolutely loved it! The outfit he picked out for Max the Dragon was Buzz Lightyear!

Finally, Domenic wanted to go to Chuck-E Cheese to play the games. We went, and guess what they had displayed for a limited time only? Yep, a Chuck-E Cheese pez guy! Of course that was all that Domenic could think about. He had to get enough tickets to get his Pez! I have never seen him more determined to win tickets. He came away with nearly 480 tickets! Wow! He got his Pez too! His day was made!

Other gifts included, clothes, and umbrella, and a DSi. It was a great birthday week!

Alexis Sings!

Alexis's choir concert for the spring was very cute! Come to find out, she didn't get the solo that she thought she had, but we still loved watching her perform. I have put a few pictures up, and one of the videos that I took. They sang so many cute songs. Alexis loved choir a great deal! She gave up an hour of sleep twice a week just so that she could go. It was nice to have her so dedicated to something!

Happy Anniversary!

Brandon and I have been married now for 10 years! I can hardly believe that much time has passed by! I can truly say that we have been blessed to have a wonderful marriage, full of happiness and joy. Not everyone is so lucky! I hope that we can keep the trend up for another 70 years or more!

10 Things I LOVE about Brandon:

1. I still get excited to see him walk in a room!

2. He helps do the dishes and sweep the kitchen when it needs it.

3. I love him in Glasses! So Hot!

4. He loves our kids and helps out whenever possible (like picking them up from school when I can't, taking care of them when I have to do my calling, etc...). He is the best Daddy ever!

5. He loves me for who I am.

6. He can make me laugh!

7. We can spend hours talking to each other and not get bored!

8. We like the same movies (for the most part), and he puts up with my crazy musicals!

9. He is a great writer and has high ambitions.

10. We can still have fun together!

Talented Little Ones

Our ward primary did a "Primary's Got Talent Show" on Saturday. Each of the primary children was able to share a talent that they have. The primary planned for months, encouraging the children to share and not be scared. The presidency called me several times trying to nail down what our kiddos were going to do. Now, in defense, it really needed to be the kids choice, after all they were the ones who had to display their talent. On the other hand, who had to prepare, practice and encourage? That's right, the parents.... That said my little ones finally came up with what they wanted to share!

Domenic didn't know what he wanted to do. He has extreme social anxiety and would never want to sing or dance in front of a big crowd. He likes to shoot hoops, but never has attempted on a full court size basket. He was a tricky one. Not to say that the boy doesn't have talent, you should see some of the art and books that this little 6 year old can create! In the end we went with what he does best (that is what your talents are right!), Stacking and Collecting Pez. Yes, we took the whole kit and caboodle to the church, all 277 Pez that he is allowed to play with. We stacked and stacked, the kids were fascinated, the adults were astonished (some had no idea!), he was a Hit! Crowds gathered around to look at all the different kinds of dispensers that he had. They were so awed by his collection, and the fact that he can line them up domino style so well! Showcase what you're good at, and he did!

While it may not seem like Alexis was another hard case to crack, she was. She has an extreme talent for ice skating (as previously mentioned) but how do you display that at the church? She can sing, and has joined the ward choir and the school choir, but got a sudden case of stage fright! (p.s. we just learned that this little stinker with stage fright tried out for a solo in the school choir; about 40 members, most of whom wanted this particular solo and guess who won the honor?? That's right, my little stage fright stinker! Video of that will come at the end of March! Stay tuned!) In the end we went with her love and passion, photography. We displayed the photo she entered into the county fair and the 2nd place ribbon she received. As a last minute addition by her, we also brought one of the loom hats that she has made and the loom and yarn that she uses. We learned that day that Hogle Zoo's 2 Zebras both passed away this winter. Many people suggested entering the photo to them! Maybe we will!

Every parent is proud of the talents that their children posses. I know that I am! It was fun to see the wide range of talents that children choose to do for the talent show!

The Book Reader

Alexis has a small bit of insomnia, yes even at her young little age. Thanks Mom! She has your genes to thank for that! But one way that she copes with it is to read books. Her school has a reading program that rewards kids for reading. This, and the fact that she simply loves to read, gives her motivation to sit up at night with a flashlight reading. I have found her reading at midnight before. "Just a little more mom, I am at a really good spot!"

The other night I came in to tuck in Skyler who was struggling to fall asleep and saw this:

She had fallen asleep while reading! The flashlight is held in one hand, propped up on her shoulder, and the book fell across her little nose! How Cute! I simply can't get mad at her, because I read late at night sometimes too! In fact, I get so into stories that I have had to stop reading because I just wasn't sleeping. Nights are the only time that I have to read. Someday I will start avidly reading again, but for now, Alexis is!

Gifts for School

Every year I try to make something for the kids to give to their friends at school. I try to remember what I have done each year so as not to repeat the same thing. After all, many of the kids in their class were with them the year before. I have done Reindeer, mice, smartie pants, and this year I did snakes. The kids had a blast helping to make them, stuff them, and than to give them out.

I also try to make something special for their teachers. This year I cross-stitched ornaments.

This reindeer Domenic picked out for his teacher!

This snowman was for Alexis's teacher!

Alexis the Ice Skater

I was told that I needed to start blogging again, so here we go!

Alexis has been taking ice skating lessons. She loves it so far! She is just a natural at it, and is progressing quickly. She advances a level every time. Domenic tried it for awhile, but it just wasn't his thing. Over Christmas the Rec Center did an ice skating program. Alexis did a little show to "Up on the Housetop" She did so well! It was adorable! She did fabulous!

Twas the Night before Thanksgiving!

Twas the night before Thanksgiving and all through the kitchen

There was pouring, and grilling, and cooking and mixin!

We all had our aprons on, from our necks to our feet,

And everyone was cooking for the big thanksgiving day feast!

The food was prepared with precision and care,

Then placed in the fridge to set over night there.

After all was prepared a great joy filled the air,

As games were played, giggles shared and family was everywhere!

The night was over, time to turn off the lights,

As we all yelled, "Happy Thanksgiving! and to all a Good Night!"