back tracking...

I can't seem to stay updated, no matter how hard I try. With a husband who is often gone and an extended family who lives far away, my blog and I have developed a strong relationship. It was always there for me when I was feeling lonely or frustrated and the first place I would go when I was happy and grateful. I am sure I will come back to it after my sister leaves. Having Cindy live with us for the summer has been therapeutic for me. Not only is she extremely helpful with the kids, but she's always around to talk. And oh how I love to talk! We've enjoyed many a conversations late at night, by the pool, at the park, on long drives, while watching the Bachelorette and over a steaming stove.

We've converted her to the little town of Blue Diamond.. where there is always a burro waiting to be fed.

Everyone was excited to see the airplanes take off... except for Zack.

She has to try harder in order to beat any of us in bananagrams.

We've made more smores this summer than we can count. It's become one of our nightly rituals.

Aaron will come home late from work or church and peek his head out the door and say, "I wondered if you guys were out here..."

Last weekend Aaron got to join in the fun and accompany us to the drive in.

We saw Toy Story 3 and Prince of Persia... both worth seeing. Toy Story didn't make me cry, but it gave me a solid lump in my throat.

It left Zack feeling rather sleepy. (notice the shorts that were 5 sizes too big. he was holding them up all night.)

And Simon feeling rather sweaty--- so much so that his clothes had to come off.

I think she's had a fun time here, but I know she's anxious to get back to her social college life...

I don't know what I am going to do when Aunt Cindy leaves.. we'll probably all go a little crazy.

Hoboville

Remember yesterday when I posted a picture of myself trying to look hot? Well, it was a joke. Why don't you get my jokes? Stop hating me because I am so beautiful.

What I failed to explain is the biggest joke of the Florida weekend was about me and how homeless I looked..

Before traveling to Key West, we imagined it would be a tropical paradise. It was beautiful, but nothing like we pictured in our minds. The Keys seem pretty run-down and podunk. The locals looked more like rednecks from Alabama than uppity island dwellers. When we arrived in Key Largo (2 hours later than we expected... we'd missed our snorkeling tour and we were super hungry) we asked a few locals where the yummiest restaurant was located. Everyone said, "You must go to HOBO's and try their Award Winning Wings." So to Hobo's we went.

It was super crowded, and after all the great recommendations from everyone, we were surprised to see that it was a total dump. (although the name itself should have tipped us off.) The prices weren't cheap, but we figured we needed to try the Award Winning Wings while we had the chance. They were good, but we weren't jumping out of our seats or anything. When we finished our meal and asked for the check, our waitress was shocked that we didn't want to take the famous wings with us. We were going straight on a boat to snorkel and didn't want to lug them around. But she insisted. She packed them up in a box and we were forced to carry them out the door.

Later that night, while relaxing by the pool, I grabbed something out of our beach bag and realized the entire bag smelled like BBQ sauce. We had forgotten about the Award Winning Wings!! I pulled them out and we ate them by the pool. We were exhausted and really giddy (this is where we practiced our fake laughs for the airport the next morning.) Maybe it was because we were laying by the pool and didn't care if we got really messy, but they tasted SO much better than they had hours earlier. I am so grateful our waitress forced them upon us. She must have known they would taste better after sitting in a styrofoam box.

We decided that Hobo's was not only our new favorite restaurant, but the word HOBO itself was our new favorite term. Instead of saying something is lame/retarded/gay/stupid, we now will refer to it as hobo. If someone cuts us off on the road or makes a mean comment on my blog (about how vain I am) then they are referred to as a hobo.

Now back to me and what I looked like during the trip. Try swimming in the ocean and then jumping in a convertible and see what it does to your hair (and your self-esteem.) Hobo was the only word to describe me. I honestly looked like I had spent the last 6 months in a styrofoam box. On our way out of the Keys, I took a quick video to capture my new look. And this was actually pretty mild because I had a hat to cover some of the mess.

What makes this clip even more funny is that about an hour after this car ride to the airport, I was interviewed by a reporter and my mug (and gorgeous hairdo) was broadcast on the news... Lucky for us (and our egos) we'd been listening to music all weekend that told us we were too sexy for our shirts, our car and Hobo-central. Ain't nothing that could have convinced us otherwise.

PS. Wanna know what I'm not sexy enough for? Running. After our run this morning I am convinced I am not cut out for it. 13 miles might just kill me.

vacation soundtrack

One of the best things I did in preparation for our anniversary getaway was make a SOUNDTRACK for our trip. I knew we were going to be spending lots of time in the car and so I planned accordingly. One of the most annoying things about visiting a new city is finding radio stations with good music. Aaron is an excellent driver (except when he gets lost) and I take my co-pilot position VERY seriously. If you're sitting in the passenger seat, you have to be in charge of two things: the map and the music. I didn't do very well with the map (gps system) but I was ALL OVER the music. We may have been lost, but we were partying like rockstars while trying to find the right highway. And that's all that really matters.

I was also in charge of documenting our drive on the water. It was SO BEAUTIFUL to be on a little strip of land across the ocean. Unfortunately, the sound is really bad on some of these videos (it was a bit windy) so I had to put music over what we're saying-- which wasn't important anyway. The first song on our soundtrack was Natasha Bettingfield's Love Like This and it became the theme song of the entire vacation. What I wouldn't give to be back in that car with that guy drinking slurpies... you're the only one that knows me, love it when you hold me, I'll never find a love like this.

I can testify {with all my heart} that organizing your music BEFORE you go on vacation is totally worth it. Ipods and playlists should make it that much easier. I had two different CD's ready to roll in our convertible. One was specifically party music-- we blasted it all day. The other was our favorite love songs, which we played when the sun was setting.. oh so cheesy and perfect! By the end of the trip, we had all the songs memorized. Now whenever I am feeling down or discouraged about having to clean the house, all I have to do is listen to our "convertible music" and I am instantaneously happy.

This is the short list of the songs that will forever remind me of our 10th anniversary getaway. Most of them are NOT allowed for little kid ears... that's exactly why they were on our list for this particular trip. Many of them made us laugh-- like "I'm too sexy". Not only did we sing the songs, but we used several lines from the song throughout the weekend. One of our faves was "Ring-a-ling" by Black Eyed Peas... it's a booty-call song with such an outrageous beat. We used lines from it all weekend-- who knew I could impersonate Fergie so well? "Honey... I-I-I-I-I-I, I got something for you, baby."

And I had to take a picture of myself in the convertible because I knew my man would never think to pick up a camera and document anything..
This is exactly what I looked like the ENTIRE weekend.
I titled the picture: she's like the wind
We were fantasizing about how magical it would be to buy a convertible and use it as our DATE CAR. While I was driving, Aaron said, "Yeah... you look great behind that wheel, but you're just as cute driving a minivan."
take his word for it.

mortuary party-favors

I forgot to mention a couple of things about our visit to the mortuary. When we first arrived, we were taken to a planning room. This is a small place with a simple desk and chairs where they explain the funeral services with a family soon after a death. Cindy and I were enthralled with the information they were dishing out. Ben and Luke were mildly interested. Zack and Simon were bored out of their minds. The nice funeral director offered Zack a mint to keep him from doing cartwheels. He was happy about the candy and gulped it down in one second. No, literally... he swallowed it whole and almost chocked to death. I cracked a joke about how it was a great place to die (if any) and nobody laughed but me.

At the end, we ended up chatting with these awesome mortuary owners. They wanted to know all about the family that Cindy and I were raised in. The boys were given nifty mortuary pens and paper to keep them quiet.... which they were thrilled about. After 20 minutes of chatting, one of the ladies sat down next to the boys and asked them what they were writing. Ben looked and her, shrugged her shoulders and said, "Nothing much, really. Luke and I are just creating word searches and trading them with each other." She was highly impressed. Zack was drawing pictures of his girl friend, Sylvia... but made it clear that she is NOT his girl friend.

A couple of days later, I was cleaning out the car and found a sticky note from the mortuary. It was written in Luke's handwriting. I read it and felt so grateful that it didn't get lost in the shuffle or crinkled up by a 20-pound babymonster. I was able to keep it long enough to scan it in and preserve it forever.

It reads: "Simon, if you want to be my buddy, grab this paper."
I love Luke for so many reasons.

the dead center of town

Our field trip to the mortuary was killer! I called several mortuaries that were close to us. Almost all of them were shocked that I wanted to bring my kids in for a tour, but many of them agreed. We decided to go to a small, local one because they are just the down the street from our house and because it was owned and operated by two females who seemed very excited and accommodating. When I set up the appointment, the funeral director asked, "How much do you want to see?" and I said, "Whatever you'd be willing to show us."

It's against the law for them to show any dead bodies... but they were there, alright. We weren't allowed to see what was inside the big refrigerator (which can comfortably fit up to 6 bodies) or open the lid of a casket sitting in the back room. The kids weren't the LEAST bit freaked out by anything. All in all, it was a totally successful and informative field trip. I took a pic of Cindy filming... behind her is the "big fridge".

We went in hoping to find out how much funeral directors, embalmers, and owners of mortuaries make each year (ballpark salaries) and see their day-to-day responsibilities. But we came out with so much more information. In fact, it was very enlightening. During the tour, we heard about the kind of caskets available and I asked the kids what kind they would like, if they got to choose. Laura, the funeral director, seemed a bit surprised that I would ask such a question. She liked Zack's enthusiasm as he shouted for a RED METAL one (it's all about Iron Man these days.) But then she commended me for being so open and realistic with my children about death. Unfortunately it happens, and many of us are too afraid to talk about it-- which leaves us in a terrible bind when we have to face it. She encourages EVERYONE to talk about death, funeral arrangements, caskets. Those decisions will have to be made eventually, and it's better to talk about it and know what our loved ones want before we have decide during the most emotional time in our lives.

We also learned that bodies are shipped to and from cities on everyday aircrafts. They are boxed up and shipped with the luggage. I had no idea! She said it's SAME DAY service for about $200-$400. The kids found this fascinating, and the day after our field trip, Zack pointed to an airplane in the sky and said, "Hey! A dead body might be on that airplane!" This may be the only bit of information that sticks with my 4 year old..

One of the most interesting things I learned on our excursion was that embalming is bad for the environment. When the blood is removed, it's replaced with a toxic liquid called Formaldehyde. This preserves the body and keeps it from decaying. Many people who choose to have open caskets are embalmed. What we don't hear about is what formaldehyde does to the plants and animals under the ground. It's deadly and toxic. And it's expensive.... so why are we doing it? Tradition. She said that many LDS religions are still doing it, but most other religions have done away with it because it's such an unnecessary ritual. But many funeral homes don't discourage it because they make good $$ on embalming.

I came away thinking that cremation is the way to go! Really... it seems easiest, inexpensive and so logical. I guess Vegas has a very high rate of cremation... I guess people who live here aren't afraid of the heat. I know it's not exactly "encouraged" in our religion, but I want to donate as much of my body as I can and cremate the rest. I am going to sit down and talk with Aaron about it.... we need to discuss where to be buried, etc. So many people have wills in order for after their death, but don't talk about the actual arrangements of their funeral. Why are we so afraid to talk about it?

PS. for those of you who live here in Vegas, I asked if we could come back as a big group and they were more than willing to do another field trip. I thought we could set something up this summer... they said they can accommodate up to 40 people. Let me know if you wanna go... if you don't live here, call around and find a mortuary who will give you a tour.

PPS. Ben was able to tell his famous "Where do mashed potatoes go when they die?" joke and they loved it.. We need to send it into laffy taffy one of these days. Answer: "The Gravy-yard"