focus on the positive

camille is impassive.

jillian is spastic and has a weed coming out of her head.

i have a triple chin, gummy smile, and nose issues.
if you look closely, the piano has a few minor cosmetic problems. 

at-least jeff looks super handsome,

and dang, i think my hair has never looked better.

gotta LOVE family picture sessions.

kill me now.

new things in 2011

jillian has graduated sunbeams and entered the CTR classes.

she received her ring and has to wear it every sunday.

she even gave the first talk of the year in primary and didn't cry.

(a huge deal for the one who still cry's as she enters the

primary room)

hears to choosing the right and 10:00 church!

(in the 5 yrs we've lived here church has been held at two times: 8:00am ((lame)) and 2:40pm ((lamer))).

jillian also starting going to a co-op

Joy School with a few kids from the ward.

we swap weeks teaching and we are LOVING it!

look at the pure excitement on the first day of school:

Camille didn't deal too well watching Jill go to school without her.

After a few weeks I caved; Camille got her way.

Camille also started Joy School and is doing very well.

2011 has brought with it a new love of make-up for Camille.

These are just two of the many times I have found a mess of make-up on the floor

and a very decorated camillian face.

At-least she does a pretty well job matching what she wearing.

I started teaching Zumba at the YMCA in Jan.

Since then I have had two other opportunities to

teach at other gyms but had to turn them down because I

am still picking up hours at the hospital.

I'm hoping to get a couple exercise-related certifications

in 2011.

Jeff has been working from home and each month is

more successful than the last.

Hopefully 2011 will bring continued success on the 

self-employment front. 

Speaking of me and Jeff,

our Valentine's Celebration was great.

On Saturday night I took him to a nice

Japanese restaurant (he loves sushi).

After, I finished the BEST teryaki chicken of my life

we heading to the local skating rink.

we had a blast once the DJ starting playing some

old-school top 40's that jeff and i knew.

Gotta' love it.

2011...it's going to be good.

a story about a snake

within the bustle of returning items after christmas jill spotted a toy snake.

there were plenty of other toys in sight, we were in-fact, in the

toy aisle at walmart, but she honed in on a snake.

she carried that snake throughout the rest of our shopping trip.

she would cuddle it, make it slither, kiss it, make it lick camille.

she quickly loved that snake.

any other day i may have just bought that snake for her.

after all, it was just one dollar in price.

however, christmas was just a week ago and she had plenty of new toys.

there was no room for a snake among all the new

princesses, horses, and books.

so i thought.

at check-out the tears began to come and the negotiation began.

she held the tears back like a big girl and promised to clean her room

without mom's help (and keep it clean). this would earn her one

dollar bill and thus the snake (if she even remembered about it the next day).

the next day came.

i was awakened by jills sweet voice,

"mom, i'm gonna clean my room and get a snake today. you fremember?' (jill-bonicks)

sure enough, she earned that snake and even paid for it herself in the self-checkout.

i think i'd better lower the allowance price to 10 cents a day.

the shoe tree

have you ever seen this:



i have.

it's called the shoe tree.

my first recollection of this tree is as a junior high student.

driving along route 50, "the Loneliest Highway",

to and from different sporting or church events.

it was always a fun sighting during a long drive.

the tree is a large cottonwood, the only sizable tree for miles around, and there are shoes all the way to the top.

a few shoes have even begun to stray into a nearby smaller tree.
Local legend says that a young couple had an argument on their wedding night and the bride, in a rage threw one of her shoes into the tree.

somehow, this started it all.

now, it's over.

someone cut it down.

i feel sad.

i may just throw a pair of shoes on the next tree i see

in memory of the shoe tree.

2010 wrap-up

christmas each year is more and more fun.

as the girls are growing and learning i can't

help but share their joy of the season.

we focused a great deal on the birth of the savior.

camille has since named all her babies and dogs "baby jesus".

jill has contined to drawn the nativity scene, complete with the star.

i love this little family jeff and i have created.

their favorite new song though is "jinger bearrs"

christmas eve pjs from Alisha on Vimeo.

the year ended with a bang, literally.

jeff contracted with a couple large firework companies

and had three tents selling fireworks for the new year.

big shout-out to jeff's family.

each of them helped tremendously and he couldn't

have succeeded without you.

this is the first year in over 55 years (perhaps longer) that arizona

has allowed any type of fireworks.

the girls had a blast with the sparklers and jill even managed to

burn a hole in her new sweater.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

to you and yours from me and mine.

JAJC TAYLOR 2010

(big thanks to Jessica from jessicarichardsphotography.blogspot.com

for the last minute and hugely successful photo shoot)

the happs

yesterday i took my girls to a the ballet at symphony hall.

Ballet Arizona puts on condensed version of their performances for school groups and somehow my bff gets us in too. this is the second one we've been to.

they danced the second half of the nutcracker.

the music, the dancing, the costumes, it was very nostalgic for me.

jill was enthralled too, clapping vigorously after each dance.

camille was less impressed and just wanted to go on stage to be the center of attention.

i can't wait to take the girls to the whole production in a couple years.

speaking of dance...

with the move looming i took the girls out of their class.

they miss it and frequently ask, "is it time for ballet"



it's outdoor weather now in arizona and we've been taking full advantage.

golfing with dad

petting zoo's

the girls love horses.

it is their toy of choice and aren't afraid to ride the real thing.

the state fair

i have two thrill seekers on my hands. i suppose the apple doesn't fall too far off the tree.  they wanted to ride every single one and got bored with the little ones.

this next picture cracks me up.

i may look like i'm having fun.

i'm not.

in-fact i'm about to yell at the operator to get us off the dang ferris wheel. 

it was the tallest one at the fair and didn't have a belt, or a lap-bar, or even a door!!

the girls kept trying to look over the edge or go to where the door should have been to look down. 

jeff was having a hay-day watching me almost have an aneurysm.

never again.

in other news, my grandmother has been in and out of the hospital the last few months. the girls have really actually enjoyed the time visiting the pete's and exploring (i.e. recking havoc) in new places.

grandpa has been a really trooper and taking out his teeth about a million times each visit because that's all the girls want.

grandma is turning 90 this week.

grandpa is 92 and still a firecracker.

i'm thankful for the time i've had with them here in arizona.

speaking of thankfulness...

thanksgiving was spent with the Taylor's.

i didn't get any pics but the food was delish and company even better.

i am so thankful for my family of 6 years.

i found a perfect fit for me with the Taylor's.

just a little ditty

yesterday was a great day.

have you seen this movie?

i took my girls yesterday to watch it.

it is officially my favorite animated disney film.

i was laughing out-loud and i cried twice too.

you should go see it.

it's sooooooo good.

did you watch this game?

me either.

i actually started to

(b/c as you know, this is the biggest game for unr EVER)

i fell asleep in the first quarter.

(i went black friday shopping at midnight that morning

and was emotionally drained from watching tangled. i was exhausted.)

jeff took me to bed.

i woke-up today and found out about the game from the web.

jeff got pounced for not waking me.

i'm headed to watch the game now.

thankful for DVR.

way to go alma mater

fotoblog of jill's party

                                      our jillian had a costume party for her 4th birthday.

                                                    all those cool enough to dress-up

                                                                           crafts

                                                                   night games

                                                             indestructible pinata

                       balloon launch

                                                                                   skull cake

                                                                            sweet satisfaction.



moving status up-date

on 27 march 2010 i posted that we were moving.  the day we signed papers, the new owners told us that we could stay through the summer as they are snow birds and wouldn't be back until the fall. we decided to go month to month in hopes that we would find a place we liked and move. i had the kitchen already packed and our walls and windows decor have been boxed since the day we signed.  no curtains, no family pictures, no toaster, no crock-pot, no winter clothing. no nothing.

as fall approached we found the rental prices dropping. we choose to wait and see how far they would drop after school was in session. sure enough, the prices were right. two months ago i spoke to the canadians (new owners) and they said they wouldn't be down until late nov. so, we stayed.
  
two weeks ago i spoke to the canadians again. the harvest was late due to rain (they are farmers) and they can't make it down until jan. so, we can stay.
yesterday i got a message. the mother of the canadians is ill. the canadians won't be coming until jan 2012. we can stay for another year.  do we stay? do we move? do i un-pack? do i keep it packed and hope to find a deal closer to town?  i am so indecisive i am going crazy with the options...    

Crane Halloween Party

YESTERDAY:

i found a stray cat and decided to keep it.

The local bruja cast a spell on me...

the spell was called,

 "look-as-crazy-as-you-can-in-a-80's-fitness-costume-while-showing-as-much-

mouth-gum-as-possible"

apparently the spell worked.

at the annual crane halloween party

we found-out where jill's witch blood came from.

after eating soup and homemade bread we checked-out

some of the other crazy people.

great tradition.

Q & A with Jillian

Jillian Taylor (4 years, 1 day)
yesterday was jill birthday.
she is now 4.
i am loving this stage in her life.
so many questions.
more comprehension.
helpful and creative.
we celebrated with a day at the zoo.
halloween birthday party coming soon.

favorite color: red

favorite phrase: "mom, take a picture"

(as evidence by the follow):

(note: i do not prompt the poses, facial expressions, etc)

she is incredibly strong and coordinated.

(as shown by scaling the door frame)

favorite animal: red butterfly

favorite movie: James and the Giant Peach

best friend: mommy and sister