Amazing Race's Newest Competitors!!!!

Season 15 of the Amazing Race held open auditions here in Idaho Falls today- so naturally Taylor and Riley were gunning to go and try it out. The title may be misleading... but I choose to think positively (I sure can go for a half a million bucks these days!). The boys practiced their 2 minute plea last night for a few hours while Destry and I video taped their Many attempts-- but it was the kind of practicing that involved A LOT of laughing and joking around... they were hilarious! They weren't sure how to "market" themselves: the drama team, the father/son duo, the hippies (you know, what they'd be known AS) ... so the two finally decided to just be themselves (which was a major relief because the later the night got, the more flamboyant and ridiculous it became). The Go-With-the-Flow Co-Workers.

The application required one photo of the two contestants together. We call this picture, "Hey, we're BFF's and we should be on the show"-- cute fellers


Here they are in front of the sign-- which honestly I was a tad disappointed with... I mean really, they couldn't fork out for a little more PIZAZZ in their sign?



*NOTE*
This next photo may not be suited for all audiences. We knew there were going to be a few, ahem, Characters at the audition, but I think we found the two that want it a little more than T and Riley.


(tried to blur it, still you get it-- unfortunately)

Taylor and Riley did a great job... remembered MOST of their lines and gave them solid reasons why they should be picked... but when you're up against large white men in diapers and other crazy duos-- the chances of getting picked are slim!

On their way home, it was clear to these boys that, while their wives love them very much, they just don't have what it takes to be on a television show... that, how you say, "j'ne cest quoi". So they decided to drown their sorrows in mounds of Bambino's Pizza. I have a feeling they didn't feel too heartbroken. But in all actuallity, I'm SO PROUD of T for going out there and trying out... I think it's something that we'll talk about for a long time and it makes me smile knowing that my love is still going out there being adventursome-ish! You're the best, T!

C'est MOI

My sister in law, Ashly, reminded me that beyond our kids-- WE exist too!!! The past Several posts have been about Ava, but today it's all about Yours Truly. Thank you Getty Images, Amazon.com and Google Images for your lovely photos, ease of upload and Many, MANY choices.

Three Things I Love Right Now

Three Places I Want to Visit

New Zealand

Greece

Hawaii


If money wasn't an issue, Three things I'd love to Have

Volvo XC90

Nikon D90

A place to call our very own...


Three Books I read again and again

Three things I'd love to Learn more about

Pottery


Photography

pretty self-explanatory

This was fun--- so now it's your turn to do it!!

Quick! Limited time offer!

Another fun blog game!

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make! (Though I hope you will!)
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It'll be done this year. {might be a little while}
4. You have no clue what it's going to be. I don't even have a clue what it's going to be.
5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must repost this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did win a homemade gift! It may not be great, but it will be fun!!
* * *Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!* * *

Just another Thursday

Ava and I had a fun day today, nothing out of the ordinary, I just had my camera out and ready all day. I know 99% of what you see/read on here is about Ava, but I figure all of my fans (yes, I realize that having "self-proclaimed FAN status" will inevitably come back and bite me in the rumpus) but all my fans expect me to write about our one and only offspring! So, don't disappoint the masses, I say! Go forth and inundate the people with picture after picture, story after story of AVA!!!! (trumpets blaring, throngs of fans going wild... you get the picture!)

Anywhoo... here's a few shots of what we do in a typical day.

Scrub-a-dub-dub! Ava insisted that she bring her sippy cup full of juice in with her. What the kid wants, she gets... *sigh*

Then we watch a bit of Sesame Street. It's very serious business, please don't disturb.

Then we take breaks to get silly.

Then it's total Wack-a-Doodle time! Ava's newest bestie is her horsey, Nay-Nay (no, it's not supposed to be a ghetto girl's name, but it fits!) Ava spends A LOT of her day on her horse- I will not be surprised if she starts walking around like the men in the old Western movies!

Drawing time!!! This followed right after Ava forced me to help get her red dress on... she goes upstairs and finds this hot little number in her dresser and drags it (plus about 6 more outfits) downstairs and doesn't quit until it's on... over ALL of her clothes.

WHOOO HOOOO!!! Daddy's home! Now the REAL fun begins! (and this is the point where I set down the camera and get MY things done for the day... dinner, laundry, cleaning, workout- the list is never ending!)

Thanks for the great day, Sweetface!

Strike a Pose

Lemme show ya some pics that we've been taking lately. I have a friend who's quite handy with the camera and after the promise of dinner for her family, a night of babysitting and a lifetime of servitude she agreed to do a little family photo shoot for us! "Whoooo Hoooo" for the Wilsons, "Aw Crap" for Sharee. The poor girl didn't know what she was in for.... what with the freezing cold day we decided to do this on, the cranky/booger-ey child she'd be waiting on and the incredible 'weiner-y-ness' of both Taylor and I! I'm sure she was thinking (as she was shoveling piles of snow this way and that so we could find a place to sit), "A lifetime of servitude is SO NOT WORTH IT". Well, after seeing these pictures, T and I were pretty dang esctatic! Sharee did a great job!!!! Thanks so veeeeery much (even though my requests of her photoshopping Jessica Alba's body onto my head was ignored!) we LOVE them!!! You're the best, miss Sharee, the very best!

Here are a couple of "photo shoots" of my own that I took the liberty of doing! Have I told you that T and I have friends with the cutest kids? Well, we do, and lucky me- they're still immobile enough to take a few pictures of them without the worry of the kiddo charging me with 'gimme gimme hands', ahem, AVA!

Meet Maya!
She's got the biggest eyes you'll ever see and paired with the chubbiest cheeks a baby can have-- she's simply edible!

Ava loves to "help" me out when I babysit- if she's not screaming and melting down from lack of attention from me, Ava can be quite motherly

Meet Hinder!
He's just learning how to smile and practicing really does make perfect, he's got the sweetest little grin!

Yes, yes- despite the fact that these little angels are SO FUN to photograph... Ava STILL needs her time in the spotlight! I don't mind... she's got a dang cute mug to capture! Little update, I suppose: Ava's almost 21 months old now... which means before we know it, she'll be a whoppin' TWO... That's such a crazy, out-ot-this-world notion to me... why did I always just assume I'll have a baby???
Well, she's doing great, I enjoy SO MUCH being her Mom. Ava is a tender-hearted, strong-willed, go-big-or-go-home personality who makes my days fly by... or drag on... some day it gets a little shifty! Either way, we love our little girl-- I tell Taylor this every once in a while: "Ava's a typical girl, but and extraordinary daughter".

Ava being Swaddled like the other babys get be!

Happy Valentine's Day to Daddy-- Taylor and I promised each other, No Gifts! But Ava never made that promise: so she surprised T with a daisy at work
(by the way, she looks serene and dainty holding the flower, but really I was just barely warning her to "BE VERY CAREFUL" with the flower and this is her 'cautious face'

Lately Ava has been into dressing herself... in HER CHOICE of clothing... so for bed tonight she picks out Taylor's t-shirt. Then proceded to swing her "Princess Dress" all around like she's going to a ball. What a ham!

Self Portrait...

Yeah, yeah, I know it's not really a self portrait for a few reasons: 1) not me, just a caricature of an Asian businesswoman who obviously loves her computer and 2) I didn't draw it (hence the watermark in the top left corner!) so couldn't be considered "self-portrait" status....

BUT....

I'm BAAA-AAACK!!! (supposed to be said in a creepy little kid's voice, high pitched and all drawn out) We've finally got internet up and running again after all these weeks? months? years? Really, it's only been 10 days??? NO! C'est impossible!
Our awesome, amazing, radical neighbors came up with the genuis idea to pick up another internet company on our own and stop all the waiting-- maddening waiting! So, thanks a ga-billion, drillion, sha-gillion times over Carlson's!!!!

So, to all you HUNDREDS of posts that I've gotten so behind on reading/commenting.... well, I'm getting there, sure and steady!

Darn Pirates.. ARRRR

Since someone in our apartment complex has decided to let their idiocy rule their better judgement and ILLEGALLY PIRATE some software onto their computer... ALL of us have to suffer their consequences and have our internet shut off.... once again we have no connection to the outside world. Ho Hum. This is an old, tired tale of ours and it turns out we might be out of the the World Wide Web loop for a good solid MONTH... WHAT?! (if I find out who this Pirater is.... let's just say a hook for a hand is gonna look gentle after I get through with him/her!)

I'm honestly devastated by this... my whole WORLD comes from the internet!!! Can't make calls: need to find numbers online! Can't go places: need to get directions from Mapquest! Can't read blogs, answer emails, know who's doing what on Facebook, check movie times, our bank statements, pay bills and check Craigslist (daily... all of this is DAILY!!!)

ARGH!!! So- I'll bit you adeu for the time being... but please know, that when you're given the 20 minute break in the day and sit down to your own computer (that has internet) please, throw me a moment or two of solemn silence and mourn with me.

Red Robin... YUMMMMMM

Today was T's day off... soo we decided to hit up the new burger restaurant in Idaho Falls-- boy do I NOT regret it. It was so good, Taylor had to pull me out of there kicking and screaming- Ava was SOOOO embarassed!

Wish I had a better picture, but by the time I got THIS one, Taylor was almost finished with his burger and I got the distinct feeling he was gonna go after mine!! I stashed the camera and dug in

Ava found Mecca-- fries and balloons,
what more does a kid want?


Hit up the Mall afterward... I was a tad embarrassed when Ava insisted on me singing "Wheels on the Bus" right there with innocent pedestrians staring/cringing. I mean it, she really insisted on me singing it: she'd do the Wheels motion and yell from her bus, "MOOOOOM... MOOOOM!" until I started belting her tunes.

And yes, Mother, I DO feed my child semi-healthy items too! ;)

"Mom, please, outta my face with that camera... don't you see that I'm trying to eat in peace here?"

Not Sure What I'm Missing

Maybe it's just me, but I'm NEVER this happy when I'm cleaning and you can just Forget about singing (or whistling) while I work!

Like I said before: Ava's just earnin' her keep!

In our neck of the woods...

Just a quick one to let ya know that we're still alive and thriving!
We've been going on spurts of crazy-busy and insanely dull... back and forth. Right now, we're back to the same old routine.
Lost our camera cord for a while, but found it (upstairs behind the crib, of course). Here are just a few of the comings and goings lately:

My cousin, Ben got married! Ben and Bonnie Hyde- what a beautiful couple!


Ava was THRILLED about all of the stairs at the temple... So Papa and Nana Aaron were on Ava-duty- up and down.

At the reception, Ava had to sneak away and make a few important calls-- she's a busy woman who's always wheelin' and dealin'. No rest for the poor girl.

Like I said, no rest at all: Ava's just earning her room and board here.