Various and Sundries

It's good to be home. We're happy to be back in St. George, but we miss those who have become dear to us in Vegas. Anyway, I haven't blogged in an age because of all the craziness of moving, but here's a little of what's been going on.Bennett turned five, and he seemed to think that was all right. We also spent some time with Dan's family in Kalaloch, WA.

Bennett, Dan, Laraine, and Erin running on the beach









Back row-Sarah, Jake, Andrew, Isaac, Dan/Middle-Hannah, Eli, Laraine, Robyn, Erin, Ashly, Jasper, Angie,Therese Front-Bennett




To the right, you can see some shots of us in our 4th of July finery. Below: Kids with Grandma Above: Our family with my nephews, Jorryn and Jalen.
We went to the fireworks display in St. George on the 4th. I always enjoy the soundtrack on the loud speakers at this event. They invariably play Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA." This year was no exception. I love the song, but it always strikes me as a strange choice for celebrating the 4th, as it's all about how lousy the Vietnam War was, but, hey, I guess if you only listen to the chorus.... As ridiculous soundtracks for 4th of July celebrations go though, this year they topped "Born in the USA. " They played the speech from the movie Independence Day. This I found truly amusing, yet at the end of Bill Pullman's speech, I too, felt inspired to burning patriotic feelings by a speech about a fictional alien invasion, as the crowd around me cheered.

Dan and I have been abusing his mother as much as possible before she leaves us for the greener pastures of Boston. We left the children with her and went to see Les Miserables at Tuacahn Saturday night. We loved it. I found none of the actors annoying, so it was perhaps my favorite of the performances I've seen of this show, though without the rotating stage, the impact of Enjolras' death is a little impaired. A friend of ours thought the Valjean overacted, but I think I'm of Dan's opinion here. No matter how serious or intense, there is still something ridiculous about a musical, so we don't mind some good overacting.

Now to answer the tag.

The rules:
1. List three items in each category
2. Tag three other people from whom you would like to hear
3. Get to know your friends and family

THREE FEARS:
I decided not to go with the biggies that we all share here, but to use some that are perhaps a little more silly, but nevertheless terrifying to me.
1. I have to keep my closet door closed at night, because, you never know, the girl from The Ring could be in there. I only really worry about her being there at night, when everyone else is asleep.
2. Someone (or something) with bad intentions coming into the bathroom while I'm showering. I think Hitchcock really tapped into something visceral here. We're so vulnerable in the shower.
3. One of my children on a psychiatrist's bench some day talking about mother.
THREE JOYS:
1. Laraine and Bennett causing Jasper to become delirious with laughter.
2. Staying up late with Dan, talking or watching something on T.V., snacking on cheese and crackers. (He won't indulge me as much as I'd like on this one, because of the whole getting up early to satisfy his running addiction.)
3. This one's a bit of a cliche, but I do love it---curling up with a book and a snack; it's always best on rainy days.
THREE OBSESSIONS/COLLECTIONS:
1. I have a dragon thing.
2. I've had many, many obsessions. Most of them I immerse myself in for awhile, then kinda get over---I still usually love them, but they stop being obsessions...there have been so many....but I'll choose T.V. shows for this. I've had several obsessions with old T.V. shows. I have been obsessed with "Taxi" (is Tony Danza capable of playing a character who isn't named Tony?), "Happy Days" (I have a Fonzie doll), and "All in the Family" to name a few. These I still love, but I once had a brief obsession with "Full House" and watched like four reruns a day (why did they play so many reruns of that show?) for like a week. After that I was utterly over it, and I returned to the saner position I had previously held that it is absolutely dreadful...but, oh, that Uncle Jesse! The really embarrassing thing is that I had the "Full House" obsession in college. Hey, at least I've never been obsessed with "Saved by the Bell," yet I've somehow managed to see a lot of awful episodes. I'm a little obsessed with "Word Girl"on PBS Kids right now. It seriously cracks me up.
3. Dan---this is an obsession I'll never get over. ;)
THREE RANDOM FACTS:
1. Stefani tells me my big toes are "alien toes," but Dan assures me that they are very attractive.
2. I've thrown chalk at my students in the past. I usually missed, but I once nailed a kid in the forehead. This actually (as usual) caused great delight among my students. Luckily, this time, the one who got nailed thought it was hilarious too, so there was no lawsuit. I never knew if he mentioned it to his parents. I guess I inherited the chalk throwing thing from my dad (he's a science teacher). Should I be putting this out there if I ever want to teach school again? I'll try really hard not to throw chalk from now on.
3. Speaking of chalk, I once ate a piece and freaked out my brother and my sister-in-law so much that there was a big blow-up over it. Should I be bringing this up? I think we're all over it now.
THREE GOALS:
Again, these aren't the biggies---I want to become self actualized, become a perfect mother, write a book, etc. too.
1. Make dinner tonight.
2. Write yet another speech for church on Sunday. I don't get to recycle the one I wrote a couple of weeks ago because they gave me a topic this time. I was most displeased. The topic is "Developing Talents"---it seems a little cruel to give such a topic to someone with so little talent.
3. Cut my toenails. I know, again with the toenails.

I tag Stacy, Megan, and Debra.

Today's Review: Ginger Cookies