Book Reviews. . .by Sneezy

That's right.....by Sneezy.

My Cat.

I say 'Cat' with a capital 'C' because Sneezy 

IS

the Master of our house, and he is the King..

And now, on to the Cat Book Reviews. . .

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

"Only one cat, and he smiles far too much. On the other hand, great party!! A hare and a dormouse! I could have brought home one for leftovers."

The Cat in the Hat

"This book is absolutely detestable. Cats do not ever wear hats, even if they appear stripey and hip. Cats do  not associate with Things. And, any self-respecting cat would have eaten that high-and-mighty goldfish before he could start yammering."

The (too many) Harry Potter books

"Too many rats. Too many owls. Why don't they ever get eaten by the ONE cat? Dumb books."

To Kill A Mockingbird

"This book is total false advertising!! I was expecting a how-to book, and instead it's just about a Southern lawyer and his endless do-gooding. Boo!"

Of Mice and Men

"Despite the title, no rodents at all, just men.  We don't even get to see Lennie's tasty-sounding rabbits. Lame. But, on the plus side, the dumb dog dies!"

 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

"What a stupid book. If she hadn't spent all her time carrying around her little sissy-dog, she could have made it to the dumb green city faster. Plus, she travels with a lion, why does she even need a dog?"

The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe

"Now, this was an excellent book! A cat as a stand-in for Jesus. I was angry and sad when he got killed on that altar, I couldn't eat for minutes! But I was glad he came back."

And, there you have it. Literature as viewed by a chunky, lazy, pampered, spoiled, and utterly snobby housecat!

Where did we come from?

I am not heavily into ancestry or family history.

Honestly.

However, I am always fascinated by "stories of old."

I love hearing about the places my family came from, how they lived, what they did, etc.

Were they anything like me? Did they hate anything dealing with mathematics?

Did they love reading and languages? Did they hate spiders?

I am always intrigued by their names. Did they have a nickname? Where did they get it?

I am fascinated by names on a paper, on a trail that leads ultimately to me.

To Me.

They are a part of me, and that touches me somehow.

With that said, Colby's family has Cornish English ancestry.

Awesome! 

His Cornish family line has been traced back to the year 1316.

He has an ancestor who was a vicar of the parish church where they lived.

This is the church.

This is the Manaccan Parish church in Cornwall.

Colby's ancestor served his neighbors here.

And the church still stands.

Almost 700 years later.

How amazing is that? 

We could hop on a plane, and walk in the very same church where Colby's family worshipped.

I think that is amazing.

It touches my soul.

Anyway, maybe nobody else thinks so, but I think it is awesome.

They're coming. . .

Braces.

For Savannah and Charlotte.

Two kids in braces at the same time.

Sigh.

My wallet is already crying, however. . .

the orthodontist is probably already looking at a new boat!!!

But the girls are excited. 

I will post pictures when the braces are actually on.

Right now, we have spacers in, and the game is afoot!

Then and Now

Last year at this time, we received our tax refund and decided that we were going to try something new.

We dedicated some money for the purpose of stocking up on those things that we don't always purchase on our typical payday grocery shopping trips. These are items that aren't an "every two weeks" purchase, but when we do have to buy them, they seem to kill a good percentage of our allotted grocery budget. Laundry detergent alone is a nightmare!!

So, we took $1000 to Costco, and this is what we came home with:  

Comparing what we bought last year to what we still have left:

Dishwasher Soap: 9 boxes, 5 left

Bath Soap: 8 cases, 5 left

Toothpaste: 3 cases, 1 left

Cat Food: 4 bags, None left  (Hungry chubby cats!!!)

Toilet Paper: 5 cases, 1 left

Cat Litter: 4 jugs, None left  (Ick. They poop a lot!!)

Fabric Softener: 5 jugs, None left

Laundry Detergent: 9 boxes, 5 left

Paper Towels: 4 cases, 3 left

Plus some other random stuff, like shampoo and conditioner, razor blades (holy cow- they are costly!), batteries, etc.

We are going to do the same thing this year. I think it was hands-down the best thing we've ever done with tax refund money.

So now that we have had a year to see how long things last, and what we go through the most, we are going to make some changes to what we buy, and how much of it.

Clearly, we must buy more cat food. MUCH more cat food!!

I. Cannot. Wait!

Psych.

Season 7.

Only 

7

more days!!

I cannot wait!!

Dinner....

Colby made steak soft tacos for dinner.

They were absolutely delicious.

Except now my whole house smells like cilantro.

Boo.

It reminds me of Cafe Rio.

I hate that place, even the smell of that place.

But, the tacos were yummy as can be.

Thanks, Colby!!!!

And now, I am going to scream.....

I just got a recorded call from the school district.

Apparently, the school board has voted to turn Fox Hollow Elementary into a

YEAR ROUND

school.

I cannot adequately convey to you, through this digital form of media, how much

I HATE YEAR ROUND SCHOOL.

HATE it.

Grrrrr.

This is why. . .

Sometimes I really don't love scrapbooking.

Mostly because I am not good at keeping up with it, and then I wind up very, very behind.

So, let's see---three kids, three years behind on each, that makes me, oh,

nine years behind.

Yikes.

Don't always love scrapbooking.

But, this is why I do it. . .
 



 

Because the kids

LOVE

to look through them.

And that makes me happy.

Oh, the list! The list!

I just came across a note that my dear Charlotte wrote to Santa Claus.

In the note, she indicated that she was sure she was on the

"good list."

She also made it very clear what she would like him to bring her.

I'm guessing this is because she was worried he might not have known PRECISELY what she wanted.

She even mentioned the other day that we should go see Santa again, just to make sure he remembered what she had already told him.

I told her no. Come on, Santa remembers! He's magic! The guy can squeeze through skinny chimneys, and ride in a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer- he can definitely remember what she asked for.

Apparently, she wasn't convinced and felt compelled to write him another letter.

But, the best part of the note-

 

"I hope my brother and sister are on your good list."

 

Such a sweetie!!

I love my blue-eyed girl!

 

Definitely on the good list!

She is here!!!!

I have a new niece, and she is lovely!

Berkeley Keely Lance

arrived on 12-10-12 at 8:59 p.m. weighing 7 pounds, 6 ounces.

Unfortunately, I do not have a picture of her, for two reasons:

1- One of us was too busy holding the baby to take a picture,

and

2- The other was too busy being gimpy on crutches to take a picture!!!

She is soooo cute, trust me.

I will post a picture as soon as I remember to bring a camera, and when Colby can pry sweet little Berkeley out of my arms for a picture.

Congratulations, Stephie and Travis, you have a beautiful baby girl!

Happy Turkey Day!!

And now, pearls of wisdom from the Great Fat Garfield:

"Ahh, Thanksgiving.

That's the day people celebrate having food

by eating as much of it as possible.

Yes, that's the day people try to eat every turkey, pumpkin, and cranberry

on the face of the earth!"

Happy
"Stuff-yourself-until-it-hurts-but-you-still-eat-more"
Day!!

Grrrrrr, traffic......

I love/hate driving on the freeway.

Love that it is sometimes a faster way to get from A to B.

HATE that the always stellar Utah driver skills (*caught the sarcasm, right...*) seem to plummet to absolute zero on the freeway, however.

Today a huge Chevy Suburban cut right in front of me, attempting to fit where even a Geo Metro would be a tight squeeze.

Always annoying, but to make things even more pleasant, it had a huge New York Yankees sticker on the back window.

And that's not all.....

it had a BYU sticker too!!

Grrrrrr.

SWEEP!!!!!!!

What a fantastic series!!

The Detroit Tigers

SWEPT

the New York Yankees.

That's right, swept. As in the Tigers beat them 4 games straight.
The Tigers starting pitchers only allowed the Yankees 2 runs in the whole entire 4 game series.
The Tigers dealt the Yankees their first sweep in the ALCS since

1980.
The Detroit Tigers rock!!!

 

Go Tigers!!!!

I cannot wait for the World Series!!!!!!!!!!!

I've got your back, Big Bird. . .

I am not super politically active, or motivated, or anything.

Generally, I tend to let politics go their own way, and I go mine.

But......

Apparently a certain President-wanna-be thinks we should stop funding PBS.

Now I'm angry. Who doesn't like Big Bird??!?

Are there really no other issues in the country bigger and more worth the time?

This is the biggest problem?

PBS?
Grrrrrr.

At least he didn't malign Oscar the Grouch.
We'd have some serious problems if he attacked my favorite Sesame Street character.
Really, Oscar is one of my very favorite characters, from any show, ever.

Boy, does she know me. . .

A small conversation I overheard this afternoon, about three minutes after I heard the school bus on my street, and before the kids even set foot in the house...

Barrett:   "Do you think Mom is home yet?"

Charlotte:   "I think so, she didn't have to go to work today."

this next one is my favorite...

Savannah:   "Of course she's home, can't you tell? Her music is WAAAAAY too loud, I can hear it from out here."

Apparently, I listen to music too loud. The thing is, though, I like it that way. Loud is good. It makes me smile.
So, what does this mean?

But I thought I was older than Savannah??!!  Hmmm, maybe I can buy Savannah some earplugs!!