Trunk-or-Treat!

Happy Halloween from Harry Potter Quiditch(Garrett), Harry Potter(Alec), Hedwig the Owl(Ashlyn), Ninphadora Tonks(Victoria), Luna Lovegood (Rachel)

I think I can see his patronus!

Too much!

So much has happened since my last post. I don't even know where to start. I guess April is the best place. I found out I was in menopause. Then went to visit my friend Tiffani in South Carolina that first week. It was amazing to get away and spend time with her and her family. While I was there I found out that the pap smear I had the week before came back abnormal and they wanted to do a biopsy when I got back. That seemed the first of several things that went bad that month. It seems when it rains in my life it tends to pour. I went in for the biopsy when I got back to Utah. Darren moved out the next week. The biopsy wasn't conclusive so I had surgery (D&C) the last week in April. Darren and his Mom took the kids to Disneyland that Easter weekend. It was for the best, but it broke my heart. The surgery went well, other than it took me all that day and night to really wake up. I didn't feel better til the next day. Everything turned out ok. No cancer or pre-cancerous cells. Just have to watch and be aware of any signs, etc.

Since then we've just been plugging away trying to stay busy and not dwell too much on the changes in our lives. The kids and I are doing as well as can be expected. Since school got out we have been playing quite a bit.  We have a family membership to the Dinosaur park in Odgen, thanks to Groupon.com  and been bowling a few times, thanks to kidsbowlfree.com  I love summer deals!  Garrett finished his soccer season.  Rachel had a piano recital.  Alec has been off his ADD meds since school got out and has put on quite a bit of weight!  Yay!  The medication tends to suppress the appetite so the kids take the summer off to bulk up.  I'm trying to read some books about how diet effects them and maybe make some changes that will help him not have to have the meds.  We'll see.  I have goon back to school. I'm doing the cosmetology program at The DATC. I'm loving it.  I can't believe summer came and went so quickly.
We went to Yellowstone for my family reunion in July. We stayed at a cabin in Island Park, it was great! On the 4th the kids were able to go to the Clearfield city parade with Darren and his family and then we drove up to Island Park and were able to see a great firework show.  We spent 2 days in Yellowstone Park. Then we all came to Utah. Toured temple square, conference center and saw the new Joseph Smith the prophet movie. We were able to go to cow appreciation day again at Chick-fil-a.  It was great!  We love chick-fil-a! We spent one day at Lagoon.  Then Saturday everyone headed for their homes. It was a whirlwind of fun!

We celebrated my Birthday also!  It was a good one.  Melissa's family came and made dinner: bacon wrapped fillets with mushrooms, loaded baked potatoes, sweet carrots, salad and rolls, with mini cheesecakes (made by Jane), YUM.  It was great!
In August Ashlyn turned 3!  She is close now to being potty trained and she has started Pre-school.  She loves being in school like everyone else.  Then we celebrated Alec's 9th Birthday at Layton Surf-n-Swim.  He is going to school at Syracuse Arts Academy, and is wearing glasses now.  He is doing really well at his new school.  He also started piano lessons this fall.
Rachel and Garrett are still going to North Davis Prep Academy.  Garrett is loving being in school all day this year now that he is in 1st grade.  Rachel who is in 5th grade is at the Junior High building and has a locker and feeling all grown-up.
As far as Darren and I...I am in the process of filing for divorce.  Darren has been accepted to The OCD Center at Roger's Memorial Hospital and will be going to their inpatient program soon.  We are so grateful that he has the opportunity to get the help he needs.  We appreciate all your support and prayers and can't thank you enough.

What to title this?

I don't know what to label these posts other than "Catching up". It feels like that is all I am doing lately is playing catch up. So, I am skipping everything that hasn't happened in the past month. And for whatever reason I can't get the text and pics to line up right. It is driving me crazy so I am sorry but you'll have to try and put text and pic together in your mind.)

Rachel just celebrated her 10th Birthday! I can't believe it. This is her in her party dress. The bow was made by our neighbor. She is quite talented and is so good to make bows to match the girls dresses. I love not having to shop around to try and find something to match. (babytrenz.com)

Rachel still has a great love for horses and rainbows. So, her party was a unicorn theme. We found a unicorn cake on-line that had a rainbow mane she just had to have. So, I stepped out of my comfort zone to try something new and it turned out pretty good. I've never done anything with fondant so it was a new learning adventure. With her ears pierced she got a lot of new earrings. Two of her favorite gifts were from her grandmas. Grandma Zimmerman made her a winter hat (Scandinavian style) it is black with rainbow colors in the design. She has worn it almost everyday since she got it. Grandma Karin gave her a ward cook book and made her adorable hot pads. Rachel has been dying to cook ever since. Today she made her first meal. She chose Oven BBQ Hawaiian Chicken. IT was delicious. This is going to be great! Not only is she cooking but she is trying new things.

(All the pics are from Rachel's Party)

She has had a busy month with her school science fair and the 4th grade program.

He science fair project was "The Lip Balm Dilemma" It asked the question "Is it cheaper to buy or make lip balm?". It was a lot of research and math. She put together a great project but froze when the judges were asking her questions. It was a good experience for her. I was proud of her for doing one since it wasn't required. She'll be more prepared for next year's.

This is a pic from the 4th grade program she is dancing in the middle.

Enough about Rachel. Ashlyn is going on the potty more and more. Yay! She is so grown-up! I can't believe my baby is 2 and a 1/2 years old!

Garrett is ready for 1st grade. He wants to go to school all day. I want him to also. He gets very bored at home. I've had to get creative with him. He is also looking forward to not having to run errands with me. He is tired of "always" having to go shopping with me.

Alec played basketball with the Junior Jazz program again this year. He loves basketball. We used our Christmas money to buy a basketball system. It has been fun for all of us. We get out and play whenever the weather permits.

We are looking forward to April. Spring break is the first week and the last week we are going to Disneyland as a family.

Oven BBQ Hawaiian Chicken

1/3 c. Chili sauce

1 (8oz.) can crushed pineapple

1/4 c. apricot jam

2 T. brown sugar

2 T. soy sauce

1 tsp. cornstarch

4 chicken breasts

Combine all but chicken. Mix well. Arrange chicken in 9X13 pan. Spoon mixture on top. Bake at 350 degrees for the 1 hr. Good served with rice or potatoes.

Rachel likes potatoes, I like rice.