What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!

A good time was had by all! Jason enjoyed the world of concrete (Who wouldn't??) Chris and Amy had a "hot" time! Emily was very busy trying to work and be tour guide to a group that couldn't make any plans, and poor Kallen was sick the first two days we were there. GG and Papa Paul got to share their bed with Taylor and even got a few smiles. Brandon was sweet. Ethan was a helpful big brother and Melissa was just happy to be with family! We missed Ben and Mindy terribly. We got to meet Hal, the dog and see Emily's apartment. Ahhhhh, family!!!!

The Big Weenie

Wow !!! When Mom and I went to Walmarts we saw the......OSCAR MAYER WEENIEMOBILE !!! And to top it off, as we later left the store we ran into the Weeniemobile again as it was headed down Keene Road (obviously to park in a big bun for the night). I am soooo fullfilled.

Brrrr!

For all those coming to Vegas next week, bundle up!
http://weather.msn.com/tenday.aspx?wealocations=wc:USNV0049
Sorry-I tried to have better weather for you, but it just didn't go my way. It will be in the 40's/50's and sprinkly. Just a heads up! I can't wait to see yous...I'm SOOOOO 'cited!!

Ok, I have decided. . .

I remember why I don't read this now . . . First my smart-ass tendencies come out in full force and I can hardly stop myself from being a jack-ass (something I am not usually fond of being). Second, I read about 400 pages or so per week already, I don't need to sit for hours reading some of the novels you all put out. Don't get me wrong, I love you all and I would totally kill for you, but I still like the phone. That brings me to another point. . . why do I HAVE to answer my phone? If I choose not to it isn't because I dislike or don't want to hear from someone, but perhaps I am crowning and giving birth to my own monster poop baby . . . or maybe Amy is getting freaky and we need a little alone time (like grandma and papa in the recliner . . . Ray!). So lets not get all bent out of shape if phones aren't being answered, it's nothing personal,and if it is I sure as hell will tell you. Right now I have one regret, and that is how I have bad mouthed Utah to you mom. Believe me when I do it, I am not thinking of the copes in the least (Cami is not a Cope anymore), I am mainly speaking of . . . well, let me stop right there before I dig myself deeper in my hole of shame.
If you want to hear about health problems, I'm not sure but I may have one or two . . . if I am taking more than one monster shit a day, not the green kind, but the kind that make you emotional because it is as though you just gave birth, is that normal? I'm not worried about being normal in the sense of "fitting in" but more in the way that considering how much I can shit in any given day, I should be the size of one of those crazy, starving, Ethiopians, you know .?
If younger children such as Brian read this I apologize for my language, but lets face it, its not the first time he has heard me swear, nor will it be the last. I still remember Jason's dumbfounded look as he nearly drove off the road down in Florida when I told Brian that if he touched me with that booger, I was going to sit on his face and shit down his throat . . . I'm telling you, I cannot always control what comes out of my mouth, it's not a matter of a broken filter, because usually I am very aware of what and how I am saying something, but when I go into that fight-or-flight mode, the most urgent and to the point thing I can get out of my mouth sometimes even surprises me. Now you can all judge me because of this, believe me I am use to it where I currently live, or you can simply (one of Amy's most hated phrases) "just love me."

Testimony Meeting

I'm going to be honest, I mostly don't like going to Sacrament Meeting. Being a "single mom" during this hour is NOT fun. It mostly is like an episode of WWF. We have "Sugar" and "Spice" in this corner and "Struggling Mom" in this corner. They usually win. By the end of the hour my clothes are wrinkled and sometimes ripped, I have Cheerio spit on my shirt, I have numeously flashed the lucky person that came in late and HAD to sit by us, I've played referee and broken up fights and whew...there is still two hours to go. Last week during Fast and Testimony Meeting I wasn't especially feeling the spirit, but I wanted a small break from the madness, so I thought I'd get up and bear my testimony. I told Zack to sit quietly by Sister Isaac because I was going to bear my testimony. Well, Zack whispered that he wanted to say his testimony. It was a very proud moment as both a mother and Primary leader. Then the "oh-no" thought came...what will he say??? So I gave him a hug and told him I was proud of his choice and asked him what he wanted to say. He told me, "I'm thankful for Brother Cooper (his Primary teacher) and I love him. I love my family. I love Jesus and want him to be happy and love me." WOW! I was pretty impressed with this four year old's first testimony. He was so confident and sure of himself and I hadn't even prompted him. So I handed Taylor off and Zack and I held hands and headed up to the pulpit. We got up there and he FREAKED!!! He started screaming, yes...screaming that he didn't want to do it! He didn't want "nobody" looking at him. I tried to pick him up and hold him but he flailed out of my arms. There I stood facing everybody looking like a deer in headlights. I tried to compose myself and just bear Zack's testimony for him. He keeps popping his head up and saying "NO! I don't wanna do it!" Then he tries to make a run for it. As he is running away he trips down the step and falls forehead first onto the ground. Everyone gasps and there I am having an out of body experience by now. It was like I could see it all happening but couldn't move or make it stop! I guess this was my punishment for using an opportunity to bear my testimony as a "break" from my kids. SIGH!!!!

Our own monster pooper

You all missed out!

Kallen and I had a lovely evening with Uncle Robert last night. He filled us in on all the latest happenings at the Consumer Electronics Show, some of his health problems, and we even discussed our blue eyes (Christopher!) We had some decent Mexican food and ice cream and then called it a night. Too bad yous weren't here two weeks earlier or you could've joined us!

He flushed it before I had the chance to take a picture

Just had this conversation with Jack:
"Daddy, wipe me."
"It's green!" I exclaimed.
"Yeah" he said.
"Wow! Why is it green?" I asked.
"It is monster poop" he said as a matter of fact.

Hallucinations, Body Oder, and Buhl

I arrived safely in ID last night and met up with Mindy, Hannah, Kristin, and our old roommates from SLC, Dave and Tenille. My flight was uneventful other than sitting next to an fidgety nervous lady who spilled all her candy and reeked of B.O. The flights were slightly delayed and I arrived in Boise 1:30 EST. By the time we got back to Buhl this morning it was 7:30 EST, so I went more than 25 hours straight with no sleep. I actually hallucinated on the drive from Boise to Buhl - it was not as fun as I once thought it would be. But we made it and are looking forward to a nice week filled with family and food.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!

The top 20 things that make you a good mom and why I love you (no particular order though...too late to think THAT much):

1. You taught us the gospel and lived the gospel (FHE, family prayers, scripture study, church attendance, magnifying your callings, service, temple worthiness, ect...)
2. You were/are always consistant
3. You have a wonderful sense of humor, especially at the dinner table (sorry dad, it WAS funny)
4. You were silly with us and didn't let us take ourselves too serious
5. You are a strong woman, not a whiney-co dependant-sappy-pushover
6. You sang and read to us daily
7. You taught us to work and do a good job "Anything worth doing is worth doing well!"
8. You taught us the life skills we needed to be independent and sucessful adults
9. You loved our Dad and set a good example of what a good marriage is
10. You had high expectations of us
11. We always felt loved by you--no matter what (and there were alot of "no matter whats")
12. You give the worlds BEST hugs
13. You stressed the importance of a good education
14. You made us do chores and taught us how to keep a clean house, garden, yard, ect...
15. You were/are a friend when we need one and a mother when we needed one
16. You encourage us and help us acheive our goals
17. You taught us how to be thrifty and wise with our money
18. You make us each feel like we are you're favorite (we know the truth..it's really me)
19. You are organized
20. You are clever and a wonderful homemaker


I hope to be half the mother that you are to us. I love you with all my heart. You are a wonderful example and mother! Have a happy day and a wonderful year.

SOPPING UP THE BASEMENT!

Two nights ago when we went down to watch TV Paul kept sniffing and saying that it smelled like pee. I couldn't smell anything. He was sniffing all the pillows and the couch (just like a dog!) trying to see if maybe our precious Pearl had had an accident anywhere. Nada! So, last night we were going to watch ER. I was getting my pj's on and Paul went down. When I got downstairs it was dark and Paul said, "Don't turn on the light." There he was with his blacklight (sound familiar, Chris?) looking for the source of the smell. I walked into the room and there was a damp spot on the rug. On further search we discovered that half of the rug was damp. So I immediately looked in the storage room because that was where we were "leaking" the first time we had a damp rug in the basement. Nada! So I looked in the shop and it wasn't wet. Paul was worried it might be a broken pipe under the house. On further searching we found that the water softener was leaking. He has it sitting in a box lined with left over pond plastic and the box was completely full of water. So for the next hour and a half we used the shop vac to suck up the water. We carried pail after pail of water upstairs, because we don't have a drain in the basement. The fans were brought in, to dry the carpet under the rug, the rug was put outside on the patio, and needless to say, we didn't get to watch ER.

The Crazy Deckers

Zack and "Buddy the Elf"

Taylor is a Santa Hater!

Decker Christmas Eve Feast

Jason made the best seafood platter...he grilled scallops, jumbo shrimp, lobster tails and then made a yummy tomatoe-y, spicy, chunky sauce that he drizzled over top. Delicious! I wish I could get him to cook the rest of the year! He also grilled a fillet and I made a blue cheese sauce to go with it. We did the traditional bacon wrapped chestnuts, cheeseball and lots of appitizer-snacky foods.

I made home-made caramels for the first time. They were as good as I remember. I also made a few different fudge's using the reciepe Dad recommended. I am usually a fudge falure...yes, even the "no fail fudge" I fail at. This reciepe and I got along! I made the original with the cherries and nuts (my boys hated it), then I altered it and made a peanut butter batch (boys LOVED it) and a white chocolate with cranberry batch (Zack and Linda liked it). I'm so sad that I can't make divinity. It just turns to soup---which isn't all that bad :) I'm gonna go with the excuse that it's just too humid out East. Yeah, that's it!

I made our Yule Log with Hershey's Special Dark cocoa power...OHMYJOSH!!! It was seriously the BEST cake I ever ate (and I've eaten alot of cake!!!)!

Happy New Year

One, of many, new years resolutions I have, is to read this blog at least once a month.