Guess what??

Next week....I will be HERE!!!

And here...

And here...

Corky and I are taking a little get-away to our old stomping grounds and we are dying with excitement! We will be attending Corky's 5 year class reunion at West Point, NY. It will be busy with events but we are definitely going to enjoy ourselves. It is the best time of year to go to see all the gorgeous leaves and feel the crisp, cool air that I am seriously longing for right now. My lovely sister-in-law Candice is taking our girls for 5 days.

We are also going to be spending time in Connecticut at my old house, visiting my former employers and the children I was a nanny for. It has been 5 years since we have seen each other and I can't wait to catch up. Since we have seen each other, Corky and I have have gotten married, had 2 kids, and have grown a lot. And the kids that I worked with are so GROWN UP! I can't wait to see them!

Corky and I were going to be going there a few days before his reunion to spend some time in NYC but his work forced him to change some plans and he has to be in Georgia for a day or two. Instead of spending more money to change my flight plans, I will be spending the first day and a half by myself in the city! Surprisingly, I am totally excited. I wish Corky could be there with me of course, but I am definitely going to have fun. There is plenty for me to do in NYC by myself.

Anyway, the front page of MSN just had the very bridge (Bear Mountain Bridge) we will be driving over next week and I just got too excited and had to post something!

Funny conversations.

Story #1
Yesterday at the park, I was sitting on the bench thumbing through a magazine while my girls played on the slides and stuff. I saw a few younger kids show up and I hear Gracey say "hello!" Then I kept hearing "hello. hello. hello. Hey Boy, why are you not saying hello!?" I just kept my mouth shut as I listened to this one-sided conversation of my busy-body daughter and a shy little boy. Gracey then turns to me and asked why he wasn't saying hello back to her. I didn't want to embarrass the boy so I just responded "He doesn't have to say hello if he doesn't want to" with the full intention of talking to her later about how it is impolite to ignore someone.

A few minutes go by and Gracey and this boy are now playing together. Before, I gave the boy the benefit of the doubt and thought that maybe he was unable to speak. That of course was not the case and he was no longer shy and him and Gracey were having a grand ole time.

As we left the park to go home, Gracey turned back around and yelled to the boy. "HEY BOY! THANKS FOR PLAYING WITH ME! BYE!"

And he yelled back "See ya!"

Gracey....my little social butterfly.

Story #2
This morning we were out the door pretty early to make a run to WalMart. As we were loading up the car, we saw our neighbor that lives across the stress getting into her car. We exchanged our good mornings and drove off. Gracey then asks "Where is that lady going?" I told her that I didn't know.

Gracey said "Maybe she is going to church!"

I said, "I don't think so, its not Sunday! She is probably on her way to work!"

I then told her that some moms aren't always lucky enough to stay home and play (a.k.a. work) with their kids all day long like I can.

She thought about that for a minute then said "When I grow up and become a mommy, I am going to stay home with my baby while my baby's daddy goes to work!"

I just thought it was funny that she used the term "baby daddy!"

Story #3 (but not so much a story, more like topic)
If you can guess what Emily said to Corky last night, you earn major cool points. (extremely coveted by the way!)

"DAAAAD! Ee ee it me!"

Of course we knew exactly what she said and we both laughed, then groaned. So begins the rest of our lives....raising two females so close in age.

*You may have to say it out loud to get it.

Update!
My friend Janna wins the coveted cool points! Emily definitely was saying "Gracey hit me!" when Gracey was most certainly NOT hitting her. But like all sister's do (even at a young age apparently) they are constantly trying to get the other one into trouble.

Whoever thought that Emily would do okay with one of those "bottle suckers" is totally fired...or should be.
Okay.....it was me! I totally deserved the mess that I had to clean up, I should have known better.

Hopefully I made up for it with a little less messy activity, a bedtime reading of "Poky Little Puppy!"

The much anticipated event of their lifetime!

Last week was a fun-filled week of prep for the nuptials of Bailey and Skyler. The little girls and I were able to drive up a few days prior and have some fun with the family.

There are just way too many pictures that I want to show so please forgive the collage monstrosity!

Here is the happy couple walking out the door, last picture taken of them before the official "ball and chain" was intact.

Some pictures outside of the St. George LDS Temple...which by the way was a BEAUTIFUL day for weather. It was only about 81 degrees and clear. Perfect day for a wedding.

I love seeing kids be such "helpers" with the train of the dress. My sister in law Jessicawas just as patient with that as Bailey was.

The luncheon that followed the wedding was so yummy. I could eat Staheli Catering salad ALL DAY LONG. It would seriously be my dessert if I they weren't famous for their peach cobbler also.

The reception was a lot of fun. The whole family saw lots of people that we hadn't seen in so long and it was great! There was a little issue with the cake that Albertson's had made. Luckily the flower bouquets and centerpieces were full enough that they didn't miss the fresh flowers that I stole from all of them to hide some imperfections of the cake.

Can you tell that my girls love their aunt Bailey? They sure do.

Here are some snapshots taken throughout the evening. Most of them were of Emily because Gracey was always off somewhere exploring.

And lastly, this will probably embarrass my sister but I am sure she will forgive me. She said this shirt was an "accident". She just wanted a comfy tshirt to wear since they were driving to Las Vegas that night. Uh huh!! Look closely. Is it just me and my dirty mind, or is that shirt a little suggestive??

Love her!

6 things.

In yet another tag, I am supposed to write 6 quirky things about myself.

Let's see....shouldn't be that difficult.

1- I CAN'T pack my bags for a trip unless all the laundry is finished, folded, and put away. Even if I know that I will be pulling something out of the drawer and putting it in my bag 30 seonds later, it HAS to go in the drawer first. It just does.

2- I can't commit to paint colors, therefore I always have white walls. The first wall I have ever painted in a house was our one bathroom wall 3 months ago. I just hate the thought of going to all the trouble and then it just being hideous.

3- I shred everything. I shred all my papers with names and addresses on it. Junk mail, newsletters, credit card and bank statements....to the shredder they go. I am petrified of having my identity stolen. And if it is any comfort to those who mail me letters, I shred your envelopes too that have your return address on them. You're welcome. :)

4- I have 3 back ups to my pictures. When I take pictures, I put them onto my snapfish account so I have them on the internet. I also back them up on discs but I burn two discs. One for my house and one to keep at my mom's house in case my house burns down!

5- The past 3 or 4 months I have been using cheap, generic conditioner as my shaving cream. I bought the conditioner on accident one day for my hair and I hated it on my hair. I didn't want to waste it so I thought I would try that out. I love it and it lasts so much longer than shaving cream.

6- I have an obsession with ribbon. I own more than I can handle but I love it. :)

Ode to the many tags that I have avoided....

Am I really doing all of these???

Tag #1- (courtesy of AnnaMarie)

The rules are this- you must take pictures of the following things, as is, no straightening up etc.

My fridge- We definitely have a condiment problem. I have about 5 different types of mustard, marinades, ketchup, mayo....well, you can see for yourself.

See that bag of chocolate chips in the freezer that is almost gone? I probably made one single batch of cookies with those, the rest were eaten by me grabbing a handful here and there! See the 3 cans of frosting in the fridge? That is Corky's favorite snack on graham crackers. They are thrown away now...we don't need that much frosting.

My toilet. Killing two birds with one stone here since another request is a picture of my pet.

My kitchen sink that is LONG overdue for an old fashion sink-shining. At the moment, serving as my defrosting platter. (this was just before lunch so I had just washed my hands...too bad I didn't take it right after. The girls put their own dishes in the sink and that gets messy!)

My favorite room in the house I suppose is the living room. It is the easiest to keep straightened up and the first thing people see as they walk in so there is the motivation. It is dire need of a valance and a rug though. Add that to the other gajillion projects that I have lined up.

My closet. So embarrassing. Did you know I used to color coordinate my closet? I loved it so much, it was beautiful. Now I just have a million shirts and I swear I only wear about 5 of them. About 20 pairs of jeans and I only wear 2...maybe 3 of those. Who wants to fund my new wardrobe????? HAHA And I just noticed something so stupid. Those are my clothes hanging up, but Corky's shoes underneath. His clothes are behind the door and can't be seen in the picture, but MY shoes are underneath them. Is that totally stupid or what??


My laundry room. It is just outside of my kitchen into the garage. Nothing spectacular which makes me sad. I think super cute laundry rooms are the best.



My kids are currently doing two different things at this moment. Emily is sleeping off her tantrum that she threw when I dropped Gracey off at school. This happens every time. Emily would love nothing more than to stay there and play too. And Gracey is at school. (this picture isn't of today, it was taken last week)

My dream vacation, and it has been for years, is to go to Machu Piccho, Peru. It is so gorgeous and fascinating.

My favorite shoes. My crocs that I wear only at my house because I am the first to say how ugly they are. Then my heels...which I have had for about 2 years but gave me monstrous blisters for the first time last weekend. That hurt my feelings, I thought that me and these shoes had an understanding.

And then the stupid self portrait....you know you want some of that!

And now let's see Abby, Candice, Sariah, Janna, and Stacey. Your turn!

A few matter to discuss.

Friday was Gracey's first day of dance class! Leaps, jumps, skips, hops, and leotards are now consuming her mind and life! I love it! And Emily follows right along. (don't mind Em's bed head...she had barely gotten up from a nap!) Little girls are the best!

Sunday was Corky's birthday. At his request, I attempted my first homemade angel food cake. It wasn't too bad for my first time but I definitely need more practice. Darn it, right? More angel food cake to be made at our house. Happy Birthday Corky! We hope it was a good one and we hope you liked your birthday present that you were totally surprised by!

Another happy day to take note of....today. (its easy to remember because it is the day after his birthday!) 7 years ago was the happy day that Corky and I met. He was a skinny, barely post-mission, cute, funny, blonde cadet. I was a blonde, long-haired, barely made my way out into the world on my own, recent high school graduate. We became fast friends but took our time in the "lovematch" department.

After 7 years, and luckily some low-rise jeans for me, I still think he is pretty cool.

blabber mouth, Gracey

(I wish I could write this in a way to make it as funny as it truly was tonight at dinner.)

Just the four of us were sitting at the table for dinner, enjoying some stir fry, jasmine rice, and catching up on each other's day. All of the sudden, Gracey's face lights up like she just remembered something and says "Dad! We bought you a shirt for your birthday today!"

I just throw my head back in defeat! I NEVER can surprise Corky with a gift, somehow he always has a hunch....this time, when I finally think he might be surprised, Gracey just blurted it out.

We laughed about where this conversation had gone, especially Corky. He thought that was the funniest things he had heard all day. Finally I say, "Oh well, at least you don't know what it looks like!"

Gracey says very matter-of-factly, "Dad, its striped."

Emily is starting to speak sentences and the husband and I couldn't be more proud!

"My ball."

"My dress."

"My block."

"My goggles!"

"My wattie-bottie!" (translation: "my water bottle")

"No, my cup!"

"My horsey!"

"No-no penny"

(and the poor kitty is only laying there snoozing)

"My kitty"

"No, mine!"

Anyone seeing a trend here?

Coincidentally I write this on the same day my friend Aimee wrote about her daughter Jilly and the TODDLER LAWS of PROPERTY on her blog.

I sit here at the computer, starting my timer over for the 4th or 5th time, while Gracey is starting her 15 minutes of time out alone in her bedroom. I even went to the trouble and mess of clearing out all of the things in her bedroom that make it fun, just so she wasn't confusing this sentencing with a trip to Disneyland!

It all started as I was finishing my "getting ready" regime...although I am not sure exactly WHAT started it. We were preparing to go to the park for a couple of hours when Gracey began kicking the side of the bathtub, flailing her arms and legs in every direction, and screaming what I can only imagine were 3 year old obsenities in my direction. Looking back, I am pretty sure all I asked of her was to brush her hair.

These tantrums don't happen very often but I can't help but hide a snicker at how ridiculous she can be sometimes. After I told her she lost the priviledge of going to the park, you would think that she had just witnessed the murder of one of her favorite princess dolls. She was running around the house and hiding behind furniture, all while I was taking advantage of the moments she was hiding her face so I could sneak a laugh out.

During all of this, Emily sat happily on the bathroom floor playing with a comb and a cup of water....which is now spilled everywhere.

Hopefully Gracey can earn back her right to the playground this evening, but I am not making promises. I need to get out of the house everyday as much as the girls do and lately the park has been our only place to go. 2 weeks ago, I vowed that I will NOT take the girls to the grocery store, or any store for that matter, for at least a month. It got THAT BAD!

I hear the crying in the other room finally calming and my kitchen timer telling me it is time to spring the kid. Hopefully we can have a rational conversation....and when I mean rational, all I am asking is no more kicking and definitely no more screaming from a certain 3 year old.

Emily's first haircut.

Sunday night I finally committed and I cut Emily's hair. I have been saying that I would do it since she was about 12 months old because she was kind of sporting a mullet. I just couldn't stand the thought of cutting off her cute curls in the back of her hair so I always wussed out. This last week though I noticed that you could finally see layers of hair and the mullet was getting a little out of control. Sunday, we saddled up on the kitchen table, comb, water glass, and scissors, and we finally did it. I cut a little more off than I had hoped but it is all even now and is an adorable little bob.

Now if only the front of her hair would grow....



Yes, that is her hair on the plate being saved for baby-book purposes! I haven't been good about recording her teeth coming in, but you better believe I am keeping that first lock of hair!

A week in review.

Last week Corky had to go to Georgia for work. It worked out perfectly for us because my little sister had a bridal shower. (But she hasn't loaded any pictures from the one I attended!) We had a really fun visit.

Ready for a picture overload??? Here it comes.

On our way, the girls and I decided to take a quick break and look at the Hoover Dam. For once, it wasn't overly crowded with tourists and I was able to ease myself right into a parking spot. I took a few pictures and then we were on our way once again.



In St. George we swam a lot, jumped on the trampoline a lot, then swam some more.


One of the days, my dad took us and we went and fed the ducks that live on the St. George Golf Course pond. Did you know at the Bakery Outlet, you can get 20 loaves of bread for $2? They are listed as "not for human consumption" because they had either expired or the bag had been sliced open. Perfect for our feeding frenzy. (and if you didn't notice the quality before, just know that these were taken with my phone because I am an idiot and forgot to take my camera.)

Here are the girls just starting out.


I couldn't believe how brave Emily was. I thought she would be glued to my lap but she was putting herself right in the middle of all the ducks and geese.


We spotted two turtles poking their head out of the water. They were only lucky to get a few pieces of bread from us. Those ducks are pretty greedy!


Here is Emily trying to be like Grandpa. She watched him feed a piece of bread to a duck that was hanging out of his mouth. (the bread...not the duck!) She surprised us all by copying.


This is the only picture that I dare post of my sister's bridal shower. Her friends put on quite the party! Hilarious and so much fun!


She was answering questions from a video of an interview with Skyler. It was freaky how these two know each other. Just one example from the game, Skyler was asked "What is Bailey's favorite color?" Bailey then answers in a not-so-short answer, "Well, my favorite color is red. But my favorite color to wear is teal. So its a toss up between those two I guess. Do I say my favorite color is red or teal? Etc. Etc. Etc." She finally decides that red is her final answer. Lo and behold, Skyler's not-so-short answer consisted of "her favorite color is red but her favorite color of shirt is teal....." and so on and so on. More often than not were both of their answers long and explanatory just like that. It was freaky and funny all at the same time.

Friday, Corky flew into Vegas from his business trip. He took the shuttle to St. George instead of going straight home. Not only did we miss him, but it was great to have him watch the girls while I went to the bridal shower. Of course he got a golf game in beforehand so we all were winners!

Last but not least, my mom won tickets to the Roadrunner's final baseball game of the season. (I didn't even know there was a team like that in St. George!) It was a lot of fun and they had a really great fireworks show following the game. Gracey was really excited to get the Roadrunner's autograph on her ticket. Then without asking, but seeing all the other kids do it, she get another autograph on her arm!


Straight after the game, it was time for us Whipple's to hit the road to come home. It was a fun trip and we look forward to it again in a couple of weeks when Miss Bailey Faye gets herself hitched to Skyler.

HA!

Two weeks ago I was sitting in sharing time with my Sunbeams, as always, trying to keep them focused and calm. If you remember my post from a few months ago, I mentioned my desire to NOT become a Sunbeam teacher. I was selfishly afraid of how stressful it would be to deal with that age group. Anyway, back to my story...I was sitting in sharing time and the thought occurred to me "You know Morgan? You are really lucky to have a calling that you only have to really deal with 2 hours out of the week!" I always prepared my lesson during the week but nothing extravagant for 3 years old. So in that instance of recognition, I was very happy and satisfied with my calling.

Fast Forward about an hour and a half, Corky and I are leaving the church building and someone runs out after us "Whipples! Bishop wants to talk to both of you!" My first thought is that perhaps Corky is getting a new calling or another calling. We walk into the office and the bishop sits us down. We make small talk for a second and then he says "Sister Whipple, I would like to extend the calling of Primary President to you."

SAY WHAT???????

First thing I say in response is "Are you sure you prayed about that?"

Apparently he had. Wish me luck!

How can two little girls be so destructive in only a matter of minutes it takes for me to do some layndry??

I think it might be time to make a D.I. pile!

For the Record

Gracey, in a few years you will read this and think "did I really say that?"

Yesterday as I was putting on my make-up, Gracey sat on the counter and watched as I applied cover-up on some unwanted blemishes.

Gracey said "Mom, when I grow up and become a mommy, I am going to have pimples too!"

I reply, "Sadly, you are probably right, but maybe by that time they will have found a cure!"

Gracey, "Its not sad. When I get older I want them, so I can wear make up"

Me, "You say that now...."

Gracey, "But I do-oo!"

Happy notes.

This morning I went outside to water some of my plants and the breeze actually felt a little chilly. Not cold, just cool and nice. I love the fall season and get excited when even the earliest signs of it arrive. So then the wheels started cranking in my head and I text messaged Corky to see if he wanted to meet me and the girls for a picnic at the park for lunch. He agreed so I went and made some sandwiches and put on my exercise clothes. That was actually part of my plan, getting Corky to watch the girls at the park while I ran the perimeter a few times and got a much needed exercise out of the way.

The weather was perfect outside, only about 93 degrees and a cool breeze. Usually it is really WINDY here, so not having gusty winds was enough to make my day.

The girls ate their lunches and played on the park for a while. The sun was beating down but not in a dreadfully hot (like usual) way. It felt so nice in the shade.

On our way home, I heard one of my favorite artists, Secondhand Serenade, on the radio and that made me happy too. I had to text Corky about it. We have been big fans for a couple of years, so to hear him starting to get more recognized and become popular is pretty cool.

We got home and because I had Emily skip her morning nap, she and Gracey went down for their afternoon nap easier than ever.

So far today it has just been one of those good days that is worth noting.

And just to show you that even though the Olympics are on, I still do like my kids.

My girls fight about 90 percent of the time and it makes me crazy!!! But then every once in a while they share, play nice, and have fun together and it makes my day.

On a totally different note, yesterday Corky and I spent the afternoon in our front yard (if you can call it a yard) and dug out 3 of our 5 oleander shrubs. They can be pretty if you are looking for some privacy. A lot of people use them so neighbors can't look into their yard. At Fort Irwin, there was a whole row of them along a road and they looked nice there. We didn't want them though for a couple of reasons. First reason was that our porch is always covered with dead leaves and flowers from them. Second, they were placed right in front of the two bedroom windows that are at the front of the house. I wasn't going to have a nice, big bush in front of my windows, giving anybody the perfect hiding place at night to peek into my house. Lastly, and most importantly, they are poisonous. They are one of the most toxic and deadly plants...I have tiny kids, no thanks to that.

Well those bushes are strong, and their roots run deep. Even with me and Corky both using a shovel, it was some work. Luckily we HAD two shovels because Corky broke one. It snapped right in half. That is how strong those bushes are when they are big. After that, we took turns and finally got them.

We really want to make our front yard look nice. It looks like whoever built the house just put bushes and planters wherever. Maybe they threw darts or something to decide where to put things because there really isn't any structure, symmetry, or organization.

Anyway, so that is the beginning of our newest project. Want to take bets on how long it will take to finish?

8 is Great!!

Hmmm...do you think we are fans around here?

Is there anything more I can really say? He made history! Michael Phelps won his 8th gold medal last night and was so gracious by thanking and acknowledging his teammates who helped him do it. I thought that was awesome.

And a little shout out (like they'll see this!) to my next favorite sport in this Olympics! They are on a winning streak like no other. I think they have won 104 games in a ROW!! Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh are on a roll in beach volleyball.

I'm not gonna lie...

I cried just a little tonight when Michael Phelps won his 7th gold medal of this Olympics!! What an acheivement. I still can't get over how close the race was. He truly won the 100 metter butterfly race by a fingertip. You can't get closer than that.

I am so excited for him, he truly makes America proud!

Men's gymnastic

Yes, another Olympic post. We still have a few more weeks of this to go, so get used to it people!

It was a pretty exciting night last night for the US men's gymnastic team. Exceeding all expectation, they snagged the bronze medal. It was fun to watch how excited they were.

Who knew though that men's gymnastic could be so "gangsta"???

Some of the more laughable quotes from the boys last night after completeing the competition...

"thas what I'm talking bout!"
"Yeeeeaaaahhh baby!"
"Dats how we roll!"

Seriously? Did they really say all that to the camera?

Still love them.