NYU creative writing professor Olivia Birdsall goes on 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'

Olivia was one of my mission companions & was a great missionary & a very fun companion. New York Daily News wrote up an article about her going onto the show & catches her fun bubbly personality (thus the title of the post - from the NY Daily News). I am so excited to watch her on the show! It airs today & continues on Monday. Good luck Hermana!

Oh yeah & did I mention that she's a NYU professor?!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom's 69th birthday! 6 years ago from today she found out on her birthday that she has diabetes. This year on her birthday, she found out that she has some dead cartilage & torn meniscus in her knee which means she will need to have some form of surgery. My mom was bugged with her doctor for giving her more bad news on her birthday & told him no more!

I found out today that one of my friends from high school, lost her mother today. It was unexpected although she had been sick but was recovering & no one saw this coming. So sorry to hear the news Marianne & we pray that all will be well with you & your family.

So even though my mom seems to hear bad news on her birthday, I am so grateful that she is still here with us, to see my kids grow, to be the great example that she is to us all, & of course for all the many many treats she always has at her house!

Happy Birthday Mom!

We love you!

Easter 2010

Easter started at the Santa Clara Easter Egg Hunt. Everyone decided to wear hats!

Then we went back to Grandma Moss's house to do our annual egg dying with red roots & onion skins. The also made little nests this year.

Then the Easter Bunny found Grandma's house & left candy & eggs for the kids. There was also the usual box of chocolates for the parents to find.

Since Easter Sunday fell on General Conference, we didn't have cute little Easter outfit pictures this year. I did get the girls dresses though & they are cute! It was a fun weekend full of good messages on family, family, family.

Olivia's oral surgery 4/2/10

I get so sad looking at this picture! Although she is so cute & happy in the photo, it reminds me of how the rest of the appointment went! She had a molar that never came in & we had been watching it for a year & it wasn't moving, but the teeth next to it were!

We were back the next morning to have it removed (day of the photo). They started her off with some gas & shots & started off doing awesome! She hasn't had any cavities yet so the only work done on her so far is cleanings. But as he worked more & more on her, it got harder & hurt causing her to cry, scream, & kick all around. The Doctor could not get the tooth out because it was wedged in between the other 2 teeth so he finally gave up. I was literally laying on top of her to try & hold her still. It was a sad day! Not to mention it was the day that Trent & I left to the Bahamas, so I got to worry about her during my trip!

Olivia would make comments like, "Remember when the doctor said it wouldn't hurt but it did!" & "Remember when he said that it would tickle a little bit? It didn't tickle, it hurt!" What drove me crazy was when he would say to her "Don't cry, I'm not even doing anything!" while pushing & pulling hard on her poor little tooth!

So a new appointment was scheduled with an oral surgeon & WOW! how much better that went! They put her to sleep & within 10 minutes had the tooth out! The tooth was HUGE! So was the hole left in her mouth! Then they had to put a band with a spacer on the tooth in front of the hole. What was extremely nice was that the dentist came over to the surgeon's office to put on the spacer on the tooth on his day off so that we wouldn't have to go back to him later to have it put on!

The crew working on her.

So can you tell which side the tooth came out of?? Her cute puffy little right cheek doesn't give it away does it?!

And then to be even more impressed, the surgeon & dentist offices sent her flowers! She absolutely loved that!

Now the comments she makes are "Next time I need a tooth pulled, you better put me to sleep again!" & "That didn't even hurt when I was a sleep!"

Happy April Fool's Day!

Anyone for some "Fakin' & Eggs"?

I found this cute idea in the Family Fun magazine.

Let's just say it was a hit with the kids! Nothing like sugar for breakfast!

On a side note: on St. Patrick's Day last month, I made these freaking cute rainbow cupcakes for our Relief Society birthday Dinner. Rainbow colored cake - layer by painstaking layer, with a fluffy cool whip "cloud" & a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

Lainee's 2nd grade play 3/31/10

"How Does Your Garden Grow?"

That was the name of the play that the 2nd grade put on yesterday.

Lainee was a beautiful flower.

There were weeds, bunnies, crows, flowers, cabbage, tomatoes, scarecrows, farmers, peas, corn just to name a few.

Lainee had a speaking part & she did a GREAT job!

Rigby really enjoyed the play. Olivia was in class & didn't get to see the play.

Her grandparents came to watch her, they are always so good to show their support.

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Since the play was about gardens, I thought I would show how MY garden is doing right now! I love spring! I love when my flowers come up! So pretty!