How does she do that?

I just had to post this.....this is how we found Jorj last night. We usually give our girls10 minutes or so of reading before lights out. I guess she wasn't going down without a fight! This is one she can add to her resume in the future.....sleeping book ends.

Twilight........ Not At Twilight

Rather at midnight! Yes, I know- a rather risky move for a middle-aged teaching mom. However, I was extended an invitation by my little sister to join the cool kids for a night and I couldn't resist. Bless their hearts, she and my sis-in-law Jess went early and saved seats. I kidnapped my friend Shannon and giddy as college co-eds, we drove into the night to meet up with hundreds of other Twilight fans.

I can say that it was well worth the trip and lack of sleep AND consternation of my 14 yr-old daughter who couldn't BELIEVE that I went to the opening at midnight and still taught school the next day (it was a half-day-phew!). It was so good, that my sister Jamie and I didn't even want to go to the bathroom for fear of missing anything. The movie was 2 hours long, but I would have stayed another hour.

Thanks to Stephanie Meyer for coming up with Twilight and to my little sis Jamie, who coerced me along for the fun!

Seen and heard at the Fuller household......

I was sitting on my computer-Jorja was on an adjacent couch singing "I'm trying to be like Jesus.." I turned around and said, endearingly, "Are you trying to be like Jesus, Little Jorj?" She replied, "No, not really. I'm just singing the song....besides, he has a beard."

"Is that all you got?" Jorj -when I failed to produce Halloweeny pants instead of jeans to go with her Halloweeny shirt

"Now all I need is a pair of spurs!" Afton, after her nervous mother came around the corner and was relieved to find she was attempting a cowgirl ensemble for our day on the town

"If you be bad you'll go to Hell with Grandpa Bond!" Jorj and I truly have no idea where that one came from..

Singing "Nasty girls- dance, dance, dance" immediately followed by "when Jesus Christ was baptized, down in the River Jordan" Jorj AND Afton

I'm sure that the musical selections were somewhat influenced by me and that I am probably going to Hell for my horrible influence- but on the bright side, at least I'll have someone to talk to when I get there...........just kidding-don't strike me down please!

The ups and downs of the ride.....

SO, the other day we were celebrating a little girl's birthday in my classroom. After singing Happy Birthday to her "opera style "(they get to choose----that's my personal favorite) she mentioned that she had chocolate to share. Woohoo! At that point my co-teacher said that Sanaya's mom and dad ran a chocolate shop. HMMMM....SO I asked her what type of chocolate that they had and she pulled out of her bag...........LEONIDAS tablets!!!!!!!!!! At this point I was down on my knees, okay not really, but I was doing a little dance and gushing to Sanaya how Leonidas is the best chocolate in the world and that I had been to her parents' shop MULTIPLE times (there's only one in the valley). This poor little girl just stood there with her chocolate-deadpan-and watched me do my silent cheer. Yes, Sanaya, I am a nutter......and a HUGE fan of Leonidas chocolate. Don't blame me, I'm merely a victim of having lived in Belgium and tasting the TRUE chocolate.....Now, no other will do!!!!!! I then proceeded to traverse the room and tried to persuade the other students to give me theirs or trade me for a 3-D sticker or good grades or whatever. Just kidding about the grades........hee, heee!

If you think I'm bad, I was so excited about it that I called my brother Chris (who had been on Leonidas store opening countdown for me for the past year, since he lives near there). He immediately responded with "The church is true!!" and "Man, their Gelatto is the bomb- I need to go down there and work my connections...!" See- I'm not the only one........It's amazing how a little thing can make your day!

On the downward turn, I had a student leave because his parents felt that I was racist and because they did not like the demographics in our classroom. Aside from the slur, that idea is laughable because out of 34 students, I think 8-10 of them are Caucasian. The whole scenario played out when we had a Social Studies lesson about different cultures. We then discussed heritage and ancestry. I explained that some of my ancestors came over on the Mayflower-obviously a very long time ago- and that even though I, my parents and grandparents had been born in America, my people originally came from England and Ireland. I then proceeded to ask them if they knew what their heritage was or where their ancestors came from. I put their names on the board and wrote down the different countries.

A little boy named Carlos said he was born in Chandler and didn't know where he was from- but then mentioned his great-great grandpa came from Mexico- so I put Mexico on the board under his name. I immediately got a message from his parents the next day- angry that Carlos had told me he was born in Chandler and that I told him he was from Mexico. I tried to explain that we were celebrating heritage and culture and that it was about our ancestry, but they would have none of it and pulled their child. I felt bad for days that what started out as a celebration of differences, turned into a lambasting for differences. I don't consider myself a racist. I love to try and figure out people's heritage from their last names-but I don't do it to say "Hey you, make me a burrito or do my nails, would ya?" It's more because I find different people and cultures intriguing and love learning about new foods, traditions and places. I think the world is an amazing place and would not be half as interesting if we were all the same. Vive la difference!

My Partner- Along for the Ride......

Not to leave anyone out, I have to introduce my partner in crime- along for the ride. I have known Doug for over 20 years, even though we have only been married for 8. It all started when I ditched class to come home for lunch with his brother Scott (who is still one of the coolest people I know). We were in the kitchen and Doug came around the corner and Aaaaaaah........(background chorus) He was soooo cute. Even though he was a year younger and two years below me in school, I couldn't resist. We went to Sadie's and out a few times, then I was off to college.

(you can't see it, but he's sporting a gold chain in this photo- what a pimp! I still harass him to this day- but back then, I appreciated the effort on my behalf....)

Fast forward 10 years or so with two missions, a marriage, engagement, a child and several moves later and we both found ourselves back in Arizona. With two scheming mothers, we didn't have a chance. I truly believe that we have choices in our life, but that there is always a divine hand involved to "nudge" us when we are completely out in left field somewhere.


In getting to re-know Doug, one of the things I liked best about him was his sense of humor. It has become a saving grace in our marriage. After particularly rough times, when everything is in pieces at our feet, he can still say something absurd and crack me up. Of late, he can throw me into an asthmatic fit, because I am laughing so hard. He has a collection of accents that he can invoke at anytime. Because of this, Afton has perfected her British Cockney at the ripe old age of 5.

Doug has a heart of gold. He is always first to help someone in need and is constantly bringing home some cool new trinket for our girls. He finds little ways to show me he loves me -glasses of water at night, bringing home my favorite magazine or letting me watch my "geriatric" shows (as he calls them) instead of a game that he is interested in.

Even though he is hardwired for structure and order, he is open to new adventures and has been VERY flexible with this girl who flys by the seat of her pants. He is a great father and his children's favorite playmate. Despite his aversion to the limelight, he is well known and loved by all of his co-workers and all people who are lucky to get the chance to weasel inside his circle of influence.

Doug has the heart of a poet and the soul of Martha Stewart- ok - maybe not Martha Stewart- but he has a great sense of design and organization. He could spend hours in The Container Store or Organized Living. He is by far a better decorator and housekeeper than I am. He forces me to work on projects that I grumble through ( like cleaning out my junk from the garage), but that I am sooo glad we did after it is done and he is right beside me all the way. In fact, that is one of the things I love the most about him- he stands beside me, in good or bad- usually cracking some joke- and together we experience life.
In retrospect, I would like to thank him for accepting that invitation from the older woman and for choosing to attend that dance and every other dance that we've made through life- and for making it one fun ride. I LOVE YOU

4th picture tag post

I'm glad that I was tagged by my sister, because this is a fun picture. We're in Pinedale at the Fuller reunion. The little kids wanted to have a parade, so we scooped up a couple of handfuls of candy and the boys improvised the "floats". That's my brother-in-law David (always up for good fun) and my husband (the trendsetter), wending their way along the parade path. Pretty soon, the two girls in the back-Big Booty and Triple P- will run up and throw candy at the kids seated and voila! instant homegrown parade....