Earthquakes!

How is it that I lived 22 years of my life in Utah--a state full of fault-lines, and the first earthquakes I ever feel are here in Dallas? I've got to be honest, I didn't know earthquakes were even really possible here.

Anyway, there was a 2.something quake centered in Grand Prairie (a city close to us)last night that we barely felt and then a 3.0 quake centered here in Irving that we definitely felt...followed by two little after shocks. They were obviously too small to do any damage, but that made them fun to experience.

A Little Message to My Blog Readers

I started this blog a year and two days ago now and it has been a lot of fun for me. I have enjoyed staying in touch with friends and family, making new friends, sharing the mostly-unexciting-going-on's in my life, sometimes writing about things that matter a lot to me, and sometimes writing about things just because I have nothing else to write.

I'm thankful so many of the people in my life actually take time out of their lives to read my blog. Blogs are kind of a silly thing (at least mine is) but it's nice to have people read whatever it is I have to say and respond to whatever it is I said. Some of your comments have made my day at times, helped me out with whatever it is I needed helping out with, or just made checking my blog more fun and exciting...so thank you!

Here's to another year...and hoping it's filled with lot of good stuff to share with ya'll!

Liars Liars

pants on fire(s)...it is not humid in Dallas like I was lead to believe. Sure, we had a bit of nice humidity in August, but where has it gone and when is it coming back? My James has super-chappy cheeks, Connor has awful patches of dry skin (as do I) and even Marcus has chapped lips (as do I again). We are going through lotion and Carmex like water at our house. No big deal...we're used to it, I just thought Texas would be different. Wrong-O.

5 Fantastic Things About Grippy

(aka my dad)

A few days ago my dad had a birthday and I'd love to share 5 FANTASTIC things about him with you!


1: He loves people...anyone who's ever met him can tell you that.
2: He "loves his babies"...(come on siblings, can't you just hear him saying that in your mind as you read it?)
3: He "loves his wife"...(you know you can hear that one too :)
4: He loves his grandkids.
5: AND he loves taking pictures, sending e-mails, and text-messaging...he's definitely good at staying in touch!

We love you Grippy and hope you had a great birthday!

Sweet Baby James (Bom, bom, bom)...

...Good times never seemed so good (dah dah dah dah)- To get the full effect you have to sing the title and first sentence to the tune of Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline"...a song I sing to James daily.

Anyway, point of this post.

James Douglas Poole is 3 months old in just a few hours! How did that happen!?! Time sure is flyin' by and my baby is practically off to college...ok maybe not, but he is 1/4 of a year old now...goodness.


Here are a few facts about J.D. at 3 months old:

-Wears size 1 diapers.
-Wears size 0-3m clothes.
-Eats 3-4 oz. bottles every 3-5 hours.
-Is still sleeping like a champ...waking up once in the night for a quick feeding.
-Totally digs bathtime...as well as the getting undressed and dressed again that goes along with it.
-I call him "Goo" because he spends most of his waking hours gooing and gawing...he's on track to be as much of a talker as Connor.
-Is one SMILEY baby...and he loves to giggle.
-Still LOVES to be swaddled nice and tight when it's time for bed.
-Likes his cradle swing.
-Is starting to like his carseat a bit more.
-LOVES his Jumparoo.
-Gets a kick out of Bevo and Hemi.
-Thinks his big brother is something awesome!
-LOVES his daddy...but is a total Momma's boy...Hooray!

We love you sweet baby James, but stop growing up already will ya?

Sam the Man

My sweet nephew Samuel just turned 5 years old, and to celebrate him I want to tell you all 5 FANTASTIC things about him!


1: Samuel is HANDSOME!
2: Samuel is a very kind boy.
3: My little Connor absolutely LOVES his cousin Samuel and wants to be just like him.
4: Samuel is a happy and funny kid...we love to be around him!
5: Samuel is one smart cookie and loves going to school.

When I Was A Little Kid...

I was very bad at playing tag during recess. I was not the quickest little runner and that made me an easy "tag" to get. I was "it" all the time...looks like some things never change. My sister-in-law Dawn tagged me on her blog, so ya'll get to hear a bunch more random and highly fun to read things about me.

Here goes:

Five things I was doing 10 years ago
1- I was a lead role in my high school play, Cheaper By The Dozen (directed by Heidi Bailey...woop woop)!
2- I was the Editor-in-Cheif of our Highschool newspaper and spent much of my free time working on it (we won first in like 10 catagories at a multi-state journalism conference hosted by BYU...before I was editor MHS had never even been recognized...that's right buddy!)
3- I was serving on the Ephraim Youth City Council...it was my first of three years.
4- I was on the Highschool Speech team...probably dorky, I know, but I won first place at every competition that year, including Regional and State in Impromptu Speaking.
5- I was in my first car-wreck...yikes!

Five things on my to-do list today
1- Finish writing letters to go with some of James' birth announcements...I know, he's nearly three months old, these should all be out already!
2- Get Connor's size 2T clothes out and hung up in the closet.
3- Put Connor's size 18m clothes away in storage.
4- Locate a store, any store, that sells Quaker Oatmeal Crunch...why can't I find it anywhere aroung here? Ridiculous!
5- Update our budget and pay more bills...blah blah blah (I love budgeting, just not paying expensive bills that catch me off guard).

Five snacks that I enjoy
1- Quaker Oatmeal Crunch (fruit flavors only).
2- KitKat's.
3- Banana Bread.
4- Cinamon Stride gum.
5- Believe it or not, I'm not much of a snacker...so this one ends here.

Five things I would do if I were a millionaire
1- Pay off my lingering bills...
2- Pay for Medical School with CASH!
3- Purchase health insurance.
4- Buy all the little things that Marcus and I always wish we could buy...nothing special, just random odds and ends we find ourselves looking at or talking about.
5- Invest, save, and live on a comfortable budget.

Five places I have lived
1- Good Old Ephraim, Utah!
2- Rexburg, Idaho.
3- Laie, Hawaii.
4- Provo, Utah.
5- Irving, Texas.

Five jobs I have had
1- Counselor at Heritage Residential Treatment Center
2- Gap
3- EFY BC and Counselor
4- Service person at the Polynesian Cultural Center
5- Cleaned (or played in) President Bednar's office at BYU-Idaho

So Nice...

Ever since we moved to Texas it seems like we have been running around way too often and not spending nearly as much time at home as we usually like to. Marcus and I decided that we wanted to just stay at home this entire week (well, with the exception of his going to work...and to the Mavericks game with his boss...and my all girls outing this Saturday with some friends from my ward). Anyway, we've just been enjoying time in our home together, going for walks around our little neighborhood, and playing outside in what is hopefully the last of this seasons warm weather...and it's been SO NICE!

Life...

...is good. We are blessed. We are happy. Here's a glimpse of what's been going on:

*James was named and blessed on Sunday, October 12. His Grandma Osmond, Auntie Millie, and the California Poole's flew in for the special event. Our local family members were in attendance as well.




*With visitors comes lots of activities. We stayed super-busy for about 6 days...but we loved it. Here's a few shots taken while we were playing at a pumpkin patch.




*Marcus and I went to the TCU vs. BYU game...that's all I have to say about that. James has a BYU logo belly-button, guess that's what happens when you're born in Provo to 2 BYU fans.


*Connor and James got to dress up in their Halloween costumes to go to a Fall Festival at their cousin's elementary school.



*With so much going on my boys have been exhausted...this week we will be staying at home...all week long...catching up on rest...and getting back into our normal routine...ahh...

5 Fantastic Things About Megan

My neice Megan just had her 5th birthday last Thursday and I want to tell you all 5 FANTASTIC things about her!


1: Megan talks more cute than anyone I've ever known...the things that come out of her mouth and the way she says them are adorable.

2: Megan knows how to get what she wants...especially cookies, candy, and marshmellows.

3: Megan loves her cousin "baby James" and is always trying to help out with him.

4: Megan is quite the hairdresser...she loves to cut hair!

5: Megan is an unfailing optimist...in the middle of a mess she's good to remind you that, "it's ok".

5 Fantastic Things About Dawn

My sister-in-law Dawn had a birthday a little bit ago and I want to celebrate her by telling you all 5 FANTASTIC things about her!

1: Dawn in one of the most friendly people I've ever known!

2: Dawn is one of the most accepting people I've ever known.

3: Dawn knows how to have a good time...she and her family are lots of fun to be around.

4: Dawn is a very good mother...she loves her babies, takes great care of them, and doesn't stress out over the little things.

5: Dawn is a great sister-in-law...and I am so glad she's mine!

Tag I'm It...AND...Tag I'm It

Tag #1 (Thanks Alyssa)

7 Random and/or Weird Facts About Yourself

1. I often forget that I am just 25...since Marcus is 31 I tend to think of us as both being 31 even though I know we're really not the same age. Sometimes when I remember my age I feel like I was given 6 years of my life back.

2. Marcus and I have "food days of the week"...aka, Asian/Island Monday, Salad Tuesday, Eat Out Wednesday, American Thursday, Italian Friday, Seafood Saturday, and Home-cookin' Sunday. I feel like such a weird deviant if we eat the "wrong" type of food on any given day of the week.

3. Ever since I saw on Oprah that a woman should throw her razor away after three uses I have done so religiously.

4. I also buy a new toothbrush every 3 months...just like I'm told I'm supposed to.

5. I do not know why I feel the need to follow rules (even if they're not REALLY important rules...).

6. I registered to vote with my married name and got denied...so I do not get to vote in this coming election. I am legally still Anna Osmond even though I did everything I was supposed to do to get it changed.

7. When I was in school I was ALWAYS thinking about how great it would be to be done with school. Now that I'm out I wish I was in at least one class.

Tag #2 (Thanks Meg)

8 Favorite TV Shows
1. Biggest Loser
2. House
3. The Office
4. Dr. Phil
5. Oprah
6. The Late Show with David Letterman
7. Live with Regis and Kelly
8. Good Morning America
(Is it sad I could easily add another 8?)

8 Favorite Restaurants
1. Roy's
2. Cafe Rio/Costa Vida
3. The Cheesecake Factory
4. Pei Wei/ PF Changs
5. Chipotle
6. Outback Steakhouse
7. Rain Forest Cafe
8. Papa Murphy's Take n' Bake

8 Things that Happened Yesterday
1. James had his naming and blessing.
2. My mom and sister flew back to Utah.
3. We had a big Poole family get-together to celebrate James' big day.
4. My car had to be jumped again because it needs a new battery.
5. I went to bed feeling EXHAUSTED (so did Marcus and our boys).
6. James woke up ZERO times during the night!
7. I reached the end of my rope with a certain situation and finally spoke my peace about it...aah the relief to not have to try to be the one who is accommodating and understanding (because unfortunately that approach did not work).
8. I wasn't a reverent example to my almost 5 year old nephew during sacrament meeting and his dad gave me "the look"...

8 Things to Look Forward To
1. Family get-together tonight.
2. Family get-together tomorrow.
3. BYU game here in Texas on Thursday.
4. Dressing my boys up in their Halloween costumes for a carnival on Friday.
5. Enrichment next Saturday.
6. Halloween!
7. Moving in November.
8. Christmas in Utah!

8 Things I Love About Fall
1. The leaves in Utah...
2. The first snow in Utah...
3. The crisp air in Utah...
4. Halloween.
5. Thanksgiving.
6. Sweaters (if it ever gets cold enough here in Texas).
7. The traditional colors and decorations.
8. The new TV line-ups.

8 Things On My Wish List
1. Cooler weather in Texas.
2. A good vacation with my hubby and kids.
3. An IKEA or Target gift card for when I move into my new apartment (so I can buy more organizational/storage things to put all my stuff away in...ahh...).
4. True financial freedom.
5. A calling I'll enjoy in my new ward (even though I'm REALLY enjoying not having one right now!).
6. A good babysitter who lives close by.
7. A good haircut and color.
8. A gym membership to the zone...(just four more weeks!).

Lots Going On...

There's a lot going on right now...just not blogging...oops.

Marcus' brother and his family are in town until Tuesday, my mother and sister are here until Sunday night, James' naming and blessing is tomorrow, and we are having TONS OF FUN!

I promise I will play catch-up on the blogging as I find time. Alyssa and Meg- I am excited to do the tags...keep an eye out for them. They'll be my next two posts!

Planned Like A True Gonna-be Doctor

I asked Marcus to plan Family Home Evening for us tonight. Want to know what he came up with?

Flu Shot FHE.

That's right...planned like a true gonna-be Doctor. Our family went and got vaccinated against this years flu strain for FHE(which is carrying a 36% risk for staff infection/MRSA for children 18 years and younger...yikes). Anyway, we are good to go now...except for James who is too young for the flu shot. Connor did really well after watching me and his daddy get ours. He didn't even cry.

I'm thrilled that we have them done so early this year...usually we procrastinate and get them much later in the season. Thanks for getting us all there tonight Marcus!

Almost...

I am ALMOST done getting our little apartment home put together just exactly how I want it. I bet some of you are wondering why I'm even bothering at this point since I will be moving it all next month. The answer: I have plenty of time on my hands being a stay at home mother right now...so why not? Plus, it's fun.

Anyway, I thought I'd post some pictures of the place. I have to finish my livingroom and laundry closet tomorrow, so you won't see those until then (sorry...I know you're all DYING to see my living room and laundry closet, but you'll just have to wait).

So...here you go...welcome to our home:

Dining room



Kitchen



Boys Room






Boys Bathroom



Our Room



Our Bathroom

A VP Follow-Up

Here are my thoughts on the Vice Presidential Candidates...in case you were wondering after reading the post below.

Sarah Palin: Very likeable, but not ready.

Joe Bidin: Ready, but very unlikable.

At this point in time I wouldn't want either of them to be our President...too bad if a President dies his opposing candidate can't just cover for him. I'd be more comfortable with that this election.

O.K. No more political posts on this blog for me.

The Great Debate

My title to this post is not intended to refer to tonight's Vice Presidential Candidate Debate (although I am certainly excited to see it...and even more excited to see it mocked on SNL this weekend...you know it will be), but rather the great debate I've had with myself these past several months in deciding which Presidential Candidate I am going to vote for.

I have spent so much time carefully reading information on each candidates official website. I have watched as many of their TV interviews as I could. I have paid attention to what kind of character they have had during this time of "attacking" the other candidate (which I hate by the way). I have tried my best to totally disregard any information I received via e-mail, news story, or word of mouth that obviously contained sensational lies and bogus information about either candidate. This election is important to me...and I've taken it very seriously. And after looking at every angle I've been able to, I'm EXCITED to say I FINALLY KNOW FOR SURE WHO I'M GOING TO VOTE FOR and I CAN'T WAIT TO DO IT!