Our Dam Pictures

During our trip to Vegas for the CarMax President's Club Dinner, we visited the Hoover Dam. Neither of us had ever been there before, so we weren't sure what to expect. We weren't disappointed. We signed up for the Dam Tour. Our Dam Guide told us to take all the Dam pictures we wanted, so we did. No, I won't bore you with them all...just the Dam good ones.


We took the Dam elevator to the power plant on the Nevada side where we saw 8 large generators and a floor so clean you could eat off of it. They only do tours on the Nevada side, so I wonder if the Arizona side (which is a mirror image except it has 9 generators) is just as clean. You know you only clean up that much when company is coming.

During the power plant portion of the tour, our Dam Tour group was combined with the common folks who only paid for a lesser Dam tour. We Dam Tour folks got to go into the depths of the dam and walk through the dam tunnels and take dam elevator rides where we got to know each other real dam well in tight spaces.

The picture below is looking out of one of the ventilation shafts from inside the dam. In it you can see the new by-pass bridge. They say it takes an hour off the travel time since you don't have to go over the Dam and try to avoid hitting all the Dam tourists.

To get to that glorious view, you had to be willing to walk through this tunnel.

And over this grate!

After our Dam Tour was over, we spent some time up top taking in the breathtaking views of Lake Mead. The water was really this blue and the sky that clear. It was the perfect day for a Dam Tour.

Before we went back to Vegas for more fun on the Strip, we took a walk on the new Mike O'Callaghan - Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge for a few more Dam pictures. Here's one of them.And just like Disney World, you can always get taken for a ride on the Dam photo ops.

We hope you enjoyed our Dam pictures. We had a lot of Dam fun taking them.

Our Singer Songwriter

So perhaps 12 Days of Blogging was a tad ambitious with 3 sets of parents in town for the holiday weekend. Moving on. Letting it go. Not really. It's going to plague me for the rest of my life.

Brenna got Disney Party Hits, a singing game, for the Wii. On the game is the song Battlefield by Jordan Sparks. In part of the chorus, Jordan sings, "Better to and get your armor," but Brenna prefers to sing it, "Better to and get your Mama." My Mom and I were in tears from trying to hide our laughter at this rewrite. A little 6-year-old perspective goes a long way.

11th Day of Blogging - Christmas Eve

Cousins in their Christmas Jammies

Uh oh, looks like someone opened a present early.
It's Austin in his Lightning McQueen Jammies.

Goodies for Santa and the Reindeer
Brenna's saying "Reindeer Food!"

The Annual Gingerbread House
co-decorated by Brenna and Kassadie.

Merry Christmas Ya'll!

10th Day of Blogging - Cake Balls

Last Christmas, Jedd from my office brought in these wonderful treats. When I first opened the bag, I thought oh great another cream-filled candy covered in chocolate blah, blah, blah. After the first bite, I realized these were no ordinary chocolate covered balls. They were RED VELVET CAKE BALLS. Just happens to be my favorite cake on the planet. When I found out that the red velvet cake was mixed with CREAM CHEESE FROSTING, I was hooked. My friend, Meredith, received some on her desk, but by this time she was already miles away on her journey back to Illinois. I couldn't let these glorious treats go to waste, so Brent and I enjoyed them for her. I know, what are friends for right?

This year, I decided to take on the challenge and make some myself. Armed with the recipe from Jedd's wife, I sprang into action ready to conquer the cake ball dipping world. It would be a piece of cake. My Gran used to do this kind of thing all the time. I used to steal blocks of white chocolate bark from the top of the fridge and eat them when no one was looking. Surely this yummy stuff would yield to my every whim. I followed the directions on the recipe to a tee, but the first few balls got all gummed up with the chocolate and their exterior looked like a pimply faced teenager all bumpy and grainy looking. I didn't give up. I found a strategy that worked and about 150 balls later, I'm DONE with candy coating anything this year even though I have some bark left over, and it's going to kill me to waste it. I wonder what kind of shelf life that stuff has. Maybe by Valentine's Day I'll want to venture back into the world of melting and dipping.

9th Day of Blogging - Austin's Party

Unlike Brenna's Christmas party where I show up and she barely notices I'm there, Austin wanted to grab his jacket and go the minute we arrived. He finally got into the spirit of things after spending some quality time in my lap and with lots of moral support from Brenna. Big sisters are the best!

Getting rip-tear-shred tips from the pro.

Austin and Mrs. Ottie
When he first started in her class and he was having a rough time adjusting,
Mrs. Treca said, "Mrs. Ottie will win him over. She always does." And she did!

Austin and Mrs. Treca.
Yes, please keep your eyes on him.
He looks like he's up to no good.

8th Day of Blogging - Christmas Party

Well, I couldn't decide what to give you for the 8th Day of Blogging, so in true Polly fashion, I procrastinated and now you'll get two blogs today. Friday was Brenna's Christmas Party at school. They got to eat in the classroom - a HUGE BIG ENORMOUS deal. Brenna was sure to point out that there was a boys' table and a girls' table. None of this co-mingling that is the normal set up of the classroom. The feast included chicken nuggets from Chick-Fil-A and other assorted goodies.

Brenna's festive super sweet cupcake. It's a lot like her I think.

The girls did a book exchange. They passed the books around to music and when it stopped, that is the book you got. You know the saying "you get what you get and you don't throw a fit"? All the girls adhered to that notion except Brenna. She was in tears over the book she got, so one of her friends traded books with her.

The classroom tree decorated with the ornaments the kids made and the spirit of the USA. The rhinestones on Brenna's ornament kept falling off, so I ended up with a bunch of them in my change purse so we could glue them back on at home. It was a moral imperative. You can't have an de-sparkled ornament on the tree.

Brenna and Mrs. Airhart. Brenna is so lucky to be in her class. Mrs. Airhart is a true task master keeping all those First Graders in line and on task. I don't know how she does it. I can barely keep the dogs in line much less the kids.

7th Day of Blogging - Jeep Drivers Beware

I guess it's time to mop the kitchen floor. I think this rugged Jeep hit one of Austin's juice spills and over it went. I'm pretty sure the Polly Pocket dolls who were driving walked away without a scratch.

6th Day of Blogging - Letter to Santa

So after talking with Santa and other kids,

I'm so glad that Brenna just wants Barbie clothes
and not a laptop or an iPhone. Whew!

5th Day of Blogging - Moving In

As she brought all of this into my office this morning, Brenna said, "We're moving in!" If this is what it takes for me to have a few minutes to finish up some work, I'm willing to tolerate the mess.

4th Day of Blogging - Back to Utah?

Brenna: Mommy, did you know that Daddy can be a Watch Dog at my school more than one time?
Mommy: Yes, he's going to be one again in the Spring.
Brenna: But I won't be at Carleston the Spring.
Mommy: You won't? Where will you be?
Brenna: I'll be back in Utah.

I think our Utah friends are very missed by Brenna (and me too).

3rd Day of Blogging - Fallen Leaves

While we were at my Dad's and Margaret's house at Thanksgiving, Austin discovered fallen leaves. It went kind of like this:

Brenna raked the leaves...

...and Austin scattered them.

Brenna raked the leaves...

...and Austin scattered them.

Brenna raked the leaves...

...and Austin scattered them.

I could go on and on, but I'll spare you... just this once!

2nd Day of Blogging - Nativity Scene

When I put out the Little People Nativity scene, the following conversation happened.

Brenna: This is from Halloween.
Mommy: What do you mean it's from Halloween.
Brenna: All the people are wearing Halloween costumes.
Mommy: Those aren't costumes. Those are the clothes they wore when Jesus was born.

We have obviously failed in teaching her the true reason for the season.

1st Day of Blogging - Santa Visit

My cousin, Brian, and his wife, Cindy, invited us to the annual river boat parade party at their home on the St. Bernard River. Santa and Mrs. Claus made a visit to the party. Brenna was thrilled, but Austin was skeptical of the man in the red suit. He later warmed up to Santa and even gave him a high five and allowed a hug... no lap sitting though.

If you're wondering real or fake, it's real.
He's the real deal. Not your garden variety mall Santa by any means.

Brenna wanted to know if Santa and Mrs. Claus were married.
When I told her yes, she wanted to know where they got married.
I told her the North Pole, so that the elves and reindeer could attend.

MFEO (made for each other)

To make sure that we didn't duplicate efforts, Santa pulled me aside to let me know what Brenna had on her wish list (Barbie clothes). Then he told me something that made me appreciate everything that Brent and I have. He said that at least a half dozen kids that he'd visited with in the past week has asked for their Mom or Dad to get a job. They didn't want anything for themselves just for their parents to have work. So count your blessings even if they are very very small and mundane.

12 Days of Blogging

I may be biting off more than I can chew, but I have challenged myself to 12 days of blogging to get caught up on everything I haven't shared thus far in 2010. Looking through the photos for the 2011 Calendar made me realize how much hadn't been blogged over the months. So here goes! I hope you, my vast readership, enjoy!

Decked the Hall Ya'll

Tree Trimmed in Burnt Orange

Living Room all Decked Out for the Holidays

Stockings Hung by the Chimney with Care

The Little People Nativity
I had to take a picture of it looking nice and neat.
I know it will never stay this way.
Austin wrecks the manger scene on a daily basis.

Happy Holidays!

Holiday Card 2010

Picture Joy Christmas

Shop Shutterfly for elegant custom Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly Part 2

So do you want the good news or the bad news?

Well, here's the bad news: While the new counters were being installed, the installer dropped a piece of the counter on our cook top ruining it. At first I was heart sick. I really liked the layout of the old cook top.

And now for the good news: It turned out to be a win-win situation. The installers insurance paid for a replacement cook top, and I don't have to live with the terrible combination of the old cook top and the new counters. I would have hated seeing that combination day in and day out.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly Part 1

Starting backwards on the title, here's the ugly. Teal green Formica counters, a horrible white sink with a leaky faucet and out-dated white appliances. What sold us on this house was the layout of the kitchen and family room, and the potential to make it our own.

Spooning Up Success

It's so funny what you learn the second time around. At this age, we never would have considered putting an entire container of yogurt in front of Brenna, giving her a spoon, and saying have at it. Austin is definitely showing us how it should be done.

First, you put the spoon in the yogurt container and get as much on it as possible.

Then you open wide and pray it all makes it to your mouth.

And of course it does, because you're a pro at this eating with a spoon thing.

When it's all said and one, you give Mommy your best "see I am a big boy" grin, and her heart melts just a little bit more. Who, after all, could resist that dimple... and those eyes... and that hair... and those two adorable teeth?