Factoids!

I saw this on my friend's blog, and thought I would give it a try. I changed a couple things.
So check it out and give it a try yourself.

Attached or Single: Attached

Best Friend: Would definitely be Alex. Girlfriends: There are so many of you I won't make a
list, but I would hope you know who you are.

Cake or Pie: Pie! Cream pies are the best, but I'll take a fruit pie warm with ice cream!

Day of Choice: Friday, because that is usually when we get out with Alex and stay up later. I also have to add Monday because I also enjoy my own time to be lazy while Alex is working.

Essential Item: Hooded Sweat Shirts! Dr. Pepper! Chocolate!

Favorite Color: I know its not much of a color, but I love white!

Gummy Bears or Worms: sour worms, and thanks to my mother-in-law I need to include cinnamon bears.

Hometown: Eagle, Idaho

Favorite Flower: Star Gazer Lilies

Indulgences: Eating Out, Arctic Circle Milk-shakes, Girls night out (a rare occasion)

January or July: Definitely July!

Kids: 2 Girls...Dejah and Mycah

Life is Incomplete Without: Family

Number of Siblings: 2 Brothers, 2 Sisters, 7 Brother-in-Laws, 6 Sister-in-Laws

Oranges or Apples: Oranges if they are cold and juicy

Phobias: Bees! This one time I went on a rafting trip and wanted to be tan. So before the trip I got a nice bronzy spray tan. It pretty much makes you smell like Maple Syrup. Lets just say the bees along the river loved my yummy smelling tan and swarmed me during half the trip. After a couple bee stings I tucked my head into my life jacket and closed my eyes and plugged my ears so that I wouldn't see them. I can't stand those critters!

Quote: "No one on their death bed ever wished they put more time in at the office!"

Reasons to Smile: Springtime, Fun times with family and friends, my children having a good time, watching Alex wake board.

If I had all the money in the world, what would I do with it: First off, Alex and I desperately need make-overs. Our clothing is out of date and in a desperate need of replacement! Second, I would get a bigger home. Not a mansion, just practical enough for a larger family. Third, Food Storage. We have none, and may use part of that "stimulus check" to stock up. Fourth, get Alex a boat. Last but not least, share-share-share!

Season: I'm sorry but I can't pick just one. Spring! I love the weather, the walks and the beautiful flowers. Summer! I love going to the lake on a hot summer day, camping out, and BBQ's! Fall. I love to slip into my sweats and sit and watch football with my husband.

Unknown Fact About Me: I still sleep with my baby blanky. I know its sad, but I just can't part with it.

Vegetarian or Meat Eater: I love some yummy meat, but I have discovered vegetables in my "older" years and love them when prepared just right.

Worst Habit: Cracking my little knuckles right before bed. Alex hates it!

Your Favorite Food: It depends on my mood. My top picks would be PaPa Johns Pizza, Chinese, BBQ Ribs, Fettuchini Alfredo, and ICE CREAM.

Zodiac: Leo (that's right...I'm a lioness so don't mess with me...Alex)

Weekend Fun

Ok so the consensus from some of you was that I needed to make it so that anyone could make a comment without signing in, so hopefully its done right. I hope to see comments pouring in...hopefully not from 'stocker-weird-people-I-don't-know'. This weekend Alex is back and we love it! Saturday morning we went down to his shop at work so that he could try to fix my brother David's hot rod car (that is up for sale). The A/C quit working. Alex discovered some damage done to some line that was leaking the coolant...anyhow, he will try to do a repair job on it today, if that doesn't work, they will try to sell the car for less. Back to Saturday. Well my wonderful Sister-in-Law Mitzi spotted an amazing deal on a bike trailer for $30! She bought it for me and we went to her house and payed her back then let her take my child bike seat to use. Some of you may not know, but I LOVE to ride my bike. Since I had Mycah I haven't been able to go on rides because I had no way of transporting both my girls along. I am so excited! I will probably use it every day this summer. Also on Saturday we went to my Dad and Mom's for a bit. Dejah loved helping out in the garden. It was hard to get her to leave. That evening we went to my cousin's wedding open house. There was so much yummy food I wish I could go back today. Well, thats about it.

Surviving Boardom

Ok first off, I must say I am not a good speller, so if my spelling is wrong...too bad for you. Ok so I think I've survived Alex's absence pretty well. He still isn't home but hopefully will be soon. Yesterday I went and visited one of my old best friends Korin 'Atwood'. It was fun visiting and watching the kids play. I must say that I have been blessed with such cool friends. The day before that I spent a big chunk of my day with another old Best friend Andrea 'Young'. I wish I could do that more often. Anyhow, last night I stayed up really late and watched a chick flick from Hallmark called "Love comes Softly". I highly recommend it! But I almost bawled through half of it. So be warned. Today I spent most of the day cleaning. I washed my windows, dusted and wiped electronics, vacuumed, etc... That's about it. Hopefully we can get out tomorrow with Alex and enjoy the nice weather that should be heading this way.

All Alone

So here I am. It was Mitzi's turn last week, now its mine. Alex will be gone for a few days, so I get to kick it with the girls. Not the "girls", but the little ones that I gave birth to. This morning I made a decision that I need a new hair color...AGAIN. (I probably change every 3 to 4 months). I was getting tired of the weak blonde. You see, I am a brunette, but the icky kind that comes off a mouse, mixed with gray. Blonde is hard to keep, a nice chocolate brown is even harder. I gave it a try anyway. Now all I need is a nice style. I would love to grow it long and beautiful. But I'm not sure I have the patience to wait that long. Not to mention the fact that my hair is thin and stringy and I always wear it in a ponytail when it gets long. We'll see how long I can last at this horrible "in-between" length. Since I NEVER post pictures of myself, I've decided to do it today, but mind you this won't happen often. I should have put some makeup on, but a least you can see the hair color.

Our Weekend

We had a fairly good weekend considering the weather. Saturday morning Alex and I had a nice little date to the Temple. When we got home we decided to take the girls to a really old Hot Springs Pool that I used to go to when I was a kid, called Given's Hot Springs. It only took us about a 1/2 hour to get there from Kuna. OK so I need to explain something about this Hot Springs. It is owned and run by some relatives of mine. When I was a kid it wasn't anything glorious to look at, kind of run down. Well things haven't changed much. It is still old and a bit run down. It is in the middle of nowhere (which might explain the abundance of "Large" people there). Despite the distance and the expense, the girls had a very good time. The pool was very warm and not too deep in the kiddy side. With all that fun we probably won't be going back there again. When we got home we went to help Alex's Brother Gabe get some things moved out of their garage and into their new home. We are so excited for them, it has been a long process with many road blocks. After that we enjoyed some yummy food at Chilie's. Sunday we hung out at my mom's. Here is a picture of Mycah jamming out on the piano.

Fun In The Sun!

Oh the joy of spring weather! I just couldn't resist getting out in the sun today. The rest of the weekend is supposed to be very cold weather. Its such a bummer that we only get these beautiful glimpses, and then it goes away. We meet up with my sister and her kids and the kids had a blast! Here is Mycah enjoying a cheese stick. After we left the park, Dejah wanted to play with the neighbor kid, so I went and nailed some old sheets to the top of our Old, Borrowed, rainbow set. It was nice and shady and the kids had a great time playing. I am officially a "redneck", the sheets are tacky but serve the purpose.

My New Roomates

This blog thing can be such a mess if you let it. I just can't seem to get it exactly how I want it. Oh well. So along with the spring weather (that we are not really having) come critters. You know for the most part, bugs do not bother me, but when I have to share my home with them, I get the willies. One thing I've noticed with our home since we bought it is that the ants really like my floor boards. No they like to use my floor boards as their little highway. Now let me tell you, I am a NEAT FREAK! I vacuum at least every other day, and probably sweep my floors twice a day. But no matter how often I vacuum and sweep, there is no way for me to get every crumb. The ants always find them and travel to their little holes that get them to their highway. I can't stand them, and I can't find all their little entry ways. I got one of them last year and have had no more problems there. But I don't know what else to do. I may just have to call an exterminator. If any of you have some fabulous ideas, please fill me in.

Our Unborn Baby named "Fatty"

Ok, children are all so beautifully innocent and brutally honest. They mean no harm by what they say, and will believe anything you tell them. Well, obviously my little child Dejah has not been taught correctly. My Sister-in-Law Mitzi has told me a couple times already that Dejah is definitely old enough for the "bird and the bees" discussion. Since she is only 3 1/2, I haven't really known how to approach it. Well last night Alex was laying on the bed shirtless. Since his growing belly was hanging out there for all to see, he told Dejah there is a baby named fatty in there. Oh my goodness, what a reaction I got from Dejah. She was absolutely convinced! She came running into the kitchen..."Mommy, Mommy, there's a baby in Daddy's tummy"....."come look, come look". I immediately said, "No Dejah, there is no baby in daddy's tummy". She replied, "Yes there is come look. Its name is fatty", "hurry hurry come look". So just to entertain her I followed her into the room and saw Alex with a big grin on his face. Then he said (as he pushed his gut out and moved it around), "Dejah look its kicking". He truly looked like a woman full-term, but way uglier....Sorry Alex. Well that was it. He convinced our little toddler that he was having a baby and the name is Fatty. So there you have it, now I need to come up with a way to explain how babies are made to my own baby so that she understands when Daddy is just teasing her. I guess it has to come sooner than later these days. I want Dejah to hear it from me before the world teaches it to her. Thanks Alex, maybe I'll have you give her the talk.

Well Here is Dejah and the neighbor kid out enjoying the warm weather with some chalk.

Here is my little Mycah watching the kids through the sliding door.

True Love

So how do you know when you are in love? I have the answer. Last night Anna decided to buzz my hair again. She seems to like it short. Later that evening she said, "Alex, can I say something to you without hurting your feelings? What I mean is that I don't want you to be sad." Sure Anna, what's up? "Alex, you have gained too much weight. I want you to lose your gut and get rid of that awful triple chin. I agreed to the constructive criticism and then made a big mistake. How much do you want me to lose? She wants me to lose 25 pounds. She then went on to say that if she were overweight that I would get upset and would want her to lose weight. Contemplating on the idea of my wife's statement, I agreed that I would be all over her if she was overweight, so I am bound and determined to lose the weight!! I told her that I would start after the weekend since I was going to be eating out for breakfast and lunch on friday. I guess my point is that you know you're in love when you can tell your husband that he needs to lose the weight, or else! The only kick to my pants is that Anna was serious this time and wasn't joking. I guess she really means it this time. I guess I am up to the challenge of losing weight before the Oregon coast. By the way, I did get in a good discussion with my partner the other day. We both made it clear after the intense confrontation that either of us still don't agree on certain subjects and that's awesome. We went on with our morning and it has been a great week since. Don't you love those kind of love, hate relationships! Later, Alex

Tipping The Scales

I'm sure all of us at some point in time have some sort of weight issue. Weather it is being underweight or overweight, we have all been there. Well, I am turning 30 in August which means no more free rides on the "weight train". My own personal struggle with weight may seem to some, "slim", but I guarantee you I have had my literal ups and downs. Right now my goal isn't so much a weight in numbers as it is my health. In my opinion, my darling husband whom I love has lost his "free ride on the weight train", and has some recovery work to do. Check out the Photos!

Here I am, weighing in the most I've ever weighed. This was on my mission in Oregon. We were fed VERY well there. I only reached this weight again when I was full-term pregnant with my second baby.

On the flip side of things. I weighed the least I've ever weighed after my first Baby Dejah. I was sick in bed for three weeks and couldn't eat. Not to mention the "nursing" factor that sucks all the nutrients from your body to produce breast milk. Lets just say I haven't weighed that since I was in Middle School. I have currently platoed at a comfortable mark and really want to get in shape and get healthy.

Now for Alex. It seems to me that when those Beal boys leave home they go crazy on eating bad foods because their Mom is such a health nut. Alex tells me he was always hungry and to get goodies they had to go to their Grandma's house. I can't get Alex to eat vegetables very often. Well here is a picture of Alex just ten years ago.

I agree with Alex that this is a bit too skinny, but here is an idea of what he looked like. Next is a picture of Alex and Gabe ten years ago.

Well Folks there you have it! Time to get our rear ends in gear and get healthy! My goal is August 5th, and I think Alex wants to start seeing a change by June.

Couch Potatoe

Being an at-home-mom has its perks. Although I do not spend every waking minute in front of the television, I do enjoy many programs daily. My husband and I share many interests, choice of shows to watch is not one of them. Luckily I have a DVR and can enjoy them on my own time, commercial free and whiny husband free. Here are my current shows of choice.

In the Number One Spot for now is Fox's "American Idol". I have had my top four favorites for quite a while. In order here is who I choose as my favorites.

Number One: David Archuleta

He is so cute with years beyond his age. He seems very humble and genuine. To top it all off, he has an AMAZING voice. I'm sure he will win this competition.

Number Two: David Cook

Some are calling it "The battle of the Davids". They are totally different from one another so I can't compair the two. I would rate David Cook right up there with David Archuleta for number one. He is definitely not as cute, but has a natural talent to perform. I am blown away by his performances every week.

Number Three: Carly Smithson

Now this girl has a voice that will blow you out of the water. I truly enjoy watching her perform and think she will make it far. She has a horrible sense of style, but for me it doesn't take away from the talent she has been blessed with.

Number Four: Syesha Mercado

There are black women out there who have really bold voices. Syesha has a soft unique voice with so much power. I really like her but I haven't really felt her really connect with me as a listener. She is definitely in my choice for top Four.

Number Five: Brooke White

I don't really know how to describe this girls voice and style, but it is unique and somewhat entertaining. One thing I will say. I love her sense of style. She is always wearing modest clothing that is also fashionable.

Number Six: Michael Johns

I have very mixed emotions about this guy. I like that he is a clean cut nice looking rocker, but he doesn't blow me away every time. I think he does Great sometimes and other times not so Great.

Number Seven & Eight: Christy Lee Cook and Jason Castro

Christy is cute, but I don't think her voice is that great. Jason looks like and elf off of Lord of the Rings with bad hair. He has an ok voice but is really boring to me. I would eliminate these two next. But since I don't vote, I'll just sit back and hope for my favorites.

My second favorite show is....MTV's "The Hills"One phrase to describe the whole show "Drama...Drama...Drama". Mitzi and I love this show, it is so funny to watch these girls in the ultimate girl drama. It is a reality show that always keeps me interested.

My third show of choice is Bravo's "Top Chef"

I am no conasour of fine dining, but I love watching these chefs create foods and dishes that I am so curious to taste.

Now My favorite show of all that will start up next month. Fox's "So You think You can Dance"

I LOVE this show and I can't wait until it is back! Here is a link if you are interested in seeing one of my favorite dances from last season. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wz_jEQPY2U

"Dancing with the Stars", not my favorite, but I enjoy the dancing.

"The Bachelor", more girl drama. Do they really think they will marry this guy?

"Supernanny". Something you appreciate when you have young ones. She has such great tips.

Well that's about it for now.

My Little Princess

The evolution of women has been an astonishing event. From Eve in fig leaves, to the mid-evil times in corsets and lace, to the pioneers in long dresses and bonnets, women have always worn some form of a DRESS. In fact, pants for women have only been recognized as appropriate attire for a short period in time. This is something I truly appreciate especially since I had to wear a skirt every day for a whole year and a half while serving my mission. Now don't get me wrong, if I were trendy and could pass it off I may be able to get away with something like this.Well, lets just face it. I've really turned into a Mom. My wardrobe consists of Sweatshirts, sweatpants, old t-shirts and sneakers, and one or two outfits to wear on the occasional outing. My favorite thing to wear out is a cute pair of jeans with a trendy T and cute and comfortable sneaker. I try to instill this trend to my daughter who seems to think we live in ancient times of puffy lacy icky dresses. Yes, she is obsessed with being a princess on a daily basis. Getting her to wear her cute jeans and trendy outfits is a four year old WAR. So every day I get to see her wear the same ol' twirly dresses and noisy annoying classic black Tap Shoe. Well, I thought I might share with you some of her daily outfits.

Now Entering Dejah's Castle

Dress Number one.......the "Itchy Dress"

Dress number Two.......the Boring Dress.

Dress number three........the "Wedding Dress"

Dress number four..... the "Lugly Dress"

Dress number five.................the "Pink Dress"

Dress number six...............the "Blue Dress"

Dress number seven......the "New Dress that Grandma made"

Hopefully when she gets older this will be her castle and she will get to feel like a princess again.

Until then, I will enjoy the princess that I've been so blessed to raise.

No Heat

Buying a home is always an interesting experience. Well, we bought this home in September 2006. We did the things we felt needed to be done before making an offer, including having an inspection done. The inspection came back fairly clean with not too much to worry about. Well, as things sometimes go, the inspector missed a few things that we may have considered when making our offer. No sense crying about it now. Ok so our first winter came and with the cold I wanted heat. Our furnace has been a bit trippy for the last two winters we have been here. Sometimes I would wake up in the middle of the night and my house would be 66 degrees. Now, if you are Alex and have a body temperature of a Thousand Degrees, that may not bother you, but for me, I will be freezing cold in the middle of the summer for no reason AT ALL. Ok so our first winter in the house we pulled the old thermostat off and replaced it with a nice new one and then my dad came to help me with the filter. Well lets just say this is the part that the inspector way missed because in the "filter chamber" (whatever you call it), there were two very dirty filters that looked as though they have never....repeat NEVER been changed. Dirty does not describe the grossness of those filters. Needless to say we cleaned everything up and replace the filters. Ok winter number two, the heater works and then sometimes not. This week it decided it was DUNZOE. No matter what I did it just blew cold air. I told Alex that we needed to have someone come fix it. A couple nights ago it got really cold and I was up at 3:30, Mycah was up at 4:30 like a little ice cube, then Alex was up for work. That morning our house was 63degrees. Brrrrh. My sister brought us a heater and I opened my oven and cranked it up. We had it repaired last night and things are nice and warm again. Hopefully next winter it will work beautifully. I am so ready for SUMMER!

This is what it felt like to me.

The Oregon Coast

Some of you may be wondering why in the world I have all this Oregon stuff on here. Well, Alex's ENTIRE family of 29 people will be taking a trip to the coast in June. We are staying in Lincoln City in a big house. There will be 17 adults and 12 children under the age of 9 I think. I love the coast and came up with a list of things to do. I have posted it here for all to enjoy.

Oregon Coast Activities
There is so much to do, there is no way you can do it all. Here is a simple list of just a few things you may be interested in. I put a (*) next to my favorites.

Average Weather for June: High 63 degrees
Low 48 degrees
Rain 2.7

On the Drive into or out of Oregon:
*Multnomah Falls just off Hwy 84 headed into Portland (a great bathroom stop)

Lincoln City:

Best place to Fly Kites
*there are a lot of kite shops or you can bring one.
*cost: free (except cost of kite)

Bowling, Movies, a Lake w/a beach near town

Lincoln City Community Center
-swimming pool
-rock climbing wall
-fitness center
-basketball
-more….

One Use Admission Rates
YOUTH ( TO 18) $1.75
ADULT $3.50
SENIOR $3.25
SHOWER $3.50

POOL RENTAL Planning a party? Lincoln City maintains one 25 meter pool and one small instructional pool. The pools are available for rent during off hours for the following fees.
$50.00 per hour for 1-25 people
$65.00 per hour for 26-50 people
For additional people, please add $15.00 per hour

BASKETBALL GYM Rental of the gym during non-operating hours is subject to a two hour minimum. Please note that no street shoes are allowed on the gym floor. Only non-marking soles are permitted.
Non-profit organization - $30.00 per hour or $500.00 per day

Chinook Winds Golf & Casino

Golf
Winter Rates: I’m not sure on the summer rates…sorry
Monday-Thursday
9 Holes $20
18 Holes $35
Friday-Sunday & Holidays
9 Holes $25 18 Holes $40

Buffet Hours & Prices

Breakfast:

Monday through Saturday 7am to 11am

$6.95 Adult
$5.95 Senior (55+)

(Tuesday & Friday are Senior Days: $4.95 Breakfast Buffet)

Lunch:

Sunday through Thursday 11am to 4pm

Friday and Saturday 11am to 3:30pm

$7.95 Adult

$6.95 Senior (55+)

Dinner:

Monday through Thursday 4:30pm to 10pm

$11.95 Adult

$10.95 Senior (55+)

Friday Seafood Buffet & Saturday BBQ Buffet: 4:30pm to 11pm

$14.95 Adult

$13.95 Senior (55+)

Children's prices:

Under 5 years old $1.50

5-10 years old
Breakfast $3.95

5-10 years old

Lunch $4.95

5-10 years old

Dinner $6.95

Factory Outlet Stores
*Eddie Bauer, Gap, Columbia, Carters, ect..
*1500 SE Devil’s Lake Rd.
Grocery Stores: Grocery Outlet
Safeway
*Eating Out: Siletz Bay Buffet @ Chinook Winds Casino & much more

Lincoln City Historical Museum
Hours

Summer Hours: May 15 – October 15

Wednesday through Sunday 12 to 5 p.m. (except major holidays)
Admission

$2 per person over age 12

$1 per child 12 and under

$5 Family (any size)

Putt-N-Bat
Teach your children the lost art of the strike at Delake Bowl, 316 SE Highway 101 (billiards, too), or the gentleman's game of miniature golf at All-American Putt-N-Bat. For a smorgasbord of athletics, head to Chinook Winds Golf Resort (just north of town), which offers one-day memberships that include basketball, racquetball, Nautilus equipment, aerobics, free weights, and an indoor driving range, one of the largest in the Pacific Northwest.

North of Lincoln City

Tillamook Cheese Factory
Driving north to Tillamook on Highway 101 you'll see the Tillamook Cheese Factory, which is owned and operated by local dairy farmers. See cheese being made and packaged in the short self-guided tour, then sample the ice cream and other products in the extensive gift shop. On the way home, see the Tillamook Air Museum, a former blimp construction hangar that now houses World War II-era and other vintage aircraft on display.

South of Lincoln City

Devil’s Punch Bowl
Great place for Whale watching
Free Picnic area

Between Depot Bay and Newport

*Yaquina Head Lighthouse
Parking $3.00/vehicle
Lighthouse tour is Free and runs from 10:00am-4:00pm
The lighthouse is 93feet high with 114 stairs to climb
For those who don’t want to climb the stairs there is a walkway down to the shore and beautiful scenery with benches for sitting.


Newport

Coastal Boat tour
“The Discovery”
Adults $32
Youth age 4-13 $16
Under 3 Free

*Aquarium
Hours 9-6pm
Adults $13.25
Youth 3-12 $7.75
Children 0-2 free

Mariner Square:
Undersea Gardens
Ripley’s Believe it or Not
Wax Works
Three Attractions:
Adults $21.90
Children $12.90
Age 4 and under free
One Attraction:
Adults $9.95
Children $5.95
Age 4 and under free


South of Newport

**Hecita Head Lighthouse
Tours are Free and run 11-5pm
Parking is $3.00
Keepers House tour Thur.- Mon. 12-5pm
Hiking trail or drive to Lighthouse

Sea Lion Caves
*Adults $10.00
*Children 3-6 $6.00
*Age 2 and under Free
*Group Tour pricing call 541-547-3111
*More info www.sealioncaves.com


Florence

Sandland Adventures
Dune buggie tours 7-10 passenger
*½ hour tour $25/person
*1 hours tour $45/person
Go Cart tracks
Bumper Boats
Train Ride

*Sand Boarding (cost of renting a Sandboard)
*rentals made in Florence