House of Husks

2010-01-03T09:25:00.005-06:00

Wow…It’s been many months since my last post and I’m sure my excuses would be familiar to all of you…busy, busy and busy! While we managed to get Christmas Cards out this year, thanks to Jason’s diligence, our list was cut short due to an error in ordering and there was no Christmas letter due to a busy holiday season. Because of that I thought it might be fun to start 2010 off with a Christmas Letter-esque post. Here goes…

2009 was a year filled with many challenges and many blessings. Looking back I can see where the challenges helped us to grow and the blessings continue to enrich our lives.

Our boys sure kept us busy this year! Austin turned 11 and enjoyed a pool party with all of his friends. They had a blast and I got to see how old they all were getting. They played music, swam and generally ignored Jason and I. Austin played football this year and despite his 4, 2 hour practices and 3 hour game every week, managed to get very good grades. He is in pre-AP Language Arts and pre-AP Social Studies. He is so much fun with his witty sense of humor and all around good attitude. He is quickly becoming a young man and will turn 12 in July!! 12!!

Jared turned 9 and kept us all busy with his baseball schedule this year. This was his 3rd season with the Marlins and his 1st season of “kid pitch”. As many of you may know the 1st season of “kid pitch” baseball usually means there are more walks than hits and this season was no exception. Regardless, Jared had a great time and got to learn the art of patience during his games (along with his dad!) and improved his fielding during practice. I finally relented (under EXTREME pressure from Austin and Jason) and will allow him to play tackle football next season. He is beyond excited for this and can’t wait to follow in his big brother’s footsteps. He is very competitive and is turning into a pretty good athlete.

Kate is the newest addition to the family and the reason behind much of the craziness this year. I was surprised to learn I was pregnant and even more surprised when she decided to come a month early! Her birthday was an event (I plan on posting the entire story later for posterity) and certainly added a few years to my life. She is however the cutest little girl in the world (I may be a bit biased) and is unconditionally loved by her family, especially her big brothers who are absolutely smitten! She turned 3 months on the 1st of January and is so smiley and cute. She is finding her voice and enjoys cooing and “fake coughing”. She is obsessed with her binkie and is a big momma’s girl. Since making her debut at 5 pounds 1 ounce, she more than doubled her weight by her 2 month appointment weighing in at 11 pounds 2 ounces! As you might surmise, we spend A LOT of time nursing!

Jason and I feel so blessed to have this little family and all the craziness that comes with it. We are still plugging away together on the family business and hoping to make great strides this year. It has been interesting working so closely together and that has presented its own challenges however having him around has been such a great help especially since the baby was born. I love him and am so grateful to have him!

My goal is to post more this year as it is a great way to keep up with family and friends. I Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and wish you the very best in 2010!

P.S. I’m sure you will all be relieved to know that Sophie the dog is alive and well and still as cute as can be…at least according to me!

2009-05-10T13:19:00.003-05:00

For Mother's Day, our church handed out a little gift to all the Mothers in the congregation. Included was a small bag of "Famous Amos" cookies, a family favorite. I passed one back to each of the boys. The following conversation ensued...

Jared: "Mmmm! Mom, these are those Famous ANUS cookies aren't they?"

Me: (Sure I heard him wrong) "What, Jared??"

Jared: "These are those Famous ANUS cookies right? Those are my Favorite!"

Jason: "Did he just say...??"

Me: Laughing so hard I can barely get it out..."Yes he did!"

Kids are funny!

A New Favorite...

2009-04-07T13:34:00.002-05:00

Up until last week, I had never read To Kill a Mockingbird. I LOVED this book. There is a reason why it's a classic. It was such a good story and I would totally reccomend it!

Sore loser...

2009-03-25T21:53:00.002-05:00

Jared is so competitive! Tonight for the upteenth time he had to go to bed early for being a 'sore loser'...meaning, when he loses ANYTHING, a terible fit ensues. It is so frustrating and I'm not sure what to do about it.

I love that he is passionate and that he loves sports and that we wants to win and do his best all the time but sheesh!! He can be exhausting.

Great Book!

2009-03-25T21:49:00.003-05:00

I finished The Giver last week and I really liked it. I thought when I started it that I would give it to Austin to read so we could discuss it but I learned early on it was a little too old for him. If you are looking fo an easy read that really makes you think this is a good one.

A little behind...

2009-03-14T15:43:00.004-05:00

Things have been crazy for me lately and it has taken a toll on my reading. I did read two book these past few weeks though that I really enjoyed. First was The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. I got the idea to read this from a friends blog and I am so grateful she took the time to blog about it. I LOVED it!!! It takes place in Nazi Germany and is narrated by Death...Now I know what you're thinking...Nazi Germany and 'Death'...sounds like fun! But honestly this is one of the best books I've read in a long time.

I also just finished (this morning in fact) The Ladies Auxiliary by Tova Mirvis. This book was a suggestion from my cousin Michal and was great as well. It take place in an Orthodox Jewish Community in Memphis and deals with the women's reaction to a new resident and the different way she does things. It had some really funny moments and also hit home in many ways.

A cute site for fun blog backgrounds...

2009-03-13T21:22:00.002-05:00

Look at http://knottymoose.blogspot.com. She has tone of cute and different designs. I love finding new backgrounds for my blog. It's like redecorating with little effort and no money!

You have GOT to be kidding me!!!

2009-03-11T11:10:00.002-05:00

It's true...I'm pregnant. I am so shocked. I have known now for a week and it is still not totally sunk in.

I am a little perplexed...We tried for months a couple years back and nothing happened. I had finally resolved myself to the fact that we were having just 2 kids and I was fine with that. My boys are older and they are easy. If they are hungry they get something to eat...bored, they find something to do. When it's time for a shower I say, "Get in the shower"...and they do.

I have no idea how far along I am...the last period I had was December, but I have been on BIRTH CONTROL until last week. (It wasn't unusual for me to skip periods on birth control)

Keep in mind this happened after we found out Jason was laid off! Heavenly Father sure has an interesting sense of humor. I guess we'll just have to figure out how to deal with this one.

#101...CHECK!

2009-02-23T20:54:00.003-06:00

Cleanup and organize my virtual desktop...

I had a bad habit. Whenever I would save anything on my computer I would put it on my desktop, "so I could find it later..." The result was a desktop that looked like this:

It's not very easy to see but what I had was a mess that made it very hard to find anything. Each time my husband got on my computer he would complain...

It took sometime but what I ended up with was this. Ain't it pretty? So clean and organized. Now if I could get my actual desktop to look the same way. Babysteps...right??

HELP!

2009-02-07T13:07:00.003-06:00

I just finished my latest book... The Lady Elizabeth by Alison Wier, and I need a new one. I have a couple on hold in the library right now but none of them are in and I have nothing to read.

I need some good suggestions. I will read pretty much anything, so PLEASE! Send me some suggestions!

By the way... The Lady Elizabeth was very good. One of my favorites so far this year. It is an historical novel about the English queen, Elizabeth I, who has always fascinated me. She was Queen of England in a time when woman were regarded as property. She turned around the British empire which at the time was nearly bankrupt and suffering because of the religious policies of her sister, Queen Mary. At a time when questioning the catholic religion in any way was considered heresy and punishable by death, she laid the groundwork for freedom of religion.
The Author, Alison Weir has written several other books, one an historical fiction about the Lady Jane Grey and other historical biographies about Henry VIII and his wives, his children and Mary Queen of Scots. I have read several of them and they are very interesting.

P.S. My sister hates it when I write book reviews but I like it and this is my blog right?? So there Mary! :P

Farewell my good friend...

2009-02-07T12:55:00.002-06:00

I love Diet Coke. It goes well with everything. It is a great breakfast, a wonderful snack and goes with almost every meal I make. I won't even mention how much I like it with chocolate.

Sadly though, it became clear to me that my love for Diet Coke was getting out of hand. I don't wish to incriminate myself with actual numbers however I will admit that I needed to buy SEVERAL 12 packs to get me through a week. That doesn't include my daily trips to QT to get a fountain soda. I couldn't go anywhere without getting a soda.

The amount of caffeine I was taking into my body on a daily basis was shocking. So I decided one day...no more. I started off slowly because I knew the caffeine withdrawals might actually kill me...okay maybe I'm being dramatic but I wasn't looking forward to them. Finally after a two week period of weening myself off my drug of choice, I had my last one.

I am proud to say I haven't had a Diet Coke since October 19, 2008! I did however have a sip of one on Christmas Eve and I was surprised to find it tasted TERRIBLE!!! I still crave them though! Each time I sit down with a piece of pizza, or a nice hamburger I think, "I would kill for a Diet Coke right now!"

Superbowl Sunday

2009-02-03T17:02:00.004-06:00

Anyone who knows my husband knows that he is a major sports fan. He loves all sports and is devoted to his home teams, namely the Suns, Diamond Backs and of course the Cardinals. This love of sports has been passed down, either behaviorally or genetically or perhaps a combination of both, to our boys, Austin and Jared. They are phenoms when it comes to team rosters and statistics and have been known to correct their dad a time or two.

As you can imagine words could not express the excitement around our house as the Cardinals were about to compete in their first ever Superbowl. The boys made sure their Cardinal's gear was washed and ready to go for game day, Jared made several posters and plans were made for a fun evening watching the game with Mema and Grandpa.

Needless to say the game was like a roller coaster, and ended with a Cardinal loss. Despite our talks before the game about how "win or lose the Cardinals have had a great season" and "It's an honor to even make it to the Superbowl", the boys were DEVESTATED!

The evening didn't end well...

Austin, followoing the final blow...

When the Steeler's gained possession after the Cardinals last fumble.

Jason trying to console Jared as the time ticked down...

Jared lamenting about the poor officiating...Actually he said "Those refs were cheaters! They just wanted the Steelers to win!"

The look of resignation as the Steelers were handed the trophy...

There's always next year...right?

Sarah: Women of Genesis

2009-02-01T19:48:00.005-06:00

I finished this book last night and I loved it. It was very well written and reminded me of one of my very favorite books, The Red Tent by Anita Diamant. It is the first book by Orson Scott Card that I've read and I plan on reading more. This is actually part of a series, the following books are Rebekah and Rachel and Leah, and I plan on picking those up soon.

Better Late Than Never... Right?

2009-01-29T13:02:00.009-06:00

After hearing my sister say, "You need to post more! And no more book reviews, I want to see pictures of my nephews!", I finally got around to downloading pictures from my memory card. Now as you knkow this takes very little effort but for some reason it is something I am not good at getting done.
Here are two picture from Halloween... I know, Halloween. How lame am I?

Here's one of Jared as Frakenstein. This was the easiest costume...Worn out Chruch pants too short to wear in to public, one old black t-shirt, some halloween makeup bought at the grocery store and presto! 1 Frakenstein, total cost $1.99.

Here's Austin as The Joker from "Dark Knight". As a disclaimer, he has not and will not see this movie, it's a little too dark for a kid, but he still wanted to be the 'Creepy Joker'. I did the make-up and I must say he looks pretty darn good!

A Complaint...

2009-01-25T11:50:00.005-06:00

I am a blog lurker... I look at a tons of blogs, stalking, I mean checking in on people that I know and love but don't get to see often. Sometimes this habit leads me to shirk my normal responsibilities, like laundry, doing the dishes or spending time with my husband. This does not go over too well with said husband as you can imagine.

I have found that if I tell my dear husband I need to do a bit of "work" on the computer (this is not unusual as I work from home quite a bit in the evenings) he is less likely to insist I come and sit with him to watch TV, talk or fold laundry.

I have further found that if I sneak a little blogging in with my "work" everyone is happy. This was a beautiful plan until...I hit upon the blogs with MUSIC.

They sneak up on you. Most of the things I do on my computer are silent so I never remember that the volume is up. This works out very badly when I am "working" and happen to come upon a blog that is playing music.

Immediately I hear my husband call, "Um honey, that doesn't sound like working in there!"

Now I don't begrudge anyone their musical blog, most of the time I LOVE the music. I just thought I'd point out that there are people who might be trying to do a little clandestine blogging and are being ratted out unintentionally. :)

Just thought I'd share.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

2009-01-24T13:42:00.004-06:00

I finished this book a few days ago and I really liked it. I am a huge fan of Amy Tan and I thought this book was just as good.

It always surprises me the way the women in these books degrade themselves and see themselves as inferior to men, when in reality they work right along side them all the while having babies and bound feet!

Duh, Mom!!....

2009-01-15T13:30:00.002-06:00

A few weeks ago, I was taking Austin home from his Mema and Grandpa's House, when we had the following conversation:

Austin: Mom, what's a colonoscopy? (recently my Dad had to have a colonoscopy. I was assuming this is how the subject got brought up...Sorry Dad!)

Me: It's a medical procedure where the Doctor puts a camera in your colon so he can look at it and make sure it is healthy. (I was quite impressed with my explanation)

Austin: Oh...Okay.

Me: Do you know what a colon is, Austin?

Austin: Duh Mom! Of course I do! It's those two little dots you put on the end of a sentence!

Me: ???? (At this point I began to explain exactly what a colon is...I will spare the readers of this blog my explanation. Suffice it to say it was very informative and precise)

Austin: Poor Grandpa!

Amy's 101 list...

2009-01-08T22:10:00.002-06:00

Last April my sister-in-law Jen posted her 101 in 1001 list on her blog and I thought "what a great idea!" Well it only took me 9 months but here it is, Amy's 101 in 1001 list.

This is not a new concept in the blogging world, I'm sure many of you have heard of it. Basically it is a list of 101 goals I set out to accomplish within 1001 days. Some of them are simple and could be done quite easily, others seem downright impossible, see # 54...

I will update my blog as I accomplish, or attempt to accomplish my goals.

The dead line is Thursday, October 6, 2011

Here are some websites to look at if any of you want to start your own list.
http://www.triplux.com/dayzero/

http://101in1001.blogspot.com/

www.timeanddate.com

My 101 list...

Spiritual
1. Read the Book of Mormon, cover to cover
2. Read the Doctrine and Covenants, cover to cover
3. Read Jesus the Christ
4. Read Joseph
5. Develop a habit of regular personal scripture study
6. Begin Keeping a Journal and write in it weekly
7. Have weekly Family Home Evening for 3 months straight
8. Attend a Temple session once each month for 3 months
9. Complete my Visiting Teaching each month for 2009
10. Read The Teachings of Joseph Smith
11. Strengthen my testimony of the Gospel and the Atonement

Family
12. Keep a cleaner, more organized home
13. Prepare a family dinner at least 4 nights per week
14. Begin taking family walks 3 times per week, for a period of 3 months
15. Take a family vacation to Disney World
16. Start a college/mission fund for both of my boys
17. Create a will
18. Take the boys on a bike ride at Rose Park
19. Take more pictures
20. Write a Family update and email it to our family monthly
21. Remember to call and send out birthday cards to all of our extended family members
22. Update my blog weekly in order to keep in touch with our out of town family
23. Help Austin to earn his Webelo Scout Badge and Arrow of Light
24. Help Jared earn his Wolfe Badge
25. Take down the wall paper in my kitchen
26. Take down the wall paper in my master bathroom
27. Buy a video camera and use it
28. Become active in the PTA for both boys schools
29. Take the boys to Sea World in San Antonio, TX
30. Put up sun screens on my house
31. Replace the tile in my house
32. Replace the window coverings in my house
33. Replace my Garage Door
34. Replace my outside fence
35. Replace my Front door
36. Organize our family pictures
37. Get the boys involved in a swimming team
38. Get Austin in to see the orthodontist
39. Buy a new kitchen table
40. Call our long distance Family Members on a weekly basis
41. Have another Family over for dinner once each month for 3 different months

Personal
42. Achieve a healthy weight
43. Train for and run a 10k
44. Hike the Grand Canyon
45. Take a trip with only Jason
46. Develop a regular habit of exercise (4 times weekly for 3 months)
47. Learn how to be a better time manager
48. Read To Kill a Mockingbird
49. Read Pride and Prejudice
50. Learn how to knit
51. Learn how to thread a sewing machine
52. Learn how to sew curtains/drapes
53. Get dressed up and go somewhere nice with my husband
54. Stop yelling for one month (Is this even possible?)
55. Plant a vegetable garden
56. Buy a new car
57. Give blood
58. Get an MRI for my back, and follow Dr.’s orders after said MRI
59. Learn to type without looking at my fingers
60. Climb the rock climbing wall at lifestyle fitness and make it to the TOP!
61. Be a better neighbor
62. Join a book club
63. Take a trip with my sister Mary
64. Go out on a “Girls Night” with my girl friends once each month for 3 months
65. Write creatively daily for 3 months
66. Send out thank you cards to people who do nice things for me
67. Purchase a Kitchen Aid Mixer
68. Purchase a new grill pan
69. Become more involved in my Family Finances by creating and sticking to a budget, paying the bills and planning for the future
70. Save up 3 months worth of living expenses
71. Organize my personal office
72. Have a Holiday Party in 2009
73. Have an Adult game night…meaning Adults playing Games…not “Adult Games”…
74. Complete traffic school so I don’t end up with an arrest warrant…seriously!
75. Have new family photos printed, canvas style
76. Figure out what is wrong with my family computer
77. Buy myself a new bottle of perfume

Business
78. Be billing 750 hours by the end of the year
79. Hire an assistant to help me as need and revenue increase
80. Obtain my CSA (Certified Senior Advisor) Certification
81. Have 90%of my Care giving Staff be CCA Certified by 2010
82. Create a more comprehensive Client Handbook
83. Create a more Comprehensive Caregiver Handbook
84. Restructure our training process
85. Start a weekly email marketing campaign
86. Start a monthly mail marketing campaign
87. Become more involved in the Mansfield Community
88. Launch The Family Care and Comfort Custom Care Plan
89. Become more proficient on QuickBooks
90. Implement a bookkeeping schedule in order to keep my QB current
91. Create a “cushion” in the amount of $X.XX to be in the Business Checking at all times
92. Launch a better website
93. Purchase and begin using ESRP (A scheduling software)
94. Attend The Senior’s Choice annual conference in Las Vegas, NV
95. Give myself a raise…a BIG ONE!!
96. Transfer my payroll to Quick Books Payroll
97. Hire a second Salesman
98. Reorganize my filing system
99. Keep my desktop clean for 1 month… (I’m not sure if that is possible!)
100. Purchase and begin using telephony (a timekeeping software)
101. Clean up and organize my virtual desktop

For my friend Jen Rees...

2008-12-17T12:20:00.003-06:00

Because I know she LOVES my book reviews...

I just finished this and I am torn. On one hand it was very well written and the story was intriguing. On the other, I did not like the ending. I wonder if any of you in the blogging world have read this and feel like I do. I'd love to hear other opinions!

A Great Read

2008-10-13T15:15:00.002-05:00

I finished this book recently and I loved it. It was beautifully written and gave such great insight into the lives of women in Afghanistan over the last 30 years.

It is heartbreaking but also inspiring.

I love fall...

2008-10-13T15:10:00.003-05:00

This is absolutely my favorite time of year!

I love the weather, planning for Thanksgiving, looking ahead to Christmas, everything!

Count Down...

2008-10-04T14:41:00.002-05:00

Today makes 20 days until my brother comes home. I can't beleive it! Now that the end is near it seems as though the last 2 years has gone by so fast. I am so proud of him and will be forever grateful for the example he has been to my boys.

Grateful...

2008-07-18T17:03:00.002-05:00

My sister-in-law Jennifer Garbett is an extremely talented photographer based in the Phoenix area. Because of her generosity we have benefitted from her talents many, many times over the last 10 years. The memories we have captured are priceless to my husband and I, and I don’t think Jen will ever truly know how grateful we are to her.

Please enjoy the following link to the slide show from our latest family photo shoot and take a look at Jen’s blog.

www.photojenic.net/husksnider

Thanks Jen for all you do! I count myself blessed to have you in my family, and to call you my sister!

I --heart-- my dog!

2008-07-13T09:45:00.005-05:00

Sophie is my 5 year old pug. She has so much personality and makes our family laugh everyday.

Redecorating...

2008-07-11T10:38:00.002-05:00

I love to redecorate my blog...It is almost as satisfying as redecorating my house but #1, does not cost me anything, #2, takes very little time and even less effort and #3, leaves nothing for me and my dear husband to bicker about! (we bicker during any home improvement project).
Hope you all enjoy the new look and for those of you who are keeping count...yes this is 3, count them, 3 posts in 2 weeks!

The cutest kids ever!

2008-07-09T11:52:00.004-05:00

This must be a record! 2 posts in 2 weeks! I'm on a roll!

The boys looked so cute before church on Sunday, I just had to share.

Austin, almost 10 years old and already a ladies man!

Sweet Jared, always a ham!

June sucks...

2008-06-30T17:13:00.003-05:00

Many of you who read my blog know that I run a business with my mom... and because most of the people who read my blog (all 4 of them) are related to me, many of you know that my mom recently had invasive back surgery. Because of the pain associated with her back problem before her surgery, and the ups and down we've had post-op, we came up with the following motto to get us through the month of June...JUNE SUCKS!!!!

I realized today was June 30th and the last day of June 2008. Let the healing begin...literally and figuratively. Here's to a July with less stress and more fun!

Ta Da!!!

2008-05-02T21:14:00.004-05:00

I have had several requests for new posts...why? I'm not sure... but since I have a fan base (and a couple of blogstalkers :)) I thought I should give the people what they want.

Things have been crazy busy for us. I am waiting on some new family pictures from my amazing and talented sister -in-law, Jen. I'm not sure what is taking her so long! All she has to do is take care of 2 crazy boys, a sucessful business and her new baby girl! What's the deal Jen? Step it up!....when I get those I will share them and hopefully that will hold you all off for a while.

My baby brother!!!

2008-03-12T21:42:00.003-05:00

My little brother Steven (Missionary in the middle) is cuurently serving a mission in Kingston Jamaica. We found out last night that he has been call as an AP (Assistant to the President) in his mission. I am so proud of him and the job he is doing. He is such a great example to me of obedience and leadership.

Don't Bother

2008-02-15T17:29:00.005-06:00

So I picked up a copy of "The Other Boleyn Girl" by Philippa Gregory...I thought I was getting an historcal novel covering one of my favorite times in European history, Elizabethan, or in this case slightly before Elizabethan. What I got was little more than a harlequin romance novel. I find myself skipping whole paragraphs where the main character is trembling or devouring...blech!!! What keeps me going is the small tidbits of history that are thrown in between. My recommendation...skip it.

Sophie

2008-02-11T08:40:00.000-06:00

Everyone who knows me knows that I love my dog. She cracks me up! She has a great personality and never fails to make us laugh at her. This is a picture of Sophie at her best...and another video of her at her worst. I think it is hillarious.

I've been tagged!

2008-01-18T22:49:00.000-06:00

Mary Said I wouldn't do it so here it is.

What is his name? Jason FLAKE Husk
How long have you been together? It will be 10 years on February 7th!
How long did you date? 7 months...what were we thinking??
How old is he? 32
Who eats more? Jason, hands down!
Who said I love you first? Jason did...sadly I can't remeber when this happened. This must make me a bad wife.
Who is taller? Jason by quite a bit!
Who can sing better? Me. Trust me, this is not saying much!
Who is smarter? I say me and BIG SURPRISE Jason says it's him...I guess it depends on what the subject is.
Who does the laundry? JASON! It is wonderful!
Who pays the bills? Jason
Who sleeps on the right side? Jason
Who mows the lawn? Jason does for now but we have two boys we are grooming to take over...I can't wait!
Who cooks dinner? I do. Although as J will be quick to point out, it doesn't happen all the time.
Who drives? Jason...Wow, he does a lot.
Who is more stubborn? BOTH of us...It makes for some interesting stand offs.
Who kissed whom first? I kissed him first!
Who asked whom out first? Jason asked me out first.
Who is more sensitive? I am for sure.
Who has more siblings? Jason has 6, I have 3.
Who wears the pants? We both fight over the pants. We are both stubborn and very passionate. On thing he will freely admit is that I wear the tool belt!

Wilson!!!

2008-01-12T21:39:00.000-06:00

The Conversation went like this...

(My Husband) "Honey, remember when I asked you to make me that dentist appointment?"

(Me) "Yes... I remeber asking myself why I had to make a 32 year old man a dentist appointment".

(Husband) "Well I need you to make me one ASAP...I'm almost ready to grab a rock and an ice skate!"

For those of you who have seen "Castaway", you'll know what he was talking about. For those of you who have not, rent it, watch it and you'll know EXACTLY what he was talking about!! I still haven't made the appointment, but I think back to this conversation from time to time and it makes me laugh.