self defense

i'm not sure i've ever smelled worse morning breath

than that of one ethan tanner.

for real.

its baaaaad.

and he knows it.

and he thinks it's funny.

so he breathes on me during our good morning squeeze.

on purpose.

gross.

it makes my stomach turn.

so the other morning, i'd had enough and decided to defend myself.

so i turned his beloved blanket...

into a bad breath guard.

it worked!

and i enjoyed my good morning squeeze nausea free.

trimming the tree

i was unpacking our tree decor a few weeks ago and asked taylor, "where is the box of good ornaments? these are all crap." taylor replied, "those ARE the good ornaments".  i was shocked. seriously shocked. when did my tree get so ugly? most of the stuff we have has been in the box since our first christmas and it was TIME to update.

so i  made an executive decision right then to have a grown up tree this year. so i picked out some stuff and called my cute neighbor kristie over to get the job done. i saw her tree earlier in the week and she has a gift for sure, so i knew she was the girl for the task.

she worked her magic and i just have to say...I LOVE IT!

it makes me happy every time i look at it.

the photo doesn't do it justice, it's just so gorgeous.

pure elegant joy.

my favorite part has to be that she put whole bouquets of poinsettias in the tree - i never would have thought of this! poinsettias are one of my favorite christmas symbols and this tree is loaded with them.

also, most of what i chose had glitter on it.

i have a thing for glitter.

it's just so...glittery.

i'm realizing now i should've taken more detailed photos.

and just incase you're wondering, i don't have one bit of guilt about not having any homemade ornaments on the tree this year.

not even a smidge.

because i'm feeling so happy when i see it, there's no room for guilt.

add the fm100.3 christmas music playing in the backround and we are definitely ready for christmas around here.

poor kristie should have faked some incompotence, because she did such a good job, she has a job for life now. i love that her philosophy for decorating the tree is "cram it in". who knew cramming could be so gorgeous?

sigh

thank you kristie!

zoolander

you would think that the older my kids get,

the easier trying to take their photo would be.

i mean, they're MY children after all.

it's not like i don't ever take their photo.

it's not like they haven't practiced this a million times.

or even more.

but it's always the same routine.

they pose for a few "nice" shots.

and then just as we're getting into it,

spontaneously, they all break out into their alter egos,
and any control i had of the shoot, magically disappears.

there are always "super model" poses...

although, really, i don't know what magazine they could possibly be posing for.

freaks are us?

there are always "kung fu" moves...

but i'm pretty sure the big fat panda would be just be embarrassed for them right here.

and of course, funny (a.k.a. dorky) faces...

but really,

i don't think i would have it any other way.

because they kind of crack me up.

except when it's december and i'm freezing and want to get into the house.

men in tutus

i could have titled this "the moores have moves", but since that was the title of my last post, i'm going with with men in tutus instead. however, it is a video displaying spencer's sweet moves and is giggle enducing for your christmas season pleasure.

for the jr.high boys' choir, they put together a number called, "nutcracker in three minutes". choreography provided by allie and chloe, entertainment provided by spencer and kyle and other eighth grade boys not afraid to make fools of themselves infront of a live audience. backround cackling provided by me, sorry about that, i just couldn't help myself.



i have to say, when allie and chloe showed me what they had put together, it didn't look anything like this. watching these boys made me actually appreciate how much work and talent real ballerinas put into their dances. with that said, i've never laughed outloud at one of allie's recitals. my favorite part has to be when spencer gets "lifted" by his partner who is tiny.

the moores have moves

it was funny when we did it two years ago, and seriously, it just never gets old.

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

ethan's favorite part is that rhino made it into the video.
the rest of us all agree that spencer had the perfect face for a vid like this.
have a good laugh.
we did.
happy christmas everyone.

to put you in the mood (christmas that is)

have you heard?


i haven't really used my blog for plugging products, but rick starr's new christmas cd, an acoustic christmas, is really fantastic. it's been playing at my house non-stop for the last couple of days and it's really set the tone for me and made me excited that christmas is coming. my teenagers especially love it, the sounds he produces are just beautiful.

we were lucky enough to have a personal performance of this song, and rick's talent blew me away!
to hear a sampling of the rest of the songs on his new christmas cd (and buy one for yourself), go to rickstarrmusic.com.

christmas is coming!

silver lining

i don't really know if i'm quite ready for the slushy white stuff.
especially because we've woken up to it for two mornings in a row.
it stinks to add an extra ten minutes of coats and boots whenever trying to get out the door.
which in this house, is often.
and mucking through slushy parking lots while errand running.
bleh. yuck.

but it sure is pretty.
and like most everything inconvenient, there's a silver lining, like...

fuzzy slippers and sherpa boots
extra blankets on the beds for snuggling at night
a cozy house
kids (especially little ones) in snow pants and all the gear
turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy and pie
never being too hot (which for me, is always)
craft projects at the kitchen table
fire in the fireplace
movies and sherpa blankets on the couch
organizing inside instead of yard work on the outside
creamy soup - well, any kind of soup really
thick, soft scarves (i found the coolest one today!)
beanies that make my dirty hair instantly cute
christmas!
quilting and crocheting
snow angels and sledding
every single little tree branch decorated with flakes
and the hundreds of photos of the tree branches decorated with flakes

oh ya, it all sounds lovely.
but most especially, i'm ready for this...

hot chocolate baby.

in the morning,

or any time at all.

just a little guy, kind of

i'm having a hard time believing it myself.
but it's true!

my little ethan man, e-dog, big E, tail ender, caboose, BABY

is FIVE years old today.

and i know this, because he's been counting down the days.

in a high pitched squealy voice that becomes less audible with each number closer to one.

hillarious.

the day started (for him) with a funny phone call from the neighbors seconds after he woke up.

he chose mc-a-dee's for lunch (mcdonalds)

enjoyed tons of well wishing phone calls throughout the day

and FINALLY opened presents after dinner.

the theme was toy story, of course.

and we moved into the big leagues with a new bike.

the neighbor boy will be happy that ethan can now stop stealing his.

while i am thankful every day for the joy that this little boy has brought into our home, i'm also a little heart-sick over losing the four year old version of him. there's just something so great about FOUR. i know there will be lots to look forward to with five, but it feels a little like it's officially big boy stuff from now on, he can definitely no longer be considered just a little guy.

sigh.

it's a good thing, i have photos to remind me of how squishy he once was...

but i guess he is still pretty squishy.

and silly

and sweet.

ok, five is good too.

because i'm kind of a mess

if you know me, you know i love a good apron.
i mean really love a good apron.
mostly because i'm kind of a mess.
i'm not talking about emotionally either, because while that's probably true, that's a post for another day.
i mean i am a mess, in the kitchen especially.
i haven't learned the art of neat and tidy cooking.
but homemade goodness from the kitchen is usually worth it, so it's ok.
but not if it adds to my laundry pile.
and not if it requires me to change my clothes after every meal.
and not if i have to reach for the towel to dry my hands every ten seconds.
and so, i love a good apron.
and lucky for me, patsy has been sewing up a storm lately.

this photo doesn't even do it justice - it's so dang cute!
and i love the style, sort of old fashioned that doesn't tie around your neck.
and this morning, when i was making the kids' lunches,
i should've been wearing it.
because i wasn't.
and now my pajamas smell like tuna.
thanks patsy, i love you.

please pass the catch-up

it's late sunday evening, and i'm reveling in some quiet computer time - finally.
there have been about ten too many end-of-term projects going on at my house lately with three teenagers and their demanding school schedules. luckily, the end of term is coming soon. listen closely, and you may hear a collective deep breath on thursday when the school bell rings. we are all looking forward to a three day weekend.

i should be taking advantage of my turn on the computer, and the quiet house by taking care of some things on my "get it done" list. things like editing these loooong over due photos of my beautiful new niece.

or editing photos of this darling family whom i love.

or working on updated photos for grandma's apple tree.

but i can't.

because, my blog is nagging at me.

i have this dilemma .
i haven't been a consistent blogger since spring break, maybe even before that?
i don't want to try and catch up, because, that's a little too overwhelming, but i feel like for documenting purposes, i need to at least summarize what we've been up to in the last few months. so here goes.
starting with a summer recap.

i had mixed emotions all summer long.
i didn't want to spend the whole summer unpacking boxes and miss the time with my kids. especially because taylor will probably be working full time next summer saving money for school, because he will be a senior next year. what? that's a post for another day.
back to summer.

we spent a lot of time trying to cool off because the heat was such a bear!
sometimes cooling off involved the back yard hose,

or a local water park with friends or cousins, or friends that feel like cousins.

 or, eating as much frozen yogurt as humanely possible

 but some days the heat was so bad, all little ethan could handle was laying on the tramp with a squirt bottle to cool off.

 i learned how to tend roses this summer thanks to patsy, and allie enjoyed photographing them regularly!

of course we loved going to see toy story three!

and especially loved getting a copy of rich's game to play and play all summer long.

allie and taylor spent a week re-roofing, painting and cleaning up in a low-income area of salt lake with our church's youth group. i don't know why i don't have a photo of taylor, he looked just like a chimney sweep in mary poppins most days since he was tarring the roofs. a ton of hard and hot work, but they loved it!

i learned how to work the grill this summer thanks to my dad, and so we hosted several bbq get togethers which was so much fun! i love the easiness of bbq, everybody brings something, there's not a ton of preparation involved, eating outside, chating, our new little kids picnic table, love everything about it.

oh, and i got to hold and kiss the newest smith in the family, sweet little emmie cakes.
ethan is in love with her too. who isn't man? she's such a princess. and she smells so good.

and i guess these photos remind me that i also wore super bright red hair for a little bit of the summer.

 thanks to grandpa's nice ebay hook up - we also lagooned for a day with cousins.
this included, the green dragon which ethan LOVED (cole not so much), bumper cars, some more serious roller coaster riding by the older kids, me and grandpa, funnel cakes (of course), going up in the giant farris  wheel with grandpa, and allie winning at bingo at the ebay party!

 and we stayed until closing which meant that everyone slept like rocks that night.

 we celebrated our country's birthday, as well as our state's.

 and all the smith birthdays in august with the happiest little cupcakes we've ever made!

of course, we did a million things that we didn't take photos of - like unpacking boxes

furniture shopping 

trying to decorate the walls

lots and lots and lots of weed pulling - yuck

driving lessons

movie marathons
halo nights with friends and dad
girls' nights out
eclipse
reading and reading and reading
ethan finally got a hampster!!
and more...
i was sad for it to end.
especially since today, it was so cold, there was SNOW on the mountains. sheesh.

friends

everything is more fun with friends.

even your favorite morning show.

when i asked, ethan informed me that the lion is holding the remote because "he's the only one that knows how to work it, the other animals don't know what to do".

of course, what was i thinking?

naked cowboy

when their mommies haven't folded the laundry for a few days

and there's nothing they really want to wear left in their drawers

naked cowboys are forced to take matters into their own hands

and dig through the dryer themselves

and digging is serious business for a cowboy, especially a little one

it requires muscles

and using your head

and caring nothing for your own pride

did i mention flexibility?

and bravery too, because if you've ever seen the laundry pile, there's really no guarantee that you'll even come out of there alive

thirty six

there are plenty of things about thirty six that i can say i'm not super thrilled about. in fact, i could do a whole post devoted to this list. first on the list would be my neck, i'm not sure what's happening there, but i definitely don't like it. and my skin, my pores seem to be growing bigger by the year, what is that about? and the two lines in between my eyebrows extending up from my nose. they used to only be there when i was scowling or focusing too hard, now, they live there no matter the emotion. not pleasant. they make me want to rush off for collagen injections, something i said i would never do.

but since today is a celebration, a happy day, a day of rejoicing...ok, that's taking it too far, but a happy day at least, i thought i would make a list of things i adore about thirty six.

1. i don't need everyone to like me,  instead i try to focus on the quality of the relationships that i do have.

2. i don't sweat the small stuff as much as i used too. mostly because i recognize how temporary the small stuff is.

3. line upon line, and precept upon precept adds up to a firm testimony after thirty six years.

4. crying babies make me giggle instead of panic. except at the grocery store, i still feel the urge to rescue children and babies crying three isles over and will steer my cart in the direction of the crying just to check and make sure no one is pinching them. you know, just in case.

5. never buy a bathroom with a mirror that faces the toilet.

6. rubbermaid containers might be the key to happiness.

7. i understand the importance of supportive underwear, liquid make up (no more powder), hair dye and tweezers.

8. i recognize and respect my quirks. it's ok if i don't love public restrooms or movie theaters or being away from home or spiders or closed in spaces or that i cry in the fall when my kids go back to school, or that i totally dig electric blue eye liner. it's just part of me, and those things are just not important enough to worry too much about.

9. it turns out, the old people who said "time flies" (who i thought they were crazy because i was thirteen then, and that age seemed to drone on for eternity), were actually right. where HAS the time gone?

10. (and i'll stop here) purpose. i have a much greater sense of my purpose and responsibilities as a thirty six year old than i did say, ten years ago. and i'm more comfortable in that role, especially that of being a wife and mother.  i adore this (not so) little brood and hopefully nurturing them well will be my greatest accomplishment.

yup, thirty six is a-ok.

but seriously, does anyone know a good neck firming cream?