THE PARK POST

We went to the  Phoenix Suns game against the Jazz.  Jeff Hornacek was the only person I recognized on the floor.  By the end Jackson was a Suns fan.  He doesn't like rooting for losers.  Ha Ha   Superbowl Party! Matt and Licia came and watched with us. The game was played in Phoenix this year.   Some of McKell's new friends from our ward. Ace loves to sleep spread eagle.  I'm the dog whisperer around these parts.  I didn't sign up for this job, but I do it anyway.    Michael and I also attacked painting the kitchen and living room for 2 days while he was off.  It wasn't easy.  But it did save us some money in the end.  I just have to convince him that time is often more valuable than money.  Like the tree trimming job that I hired out to a group of Mexican workers would have been impossible for the two of us. They were done in about 4 hours. Sydney and Jackson have be...

McKell's 16th birthday will always be one to remember! It was pretty bittersweet.  Moving away right before her 16th birthday has not been easy.  The actual day of her birthday was pretty quiet other than she got a new (used) car we're letting her drive, dinner out with the fam, cake with Licia and Matt, and a fun donut surprise from a couple of girls in our neighborhood that she barely knows.            .   A few days later she and I took off to get her license in Georgia, long story,  and I secretly planned a surprise birthday party with most of her friends at El Vaquero. I was so ecstatic that she didn't see it coming.  She usually figures every surprise out I ever plan for her.    The past few months have been a really challenging time for her. She's right when she tells Mike and I that we don't understand.  We both lived in the same city and went to the same schools for all ...

There are few things in life  more challenging than raising teenagers, let alone moving them across the country during all of this hormonal angst. Today I ran across a post from  Nest & Launch  http://nestandlaunch.com/journal/2014/3/10/the-jedi-mind-tricks-of-raising-teenagers  where Annie talks about mind tricks she does to deal with the craziness of it all.  I loved it so much I'm including her ideas below. Time travel forward to the week before they're leaving home.  Instant perspective for the irritations of today, I'm telling you. Whatever's happening in this moment--difficult and irritating as it is, won't really matter then. (Or at least it will remind you there IS an end in sight in the middle of those double-strength tough moments.)   Time travel  further  forward to when you're watching them parent your grandkids.  What do you want your teen to learn about parenting from this moment? What would you want him to sa...

 New Year's Eve the kids and I started driving around 9 am so that we could make it to St. George for our Ogden/Fabrizio family reunion by mid afternoon.  Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate and because AZ isn't prepared for snow they simply had to shut I-40 completely down.  Consequently that meant we were stuck on the freeway at a stand still for almost 5 hours.  We actually had some good bonding time and the kids were pretty positive in a bad situation.  It got a little scary though when we started realizing we had no food or water or bathroom.  One of our tiny miracles was finding the chick fil a mint at the bottom of the sack.  We all took a nibble and were so grateful for it. We witnessed several people relieving themselves on the side of the road.  It was quite an education.  Luckily we all were able to make it to the gas station in time and I can tell you I have never been happier to see a gross gas station bathroom in ...

  CHRISTMAS with extended family!   So glad Licia and Matt live close.  We haven't had that for a long time.  She's the only one left that really gets excited!! Loved having my parents here!   Our attempt for a Christmas card photo did not go so well.  Hmmmm.  One of these people is not cooperating!! We loved playing Whatif!     CHRISTMAS EVE   It was so great to have Grandma and Grandpa Park come the day after Christmas.  We trekked out to a ghost town and felt like we were in the Wild West. Why is my hubby always taking the pics?  I guess he's the photographer and I'm the blogger.   Another classic Jackson picture that he'll regret in a few years. :) Tia Rosa's is muy delicioso!