4ever Moore

Milestone

2011-07-12T14:47:00.000-07:00

I looked at the date of my last entry and I can't believe it's been that long since I wrote anything. Today was kind of a big deal though so I thought I'd share the good news that my beautiful baby girl has her driver's permit as of 11:30 this morning. I can't believe that all of my kids are driving now. I can't believe it's been 15 1/2 years since my baby was born. All of my sons have graduated from high school and now all of my kids are drivers. When you are a young mother you can't really fathom these days ever happening and then when they do you can't believe they are really happening to you! We just got through doing the inaugural drive around the church parking lot and she was terrific! Smooth as silk, never got ruffled. Way gentler and more refined than her brothers were. I LOVE HAVING A GIRL!!! Way to go, Van:)

New Stuff

2011-04-26T18:56:00.000-07:00

Some fun things have been happening lately. Hunter got into BYU and his football career there looks pretty promising. He will be our first child to live in the dorms and he's actually excited about it. He is trying to room with another football player from Temecula. I can't believe he will be leaving in just a few months (sniff, sniff).

We are starting to prepare for his mission also. (really big sniff) He went to the dentist for the first time in six years (I know, mother of the year award right here) and he didn't have any cavities!!! Yay!! He will get his wisdom teeth out as soon as he graduates. Then it's a physical and paperwork and buying clothes and so many other busy things that we need to do before he goes to school because he will leave for his mission right after Christmas since he needs to get back by the beginning of January in two years for football. It's all happening so fast. I can't believe he's this old already.

Tanner just graduated from BYU last week. We went up to the ceremony and I bawled all the way through it. I love that school so much. Probably because I love my religion so much and it is the only school that mixes education with my religion. Kyle and Logan graduated from there also (last year) but didn't go through the ceremony so we got creative and had them each wear Tanner's cap and gown for pictures so they will have something to put in their scrapbooks:) Smart huh? I'm so proud of Nan for finishing school even though he has a wife and child and had to work crazy hours to support them. He's off to chiropractic school now and hopefully he gets into one down here so I can see them much more often. I love my little Avacita and need to snuggle her wayyy more often.

We took Hunter and Savannah to Hawaii for spring break and had a blast. We went to Pearl Harbor and the kids were awed by the history there. It was a very somber visit. We are an extremely patriotic family so it really meant a lot to us to see where history was made. We also went to the Polynesian Cultural Center and watched more Mormons in action. Our blonde haired, blue eyed daughter was very taken with the dark, muscular Polynesian boys who were performing there (yikes!) Really fun vacation.

Great news! My sweet niece, Sarah, is getting married!! She found a wonderful boy in Utah and they are getting married probably in September. I'm so happy for her. She brought him down to see us and we love him. He is a great guy and he loves her to pieces. They are going to have some tall kids though as he is 6'5" and she is 6'1". Can't wait to dance our heads off at their wedding.

Last but not least, I get to talk to my Mexican boy a week from Sunday which also happens to be his 21st birthday and I get to hug him in 36 more days. I am so excited! I've never had the opportunity to talk to any of my kids on their 20th or 21st birthdays and thankfully Mother's Day falls on his birthday this year so I get to actually wish him "happy birthday" right on his birthday. I can't wait. Three weeks after that he will be home!!! Only one more missionary to go and we are home free!!

Birthday Girl

2011-03-21T12:53:00.000-07:00

Today is my birthday. Even though I am old I am very very happy. I have everything in the world I could possibly want. I have the greatest family ever, I am healthy, I have a gorgeous house that I have a very unhealthy love for and I have the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ. I was born on the first day of Spring, the most beautiful season of the year. I'm going out to dinner with my most favorite people in the whole world and my missionary comes home in 72 days. Happy birthday to me:)

Proud Mom

2011-03-21T12:47:00.000-07:00

I have to put on my bragging hat for a minute and toot my youngest son's horn. The only thing I have to do with his accomplishments is absolutely nothing so I'm bragging for him, not me. He has had some pretty cool things happen in the last few weeks. I can't remember if I told anyone that he not only got voted MVP of our football team but Offensive Player of the Year for our whole league. Then, shockingly enough, last week he got voted MVP of our basketball team AND Player of the Year for our whole league! Who does that? It's not as if these are badminton and golf. This is FOOTBALL and BASKETBALL, the two biggest sports in high school. Wow! He got voted "Most Athletic" for the senior class and won the Scholar-Leader-Athlete award from the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame along with a $1000.00 scholarship. To top it all off he is now running track and has won every race he's entered from the 100 to the 200 to anchor on the 4x100 relay. Who is this kid? I'm sure that something swimming around in my gene pool made it into his because my family is very athletically talented but I think most of it came from Daddy's side because my husband is quite the studmuffin. Also, I think that the youngest of 6 boys should get to do something "first". He is certainly the most decorated Moore boy and I am very proud of him. I can't wait to see what happens at the end of the school year when all the class awards are given. Way to go, Hunch, you da man!!

I LOVE these children

2011-02-22T13:02:00.000-08:00

I Miss My Friend

2011-02-22T12:39:00.000-08:00

Lots of things have been happening lately to make me think of Rita and miss her like crazy. Our wedding anniversaries are a week apart. Her's is on Valentine's Day so I thought of her then and mine was yesterday. While Pat and I were looking for a place to have lunch we passed by about a million places that she and I used to eat at and they brought back so many fun memories. She likes everything foodwise and I like nearly nothing. She introduced me to so many new food places that I would have never tried by myself. I would rarely try something new but at least I went into the new places. Every waitress in town hated us because we took up a table for 3+ hours at a time and lost money for them. Pat chose Soup Plantation to eat at and halfway through our lunch, Scott, Rae and Wallers came in and sat with us. In 20 years we have NEVER run into the Schroeders around town unplanned despite living about 2 miles away from them most of that time. We had a good time reminiscing. Recently I was asked to be in charge of our stake youth conference. I immediately thought of all the things Rita and I have done together in our church callings and assignments. When we first met I was asked to direct and choreograph a stake musical and I was petrified of the directing part. I begged her to help me and be my stage manager so I could have her by my side all the time. When I got called to be stake girls' camp director(what?!) I drug her up there with me to do all the music. When she got called to be stake young womens' president she asked me to be her counselor. We were both called to be parents in a stake youth conference along with our husbands and then our "families" got pitted against each other in all the competitions. I'm extremely competitive (in a fun and nice way:)) and she is not at all. One of her "sons" was my real son, Tanner, who was extremely tall, strong, buff, hot, oops! I digress. So they ended up killing us in all the competitions using my own flesh and blood to do it! How I wish she was here to help me with youth conference and go up with me so we could have more of these wonderful memories. My only daughter has decided to run for class president at her school. We have NEVER had anyone do anything like this before. I know Rita has experience in this and I need her to help me with posters and slogans and general campaigning tips. There are so many times recently I have wanted to tell her something or ask her something and she can't hear me or at least can't answer me. It has made me treasure and appreciate our friendship even more than I did before. There is no one else on this earth who is more equally yoked with me, spiritually, academically, emotionally or just personally than she was. I have female relatives and other acquaintances that I love and respect but no one is "Rita". I will never have another friend like her and I'm feeling the pain of that pretty badly right now. I miss you Rita Mesqueeta:(

Farewell, my dearest friend

2011-01-25T12:55:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my best friend in the whole world went to live with her Heavenly Father and I am so sad. I should be happy that she is out of pain and doesn't have to face anymore challenges in this hard life but all I can think about is me, her husband and her four daughters and how much we are all going to miss her. Memories of all the great times we shared for the past 20 years keep running through my head. So many holidays spent together. Game nights where Pat and Scott beat us every time except once. Gabbing through a robbery at Marie Calendars' and not even knowing it happened. Trips to Utah where we talked the whole 10 hours, each way. Me being more excited than she was when her oldest daughter, Nikki, made BYU cheerleader. Helping Calee throw a surprise anniversary party for her parents. So many hours gabbing on the phone or at pie places or restaurants. Our favorite thing to do was talk. My boys being the only boys at her girls' birthday parties and her girls being the only girls at my boys' birthday parties. Her girls being my boys' favorite girls in the whole world. Mine too. Doing church musicals together, many years of Children's Chorus together, even the Miss Rancho Bernardo Pageant. Lots of church callings together. Baptisms, weddings, divorces, grandchildren. We have shared our whole lives for the past 20 years and been like one big family. She has told me just about everything that's ever happened to her in her life and shared every emotion possible with me. I can't help but wish she could tell me all about where she is now and what she's doing now. Is she with my dad? I hope so. They really liked each other. She told me she was scared but that she would check everything out so she could show me around and take care of me when I get there. I'm so thankful that I know I will see her again and boy, when I do, that is going to be one heck of a gabfest. I love you Rita McBride Schroeder. I put this entry in your favorite color:)

Oh. My. Gosh.

2011-01-14T14:48:00.000-08:00

This interesting character is my very hot teenage quarterback son dressing up for "Nerd" day at school today. Wow.

You Win Some and you Lose Some

2010-12-08T15:32:00.000-08:00

Well, we got to the big show at Qualcomm Stadium (one day after the Raiders beat the Chargers...again) and that was the really fun part. Losing hard to Oceanside, again, was the not-so-fun part. I'm really glad we got the opportunity to at least be in the championship game and I will never forget the friends we made this year in football. The game was televised and we watched it when we got home and I felt much better. Hunter did many good things and he was dang hot on that huge screen. One player from each team was given a sportmanship award and Hunter got ours. His older brother, Jensen, got the award a few years ago when the basketball team made it to the championship game so I am very proud of my boys for that. We didn't end how we wanted to but it was still an amazing ride and I wouldn't trade it for anything. We are off to a basketball game tonight. No rest for the weary. Go Grizzlies!

WE DID IT!!!

2010-11-26T23:59:00.003-08:00

Aaaaggghhhhh!!!

2010-11-26T15:58:00.000-08:00

I am so nervous for tonight's game that I don't know what to do with myself so I am letting you all in on it. It's too early to go freeze at the field but I can't seem to find anything to take my mind off of it so I'm embracing it and writing about it. Hunter's football team is in the CIF quarterfinals tonight and we are playing Rancho Bernardo. They have the same record as us, 8-2, and we have beaten them once this year but only by 3. The paper predicts that we will win by 1 point. If we lose then it's all over. No more Friday night lights, no more running for the paper on Saturday mornings to see what they wrote about my son and no more bonding with the greatest kids and parents I've ever had the pleasure to know. The pressure is ridiculous. We were in this situation last year but Hunter was a junior so I knew we had a whole 'nother year to have these experiences. Now he's a senior and this could be it. I can't seem to wrap my mind around that fact. 3 years ago when he was a freshman he was invited to come up to the varsity team for playoffs. We made it all the way to the championship game that year. Unfortunately, he also got picked to be on the varsity basketball team with his senior brother and they had a big tournament on the same night as the championship football game. Since he knew he would never have the chance to play with his brother again because of the age difference he chose to not participate in the thrill of standing on the sidelines at Qualcomm Stadium. This is his last chance to make it to Qualcomm and I can't tell you how badly I want this for him. If any of you read this in the next 3 hours please send a little prayer out for the Mission Hills Grizzlies and especially their quarterback, Hunter Moore. Thanks!

Thankful

2010-11-26T13:45:00.000-08:00

I have so many things to be thankful for. This is a partial list:
*my incredible family
*my savior
*my strong testimony of my church
*my health
*high school football
*my free country
*my beautiful house
*Christmas decorations
*chocolate
*dear friends

Baby Grizzly

2010-10-25T13:27:00.000-07:00

On Friday night my grandson, Landon, went to his very first football game. He was dressed in a little grizzly bear suit with ears and a tail. He's only 5 weeks old and very small. Our school mascot is a grizzly bear so I asked my friend to take a picture of the big grizzly holding the baby grizzly. The PPR (Prep Pigskin Report) cameraman from our local high school football highlight tv station saw him and took a picture of his little sleeping face with his furry grizzly ears. When we got home and turned on our tv to watch the highlights around the county there was our little baby grizzly filling up the tv screen! Then they showed our school highlights and they were almost all of Hunter! The vast majority of high school football players never get featured on PPR and our super stud, Landon, did it in his very first football game:) Hopefully, 15 years from now he will be on there every week. Grandma was a spaz and didn't have her camera but he's wearing his "uniform" to the next game so I will be sure to add a picture to this post in just a few days:)

One Hot Patriot

2010-10-21T13:04:00.000-07:00

Big Shoes to Fill

2010-10-11T13:42:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Logan, Michelle and Landon came over after church and after eating lunch everyone fell asleep for a little nap. While I was walking by I looked down and saw Landon's shoes right next to Logan's shoes. I was thrown back in time for a minute when Logan's shoes were the little ones. Amazing how quickly time goes by. Now my baby has a little baby to teach and love for eternity. What a wonderful circle of life.

Just Win, Baby!

2010-10-10T18:55:00.000-07:00

My team finally beat the Chargers. I can hold my head up high for a few weeks and maybe longer if we can do it again in December. I can't believe how good it feels! It feels like many years ago when I lived in Raider country and used to watch games with my dad and brothers and we expected our boys to win because they usually did. I traveled back in time and felt the joy of being with people I love, cheering for a team I love and winning! This time I was hugging my husband and children instead of my dad and brothers but it felt just as good:) I have loved this team my whole life and it feels great to be, if only for a moment, on the winning end again. The autumn wind is a raider and I will be a fan until I die. Raider Nation forever!!!

Tender Moment

2010-09-29T22:17:00.000-07:00

Tonight my family went out to dinner for Kyle's birthday. Logan, Michelle and Landon came with us. In the middle of dinner Logan's twin brother, Tanner, called him just to chat. At the end of the conversation Logan said, "I love you too". These are 24 year old men saying "I love you" to each other. My eyes teared up and for those of you who know me, it takes a lot for me to tear up (hee hee). That was a great "mommy" moment for me. I love that my kids love each other so much and aren't afraid to show it.

I love football!

2010-09-29T15:29:00.000-07:00

Last Friday night was the epitome of the total "competitive sports" experience. I've decided I'm way too old for it. Our high school went up to Orange County to play a top ten team and we aren't top anything. We were supposed to lose. We pretty much expected to lose. My son came out and threw 3 interceptions in the first HALF! He only threw 8 all of last season. It was horrible. We were down by 21 in the 3rd quarter. I spent most of my time praying that my son would settle down, not give up and do his best even though he had to be disappointed by those turnovers. Well, wonder of wonder, miracle of miracles, we won! In double overtime. In our county we don't even play overtime but I guess in Orange County they have the option if both coaches agree. My son was nearly perfect in the second half and both overtimes. No more turnovers. Lots of passing and rushing yards. Cool, calm and collected. Way better than his mom, who was a nervous wreck. I was so proud of him. We all stormed the field and hugged and screamed and celebrated well into the night. So, even though my blood pressure probably reached all kinds of new heights, I love this game:)

What the Weird?

2010-09-17T17:39:00.000-07:00

The strangest thing happened today. Our neighbor's dog ran into a fire hydrant at full speed and impaled itself on one of the nozzles and died. It was barking at the dogs behind the fence and looking at them while running along the fence and didn't see the fire hydrant I guess. It gave the most horrifying scream of pain and then twitched around a little. Then he hobbled across the street to his front lawn and laid down and died. We heard the terrible howling and my husband looked out the window right as he was writhing on the ground and hobbling away. We didn't know he had hit the fire hydrant until we heard the owner talking. It was very sad and such a random accident.

Sweet Baby Landon

2010-09-17T17:29:00.000-07:00

Our sweet baby was born a month early and he is adorable. He is 6 lb. 8 oz. and 19 inches long. He has a full head of dark brown hair and Michelle's chin dimple.

He is currently in the hospital with pneumonia but is responding well to antibiotics and should be home next Thursday.

Logan and Michelle are very sad because they are home and Landon isn't. I know exactly how they feel because my 5th son was born with pneumonia and had to be in the hospital for 10 days. He was in there for Mother's Day and it was horrible. It makes me very sad to see my son sad over his son.

I love having grandchildren and can't wait to snuggle my little man.

Toughest job on earth? Parenthood

2010-09-13T14:39:00.000-07:00

My daughter has been playing basketball for about 7 years and has only really enjoyed it for about 2. Those 2 came right at the beginning when she was in 1st and 2nd grade. She happens to be very naturally gifted athletically so everyone just expected her to keep playing because she is so good at it. Being a sweet girl who likes to please everyone she just kept on playing even though it was getting increasingly hard to hide how miserable she was. Unfortunately, she takes after her mother in the "I hate any form of confrontation" department. Girls basketball in middle school and high school is packed with confrontation. There are coaches, teammates, opponents, parents and refs yelling at you as well as players saying mean things and taking cheap shots at you. It's highly competitive and very stressful. I, of course, never stepped foot on a basketball court even though I am over 5'11" tall. Yet, in all my wisdom, I have been forcing her to play for the past couple of years because I have always believed that all of my children should be involved in something worthwhile while they are growing up to teach them disciple, teamwork and responsibility and because I thought she was just afraid and that should never stop someone from doing what they want to do. I thought I was helping her to overcome her fear and grow up. I thought I was being a good parent. Well, because of her skill level she was invited to be on the high school varsity team as a new freshman. I'm such a great parent that her throwing up at the first practice didn't get through to me as a sign that maybe this isn't for her, I just thought she was a little nervous and out of shape. Aftering warring with myself for a few weeks now, I finally really looked at her face and body language before her first fall league game and decided to actually BE a good parent and told her that if she really didn't want to play basketball I wouldn't make her. She broke down and cried and hugged me and thanked me and taught me a very important lesson. It's not her fault that she is very talented at athletics. It shouldn't be a punishment. If she doesn't like playing sports and enjoys writing stories instead then she should be able to write stories. Life is too short to be miserable over dumb things. My intentions were good but we need to know our children and there are plenty of other ways to learn responsibility and committment and lots of other good lessons than by playing varsity basketball. I always hated watching the girls play anyway.

Sigh:(

2010-09-04T12:54:00.000-07:00

I have decided that life can sometimes get a little overwhelming. Especially to old ladies who have been very emotional their whole lives. Do you know anyone like that? Hmmm. My dearest friend in the whole world is battling cancer and just about every complication that comes with it. I have this helpless, empty feeling that there is nothing I can do for her. She insists that there really is nothing I can do for her because she has someone already cleaning her house, her family takes shifts watching over her at the hospital and she says she is too worn out for visitors so I know that there is really nothing I can do but pray for her but I still feel awful. I feel like her family must think I'm a terrible friend. I'm a very private person and I know that if I were in her situation I would only want my family around me so why can't I believe that that is the way she feels? Troubling.

My mother lives by herself far away from me and every now and then I think about how lonely she must be and I think I should call her but every time I think of this I'm in the middle of something where it's impossible to call her. Then I feel sad and guilty. I know I should call her instead of writing this blog but the whole point of this blog is to try to sort out all the overwhelming emotions I'm feeling so I can try to feel better.

My oldest son is in the depths of despair because he lives in the worst state in the world for getting a permanent teaching job because of massive budget cuts. He is so sad that it breaks my heart. There is nothing I can do but pray for him but I love him so much that it hurts like crazy to see him so down.

My only teenage son is wrestling with affairs of the heart and trying to balance the temptations of the world and what his church and parents teach him. Makes for lots of tense moments in my otherwise "heaven on earth" home.

My only grandchild left to go back to Utah last week and it killed me to say goodbye to her. She is old enough to know me and to hold her arms out to me and not want me to put her down. She has a little personality and I got to know her much better and I really really like her as well as love her to pieces. Her parents also left me and I really miss having them around to play games with and laugh with.

Any kind of conflict makes me physically sick to my stomach. I can't stand it when people are upset with me and I also can't stand to see people I know upset with each other. I have friends and family members all over the place who are on the outs with each other and it's tearing me apart.

I'm sure that in the morning or even later today I will get a grip and be just fine but for a few minutes I needed to sort out my thoughts and vent a little. I have an incredible life and I don't mean to complain one bit about the hand I have been dealt because the highs so outweigh the lows that it's ridiculous. Just once in awhile though...a little moment of reflection is needed. Thanks for listening.

Here we go again!

2010-09-02T22:34:00.000-07:00

It's that time again. The night before the first football game. I am desperately going to try to sleep tonight even though I am ridiculously nervous and excited. I'm totally exhausted because I fed the whole varsity team tonight and there are 65 of them. I spent all day cooking and cleaning. I hope that is enough to tire me out and let me sleep. This morning's paper had some very fun things. A couple of pictures of my son and some very nice things written about him. He is one of the "Elite Eleven" players in our county. He is also the "face" of our football program according to our coach. I know all parents get nervous and excited for their children in their sports but I think there is a small place in heaven reserved for quarterback parents. The pressure is unbelievable. Total strangers know who we are and watch us all the time. Our son gets a ton of glory but also a ton of blame when things go wrong. If he makes a bad pass or throws an interception we never know what happened until after the game when he tells us that the receiver ran the wrong route or that the ball was tipped by someone or that he just choked. The people in the stands don't get that explanation so they usually just assume it was his fault. Of course when we win though he is the town hero and everyone wants to be our friend. I wouldn't trade this experience for anything but I may look a few years older the next time you see me from nerves and lack of sleep. Go Grizzlies!

No More Braces!!

2010-08-18T20:32:00.000-07:00

Today my baby girl got her braces off. She is my 5th and last child to have braces. No more braces for us!! Yay!! She looks so beautiful and grown up. Right after she got them off we drove over to the high school where she registered and got her picture taken. Perfect timing! I have to confess I was a little weepy at seeing her look so grown up and even though I haven't loved paying for braces for 16 years, it's another milestone in my "racing by" life. I am down to one school, only one more year of boy sports and my baby is wearing makeup. Everything is going by too fast. My advice to everyone out there is not to take one minute for granted. Enjoy every bit of the ride. It's the most incredible time of your life. It IS your life.

Update

2010-08-17T22:24:00.000-07:00

Three wonderful things have happened in the last few weeks and I just felt the need to share. First, Logan, Michelle and Landon moved in with us. I LOVE having this little family in my home. I can't wait until I get a chance to hold little Landon as Michelle is totally hogging him right now. (O.K. he's still in her stomach. Details, details) They are on a waiting list for affordable housing and I hope it takes a really long time for their name to come up. Second, Kyle and Logan applied to a physical therapy school right here in our town and yesterday they found out they both got in!! I am so proud of them and so glad that they will be going to school together and so close to home. Happy, happy mom! Third, Tanner, Alana and Ava are here for 2 weeks!! We all went out to dinner tonight to celebrate Kyle and Logan's acceptance and had a blast. I love my family so much. We are almost at 13 now. I can't believe I am a grandma and I can't believe how much fun it is. I got to hang with Ava today and we had so much fun. We watered flowers, played basketball, read books, played the piano and took a nap. I love being a grandma and can't believe how blessed I am to have such a great family. We are Forever Moore!!!!

The Boys of Fall

2010-08-11T13:04:00.000-07:00

Kenny Chesney has a new song out called, "The Boys of Fall". When I heard it I cried! My youngest son is in his last season of high school football and we have had the greatest summer ever with all of his teammates over at our house. The song talks about the wonderful comraderie of football players and how much they love each other and I am seeing it every day as these boys hang out with each other. They are a blast. They tease each other, wrestle around, play video games and card games (I beat them most of the time) and eat me out of house and home but I wouldn't trade it for anything. Savannah has learned that she needs to be clothed every morning when she comes out of her room because we never know how many large teenage boy bodies will be strewn around the living room on couches or on the floor. They treat her like a beloved little sister and since she is entering high school this year I couldn't be happier knowing that she will always be protected by her many older "brothers". I know my son will never have any greater friends than these boys of fall. I love them all.

Ava is 1

2010-06-22T20:31:00.000-07:00

My sweet little Avacita is one year old. We went to Utah to celebrate her birthday with her and she learned how to walk while we were there! I was so happy. She is adorable. I love her to pieces. We stayed for a couple of days and just played with her and gabbed with Tanner and Alana and had the best time. I love that little family so much. They are doing everything right and they make me so proud. I can't wait until they live closer to us so we can play with them all the time. Happy Birthday, Ava!

My Baby Girl

2010-06-22T20:26:00.000-07:00

My baby, who just happens to be a girl, graduated from middle school this week. I can't believe it. When did she get old enough to do that? She was so beautiful with her curls and mascara (gasp!). She actually has eyelashes! Who knew? She won the American Legion Award which is the highest award given to an 8th grader and she was the only one in her class who got it. It's for the all-around outstanding kid in the class. She is so quiet I don't know how the teachers even thought of her to nominate and vote for her. We were totally surprised and excited when Hunter won it 3 years ago but to have our quiet, shy little Vannie win it was unbelievable. Of course WE know she's the greatest kid on earth but we had no idea everyone else felt that way too. The minute she graduated she grew up. She decided she wanted a more mature hairstyle and she might even wear mascara again. So I have included the before and the after of her beautiful hair. I love it but she's still trying to get used to it as it has been ridiculously long her entire life. I love having a daughter. We share clothes and shoes and I am having a blast watching her grow up. She might even have a little crush going on (hee hee). I love her to pieces. Vannie, thanks for being such a great kid.

Already?

2010-05-21T12:27:00.000-07:00

Wow! Did my youngest son really go to the prom last weekend? My youngest? Unbelievable. He is adorable and I am old.

Double Whammy

2010-05-05T09:05:00.000-07:00

Today two of the most important people in my life were born. My mother, who gave me life and taught me how to be a wife and mother, and my husband, who made me a wife and mother. It's kind of hard having both of their birthdays on the same day because I never feel like I give either one of them enough recognition and attention because I am always thinking of the other one a little bit. I love both of them dearly and give them credit for making me who I am today. My mother taught me the things that made me attractive to my husband and my husband has softened all my rough edges and loved me no matter what. I feel bad for both of them because their birthdays fall at a tough time. My mother's birthday is always only a few days away from Mother's Day so they just kind of get blended in together and my husband's birthday is only 3 days before one of our son's birthday so it's hard to not clump them together too. I want both of them to know that I am very grateful that they are a part of my life and I love them with all of my heart. Happy Birthday, Mom and Happy Birthday, Pat. I love you both!

Too Much Information!!

2010-04-26T18:14:00.000-07:00

On Friday afternoon I got two very important and exciting pieces of news at almost exactly the same time. The odds of that happening are very remote but it happened anyway. At almost exactly the same time I found out that my son, Logan, and his wife are having a baby boy AND that my wonderful niece, Sarah, is going to Belgium on her mission. It was almost too much for my old heart. We were in the room watching my sweet little grandson roll around in Shell's stomach while we were on speaker phone with my other daughter-in-law listening to Sarah read that she will be serving in Belgium and speaking Dutch! Sarah actually got her call the day before but because some people had conflicts in being there to hear where she was going she postponed it to the next day at exactly the time we would be in the sonogram room meeting our new grandson. What are the odds? Incredibly rare! I'm thrilled by both pieces of news. I can't wait to meet my little grandson and Sarah is coming down this week for a visit so we can hear all about her new adventure!

What a Great Vacation!!!

2010-04-14T09:55:00.000-07:00

We're back and we had a GREAT time. Everything went perfectly. The weather was terrific, the food was fabulous and we even met some new Mormon friends. I had a rough time being in the same city as my missionary and I cried when I gave his friend his birthday goodies but it was wonderful to see some of the places where he had been and to know he was close by. A local girl asked Hunter to take a picture with her because she thought he was so cute. The shows on the ship were great. We loved all of them. Pat, Kyle and Hunter went on the zip line in Puerta Vallarta and had a blast. Me, Savannah and Brandon just got eaten by mosquitoes, especially Savannah. Puerta Vallarta was the prettiest with its beautiful jungles and beaches. We ate at a local Mexican barbeque in Acapulco and its easy to see why Jensen is getting a little pooch from the amazing food. Hunter now has a pile of new facebook friends and one of them is very close by in Encinitas (and she's Mormon :) Yay!) I highly recommend cruises as the best form of vacation ever. Good to be home but can't wait for the next one, whenever that is.

CRUISE!!!

2010-04-01T18:52:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we go on our cruise to Mexico. Yes, the Mexico where my son is serving a mission. Yes, the very city where my son is serving his mission. He will, however, be hiding from us when we get there because we all agreed it would be wayyy too hard to see each other mid-mission and then say good-bye again. He is sending an American who lives in his ward to take us on a little mini tour and see where he actually serves. It will be so cool but so weird to be that close to him. There is a slight chance that he will get transferred two days before we get there. We all love cruises and can't wait to check out the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line since we've only been on Carnival so far. We will be gone for 10 days and are visiting 5 Mexican cities. They are Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, Acapulco, Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo and Mazatlan. Jensen has served in Acapulco and is currently serving in Zihuatanejo. We have been to all but Puerto Vallarta before but just love the whole cruising experience no matter where we go. We will have another Easter on a ship and it is really cool. We gather in our cabin and sing hymns and read the Easter story and eat our chocolates. It's very cozy and different. I am taking Jensen's Easter and birthday goodies to give to the American since it costs a fortune to send things and I never know if they actually are going to arrive in one piece. I'm so excited I can hardly stand it. Bon Voyage everyone and have a wonderful Spring Break!

Celebrity Mom

2010-04-01T18:37:00.000-07:00

Things are starting to get a little exciting around the Moore household. Almost every day we are getting mail and emails from colleges around the country regarding my little quarterback. So far they are fairly generic and are just introducing him to their campus and coaches but they keep coming! We had a highlight film made and Pat figured out how to put it on youtube. I, of course, have no idea how to put that link on this blog but if you go to youtube and type in "Hunter Moore Mission Hills" you can watch my little hotshot playing pretty darn good football. Just seeing him on the computer makes me nervous and proud and excited all rolled into one. After watching "The Blind Side" I have daydreamed of coaches visiting our house and trying to recruit my son. I have no idea if he is good enough for that but it's kind of fun to dream about it except that I am a very private and basically shy person so I'm a little nervous about the possibility of it actually happening. For now I will just bask in the mail that keeps coming to our school and the emails on my computer addressed to Hunter Moore. It's kind of fun basking in the light coming from my little "star".

I Win

2010-03-23T10:03:00.000-07:00

Me and my kids have had an on-going tradition of trying to convince each other that we love each other more than the other one does. "I love you", "I love you more", "I love you more than anyone has ever loved anyone in the history of the world" etc. You get the picture. Most parents and kids have some form of this so we're not real unique. However, it was very gratifying the other night to be proven right after all these years. I was talking to the only one of my children who has a child and he shared his recent epiphany of looking into his baby daughter's eyes and feeling the intense love that only a parent has for their child and he realized that that is how his father and I love him and he conceded defeat in the "I love you" war. I warned his brother (who will be a father in a few months) that he was "going down" and would soon have to concede defeat also. I love winning.

Coach Moore and Coach Moore

2010-03-10T13:51:00.000-08:00

Kyle is coaching the 7th grade girls basketball team and Hunter is his assistant coach. Every day Kyle comes home with hilarious stories about his team. He has never coached girls before and according to him they are night and day to boys. (big news flash) They have played (and won) 3 games now and according to Kyle they haven't run one play that he has taught them. When he tells them what to do they just smile at him and then go and do whatever they want. He says it's like talking to fence posts but he still loves them. Luckily, they are really good athletes so they are winning all their games. The other funny stories come from how they all have crushes on Hunter. He has to come to practice late because he has to lift with his football team after school so the girls are always running up to Kyle at practice and saying "Where's Hunter?!" They all want to sit by him on the bench and they always tell Kyle how cute he is. Kyle is so patient and positive with them. He is a great coach and I am very impressed with how quickly he has learned how to do this. He and Hunter are having the time of their lives and they are a blast to watch. Who knew girls basketball could be so entertaining?

She's the Man!

2010-03-10T13:39:00.000-08:00

Savannah is in the house! She started playing basketball again and she is awesome! She is so fluid and graceful and a complete pleasure to watch. She was born with an incredible amount of natural talent but she also has a great work ethic. She is a coach's dream because she is very quiet and obedient and does whatever she's told. She is the captain of her team and she NEVER leaves the court. This was a little tough at first because she hasn't played in two years and all that running can really wear you down but she is slowly but surely getting back into shape and the coach needs her in there so she just keeps plugging away. Her brother, Jensen, started a family tradition of shaking all the players hands at the beginning of the game and wishing them "good luck". This kind of sets the tone of good sportsmanship right from the beginning and Hunter has carried on the tradition. Their teammates picked up on their example and started shaking hands too. Van is VERY shy so she didn't really want to carry on the tradition but I am very proud of her because she is doing it even though her teammates haven't quite caught on yet. She has also noticed a difference in the way the opposing team treats her because of this. They show her respect and are extra nice to her. I absolutely love watching her play and I hope she keeps doing it through high school. Since she is one of the tallest on her team she sometimes has to play "down low" against the other big players and it's pretty funny to watch. The other "big men" are very physical and rough. Van is very gentle and sweet and has a hard time mixing it up with them but when she gets mad she draws on all of her experience of being tackled by Hunter and she gives as good as she gets. I can tell she doesn't like it though and is trying to fight back tears so I hope her friend, who is much tougher than her, gets back from vacation soon and lets Van play outside where she's comfortable. Our team is unbeatable when they are all there so it should be a great season. Go Bulldogs!

Spring!

2010-03-10T09:26:00.000-08:00

Ahhh springtime! I love spring. This year should be a great one because of all the rain we've gotten. I absolutely love going out in my backyard and seeing all the flowers blooming, feeling the cool breeze blowing and feeling the sun on my face. It lifts my spirits like nothing else can. For some reason, though, spring also makes me miss my family. I've been thinking about Sarah, my mom, Cindy, Cathy, my kids and their wives and kids and I just wish we all lived closer. Maybe I'm missing them because I went to Utah in the spring last year and had one of the best vacations I've ever had. We went to lunch and shopping and I made them spring wreaths (by the way, are your wreaths up yet girls?) and we just had a great time. All of our sports wind down in the spring and I get my family back and it's very nice to just enjoy each other's company for a few months until the craziness of school and sports start back up again. This spring we get to go on a Mexican cruise and I am very excited about that. We love cruises. I also turn another year older this spring and I don't even care! I'm just happy to be alive and healthy and living through one more spring. I recommend that you all go outside and look around at this incredible earth that God has given us and feel that wonderful sun on your face and just go and have a great day!

Waltz, anyone?

2010-03-04T09:03:00.000-08:00

There is something about songs written in 3/4 time that just touches my soul. Every time I hear one I start waltzing in my mind (and if I'm not in public I do it with my body). My whole mood lifts and it just feels like I'm floating around a dance floor. I imagine myself in the ballroom with Anastasia, spinning around in a beautiful ballgown. For those of you who are musically challenged I will give you some examples so you know what I'm talking about. Phil Vassar's American Child, High School Musical's Can I Have This Dance? and a brand new one by Love and Theft called Dancing in Circles. When I hear these songs my soal just soars. There aren't very many popular songs written in 3/4 so it's always a treat when I hear one. Three cheers for the waltz!

We Did It!!!

2010-02-26T09:12:00.000-08:00

Yahoo! David slew Goliath! The Woodland Park 7th grade Bulldogs are the Champions of middle school basketball! We went in to the game with a 10-3 record and San Elijo went in with a 13-0 record. The game was played at Mission Hills High School which is way bigger than the middle school courts and that proved to be no problem for Kyle's little team. We were down by 8 at half time but came back to win by 14. One of the players came up to me after the game and said "Coach told us to win this one for Mr. Moore because it is his birthday". What a great family I have. Kyle was ecstatic and told Brandon that everytime he sees that 2010 7th grade championship banner hanging in the gym he can remember his 28th birthday and that the kids won it for him :) What a difference from the first game to the last. This is the team that killed us in the first game and made Kyle doubt himself and his team. What a comeback! I vote Coach Moore the middle school coach of the year. Who's with me? A lovely side note is that the 8th grade team also won and that all four schools who were in the 2 championship games were from San Marcos. I love this town!

Happy Birthday, Beer!

2010-02-25T10:58:00.000-08:00

Today is my number one son's birthday. He is my firstborn child and he turned out to be everything I dreamed he would be. He is smart, funny, wise, witty, handsome, talented, righteous, kind and most importantly, he has the greatest hair ever put on a human head :) He is in the process of finishing up the last bit of schooling he has to complete before he can be a teacher in California. I want to go on record right here on this blog as predicting that he will one day be a California Teacher of the Year. You heard it here first, folks. He is the best teacher I've ever seen. Ask any kid that he's taught in the last 3 years and they will tell you the same thing. He is passionate about history and loves to teach it. My dad was in education and everywhere we would go in the world, even Hawaii, we would hear "Hi, Mr. Miles!" from one of his former students. That happens to Brandon whenever he steps foot out of our house. We can't go anywhere without hearing very excited voices yell "Hi, Mr. Moore!" I absolutely love being around him as he is one of the funniest guys you will ever meet. He has made me very proud as a mother and I want him to know that I love him with all of my heart and that he can stay in my house as long as he wants (thank you, California, for having the dumbest rules ever in qualifying to teach in this state :) Happy Birthday, Beer! (another one of Kyle's interesting nicknames)

Good day for basketball!

2010-02-24T08:43:00.000-08:00

Wow! The Moores had a great day yesterday. First, Kyle's little 7th grade team won their playoff game to get into the finals. So, tomorrow night they play in the championship game against, guess who? the first team they played this season that kicked their trash and made Kyle so worried. Yeah, that's right, the one his mother said might be the hardest team they would face and to give his team another chance and don't give up on them. (remember my feelings on "being right"?) They beat him twice in the regular season but, hey, anything can happen in the playoffs. Which brings me to my next bit of great news. Hunter and the Mission Hills Grizzlies played their arch nemesis San Marcos Knights last night in the first game of the playoffs. We had to play at their tiny, old, dark, ugly little gym because they were a higher seed than us. It was standing room only and I'm sure we broke some fire codes. They beat us in preseason in the last minute of the game. Our two schools have never played each other in a playoff game in the history of the schools. Hunter grew up playing WITH all of the San Marcos players on club teams and now had to play AGAINST them so he knows them all really well. I'm pretty sure I have some temporary hearing loss after that game. Is that enough of a build-up for you? OK... wait for it................
WEEEEEEEEE WONNNNNN!!!!!! It was so great! We were ahead pretty much the whole game, just like last time, but this time Hunter Moore hit some clutch free throws to ice it and our defense was smothering. All San Marcos can shoot are threes and this time we didn't let them. We won 57-50 and that gym exploded. I was so proud of our little team. They played like....Grizzlies! Now it's on to Morse on Friday night. We beat them in preseason but they are still favored to win. Remember, anything can happen:)

Happy Anniversary!

2010-02-21T14:32:00.000-08:00

Today is my 29th wedding anniversary. Pat and I got married on the 5th anniversary of our first date so I have technically been in love with him for 34 years even though we've only been married for 29 of those. And I am being very literal in saying that I have been in love with him since our first date. He was 16 and I was 17 and on that first date I told him that I was going to marry him. I knew it from the first moment. That first moment might not have happened though. I have a sister who is 1 1/2 years younger than I am and we frequently shared boyfriends. This started getting a little messy so our mom made a rule that if one sister was interested in a guy then the other sister had to back off or ask permission to pursue him. Pat is Cathy's age and so they knew each other before I really knew Pat. I didn't want to get in trouble so I actually asked my sister's permission to love my husband. I don't know what I would have done if she would have said "no". Pat Moore is my match in every way. He completes me. He is quiet and patient when I am loud and rash. He is wise when I am impulsive. We have been together so long that we are now starting to think the same thoughts at the same time and are finishing each other's sentences. He is the closest person to me and I couldn't have dreamed of a better friend and partner. I love him more than I have ever loved anyone, EVER! Long ago I wrote him a poem and one of the lines says it all for us: " Sometime before forever, we knew we'd be together and love each other past life's final days". I feel like we have always been and always will be. Thank you, Pat, for making my life Heaven on earth. I love you MTA! Forever Moore

Happy Birthday, Mama's Boy

2010-02-19T14:06:00.000-08:00

Today is my little boy's 17th birthday. I can't believe it. Where did all that time go? It seems like yesterday he was threatening my best friend with death if she didn't go away and leave me alone. (He was 3) He was really the only one of my sons who was a true "Mama's boy". He only wanted me and hung on me 24/7, driving me nuts if I didn't hold him all the time. I didn't appreciate it then but I do now. I love that he loves me and I love him with all my heart. Now that his time is limited in my home I am appreciating every minute we have together and every experience he lets me share with him. He makes me proud in so many ways. He is a great student and athlete but even more importantly he is a great person. He had to give a little speech to the incoming 8th graders yesterday as one of the athletes who has a high GPA (proving that you can participate in sports and still keep your grades up) and in the middle of his speech he mentioned his little sister and pointed her out. She was very surprised and pleased and I was so proud of him for making her so happy. He tries very hard to do what's right and he is hilarious. He is the most unique of my cookie-cutter boys. 5 years ago I wrote his poem for him and I'm going to post it now as a tribute to a great son.

Mama's Boy

There's something about us, you and me,
a tie that binds us, that no one can see.
Other people have friendship and love
but you and I are a step above.
You have always been my pride and joy,
a genuine, original mama's boy.

Some might say you're just one of the crew.
How can the sixth one bring anything new?
But you and I know you are one of a kind,
the best of the bunch, there's no doubt in my mind.
The love you have for me brings me great joy,
my genuine, original mama's boy.

As you go through your life and the trials come,
and as blessed as you are you will still have some,
think of our bond and this love that we share.
That no matter what, I will always be there.
You will always be my pride and joy,
I thank the Lord that you're this mama's boy.

Happy Birthday my dearest Hunchamabilia! I love you to pieces!

Happy Birthday, Dad

2010-02-18T15:10:00.000-08:00

Today is my dad's birthday. He would have been 73. He has been in Heaven for 7 years. I don't really think of him very often but today I was. I am the oldest of 5 children and I know my dad wanted boys. He had 3 girls first and then 2 boys. So, for the 7 years that he only had girls, I became his surrogate son. He let me help him around our ranch. I helped build fences, I held baby lambs while he cut off their tails, I watched him cut off chickens' heads and then helped clean up. He didn't talk very much and didn't seem very comfortable around me but he made me feel useful and like he really needed my help. My dad was hot! He was only 21 when I was born and he always looked young. He was my high school principal and I was very proud of that. Everyone thought he was cool. He had black hair and long black sideburns and even the bad kids respected him because he was always fair and kind. He had a hard time opening up to me so we never got super close but I remember when I was a teenager we were riding in the car one day and a song came on the radio. I said I really liked it and I really liked the words. He asked who sang it which I thought was a little weird because he didn't really care about stuff like that so I told him. Shortly after that it was my birthday and to my utter shock my dad had gone out and bought me the album with that song on it. It is the only present to this day that my dad has ever gotten me and I will never forget the feeling I had knowing that he had taken the time to go out and find that album and buy it for me. It was called "Watching Scotty Grow" and I don't even know who sang it. How's that for a random memory? Anyway, my dad was an awesome dad who always took care of us and gave me a wonderful childhood. Thanks Dad! Happy Birthday. I love you and I'll be there soon.

Help!

2010-02-08T10:57:00.000-08:00

My poor little pregnant daughter-in-law is feeling like poop and I wondered if any of you young moms out there have any tips on how she can feel better? Did anything in particular help you through your "morning" sickness? (Dumbest name ever. Who is only sick in the morning? Must have been a male doctor who came up with that one.) I would love to hear what worked for you. Vitamins? Special foods? Drugs? It's been a century since I was pregnant so I was hoping maybe modern medicine had come up with something that would help. Let me know!

Grandma much?

2010-02-03T22:21:00.000-08:00

Yahoo! My sweet Michelle is pregnant!! I am soooo happy. I can't believe Logan is going to be a dad when he is such a child himself:) I can't wait to be a grandma again. Maybe we'll get a little boy this time. I am so glad that they get to experience the incredible love that a parent has for a child. Thank you Lichelle for making me so happy.

Lockdown!

2010-02-02T09:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my daughter's middle school went into lockdown for an hour and a half. Apparently there was an attempted house robbery nearby and the suspects jumped the fence onto the middle school property so the police ordered the school into lockdown until they could apprehend the 4 suspects. The suspects started out with a gun but lost it before they got onto the school grounds. The kids, of course, didn't know any of this. They thought it was just a drill at first but when it drug out longer and longer they started getting nervous. Information came trickling into them from their cell phones and from the teachers' computers and I started getting all kinds of texts from my daughter. First it was a pedophile, then it was two rapists and then they had guns. There were helicopters flying over the school so I knew it was real. I was delivering my Meals on Wheels and had to keep pulling over to answer my daughters texts. I knew she was O.K. deep down inside but I started thinking of all the other school disasters I'd heard about and I started getting a little nervous. It helped a little knowing that her brother was in the classroom right next to hers as a teacher. While sitting on the floor in the dark and in hushed tones for an hour and a half my daughter gained strength from texting her family that she loved them and telling them to pray for her and getting all kinds of encouraging and entertaining texts back from them. Kyle reminded her that Brandon (the teacher) was a closet Ninja and would take care of everything. Dad and Kyle were ready to storm the school and take down any and all threats to their sister and daughter. Michelle (her sister-in-law) was reminding her of past funny memories and trying to keep her spirits up. She also encouraged her to think happy thoughts like the summer release of Eclipse (Twilight). I'm not sure but I'm guessing that at one point or another every student and teacher on that campus thought about their families and wondered if they would see them again and wanted to tell them how much they loved them. Just like the people on the plane that went down on 9/ll, the thing you think about the most when you think it's the end is your family and how much you love them. I'm so glad my family knows they are loved. They say it and hear it every single day. I hope it doesn't take a possible disaster for you to let your family know how you feel about them. End of soapbox speech.

Sisters

2010-01-26T10:32:00.001-08:00

For the first time in a very long time I miss my sisters. I have two sisters who don't live anywhere near me and who I don't really have a great relationship with. It's not that we have a bad relationship, we just don't really have a relationship at all anymore. We used to be pretty close while we were growing up. We sang together all over the place and we lived kind of out in the country, away from the rest of the town, so we didn't really have people over much. We just played with each other. We all used to live right here in North County for a short time and celebrated birthdays and other special occasions together and I really enjoyed that time. Since they moved away though we have just gotten caught up in our families and kind of let our relationship die away. One sister hates to talk on the phone and the other likes to talk for hours and I'm kind of in-between so the phone isn't really a viable option. Neither one of them knows how to work a computer so email, which is my favorite form of communication, is also not an option. We rarely see each other and never all at the same time so most of the time I just forget they are even there but sometimes, like today, I think about the fun times we've had and the silly inside jokes we have and our mutual sense of humor and I miss them. So even though they will probably never see this (note computer illiteracy) I want to give a shout out to my sisters. Cathy and Susan, I love and miss you and hope you cherish our past memories as much as I do.

Whatever it takes

2010-01-15T12:11:00.000-08:00

Recently our family went through a minor crisis and it was brought home to me like a sledgehammer how important it is for children to have both a mother and a father. While dealing with the situation I realized that if our child only had me disciplining them they would be dead. All I could do was feel. Pain, revenge, anger, sadness, betrayal, disappointment and hopelessness. Thinking was not part of the equation, just feeling. My husband, on the other hand, while still probably feeling some of those emotions (albeit in way smaller doses) was also able to employ his brain into thinking some rational thoughts and coming up with way more realistic solutions than death. In making up with this child it was revealed that they were very thankful to have 2 parents and not just one as the balance would have been off without one or the other. Right in the middle of this fiasco I ran into an old friend who I hadn't seen in awhile. In catching up with the activities of her family she mentioned to me how hard it was to raise children while divorced even though she and her ex are on great terms. She was the one who initiated the divorce so I thought she was happy with the situation but she looked me right in the eye and said "Do whatever it takes to keep your marriage together". She was telling me that when children are involved it is way easier to be unhappy in a marriage than out of one. I think children kind of do that to a person. I think that children would rather have their mom and dad be unhappy together than to have the child be unhappy that they are apart. In a child's mind, if mom and dad are together then there is always hope that they can become happy again if they just try hard enough. Once they are apart, everyone is unhappy and hope is harder to hold onto. This is coming, of course, from a very happily married Mormon wife and mother with absolutely no training or education on this subject so you can take this whole entry with a grain of salt but for all the young mothers out there who are struggling to make a strong marriage, my unsolicited advice is "Do whatever it takes"!

Ouch! Another crack in the rock

2010-01-13T10:17:00.000-08:00

I just got back from my walk and while I was on it I got another sliver of wisdom and understanding. Have you ever wondered why certain things happen to you? When you are in the middle of a tragedy or a triumph do you ever wonder, "Why me?"? Recently I have had to draw on feelings from past situations in my life to get me through current ones. In doing so I realized that the reason I had to go through those situations then was so that I could handle the ones now. When I was a little girl I remember vividly on several occasions when I was either getting yelled at or praised that I would think "I will never forget how I am feeling at this moment and I will either a. never do this to someone else if it was negative and hurtful or b. try hard to do this to someone else because it feels good. I'm quite sure that most of you were not nearly such odd children so you probably didn't really focus on your feelings to that extent but if you tried you could probably remember and bring back how you felt on certain occasions. It's amazing how past experiences can help you in later life. You might get a certain type of mother so you can be a different certain type of mother. You may go through the pain and jealousy of having someone close to you seem to have a glamorous and wonderful life while making wrong choices and then watch them pay dearly in later life for those choices so that you can help the next generation with their choices and help them recognize that every choice has a consequence. You may fall in love too young and face all the struggles and challenges that that brings so you can help your children avoid those challenges. To all my friends out there who are struggling with situations that are making them sad like divorce, trying to find a spouse, trying to make their mark in the world and be noticed even if it's maybe not quite the right way to be noticed, know that all this shall be for thy good and that someday you may need to draw on these experiences to help someone else, maybe even your own child. Remember how you are feeling right now and vow to help someone else to not feel that way if it looks like they might.

Mother-In-Law Epiphany #1

2010-01-13T09:05:00.001-08:00

Every once in awhile this hard rock of a brain of mine gets a little crack and allows some wisdom and understanding to filter in. Recently I got a little crack. I was pondering the challenges of being a "mother-in-law" and it dawned on me that I was expecting my sons to do everything I would kill my husband for doing. Mothers and sons have a very unique bond that is hard for girls who don't have sons yet to understand. The mother gets to enjoy the wonderful part of male attention and adoration without the sexual friction and pressure and the son gets to be adored and thought perfect because he will never be any competition for the mom. In other words, they enjoy the perfect "opposite sex" relationship. Mothers of married sons have a hard time handing over that attention and adoration to someone else and always seem to be in competition with their son's wives. They still expect to be thought of frequently and called once a week and generally being front and center in their son's lives. Thus, the age-old reputation of "mother-in-laws". Lots of girls get along with their mother-in-laws but deep down they still wouldn't mind if they fell into a black hole and were never heard from again. (Maybe that's a little harsh but you get my meaning.) I am, of course, the farthest thing from an expert on this subject since my mother-in-law passed away very early in my marriage and I therefore haven't really had to deal with one, pretty much ever. However, I know that if my husband constantly talked about or felt the need to call and gab with his mother on a frequent basis he would pay dearly. I also know that if we had to spend equal time on vacations and holidays with a family that I did not grow up with and a woman that I didn't relate to very well and who loved my husband way before I did and just as much, there would have been contention in our home. I used to sing with my sisters and mother at weddings and parties all over the place. One song we sang a lot was called "Wedding Song". I've sung it a million times but just recently one of the lines came into my head and it was like a lightbulb going off in my brain. "Well a man shall leave his mother and a woman leave her home....". What? Isn't a man leaving his home too and a woman leaving her father and mother? NO! Men naturally want to be the head of their households and be looked to by their wives and families as the provider and hero. The hard part is leaving their mothers! But they have to do it to make their wives happy and to do their jobs. Women physically leave their homes but they never really leave their mothers. And it's O.K. Men don't feel threatened by a girl's attachment to her mother like women do with their husband's attachment to his mother. It's different. Having now had this epiphany I can more easily let go of my sons because I know if my husband's mother was trying to hold onto him like I want to hold onto my sons, I would be one unhappy girl. Just a word of advice though to all the young wives and mothers of little boys, go easy on the old broads who bore your husbands because someday you are going to be her.

I love being right:)

2010-01-12T22:49:00.000-08:00

I went to Kyle's basketball game today and just as I predicted they won by a landslide! They played like a well-oiled machine. They were passing like crazy, making shots, playing great defense and listening to everything Coach K said. He was ecstatic and even better, Mom was right. All is right with the universe. Way to go Bulldogs!

Already?

2010-01-12T13:46:00.000-08:00

Well, those 14 years went by in a blink! My little girl went to her first dance. She was nervous and afraid to totally let loose (she is quite a dancer) and actually slow danced with someone other than her brother. She had fun but she's not quite sure how she feels about the whole growing up thing so it might be a little while before she ventures out again. I remember my first dance like it was yesterday and I won't tell you exactly how many yesterdays it really was but for me to remember it at all after all this time is quite a feat. I was very excited and nervous. This was back in the day when you never danced in groups or by yourself. Every dance, fast or slow was with a partner and the boy always did the asking. I was almost 6 feet tall and VERY skinny. In other words, not exactly a stunner. My mother was concerned about me being disappointed so she made sure that I knew that if I didn't get asked to dance very much it would be because the boys were short and insecure with such a tall girl and that it wouldn't be because I wasn't beautiful and desirable :) Everything turned out great because I took my shoes off and there were enough fairly tall boys to dance with and I am a very exuberant dancer so I don't really need anyone else to have a good time. I came home flushed and happy and very excited for the next dance. My mother was extremely surprised and relieved. Savannah loves dancing with her family because we have no inhibitions when we dance and we get pretty crazy. Someday she will be able to enjoy the social interaction of a dance but I won't die if she takes her sweet time about it:)

I Miss My Mexican!

2010-01-08T13:36:00.000-08:00

It was wonderful talking to my son, Jensen, on Christmas day but it made me miss him. He sounded so...Mexican. He can speak Spanish really well and has a great accent. He sounded so happy even though I knew he was homesick. We did a conference call that patched Logan and Michelle in while they were in Big Bear so we were all on the phone at the same time. Just one more Christmas without him. He's been out for about 7 1/2 months. Almost 1/3 of his total mission. The time is going by really fast but I still miss looking at his cute face and hearing his very intelligent humor. He is a great kid and I miss having him here to keep Hunter entertained and on the straight and narrow. We just booked a Mexican cruise last night that will take us right down by his mission. I hope I can feel his sweet spirit while we are that close to him and I especially hope he will be able to feel my love flowing out to him. I miss you, Fronies.

Coaching/Parenting?

2010-01-08T12:40:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my son, Kyle, coached his first basketball game and his team got cremated. He came home so sad and depressed and...embarrassed. I listened as he explained what happened and it came to mind how close coaching and parenting are. He said that they had worked and worked on certain things in practice and that he had told them things and carefully explained other things that would help them win. When it came down to being in a real game, apparently everything they had practiced and learned went right out of their heads and they just choked. He said he felt really upset with them and embarrassed because the gym was packed and he felt like all the parents were judging him because it was his job to teach his players how to win. These boys are in 6th and 7th grade and this is their first experience on a competitive school team. Kyle has been away at school and has only been able to hold about 3 practices with them. Still, he expected more out of them and was very disappointed. He wanted to go out there and play "for" them or somehow "make" them be better. He couldn't understand how they didn't know everything he knows about basketball and managed to forget that he has been playing for 20 years. The boys got distracted by girls in the stands and their parents yelling directions at them and the other team being bigger and better than they were. All of this sounds so much like parenting. Every parent knows that whether it's right or wrong, people judge you by how your kids turn out. It's your job to teach them everything and if they screw up then it has to be your fault. You teach and explain and take them to church over and over again and still they get distracted when they get into real life situations. You don't understand why they can't see everything as crystal clear as you do even though you have lived about 30 years longer than they have. I told Kyle that to judge his team's performance on one game (their first one at that) was just plain not fair. That may very well be the best team they face all year. They may turn around and astonish him with a blow-out of their own on the next game. All he can do is be patient, point out, in detail, what each one can work on to better their game and then just practice, practice, practice and don't give up. I also told him that, yes, their performance is a direct reflection on him but that he can only teach them correct principles and then whether he likes it or not, they have their free agency and they WILL govern themselves. This is a great lesson for him and he is already trying to think of ways to help them improve and to help himself improve. Coaching, like parenting, doesn't happen overnight. It takes years of practice and humility and hard work. Hang in there, Coach Moore. Go Bulldogs!

Most Adorable Child in the World

2010-01-05T14:04:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Van!

2010-01-05T09:58:00.000-08:00

My baby girl turned 14 yesterday. I can't believe it. She will be in high school in 9 months, she can go to dances now and she will be driving in a year and a half! She is a Mia Maid already and she just became a Beehive a few minutes ago. We've gone through one teenage year and it was absolutely heavenly. I pray the rest are just as good. I have a feeling they will be. This girl is the most perfect girl in the whole world. She is the perfect blend of boy and girl. She got all the calm, laid back qualities of my boys and just the right amount of gentleness and sensitivity of a girl. We never fight and I mean, NEVER. If we don't agree then we talk it out or just be quiet until it passes. She is very quick to apologize and helps me be the same way. She listens to the smart things I say and ignores the dumb things. We have so much in common that I love to be with her. We are both avid readers and love to be alone. Neither one of us need friends to hang with. We are perfectly happy either being with our family or alone. We like the same books and movies and we both love chocolate, her-white and me-dark. We don't love shopping and can only do it for short periods of time. I'm so glad she is my daughter and will be with me forever. I was reminded this holiday season of how much daughters love their mothers and how they stay close to them even after they are married and even though it's not very fun being on the boy end of that relationship, I am very grateful that I have one daughter who will love me forever and want to be with me occasionally even after she has her own family. Vannie, you are the light of my life and I love you with all of my heart. Happy Birthday!

Holy Toledo!

2009-12-15T09:51:00.000-08:00

Wow! The other night we went to the mother of all awards banquets. It was 5 HOURS long! The Academy Awards has nothing on the Mission Hills Football program for awards ceremonies. Granted, we did have dinner, but that only took about a half hour. I realize that a football team has a ton of players and for the most part the proceedings were pretty interesting but it was hard on the bum and the bladder to sit there for 5 HOURS. Since there are so many players on a team and they play a lot of different positions it's kind of hard to just give out the usual 3 or 4 awards so our coaching staff decided to go the other way and give out about a million. I was wondering how they would honor the many players who contributed so much to our season with only a couple of awards like best defensive player, offensive player and MVP. There were just too many good players who needed to be recognized so they came up with some really intricate titles for their awards. My favorite was "Best Sophomore to Play on the Defensive Line". What was so funny was that there was only one sophomore who played on the defensive line. He was the best of....1, himself. He definitely deserved recognition but I thought it was funny the lengths the coaches had to go to to create recognition. Since we had an amazing running back and tight end who deserved every good thing we could give them, I wondered what, if anything, they would give Hunter. He had a really good season but he's only a junior and these other two guys were amazing and they are seniors. They got MVP and Offensive Player so they invented one for Hunter, "Outstanding Junior". I was happy but my competitive sons thought he should have gotten "Co-Offensive Player". That's o.k. There's always next year. It will take me that long to recover from this incredibly loooooong ceremony. Thank heavens I only have to do it one more time!

Only a few more days!

2009-12-09T14:30:00.000-08:00

In just a few more days my whole family will be together again! I'm so excited. I love my family. I can't wait to see my sweet baby, Ava. She is sitting up all by herself. She laughs and smiles constantly. Still no hair but I don't care. Also, my second child graduates from college. Way to go, Kyle! It only took 250 years because of little distractions like a mission and basketball but it's finally here. I didn't graduate from college so I have the utmost respect for those who do. I'm very proud of Brandon, who has a master's degree, and now Kyle, who has a bachelor's degree. You guys are my heroes and your twin brothers aren't far behind you. Keep plugging along guys. It'll come. I'm also very proud of Tanner for being brave enough to have a child while going to college. Very scary but very worth it. He's going to school fulltime and working his head off so his wife can stay home and take care of their baby but it's working and he is getting blessings by the ton for doing it. I'm proud of you, Nan! You're the man! I can't wait to have all of the Mighty Moores under one roof in just a week and a half. As the Grinch and Flan are fond of saying, "Oh Martha! Oh Christmas!"

It's over...but what a ride!

2009-12-05T11:05:00.000-08:00

Well, our season is over but I'm totally O.K. with it. We lost 28-7 but the score looks worse than it really was. We fought like demons and held them to nearly nothing until they broke through on a couple of plays. Of course, they fought like demons too and held us to less. They said we were the toughest team they've played all year. My son is battered and bruised but certainly not broken. I am so proud of him I can't really find the words. He got slammed to the ground on his left shoulder early in the game and was hurting the rest of the game but no one in the stands could tell. The picture on the front page of the paper today pretty much tells the story. He spent most of the game either running for his life or trying to get off a pass really fast. His line fought hard but that Polynesian (translate - V E R Y T O U G H) blood runs hot. Hunter showed no fear and didn't back down at all. I have the utmost respect for him and every other quarterback to ever play the game. The pressure is incredible. He's not just "one" of the receivers or "one" of the linemen. He's "the" quarterback. He is amazing though, always as cool as the other side of the pillow. You would never know he gets nervous at all. I love our team and I was very proud of them. The emotions ran freely (translate - tears) after the game. That was the last time this team will ever play together and after all the hours they have spent practicing and playing, they really are a band of brothers. I'm so glad we have one more year to enjoy this. Maybe more. Some college coaches have started to express interest. Can you say Colorado St. and Oregon St.? Now it's on to basketball. I love high school sports. Go Grizzlies!

What?

2009-12-04T13:53:00.000-08:00

Today in our local paper they had a big article about the game tonight. They were going over the strengths and weaknesses of each team and putting out predictions, etc. Right in the middle of the article they wrote that the #6 team and the #7 team play tonight for the right to face Oceanside in the final at Qualcomm. Oceanside? Has this game been played yet? We were so mad. Terrible journalism. Unbelievable that they would write that when the game hasn't even been played. I hope so bad that we beat them and then the paper will have to eat crow for a year. The only good thing was that Oceanside's coach said our quarterback is dangerous and scary. My little baby-faced boy, dangerous and scary? You betcha! Especially after that stupid newspaper writer screwed up so bad. Tear 'em apart, Grizzlies!!!

Texting

2009-12-03T11:51:00.001-08:00

I love texting. I'm so glad it was invented and that I finally learned how to do it. It is so handy for talking to multiple people at the same time. When I am giving a play by play of Hunter's games to his three brothers in Utah I only have to write things one time and all three get the messages. Unfortunately I am kind of slow and so when things get going fast and furious during the games or I get overly emotional I just throw my phone at my 13 year old daughter and say "Take over!" The Utah boys get a kick out of the texts that say, "Hi, it's Sav. Mom is bawling so I'm taking over". She is much faster than I am. I also like to personalize my messages and sometimes they can be confusing. I texted Alana "How are my two favorite girls who live in Provo?" (meaning her and Ava, Michelle lived in Orem at the time). She saw Michelle later that day and said, "Did you get the text from Dyanna?" (She thought I meant her and Michelle). Michelle hadn't gotten that one because she didn't live in Provo so Alana was confused and thought she had hurt Michelle's feelings. It all got straightened out after a few good laughs. I also love it that the boys can text me during work or school and stay in touch with me. They aren't big talkers so it's hard to get them to call me but by being able to send little messages we are able to keep up with each others lives. I'm so glad I was born in this day and age when everything is so cool!

MVP!

2009-12-03T08:19:00.000-08:00

We had the middle school volleyball awards banquet at our house last night and my baby girl won most valuable player along with her best friend! I'm so proud. She was the varsity setter and she had the team record for most serves. The coach said some very nice things about her like how naturally athletic she is and how she will go far in sports but the only thing that Van heard and cherished was when the coach said how sweet and kind she always is. That's what my daughter wants to be known for! What an angel. I have been so lucky with my kids being gifted in athletic ability because that goes a very long way toward building self esteem which is huge for teenagers. I have been very spoiled because I don't have to work hard finding things for them to excel at so they can feel good about themselves. The Lord took care of that part for me. All I have to do is cheer them on and I LOVE doing that. Now on to basketball in the spring and then we are done with middle school sports forever!

Oceanside

2009-12-01T19:22:00.000-08:00

Well, we squeaked by Grossmont last weekend (35-7) in our first playoff game and now we face the mighty Oceanside Pirates for the semifinal game. They haven't lost a game in almost 3 years. They are large, talented Polynesian brethren who are very used to winning. Sounds like David and Goliath you say? Not hardly. The Mission Hills Grizzlies are no slouches at 9-2. We have just as much chance of winning this game as they do. I did pause for a moment though when I read an article on the guy who is supposed to take my son's head off every play. He is the defensive player of the year for our county and he is very large and very talented and very Polynesian. Luckily I continued reading until I got to the part where his future plans include a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Whew! How mean could he be if he's a potential elder right? Just in case, I told Hunter to go up to him before the game starts and introduce himself as Brother Moore. Just a little insurance :) If we win this game we get to play in Qualcomm Stadium for the championship. Go Grizzlies!

Wonderful Week

2009-11-30T15:45:00.000-08:00

I had a wonderful week with the fam. Saw a great movie (The Blind Side), had really good Thanksgiving food, lost a million card games to my kids, watched my boys play football in the annual Turkey Bowl (they won), saw BYU beat Utah, watched Hunter win his first playoff game and go undefeated on our home field for the whole season and even got a little rain! Loved sitting in my decorated living room playing Nertz with Van and Shell while the fire was roaring and the rain was pouring. I have so much to be thankful for.

Traditions

2009-11-29T12:15:00.000-08:00

My family totally cracks me up. We have an annual tradition of putting up the Christmas lights the day after Thanksgiving. This has evolved into a hilarious undertaking. The one-liners fly fast and furious. This year Pat came up with a goody. I was filming the fiasco and Pat was saying that we always put the most expendable child on the top of the ladder. He proceeded to announce that Kyle has been at the top of the ladder for several years now. Kyle nearly ended up at the bottom of the ladder because he was laughing so hard. Everyone has their assigned job and they all take them very seriously. Hunter is supposed to lay all the strands out and then stand around trying to look busy which he does very well. Logan tests the lights to see if they work and then Dad hands them up to Kyle to put on the house. Tanner does a great job of blustering about and seeming important while essentially doing nothing and Brandon doesn't even pretend to do nothing, he just does it. This year he didn't even come outside to watch. Me and Savannah hang the lights on the fence and this year Michelle helped us. We were done in record time (girls). Tanner and Alana didn't get to come down this year and we missed them. I love this tradition and hope it lives on for many years to come.

Christmas already?

2009-11-16T09:09:00.000-08:00

I'm a little embarrassed to admit that my house is almost totally decorated for Christmas and it's only the middle of November. I usually don't start until the day after Thanksgiving but this year a little voice kept calling to me to decorate NOW. This little voice started in on November 1st when the time changed and it started getting dark earlier. I tried to ignore the voice but it kept coming back louder and louder until I finally gave in and started decorating in the first week of November. By the way, the voice's name is Hunter. Since he only has one more Christmas after this living in our home I gave in. Now, mind you, decorating for Christmas in this house is not a couple of hours event. It takes me days to get everything just right. So, I figured that since it's such a big production I might as well start early and enjoy it a little longer. I'm glad I did. We love snuggling up at night in front of a puzzle and football video games and just enjoying the spirit of Christmas, even though it's not even Thanksgiving yet. I'll save the tree and the outside lights for after Thanksgiving but for now, Merry Christmas from the Moores!

Oh...My...Gosh!!!!!

2009-11-07T07:42:00.000-08:00

Last night I watched one of the most exciting comebacks in high school football. My son engineered it! I can't tell you how proud I am of him and how much I respect him. He's a 16 year old boy and he brought grown men to tears, literally, last night. I know that sounds silly but it really happened. I, of course, was bawling my head off. We played a very cocky, very physical team that we don't have great feelings for (OK, I'll say it, Escondido) and we beat them 31-28 in the last 31 seconds. In past years our varsity team has had a lot of trouble beating them and hasn't done it very often. I have a feeling that Hunter's last drive to score will be known throughout our town as "The Drive" for quite a while to come. He had a 75 yard touchdown run that tied us up and gave us our first inkling of hope for a possible victory. We were down 28-24 and he started marching us down the field. He almost got sacked several times but scrambled for his life and made such amazing throws to such not wide open receivers that the whole crowd was on their feet and several were actually crying. It was so amazing to see a young boy fight so hard and make such great decisions to pull out this win that the air was electric. Afterwards some of our toughest players' dads came up to Hunter and told him that they actually cried because of the overwhelming emotion of seeing such a performance. My boy grew up a ton last night. I have to say that I like the San Marcos type of wins (aka blowouts) better because they are way less stressful but the aftermath of a very hard win like this is infinitely more satisfying. I love my town, I love my team, I love my son! Go Grizzlies!!

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

2009-11-01T11:28:00.000-08:00

After making up my son for Halloween last night I was struck by the contrast of a couple of days before. Is it really true that you can't judge a book by it's cover? I'm not so sure. People put their "covers" on for that very reason, so you will know who they are. Interesting....

Super Studette

2009-10-28T19:00:00.000-07:00

My girl is a stud. She is the perfect combination of boy and girl. She is a tall, elegant, blonde haired, blue eyed beauty who can put most boys her age to shame in the athletic department. She got all of her dad's athletic ability and her mom's long legs. She is the starting setter on the 8th grade volleyball team and she is awesome! She can serve like no other and her sets are near perfect most of the time. I am in awe of her. If she had her dad's disposition and not her mom's she could be truly great. Pat is much more confident and aggressive in sports than I am. Savannah has the "Miles" personality of being gentle, kind and humble to a fault. Luckily, those are the traits she will need to be a successful mom and she will be a mom waaaaaay longer than she will be a volleyball player. I'm loving watching her perform in the athletic arena for now and know that what she learns there will benefit her for the rest of her life. You go, girl!

Hallelujah!!!

2009-10-28T18:46:00.000-07:00

It's over! After 15 years I am finally done with Boy Scouts! Yippee! Yahoo! My last son was awarded the position of Eagle Scout last night and I am so happy and relieved and excited and...well, you get the picture. I can't count how many hours my husband and I have put into helping our 6 sons achieve Eagle. And we are finally done! I'm giddy. The Young Womens Personal Progress Program looks like a walk in the park now, mainly because I only have to go through it ONCE. Oh joy! No more merit badges, no more scout camps, no more sewing on patches and no more Eagle projects. I'm dancing a jig right now as I type. I'm immensely proud of my sons and all the hard work they put into earning these awards. Excuse me while I puff out my chest a little and proclaim that ALL of my sons are Eagle Scouts. That was so fun to say. Way to go, Moore boys! You da men!

Families

2009-10-26T11:13:00.000-07:00

I've been pondering on the dynamics of families lately. Everyone is born into one and then most people create another one and then that one starts creating other ones. Who do we actually belong to and how do we loosen the ties to the other ones?

I had a really good childhood as far as I can remember (which, with my Halfs-Heimers isn't very far). I thought of my family as very close. My brothers and sisters were my best friends, my mom and dad were very cool and very good looking so I was really proud of my family and thought we were really tight with each other. I didn't think I could love anyone as much as I loved them. As we grew up our differences were magnified more and more. Now that we are all grown we are still pretty good friends but we don't really hang that much with each other.

I have spent my entire adult life loving the family that I created with my wonderful husband and I am now quite positive that I could never love anyone as much as I love them. We are way closer than my first family. As they grow up, though, their differences from each other are standing out more and more. They are still great friends but they are discovering that they can love someone even more than they love each other.

This is actually God's plan but it can be a little painful letting go and going backwards as my family slowly shrinks back down to eventually being what it was in the beginning, me and Pat. In the end, we really only have our eternal companions. We go from being the center of our childrens' lives to being a bit player who is still greatly loved but definitely not who their lives revolve around. Thank heavens I picked a great partner.

Holidays are the times when these changes really stand out the most for me. The days of having everyone in our home for the holidays are pretty much gone. I have children in just about every walk of life right now. I have grown children who live at home, college students, married children, a missionary and some who still depend on me at home.

The oldest is definitely old enough to be out on his own but because of changes in his choice of careers he has taken a little longer to get where he wants to be job-wise. He is very pleasant and no trouble at all but a little part of me wants him to experience the joy of being on his own and starting a family.

The almost college graduate will be back home in a couple of months and isn't really sure what he wants to do with his life career-wise so I worry about him a little. I also want him to experience the joy of being a husband and father.

The married kids are very happy with their little families and so am I even though I occasionally (OK, frequently) miss having them in my home. I know they are experiencing the same joy I have felt for 28 years but I still miss them.

I miss my missionary like crazy. I know that now that he has gone on his mission, the next time I see him he will be a full grown 21 year old man. He will never be my baby boy again and even though I've gone through that 5 times it doesn't get any easier.

My high schooler is fun and challenging and part of me is thrilled that I still get to go through this fun time with more kids and part of me is kind of weary of doing this.

Thank heavens I had a girl for my last child. I never and I mean NEVER wanted a girl. I thought they were way too much work and I didn't want her to feel some of the feelings I felt about my mom growing up which I'm sure are very normal for every girl. I'm so glad the Lord knew better. She is the joy of my life. She is my best girlfriend and I can't imagine ever fighting with her. I have learned so many things from my relationship with my own mom and by watching others with their daughters and I am determined to have a wonderful relationship with my daughter for our whole lives. Plus, I know she will never completely leave me even when she gets her own family. Little girls will always need their mothers to be in their lives to some degree.

So, as painful and as wonderful as it may seem, in the end it's just me and Pat and the more I think about that, the happier I get. If my children could love their spouses even half as much as I love their dad then they will be the happiest people in the world.

My Sweet Baby Girl

2009-10-13T22:26:00.000-07:00

I went to Utah last week to see my little granddaughter and had a blast. She is 4 months old now and smiles constantly. She still has no hair but she is adorable. I love her to pieces. I wish she lived closer.

Kymimo

2009-10-03T12:13:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my little boy's birthday. He is 26 years old now and not very little at all. He is 6'4" tall and has HUGE muscles. How well I remember, though, 26 October conference weekends ago when he finally (after being 6 days late) showed up. It was at 6:10 p.m. on conference Sunday. Everything about his pregnancy was wonderful and nothing about his birth was wonderful (except him, of course). There were massive complications to getting him out and I can honestly say that he has caused me the most pain of all of my children, bar none. Luckily all that ended at his birth. Since then he has given me nothing but joy and happiness. Of course a mother is entitled to selective memory but, really, Kyle Miles Moore has been the epitomy of his scripture alter-ego, Captain Moroni. You can't get closer or hold tighter to the rod than Kymimo. He is brimming with integrity, kindness, obedience and goodness. Now if I could just find a wonderful young lady that he could shower these attributes on I could die a happy woman. He will graduate from BYU in December and then...??? I'm quite sure the Lord has wonderful things in store for Kymes, I just can't wait to see what they are! Anyway, thank you son for being such a fun, entertaining and terrific child to raise. Happy Birthday and I love you Moore than anything in the whole wide world!

Nash

2009-09-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

My daughter and I went to the Miley Cyrus concert with 2 very fun girls. Nikki Nielsen and Ashleigh Tanner are best friends and are always together so I am going to start calling them "Nash" (Nik and Ash, get it?) I love these girls. They are half my age and Savannah is half theirs so we make quite a diverse bunch. Somehow, we all relate to each other though. They are the sweetest, funnest girls and I just love being with them. We have a lot in common. You might wonder where I would find girls who are young enough to be my daughters to hang out with. Nikki is my daughter-in-law's sister-in law and Ashleigh is friends with all of my sons. They are so mature and such good role models for my real daughter. We have had so much fun watching Hannah Montana concerts on T.V. with 3-D glasses and dancing around in my living room. We play Catch Phrase and do puzzles during the holidays. I love having them over to my house and now I love going to concerts with them. I hope we do it a lot more. Nik is already part of my family so now I need to work on getting Ash in there. I still have a few single sons :) Nash forever Moore!

Goodbye Hannah, I Miss You :(

2009-09-24T15:21:00.000-07:00

Well, she never said it was a "Hannah Montana" concert. And it definitely wasn't. I guess I now know that it was Hannah Montana I loved and not Miley Cyrus. Me and two friends took my 13 year old daughter to see Miley Cyrus in concert last night and we all came home sad, disturbed and thinking we had just wasted a lot of money. I guess it wasn't really Miley's fault since we were the ones who expected something else. The whole time I was watching her I was thinking, "Are her parents watching her right now?" "What could they possibly be thinking?" There she was, a 16 year old girl wearing nearly nothing, shaking her body in ways no 16 year old girl should know how to shake and screaming rock and roll lyrics at decibal levels that may have permanently damaged sweet Emmerson Claire's ears. No sign of Hannah anywhere. I felt bad for the scared little kids in the audience who were probably wondering where Hannah Montana was. Again, not her fault as she never said it was a "Hannah" concert. I will be much more careful the next time I consider taking myself or my daughter to a concert. The whole way home I couldn't help but be very grateful for a church that espouses very different values than the ones I saw last night. I'm pretty sure that my beautiful Mormon girl would rather die than ever be seen doing those things, in those clothes, in public or anywhere else. So I guess I will have to be content with watching Hannah Montana reruns on T.V. Sniff, sniff. Goodbye Hannah, I miss you:(

The First Law of Heaven

2009-09-22T09:28:00.001-07:00

On my walk today the thoughts that ran through my head seemed to form themselves automatically into a blog post :) So, here I am up on my soapbox (and at my height this is a dizzying feat). I was thinking about certain friends and family members of mine who are not very happy right now and why that might be. My first thought was that they were not being completely (or in some cases not even remotely) obedient to the things they have been taught. Obedience is the FIRST law of heaven. First being most important and having the most weight. What is obedience? Back in the day the people needed the Law of Moses to guide them because they just weren't quite there in understanding the spirit of the law. They had to have the letter of the law and believe me they utilized every letter of every alphabet known to man. They measured steps and had a law for every breath they took and were instructed down to the nth degree on everything they were supposed to be doing. Guess what? We are waaaayyyy beyond that now. We are so advanced and so cool and so "above" all that that we now have a higher law. This means that we are supposed to be able to understand "why" guidelines are given to us not just that they "are" given. So when we just barely keep the laws as we choose to interpret them, it looks like we are really chafing at those laws and are not really understanding the purpose of why they were given. We are just obeying because we are scared not to. When we drink every caffeinated drink except coffee and tea or wear immodest clothing right up until the day we go to the temple or use words that sound so much like swear words that they have the same meaning then we are showing that we don't really understand the principles of good health, purity and modesty and Christlike thoughts and language, we are just fulfilling the letter of the law so we don't get into trouble with our parents or our church. I submit that when we fully understand and live the law of obedience out of a true desire to receive the blessings waiting for us by doing so that then is the only time we can truly be happy. If we think about the purpose and love behind the law, we might see it in a different light and live it in a different way. As an added bonus we might help the Mormons keep that wonderful reputation of being a "peculiar" people.

I Love My Job

2009-09-19T20:50:00.000-07:00

Can you tell I'm in the mood to chat? After reading a friend's blog I was reminded, once again, of how much I love my job. I am a stay at home mom and it is my favorite job in the whole wide world. I've loved it since the day I got it which was on February 25, 1982. I won't be silly and say that I've loved every single minute of it because early on there were several minutes when I was not so happy and might have even been a little bored but overall I wouldn't trade it for any other job. I happen to believe that it has been the absolutely most important way I could spend my time while on this earth. It has been challenging, overwhelming at times, frustrating and monotonous but the end result has been so rewarding and has brought me such joy that I couldn't imagine spending my time on anything else. The other thing I've noticed is how short of a time it has been. I've completely raised 5 children and almost completely raised the last two and it went by in a blink! I still have plenty of time to do all the things I thought I wanted to do while I was raising them. Pretty soon I will have so much free time I will probably need to be put into a loony bin because I won't know what to do with myself. Every sacrifice was worth the relationships I now have with my kids and husband. Looking back it seems like such a small amount of time and effort even though I know it was huge in both areas. 27 years and counting! Thank you, my dear husband, for making it possible for me to stay home and raise our babies to the best of my ability. I will always be grateful to you for that blessing.

What??

2009-09-19T20:30:00.000-07:00

Some other things I love are the BYU Cougars and the Oakland Raiders. Most people who know us know that we are Mormons and so the Cougar thing is pretty much automatic and very understandable. The Raider thing? Not so much. Everyone says, "How can you be Mormons and like the Raiders?" Simple. They are our "home boys". Pat and I grew up in Santa Rosa, CA which was the training grounds for the Raiders for years. We lived through their glory days and ALL of their Super Bowl wins (something Charger fans have yet to experience) and when you go through stuff like that with a team there is a bond formed that holds you together through the tough times (which are happening right now) as well as the good times which we know are coming back someday (maybe when Al Davis passes on to the next life? or when someone teaches Jamarcus Russell how to throw an accurate pass?) Anyway, as long as the silver and black are around we will be diehard Raider fans. Just win, baby!

Mama's Boy

2009-09-19T20:10:00.000-07:00

I'm going to start thinking of and writing about the things that make me happy. One of those things comes to my mind right away. On Fridays I help other football moms serve lunch to the varsity football players at Mission Hills High School. There are almost 70 football players and maybe 7 or 8 moms who help out. I know a lot of these moms and I know that they are very close to their sons. They come to all the games and I even hear their sons tell them they love them and speak very respectfully to them. Something that has never been cool for a teenage son to do in front of his friends though is give his mom a hug. Hunter and I are single-handedly trying to change that without even really thinking about it. Hunter is the quarterback of his team and although not a captain because he's only a junior, he is still a leader and an example to the rest of the team. After every lunch he comes up to me and gives me a kiss, a huge hug and tells me he loves me. I hope that by his example some of his teammates will not be afraid to show affection to the mothers that I know they love. Hunter is a very good boy and he makes me very happy.

Big-Game Hunter

2009-09-14T16:04:00.001-07:00

Holy smokes! What a game! I am still walking on air. I can't believe this is happening to us. All my fears were for naught. We KILLED San Marcos. It was 49-12 and they only got the 12 on our 17th string defense. Hunter was magnificent. He threw a school record 4 touchdown passes and rushed for another touchdown. He had 306 yards and completed 11 out of 12 passes. I'm in shock. He got interviewed by The North County Times, The Union Tribune and The Prep Pigskin Report. We had a ton of our dearest friends and family in the Sky Box with us cheering their heads off. The next day was like Christmas morning when we opened the newspaper. There was a huge headline on the sports page that said "Big-Game Hunter". I was freaking out. They had a big article about him and he was the passing leader for the week too. I feel like I'm in a dream. I'm so happy that all of his hard work is starting to pay off and that he is still in one piece. Next week is Eastlake. We'll see if the magic can hang on for one more week.

The Big Time

2009-09-09T15:03:00.000-07:00

Friday night is Hunter's first home game as a varsity quarterback. It would be scary even if we were playing someone we don't know anything about or don't care about. The whole idea of playing in front of the home crowd just makes me nervous for him. But, of course, we aren't playing just some "no-name" that doesn't matter and that is located so far away that none of their fans would come. We are playing the 6th annual Discovery Bowl against our archrivals: San Marcos High School which, in case you didn't know, is located right in our own city. These are boys that Hunter has played against or with his entire life so they have quite a rivalry going on. We have won this game every year we have played it except for the first year when our new high school didn't have any seniors and we almost won that too! So, no pressure. That means that pretty much the entire city will be in our stadium (O.K. I might be exaggerating a little tiny bit). As if that wasn't enough, it will also be Pop Warner night which means that all the little Pop Warner football teams and their families will be there (maybe I wasn't exaggerating!) It is also September 11th AND some Charger cheerleaders are coming to shake their booties for our fans. But the icing on the cake is that the very popular Prep Pigskin Report from KUSI will be filming the whole entire game as the North County Game of the Week! Kill me now! Does anyone know what a very slow heart attack feels like? Well, I'm in one right now. Two of my three sons are coming down from Utah to watch us hopefully kill their alma mater and they will be cheering for OUR side. I know I've waited a lifetime for this, I just hope I can stay alive long enough to enjoy it. GO GRIZZLIES!!!

I'm Exhausted!

2009-09-05T11:07:00.000-07:00

I just went on the most emotional rollercoaster ride this past 24 hours. Hunter finally got his varsity jersey with his name on the back. He's only been waiting his whole life to wear one of these. He was so excited. After he left for school I got the morning paper which showed that our coach had named his son the starting quarterback and not my son. I thought my son was better and deserved the job (typical parent) so I was really sad. So, we get to the game and we are definitely not expected to win since we are playing the #6 ranked team in southern California. I'm sure that was because of last year's performance because they lost a few guys and they were not very good (in my humble but most accurate opinion). Of course, we didn't look so hot at first either but we were hanging in there. Then, our quarterback goes down with a broken arm! Now, being a mom and being a very emotional female I felt sick to my stomach. I hate injuries more than anything. They are such a waste! I couldn't imagine what he and his parents were feeling. He's a senior! First game and it's all over. What could be worse? I felt terrible. Then I realized that my son was going to have to go in after this terrible injury and try to play his first varsity game ever. Then I was really sick to my stomach. I was so tense that if anyone would have touched me I think a piece of me would've broken off. I saw other parents surreptitiously looking up at Pat and me and I was trying really hard not to cry while I was praying my guts out. I was so nervous for Hunter. He had pulled a groin muscle three days earlier so I was worried about that, I didn't want him to get injured or be scared, and I certainly didn't want him to mess up after I'd been feeling that he deserved the starting job. So, his very first pass was an interception. Oddly, all I felt was relief that he'd gotten it out of the way early and that it wasn't run back for a touchdown. After that he settled in and played like I know he can play and wonder of wonder, miracle of miracles, little Mission Hills beat the mighty Tesoro! Hunter threw a touchdown pass and ran for some yards and didn't get hurt or mess up too bad and now I can't stop smiling even though I'm emotionally exhausted. I feel terrible for Aaron but I can't help feeling elated that after 27 years of anticipation, we finally have a varsity quarterback. Whew! I need to take a nap.

"And a Very Big Child Shall Lead Them"

2009-09-01T07:18:00.000-07:00

I was so proud of Hunter the other day. His coach was trying to teach him the finer points of being a varsity quarterback and he wanted Hunter to be more vocal and forceful in the huddle (he must not completely comprehend that this is a "Moore" he's dealing with) and to vocally reprimand his troops for falling apart and letting people tackle him. The coach went into a huddle and demonstrated what he wanted by screaming and yelling and swearing profusely. Later he asked Hunter if he understood what he wanted him to do and Hunter said "Yeah, I think so but can I do it without the cussing?" The coach was so embarrassed that he apologized and told H that he would try harder not to use bad language in front of him. He said, "Hunter, you are going to make me a better man!" I was so proud. Way to go, Deuce!

Sarah's Gone :(

2009-08-28T09:21:00.000-07:00

We are not actually wearing black but we are still officially in mourning. Sarah is gone :( She went back to Provo yesterday and you would think that someone had died by the faces of the people in this house. We are missing her like crazy. Pat gave her a priesthood blessing before she left for school and after that it was just floods of tears until she pulled away and actually for awhile after. Her bubbly, sunshiny spirit and wonderful booming laugh will be sorely missed. We love you, Sarah! Please come back soon.

Leave My Church Alone!

2009-08-25T15:21:00.000-07:00

At church on Sunday I saw a presentation of how effective anti-Mormon literature is in the media today and how we need to be more aggressive, as members, in getting the truth out to the general public through our computers. I have always been puzzled by the term "anti-Mormon". What in the world could possibly make people upset about our religion? What, about our lifestyle, could possibly be offensive? Is it the not drinking, smoking or taking drugs? The abstinence from pre-marital sex? The lower than usual rate of divorce? The way we teach self-reliance and service? The tons of supplies and money and hours we have donated to those in need all over the world? What, about any of that, would make a church preach against us? Are we harming anyone? Do you EVER hear us preach against another church? We don't believe in some of the things they are preaching but do you ever hear us bash their beliefs? NEVER! Why would they do that to us? I could see if we were advocating practices that would harm them or their children or society as a whole but with the lifestyle we preach? Really? Have you ever met a Mormon you didn't like just because they were a Mormon? Unbelievable! No REAL Mormon living on this earth at this time has ever practiced polygamy. We send missionaries out to offer options to people who can certainly say "no" if they choose to. Most of the Mormons in any given community are talented, happy, friendly people who wouldn't hurt a fly. So what is the "anti" for? I just don't get it. And as for the claim that we aren't "Christians", what the....????? Jesus Christ is the center of our church and our lives. The name of the church is "The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints. What the heck is a Christian? Isn't it someone who recognizes Jesus Christ as the son of God and follows His teachings? What part of that is my church missing? I would never say this to anyone's face because that's just not how I was raised in my good Christian home but I get a lot braver when I'm behind a computer. So for those of you who don't agree with my beliefs (and I'm guessing 99% don't even know what they are) how about you keep your uninformed opinions to yourself and don't knock it till you've tried it! Now I will go repent and pray for more charity.

Natural Moms

2009-08-25T14:55:00.000-07:00

I was thinking the other day about how impressed I am with the amazingly quick and natural way Flan and Shell (my daughters-in-law Alana and Michelle) have taken to motherhood. Only Flan has actually had a baby but both of them are raising her and they are doing a marvelous job. Flan had a C-Section and recovered from it in record time. She never seems to get flustered or anxious when it comes to baby Ava. She is always so calm and confident. Shell handles the baby like she's had multiple children and is totally experienced. These girls are only 19 and 20 years old! Besides being great moms they are unbelievably good wives. My sons are blissfully happy with these women and that is all a mother really wants for her adult sons.

What's in a name?

2009-08-25T14:24:00.000-07:00

While I was on my walk this morning I was thinking about how fun nicknames are and about how many my silly family has for each other. It is definitely a sign of affection and we give them to everyone who comes into our family. Their origins are varied and the most ridiculously obscure ones can always be attributed to Hunter.

I don't have very many but the most common is probably "muth", short for mother. Some of the kids call me "mams" and Pat calls me by my middle name, Lynn. Pat is "Paps". Pat calls all of the boys "Ed". Brandon goes by "Beer" most of the time but has also been known to answer to "Brenda", "Beernard" "Brandoni" and "Bran Flakes". Kyle is "Kymimo",(the first parts of Kyle Miles Moore), "Kymes", "K-dog" and a multitude of unprintable names from Brandon. Tanner and Logan are "Ren" and "Nag", (the first part of their names backwards) along with every possible variation of those names and I call them Nanny and Nodie (what they called each other when they were little). Jensen is "Nez" which is his name backwards and "Fronies" (no clue). Hunter calls him "J-Dove", "J-Sleuce", "Doverly" and countless other things. Hunter has always been "Hunch" but also answers to "Hunchamabilia", "Hunt", "Superman" (please) and "Deuce" (his football number). Savannah is "Vanicula, Vannie or Van", Dad calls her "Squish" (huh?) and Hunter came up with "Ovularious", "Ovula" and finally "Ov". (Told you.) Now that Alana and Michelle are in our family they have been christened with names also. Michelle is mostly "Shell" (big stretch) but I call her "Smelly shelly belly". Alana got some real humdingers. Kyle labeled her "Lawndart" (?) and Tanner calls her "Tacos" which originated with her dad saying he liked to go to Mexico for tacos y flan which then moved to everyone calling her "Falana", then "Flan" and then just "Tacos" (tacos y flan? Get it?) Tanner calls his daughter, Ava, "Taquito". Since my niece, Sarah, has been staying with us this summer I have started calling her "Sarajevo" while everyone else calls her "Sare-bear".

There is no explaining the strange working of the Moore minds when it comes to nicknames but if we have given you one then you are pretty special to us.

Wicked was Wonderful

2009-08-13T20:18:00.000-07:00

Well, even though our seats weren't the best and I sat behind the biggest twit in the theater, Wicked was awesome. The sets and the voices and the story and the songs were so cool that 3 hours just flew by. It was so fun to finally figure out what some of the songs meant. The dialogue was very clever and entertaining. I loved it. So did Savannah. Yay! The only downside was the girl in front of me. She should never be let into another Broadway musical again. She was a hyper twit who couldn't sit still and couldn't keep her hands out of her hair and every time she shifted or lifted her hands to her hair I couldn't see any of the stage. I had to keep leaning back and forth which, I'm sure, thrilled the people behind me. She kept looking at her phone (which was very bright in the dark auditorium) and fanning herself with her program which then prohibited Pat from seeing anything and as a grand finale she got so hot that she took her sweet time putting her hair into the highest bun I've ever seen so that my vision was completely obscured and I had to practically lay in Kyle's lap to see anything. I don't know if she saw any of the show since she was so busy trying to ruin it for the rest of us. She should save her money next time. Other than that, Wicked was wonderful :)

I Thought I Loved You Then

2009-08-13T19:56:00.000-07:00

I've been feeling a little emotional lately. I know this may come as a shock to those of you who know me well but I've been quite teary-eyed the last couple of days. I'm not really sure what's going on with me but I think it has to do with up-coming goodbyes, the start of football practice, another school year almost upon me and basically the passing of time, way too fast. Brad Paisley has a new song out and, as always, he has an amazing way with words. The song talks about a man going through the different stages of his life with his woman and realizing as time goes on that he just keeps loving her more and more. He thinks he can't love her any more than he already does and it just keeps getting deeper and better. Being past the halfway mark in my own life I am really feeling this. I love my family so much it physically hurts. Sometimes I think about how fast they are growing up and leaving me and I just ache. Hunter only has two more years in my house. Savannah can wear my clothes now. Sarah and Kyle are leaving in 17 days. Tanner and Logan have other girls to love besides me. I don't really want to go back to the days when I had 7 kids under 14 but deep down in my heart I kind of do. Thank heavens I still have the love of my life and always will. Sharing all of this with him really gives that song special meaning to me. "Now you're my whole life. Now you're my whole world. I just can't believe the way I feel about you ,girl (family). Like the river meets the sea, stronger than it's ever been. We've come so far since that day and I thought I loved you then". Thank you, Moores, for making my life worth living.

Wicked!

2009-08-12T09:31:00.000-07:00

I don't know why I'm so chatty today but I keep thinking of things to share. We are going to see the play "Wicked" tonight. We have been listening to the soundtrack for a couple of years now and love the music. The best part for me about going to this play is anticipating how much Savannah will enjoy it. She is so excited and has never been to a Broadway play before. She knows all the songs and has watched many clips of the play on the computer. It's so fun being a mom and introducing your kids to new things. I'm so glad my husband makes a good living and is able to pay for fun things like this. I'm also glad he's willing to go with us even though this is probably not real high on his list of things he'd like to spend his money on. I remember so well the first time I saw Les Miserables. Me, Pat, Brandon and Kyle had listened to the tape (yes, tape) every day ( and I mean EVERY day) for 2 years. We were obsessed with the songs and the story. When we moved to San Diego we had the opportunity to see it in L.A. I was nearly sick with excitement. When the orchestra played the first notes I broke down crying at finally being able to see what I had only heard for so long. I will never forget that feeling. To this day Les Miz is my absolute favorite musical. I've seen it 3 times. I hope Vanny enjoys Wicked as much as I enjoyed Les Miz.

2009-08-12T07:24:00.000-07:00

We got our first email from our Mexican boy and I cried the whole time I read it. He is a happy boy but going through the regular growing pains of a new missionary. He has to walk up and down steep hills all day long in Acapulco. He says it's like hiking the Y all day long. I hiked the Y! It's really hard! He is with a companion that doesn't speak any English which is actually good because he will learn the language much faster but right now he is struggling to understand anybody. Also, it is ridiculously hot there and there is no air conditioning anywhere. Jensen is burning hot and sweating all the time. He can't go into a nice air conditioned apartment or church or member's home because there aren't any cool places there. Luckily, he loves his companion and the work so while I cry and pray for him I know that "all this shall be for his good" and he will learn and grow tons while going through these experiences. Only one more missionary after this. Whew!

Utah

2009-08-12T07:10:00.001-07:00

I got to spend the last week with my two favorite twins and my favorite granddaughter. We had a blast. Ava is smiling now! She is so adorable. I snuggled her all week. It was very fun spending time with Tanner and Logan and their wives. We played games and went out to eat and went to BYU and to the Nike outlet in Park City where Logan works. He gets a crazy discount so we went...crazy! I got a new sweat suit and shoes. Everyone else got shorts and shirts and shoes and jackets etc. etc. We got a nice surprise with the weather. I expected it to be a million degrees since it was August but it surprised me and was very pleasant. It was in the low eighties and high seventies. Yay! It was very fun visiting with my mom. She talked a lot about the past and Savannah and Brandon found out lots of things they didn't know about her and about my life when I was young. Savannah and Brandon and I went to Pioneer Monument Park in Salt Lake and saw lots of real pioneer homes. One of them was the home my grandmother was born in. It was really cool to see such an old place that had personal meaning to me. They had a book on my grandma's family's history and my mom was in it. We got all excited. The worker there let us go upstairs where no one is normally allowed to go so we could see the actual room where my grandma was born. Very cool. Wonderful trip all in all. Can't wait to go back.

My Son is Now a Mexican!

2009-07-28T16:38:00.000-07:00

Jensen went to Mexico yesterday. We got to talk to him twice on the phone, once from the Salt Lake airport and once from the Atlanta, Georgia airport. He sounded wonderful! He got to do what no one in this family has ever gotten to do, sit in First Class on an airplane! He has no idea why but all four of the elders going to Cuernavaca got to sit in First Class on the way from Salt Lake to Atlanta. He said it was awesome. Tons of leg room (huge for him) and a great meal. He pretty much thought he was all that and his other missionary brothers wanted to pound him. They were very jealous. He got to talk to the whole family in only 5 different phone calls. We didn't know he would get to call from Salt Lake. I had a feeling though (thank you Holy Ghost) so I took my phone on my morning walk just in case and sure enough, halfway through the walk he called me. I had threatened Brandon with his life to answer the home phone and tell Jens to call my cell. Then, in the afternoon he called the house and talked to Me, Brandon, Sarah and Savannah. I then had Pat call the payphone in Georgia from work so he, Kyle and Hunter could talk. Then Pat texted Tanner to tell him it was his turn to call the payphone and then Tanner texted Logan, who was at work, so he could call and talk. Quite the well oiled machine wouldn't you say? I can't wait to get the first email telling us how the trip went and what he thinks of Cuernavaca. Missions are the greatest!

I love my Schroeder Girls

2009-07-22T21:57:00.000-07:00

I know my other daughters read this blog because they have commented a time or two and I just wanted to let them know how much I love them. I don't get to see them very often anymore now that they are all grown up so I just wanted to let them know how much I have loved having them in my life for the past 18 years. I met the Schroeder crew when they moved into my ward 18 years ago. They had 4 girls and I had 5 boys that matched them almost perfectly in age (remember I cheated and had twins). Their mom became my dearest friend almost instantly and our families just kind of meshed into one big messy glob. We did everything together. We spent countless holidays at each other's houses, had game nights, play dates, sleepovers and enjoyed being each other's surrogate brothers and sisters. I have great memories of the Schroeder Sisters. Rae was always the only girl at Tanner and Logan's birthday parties and Jensen was the only boy at Brooke's. I think at least two of them have had to wear some of my boys' underwear because they laughed so hard they peed their pants while over at our house. They have invented games and song lyrics with and about my boys. I have several prom pictures of Calee and Kyle even though they never actually went to the prom with each other. They always went in the same group so I just took pictures of them as if they were each other's dates. I have pictures of Calee and Kyle with their mouths full of marshmallows and Nikki and Kyle with their mouths full of s'mores. Literally full. They were always in competition with each other. The girls have sung at our Eagle courts of honor, our baptisms, our mission farewells and our holiday parties and I cry every time I hear them because I'm as proud of them as if they were my own. I remember helping Calee throw her parents a surprise anniversary party. I was WAY more excited than Rita about Nik making BYU cheerleader. I loved throwing Nik her bridal and baby showers and I can't wait to do all the other girls' showers too. One of my most precious memories is of the girls kneeling down in prayer together after hearing that I had accidently run over Hunter and praying for his safety. It was so fun watching Rae see the twins for the first time after they got off their missions. She couldn't stop hugging them. I loved the Catch Phrase show down a couple of Christmases ago. Moore boys against Schroeder girls. I made sure we had plenty of Jensen's underwear handy. I always keep an extra pair of underwear handy whenever I'm around Louie because she is so dang funny. She has the wittiest sense of humor I've ever heard. She's so intelligent that half the stuff she says goes right over everyone's head but I hear it all and my mouth hurts by the time she goes home. For a very long time these girls were the daughters I never had so Nickle pickle, Calee-Walers, Rae and Lou , thanks for the memories and I hope we make many more. I love you all!

I love being right

2009-07-22T17:00:00.000-07:00

I was totally right about the effect Sarah would have on our family. We are soooo glad she came to live with us this summer. She is a blast. She is always happy. She is a great cook and has baked us numerous things already. That is actually a negative as we are all trying to get a little slimmer but they sure taste good, nonetheless. She gives back rubs and drags us on walks. She loves to shop and swim and go to the beach and do her nails. All of our friends love her and she already has a bunch of new phone numbers in her phone. There is absolutely no down side to having her here and we are all dreading the day she goes back to school. This is the first time we've ever had anyone live with us who wasn't in our immediate family and we will never forget this very fun summer.

I'm in love

2009-07-12T20:59:00.000-07:00

I can't begin to tell you how much I love Ava Lynn Moore. In just the 4 short weeks that she's been on this earth I have completely fallen in love with her. We had a major bonding day on July 9th while her parents were at Disneyland. I couldn't get enough of her. I kissed her until her head was soggy and just held her all day and night. She really never cries. She squeaks when she wants some food but otherwise she just hangs out and sleeps. There is nothing better than having her sleep on my chest. I can't stop kissing her when she's in my arms. I smell her too. I just inhale long whiffs of pure "Ava". She is back in Utah now and I miss her terribly. I can't wait to see her again. I long for the day when she will actually know me and when she will be old enough to understand how much I love her. Until then, I'll just have to tell the world that Granny Dyanny loves her sweet Ava Moore than anything in the world!

Blessing

2009-07-12T20:49:00.000-07:00

My grandbaby is officially blessed! We had a private blessing at the Salisbury's house in Valley Center. It was surreal hearing my son bless his baby. She was an angel, as usual. She looked so beautiful in her white dress. So did Alana. Tanner was no slouch either. I missed having Jensen there but was very glad that the rest of my priesthood holders could be there. Tanner gave a beautiful blessing. He sounded like a pro. You'd think he does this all the time. I love being a Mormon and knowing what all of this means. I love our new little Moore family. Great job, Talana.

Nanny & Nodie

2009-07-09T11:12:00.000-07:00

My little twinners are 23 years old today. I can't believe it! They are both married and Tanner is a dad. They couldn't say each other's names when they were little so they called each other "Nanny" and "Nodie". I didn't know that there were two of them in there until 13 days before I had them. They were only 6 days early and had to be induced. They would have stayed in there forever! They weighed 7lb 15oz (Tanner) and 8lb 13oz (Logan). Tanner is older by 10 minutes. They have been the best of friends their whole lives. They both went to Brazil on their missions. They got married within 6 months of each other. They are both living in Provo, UT and will be attending BYU in the fall. Right now they are both at Disneyland. I love you my little twinners. Happy Birthday!