[ McCain/Palin '08 ]

I don't usually really get into the Presidential elections and I sure don't usually have two blog posts in a day, and maybe it has to do with the campaign being run from our house, but I've got to say that I'm really excited about the possibility of the McCain/Palin ticket for '08. I think Gov. Sarah Palin was a great pick for John McCain's running mate. I've heard some people say they think that John McCain just cost himself the Presidency, but I don't. I think a lot of people were excited about the possibility of having a woman in the Presidency, but just not Hillary...so to have Gov. Palin as the VP - wow. How cool would that be?!

It's also really neat that Gov. Palin is local - her parents have ties to the Tri-Cities, she was born in Sandpoint, and went to U of I!

I'm starting to get excited about the election now! I'm interested to hear and read all that I can. I found a blog written by John McCain's daughter that is on the campagin trail with him. It gives a more pop culture look at the campaign - and as much as I say I'm interested in the election, I don't always understand everything that is said. Pop culture - now that, I understand! :)

Anyway - if you're interested, the web address is: http://www.mccainblogette.com/.

I'm also looking forward to hearing what John McCain and Sarah Palin have to say at the Republican National Convention. I've subscribed to the podcasts, so I can get the speeches on my iPhone and listen to them on my own time. I also think it's commendable that John McCain is calling for a scaled back convention due to the hurricane that is heading toward New Orleans.

I really hope things are different in New Orleans this time around. I was looking at pictures tonight from my cousin Amber, who went on a mission trip with our church's youth group to New Orleans last summer. I was thinking about all the people that have helped rebuild after Hurricane Katrina and all the people that were affected by Hurricane Katrina - and to have to go through that again is unimaginable. Hopefully the system works better this time...

Wow - what a rambling post. If you made it this far - sorry!! :)

(P.S. If anyone knows how to fix the spacing, please let me know. I'm sick of not being able to double space between paragraphs!!)

[ Mamma Mia ]

Mom and I went to see Mamma Mia tonight in Connell.

I wouldn't say it's the best movie I've ever seen...but it was good for a laugh! Pierce Bronson & Meryl Streep breaking out in song is pretty hilarious!

We sat behind Bill & Jenni Erickson...it was only Jenni's 6th time seeing the movie! Too funny...

I'm so excited for the day off tomorrow!! YAY! Happy Labor Day!

[ Happy Birthday to Melissa! ]

Hey! It's Your Birthday!

Today is Melissa's 24th birthday! I'm not sure yet what we're going to do to celebrate today, besides go to Outback for dinner & Wallaby Darned's tonight!

In other news, I'm excited for the three-day weekend & that I made it through the first week of school! There were some crazy moments, but we all survived!! I have come each night so exhausted and was looking forward to sleeping in this morning, but it didn't quite work out. Samson and I did lounge in bed this morning while we watched a couple episodes of Sex & the City. We're working our way through the whole series and are on the last season. I don't know what we'll do when we're done! Any suggestions for another TV series to watch? We've watched the entire series of "Friends" and "Big Love" and "The O.C."

The cheerleaders also had their debut performance this week at the 1st Day of School Assembly and at the Eagle's Nest BBQ. They did great and are improving constantly. I just can't wait for them to be done learning cheers so that we can move on to stunts and preparing other performances.

[ question from my MOM ]

my mom loves reading everyone's blogs...i keep telling her she should start her own blog since she enjoys reading everyone else's so much, but so far all that's gotten is a smirk.

anyway - she told me tonight that she has two questions to ask my faithful blog readers:

1. What kind of camera would you recommend for the family photographer?

(ok - she just read my blog and specified her question - she wants a digital camera and she wants one that can fit in her purse - not a cool one like Shanae and Jamie's)

2. What kind of vacuum do you prefer?

so, if you can - help a girl out. :)

she's dying without a camera (and truthfully, so are we...with her current camera, she can take one picture, then it turns off and she has to turn it back on to take a second picture) - and apparently we need a vacuum. who needs to vacuum, anyway?! honestly...

p.s. my Mom also wanted me to clarify that I do not own
any of those God-awful shoes in my previous post...I hope that was

evident before I had to clarify...do you know me at all?!

[ just another Saturday ]

my family all went to Bend, Oregon this weekend for a wedding - so I'm home holding down the fort.

the dogs and i are settled in for a day at home. i have so much work to do finalizing student's schedules, so we're here watching re-runs of "My Super Sweet 16", "Friends", and "Sex and the City," - drinking coffee, and procrastinating. i'd also like to get a few scrapbook pages done, vacuum my car, take a nap, and watch some olympics.

just another saturday...relaxing before the first week of school...

and another random observation: while i'm here procrastinating, i'm shoe shopping. i'm always looking for new shoes - especially since my size 13 ogre feet make it difficult to find cute/trendy/comfortable shoes.

WHY DO SIZE 13 SHOE SEARCHES ALWAYS SHOW SHOES LIKE THESE???

They're hideous. Not all women with size 13 feet are 80 years old.

Only being able to find shoes like these make it hard to live in a house with a sister who has an entire shoe CLOSET and comes home from practically every shopping trip with new shoes. Even a trip to Target usually entails new shoes. I'm just jealous - obviously - but it really is a frustrating matter. Seriously, people - spread the wealth. If anyone out there ever becomes a shoe designer, please show the love to size 13 women.

[ 4 Things ]

Jande had this on her blog and while she didn't actually tag me personally, I felt like doing it. Call me crazy - you wouldn't be the first... :)

A) Four places I go to over and over:
1. Connell High School
2. Target
3. Connell United Methodist Church
4. Burger Factory (96 cent Pepsi - gotta love that!)

B) Four people who email me regularly:
1. People at work
2. my sister
3. Jen Roberts
4. Blogger/Facebook - they alert me when someone posts on my blog or Facebook

C) Four of my favorite places to eat:
1. PF Changs
2. Outback
3. McDonalds
4. Sonic/Starbucks - for drinks


D) Four places I would rather be right now:
1. Mexico
2. PRIEST LAKE
3. Minnesota
4. PRIEST LAKE

E) Four TV shows I watch:
1. Big Brother
2. Grey's Anatomy
3. Project Runway
4. Desperate Housewives

F) Four of my favorite books:
1. To Kill a Mockingbird
2. The Other Boleyn Girl
3. The Bible
4. Stampin' Up Catalog

G) Four places I have lived:
1. Connell
2. Tacoma
3. Spokane
4.

H) Four things I wish to do before I die:
1. Take my parents to Guanajuato, Mexico
2. Buy a house - along with a gardener, house cleaner, interior designer, etc.
3. Go to Hawaii
4. Win big in Vegas

I) Four people I am tagging:
1. Jessica
2. Jennie
3. Mikaela
4. Kira

Whoo Hoo!

I took down my last post because my favorite:

[ Jennie Davidson ]

helped me out and fixed my blog!

This can't even begin to show my appreciation, but:

Thanks to you, my blog looks so pretty!!!

[ reunion ]

i just have to say that i am loving seeing the pictures and hearing about the class of '98 reunion that was last weekend. i *heart* my friends from the chs class of '98 and i'm disappointed that i didn't get to see them while they were in town.

everyone looks so great and it sounds like it was a great weekend.

i hope the class of '99 can do it like you guys when we get together next summer.

(for pictures, see Tamara & Shanae's blogs)

[ This Week ] (edited to add pictures!)

This past week has been really busy - but in a good way!!

On Sunday, we had a breakfast at church for all the great people that sponsored us to go on the mission trip. Each person that went on the trip had a sponsor (a family or couple) that donated money for that participant specifically. The participant then sent their sponsor a postcard from SLC and brought them a souvenir and then invited them to this breakfast. We gave an overview of the mission trip during church - each high schooler talked about one things we did and we showed a slideshow with all the pictures we took.

Sunday afternoon, my mom and aunt Kim hosted a bridal shower for my cousin Paige that is getting married in September. The best part was that my cousin Lisa was here from Virginia, so it was fun to see her.

(Lisa and my Grandma - looking hot in green!)

(Our cousins - Lisa, Amber, Camryn, Paige, Jordan, me, Melissa)

My first official day back at school was Monday (read: end of summer...boo...). There is a lot to do before August 26th...but I'm confident it will get done! It's kind of exciting to be back at work - new year, new possibilities - but it will be better when the students are back too.

So, I worked for two days and then have taken the next three off!! It's so nice to have an understanding principal! :) We've had cheer pictures and then cheer camp the rest of this week...it's awesome to be back with the cheerleaders and Jessica & Emersyn! Our camp coach is awesome and the girls have learned some great routines that we can definitely use and polish. Camp is over tomorrow and then regular season cheer practice starts on Wednesday. I love catching up with Jess and picking up right where we left off! :) Emersyn has grown so much and is such a happy baby.

(Melissa and Emersyn)

(Emersyn Leigh)

(08-09 CHS Cheerleaders)

We've also been working a lot in Melissa's classroom, getting it ready for the eager 2nd graders that will be coming in just over a week. It has been a lot of hard work for her, but really fun too. It's so cool to see it all come together.

During our free time, we've been glued to the Olympics (and, to be honest, Big Brother, too!) - especially swimming, beach volleyball, diving, and women's gymnastics. I've been DVRing everything, so I'm just watching the medal ceremony for the Women's Gymnastics All-Around right now. So excited for Nastia and Shawn - I've really enjoyed watching Nastia and love that she won the gold. She is so poised and elegant...I can't imagine the sense of accomplishment she must feel!!

(I cannot figure out how to get paragraph spaces today...sorry...I'll keep trying to figure it out!)

[ 08.08.08 ]

What a historical day. I have been thinking about how amazing it is to see these days (07.07.07, etc.) and how we'll never see them again. It's a one time deal. Everyday is a one time deal. It just takes days like today to remind us of that...

I've been looking forward to today for a while - not because of the date, but because of this:

I am not an athlete, but I sure do love the Olympics. I think my Mom's attraction to the games has influenced my attraction to the games. I just love learning more about the country the Olympics are in, the individual stories of the athletes, the pomp & circumstance of the whole affair...it's just exhilerating!!

I've been so lucky to be able to go to two Olympic Parks - in Munich and Park City, Utah. Our family also took a vacation to Vancouver, B.C. shortly after it was announced that the 2010 Olympics will be held there. We are so lucky to get to have the world watching the Pacific Northwest in two years - I really hope to be able to attend an event there. It really is a once in a lifetime event.

So - the DVR is set and I'm settled in to watch the Opening Ceremonies tonight. I'm looking forward to watching Track & Field, Gymnastics, Diving, Swimming (Go Michael Phelps!!), Synchronized Swimming, Women's Soccer (Hello Hope Solo from Richland!) and Beach Volleyball. Seriously, the DVR is set to record three times a day for a minimum of 3 hours each. That's a lot of Olympics. :)

Whoop Whoop! :)

[ Priest Lake ]

Priest Lake 2008 By the Numbers

34 consecutive days spent at Priest Lake

2 movies on the beach (Cars & Enchanted)

66 scrapbook pages created

1 night at Hill's Karaoke

7 Huckleberry Daquiris

1 completed cross-stitch from start to finish

16 naps

2 Coolin Bay Sandwhiches from Leonard Paul

over 150 games of Progressive Rummy

2 dinners at Trent's @ Cavanaugh Bay

1 fun night with the Eppich's

7 rounds of Beer Pong

1 day in Coeur d'Alene

3 trips to Korners to use their wireless internet

1 Huckleberry Daquiri tour

5 friends coming to visit

6 Heiders

4 Kochs

2 dogs

34 amazing days = one amazing summer!