Ta-Da!

And finally a post with some pictures from when the Nowling's came to visit. I can't say enough of how great it was to have them here and heaven knows I am willing to play "tour guide" anyday of the year. I always wanted to be one. :0) I made up a few pages of our major all-day outings which included Patriot's Point & Fort Sumter, Boone Hall Plantation, and downtown Charleston. In case anyone is dying to take a trip somewhere, know that our doors are always open for visitors.

Tagged

I've been a little behind on reading blogs this past week because we have been having too much fun with our friends the Nowling's in town. I was tagged by Allie on this post so here goes.

*10 Years Ago: I had one semester of college under my belt as a freshman at BYU. I was loving college all except for my harder classes. I threw the javelin on the track team and was a part of an women's intramural flag football team that I loved! There was nothing better than a flag football game on a rain-soaked, muddy field.
*On My To-Do List: Sleeep (I caught a "sick" bug and feel like crawling up on my bed and dying). Clean the house. Spend some time online looking at Young Women stuff (I just got called as YM President in our ward-It's been 11 years since I've been in YW!!!).
*5 places that I've lived: Santa Clara, UT - Provo, UT - Murray, UT - Kearns, UT - Summerville, SC.
*5 jobs I have had: Adventure Guide for Boy Scouts of America in Moab, Aquatic Assistant at Orem Fitness Center, Recreational Therapist for autistic population, Activity Director for Assisted Living Community, Mortgage Officer.
*What I would do if I became a billionaire: Travel the world with my family (at least the places I still have on my "to go" list, buy a house in Santa Clara, see every show playing on Broadway, get a personal trainer for life! :)
*Bad habits: I used to be pretty OCD about some things but since having Easton that has changed quite a bit. At times I can be too competitive. I'm a reality tv show junkie (thanks to DV-R).
*Things I enjoy: Being with family, Santa Clara, time at a spa (massages & pedicures), a good advenutre (this usually happens on any trip with my dad), the great outdoors, good food, my little Easton smiling at me.
*Things people don't know about me: People are always suprised to know that I played the accordion for many many years when I was younger. In middle school (9th grade at Snow Canyon High) my mom bribed me to go try out for the Dixie High softball team. She knew I wanted a ferret and said I could have one if I made the team. I'll bet you can guess how it all turned out. :)

I TAG: Anyone reading that would like to participate.

Friends

We are so lucky to have our friends Angie, Marty, & Brooklyn here visiting for a bit. Easton is just having a ball with another kid his age in the house, and not just any kid but someone he actually knows! :) They had lots of fun squirting the fish in the bath the other night. We've got some good weather ahead and many place to go. Stay tuned for some more pitcures.

New Addition

Say hello to "Gecko," the latest addition to our family! Most people prefer dogs or cats but we got a gecko :0). We have had him for about a week now and have been getting him used to his new home and being handled. Easton has a lovely way of scaring the crap out of him so that part hasn't been going too well. We have already learned that we need to keep a hearty stock of crickets on hand for feeding. We ran out the other day and it had to go a day and a half without food. The poor thing caught and ate 5 crickets in a row when we returned from Petsmart this morning with a fresh bunch. Easton enjoys having an animal to look at all the time (and hopefully hold at some point). When we walk by the room that the cage is in Easton always puts his finger to his lips and says, "Mama, shhhh!" It's so cute!

Easton

I just had to post this picture because I think it's so cute! Easton had fun with Valentine's Day and a big sheet of heart stickers. His favorite place to put them as you can see was on his face. :) We ended up having a great evening out and Easton and the babysitter got along just fine. She said he was better behaved than any of her little brothers or sisters. That's our boy!

Happy Valentine's Day!

In celebration of Valentine's Day Scott and I have decided to venture out and for the first time ever actually get a babysitter for the evening (so we can catch dinner and a movie - I won't mention how long it's been since we've been to the movie theater). We heard that all of the young women in the ward are pretty good so we are going off word of mouth. I don't know the girl that is babysitting very well but she is 17 and he bishop's daughter. That has to count for something right? :) I hope everything goes okay with Easton. He has always had family or one of my friends who he is familiar with to watch him. So here's a question. . . . as I have never had a babysitter before, how much are you supposed to pay them per hour? I'm sure things have changed since back in the day when I used to babysit. I have no clue!?

A Funny

Easton just cracks us up. We really don't think he has much of a clue about what's going on around him but he actually does! We were just finishing up dinner the other night and since Scott had a very busy day at work I told him that he needed some ice cream but it was too bad that we didn't have any. Easton is just sitting in his chair eating/playing with his food at this point. Scott asked me if I wanted him to go get some ice cream and all of the sudden Easton gets a big grin on his face and says "yah!" He then proceeded to take one more bite and then he said "done mama, done" in hopes to speed along the ice cream purchasing process. :0) I told him no, that he would have to finish his dinner before he could have ice cream. So then he started shoveling food in his mouth like there was not tomorrow. We actually had to slow him down so he didn't choke. He sure is a smart little fart and keeps us laughing all the time.

More Fun

I am now trying my hand at some digital scrapbooking. Thanks to Shelli and some great online tutorials, Photoshop and I are becoming friends more and more each day. :0)

DANGEROUSLY CLOSE!

Yesterday Scott watched Easton for a few hours while I went on a picture taking quest to Magnolia Plantation. (Did I mention that I LOVE my camera!??) The weather was in the 60's and it was a perfect day! There were quite a few people there but you can easily get lost and separate yourself from the crowd in all the gardens, etc. so that's exactly what I did. The above slide show are pics of what I got before my "near death" experience. There are some great macro shots and viewing them in a small format like this just doesn't do the detail any justice.Now, on to the good stuff! I wandered out to a lake filled with birds/ducks and I also knew there were some alligators as I had seen them before. I would make a mental note to be on the lookout. As I was walking along I noticed some kind of bird in a tree in the water that had it's wings all spread out and it was acting very strange. (FYI: You can click on any of these photos to see them larger - and you may want to a little further on. :) )

I needed to go a little further to get a closer look and see what all the commotion was about. Once rounding the corner and walking another 20 feet or so I saw this little guy. Who would have thought he could get that other larger bird all hot under the feathers? :)

As I got closer and closer. . . right on the edge of the lake. . . fascinated by these two birds. . . I just so happened to look down (as to not fall in) AND . . . .

Can you say HOLY CRAP!!! (Or at least I said something to that effect, maybe not appropriate for my blog. :) ) This alligator was laying right up on the edge of the lake about 4 feet away and blended so well in all the grass that I didn't even notice him. So much for mental notes! He was easily 8-10 feet long and had some teeth that I knew could tear one of my limbs off in one chomp or drag me into the water never to be seen again. I nearly had a heart attack right then and there! After the initial shock of what I was standing right next to (mind you these are creatures of the wild in their natural habitat - not in a zoo or a cage), I gathered myself and slowly stepped away as to not startle the alligator. Phew!!! I observed him from a distance to decide whether or not it was worth it to continue on (the path I was on was only 8 feet wide with the lake on one side and the Ashley River on the other). I decided to keep plugging on. With spring and quickness in my step I got to the far side of the path and ran by. I figured that if he came after me I could probably outrun him. :) I saw many alligator out in the water and another up on the bank before I made it safely back to the car. All in all, it was a fun adventure in the name of great photos sake. Scott reminded me that it doesn't matter if you get great picutres or not if me and the camera didn't make it back to the car! So true!