Chapter 2: Winning Love

Kay smiled as she rememberd the joy and euforia she had experienced the day that ad had come. Standing in the kitchen holding the small flyer she had felt like a child on Christmas. It was the oportunity she had been waiting for since Page was 6 months old. To an onlooker the paper would have looked like a junk mail ad for a beauty pageant, but to Kay it seemed like the golden ticket to Willy Wonkas candy factory! A beauty pageant that was both affordable and 'natural'. Kay didn't like the glitz pageants where little girls were turned into living dolls. Fake hair, fake teeth, spray tans, all disgusting realities of childrens beauty pageants. But this was a 'natural' pageant, no fake stuff allowed!

Kay stared at the paper in her hands, frozen with excitement at the thought of what this could mean. She could feel the joy fizzing inside her, growing stronger with each passing second until it would over come her momentary paralization and she would begin zinging around the house barely able to control herself. Yes, truly this was a moment she had only fantasized about. Her beautiful daughter in a pageant... but would Lewis approve?? Would Page even be interested??

As time would tell, Page was excited about the idea. She had been hesitant at first, but the thought of shopping trips with mom won over in the end. Page definitely LOVED new stuff! Lewis had been surprisingly supportive of the idea, stating that it would be a great opportunity for Page.

In the end the greatest benefit had been the bonding Page and Kay had experienced. Two weeks of working together, shopping together, and finding middle ground had been just what the mother daughter relationship needed. Kay felt closer to Page than ever before.

One morning just before the pageant Kay had come in to wake Page for school. Page had rolled over and rubbed her eyes then asked "Mom, would you like a surprise?" Kay responded eagerly "Of course!" Then the weight of the innocent question would set in. Page rolled up to her knees and tenderly said "Mom, you have done so much for me and worked so hard for this pageant, I want to give you something. I want you to chose a book out of my school book order and I will buy it for you with my Christmas money."

To someone else this may have seemed sweet, but to Kay it was as if the world had stopped revolving for one beautiful moment. Page was always drawn by money and possessions. Kay knew well that Page's Christmas money was her current greatest possession. Page had chosen carefully what she would buy from the book order the night before, and now she was offering to forgo her own desires, to buy Kay a present. This simple act of love and appreciation touched Kay in the very farthest corners of her heart. It washed over her like a warm ray of sunshine and took her breath away as she realized the sacrifice that was being offered to her. Tears crept to the corners of her eyes and she knew this very moment was the greatest prize she could ever hope to gain from the pageant experience.

The weeks flew by and the night of the pageant came and went in a blur. The evening had been wonderful, and adrenaline pumping for both Kay and Page. In the end Page had not won a sparkly crown or the title of 'Pageant Queen'. The competition had been tough and the stage lights brighter than expected. Still Page walked away with a huge smile and two light up trophies, one for prettiest eyes and the other for best personality. Page had gained an immense amount of poise through the weeks of practice and Kay felt that every penny had been well spent. Pageantry would not become a major hobby in their lives... but maybe... just one more try couldn't hurt.

Getting Ready

Fashion Wear

Receiving a Trophy

Flowers from Mom and Dad

The prettiest sight a mom will ever see

Chapter 1 - friends, pancakes, and creepy old men.

Kay smiled as she reminisced of her recent escape. The day had dawned cold and dreary but the sunshine in Kay's heart woke her like a warm spring morning. A quick stretch and a peek at the calendar confirmed that it really was here, after years of waiting. It was finally going to happen, on January 8th of 2011, her two best friends were going to meet!

Kay grew up in a small town out west. Not quite a farming community, at least Kay had never seen it that way. To her it had been the world. Two high schools, one Walmart, and not a formal restaurant for miles around. Still it had been home, and Kay loved it there. In her small town beginnings Kay had made many friends, but one friend in particular would show up in pictures of Kay's past for years back before she could remember. Parties in grade school, field trips in Jr. High, and too many photos in high school to even count.

It was during high school that the friendship really blossomed, but the college years cemented their souls together for good. When other friends moved on and faded in memory one friend remained strong as ever. Her dear friend, Traci.

During the years after college Kay and Traci were separated by miles and life circumstances but every chance that could be spared they would sneak in a phone call or short visit and the girlish giggles would resume as if there had been no time or distance at all.

Though the two were truly kindred spirits, life did make constant contact impossible. After all, one can't have milkshakes every Friday night with a best friend who lives 5 hours away.

In time Kay and her small family would leave the only world she knew for new opportunities the small town could not offer. In her new surroundings Kay would feel small and insignificant for quite some time. She needed a friend, and she would find that friend in Ione.

The friendship began as a casual acquaintance. They met while working together in a church calling. The next year would see them together often in areas of responsibility or as neighboors doing good deeds for one another. And then the test of any true friendship came, Kay was once again moving.

This time the move was only across town, but time would tell which casual acquaintances would fade into past memory and which would grow and flourish. Ione's was a friendship which grew and flourished, and over then next several years Kay and Ione would become best friends.

Since Traci and Ione lived in different cities yet shared the same best friend they came to know much about one another without ever having the opportunity to meet, or talk. Kay was constantly rattling on about them to one another and saying how well they would get along and that someday they would have to meet... and the day was finally here.

It was with a small amount of apprehension that Kay entered the IHOP that had been pre-decided on. What if they don't like each other? She thought nervously. What if the whole brunch is filled with awkward silence? There was no need for these silly worries though. The two strangers met one another with a huge hug of friends past and instantly the girl chatter began.

The three friends sat in their booth munching away on their pancakes and giggled like teenagers as they talked about any topic that came around. At one point they felt rather sorry for the man in the next booth who began playing music from his phone during their conversation on breast feeding. Perhaps they had gotten a little loud, after all, one trait they all shared was the ability to forget their surroundings and enjoy a boisterous conversation.

The waiter was slow, the food delectable, and the day pure perfection! After hours of compromising the booth at the IHOP the three ladies decided it was time to begin wrapping up their joyous escape. The babysitters would be getting restless by now and nap time was fast approaching. As the conversation wound through it's ever so slow close Kay began to notice a gentleman who seemed to be passing their table a suspicious number of times.

At first the man would seem like an ordinary IHOP patron. An elderly gentleman, passing their table to go to the restroom and then passing again on his return, and nothing more. But soon his face became familiar. Kay realized he had passed their table a minimum of five times, each time becoming more slow and deliberate as he passed. Kay' s skin prickled at the lear of the man as he passed another time. He didn't even seem to be hiding it anymore.

Kay tried to ignore the suspicions at the corner of her mind and get back to enjoying the precious few moments she had left with her two friends. Quietly something changed. Kay felt it run up her spine like a creeping spider. A glance over her shoulder would confirm what she already knew. There he stood lanky and lean with a look of lust in his eye as he stared openly at the booth Kay and her friends were occupying.

That was it, Kay could take it no more. With a fierce look in her eye Kay whirled to face the stalker and calmly asked. "Is there something I can do for you?"

"Yes." the man replied with his craggy teeth now showing through his greedy smile. "I have been undressing you with my eyes, and would enjoy a real show."

"Not on your life!" Kay stated as she stood and poured her smoothy over his head "WAITER!"

Kay giggled as she was startled back into reality. No such thing would truly happen. Her day dreams had taken her away when she had seen the man standing and staring openly at them. She wanted to confront him, tell him he was disgusting and rude, but the truth of the matter was that Kay was not that kind of a person, and she didn't have a smoothy to dump on him anyway. Instead when she saw the man openly staring at them she quietly gave a look to her friends to alert them of their uninvited company. Traci and Ione had noticed him too. Surely one of them would stand and point out the mans rude behavior and ask him to get on with his own business. But instead the three friends continued their conversation whilst exchanging facial expressions that carried a completely different unspoken conversation.

After time the old man left and gratefully was never to be seen from again. Kay, Ione, and Traci left their long emptied plates and went to the register where they would elicit the help of the cashier to take their picture. Though Kay couldn't help but notice how her extra 40 lbs looked clinging to her not so thin frame, she loved and adored the picture. It would be a cherished reminder of a beautiful day she'd had with her two best friends.

The three hugged in the chilled winter air of the parking lot as they said their goodbye's and vowed to one another that this event would not be the last. They each had to return to their own lives but they knew that these friendships were the kind that eternity is made of.

In the later hours of the day, after life had resumed it's normal course Kay's phone rang. It was Ione, calling to thank Kay for their friendship. Ione left Kay with this final and striking thought. A thought that would forever after accompany the photo in Kay's memory. "I know that we were all friends in the life before this, thank you for bringing us together again."

Kay lay in bed thinking of the day. A perfect balance of laughter, friendship, and even a creepy old man to give the memory a special twist. Indeed it had been a perfect day.

The Book of Me -2011 Prolouge

Kay slumped down into her cozy computer chair with a sigh of relief. The kids were in bed and the house was quiet. This was her favorite time of day. Her two beautiful yet rambunctious children took so much out of her each day. Kay loved them with all of her heart... but sometimes she felt so lost in her duties as a mother and wife.

Kay enjoyed the quiet as she reflected on the events of the day. It had been a good day overall. Much better than yesterday at least. Things were always harder when her husband Lewis was out of town on a business trip. The morning had dawned with hope and ambition. Though most of the ambition was lost when she snuggled down into her blankets to get some much desired sleep-in time. Her sweet daughter Page was off track from school. Page was seven and in second grade at the public school close by. Kay liked the track system for the most part. Mostly she enjoyed the three glorious weeks of sleeping in.

This particular morning she had been woken by her 4 year old son Scott. He was a prince for sure. Sweet and adorable in every way. He had pulled her out of bed with sweet pleading for breakfast. After getting him a bowl of yogurt and a Pop Tart she had dove back into her still warm sheets for just a moment more of slumber. Page would be up soon, but would take care of her own breakfast. Kay loved that Page was becoming so self sufficient.

Back in the warmth of her covers Kay let her mind roll over the schedule for the day ahead of her. Laundry needed to be done, the kitchen was an utter mess, the basement needed to be cleaned, the list went on. One thing on the list seemed to catch on her mind, her blog. It had been so long since she had blogged. She new many family members had asked when she was going to up-date it. She had started the new year with such high ambitions to get back to her blog, but the other night when she had tried to post.... the page was empty. She could think of no interesting way to say all that was on her mind. It had always seemed so static and boring to her. Suddenly a thought came to her. Write your life as a story.

What a completely insane idea, she laughed to herself. Write my own life as a story... how weird would that be!? What would I do, rename all the people in my life? Pour out my innermost thoughts as I shared my mundane life and its highlighted moments of humor and joy? But then something changed. Suddenly the idea didn't seem so strange anymore. Her innermost thoughts recorded through the eyes of someone else, someone who wouldn't be so shy to share them. Before she knew it her mind began to write her story. Paragraphs flowed out onto imaginary paper, people and places gained new names, and her bloggers block seemed like days of the past.

But would it work? What if readers find it boring and un-engaging? What if writing it for real was much harder than letting my mind race through the stories? She had never been a writer or even considered the possibility of being an author of any kind. The idea scared her. No. She decided at last. She wouldn't do such a crazy thing. It was time to start the day and put this nonsense to bed where it belonged as she no longer did.

Still here she sat, typing away at her computer when the day was finished. The idea had not left Kay's mind all day. The events of the day had all been mentally transcribed into her imaginary book. The Book of Me, she laughed quietly to herself. What a crazy idea. But as the day drew to a close she found herself drawn to her blog. She wanted to type, to write, to let her thoughts and feelings out. She was excited as her fingers flew across the key board telling the sorted story of crazy idea. It just might work, she thought to herself. It just might work.

August 13th

Yep.... August. I know, I know, I know.... it is October. But this post is about August 13th 2010. My little girls 7th birthday!

I haven't been in the blog-o sphere lately. I am having a hard time finding the balance between wanting to post anything, and trying to post everything!

For this post I will keep it simple.

Amalyssa LOVES her birthday partys. It is a creative passion we share. This year the theme we came up with was 'cruise to Paris' Believe it or not most of the creative genius behind this was Amalyssa. She came up with the outlandish ideas and I honed them down and made them reality.

The basics of the party - guests came 'on board' the cruise ship. We gave them a passport book to draw a picture of themself in. After all the guest's arrived we 'set sail' for Paris. During this time we played little party filler games. When we came in to port the guests all got an Eiffel Tower stamped in their passports and we able to walk down the gangplank (stairs) to Paris. The basement was decked out as 'The Pink Poodle Cafe'. Here we had a light lunch of fruit, cheese and crackers (very French!) and chicken salad sandwiches. The punch was complete with a lemon slice! After lunch we enjoyed opening presents around the 6 foot Eiffel Tower, which was followed by cake and ice cream. Upon departure each guest was given a picture of them next to the Eiffel tower to glue in their passports. As the ship traveled back to the USA all the guests got to play with Amalyssa's new toys.

I think the party was a major hit. I was surprised by how much the kids latched onto the theme and took off with their imaginations. I myself was quite pleased with the decorations. I hesitate to post the pictures because the lighting in our basement is ATROCIOUS!!! Picture them not so puke colored and gross ok!

All the party guest's in Paris!

The Decorations

The party Princess by the Eiffel Tower
(Thanks to Angie for cutting this out! It was the center of attention!)

The Cupcake Tower
Which almost gave me an aneurysm, but in the end came together fabulous!

Is it time?

I suppose it is..... Time to update this moldy ol' blog!!! This summer has just about killed me, that or turning 30... or maybe it is the 'severe anxiety' I have been diagnosed with. Well which ever one or maybe (just maybe) a combination of all three have kept me away from my blog. Hopefully now that school is back in and 'the birthday week' is over I can get back into a routine and catch this silly blog up! For tonight I just have a few quick pict's for ya!

First up lets go back in time..... back in time to July (wasn't that SO long ago!) Before my big NYC trip I got to take a very special trip back to Idaho! Here in SLC I have a very good friend! My friend's name is Angie. It just so happens that the Lord brought us together in the YW presidency.... but we share so much more than that. We have truly become friends on a deeper level than simply 'serving together'. Anywho, Angie is taking her daughter (who turns 8 next month) to as many Temples as she can. Before the craze of summer hit Angie asked if we could take a trip to Idaho together to see the Idaho Falls and Twin Falls Temple. While the 'free room and board' was possibly the motivation for asking us to accompany her, I think it ended up being such an enjoyable trip for both of us! It was so fun to take her to see 'my Temple' and also to see the new visitors center. The Temples were of course beautiful and sharing my home town and all my memories and favorite spots was really a great experience.


As much as I LOVED seeing the temples I have to say that my FAVORITE moment of this trip was taking Angie's kids to McKee's petting zoo. Or should I say taking ANGIE to McKee's petting Zoo. (my kids didn't want to come because they couldn't wait to start their stay with G-ma Becky while I went to NY). One thing I learned about Angie on this trip is that she is NOT a lover of animals.... at least not in HER SPACE! LOL Angie is one of those amazing people that everyone looks up to and thinks "Wow.... how does she do it all!???" So Angie has definitely been a positive influence in my life... she teaches me a TON. For this one moment.... I got to push Angie out of her comfort zone! I made her feed a goat!!! (yes it is a goat Angie... not a deer.... hehe) This movie is a cherished memoir of the event.... I hope you enjoy it slightly as much as I do every time I watch it!






YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU ANGIE!!!!! Thanks for the FUN TRIP!!

Now we jump back to the present.
Now that we are finally home long enough to enjoy our own yard (even though it is dead and overgrown) we have a new favorite past time!

SPRINKLERS!!!!!! Only the kids have discovered that it is so much more fun while you are still DRESSED!!!!

Yes this is how we have spent many evenings in the last few weeks. I only let them play in the sprinklers dressed in the evenings just before bed time. When we are all finished we peel the wet clothing off send them through a warm bath and then it is off to bed! I think we have all come to enjoy this past time and will be sad to see it end as fall sets in.

That is all for tonight. Maybe I will get back to my blog sooner than a month from now and tell you about the crazy birthday party I threw for Amalyssa and the 6 foot tall pink Eiffel Tower I have in my basement as a result of it (which coincidentally Angie cut out of cardboard for me! THANKS ANGIE!!!)