Excuses Excuses otherwise entitled Time Flies When You're Having Fun

It was 6:30 AM Monday when, with a kiss and an "I'll see ya later, Love" Levi set off for work in Kanab.

It was 10 AM when Tomie and I called to tell him about the egg in our hummingbird's nest and only got a "This is Levi. Leave a message."

It was noon when I called, wondering if Levi was going to be home in time for lunch and whether he'd want to eat what we were eating -
"... leave a message"

It was 1PM when, since I hadn't gotten the "Hi hon, I'm on my way home. See you in an hour," I figured he stopped for a shake and burger at the Junction courtesy of ECOLAB.

It was 2 PM when I called to tell him what I had found out about pediatric dentist and MetLife and got another, "This is Levi....."

It was 3 PM when I started thinking he must have had more accounts to do than the simple two room bed bug check and so consulted his schedule only to find he's supposed to be in Kanab on Tuesday - no help there and still no "Hi Saddie!"

It was 5 PM when I took the kids for a walk to escape the plethora of worst-case scenarios forming in my mind, and hoped I wouldn't receive an, "I'm sorry Mrs. Gubler, but your husband ..."

It was 6 PM when I left a "Levi, you've been gone for 12 HOURS with NO WORD!! WHERE THE CRAP ARE YOU?!?! We are at your Grandma's house for FHE." and promised myself I'd call someone if I didn't hear from him by seven.

It was 6:45 PM when I breathed a relieved sigh as the "Hey Saddie. Sorry I'm late, but I got stuck reading a book. See ya in an hour." dispelled half made funeral plans for the husband and restored a measure of sanity for the wife.

And that is the story of how stopping for lunch and "just one more chapter" can lead to a 7 hour book reading marathon/ worry fest. I'm sure there must be a moral in there somewhere.

Mostly I found the whole thing to be highly amusing - I mean, really! Who orders lunch and then STAYS at the cafe reading ALL DAY? LOL! And mostly I can't wait to read this book - it must be pretty good.

Easter Fun

We had a lovely Easter. We spent time with family and friends, enjoyed the sunshine and the rain, and gathered Easter eggs and candy galore.

Our Easter Sabbath was made even brighter by our beautiful ketchup and mustard tulips and sweet new Easter clothes.

Thank you everyone who helped make this a memorable holiday for our little family! Thank you Heavenly Father for our beautiful world and the gift of Thy Son! Thank you Savior for conquering death and hell, the best Easter present ever!

Sticks and Stones

We tend to use a lot of sticks at our house. They're ever so handy for corralling the short people.

They are also good for trellising roses, building tepees, and swinging around in a menacing manner.

We like them so much that when we were deciding what to plant in our square foot garden this year, the choice was obvious!

Isn't it a lovely stick garden? Oh wait, this is but another example of the stick's versatility. They perform well as a rolling cat deterrent - umm... at least we hope so.

We're very excited about our garden this year! I'm not working, pregnant, on bed rest, or anything else exciting like that so I can actually pay some attention to our garden. Hopefully, this year we'll produce more than a bowl full of strawberries, a few dozen onions, 2 tomatoes, and one little pumpkin. But if all else fails, we can always scavenge through our stick garden and make some stone soup.

Use Tax?!

Every year I dutifully, even happily, file my taxes and every year my equanimity is dashed to pieces by the line marked "Utah use tax." I feel the irrepressible urge to rant in frustration and bewilderment over the idiocy that must have spawned such a tax!

Taxes ah ha ha, taxes! Beautiful, lovely taxes! Ah ha! Ah ha!

I could soap box your ears off - Levi's are already on the floor. Yet today I will spare you my tired tirade and put forth the questions whether anyone knows when this tax was instigated, whether it's used for education or not, and if anyone else is as aggravated and bewildered by it as I am? It is my hope that such information will restore a measure of my equanimity - that is, until next year's tax season rolls around.

Speaking of Babies... Here We Go Again!

So... mixed feelings, but all in all we're excited!