NOOOOOOOO!

How is it possible to be so completely unprepared for something you KNOW is coming? I know that summer's over. It hasn't gone unnoticed that it gets dark earlier. That it's still dark when my alarm goes off. I know this time of year has been coming. I understand this is how it works but I tell ya, mentally I'm FIGHTING it!!!

I tried to mentally prepare for the 40 degree drop from yesterday to today. I got the kids jackets out last night so they would have them this morning. I pulled out the sweat pants and fuzzy socks for me to wear while getting the kids out the door. I tried the power of positive thinking: "Look at all the clothes I get to pull out of the closet that I haven't seen in months. This can be fun!" It's not working.

Did you know it snowed in the mountains today? That you couldn't even see the mountains, AT ALL?! Did you notice the sky was dark at 7:30pm? Did you notice your tan line fading a bit more? Did you notice there were no kids outside riding bikes? Well it's true. All of it.

Today I decided again (for the 4000th time) that summer is my favorite season. I love that the nights are warm. That the sky stays light until 9:30 and at moments even until 10:00. I love the smell of sunscreen on my kids. The heat. The sounds of kids playing outside late in the evening because it's finally cool enough to be out there. I love that my kids don't have homework and we can sleep in until 8 (or maybe later) if we want to. There's so much I love and so much I'm not ready to let go of yet. It looks however, like I have no choice.

So it's a good thing the snow stayed up in the mountains today. If there were enough on my front lawn to build a snowman today, I'd head right out, and smack in the middle of my front yard I'd build a GINORMOUS hand.....with the middle finger sticking straight up!



side note: give me time, I'll come to grips with it soon.

Cooking Post....my style

A couple of the blogs I follow are awesome enough to do "cooking posts". In other words, they describe in perfect detail how to prepare a dish right off the screen of Iron Chef America or Barefoot Contessa. These posts are complete with amazing pictures of the plated dish as you would see in the finest restaurants. I'm fascinated. Regular people eat like this? At home? Although reading these posts can make me feel like an underachiever I'm a freak for the artistic way food is served and how beautiful it looks when it's on a fancy-smancy plate. I LOVE IT!

I however don't cook this way. I wish my kids had "Swordfish, seared, served over arugula with vinaigrette, topped with roasted roma's, and finished with a lemony rich hollandais." (seriously this is one of the latest). However, since their first introduction to "fish" of any kind was tuna, it continues to invoke gagging and eye watering. (Maybe I could give swordfish a try and tell them it's chicken.) Speaking of chicken, here's my version of a cooking post complete with a picture:

A while back I made Malibu Chicken. Yes folks you heard that right, Malibu Chicken. Straight from the pages of your local Sizzler. Really you could say I only made chicken patties since Matt and I are the only ones who like the ham and swiss on top.

Instructions: Cook chicken patties as directed on package. Then add ham slices on patty and top with swiss cheese. Return to oven and heat until cheese is melted. Serve with a mixture of mayo and mustard as a dipping sauce. Alt: if you or your kids don't like ham and swiss on top, cut the cooked patty into pieces and serve. This is my way of cooking.

When I made this I was emptying the bag of patties onto the tray and found that there was an extra "smaller portion" of a patty. This seemed a little odd so I decided to read on the package and see how many patties were suppose to be in it. You know, in case I got jipped out of a full-size patty that I paid for and maybe I could write into TYSON Foods and get a freebie or something. Follow me? So I turned over the package and when I read the back I BURST out laughing.

Serving size: 1 patty

Servings per container: About 9

It really said "about 9". Now go ahead, look at the picture and count for yourself. Literally! There's "ABOUT 9"!!!!! I found this HILARIOUS and still do! Don't you think Tyson's is taking this too literally? I picture in my head the factory realizing that they have a whole bunch of pieces of patties and don't want to waste them. Sone one says, "Let's change the packaging to read Serving Size: About 9 and throw one of these pieces in with each 8 count bag." And someone else saying "Brilliant!!"......Cut to a few weeks down the road and the Thompson family is having Malibu Chicken with not 8, but about 9 chicken patties. Ok, I still find this sooooo funny!

Now where was I going with this? Oh yeah...this is the way I cook. It's a meal we have every so often but seems to be getting less popular. The last time we had it Mason informed me that he doesn't like the chicken because of the "little hard pieces" and "poppy things" in it. EEWWWW, but true! I feel the same way. So we probably won't be having Malibu Chicken again anytime soon. At least until I can find some patties without the "poppy things" or until we have about 1 dinner guest joining us.

13.1 BABYYY!!!

Saturday August 29th these cute girls in this picture above allowed me to join them

in the Top Of Utah 1/2 Marathon. Ruth was the one who got us going and then sadly had to back out because of an injury. We missed her.

What a great experience!! Amber and I were 1st timers and not to speak for both of us but it's definitely an experience I can't wait to repeat. Soon. This is all of us the evening before.

And here we are after the race. What an amazing accomplishment. Kirsten told me how
she loves to see people run races for the first time and see the look on their

faces when they accomplish something they didn't think they could do.

That was very true in my case. It's amazing what you can accomplish

when you have the right support system.

Kirsten will never know how much she helped me. She took on the SLOW pace

that I was running and stayed close by the whole time. She's amazing. She just had a baby

and she's out there running 13 miles and staying behind so her slow-pokey sister

will have someone to keep her going. I remember thinking that I just had to keep

her in my site so I would keep moving. If I couldn't see her anymore I'd

lose my motivation quickly. I was pushing myself really hard and I told her

not to hesitate running ahead. She told me "This is a good pace. I'm conserving

my energy until the last few miles then I'll really take off." I started

laughing. I was dying and she was "conserving her energy". Guess you can

tell who's in better shape. :) Thank you Kirsten, I love you!

Amber and Laura ran together and finished together. What a great job!

Amber ROCKED for her first time. I know how hard she trained and

I hope she's as proud of herself as she should be. She's worked hard.

Laura is such an inspiration. She's always challenging herself and doing

amazing things. I think for her, like Kirsten, this was a leisurely way

to pass a couple of hours on the weekend. What awesome girls!

Who wouldn't love to get to the finish line and see this group of supporters?

We love all of you and are so lucky to have you in our lives.

What a great family I have. I've been so blessed. They all hugged me at the finish line

and told me they loved me. How fun to come to the end and have that greeting you!!

We are so lucky! I love you all. Thanks for your love and support.

I finished and I cried.

Back To School!!! Yay!

I love school supplies. I also love to color. If you give me a coloring book I'm entertained for hours. There's nothing better then a new box of crayons with sharp tips so you can get those perfect lines. I always like boxes that have a good variety of colors, none of this 8 count stuff. So when school supplies are out I tend to stock up. I love new sharp pencils with erasers that work and don't leave behind a black streak. I like glue sticks for my kids but I prefer the liquid stuff because I know I can pour some on the palm of my hand, spread it around, wait for it to dry and peel it off like a facial mask. I get excited just thinking about it. School supplies are just one of the reasons I like back to school time. Of course there are others.

I wasn't the only one waking up excited this morning (which made the guilt

slide off my back a bit easier). There was an air of excitement as Mason

and Mia rushed through breakfast, adorned their new digs, combed their hair,

brushed their teeth, double checked the chart to see if all the "before school"

assignments had been fulfilled. I LOVE the first day of school! As all of this was

going on I couldn't help but think what a bummer it is when the excitement wears

off. When the morning becomes more of a game of coaxing kids to eat breakfast

quicker so they don't miss the bus, double checking backpacks for homework that's due,

trying not to yell so I don't have that guilty feeling all day because my kids started

their day off in a battle of wills with their lunatic mom. Everything ran smoothly this morning and it was beautiful!

We even had time for a photo opp before leaving.

Mason started 4th grade and Mia started Kindergarten. It's sad to see summer vacation end but how fun to see them growing up and starting new adventures. Mia loved her first day and can't wait to get back . She has the rest of the week off so the teachers can do testing but she'll start up again daily next Monday. Mason said his day went well (he was a little soured by the events ending his school day. He got on the wrong bus and it frightened him a bit. Both of us really and rightfully so. The bus driver asked him his address and brought him home). Once he was here safe and sound he told me his day was fun. He's very excited to have Jaden in his class this year. He's missed him so much since they moved. We look forward to a great year and can't wait to see all the new things they learn!!

schluuumpp!

It's been a long time since I updated our blog. Not that Matt's birthday isn't important but it's past time to post something new. This summer's been a bit of a challenge around these here parts. A good portion of our neighborhood friends (both the kid's friends and our parent friends) moved away this spring and it's proved to be an adjustment for all of us. Thank heavens for Amber's family moving in last fall or we'd be distraught! Matt started a new job at the end of June which also included new hours. This has been an adjustment as well. So I'm in a slump and haven't been keeping up on things the way I should. We've done a few fun things and I promise to give them their own special attention here on the blog but it may be a few days down the road. Like maybe as soon as school starts next week and my brain gets up and over this slump. I'm hoping.

Have you seen me?

Name: Matthew David Thompson (Esq)

Date of Birth: July 16, 1972

Hair: Brown with a few age appropriate "highlights"

Eyes: Amazing Blue with the greatest set of eyelashes

(which he so lovingly passed on to his eldest son)

Height: 6'2"

Weight: More than his wife....which to her, is all that matters :)

Last Seen With: His wife and kids who he loves beyond measure

and tries to spend as much time with as possible!

Description: Matt is an amazing person. He's loyal and loves deeply, he's funny, smart, affectionate, forgiving, hardworking, a perfectionist, protective and kind. If you spend any time getting to know Matt you usually come away with a hug. He's got a great memory especially with faces and names and he remembers people's birthday's very very well. He's quick with a comment (sometimes a little off-color) and puts others in a conversation at ease. He's very much a people person.

Accomplishments: He's a success story! He takes the tough things life has handed him and turns them into examples of what he doesn't want to be. He works hard to be a better person and expects a lot out of himself in return. His family is his greatest accomplishment (especially his wife ;) hehehe) and he's very proud and excited to show them off. He takes his relationship with his Heavenly Father very seriously and holds his Priesthood honorably. He's worked hard to get through high school, going to school morning, noon and night to get his credits to graduate. He's since worked hard to get through College and Graduate School with a wife and kids at home. He recently started a new job at Daily's Premium Meats as Production Manager and is literally bringing home the bacon (this is very appropriate since Matt feels that bacon deserves to be in a food group all it's own).

Info: If you see Matt don't be afraid to say hello. He's friendly, sweet and chances are, you'll come away with a hug!

We love you Mattie! Thanks for all you do for our little family. Happy 37th birthday!

Nicknames

Posts without pictures are boring, huh? So I've added one that has nothing to do with what I'm writing about but it's people I love and that's good enough for me.

I saw one of my sisters friends on the 4th of July who I refer to as Jennyann even though her name is just Jen. I know one day I heard her jokingly being referred to by Kirsten as Jennyann and well, it stuck. She told me if she hears someone call her Jennyann, she knows immediately it's an Elggren. We must beat a nickname like a dead horse!

This got me thinking about nicknames. Do you have one? Do you have one for the people you love (and maybe some you love a little less)? I've realized that our family is big into nicknames. I don't know if we even realize it but we are. I think there's a nickname for almost all my siblings, some I know where they came from, some I don't and some are just a shortened version of our names. It doesn't really matter, we all use them.

Matt is Mattie (I have a few more for him but those are just for me ;) )

Celeste is Lestie (this was started by my Grandma Rigby but I don't know why or how)

Brad is Brother

I'm Ape

Amber is Ber

Russell is Russ

Danny is Dan or Stan (this is combining Dan & Staci's names. It makes referring to the couple a bit easier)

Kirsten is Kris (because she HATES it when people call her Kristen instead of Kirsten so we shortened it up and just call her Kris)

Ruth is Reese or Reesie

Joe is Jose, Homie or Jiff (the last is combining Joe and Tiff's names as well)

Mason is Mavis (also from Grandma Rigby. I'm the only one who still can't let this one go)

Mia is Mia-moo (we are phasing this one out as to avoid too much therapy)

Madden is Mad-dawg

Brennan was Bubbers (this one has pretty much warn off, much to his relief I'm sure)

Ashton is Ashtie

McKay is Mac or Mac n Cheese

I could go on and on....

My mom's family has nicknames for all of her Aunts. None of them were called by their real name. It wasn't until I was older that I realized Denny, Dutsie & Toppy weren't their actual names. They were Lucy, Annie & Margaret.

If it were me, I'd prefer my real name. I wonder if they had a choice? Probably not, we don't give anyone in our family the choice, it just sticks.