The Done Home

Say Cheese!

2009-02-15T22:20:00.000-08:00

Just recently, when you ask Sophia to smile she crinkles up her nose and shows her teeth. What a ham! These are her posed smiles. She cracks us up. Just yesterday on Valentine's Day she became really excited about her snow boots and her ability to clomp around the house. Several times throughout yesterday and today she has wanted her snow boots on and tromps about the house.
The last few weekends Cody and I have seen movies and each time we come out of the theatre crying and then crying some more during the car ride home as thoughts of gratitude for each other, Sophia and our family come to mind. We've really got to start seeing more comedies! But in actuality, I really enjoy a good cry in a movie. I like coming away with renewed appreciation for the people, not things, in our lives.
Sophia is changing so quickly and her little spit-fire personality is just bursting through. She enjoys pointing to each side of her, whether on the floor or couch, and making an insistent noise with closed lips for Cody and I to sit beside her. She also likes to bring out her favorite toys of the day and arrange them on our laps and arms wherever we may be sitting. If we try to place the toys beside us, she scurries over and puts them back on our legs or in our arms. She loves to run to each place she is going rather than walk and her current spoken vocabuarly (she likes to do baby signing) includes: duck, truck, stuck, pop, boo!, bonk, mom, dad, and papa (Dad take note), and a variety of animal noises. We've decided she shouldn't learn too many more "uck" words before she'll be cussing like a sailor.
She is pure delight!

Winter days

2009-02-15T22:07:00.000-08:00

Sohpia and I made our first snowman this past January. She wasn't quite sure what to think about her puffy snowsuit and each time she fell she lay there helpless. Take note of the picture of Sohpia helping place the sunglasses on Frosty - acutally she was really upset that her sunglasses were on this wierd looking mass of snow and was trying to get them off.

My mom made Sophia and I aprons for Christmas - she my best helper in the kitchen unloading the silverware form the dishwasher. Inspecting all drawers and cupboards and my best assistant up on the kitchen counter.
Our neighbor gave this tricycle to us and Sophia thinks it's fantastic. Each time she spots it in the garage on our way the car she becomes excited and has a mini melt-down that she has to get in her car seat instead of riding her bike. I kept trying to move it to an inconspicuous place, but with no success. Recently, we brought it down to the basement for easy access during the winter months. She also has her swing, that hung on the deck last summer, hanging in the basement and likes to have a daily swing.

Christmas Highlights

2009-02-15T21:55:00.000-08:00

We had a splendid and very WHITE Christmas. We woke up to drifts up and over our fence. It was crazy and both of our mothers arrive rattled from the white knuckle drive out to the house. However, we quickly moved onto the cheer and festivities. Sophia was delighted with all of her many surpises and is captured here wrestlying with her elephant chair. After digging the snow out of the window wells and away from parts of the house we made it out to visit more family. Great memories.

Bon Appetit

2009-02-15T21:47:00.000-08:00

I hosted my first Thanksgiving dinner this year. Of course the turkey was the easiest part to prepare but I did try a few other unique recipes from a magazine. I also gave out some assignments to the guests and everyone was happy to help. The part I was most excited about was the place settings - I got to use my grandmother's china, that I inherited, for the first time. I also gathered some wild grasses together with each guest's name and I put some fresh flowers in the tea cups that went with the china. I finally made my Martha dreams a reality. The dinner was tasty and even included such classic dinner conversation topics such as the Presidential election, Hemp legalizaiton and Prop. 8 (you have to think back to the political climate and news hypes back in November.) And while some families were wathcing football, movies, or playing games we had a mini-bioenergy healing seminar! I hope my family that reads this will take it to heart that the day was memorable and much enjoyed! (But you have to find it just a bit amusing.)

Boo!

2009-02-15T21:31:00.000-08:00

No worries, Halloween was only 4 months ago, but I still can't believe that Cody and I dressed up; I had to document the occassion. Yep, purchased all of our accessories and outfits at the D.I. while I was volunteering there. If anyone wants to know what that's like, it's a great story. Cody's mom took a look at his hat (which says, '6th Annual Open Golden Mining Tournement Elko, NV 1987') and said, "Your dad have that same hat." Classic. Sophia of course is so cute in her Duck outfit.

The Done's are alive.

2009-02-15T20:25:00.000-08:00

I've considered closing my blog down. The way I just said that sounds like I'm shutting down a business in our failing economy. Point is, I'm terrible at keeping this thing updated. I've decided to do a big run down and try again. By the way, I have enjoyed cathing up on everyone else's lives. Thanks for staying on top of it.
The past few months I've been on a project kick. Actually, let me correct that by saying I always have projects strewn about the house, but with Christmas approaching I was busy sewing. I've been on this quilting kick made 4 fairly large quilts for gifts this Christmas. I love picking out the fabrics and seeing how the pattern comes together. I still have much to learn about quilting, but I was surprised at how they turned out. The problem with this hobby is that it's expensive. Not to mention I keep acquiring more patterns and fabrics to make quilts, but have not sat down to actually work on them much at all this month. With some inspration and nudging from a friend I am thinking about starting a small business with an idea I have...I'll let you know if it becomes a reality.

Another project was on Halloween Day (I know that was months ago, since it's an update you get some old news.) Cody and I decided we needed to restain our front door before snowfall came. A project that Cody thought could be done in a couple of hours took a couple of days...like they always do. Our door had weather damage and when we sanded it I don't think we got the varnish off thoroughly so in some places the door soaked the stain right up and in other places it hardly absorbed. Long story short I decided to antiuque the door and I was totally surpised and please with how it turned out. I also finally made my fall nut wreath (pictured on the door). No worries, I've only had the bag of nuts stored in my project tub for like 3 seasons now, alas it's done.

Pumpkin Festivities

2008-10-31T20:00:00.000-07:00

One benefit of living way out west is that you can go to a local pumpkin farm and pick out your own pumpkins. This used to be, and I say used to be, my favorite pumpkin patch, because you could pick up a wheel barrow and scavenge through the field for the perfect pumpkin and then cut if off the vine yourself! (Cutting if off the vine yourself is the best part I think.) But this year they had the field cleared and all the pumpkins lined up in rows. They still have lots of neat tractors to climb on and Sophia still got to ride in the wheel barrow. Good times this fall.

Tunnel time at the playground

2008-10-31T19:49:00.000-07:00

Draper park has a great playground for kids. Sophia found the swings to be a terror ride (I don't know why, she likes her swing out in our backyard). However, she loved playing in this tunnel and picking up little pieces of bark and munching on them. This little boy is Benton Anderson - her boyfriend in secret, but don't tell that to Cody.

4 generations

2008-10-31T19:42:00.000-07:00

This fall, my grandma came into town and so we decided it would be a good time to get some pictures of the 4 generations together. If I hadn't styled my hair straight and if you could see Sophia's hair, you'd notice we all of curly hair, we are all tall and lenky, and we definately have a lot of the same mannerisms. Girls, girls, girls!

These are my cousins, Gentry on left and McCall on the right. We joke around that my grandma got a perfect variety in her grandchildren, a blonde, a red-head, and a brunette.

Sophia's 1st Birthday!

2008-10-29T22:08:00.000-07:00

Sophia is now 13 months, but we had such a great time at her birthday party. The weather was sublime and we held the party at a park by my mom's house. All the family was able to make it. I was concerned that Sophia would be quite clingy and give everyone that serious stare (that I am sure you've all experienced) when she feels uncomfortable or that she doesn't know you. Surprisingly, it's like she new that day was all about her! She was so animated and cute; just smiling, laughing, letting everyone hold her. She was especially proud walking around the park with her new scooter and would look back to make sure people were watching her - so proud! She wasn't the least bit interested in getting messy by digging into her cake (such a girl) but loved her gifts and all the festivities. Thanks to everyone who helped put this together and came to enjoy.

Sophia's Birthday

2008-10-29T22:07:00.001-07:00

2008-10-28T22:29:00.000-07:00

I usually check a few random blogs a couple of times a month. But by the time I get finished, I have spent all my free time looking at the "going-ons" in everyone else's life that I've posted zilch (you can hear this word in your head, but I'm not so sure how you spell it) about my own. Now I have finally spent some free time updating the background of our blog so that I don't look so boring, and now I have no have time for posts. So there you go. I'll be back, this week is my goal, with more posts of our recent activities. In the meantime, just look at that cutie! She's a walking little busy-body. My best helper in just about every activity around the house. For example, laundry - opening and closing the doors, carrying around clothes, the dishes - handing me each piece of silverware out of the dishwasher as fast as I can get it in, and pulling out Mom's bathroom products on a daily basis. She love's dogs, ducks, stuffed animals and hats. I'm so lucky that she'll happily wear this adorable hat!

Trip to Denver, CO

2008-08-02T15:26:00.000-07:00

Over the 4th of July we took a plane ride over to Denver to visit my Dad & Lynda for the first time since having Sophia. Sophia did fairly well on the plane (except for the last 30 min. on the way to Denver - no worries - I was that parent with the unconsolable screaming baby.) Other than that she was a little social bug who was talking and waving to everyone on the plane. Dad and Lynda also bought a little frog play pool for Sophia to splash in and Sophia had great enthusiasm for going up and down the little stairs in their house. We enjoyed some nice time together as a family. Check out this first picture where we are flashing our ultra cheesy smiles - my Dad and I look nearly identical.

Boating

2008-08-02T15:14:00.000-07:00

This past week we have taken Sophia boating 2 times thanks to invites from the Hansen's and the Tycksen's. Sophia was unsure about the sound of the motor and the feel of the boat the first hour, but after that she really seemed to love it and took a long nap in my arms. Unfortunately I have no pictures to support my claim that I got both on and up, although it was brief, on the air chair. I also have no pics to show off Cody's mad skills on both the air chair and the water ski. Next time I'll be a better photgrapher. The two sweet girls pictured with Cody and Sophia are Christine (7) and Mary (5) Tycksen.

Little Hiker

2008-08-02T15:03:00.000-07:00

As usual I am behind in posting the Done events, but on July 19th we took a brief hike up to Donut Falls up Big Cottonwood Canyon. It's an easy, quick hike for Sophia's first time in the hiking pack and she LOVED it! After the hike we decided to take Donner (sp?) Pass into Park City and enjoyed a dinner together at the Park City Resort. It felt great to get out of the polluted summer air where it's pristine up there. The next hike on our list is Secret Lake up Big Cottonwood in the early evening when the trail is in the shade and we'll be taking a picnic. If anyone would like to join us, just speak up.

2008-06-20T13:45:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by Suz , so here it goes...
Four jobs I've had:
1. U.S. Dry Cleaners!
2. Reigstrar's Office at Westminster
3. Assistant to Financial Planner
4. Valley Mental Health

Four Movies I've watched more than once:
1. Singing in the Rain (I LOVE old movies)
2. A League of their Own (I cry every time in this movie, dorky I know.)
3. Youv'e got Mail
4. 13 going on 30

Four places I've lived (changing it to 4 places you would like to live):
1. Steamboat Spring, CO
2. On a Ranch
3. Jackson Hole, WY
4. Millcreek or Holladay

Four TV shows I watch:
1. The Office
2. HGTV
3. Don't really watch TV
4.

Four people who email me regularly:
1. Vocabulary word of the day
2. Funny forwards from Annie
3. Book club girls
4.

Four of my favorite foods:
1. mexican
2. Indian
3. Cookies
4. Pies

Four places I'd like to visit:
1. Greece
2. French Riviera
3. More places in Italy
4. Croatia

Four things I'm looking forward to this year:
1. Sophia turning 1
2. Being able to ride my bike outside, will it ever happen!
3. sleeping through the night
4. family camping trip

I tag:
1. annie
2. Karly
3. Sue Slade
4. Val

2008-06-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

"Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice but, for those who love time is eternity."
From the moment Sophia arrived Cody has exceeded any comprehendable expectation I could have of what a father is. Without him I would be no where near the mother I am trying to be today. Sophia looks as her Daddy and definately is her Daddy's girl. What a man!

2008-06-19T21:20:00.000-07:00

These are such priceless expression! Whenever I look at these I just feel PURE JOY! These photos were also in the 'Daddy's Love Book.' The latest & greatest on Sophia is that she is nearly 9 months, has started crawling and is trying to pull herself up to things, and is now teething for the first time. Lately we have been taking a parent-tot swim class and it's a lot of fun. We coast along the water, while kicking her legs singing "motor boat, motor boat go so fast, motor boat, motor boat step on the gas...
Good times.

Daddy's Love Book

2008-06-19T21:07:00.000-07:00

Unbeknownst to Cody, Sophia and I met Cody's mom at the Jordan River temple before she went in to work at the temple and took pictures for Cody's Father's Day gift. Now Cody has a book called "Daddy's Love Book" is has pictures of, who else, but us! It's a flip book for each day of the week with a picture and inspirational/go-get-em quote for her work desk.

Splashing in the pool

2008-05-21T10:04:00.000-07:00

I hope this video posting works. If it doesn't I'll try it again. If it does work then notice how cute she is when she splashes herself in the face with the water and how her breathe is taken away for a brief moment. Isn't she so cute?

2008-05-21T09:39:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we used a certificate that we have had for nearly a year to the Zermatt Resort in Midway, UT. We had a fabulous time, but the highlight of the trip was putting Sophia in the swimming pool for the first time. First of all, just look at how cute she is in her little brown mosaic tankini with sunhat. At first she wasn't quite sure what to do in the water but she was soon splashing with her hands in the pool the kicking her legs out behind her. Cody and I enjoyed stuffing out faces at the delicious restaraunt called Schneitter's. They have a gourmet buffet (an upgrade from the Chuck-A-Rama style) and we also viewed the movie Vantage Point (still in theatre's) from the privacy of the flat screen in our hotel room. How cool is that? I didn't even know you could view movies that are still in the theatre like that. We also went on a beautiful walk and saw deer and a den of fox cubs tumbling and playing around. What a getaway.

Mother's Day

2008-05-21T09:30:00.000-07:00

For our moms for Mother's Day we took some pictures of Sophia at Cody's Aunt and Uncle's home in Holladay. It's a rare occassion to get her smiling on cue so these actually turned out quite perfect. We had tried to create one of those hand/foot prints that you press into a mold like a circular plate, but that whole situation was rather entertaining. We had the bright idea of mixing up 2 batches of the mold at the same time so that we could just quickly press her hand and foot into each of them. Little did we know that each minute that passed as the mold was setting was like a ticking bomb to utter and complete mold solidification. In the 3-4 minutes that we had the mold ready for Sophia to put her impressions into we could hardly make a mark into them; they were nearly hard as stone already. Not to mention that Sophia had decided at that moment that she was going to have a meltdown any time we so as much touched her hand, let alone try to flatten it out to make her mark. So then we had the brilliant idea that we would just add water and make the mold more malleable again. The harder Cody was mixing and stirring the compound mixed with water the more solidified it became, but being the man that he is he just kept on stirring, putting all his might and strenght into each turn of the spatula. Finally when the mold had basically solidified itself into my baking mixing bowl I said, "Uh, I think you can stop now, it's probably ruined." Whelp, there you have it; 12 precious $$'s waisted on a memorobilia of Sophia's hand and foot impression. We resorted to using an ink pad for her hand and foot print.

What are your OBSESSIONS?

2008-04-18T15:35:00.000-07:00

So I was tagged a couple of weeks back by Annie to post what my biggest obsessions are. I been thinking here and there, trying to be real creative ya know, and the fact is I couldn't really think of much...and the obsessions I do have are sort of OCD and may portray me as being a bit more strange than I sometimes already am. Anyhow, here are the top three I'll post.

Open cupboards, doors and drawers - I can't stand to have things not shut or open all the way. For example your bathroom drawer not closed even by half an inch drives me nuts. I don't know much else to say about it, except that I will go out of my way (for example I am running late to be somewhere and as I am walking down the hall I notice our closet door open - I will take the extra time to go back and close it.) If I am coming to visit please do a cupboard, door and drawer sweep, thank you.

XOCHI Tea Towels - I love cute towels in my kitchen. I am also favorable to this brand called Xochi which you can find at Hip & Humble, The Art Garden, even the Quilted Bear are just a few places. I highly recommend them for a great kitchen accessory. I also use their tablecloths. I know I have more than enough tea towels; however, I will continue to add to my collection because they are irresistible.

Hanging artwork or pictures in your home - Hanging your wall art is a skill. You can hang a picture too high or too low. The key is, if the picture is to be viewed standing, i.e. your hallway, then the correct height is eye level. You shouldn't have to lift your head up to view it or down. If the picture is viewed primarily from a seated position, i.e. the dining room, the picture should be hung much lower to be enjoyed without a glare while you are seated and well enough while standing. Never hang your pictures high up close to the ceiling unless you are all 7 ft. tall.

Whelp there you go. Posting these obsessions makes me feel like a cupboard/door and picture Nazi, but really I'm not. I'm just trying to think of something to write about.

I also tag Suz, Emily, and Rachel.

My Very First Post EVER!

2008-04-02T20:55:00.000-07:00

After nearly 6 months of creating my blog 10 min. at a time I am entering my first post. I was tagged, yes 6 months ago, to post this thing where you fill in the blanks. I am considering it to be freezer tag and I am now unfrozen and ready to post this as my first entry. Ha!
This is a fun and great way to learn more about your friends!

Four jobs I have had:
1. Valley Mental Health - SSW
2. Financial Planning, assistant to boss
3. Registrar's office at Westminster college
4. US Cleaners - oh yeah, working at the dry cleaners during high school

Four places I've lived in my life:
1. Herriman, UT
2. Holladay, UT
3. Sugar House, UT
4. Cottonwood Heights, UT

Four TV shows I like to watch:
1. The Office - my new favorite
2. Home Decorating shows on HGTV
3. CSI - all of them
4. 24!

Four places I have vacationed:
1. Fiji & New Zealand
2. Brazil
3. Nepal & Thailand
4. Several places in Europe - my favorite (I guess that was more than 4)

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Bakes goods - esp. cookies
2. Lobster
3. Indian Food - the curry dishes
4. Soup

Four places where I would rather be right now:
1. Hawaii
2. Italy
3. Biking in the mountains
4. Anywhere in Europe

Four things I'd like to do are:
1. Start up oil painting again
2. Start baby Sophia's picture album
3. Do a triatholon
4. Build my dream home