This.....

Is what it looks like when Momma has the flu!

It's only fitting that after Teague's week long nastiness and Piper's eight day nastiness that I would get my fair share. It all started Monday morning at about 4:00, the shivers/jitters woke me up. Aaron's alarm goes off at 4:42, so I decided to wait for him to wake up, so after his alarm went off I said to him, "I think there is something wrong with me." YOU THINK?

We took my temperature, it was only 100.7, so I took some ibuprofen 800 mgs. at about 5:00. Aaron called one of the guys from work to see if he could have the day off to take care of me (Ohh), but no such luck, there were already two guys with the day off, so he had to go in, but he did work it out do he could go in late. So after finally falling back to sleep at about 7:00, Aaron got the kids up and to school. When I woke up again at about 9:00 I called my mom, and of course she came to the rescue picking up both kids and keeping them all day, literally ALL DAY, they were there until after 10:00 when Aaron picked them up. Why so late you ask? Well, Aaron had class.

I took tylenol/ibuprofen every three hours, but my fever never got below 100.3, the highest it was was 103.2. However to me the worst part about the flu is the chills and the sweating.

Tuesday, Aaron had the day off of work, luckily, because I kept him up all night with my moaning and groaning and near cursing (the worst word that I used was "suck"). But I wasn't as sick. My fever got up to 101.9 and it got down to 97.7. Spent the whole day in bed. I actually missed rehearsal! Any of you that know me, know that that is a HUGE deal. I'm pretty sure it is safer for me to be at home than at rehearsal to make other people sick.

In the picture there is my pain killers/fever reducers (tylenol, tylenol pm & ibuprofen), my phone, the thermometer, water to quench my thirst and a 44 oz REGULAR coke, because not only does it make me feel better but it is a staple in my life. There is a gas station here in Centerville, RB's Phillips 66, and they have the best fountain coke ever, so Aaron got me one.

Her pink guitar

For Christmas Piper got a pink guitar. She started taking lessons about 4 weeks ago. She practices every day without even being asked, in fact, she will ask us if she can practice! She has a little timer that she sets for 15 minutes and she will practice. Aaron will help her if he's home. Once, she ask me to help her......yeah, that didn't go over too well.

A week or so ago, the kidlets went up to Val and Doyles. Piper wanted to take her guitar to play for them. Doyle got this cute as heck picture of Piper playing.

If I remember I will take a picture of Aaron and Piper playing together and post it. I love watching them play together.

Genetic Engineering (Written by Aaron)

If you didn't already know, I'm working on my MBA for technology management at Westminster College. Currently I'm enrolled in a class (MTECH 641) that discusses technologies and their roll in society. My team and I have chosen to write our final paper on genetic engineering. I know this is a touchy subject and I know there are a lot of people that feel strongly about their position with this issue. I don't intend to spark a heated discussion here (although your comments are always welcome) but to ask you to participate in the poll that I've placed in the margin of this blog. The idea is to determine which of the two options (or both or neither) seem to you to be bad. You can interpret this to mean what ever but I think that it is reasonably straight forward. The results of this poll will go into my paper. I understand that it isn't very scientific, I just need a sample of the public. When the poll is done I'll leave the results up for a few days should any of you be interested.

Aaron

Park West

After receiving numerous e-mails about my now famous "M.M." post, I remember that "The Canyons," formerly known as "Wolf Mountain," was formerly known as "Park West." Thank you Meredith, it was driving me nuts! Also, the e-mails helped me remember some of the other concerts I attended at Park West.

Chicago (2x) Indigo Girls (very liberating), Sting, John Denver and Howard Jones.

I also went to a Neil Diamond concert and an Erasure concert. However, I can't remember where they were, either The Delta Center, The Huntsman Center or Park West. And, some other big ones that I've been to are, Garth Brooks (the Delta Center), Clint Black (Huntsman) and "The Brian Setzer Orchestra" (Great Saltair)

I think with this post and the "M.M." post I have pretty much covered all of the big concerts that I have been to.

But I have been to many smaller concerts as well: Cherry Poppin' Daddies, Royal Crown Revue, Big Bad VooDoo Daddy, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Kim Lenz & The Jaguars, Andrew Bird (Aarons Favorite, we've been a couple of times) and X The Band to name a few. All of the concerts listed here Aaron and I went together, his type of music....except X The Band.

Wow! What a strange variety. I just love music, it doesn't really matter what kind it is. Funny though that I have been to two Country Western concerts, because I don't listen to it at all anymore. When I was a senior in High School, It was all that I listened to.

There, now you know a little more about my musical taste.

Spiderwick

Yesterday, due to Presidents day, the kidlets didn't have school, and Aaron didn't have work, so we went to see Spiderwick.


Piper felt like it took us forever to get there, even though it only opened on Thursday, but then again she has been counting down the days for it to open.

The kidlets and I read the Chronicles at night before going to bed while Aaron was in class. We really enjoyed the books, we enjoyed the series so much that we even bought "Arthur Spiderwicks Field Guide" So, needless to say we were looking very forward to the movie. And, I was pleasantly surprised. Of course it is the movie so it doesn't follow the books exactly and they add to the story and take away some of the story, but overall it was really great!

My favorite parts of the books were the illustrations, so I was really hoping that the movie could live up to my expectations for the graphics...it definitely did, they were fantastic. Piper held my hand a lot because she got a little scared, but not scared enough to cover her eyes. Teague, of course, just sat there and watched without a problem. I think that Aaron enjoyed it as well.

And also, the casting was perfect, absolutely perfect. You may recognize the boy, Freddie Highman, from such movies as: Finding Neverland, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Golden Compass. The girl that played Mallory is so pretty, I have never seen her in anything before, but she did such a great job. Her name is Sarah Bolger. And of course, Mary-Louise Parker is the mother and one of my favorite actresses, she is in one of my All time favorites, Fried Green Tomatoes. And....my heart skipped a beat or two when I realized that Andrew McCarthy was in the movie, only for a couple of minutes, but still....Any of you that know me, know that I LOVE the Brat Pack of the 80's. St. Elmo's Fire, Pretty in Pink (which by the way I have memorized) & Fresh Horses. Also, who can forget Mannequin and Weekend at Bernie's?

Anyway, Spiderwick was a fun movie. Very enjoyable whether you have read the books or not. Go see it.

M.M.

Let your imaginations go wild!!

For Aaron's birthday, Angela and Randy gave him concert tickets, so Aaron and I, Angela and Randy and Gina went to the concert on Friday night at the Great Saltair, It was tons of fun.

I feel like I am pretty educated when it comes to music, and I have actually been to quite a few concerts...but none like this! We literally could not move there were so many thousands of people there, but that is part of why it was so much fun. Aaron had his arms around me the whole time so we wouldn't lose each other.

The concerts that I usually go to are a little more mainstream. I haven't been to a GA concert in a huge venue since Jr. High school I went to "Love & Rockets" up at "The Canyons." The Canyons, that is what is is called now, it was previously known as "Wolf Mountain," and before that it was called something else, but I can't remember what. Actually this venue is where I have had most of my concert experiences, including, but not limited to: Love & Rockets, James Taylor, Dave Matthews and some others that I can't think of off the top of my head. Back in the day it was GA, but after all kinds of "accidents" they rebuilt it and made it reserved and GA. The GA is up on the hill above the reserved, but you can't do much on the hill but sit, it's too steep.

The last concert that I went to with thousands of people was a Tina Turner concert in May of 2000 at the "Delta Center" (now the "Energy Solutions Arena") And the only reason I went to that concert was because Lionel Richie (My all time favorite of all time....LOVE HIM) was opening. But, reserved seating. Alanis Morissette was another huge one, but again reserved seating. The GA concerts that I do go to are usually at pretty small venues, like the old DV8 (that recently burned down) so needless to say, this was an experience.

One thing that was extremely awesome about the night was that Aaron and I were hanging out by the door for the last song. As soon as it ended, we busted it so fast, and we were seriously about the fourth car out of the lot! It was wonderful not to have to fight that traffic.

Meep now

You may remember a few posts ago I told you about MEEP well, I thought you might be interested in what he looks like now:

As you can see, he has a cape, some orange arms, a mouth, a blue hair elastic for a belt, and if you look closely, you can see a backwards P on his chest! The P is for MEE"P." Not to mention a lot more tape. And, something that is pretty cool is that the cape is a wipe, since it is dried up it is kind of hard, so Meep actually flies pretty well.

Meep is still a very important part of Teague's life. He took him to school for Show and Tell last week, but he wouldn't put him in his backpack because he didn't want him to get ruined.Since Meep is still a favorite "toy" he is something we take away for punishment. Teague loves him so much, that when we take him away (really not that often, I'm making it sound bad, but it isn't), he just sobs.

Juno

I just wanted to put this out there. I LOVED this movie! I was so beautifully written, and I was so amazed at the talented cast. Especially Allison Janney and J.K. Simmons. And Jason Bateman never ceases to amaze me. He definitely needs more attention.


And while I am at it, I also LOVED this movie, visually I think it was one of the most beautiful movies that I have ever seen.

Aaron's birthday

The big 34!

So for some reason, I have been slacking in the taking pictures department. But Aaron's birthday (Feb. 3) Was really fun.

I ended up getting him and Invisible Shield for his new baby, and some pants which he needed desperately for work. The kids got him a fedora, some cool socks and some T-shirts. Here is a picture of the kids with Aaron, he is wearing one of the t-shirts the kids got him and they are "working" playing with Aaron's Mac Book.Since his birthday was on Sunday, he and I celebrated on Saturday night. We went to Biaggi's for dinner, which, by the way, is EXCELLENT for a chain restaurant. Aaron stuck to the Seafood theme: Mussles, Salmon and shrimp. I on the other hand had some very yummy Gorgonzola cheese sauce pork chops.

After dinner we went to see "Cloverfield." Interesting show. I know I didn't love it, it was okay, I know that I won't see it again, but okay. Aaron and I are big LOST fans. We heard that there was a clue about Lost in the movie, but we never found/saw it.

Sunday was fun. I had gone to the deli and bought a TON of meat and cheese. I also bought spinich, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles, avocados, jalepenos and some other toppings. And of course Mayo, Miracle Whip (there is a difference) and Mustard. I made the Salazar family mix, Mustard and Mayo. And of course a Hoagie isn't a hoagie without hoagie buns from Dick's Market. And...a birthday just isn't a birthday without a cake from Dick's. The kidlets chose this one:Holy Cow! What a fun night! However once again it decided to storm, so a few people were unable to make it, but it was still great fun! Grandma & pa Johnson were there. John and Annie. Gina and her kids. Angela, Randy and Seth. My mom and dad. And our little family. We really missed having Val and Doyle and Dave and Penny and Jared and Jen. But we know they would have come if they felt safe coming down the incredible hill, or traveling on the nasty freeway.

Happy Birthday Aaron!

Even though it was Aaron's birthday, he took this picture of Teague and I! Teague is definitely my cuddler, especially when he is tired. I LOVE IT.

Rehearsal

I am SO on my old stomping ground....with my kids...what could be better?

We started rehearsals on Monday February 4. I must say that I was so excited to walk into the West Institute and rehearse! My kids didn't have a problem not sitting by me (but then again, does that surprise you?) Piper sat by her fellow baby spiders and Teague sat by his Mother Goose. Before we started we talked about the story of Charlotte's Web and of the Author, EB White. According to some, it is believed the Homer Zuckerman is EB White. Interesting. Who, doesn't love this story? I remember my mom reading it to me when I was about 6. After we discussed the story, we had to go around the room and introduce ourselves, and if we were younger than 30, we had to state our age. I was the first one that was over 30 that did an introduction, so I said, "Hi, my name is Karlyn Salazar and I will be playing Edith Zuckerman, and I am over 30." Then Xan, the director said, "But how old were you for your first year of youth theatre?" I just sat there and did some calculating in my head and came back with the response, "Um....my first year, I think I was about 10!" Everybody in the room gasped! Am I that old? I don't think so. It ended up that there are about four of us that are over 30. One person that is over 30 is Boyer, he will be playing the old sheep....he is 85. The youngest in the cast is Teague, 4.

I had rehearsal again on Tuesday, but the kidlets didn't. I loved being there hanging out with the teenagers and the Actors Training Program majors, but most of all I LOVED watching Xan direct. I forgot how incredible he is, after all, it has been quite a few years.

Pictures of the past VIII

As you probably know by now, it has been snowing WAY TOO MUCH in Utah. My crap, I am soooo done with the snow, it is beautiful, but I HATE driving in it and I HATE shoveling my walk and driveway! Will someone buy me a snowblower? It is nearly a record breaking year, they say that it hasn't snowed like this in Utah since '83 - the year of "THE FLOOD."

Anyway, here are some cute pictures. Piper made this snowman all by herself.

And, Teague made all of these snowballs to sell....for free. Luckily our cute neighbor came buy and "bought" one, and Teague was so nice, he let her "buy" two!!

Pictures of the past VII

MEEP

That's right, his name is Meep.

On New Year's eve we went down to St. George. Piper, Teague, Grammie Annie, Aaron and I. It was a nice little get-a-way.










On New Years day, Aaron and I went shopping, so to keep the kidlets busy while Grammie watched them, Aaron ran to Target to get them something to play with. He got Piper a little kit that had pom-poms, googley eyes, pipe cleaner and glue, so she made some pom-pom animals. He got Teague tape. Now, if you know Teague at all, you know that he has an unhealthy obsession with tape, any kind of tape, masking tape, scotch tape, duct tape, packing tape, hockey tape etc.... Teague will stay busy for hours on end if he has tape. He will invent all sorts of things out of just tape. Needless to say, we have tape ALL OVER OUR HOUSE! Anyway, with the tape Teague made Meep, and Meep's bed. You will also notice that he used toilet paper, some of Piper's googley eyes and candy wrappers.

We have no idea where Piper's pom-pom animals are, but Meep is still going strong. A little tape has been added here and there, but he is still Meep, Meep with a cape now! In fact, when Teague needs a punishment, we take Meep away, instead of blocks or cars or something any normal kid would be attached to, it is Meep.

Pictures of the past VI

The night after Christmas
And all through the house
Not a creature was stirring......

Not even Teague, but he was dead asleep while listening to "Rock Jack" on his new "ipod" (acutally an MP3, but what's the difference to a 4 yr. old?) FULL BLAST! I could hear it from upstairs.

Pictures of the past V

The kidlets on the Sunday before ChristmasI ordered these outfits from a catalog, however I can't remember which one. But don't they look oh so cute?

BTW, don't mind the Christmas mess all over the living room!

Pictures of the past IIII

THE NUTCRACKER

This is a picture of Piper and her friend Megan after a showing of The Nutcracker. Piper really had a great time doing this show. Unfortunately we didn't get a lot of pictures because we couldn't, but at least we have this of her with her hair and make up done. She really did a great job, we are so proud of our little sugar plum page.

I think that this picture was taken the day after she lost her second front tooth. Just in time to sing, "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!"

Pictures of the past III

And....another tradition!! The lights on Temple Square. It was so freakin' cold that we rushed through this too! We did however take trax from The Gateway to Temple Square, and the kidlets loved that. After we rushed through the lights, we went up to the top floor of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building to look down on all the lights. You will notice in the picture a tree covered in red lights....this is my most favorite tree, the only thing is that it isn't lit every year, for some reason, they only do it every other year, so I was very pleased that it was done this year. While we were on the top floor, we decided to eat at The Garden Restaurant, and of course I was mostly excited about the fried pickles. They were delicious.

Pictures of the past II

Yet another family tradition, The Festival of Trees (couldn't find a good link), we usually kind of hurry through it because walking up and down the isle looking at 6-700 trees gets a little old rather quickly. This year, we were looking for one particular tree. The one for Desiree and Travis Bastian.

The Bastian's live in our ward, in fact Bishop Edgley talked about the accident in a recent conference talk. Here is the post I did on that.

Anyway, we finally found the tree. About half way through, we were so tired so I booked it up and down the isles to find it, then I got the rest of the family to show them, anyway, here it is: We also get a cinnamon roll every year, but of course, they were all sold out, so we didn't get one, but I think that I was the only disappointed.

Pictures of the past

So, since I hardly posted at all during November, December and January, I decided to choose a few pictures and tell you quickly about them in a couple of posts:
These are pictures of the kids Christmas programs. They were so stinkin' cute. Teague is the shortest child in the Pre-K/K class so he was always on the end, but everybody laughed when he came in because he was so freakin' adorable. The pictures of Teague are with his teachers, Ms. Megan and Ms. Jana. The picture of Piper is her with some of her classmates: Hailey, Keiton, Amanda and Emily. This is our third year at Sandcastle Academy and we have always been so impressed with their programs, the Christmas program was no exception, it was fantastic! All the children did an incredible job

GO GRIZZ-EL-EEES

So, Teague's little Hockey team had the opportunity to play (sort of) with the Utah Grizzlies. The team stood on the ice for The National Anthem. After the first period, they went out and had a little scrimmage, and Teague did so great.












Then after the second period the team collected all of the pucks from "Chuck a Puck," Teague was literally running on the ice to get as many pucks as he could. However......the best part of the night was during the third period when Teague was going absolutely nuts, screaming at the top of his lungs, "GO GRIZZ-EL-EEES!" It was so stinkin' funny. I thought that you might want to see for yourself:

Piper Cheerleading

Every year, Piper participates in Woods Cross High School's mini-cheerleading. Usually it is in September at a Football game, but this year is was at a Basketball game in January.

Unfortunately is wasn't near as good this year as it has been in previous years, I was a little disappointed. But Piper had a good time, so that is all that matters. Here she is all ready to go:



A funny thing about this is that Piper now thinks that she is a Woods Cross Wildcat! I was a Bountiful Brave (not a very prideful brave, but still....) and Aaron was a Viewmont Viking. If everything stays the same for the next nine or so years, Piper will also be a Viewmont Viking.

Now, I am really wondering what she will be? HMMMMMMMM......

Antelope Island after the storm

As most of you know, it has been snowing like crazy here in Utah, it seems we have had a storm about every other day. On Friday, I was driving home from dropping the kidlets off at school, I turned down a street where you get a perfect view of the island, it was so beautiful, I drove home, got the camera then drove back to get a picture. Unfortunately in that two minutes it ended up not being as pretty, but still, here is a picture:
Later on that day I was backing out of my driveway to go pick-up the kidlets, and this is what I saw. These clouds were just breath taking.