Jorden's 14...

Today is Jorden's 14th Birthday!!

o_O

I can't believe how fast time has gone by!!

Before I know it he will be driving and then graduating from high school and then heading off on a mission. It's bad enough to think of him being old enough to go to dances now. I remember when I turned 14 and started going to them... Wow, when did I get so old??? :D

Since my 'good' computer is currently being operated on by local computer surgeons, I am at quite a disadvantage for pictures. And since the scanner hooks up to that 'good' computer, I can't even scan in any old pictures! So, I found one that I love and then I also loaded up some pictures from our birthday celebration this year. We actually had his cake and presents Thursday night because the kids had school today (Friday) and then right after Jorden got home from school he left to go on an overnight campout with his Scout group. At least his lovely mother sent Twinkies along with him so that all the boys could help him celebrate!! :D Oh, he's so easy to embarrass! :P

Here is my sweet boy, oh so long ago!!

Here is Jorden with his cake!

Okay, actually it wasn't cake. Jorden decided that instead of cake this year he wanted chocolate chip cookies with ice cream on top, so I found a giant cookie and got some ice cream and he was thrilled!! I think the Thomas the Tank Engine decorations added to the excitement... It was either that or Dora or flowers & bugs. Besides, I still remember how many Thomas trains I had to buy for Jorden when he was about 2 and 3 years old. And somewhere around this house we still have his Thomas videos... Oh the countless hours we spent watching those!! :D

Here are all the kiddies! Their mean and terrible mom tells them that there is no cake until after pictures... :) Jensen was the only one who really didn't want her picture taken since she already had her pajamas on and was ready for bed! :D

Yum!!

And here is Jorden with a few presents. All the kids know that for Birthday's mom only uses plastic bags for wrapping paper. :P It's SO much easier that way!! :D

New pajama pants, so now he has more than just 2 pairs. :P

And a new Charlie the Unicorn shirt! Remember the one from Christmas? It's his favorite so I figured why not get another one from the same series. He's pretty happy, and he wore it to school today. :)

Please overlook the unedited pictures. Again, Photoshop is on the good computer. :D

Happy Birthday Jorden!!!

We Love You!!!!!

200th Post...

This is my 200th blog post. Can you believe it??? I'm still in shock just a bit. I don't feel like I know this whole blog program much better than I did at post 10, but I guess I must. With the Academy Awards being held last Sunday, I thought I would make this post a tribute to this blog and all that has gone into making it fun over the past year and a half...

(Pretend I am standing up in front of an audience, accepting my award and of course I am dressed in an amazing dress. :P And my hair is awesome because I didn't have to do it, and there are camera's everywhere... Yeah, that sounds about right! :) )

Wow!! I am so honored to be receiving this award! Who knew a girl from Small Town Arizona could go on to achieve something like this in her lifetime? It's been a dream of mine since I was a little girl to someday be given this award and even though I have worked hard for it, I am still in shock that I am actually here! Where do I begin??

First, I'd like to thank the Cast (family, friends, kids, husband, dogs, etc) for all of the blog worthy material you have provided me. Endless hours of activites have really paid off! Without you none of this would have been possible for me.

Second, I'd like to thank the Screen Writers (holidays, events, occasions of blog-worthiness) for creating a world for me to blog about. And I'd even like to thank those of you who continue to speak to me even after I have created a birthday blog about you. You know who you are...

Third, I'd like to thank the Editors (Mom, Melissa, Jillen, and more, even Myself sometimes) for helping me spot all the little mistakes I have missed when slaving over this blog during the wee hours of the night. You keep me honest, I couldn't do it without you!

Fourth, I'd like to thank the Sound Producers (Project Playlist and all the great artists on it) for providing an awesome music soundtrack with which to view this blog. The songs are inspiring and some of my favorites. I don't know how you manage to do it but you always seem to find the perfect song!

Fifth, I'd like to thank the Contributing Producers (HGE.com, CBOTB,com, MTV, Myself, etc) for all of the amazing blinkies and countdown tickers and pictures and videos that decorate the top, bottom, and side of the blog. You keep me on track and remind me of what I love! Your interviews brighten my day and your images make my heart sing.

Sixth, I'd like to thank my Publicists (friends and family blogs linked on the side) for helping others to find my little blog. You are essential to my success and I couldn't love you more! Plus you provide me with great ideas and inspiration in my darkest hours of blog-block.

Seventh, I'd like to thank the Set Design Team (Photoshop) for allowing me to create a backdrop and title for this little production featuring all of my favorite shows and couples and flowers and kiddies. What a joy it is to open this page and immediately see all the things I love! And having them all arranged so pretty... I love it!!

Eighth, and lastly, I'd like to thank our Distributor (blogger.com) for hosting this little blog and all the fun that is contained within. What an inspired idea you were!!

Thanks for all the views and comments. They inspire me to find more fun and entertainment to blog about! I feel so lucky to have an outlet in which to express myself and tell the story of my family. I am honored to receive this 200th blog post award and I promise to continue my work and efforts in the future. With any luck we will be blessed with many more happy and goofy posts for years to come!! Thank-You!!

Seriously, thanks everyone for putting up with me and my silly obsessions. This is the one place that I can dwell on the things I love and I appreciate you all enduring it and still claiming to know me. :) It means the world to me!!! :D

Spunk Watch '09...

So, how excited was I when I found out that My Spunk was going to be presenting at the Oscars this year??? To be completely honest, he's the main reason I even watched it! I always love seeing what the celebrities are wearing, but I only care about a few awards, and since I didn't see any of the movies that were nominated, or that had actors nominated, I didn't really even care. I will admit that I wanted Heath Ledger to win, just because I loved him so much, and I wanted Kate Winslet to win because I think she is all kinds of awesome, but the rest... Ehhhh. So, because of Spunk, Spunk Watch '09 began Sunday morning!! He had been around town a bit during the week, but Sunday is when we finally got to see him in all his glory. And let me tell you, he did not dissappoint!! :) Let's begin with the dresses. There were a few that I loved - and it comes as no surprise to me that the media didn't love them all - and there were several that I didn't like - again, no surprise that the media loved some of those.

I think my favorite dress of the night was this one. And, of course, the fashion people in the media didn't like it. I thought it was pretty and I liked the fact that it actually had SLEEVES!!! :D Well, more than most of the other dresses on the Red Carpet. I thought Miley looked great and made a nice choice. This picture doesn't do it justice. There were crystals all over it and it sparkled, especially at the bottom of the layers. I loved it!!


This is another of my favorites. I loved the sequins on it and how they got bigger as they got closer to the bottom of the dress. Anne looked very pretty and I was a little sad that she didn't win, but she was up against Kate who was my fave, so maybe next time for Anne.


I loved this dress too. A lot of the media people didn't like it because of the one sleeve and criss cross thing but I thought it was very pretty. I loved the color and thought Freida from Slumdog Millionaire looked lovely.


Next is Kate Winslet, my favorite!! I was so glad that she won! I think the world of her acting skills and I love watching anything she is in. She just seems to be a very down to earth person who is dedicated to her family and is just a mom when you get down to it. I was so glad that she won!! And I loved her dress! It was very different but I thought the color was nice and she looked amazing in it. I even liked her hair, which was also rather different. She looked very polished and put together, and I thought it was great!


There were several dresses that I didn't care for, many of which the fashion people loved! Figures... :D Penelope Cruz... Yuck. Sarah Jessica Parker... To princess-y. But this is the one I liked the least, even less than Sophia Loren in her tan fluffy number (her eyes must be going because she obviously couldn't see clearly when choosing that dress) and Whoopi Goldberg in her animal print thing (What was that???). I like Beyonce, but apparently we have very different styles and taste when it comes to clothes. This dress was awful -- way too tight, way too big of a pattern, and seriously, what was with all the mermaid style dresses??? Odd. Anyway, Beyonce gets my vote for Worst Dressed. I think she's got enough gold on this dress to cover her own award...


So in the midst of all these dresses, the highlight of the night came. I loved the gasps in the crowd as he got out of his limo -- how the cameras went straight to him... It was heaven!! I wondered if he would shave or not, and he did...kind of. Us fan girls don't want him completely clean shaven, he's got to have a little bit of stubble. Lucky for us his thick beard is always very accommodating! :D He wore Dulce & Gabana head to toe and his tux was awesome!! He even went with the traditional bow tie, which I don't think I have ever seen him wear. His hair is growing out really quickly and it was neat yet still disheveled, and his shyness was endearing as always. He gave some great interviews and was very funny, even saying hi to his mum in one. :) What a sweetie!! Just take a gander at The Pretty...


Oh, the scruff... And the eyelashes!! :)


During the ceremony he presented along with Amanda Seyfried, who I know starred in the movie Mamma Mia (which I still haven't seen) but will forever be known to me as Lilly Kane of Veronica Mars fame. Oh, and as Karen from Mean Girls! :D She was nice to My Spunk by wearing a not too flattering dress, drawing all of the attention to Spunk. But she still did a great job presenting. And I think Spunk was glad that he didn't flub his lines on camera like he did 3 times in rehearsal. :P


And please let me just say that who ever made up that seating chart needs a raise!! Spunk had a prime spot, in the second row behind Kate Winslet, Marisa Tomei, and Mickey Rourke, meaning we got to see A LOT of him throught the show!

This lady look happy to be sitting next to him!! I would be too!! I'm surprised that she's still breathing correctly with him leaning over on the arm rest and all... :D And is that Tina Fey in the row behind him??? I really hope that she heard him mention in an interview that she is the ideal woman in his eyes. I hope she got to flirt a little bit at least! :P


And here he is again, behind Kate and Marisa and also sitting next to Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker. Again, Thank-You seating chart person, who ever you may be!!!


The only point of concern for the night was the fact that at the after party Spunk was approached by several Hollywood starlets, such as Paris Hilton. (I'm sure he's smarter than that! :P ) But one other that may be a good match for him is Natalie Portman. They talked for quite a while after she introduced herself to him. I guess he can date her... I'll give my permission. I did like her dress too. And she is smart and funny and a good actress. Obviously he could do worse. *cough*Paris*cough*


So, as you can see, all in all Spunk Watch '09 proved to be very fruitful!! Some great pictures, a nice tux, and a good party. I think he enjoyed himself. And we got to enjoy watching him. :)


Monday afternoon he was on a plane and off to Tokyo for the Twilight premiere there on Friday. I love how relaxed he always looks, even thought there were hundred of fans lined up at the Tokyo airport waiting to meet him.




In other Twilight related news, we got a look at the official logo for New Moon!! The title of the movie is New Moon, but they added the Twilight saga part for those people who have been living under a rock and haven't heard of Twilight. :D They said that they went with the orange color so that it would be different from the Twilight posters. I wonder what colors they will use for Eclipse and Breaking Dawn? Oh, and by the way, Eclipse has a release date!! June 30, 2010!! Only 7 months after New Moon!!! Oh happy-happy-joy-joy!!! :D Now if they would just verify that they actually ARE going to film Breaking Dawn...



Well, now I'm off to enjoy what I got in the mail today...


So many pretty pictures of My Spunk... :)

Books & Babies...

I decided recently that I need to read more of the 'Classics' when it comes to books. I have never really enjoyed reading, I think I don't like the length of time that it requires to read a book. I would much rather sit down and watch a 2 or 3 hour movie and get the whole story faster that way. I know that reading the book is usually much, much better, it just takes so long. I'm more of an instant gratification kind of person, though I don't think that applies in all areas of my life. But I am much more visual rather than imaginative, so maybe that's why movies appeal to me so much more. But having been inspired by my addiction to the Twilight book series, I decided to give it a go and try some other books. Mostly because I find myself thinking constantly about this part of Twilight or that line in New Moon or a certain situation in Eclipse... I need to get a life!! So, on to the classics!! Of course this quest is still Twilight related... You know me, I can't quit cold turkey! I decided to start with some of the books that Bella from Twilight loves. I have read Romeo and Juliet many times so I moved on to Wuthering Heights, the book that is featured in Eclipse. There are many references made to it and I was curious as to what it was about. And I gotta say, it's been an interesting read. At times it seems as though this book has the same effects that 10 sleeping pills would have on me, but the story is interesting and I am curious to see what happens next. It finally started picking up about page 80 and now with about 80 pages to go I'm still interested. The writing is a little difficult to understand sometimes, and I keep confusing some of the characters since some of them share names and some have last names as first names... Ahhhh!! But it's still pretty good. And I haven't even found myself waiting for a vampire to come driving up and rescue the main character! :D That's a good sign! ;) I think after this I will attempt Jane Eyre or Pride and Predjudice. Maybe then I will actually learn how to spell that word!! :D







In other news, I'm an Auntie again!!

Little Marnie Jayne Brimhall was born last week on February 11th a little after 10pm. She weighed 9lbs 3oz and was 21 inches long. She outweighed Jayden by 4 oz, but I don't think we will be taking a run at recapturing that 'Biggest Grandbaby' title anytime soon. :P Her family is super excited to have her here, especially Britt who gets to be a big brother now! :D And Jillen was thrilled that she is gonna share a birthday with the actor Taylor Lautner, Jacob in the Twilight movie. :P Bri has more pictures and all the details on her blog, so you can head on over there if you haven't already. The link is on the right -- Bri & Justin.

She's a cute little thing and we can't wait to meet her!!!




Now on to a hectic 2 weeks filled with all kinds of Scout Banquets, baby showers, parent-teacher conferences, birthdays, and computer repairs. Let's hope at least they can manage to save all my precious entries on my computer... Well, what doesn't kill us makes us stronger! Which reminds me, I gotta set my VCR to tape The Big Bang Theory tonight while I go to the store. I can't miss that!!! :D

Fun Fact #4...

I love Milk Duds.

I am addicted.

I can't stop.

And I'm so happy!!!


Random Picture!!!

Jillen's turn! :D

I imagine this is similar to the look I will be getting a lot from her as she enters her teenage years. The "Excuse me, WHAT?!?!" look.



I can't wait...

A Dream Come True...

Yesterday I finally heard the 7 words I have waited almost 14 years to hear.
7 words that bring tears to any mother's eyes.
7 words that let you know that your children really do hear at least some small part of what you tell them over and over and over again.
7 words that are beautiful in any language.

And they came from the mouth of this sweet boy.




Jayden had been in his room, very quiet, for a while. I knew he was trying to make a spot for the bean plant that he had brought home from school. I never imagined the scene I would find...

A clean floor. Folded clothes. A bed made. A make shift bed skirt. Organized shelves. And as if that wasn't enough, I heard the words...

A Clean Room Is A Happy Room!!

I cried.

(Did I mention how much I love this boy? Don't tell Jorden, but he's my favorite...)




(And I won't even mention the closet full of CRAP that was picked up off the floor and thrown into it. It had a nice, decorative sheet carefully hung in front of it so that no one would notice. :D )

A Daddy Returns...

Wow, it seems crazy to think that my sister Brooke's husband Elliott has been gone almost a whole year! In case you don't remember, he got a phone call the end of last March telling him that he was being deployed to Iraq and they wanted him the next day. Since it was a complete surprise to him, he was able to get 3 extra days but that was it. He quickly packed up all of their belongings, got his stuff together, and then got on a plane bound for Texas to meet up with a group of soldiers he had never met for what he thought would probably be over a year. Did I mention the part where he had to leave behind his 1 1/2 year old daughter and 3 month pregnant, and SICK, wife? He got a few days to come back and visit in May before his group left for Iraq, but then he was off! When he returned for his 2 week leave in November, he came home to a happy wife, a wild 2 year old, and a sweet 6 week old baby girl. He left again the first part of December, thinking he might be back in March or maybe even February. Imagine everyone's surprise when he found out he would be home in January! We got to go to the welcome home ceremony this past Saturday. Of course we got there just after all the tv news crews had left. But then again, maybe that's okay. But he is famous! His picture was on-line in the story about the group returning! Maybe I can find it...

For several days before his return Ellee had been waiting, getting more and more excited. We didn't know for sure when he would be back until Friday when he called Brooke to say "I'll be there tomorrow!" Needless to say, we dropped everything! We were so excited! After getting to the Army Reserves offices Ellee started looking for her Daddy. It was cute to see her looking at all the other soldiers in the room, knowing that they were wearing the right clothes but they weren't her Daddy. She kept saying "I On't See 'Im." When we were asked who we were looking for every other soldier said, "Oh, the tall guy!" :D I guess he's easy to spot!! :P Ellee was super excited, until he walked into the room. She kind of smiled at first, enough for him to give her a new ladybug bear (she LOVES ladybugs! And he always brings her something special... What a sweet Daddy!) and for us to take a picture, but that was it.





Then we got this face, for seriously the next hour!


The funniest part was when Elliott had to go into the other room for a few minutes and he set Ellee down, but before doing that he said "Can I have a kiss?" And as he went to kiss her she pulled her head back, threw her hands in between their faces, started waving them frantically back and forth, saying "No, no, no, no, no!!!" Oh, she's a funny girl!!

But Emelyn seemed happy to see him... She is such a happy, sweet little baby!


Then we went into the room where they had the ceremony and the returning soldiers were given some awards. There were some pretty funny moments but over all everyone was just glad to have them safely home. Emelyn was the highlight of the room! People were asking to take her picture because she was so happy -- smiling and giggling! And she sure seemed to know when people were watching! She's gonna be a little performer, that one!! :D

When Elliott got his awards they invited his family to come up with him. I thought that was a really nice thing to do since it wasn't just him that has sacrificed over this past 10 months.


And there isn't much that a juicy and cookie won't fix...


Oh yeah, and Daddy sharing his presents helps too...


Here's a Daddy with his 2 sweet girls...


No, make that his 3 girls...


And at the end of the day we have the Happy Hinckley Family together again!!


We sure are glad to have you home Elliott!!


But boy are we gonna miss these girls when you all head back to Colorado... :(