Neil Dimond

Haylie is smiling in this picture because she just found out that this week is Neil Diamond week on American Idol.
Tom LOVES Neil Diamond. He owns all of his albums, and even goes to his concerts. A few years ago he went to see Neil with his family, in the process he acquired a Neil Diamond T-shirt. It's the ugliest gray T-shirt on the planet, and yet he gets really upset if I wear it and get food on it.

A few years ago when Tom and I had just begun dating and I thought his adoration of Neil was appealing, he talked me into doing a Neil Diamond medley for our singles ward talent show. It was Tom, myself, and his sister, Shanna who was also a Neil Diamond fan. We got together one afternoon to decide on the songs. There were so many they felt necessary to include that all together the compilation was about 15 minutes. The plan was for Shanna and I to be the back up singers while Tom did the actual Neil Diamond singing. Just to be sure that no one lacked on stage time Tom and I sang a Barbara Striestand/Neil Diamond Duet "You Don't Bring Me Flowers Anymore", and Shanna had a solo to "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother". Tom and Shanna went to the thrift store for our costumes. They came back with a pink, sequined, black shimmering shirt for Tom, a gold 80's dress and matching gold pumps for me, and a sexy black, beaded frock for Shanna. We looked awesome, as you can imagine. Now the great thing about this performance is that we didn't do any lip syncing...no, not at all. We did all the singing ourselves. Tom was worried that the singles wouldn't realize that he was the one doing the actual singing so he made Shanna announce that what they were about to hear was indeed our actual voices. This is where it gets rally embarrassing...the stereo system wasn't loud enough to get the music into the cultural hall, so instead of having back up music it ended up being an acapella
Neil Diamond performance...for 15 whole minutes. It was so embarrassing. We have it all on tape. Every time we watch it we literally cringe as it is awful. I can't imagine what the audience was actually thinking as we draped the American Flag over Tom's shoulders during the finale song "Coming to America". Although the applause at the end was huge I'm not sure if it was for us and our immense talent or because it was finally over.

It goes without saying the we are elated at this upcoming American Idol. I wonder what they'll sing. I think Brooke would do well to sing "Forever in Blue Jeans" and Cook could sing "Girl, You'll be a Woman Soon", and annoying David Archuletta could sing "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", because it has such an amazing message.

Happy Birthday Haylie

We celebrated Haylie's 1st Birthday last Saturday. It was just the three of us, Tom, Haylie and me, but we still had a great time. She really liked her gifts.

Two Years

Last Friday Tom and I celebrated our two year anniversary. Of course, we celebrated by going to a Knicks game. For our honeymoon we went to the Baseball World Classic. For our first year anniversary we went to the Baseball Hall Of Fame, in Cooperstown NY. Does anyone see a trend?
To be fair, for our Honeymoon we did go to a spa. I got a facial, and Tom had a massage. After my facial I went and got dressed and went out to wait for Tom. He wasn't there. Minutes passes, he still didn't come. I wondered where he was. The front desk finally paged him and after awhile he came out. I asked where he had been. He explained that he had been enjoying the amenities. The natural mineral spa outside. A hummingbird had even landed on his shoulder while he relaxed in the outdoor spa of paradise. He explained all of the other wonderful things the did, and I couldn't believe it! No one had told me about any of those things! I missed out on everything good because no one had clued me in. So while Tom was enjoying the beautiful palms trees outside, and the spa, and of course the hummingbird I was waiting inside on a bench wondering what was taking him so long! When ever I think about this story it makes me upset. After I found out what I had missed we didn't have time to go back because we had to get to the baseball game.
Back to our Anniversary...it's been two years, but we were dated on and off for three and a half years before we actually tied the knot. I've been very blessed to be married to Tom. He does everything for me! There is nothing he would not do for me, I know this because I ask a lot. When I decided to stop working at three months pregnant with Haylie he supported me in my decision, which I have always been grateful for. Every Saturday he loads up the laundry, rain or shine, and walks to the laundry mat to wash and fold all of our clothes. He does the grocery shopping, pays the bills, goes to school full time, and often cooks dinner for me when I don't feel well. He takes care of Haylie when he can. He is the handiest guy I know. He has brought our computer back from the dead more times than we can count. I got the better deal when I married him. He does everything I ask, usually without so much as a complaint. He has always put me first in our marriage, there are not enough good things I can say about him as a person. If only we could agree on politics and vaccinations, it would be a marriage of true minds.

Tagged!

I was tagged by my friend Naomi and it's about time I did it.

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.

B. Each player answers the question about themselves.

C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 other people and posts there names. And then leaves a message on their blog letting them know they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog to get the directions.

What I was doing 10 years ago:
I'm afraid this isn't going to be a very interesting question to answer. Ten years ago I was 19. Living in AZ and "waiting" for my missionary, Zac Hoover, who was serving a mission in Alaska. I actually made him a really great quilt while he was gone. I cut out the shape of the state of Alaska and appliquéd it onto the quilt and then marked all of his area's with a little polar bear. It was pretty awesome. However, since it's pretty obvious my last name is not Hoover, we broke up and he refused to keep the quilt. He said if he kept it he was going to burn it, so he returned it and I think it's still somewhere in my parents home...so, Zac, If you still want that quilt I can get it to you. In case you were wondering he was a really nice guy and was my first boyfriend. I'm glad he ended up married to a really great girl.

I also remember I was working in Phoenix for Banner Hospitals in the insurance dept. It was a pretty fun job. I was one of the only Mormons that worked there. The rest of the staff was Catholic, they gave me a really hard time about being Mormon. That was the same year I bought my very first care from a dealership, all on my own. It was a Ford Aspire. I always claimed it was "aspiring" to be something better. It was just a roller skate on wheels but it was nice not to spend massive amounts of money on gas for the Cadillac that I had been driving previously.

5 Things on my To-Do List Today:

1. Make sure Haylie and Beckett both get fed.
2. Clean the kitchen
3. Do some grocery shopping on line from Fresh Direct. I love that place!
4.Read my Scriptures (everyday I look over at my scriptures collecting dust and think "I should read those today" and everyday I still don't do it. At least I pray, that counts for something.)
5. Figure out what I can make for dinner that won't make me want to vomit.

3 Bad Habits I have
I have so many, it's hard to choose just three...
1. I am horrible at paying my bills..horrible. I always forget to do it and then end up paying massive late fee's on everything. Tom is in charge of all our bills at this point.

2. I sleep in every chance I get and have trained Haylie to sleep in until 9:30 every morning to accommodate my bad habit.

3. I am easily irritated by other what other people say and do. My most common phrase is probably "that's the lamest thing ever". For instance....I can't stand when people refer to their children as "the kiddies" or "the kiddos". It makes it sound like children are accessories and it irritates me to no end, just call them what they are, kids, or children.

Places I have Lived

Mesa, Gilbert, QueenCreek, Arizona
Provo, Utah
Toulon, Montpellier, Beziers, Perpignan, Nimes, France
Manhattan, NYC
Jersey City, NJ

Things Most People Don't Know About Me

Is there anything that people don't know about me? I suppose most people don't know I have had over 28 different jobs since I was 17. I have done everything from working at a Yogurt shoppe to selling socks. I worked at Abercrombie and Fitch for a bit, a dried fruit store, I managed a Karate School, worked as a Nanny, receptionist, a High School teacher for a charter high school, sold wedding dresses... the sad thing is I wasn't very good at any of these jobs but I interview so well that it makes people forget that I'm not a very hard worker. The longest I ever stayed with one job was when I worked as an Aesthetician. I did that for a total of two years before I got married, and loved it. It was the only thing I did that I actually enjoyed and was any good at. The only thing I ever really aspired to be was a Mom. I looked forward to the day I could stay at home with my kids. I was so glad to finally have a baby so I could stay home and do the best job in the world. I feel bad for people who don't have the opportunity or don't want to stay home and raise their kids because it's the most important job a woman can do. Being a Mom is the most fulfilling job I've ever had, it's also the hardest and most fatiguing one out there. But it's so worth every single sacrifice we have made to have me stay home despite the lack of income we currently have.

Another thing people may not know about me is that I technically served two missions. I entered the MTC in January of 2001 to serve in the Marseilles France mission. I left the MTC Feb. 19, 2001. I decided I didn't want to serve a mission after all, and ended after tons of prayer decided I would rather go home to Arizona, or break something and go home to Arizona. I was home for a month or so when my Stake President called and told me one of the Seventy had called and asked if I wanted to go back on my mission. I said no. The MTC was horrible in my opinion. The only fun part was meals when the elders could entertain me (thanks Wiseman and Gibb). The Stake President told me to think about it and let him know if I changed me mind. I was pretty sure that wasn't going to happen. I had felt good about the decision to go home and I wasn't about the change my mind after all of that. But, things happen and after a family trip to AZ I felt impressed that I needed to go back. I called the Stake President and told him I'd go back. Within 24 hours I was back in the MTC. I went back to the MTC April 25th 2001. I was called again to the Marseilles France mission (It's rare that you get called to the same mission). This time was totally different. I loved the MTC, had wonderful companions who are to this day still my best friends. The elders were even funnier than before. I was only in the MTC this time for two weeks before going to France. Going back on my mission was one of the best, but most difficult decisions I ever made. I sobbed the whole flight to the MTC because I didn't want to go but knew I needed to be there. What a relief that it turned out so well!

Oh, and in September we are expecting another baby.

I tag Dawnell, Tammie, Kaycee, Jodi, and Starr

American Idol- My family endorses Brooke White

I enjoy American Idol. This year is especially exciting as one of our friends, Brooke White (Ray) is one of the top 12 girls! If you don't know which one she is, she is the cute blond who has never seen an R rated film. You should all make an effort to vote for Brooke. If we can't win a Presidential primary election at least we can get a Mormon girl to win American Idol, right? Of course, don't vote for her just because she's Mormon, vote for her because she is incredibly talented, and nice as can be.

Also, all those RM's from the France, Toulouse Mission you have special reason to vote for her since she is dear Elder Ray's ( You know him, the firefighter with huge arms also known as a "soeur hater") sister in law. Which means if she wins we can all take pleasure in saying we know her family, and what Mormon doesn't enjoy the "who do you know game" when you get to know someone really cool? Kind of like when one of the sisters on the mission came up to me when she found out I was from AZ and asked if I knew of her uncle...Danny Ainge (former Suns player and then Coach). First off, I found the question to be condescending, how could any one live in AZ, be Mormon and not know who that guy was, impossible. Yes, I answered the question and managed to keep the annoyance out of my voice, it was hard.

And Canadians..her husband is from Canada! This could be your chance to do something great for your country besides getting maple leaf tattoo's or maple leaf patches on your backpacks...think about it.

Sunshine!

Haylie and I have been visiting family in Arizona for the past week. I will post pictures when we return next week. We've done some fun stuff. Besides visiting family we went to the Phoneix Zoo. They have new exhibit with StingRays. You are able to go in and pet them. I loved it. Even Haylie tried to pet them. Her arms were a little too short so she wasn't able to touch them, but she still enjoyed watching them swim up to her. Who knew they were so friendly? Don't worry, they trim their little stingers so there won't be an Steve Erwin experiences.

Haylie: The Destroyer of Books!

This is Haylie. She loves books. Loves to destroy them I mean. When I'm not looking she loves to sneak into her bedroom (not really a bedroom, just a hallway in our apartment) and pull all of her books off the self. Sometimes she looks at them, other times she rips out the pages with her amazing 10 month old strength. When she is not destroying books she likes to seek out and eat mouse traps. Lucky for Haylie, when she gets caught in a mouse trap we don't take her outside and cut off her head with the kitchen shears.