Strike A Pose

These photos were some of the last taken before we moved form our home of almost 10 years. As we were watching a Monk episode we saw the ad featuring our little Bella about pet adopting. She really is beautiful. Her modeling days are over as she got an infection at the new house from diving off a high ledge and after scraping at it she lost all the hair around her eyes. The vet had her wear a little dish on her head which was a disaster. But she recovered and when her fur grew back in it came in speckled. No more solid chocolate face to kiss. She is still a beauty but would require air brushing. What a good little kitty to have had a liter at a young age and nurse orphan kittens. I'm glad Leah told us it was time and we added a new poser to the bunch.

Grateful

Thanks so much everyone for all the love and prayers. I was very upset to be out of town for the Thanksgiving holiday with Scott's family because I missed the funeral. But I was also very proud of Deb's children, who all spoke- as I learned from the 'play by play' from my friends back home. I miss Deb already. I will never forget the first hug we had when she walked into the room with a Mitford bag and I tried to steal it:) It is lucky in life to find friends who you can let your hair down with. Deb was very supportive to me during a big trial in my life. I was scared and did not know the right course of action to take. I was fearful for some children's safety in my life and worried about what to do. Deb helped to to sort it all out and stood by me. She also was great at teasing me into trying something new and not taking myself so seriously. I was very sad to miss being here for the funeral but I have an awesome mom-in-law, sister-in-law and niece who did their best to distract my grief. I celebrated my birthday while away, had a nice break from the play and enjoyed time with Scott and family. I am grateful for friends like Deb and my family.

This year I flew over 10 flights and I am alive and I don't even cry anymore and I am actually enjoying the flight. On the way to and from Phoenix it was turbulent- the flight attendants could not even stand up to give us drinks. I pretended Jasper was there and he was using his calming influence over me. I often pretend I am a little girl sitting in Gods lap or that I am in a movie playing a role and not even in the air. How grateful I am for hope and healing.

I have been so busy I am missing journaling important meaningful memories. One was a visit form Anthony and Salina! It was really short but wonderful. We went and stayed at Snowbird. While Anthony was here he came to the play with me and got the part of Sam in the play! He will record his part. We also got away with Kinikini's:) It was our first trip with all 4 kids. We had the pleasure of seeing Kelsie dance in the Nutcracker! Scott hitnks ballet is his new favorite since there is no talking:) I'm grateful for travel with the people I love, great people to love in my life and little girls who dance as sugar plums!

Bella brings lots of adventure to our everyday lives. She is naughty but soft and gets more loving each day as she feels secure in her new home. She keeps me company and if I give her 24/7 attention she is great. She has lots of energy and the most beautiful face. Bella is not excited about sining puppies. She has won over our hearts. Even Aunt Sue adores her. I'm grateful for my furry friends.

Aunt Sue is the least judgmental person I know. Although my mom is a close second. I really have amazing women in my life. I love how Aunt Sue helps me memorize my lines. I Love that we view the world differently yet have respect and love for each other. I love her example of faith in prayer. I'm grateful for Aunt's and prayer.

Scott is my best friend. He loves me in a way that guides me to be the best me. I still have a crush on him and get butterflies when I hear his voice or he smiles at me. After 14 years he has still got it. I admire how much he endures with his health challenges. He has had a great seasons with hunting and is enjoying his work. I learn so much from him. I'm grateful to be loved by Scott.

It's a Girl!

We got back from the funeral and decided this was the perfect time to add a new member to our family. Leah was in town so we had a tie breaker with us to help us decide. It is really hard to adopt a kitty because there are 100's of worthy darling cats that need homes. I did not realize how many are euthanized:( I guess it is better than being abused or ill or starving on the streets... if only people would spay and neuter! That was one thing Bob from the Price is Right was great at-- reminding everyone to spay and neuter. Of course you would have had to watch the show to receive the message from him. I only saw it a few times... OK I am wandering. Back to our new little girl. She is adorable and tiny compared to our sweet Mungo. She is 1/2 the length and 1/4 the weight. She is a chocolate point Siamese. She was taken into the shelter ready to give birth. 3 of her 4 kittens survived and have been adopted. She then nursed 2 orphan kittens. SO she was excited to have a well deserved retirement and start relaxing and being loved. Leah named her for us- Leah is good at naming. Her name is Izabella. We have been calling her Bella or Izzy. Plus I can keep my title of never having named a pet and I have had over 20. Yip- I have never named one of my cats. I did name a hamster and a fish once in elementary school. She looks like a yummy Starbucks creation of mocha, Carmel, creme latte. Bella has exquisite blue almond eyes and all her extremities look like they have been dipped into warm rich chocolate. We were able to take her right into our vet which she hated- she must take after me. She is about 2 years old and has a life expectancy of up to 20 years!!! I would not think of that had we not just lost Mungo her BIG brother. The fun part is how much she loves Aunt Sue. She runs into her room jumps up on her lap ad purrs away. Aunt Sue lets her sit on her lap for 45 minute naps. I think she felt sad to have been a little stand offish to Mungo and is making up for it with Bella. Bella loves to play on the stairs and has this deep voice. Scott got her a kitty condo and she likes to gather all her toys and carry them in her mouth and hide them in the condo. What a little lover. She likes Scott's lap too. We are very happy yo have her join our family. I like to tell Bella about her big brother Mungo in heaven because I hope one day we can all be together again. I miss Mungos pink nose and kisses. Bella is not s replacement but she sure is a sweetheart and will gets lots of love for years to come.

Leah's Alfredo

Leah Slade’s Alfredo

I have always loved fettuccini but never imagined I could make it. This is one of Leah’s specialties. We had it in Park City for our girls get-away. Now Marlene, Jody and Jen make it and love it. There are many versions as Chef Leah just went by sight and taste. So here are the basics with the few changes in ( ).

1 stick of butter (Leah's batch is small and only uses 1/4 to 1/2 stick)
16 oz Heavy Whipping Cream (small batch 1 cup)
2 red pepper (really only need one)
6 to 8 TLB Parmesan cheese in the can (or use more to taste) or...

(Marlene uses real grated parmesan cheese abt. 1 1/2 cups)
2 tsp Garlic Salt (Leah swears by the kind with parsley in it, small batch would only need 1/2 tsp)
small paper or plastic bag
favorite noodles-- fettuccini

(Missy adds chicken strips)

Take the pepper and place it on foil on a baking sheet with the broiler on. Watch it carefully and turn it frequently until it turns completely black. (Leah does several at a time and then freeze them for the next time.) Place the blackened pepper in the paper bag and let it steam for several minutes. Then peel and de-seed. Slice into strips.

Melt the butter in a pan, add the cheese. Stir until melted. Add the red pepper-- stir around. Then add the cream and garlic salt (to taste, start small then add more). The heat will thicken it a little but not a lot.

Serve with favorite noodles and extra cheese if desired.
(Missy twist is to serve with precooked chicken strips. I also thicken it by doing butter melted with a little flour add the cream and garlic salt heat until boils and thickens up then I fold in the cheese and chicken.)

Cute little faces!

We have good looking, cute kids in our life. I guess they may be really homely and I just love them so much they seem the cutest ever (if so let me keep on dreaming). I am really sad to have missed spring break with Leah and family in AZ and CA. Look at these cute photos. And this is just 3 from our lives. These are our Texas bunch, Scott's sister Leah is building a beautiful house. They have gone from sun (AZ) to rain (WA) to sun (TX). I just wish it was UT. We had a blast at Christmas and we will be seeing them soon at our reunion I force everyone to do this summer in Park City. The last one was wonderful and this one will be a little sad as grandpa Mark won't be with us in person but in spirit.

Happy Feet

This is so cute of our Nephews dancing in the snow. We miss them and wish we lived closer... check out the clip Leah sent to us. My cousin Amy had a cute video of her son reading to her daughter so I thought I should figure out how to do that. My other cousin Stacey had used the service myphotoalbum.com so I got a free account and here you go...

http://scottandmissy.myphotoalbum.com/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album01&id=happy_feet

Loves of my life... Friends

I can't think of a more perfect quote to explain how much we love our best friends the Kinikini's. Scott and Karson have so much fun together. They are so cute. Like little boys. They get so excited to see each other and love to try and out do each other in weird areas

that only testosterone can being to understand.

Marlene sent me this the latest photo of them together.

They especially love to eat meat together. This is a photo of their favorite meal. It is some sort of meat you

get at a shady Mexican shop where they do not speak English. Recently when Scott got some exciting news Karosn did a very interesting dance/ karate chop thingy in Scott's honor. Scott loves Karson. This made me think about Loves of my life... Friends

Friends & People: I love people of all ages. I love hanging out and laughing, sharing ideas, hopes and dreams. I’m sad to say goodbye. I love to ask questions. I could have been a talk show host. People are fascinating to me. My little friends Kelsie and Lauren are wonderful; the clock turns back and I turn up the imagination, reveling in childhood. My Aunt Sue has always been a sounding board for me, making my painful years more bearable. She can listen for hours without any judgment. Lynda and my Mom are great friends and examples of friendship. Neither of them has any enemies, neither of them is clicky. They have big hearts. Marj is very special to me. I have gospel sisters like Toni, Em and Michelle who are a phone call away. Karin has been my friend since the day I came home from the hospital, all these years and no fights. Anthony has got to be my favorite person, I love being with him. Salina is my new sister I always dreamed of she is amazing. My cousins have always been close to my heart. I love being with them and their kids. Teri is a hero to me. My Aunts, Sister-in-laws I cherish. I wish I lived closer to Leah we always have a great time together. My very best friend is Scott. I am so comfortable around him. We can laugh for hours. Marlene and her family have been our best friends for years. Marlene is the best friend I always dreamed of. We travel and laugh; cry and plan. I often wish I could be more like Marlene then I remember I am supposed to be me. She is organized and a great housekeeper. She is talented. Marlene, Jody, Natalie, and Jen are really fun to be with. We go on these crazy girl trips where we have a blast. They are all mothers, they all stay at home to be Moms, they’re all skinny, have houses, parents both alive, and husbands that work away from home. I admire them and love the things we have in common. Sometimes it’s hard to find a place to fit in. Scott calls me a people magnet. I believe I have a gift; to make people feel at ease and important. People seem to really love being with me. Being a magnet, can be flattering and demanding. During my life I have had many deaths, I also had girls really mean to me growing up which didn’t make me want to run out and be buddy buddy. I dislike letting people down-- sometimes I feel like I’m expected to be a certain way, never a bad day. Father in Heaven has blessed me abundantly. I believe I can be a mother in the next life and I can be one here too in different ways. I love the women I serve with in Young Women’s and the girls I serve. They inspire me and I hope to be worthy of their love. I have a light I need to share and not hide it under a bushel. I am working on being a better woman, friend and Missy. I really like me. I enjoy my own company. I can hardly wait until the next life when I can be friends with all my grandparents. I feel close to them now and imagine what they are like. I wish I knew more, I know I one day will and they will be some of my very best friends. Life wouldn’t be complete without people to love, to learn from, to support and serve. I have wonderful friends from church. Melissa, Laurie, Candice, Leslie, Crystal, and Aubrey. It is great to have Friend who you can share your faith with, that can inspire you to be better.

Nutcrackers...

I am laughing still. Today I was talking to my sister about Christmas. She was frustrated trying to talk to Santa about a certain gift her boys asked for. Santa had checked every elf and not one of them seemed to be of help. Then that magic kicked in and hip hip hooray they found it and secured it. Then she went to pick up the kids from school. GUESS WHAT? Matthew didn't want the special hard to find took forever to secure item. NOPE he said "I want a nutcracker". Hee hee. I'm not sure what use he has in mind for a nutcracker. I hope it is not to crack his brothers fingers with. I don't know how she does it. Her kids are so cute and she is always on the go and she looks darling all the time. I love hearing the antics of the kids and the latest stories. It was Matthew who also could direct Leah to Starbucks when they had barley moved to a new town. He used to order Mocha juice... translation choc. milk. I wish he would stay little. I wish they all would. Life just gets more stressful the older you get... they should just stay kids. I'm sad as I am working on the Christmas presents for them and they require me looking through tons of photos of them and they are HUGE now. I miss the little hands and toes and the baby talk. I do love how Lauren the oldest still jumps in my lap. I saw her not to long ago at Grandpa Marks funeral. I miss them they live so far away. And you should see Andrews eyes... oh they are so blue and he has this imagination that won't quit. For the books I am copying an idea I saw in the cutest Scrapbook Family History book. It has been fun to put together. Everyone has been asking what we want for Christmas... besides world peace I'd love pictures and nutcrackers.

Sisters

I love my sisters. My favorites are the in law variety. Don't get me wrong I love my sisters too. Today Salina brought over a movie to watch with me. We laughed and it was really nice to get my mind off being sick. Salina and I both love kid stuff so we have a dandy time together. She is really fantastic. Then cute Marj came. She is a sister on the gospel. She worked on me with some massage and herbs. It hurts the day after but helped my sinuses. She is also our witch doctor. Then cute Marlene- the I wish she was my sister- sent me the cutest pages by email to inspire me. She is so talented. And she still remembers that we need to celebrate my birthday. My cute mom called and said she loved me. Leah is my movie star sister. It was a very nice day.