Message Not Received

The other morning I came upstairs to find Beckam playing in the bathtub. I'm not quite sure what he was trying to tell me (he needed some time alone, he wants his own space, or he just doesn't get enough baths) but I didn't get it. Guess we'll either figure it out or he could be spending a lot more time playing in the empty bathtub.

Partying Vegas Style

Or at least Dahl family Vegas style that is. We haven't been to Las Vegas to visit my family in a while so Brandon and I decided to head down to celebrate my birthday. It was just what I needed. The weather was wonderful (went from sweaters and layers to capris and flip flops), the company was great, and the kids were entertained (not necessarily by Brandon or I). Brandon and I got a night out alone, I got some shopping in, and we found a new kid favorite restaurant. I know we'll be heading to Rain Forest Cafe whenever we're back down there. (Brylie hasn't stopped talking about it!) For anyone that has small children that need to be entertained while you try to eat I highly recommend this place. Brandon and I actually got to talk with my parents and the kids weren't constantly interrupting us because they were too busy watching the "animals" move and make sounds. We also got to have a great adults only dinner with my parents thanks to my sister babysitting. You can't beat the Melting Pot! And due to all the fun we had during our visit, the camera only came out once the whole visit and that was as we were leaving the Rain Forest Cafe to take a picture of the lions in the MGM. Thanks for a great time family!! The only downside, I had to leave great weather to come back to snow.

Safety Fair

On Friday the kids and I met up with some friends and went to the Safety Fair. We were immediately greeted by someone who did balloon animals, flowers, swords whatever. Beckam wasn't too sure about the lady doing the balloons but he had fun with his sword.

Brylie loved going to all the different booths, talking with a princess (Miss Utah County) and getting her face painted. She sat so still while having it done and didn't want to wash it off later that night.

It was a great way to spend an afternoon with great company.

Budding Photographer

A couple of days ago I needed a few minutes to get something done, so to buy myself some time I showed Brylie how to use our point and shoot digital camera. I seem to have quite the budding photographer on my hands.

She can't wait for me to find the charger so she can take more pictures. And here's one I snapped really quick...I couldn't resist.

The Last Lecture - Jeffery Zaslow Style

Thursday night I had the awesome opportunity to go to a lecture given by the co-author of The Last Lecture, Jeffrey Zaslow. (Thanks again Viv!) If you haven't read this book yet I highly recommend it. You can find it just about anywhere and it is a really easy read. I have really enjoyed reading the book and was looking forward to what Jeffrey had to say about it.

First off, Jeffrey Zaslow writes a column for the Wall Street Journal titled "Moving On" which focuses on life transitions. He started out by sharing some stories regarding writing and his column. He then went in to how the book came about (the stuff I was waiting for).

Jeffrey didn't know Randy Pausch from Adam but coincidentally enough attended the same school where Randy was a professor and giving his last lecture. Someone contacted Jeffrey about this lecture and when hearing that the person giving it was actually dying, Jeffrey decided he wanted to go listen and write a column for the Wall Street Journal about it. After putting a four minute clip of the lecture up on The Wall Street Journal's website a couple days later, things just started snowballing. Good Morning America contacted Jeffrey to see if he could "get that professor" for them. Randy did the interview and a couple more with ABC and also went on Oprah. Jeffrey brought up the idea of a book to Randy and Randy's only requirement was that it didn't take any time away from his family. So to make that happen Randy and Jeff talked via cell phone for an hour a day during Randy's neighborhood bike ride. After 53 days the book was written and published quickly after so that Randy could see it before he died. The book is now is 44 languages and there will be no movie. He said they got offers but Randy said he wanted his kids to see him not Tom Cruise.

The whole lecture was amazing and emotional. He showed clips of the actual lecture and some of the interviews Randy did. Randy was an amazing man and left such an example for everyone. He lived his last months/days to the fullest and left great advise for everyone to keep revisiting. One of my favorite things he said was during one of the ABC interviews, "Don't let tomorrow wreck today." He also told Jeffery to stop googling him and go hug your kids.

After the lecture Jeffery was signing books so Viv and booked it out of the auditorium to be as close to first in line as possible (we had kids to get home to).

I had him sign the book for both Brandon and I and his inscription really applied to me. It was a great night and one I won't soon forget.

Be Brave Like the Firemen

Brylie's preschool class took a field trip to the Fire Station and Beckam and I got to tag along. It was so fun seeing the sea of little red hats and watching the kids take it all in.

Now Brylie keeps saying she wants to be brave like the firemen are. She also is our little fire safety know it all and is constantly reminding us what we should do in a fire. I'm glad she was listening while I chased Beckam around.

*Fun Fact - There is a difference between a fire truck and a fire engine. A fire engine is the one with the big attached ladder on top. A fire truck is the one that has the little ladders.*

Lesson Learned # 47,836

(My Party Planners)

This morning I left the kids alone downstairs for a bit and after a couple of minutes Brylie yelled upstairs that they (her and Beckam) were getting a birthday party ready for me. A couple minutes later she yelled to not come downstairs because they were still getting the party ready. I honestly thought nothing of it and thought it was a cute idea. I had no idea what they were using for "decorations" but I figured it must be paper Brylie had already colored on or pictures from a coloring book. When I was ready to go downstairs Brylie told me to close my eyes so I would be surprised. I told her it wasn't safe to walk downstairs with your eyes closed but I would close them before I saw anything. As I rounded the landing of the stairs I didn't get a chance to close my eyes before I got my first peek at what the decorations were made of. The decorations were courtesy of...

This is a pattern I was planning on using to make Brylie a dress. As I looked around my decorated kitchen and family room all I could do was laugh and laugh and laugh and tell Brylie that for the next party lets leave Mommy's stuff alone.

Lesson Learned: No matter how many times the kids have left stuff alone, or how deeply you have something buried in a pile, the kids will find the one thing you wish they wouldn't and find a way to have fun with it that is often destructive. But hey, at least I got a party out of it.