Monday, March 30, 2009

Warning: Not for the faint of heart!

Take a GOOD look...

That's gotta be some sort of record! That's my boy!

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Guess who bumped into me?

No, not Steve Carrel this time. It was a different kind of bump THIS time.

So, here is the story. I'm driving down the street in downtown Bakersfield. I'm on my way to pick up a large delivery for my office when all the sudden a old lady in a white Toyota blows right through a red light on 17th and H, which also happens to be the intersection in which I am crossing through... except my light is green. So as my life is flashing before my eyes and I'm bracing for impact something pretty miraculous happens. I close my eyes as she is about to plow right through my drivers side door (of which I had my window rolled down half way and no side airbags or health insurance for that matter, OUCH!) I felt a not so big impact, or at least not as big as I had expected. I was like Whaaaa?!? So I open my eyes to find out a VERY LARGE truck coming the opposite way took the hit for me and then that truck was pushed into me which made for a much lesser blow.

So, you wanna hear the crazy thing? I mean, this wouldn't be crazy if you lived in Utah, but it's pretty crazy for Bakersfield. The lady who ran the red light, the guy who THANKFULLY got in between me and THAT lady, and of course me where all LDS. Crazy huh? On top of that, one of the witnesses who stopped to help happened to be non other than President and Sister Anderson! Small world huh? 

I got off without a scratch, thanks to GIANT "Mormon Assault Vehicle" that played interception for me. I was driving my dad's pickup which got pretty banged up, but is still drivable. The poor lady who ran the stoplight was in pretty bad shape with two broken legs and who knows how many other bones. I managed to snap a picture of her car.

That could have been my door that this plowed into, so I consider myself very blessed! Anyway, always remember to buckle up!

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Avila Beach

Avila Beach...

Last Saturday Andy had a wedding shoot at Avila Beach and just for the heck of it he invited me along.  Andy's business partner and his wife came as well so we had a good old time hanging out.  For the most part Andy and Jason were hard at work shooting footage of the bride and groom so Amanda and I kicked it on the beach for a while.  Then Amanda took me to this adorable little place called Avila Valley Barn.  The kids would have really loved this place!  They had a total cornucopia of fruits and vegetables, fresh baked desserts, homemade ice cream and a petting zoo!  It's definitely worth dropping by if you're ever in that area.

The scenery at Avila Valley Farm.

When we got back the guys started setting up for the shoot.  It was interesting watching Andy in his element.  He really surprised me by how much thought he put into each shot and how precise everything was.  The guys put Amanda and I in charge of the crane which we did really well if I may say so myself (OK, really we had no idea what we were doing).  I had fun though and it felt good knowing that I had helped.  I think the whole trip and actually watching Andy in action really made me appreciate what he does even more.  He works so hard to support his family and accomplish his dreams and I love him so much for that.

Andy (in his steady cam vest) and Jason setting up the crane.

That's me operating that bad boy.  Notice that teeny tiny camera on the end.  The guys were using the big ones for the 35 mm and the steady cam.

Later that night we stopped off for dinner at McLintocks.  It was by far the most expensive meal I've ever eaten but our food was delicious and the atmosphere was interesting.  In case you've never been there they have this gimmick where they pour your water from a couple feet above your glass.  It looks totally unnatural and for whatever reason it reminded me of Alice and Wonderland.

Andy and I.  I promise the only thing Andy had to drink was a bottle of root beer.  What's funny is that I think about half of the photos I've ever taken of Andy look just like this one.

Andy's business partner Jason and his beautiful wife *Amanda.  These guys are awesome!  We had so much fun hanging out with them.

*Amanda owns a flower shop BTW called House of Flowers so if your in need of flowers for any occasion give her a call.  

My Primary Calling

March 21st, 2009~                                  Lexi & Sis. Waite
Hands down I I have one of the coolest callings in the church!  I am the CTR 8 primary teacher or as someone referred to me today the "baptism teacher".  Today I was privileged to attend the first of a long line of baptisms.  It was such a great experience and I'm so glad that I was able to be there.  I am proud to have the opportunity to teach such an amazing primary class.  Each student brings something unique to our class and I appreciate and admire each one of their sweet spirits. 

Let's go Condors, Let's go!

Last Friday night, March 13th, we took Evelyn to her first hockey game.  It was so much fun and Evelyn had a blast!  It was by far THE BEST game I've ever been too.  They played the Utah Grizzlies and scored 3 goals just in the last frame putting them back in the lead.  The score ended at 6-4 Condors.  It was a totally intense game.  Evelyn got really into the spirit of the game too.  She was dancing and cheering the entire time.  She has asked me every day since then if we can go to another "baseball" game (she still can't get it in her head that it's hockey not baseball).  And she keeps telling me how much fun she had.

Our family

During the break I took Evelyn down by the ice to get a better view.

Our best friends Nathan, Stephanie & Brayden joined us.  We had so much fun hanging out with them.

 Condors victory lap.  Go Condors!

Girls Night Out~ Robert Redford Style

Alright, so your probably wondering why Robert Redford.  Well it all started because my dad posted this picture as his facebook profile.  And I'm a little ashamed to admit that I had no idea who it was let alone any of the movies he's ever been in.  So my brilliant Sister in Law decided to plan an entire Girls Night around Robert Redford to illuminate those of us that didn't have a clue.  She took us over to where her friends' horse was stabled and we got to pet and hang out with the horses for a bit.  

Nichole & Grandma

Nichole, Tiffany & Tiffany's friend

Tiffany

Afterwards we went out to dinner and then headed over to my house for some of my homemade Lemon Meringue Pie and to watch Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.  After all that I can now be proud to say that I know who Robert Redford is. The Sting is next on my list of movies to watch as per Michelle's recomendation.  Thanks Tiffany for planning the whole night.  You did great!  And thanks to all my "girls" for going out with us.  You're all awesome!  I can hardly wait till our next get together.

Evelyn Moments

Evelyn does the funniest things sometimes that make me laugh so hard. Yesterday for instance I was getting her ready for her bath and I noticed that she had 7 pairs of underwear on.  What...?  

A couple of days ago during Evelyn's eye exercises we were playing a game where she's supposed to quickly identify the pictures on the sticks.  She was trying to cheat by looking past it and using her peripheral vision so I told her to keep her eye on the stick...

And she DID.  
  I laughed so hard Evelyn asked me to take her picture.

Another time I was looking for the wipes and I asked Evelyn if she could help me find them.  Andy heard me and mentioned that he had seen some in the car.  A few minutes later I noticed Evelyn carefully inspecting her toy car and she looked up and asked me "Are the wipes in here?".

The last thing I wanted to mention is something I want to remember.  Lately Andy and I have been sneaking into Evelyn's room after she goes to sleep.  Andy whispers sweet things in her ear like "Your a pretty princess", "Daddy loves you" and "You're such a good girl Evelyn".  She'll be totally asleep but she gets the biggest most genuine smile.  It's so sweet to watch.

SO Many Questions...

 Can we go to Disneyland?
        Are you going pee pee?
               Whatcha doin'?
                      Can we go outside?
                            What color is this?
                                   Where's Grandma?
                                         Is Preston OK?
                                                 Can we see Eliza today?
                  
These are just a few of the many many questions that Evelyn asks me on a daily basis.  A couple of days ago just as a way to keep myself busy I decided to keep a count every time she asked me a question.  It was pretty hard but I did it.  I was seriously surprised by the result.  But now I know just how many question she can ask in a single day.  I could just tell you the number but that wouldn't be much fun, would it now?  So, for today only I want to hear your guesses (if you want) and the person who gets the closest will get... I don't know.... the knowledge of being the closest guesser (I know, I'm cheap).  Good luck!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Guess who I bumped into last night....


So my friend David who was an actor in my film invited me to Hollywood last night as a guest to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. There we got to meet the entire cast and creative team of one of my favorite shows of all time, THE OFFICE. It was way cool! Andy Richter was there as the Host and moderator. I got to see an episode that hasn't aired yet. I got to learn all about the show and the process from start to finish, got to learn some secrets (ie. Holly will be back for the season finale!) it was a super cool!

Best of all, I got to meet the cast, check it out!

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Photos






Sorry, I'm just now getting around to this. It's just that I didn't take a single picture on the night of the big premiere so I'm relying on the other people sending me the pictures they took (ehem* Memzy*). Anyway, the night was a huge success, about a thousand people showed up for the premiere! It was a lot of fun and I want to thank everyone who made it out, I know I was running around like a chicken with it's head cut off that night, so I didn't get to talk to a lot of you, but THANKS for supporting the film! Anyway, here are some pictures...


Sunday, March 1, 2009

Super KIDS to the rescue!

February 21, 2009



This morning the kids went to Brayden and Sadie's birthday party.  They had a TON of fun and the theme was "SUPER" cute.  The kids each got to make their own super hero cape and mask.  Amazingly most of the kids kept them on and it was quite amusing watching a bunch of kids run around with capes on.


Afterwards we went over to my sisters where we spent the day while my sister and her hubby went to the temple.  The kids were great and we had a good time hanging out, playing with the toys, watching movies, making lemonade and eating pizza and ice cream.  That's right!  Auntie Amber's totally their favorite.  You can ask them yourself.

Oh yeah!  And more good news.  My sister is preggers with baby #4!  I'm super excited for them and can't wait for another nephew or niece to spoil.  She might have to correct me on this but I believe her due date is September 24th.


Prestons New Haircut & Another Recipe

February 20th, 2009

One thing I love about Andy is that he cuts his own hair and he's really good at it too!  Now, as you may have noticed our little man has been looking a little beach bum-ish lately.  I happen to like the long hair look but his was just getting way out of hand.  SO... my amazingly talented husband gave him a much needed haircut.

During:
(He couldn't move his hands so I had to keep hand feeding him cereal to keep him from moving.  He thought it was funny and smiled at each bite)


After:

I can't believe how much different he looks now!  Much older, for sure.  I really like it!

Also today, I made Chicken Enchiladas.  Very Yummy!  It's an old family recipe.  I've written down this recipe so many times and repeatedly lost it so I figured this would be a good opportunity to not only share it but to put it somewhere I can find the next time I want to make it.

2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
2 chicken breasts; boiled & shredded or 1 can chicken
1 small can diced mild green chilies
Tortillas
Cheddar cheese

Combine the soup, sour cream, chilies, and shredded chicken.  Spread butter on the corn tortillas and warm on a frying pan until they are soft.  Coat the bottom and sides of a casserole dish with a light layer of the sauce.  Spread about 2 heaping spoonful of the sauce across the center of each tortilla.  Roll them up and lay them side-by-side in the dish.  When the dish is full spread the remaining sauce over the top.  Cover with the cheese and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Sleeping in

March 1, 2009~
With the pressure of the movie off his shoulders Andy actually slept in.  This guys only taken an average of one day off every other weekend or so and working whole 12 hour days every day.  The kids crawled into our bed this morning after I jumped into the shower.  When I got out they were all 3 fast asleep. 

The Hunger Games Review

I finished reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.  It was totally awesome!  The Smart Remarks Book Club has been raving over it so I thought I'd try it out and I'm really glad I did.  I am a super slow reader but it only took me two days to finish it.  I couldn't put it down!  My poor kids, I totally neglected them all day today.  I'll have to make it up to the tomorrow.  The book was great!  In short, it's about a televised event where a boy and a girl from each of the twelve districts compete in a fight to the death called the Hunger Games.  There's a sweet little romance intermixed that seems doomed from the beginning.  Also I'm not even ashamed to admit that there were times during this action packed story where I had to hold back a few tears.  It was good, really good!  I can't wait for book 2!