The Power of the Purse

This Dessert represents the beauty & quality of our evening -- Fabulous!

Monica & Laura

WPN Member & Host Julia Pettit

Catherine & Emily

The good friends - Shauna & Krista

On Tuesday night, I was fortunate to attend the "Power of the Purse" event held at the beautiful Grand America Hotel in downtown Salt Lake. The event was held by the Women's Philanthropic Network of Salt Lake (WPN), which is a group of women committed to effecting substantive change through the power of philanthropy. The Keynote Speaker was the inspiring Kathy LeMay, President and CEO of Raising Change.

My firm hosted a table, which lawyer and WPN member Julia Pettit organized. It was so nice to be out-of-the-office and having dinner & quality conversation with the women lawyers at my firm. It was also fabulous to have a night out with my very good friend Krista -- we called it our "date" night, since we both have children and rarely make it out past 7:00pm.

Wild Things in the House

Besides 14 six-year olds, there were some other "wild things" at the party. Wild Things Science came to the party with a Boa Constrictor, two South American Birds, a Chinchilla, and a Hedgehog. Unfortunately, I think the boys felt upstaged by these other "wild things" as their attention spans were shorter than the tiny hedgehog.

As for the birthday cake, I highly recommend Cold Stone ice-cream cakes for your next party. The cake was decorated with Halloween ghosts and pumpkins and was absolutely delectable. Half of it is still sitting in my freezer.

William's 6th Birthday - Kids Having Fun

Costumes!
All for One, and One For All!
Happy Day!

Don't Mess with Me.

Ninja's in Training

Despite the rain and the cold, William had a nice birthday party. We had 13 costume-clad boys, who had so much fun running and playing throughout the house.

October 12, 2007

The entire Kindergarten Class signed William's Birthday Hat.

X-Box!

I'm 6 now!

Grandma Donna

Hooray for my X-Box!!

The 6-year old Ninja & Papa Loop.

William turned six on Friday, October 12th. His grandparents came to Utah to help celebrate his big day. He was thrilled to open an X-Box, which he had been wanting for over a year, a Battleship game, and a set of miniature golf clubs. He was so excited for his Halloween party the following day, he could hardly sleep.

Ice Skating & Ski Jumping

William & Quintin
Quintin sticks it!

Ready, Set.....

Go!

Ker-Plunk!

Last weekend we took William & Quintin to the Park City/Basin Recreation Fall Festival. It was freezing cold (36 degrees), so we did not stay long. The boys went ice-skating and bounced around in a bouncy-house. Their favorite activity was the ski jump, which they did over, over, and over until we said "Let's Go."

Snow in Utah! September 29, 2007

Oh my gosh!

Yummy Snow!

We knew Saturday would be cold, but we never expected a snowstorm! It snowed for a good 4 hours on Stagecoach Drive. Soccer was canceled and the temperature dropped to 38 degrees. Shawn and William went to the movies, and then William played in the snow. It was freezing outside, so hot chocolate was in order when William came back inside. I am a little worried about William's "outdoor" birthday party. We could really use a few more warm days before the real winter storms begin.

During Librarian Lion this morning, William interrupted the story to ask me if I knew the anatomy of a book. "This is the spine, and this is the dust jacket... some poor books do not have dust jackets." It is one thing when your 5-year old talks grown-up. It is entirely another for him to use "librarian-speak," especially when you are the librarian, and all-too-familiar with library vernacular. Every Friday, the kindergarten class visits the library. They learn the protocol for checking out and returning books (which they can officially do in January), and the different kinds of books available to them.

I am glad he is learning library protocol from a reliable source. I have lost my last 5 public library books to airplane seat pockets.

At least I am up-to-date with the fines.

Construction Continues

William & Trey & Cooper

Happy Boys!

Trusses, Windows, Siding.....

The construction continues on Stagecoach Drive. Today, carpenters, window installers, and the shutter people all worked on my house. If it looked different, I would be more enthusiastic, but the more things change, the more they stay the same. We are having a travertine mural installed in the kitchen, so I am hoping for a big celebration when that is completed.

I have had a terrible, full-blown cold for 10 days. Keeping up with William, Shawn, and work, has really been a challenge.

Birthday Parties Galore

Birthday Party #3

Last weekend was a whirlwind. William had 4 birthday parties and a soccer game. When Friday came, I realized I had not purchased any gifts. I quickly went to Blockbuster and bought gift certificates for all the kids. Except for the names, all the gifts looked exactly the same. I could tell William was a bit troubled by these generic gifts, as well as by the fact that I wrapped them in the backseat of the car while Shawn drove to each party. Ever try to use scissors & tape in a moving vehicle? It is not easy, but it comes with the territory of being a working mom.

I attach another fall photo -- the view from Stagecoach Drive is magnificent these days.

Camping Out

Happy Campers

Smile Mom

Good Morning!

William loves to camp in our yard. It is very comfortable inside the tent -- William and Shawn sleep right through the night. My sleep is distracted by the sounds of wild animals and the howling wind. I think about the bear and end up sleeping with one-eye open. William loves to have his bacon & egg breakfast inside the tent, and I am always happy to oblige. This morning we had some visitors who very much wanted some breakfast too.

The Uh, Oh Feeling (San Francisco Part 6)

The girls at Harlot

Shauna & Lynn

Lolly & Shauna

Beauties

Lolly & Lynn

Dancing at HarlotSleeping Beauties

This week at school, William learned about the "Uh, Oh Feeling." When you get that feeling, you say "No!" and run away. It's all about keeping your body safe. William always sits by me as I blog. He told me we have the "Uh, Oh" feeling in these photos.

On Saturday night, we went to the Salt House for dinner, and then by accident, to a new club called Harlot. I was ecstatic that my fabulous friend Lynn could join us. I have known Lynn since 1991, and every time we see each other, it is like no time has passed. Hannalorre's dear & gorgeous friend Shoreh also joined us. It was the second time I have met Shoreh, and she is as kind as she is beautiful -- Thank you for the bottle service at Harlot, Shoreh. It was a luxury that we all enjoyed.

Harlot is a new club that apparently is very difficult to get into -- it shares a wall with the Salt House. There was a huge line out front. We ticked a lot of waiting people off when the owner of Harlot came over to the Salt House parking lot and asked us if we would come to Harlot - no cover. A bouncer stepped aside as we entered Harlot through the back door. More people were ticked when we were seated at a private table with bottle service (thanks to Shoreh) -- apparently all of the tables had been reserved a month in advance for a birthday party -- those people were not happy with us, especially since even the birthday boy could not get past the front door. Oh well. The music was awesome and the club had a cool vibe. Unfortunately, the "uh, oh" feeling hit Nancy and I about 1:15am, so we headed back to the hotel. Lynn, Shoreh, and Lolly have higher "uh, oh" tolerances, which generally do not kick in until about 3:00am. I only wish I had such stamina.