Kevon Megan Mason Maya & Kade

A New Camera and A New Closet

2011-01-29T12:03:00.000-08:00

First... A New Camera.

I got a new camera for Christmas. At first I was a little overwhelmed, but after playing with it for a little while, I am LOVING it! It also helps that I have this cute little model to photograph. So here are some pictures to show off my new photography skills (really it's just the awesome camera and the cute model, I have no photography skills).

This is how I found Kade one day after a nap. I was busy doing something so I sent Maya into play with him until I could get there. She treats Kade like one of her dolls and loves dressing him up, he hates it!

Second... A New Closet.

I didn't actually get a "new" closet, but I cleaned and re-organized and it feels like a new closet. But first let me explain a little before you look at these pictures. (WARNING: the following pictures are graphic, view at your own risk) In 2008 I went from working part-time (getting home from work at 11:00 am) to full-time (getting home at 4:00 pm), and I took on teaching an AP Statistics class, which was a nightmare. I love teaching my AP Statistics class now, but that first year was AWFUL! Way too much work went into that class the first year. On top of working full-time 5 days a week, I went into work every Saturday for 3 or 4 hours, it was seriously the works year of my life. Everything got completely out of my hands... my house was a constant mess, my car was a mess, my finances were a mess (I didn't balance my checking account for over a year!) I had late fees! Sre you kidding me? I've never had a late fee in my life! I had zero patients with my kids and my husband, EVERYTHING was a mess.

My closet was one of those things that I had to completely let go of, throwing things on top of other things, never taking time to put things where they were suppose to go, and never taking time to reorganize anything. It has been almost 2 years since that school year ended and my house still hasn't completely recovered. But I'm almost there, my closet was probably the thing that needed the most attention, but also the thing I put off the longest because it was so overwhelming to me. As much as I hated my closet, the thought of starting this project completely overwhelmed me. But I did it! Over the last 2 weeks (little bits at a time since I have 2 kids and a baby running my life) I finished my closet. So here are the before and after pictures I wanted to share because I'm so proud of myself and so happy it's done. But also because I was inspired by an old "Rebelette" friend, Erin. I love reading her blog, she has tons of organizing, decorating, project, mom, scrapbooking, etc ideas. She always shows her before and after pictures and I love it, inspires me and gives me great organizing ideas. You can check out her blog here. If there's anyone else out there with a closet that looked like mine, I hope this will inspire you to start clean/organizing yours. :)

This is the view from the doorway to my closet, scary! And the floor was worse, I actually forgot to take my before picture until I had started on the floor. I don't think any carpet was visible when I started. (Can't believe I just admitted that)

And here is the same view after :)

Wow! Can you believe the picture above and the picture below are the same space?

This is Kevon's side of the closet, he was mortified that I was putting these pictures on our blog, but I told him I wouldn't show his side of the closet. Shhh, don't tell.

But look how amazing his side looks now...

These next ones are my favorite. I have built in shelves that I use for t-shirts, sweats, and sweaters. They had obviously gotten way out of hand, but they're so organized now, I love them. (Oops, should've moved that bra before I took the picture) :)

This is my new favorite space in my closet. What used to be a shelf for clothes is now for jewelry. I bought this jewelry tree at Costco last summer, I love it. And I have a fun little jar to drop my spare change in, hoping I can fill it up and buy something fun.

Kevon's shelves... Remember, shhh!

And after...
I need to make sure to give credit where it is deserved. Kevon did his side of the closet himself, such a good boy. :)

I didn't have a before picture of this spot, but it is another of my new favorite spaces in the closet. A perfect little nook for a foot stool. So when I need to grab something up high, I just pull out the stool, and... easy as pie. But more importantly, when I need to put something away up high, I can reach to get it in its spot and it doesn't just get thrown.

I bought this chest at Target, perfect for all that stuff that was getting piled on the floor.

Another awesome Target find, love this hamper! I hated my old hamper, it was cheap and always falling apart, this one is perfect. Cute, stylish, and has a liner inside that I can easily pull out to take my laundry to the laundry room.

Kevon made me these hooks for my scarves...

...and for my long necklaces that don't fit on my jewelry tree.

Well, that's it. I hope you don't think less of me after seeing my closet the way it used to look.

THANK YOU... Jessica Seinfeld

2011-01-16T18:55:00.000-08:00

My kids ate carrots and sweet potatoes tonight, and the funny part... They didn't even know it.

Thanks to this woman...

And her awesome book, Deceptively Delicious (which Santa gave me for Christmas).

Tonight I made Meatball Soup (Mason's pick)

My kids gobbled it up, loved the meatballs, never complained, well Maya complained a little, but she ate her whole bowl. And Kevon liked it too, he's possibly the pickiest of them all, not kidding.

Another bonus... Kade loves the puree's. He ate fresh carrots and sweet potatoes tonight. Not that disgusting store bought baby food, the real stuff, he LOVED it!

And another bonus... It's all healthy. It's not just the veggies you're sneaking in the food, all the ingredients are healthy. Everything in the soup is approved on my diet (Body For Life) which I'm officially starting tomorrow. Although I might as well have started tonight, everything I ate for dinner is Body For Life approved :)

I love Jessica Seinfeld, her book, and her hilarious husband.

Can't wait to make Cheeseburgers next (Maya's pick).

Happy Christmas!

2010-12-25T17:01:00.000-08:00

Wow, we had a great Christmas this year. Me and the kids were totally spoiled. Santa spoiled the kids and Kevon spoiled me. Here are a few pics of my Christmas surprise, a counter and drawers in my laundry room.

We're in trouble...

2010-12-04T23:40:00.001-08:00

This is what Maya's says to me as we're driving home from pre-school...

"Ohhhh Mom, I just think Aiden (a boy in her preschool class) is so handsome, with his curly hair. He's just so handsome, (sigh) I just want to marry him."

My reply... Laughing! Out loud. I couldn't hold it in, this girl cracks me up. Kevon, on the other hand is quite worried. But I tell him not to worry, she's just like her mom, boy crazy :)

Cutest Little Guy

2010-11-01T21:35:00.000-07:00

I took this picture with my phone a couple of weeks ago and my mom just taught me how to get pictures off my phone and onto my computer. You heard me right, I said my mom taught me. :)
Anyway, I just love this picture of my little guy. It's the picture I have on my phone and it makes me smile every time I open it. Mmmm, love him!

Halloween Decor

2010-09-29T21:52:00.001-07:00

Wow! 2 posts in 1 week, can you believe it? This one's for my mom, I wanted to show her the Halloween wreath I threw together today.
And while I'm at it, here's the top of my TV hutch.
Halloween is probably my favorite holiday to decorate for. I love Christmas decorations, the trees, the lights, the Santa's, but I get the most excited for Halloween decorations. I love the Halloween colors, and all the new sparkly stuff they're selling these days (like the balls on my wreath) and fall is here and it's the beginning of the holiday season. Mmmm, just love Halloween!

My New Favorite Websites:

2010-09-26T21:44:00.000-07:00

BabySteals.com, KidSteals.com, ScrapbookSteals.com

If you haven't heard about these websites, you've got to check them out. There is one item for sale per day at a great price, usually 50% or more off. I've purchased Baby Legs for Maya and Kade, a shopping cart cover, darling head bands for Maya, ribbon for scrapbooking, and many other things. It's a Utah based company, so of course all the more reason to buy from them.

Anyway, just wanted to share my new find. (And move that last post down a little so my ugly picture wasn't the first thing you see when you open my blog) :)

P.S. The daily steal is updated at 9:00 am MST. Depending on the item, you have to be quick, the good ones go fast.

A Few Things...

2010-07-19T11:27:00.001-07:00

First... My mom and I spent an entire Sunday moving Maya into Mason's room. It turned out so cute! Here are some pics of the finished project.

Second... Some updated pictures of Kade, since he's now 5 months old and the last pictures I posted were less than a week after he was born. We love this little guy, he is such a good baby and at such a cute age, smiling and giggling at everything.

Third... Here's my proof that Koli really was at my house. For those of you that haven't heard the story or don't know Koli, he was a contestant on The Biggest Loser this past season. He is a good friend of Kevon's brother and came to our house while he was here visiting in Utah. This picture was taken the first part of March while the show was still running and I had to promise that I wouldn't put it on the internet until after the finale. For those of you that watched the show, he was here during his 30 days at home before the final weigh in when he and Daris fell below the yellow line and had to fight for the third position in the finale. (Try to keep in mind that Kade was less than 2 weeks old when this was taken, needless to say I'm not looking my best)

Welcome Baby Kade

2010-03-02T15:13:00.000-08:00

Kade Kevon Inouye

February 17, 2010

8 lbs 1 oz

19 inches long

Thanks to Rebekah Westover Photography for the amazing photographs.

September Update...

2009-12-09T21:41:00.000-08:00

In September we found out that our little one will be a BOY, yeah!!! We were feeling a lot of pressure to get a boy. The Stratton's and Westover's were both expecting boys, and we have a group of about 9 couples whose kids have alternated gender each time, so the pressure was really on for this one to be a boy. Not to mention that Kevon just really wanted a boy. I was fine with either way, since we have one of each I didn't care too much, but now that I've started shopping for the little guy I'm reminded that there is just way cuter stuff for girls. We're open to suggestions for a name. If you have any you're willing to share send them our way.

August... Update

2009-12-06T17:05:00.000-08:00

In August school started, dance started, and we increase our family by one...

Here's Mason on his first day of 1st grade. (The outfit was NOT my choice) He is loving school this year (especially recess) and has become an avid reader.
Maya on her first day of Pre-School. It was an adjustment for her this year, there weren't any of the same kids in her class and that was hard on her. A couple of weeks ago a new little girl started at her pre-school and they have become great little friends, she has been loving it since Payton started.
Maya also started taking dance lessons this year. She absolutely loves it! She thinks she is a real ballerina. In August we also added a new member to our family. Eddie is our new puppy, the kids LOVE him, especially Maya. I'm not sure that Eddie feels the same way about Maya. He has been a great little dog and has fit in with our family perfectly. He was easy to potty train, has never chewed up a shoe or a toy, he's great! We love him.

Update... June

2009-12-05T20:38:00.000-08:00

No pictures to go with this one... We found out in June that we're expecting our third baby, yeah!!!

Update... July

2009-12-05T20:18:00.000-08:00

JULY... Mason turned 7.
He got to go to Cowabunga splash with his best friend Conor.

He had a Transformer birthday party with his friends. They got to watch transformers, play games, and have cake and ice cream.

He got a new bike and LOTS of Transformer toys.

Adam's still MY American Idol

2009-06-02T22:37:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I know American Idol ended a long time ago, it's taken me this long to come to terms with Adam losing. Just kidding, although I still think he should have won. Who the heck is Kris Allen? So here's my last shout out to Adam, MY American Idol...

LOVE LOVE LOVE... ADAM!

2009-03-27T18:00:00.000-07:00

Ok, I am LOVING Adam on American Idol this season. Kevon and I both thought he was great, but then he performed Tracks of My Tears this week, and now I am completely hooked. He has my vote all the way, I LOVE him.

Happy St. Patty's Day

2009-03-17T21:24:00.001-07:00

I've always loved St. Patrick's Day, don't know why, I just think it's a fun holiday that gets overlooked by most people. So we made the most out of it with a GREEN dinner. The kids were a little nervous about their GREEN pasta, but a lot excited about their GREEN juice. They ended up loving it, especially the GREEN ice cream for desert. Mommy and Daddy had a GREEN salad since we're trying to drop a few pounds before our trip to Disneyland (4 weeks from today, can't wait!)

So I hope you all had a fun St. Patrick's Day, and I hope you celebrated by at least wearing GREEN.

Family Pictures

2009-02-18T20:28:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Rebekah Westover for taking our family pictures. She is amazing!
Check out her blog at http://www.rebekahwestover.blogspot.com/
Thanks Becky... we love you!

HALLOWEEN

2008-11-03T20:20:00.000-08:00

We had a fun Halloween this year. We started out trick-or-treating our neighborhood with the Wilson kids. Maya and her little friend Emily Jo are so cute, they held hands the whole time.
Here are Mason and his friend Mel, we had no idea they were both going to be Hulk but it was pretty cute. Both of them refused to wear their masks, I guess they weren't very comfortable.

Mason and Maya knocking on Grandma Inouye's door...

All the cousins at Grandma's house. Brandon and Kristy were here this year, it was really fun for the kids to get to spend time with Aspen and Jaxon.

First "Loose Tooth"

2008-11-02T00:38:00.001-07:00

Mason finally has his first "loose tooth." He's a little confused about what a loose tooth is. He thinks that a loose tooth is a "wiggely tooth," and after it falls out, then it is a "loose tooth."

He's been waiting for this day for a long time. The first thing he said to me on his birthday in July was, "now that I'm 6 I think I'll have a loose tooth today."

He was also very excited about the silver dollar that the Tooth Fairy left under his pillow. I'm starting to wonder if there isn't a little truth to this Tooth Fairy myth, I still don't know where the silver dollar came from...

Yes... I suck at blogging!

2008-10-26T19:27:00.000-07:00

To all of you out there who are still faithfully checking my blog, I'm sorry. I just never got around to it during the summer and now that school has started I have NO time. On a typical day I have a list of 10 things that need to get done between work and home and I usually get about 3 of those things done. So blogging just isn't my priority right now =( We had some family pictures taken recently and when I get those pictures I'll put those on for you all to see. I'll try to get the big stuff like Maya's b-day (coming in November) and Christmas, etc. But that's about all I can promise right now. I keep thinking I'll get a handle on working full-time, but it's been 2 months since school started and still don't have it figured out. So I'm starting to realize that this is just how it's going to be until May, sucks!

See you later...

Major Update!

2008-06-01T22:55:00.000-07:00

I have been so lazy about blogging lately, but there are a lot of things that have been going on that I want to share, so here it is. Almost a months worth of blogging in one day. Have fun!

School's Out

2008-06-01T22:37:00.001-07:00

Well, one more school year has come and gone. This year was my first year teaching at a high school, it was so much fun, I absolutely loved it. The kids were so much fun, and so much easier to deal with than Jr. High kids. Here are some pictures of my classes this year, I only teach part-time so I only have 3 classes, pretty easy huh?

This calss has by far been my favorite class of all-time. We had so much fun together, they were the funnest group of kids I have every worked with. They would sit so quietly and listen to the lesson and take notes. But when the lesson was over we would talk and tell stories and jokes. We would argue about American Idol and talk about other favoriet TV shows, they were so much fun, I'm really going to miss them.

It was raining outside the day I took this picture so they didn't get to go outside like the other classes =(

Yeah! David Cook - American Idol 2008

2008-06-01T22:31:00.000-07:00

Yeah!!!! David Cook won! I guess I'm one of the 10 people in Utah who is excited about David Cook winning. Along with my mom, and a couple of kids at school, and I'm sure there are a few more. I couldn't be happier. I liked Archuleta, but I loved Cook! And I was getting a little sick of Archuleta's perdictable performances and his suprised face every time the judges praised him. He was a nice enough kid, and he represented Utah well, but I was always a Cook fan =)

Bye Bye Apple Tree

2008-06-01T22:15:00.000-07:00

Kevon cut down our apple tree, I'm ticked! He waited until I was out of the house, then he had a friend come over and the cut all the branches off (the first phase of getting rid of the entire thing). I was pretty upset at first but I'm getting used it now, at least I got this cute picture of my boys in what's left of the tree.

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

2008-06-01T21:36:00.000-07:00

My Mom turned 60 on May 27th. She is such an amazing woman and mother, I couldn't ask for a better mom. Happy birthday Mom. I love you! Hope you had a fun birthday.

Here are a few highlights...

Melynda and I drove to St. George Thurday afternoon just in time to meet Marcee, Abbie, and Dad, and then get to Mom's work in time to kidnap her. She was so suprised to see us run in with our "My Mom is 60" t-shirts and pink bandana's over our faces.

After we had successfully kidnapped her we headed off to Vegas. We had the most amazing hotel room, we stayed at the Venetian, it was awesome! We had two queen beds, a huge bathroom, and a living room with a sectional couch. It was a huge room and so fun to stay in.

As soon as we got to the room we had a little party with yummy cake from Dippidee and presents. My dad gave Mom a ticket to Phantom of the Opera, she was so excited, we hadn't told her we were going because we wanted it to be a suprise when she opened Dad's gift. It was so fun to see her so excited.

We did so many fun things. Friday was spent shopping and then going to Phantom that night, after Phantom we ate at Wolfgang Puck's resteraunt, yummmm. Saturday was spent it Summerlin. We did a little shopping, saw the Ashton Kutcher movie "What Happens in Vegas" (we thought it was pretty fitting for the occasion), played Bingo, and ended the night with dinner at Cheesecake Factory. Sunday we just got up and headed home, but we did hit some outlets on the way out of town for lunch and a little shopping. Here a few more pics of the fun weekend...

Having a little too much fun playing Bingo

Marcee waiting at Cheesecake Factory after a long day in Summerlin.

Happy Birtday Mom! We love you...

Crazy Hair Day

2008-06-01T21:29:00.000-07:00

Mason is finished with pre-school now but here are pictures from crazy hair day. Miss Ann had fun activities for every day of the last two weeks of school, this was Mason's favorite. He loved his hair-do because he thought he looked like his GI Joe Crazy Ninja, that's who is posing in the picture with him...

And of course Maya had to get in on the action with him.

Happy Birthday Boogie!

2008-05-11T16:03:00.001-07:00

Saturday was Boogie's birthday so Audry invited us to go up the canyon for some gourmet tin foil dinners and s'mores. It was lots of fun, but pretty dang cold. Happy Birthday Boogie...

Sunny's baby is due in 1 week. Can you even believe how good she looks? Not fare...

Nate & Audrey and James & Jamie - Somehow I didn't get a picture of you guys, sorry! =(

The Ninjas

2008-05-11T15:52:00.001-07:00

Mason had his last soccor game this past week. His team was called the Ninjas (Mason's idea I'm pretty sure).

Here is Mason with his best friend Connor, we were so excited they got to be on the same team.
Mason kicking a goal. Well... actually this was in practice, he has yet to score a goal, he's not very aggressive out there which absolutely drives Kevon crazy.

Mason's #1 fan

Potty Training ...? Easy as 1-2-3

2008-05-05T20:17:00.001-07:00

That's right, it was as easy as 1-2-3 (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) Maya was potty trained in 3 days! I can't even believe how smart she is. I have been putting this off for months because I havn't wanted to deal with the stress, the mess, the time, the inconvience, and everything else that comes with potty training. But Maya made it so easy. We put her in a Dora swimming diaper on Friday (she loves Dora and we didn't have any pull-ups on hand) it only took her peeing on Dora once to realize that she wasn't suppose to do that. She didn't have any accidents the rest of the day. She had once accident on Saturday and that was it. She went all day Sunday and today with no accidents, what a good girl. She is still wearing a diaper at night and it's a good thing, she hasn't woken up dry yet. And she is still a little nervous about going #2 on the toilet, but I figure those things will come with time. We are so proud of her...

Here she is on the toilet.
She wipes all by herself

And she washes her hands all by herself, of course I have to turn on the water, she's not quite tall enough for that yet.

Will the Cold Weather Ever Go Away?

2008-05-01T12:22:00.001-07:00

We had a fun day at the park before the cold set in again. We're all getting really sick of the cold weather, it's now May and should be warming up but it's 40 degrees outside and suppose to snow tonight. YUCK!

Kevon's Birthday and Easter

2008-03-31T19:42:00.001-07:00

Kevon's birthday happened to be on Easter this year. I felt a little bad for him because I think he got a little over looked by the holiday. Here are some pics...

Mason and Maya were very excited to give Daddy 2 Spiderman shirts. Mommy gave him X-box live (which I'm starting to think was a mistake). Maya helping Daddy blow out his birthday candles.

And here are the Easter pics...

The kids had tons of fun hunting for the Easter eggs that the Easter Bunny hid around the house.I think the Easter Bunny was way too nice this year. The kids got tons of candy and some toys.

Mason and Maya in their Easter Sunday clothes. (I don't know why Mason can't give me a normal smile in any of his pictures.)

Maya's dress was so cute, I had to through this picture in.

Maya's First Hair Cut

2008-03-26T21:15:00.000-07:00

Maya had her first hair cut last week. Here are the before pictures...

And here are the after pictures...

I didn't realize how bad her hair was until I looked back at the before pictures. It is so cute now that it is finally cut. As you can probably see from the pictures she has a little A-line bob. It is so fun to to do her hair every day with the blow-dryer, round brush and flat iron. She's finally getting used to the blow-dryer as is quite cooperative when she knows she'll get a piece of gum if she lets me do it.

Happy Birthday to ME!

2008-03-14T18:27:00.001-07:00

Yes... I just had another b-day (March 12). I hit the big 31, so now I'm officially "thirty-something." It turned out to be a really fun day. It started out pretty normal, but the kids at school were really cute with me. They wanted to know everything that I was going to do for my birthday and what I got (of course I hadn't gotten my presents yet). Kevon took me to the movie, he convinced me to see 10,000 BC which I wasn't very excited about, but I ended up loving it. Kevon was a little disappointed, I think he went expecting something great and I went not expecting anything, so of course I ended up loving it and he didn't. After the movie we went home and opened my presents from the kids. They got me (with Kevon's help of course) an ipod, which I'm so excited about. Kevon gave me his present early, a new digital camera for the Rock Band party. After opening presents we dropped the kids off at Grandma's and Kevon and I went out to dinner at Bajio, yummmmm. Then when we went home and Kevon took care of the kids so I could go to bed early, I know that sounds pathetic but it was something I really wanted. So... it was a good day. Of course nothing will ever top my 30th when Mom, Marcee, and Abbie drove from St. George to kidnap me at take me to Salt Lake City for the weekend. But Kevon did a good job this year with great presents and the awesome Rock Band party, it was a close second to last year. =)

P.S. Happy Pi Day (3/14)

Battle of the Rock Bands

2008-03-08T22:32:00.000-08:00

Kevon invited some friends over for a "Battle of the Rock Bands" birthday party. Everyone was suppose to come dressed like a rock star. We had a blast playing rock band all night. Here a few pics of the fun night...

Me and Kevon ready to rock out.

The all-girl band: Natasha, Heather D, Sunny and Audry...
Heather N. on drums, Darin looking very sexy on vocals, and Garrett who was originally bearing his sexy chest under that jacket (he got a little shy when brought the cameras out).

Sunny looking very rock star with her cute little belly, Kevon looking HOT on vocals, and Casey rockin' it on the guitar.

The Grunting Monkeys: Megan, Nate, and Mike

Barrett showing off his madd skills on the bass, Boogie playing some mean drums, Heather was the star of the night on vocals, and Natasha rockin' the guitar.

I had to throw this picture in 'cause my rocker is so HOT! And he has madd skills on the guitar.

And last but not least, my little rock star killin' it on the guitar. You ladies better watch out for this rocker.

Me and Kevon after a long night rockin' out. We had so much fun, we need to dress up like rock stars and rock on the weekends more often =)

Need a Tutor?

2008-03-04T07:37:00.000-08:00

My friend Debbie Cluff started and on-line tutoring company called Links for Learning. Last month I started tutoring for her and now I realize how great on-line tutoring is. I've been tutoring a girl who lives 30 minutes away from me, but it's not a problem because we do it all on-line, neither of us ever leave our homes for our tutoring sessions. I've never even met my student (which is kind-of weird) but I feel like I totally know her. Links for Learning is for anyone kindergarten through 12th grade, all subjects. If you need a tutor or know of anyone who does, I highly recommend Links for Learning. You can check out the website by clicking on the Links for Learning link on "Our Favorite Blogs." Let me know what you think.

BLOG SAFELY...

2008-03-03T11:54:00.000-08:00

We have removed all LAST NAMES from our blog and are asking that anyone who links to us from their blog do the same. We had a some random guy leave a comment about how cute our kids are, it freaked us out a little bit. We just want to keep our family safe. Thank you!

Mason and Maya

2008-02-29T15:34:00.000-08:00

Mason and Maya

My friend Becky took these pictures of Mason and Maya last summer. They turned out so cute. Becky is an amazing photographer, I can't wait to have her take our family pictures (if I can get an appointment with her). She has become very popular and is getting harder and harder to get into. If you need/want pictures for any occasion I highly recommend her. I have a link to her blog on "Our Favorite Blogs" check her out. She is awesome!!!

More of Becky's photos...

Mason Joe

Maya Ranee

Can you believe how beautiful this picture is? I have no idea how Maya got her long, thick eyelashes. They're not from me.

Grammy and Grandpa's Little "Outlaws"

2008-02-24T16:05:00.000-08:00

We gave these pictures of the grandkids to Grammy and Grandpa Thorpe for Christmas 2006. They're a little outdated, but we all think they are the cutest things so I wanted to share them.