"so here's to you, mrs. robinson...."

fact: i am a sick, twisted, middle-aged woman who has a secret (okay, not so secret) fetish for high-school musical. and to be a little more specific.....um....ZAC EFRON. now is the part of the blog where i sound even more like a smitten 13 year-old than normal (btw: my sister told me i have overextended my stay on "kick a" and i am not allowed to say it anymore as i am using it all up before the eighth graders can--will now replace with fabulous. or sick. (see slang term of the day) ) i think he is quite dreamy for a little boy and i like that disney can make a cute, happy, shiny movie that doesn't involve teen pregnancy or an overdose on prescription meds. i especially dig HSM2 as it was filmed almost entirely on location here in southern utah and you catch a glimpse of it in almost every scene. lava springs country club is actually entrada,and if you wanna stay somewhere cool and ultra luxurious, check out the inn at entrada here. russ and i stayed there for his birthday in october and felt very rockstar. plus i like the fact that zac rested his hairs on the pillows there as all of the cast of HSM2 stayed there when filming. (i stopped short of asking to stay in the casita that troy bolton occupied when we checked in. but only because russ restrained me.) what i would like to do is send him the tshirt that we saw last night when we went to "27 dresses" and this dude in the bar was wearing it. i giggled all night.

unique utahns of the world UNITE!!!

today i go into chandler's school with poster in hand (btw, who started that heinous tradition? i'm all about taking a few photos to school, but that poster is outta control. if it doesn't look like a pebbles example then you suck as a mother....oh well, par for the course) to celebrate chandler as the "unique utahn of the week". our little chanandler bong is such a funny little duck who's world revolves around her friends and her social life and has been known on more than one occasion to be lining up the next sleep over or play date or swimming fun BEFORE we are walking out the door for the first activity. (who could she possibly have inherited this trait from? hmmmm..) she filled out a questionnaire and some of her answers were so funny that i had to post it. she's most definitely her mother's daughter, but we love her in spite of that fact.

so, this: we take treats in today when we do this thing and chandi wanted donuts, so last night russ went and got 3 boxes and we were in the kitchen cleaning up and i think this conversation TOTALLY sums up how funny russ is and what a caretaker he is and what a caretaker i'm NOT. let me break it down just one time for y'all:

russ: i got the donuts--will 3 dozen be enough?

me: yes, there are only like 26 kids in the class plus teacher, so it will be more than enough.

russ: chandi, do you have a drinking fountain in your classroom?

chandi: yeah, each class room has a drinking fountain.

russ: oh, that's good.

me: (puzzled voice, head cocked to the side) why in the world did you want to know if there was a drinking fountain? that's random....

russ: well, after donuts they will probably be thirsty. i thought they would need a drink of water, and i didn't know if i should bring cups and something to drink or no.

me. (laughing out loud) well, they are fourth graders. if they are thirsty, they can drink their spit.

oh, russrussruss!!! this is why i love him. he just slays me sometimes. what a good dad, and how lucky are we?

u2 in 3D

yesterday we got a wild hair and decided to have a "field trip" down to las vegas--i randomly stumbled across some information about u2 releasing a new 3D movie of their "elevation" tour concert (which we saw in salt lake in december 2005 and it RULED!!) and it was being released friday for a week-long engagement nationwide. i got on the website and it's playing down in las vegas in several different theaters. so we hitched a ride on the party train (actually we just mooched off jared and joellen's escalade--thanks) and went down to the red rock theaters to worship bono on the big screen. we got our 3D glasses and settled in for an hour and 30 minutes of U2 heaven--it was AWESOME!!!!! my only complaints were 1. they edited out my fav u2 song 'mysterious ways'--why didn't they think to call me first and ask my opinion? rude. 2. it wasn't loud enough!! it was plenty loud for most people, but when you are hardcore like me (or as some people would put it, deaf) you want it cranked up so you can feel the love that the edge feels for us. i had a hard time sitting still in my seat, so it was good we were up on the back row so megan and kamari and i could have a more "interactive" experience. we shouted and clapped and yelled for more and thoroughly enjoyed it along with russ, megan, steve, kamari, adam, amber, jared, jody, darrin, and dannielle. dinner was, of course, at cheesecake factory in summerlin (i know, totally suburbanized chain-restaurant food, but it calls to me..). on the way home steve got out his ipod and played 'name that tune' for us and we ended it on a high note by a sing-along to air supply's "making love out of nothing at all". good times.http://u23dmovie.com/

pebbles in my panties...

i hate scrapbooking. there it is. now they are gonna take away my right to live in utah. AND place my kids in protective custody. but, having said that, i am doing the evil deed even as we speak. i went thru a phase about 5 or 6 years ago when i put together books for kaitlyn, chandler, and abbey. they were never hooked-up, top of the line scrapbooks, just a few pictures stuck on the acid-loaded sheets that i applied with non-approved glue sticks. the problem is that my kids L-O-V-E them and pull them out all the time and pour over them like a banker with the stock market section. so, when abbey pulled hers out at christmas time and i realized that i had hers completed up til the end of 2002 (she was born in 2001, mind you. whoops.), something snapped inside and i realized it was time to stop speaking whinese and bite the bullet. my goal is to have all four books up to date by each of their birthdays and give them to them as their present. apparently mia wasn't even born into our family, as she doesnt even HAVE a book, so needless to say i've bitten off quite a big chunk. i decided to not even step foot into any scrapbook stores until i had used up as much of the 5-8 year old crap and stamped page cast-offs generously donated to me from my older sister, which i'm here to tell you that i have done, even though it was touch and go at times. i just ran out of page protectors on wednesday, so thursday i went over to pebbles. (as those of you in the know refer to on just the first word basis--btw, have to give a shout out to my friend amy's husband caylor who coined the phrase "pebbles in my panties-----genius!) when i walked into the store i kinda wanted to put a gun to my head a little bit because, although the selection is vast and wonderful and limitless, it is overwhelming and makes me a little irrational. PLUS, i'm still kickin' it old school with the 81/2 by 11 books and everyone who's anyone worth their scrapbooking salt in the northern hemisphere has swithed to the big 12 x 12's which i think is just an evil plot to make you spend more cash to switch everything over all the while increasing your self-loathing as you realize you really ARE the worst mother in america. or at least st. george. there was one small section of my sized paper that was seriously on their last legs, but i grabbed what i could and got the hell out of dodge. (usually as a rule this blog will be profanity-free, EXCEPT when it comes to pebbles.) abbey's birthday is on feb. 14th, and i am nearly done with 2006, so i think i'm gonna make it. but then chandler's birthday is feb. 19th, and i havent even tackled her yet. one day at a time. am i the only female who feels this way? please tell me no.

it's all better with "BLING", BABY!!

so, my mom and megan and i hit the big old navy clearance sale last week. my mom is awesome and buys a buttload (and she would be so very proud that i used that particular phraseology...yikes) of clothing for each of the grandchildren's birthdays every year. meg and i get the pleasure--and believe you me, it always is when you get to spend other people's money--of helping her shop. well, for some reason lana became somewhat obsessed with these gold shoes for emery (my brother ryan's little girl) and for mia. they were gonna be too big for mia by a couple of sizes but they were seriously marked down and so i said lets get them, mia will be in hog heaven. wow, did i underestimate these babies--they are so lovingly cared for and worn as much as possible that i knew they were destined for their 2 minutes of blog fame. btw, the leg turned to the side on the tip-toes pose? TOTALLY not staged by the mother--that is how she poses for pictures, legit!! she is such a little ham and knows how to work her mojo while making us all laugh and love her just a little bit more.

PET PEEVE: THE INDEPENDENT'S BEST OF 2007

i admit that i love the independent newspaper. i always pick it up when i am out and love that it does feel like a bit of an unerground magazine for the ultra hip and cool. but i have a major beef with their latest issue that talked about the best of 2007. one of their music reviewers put out his best 25 albums of 2007. now, i consider myself to be fairly up to the moment on all of the latest music happenings, even if they arent all depeche mode, but this list was retarted. out of the 25 artists he named as the best, i recognized 8--EIGHT, I TELL YOU!! who wants a list with groups that nobody but . 0000023% of the population has heard about? all it does is make you feel that much more out of it and like perhaps you have been living under a rock for all of last year and how could you possibly have missed that great new album by caribou?? (yes.) so, here is the list he had (the * will be by the ones i recognized):

1. arcade fire*

2. iron & wine

3. dinosaur jr.*

4. of montreal

5. feist

6. the shins*

7. grinderman

8. caribou

9. the new pornographers*

10. the national

11. the white stripes*

12. baroness

13. memomena

14. thurston moore

15. holy f*#k (yes, it was spelled like that, and secondly, what the h!?)

16. okkervil river

17. bishop allen

18. eddie vedder*

19. norah jones*

20. richard hawley

21. the clientele

22. low

23. the broken west

24. animal colletive

25. queens of the stoneage*



now, i dont know this reviewer, and i'm sure he is a super swell dude, but for the love!! i'm not asking for albums by danity kane or t-pain or even britney spears for that matter, just throw us a bone!

what the cloves are currently watching on tivo, january 24th, 2008

we love tv at our house and russ and i and the girls have many shows that we watch together.  right now i've been especially enjoying celebrity rehab with dr. drew on vh.  i just started it about a week ago and i am totally hooked. seriously, jeff conaway makes me feel pretty dang good about my dirty laundry and i think dr drew is totally hot.  a genuine silver fox if you may. i giggle when he calls the celebs out on their crap and identifies their unhealthy coping techniques and won't be manipulated like every other therapist these stars have gone through over the years.

we also currently love rock of love 2 with bret michaels..sick and twisted, yes.  we simply have no excuse.



other current clove family faves:

the hills--so cheesy and just a little bit staged but who cares?

the amazing race

survivor (got a little burnt out this last season, but this new one with fans and faves looks bueno)

scott baio is 46 is pregnant--WAY staged this new season, but still good.  and i can't believe i just typed that.

addiction--actually quite educational, which almost goes against my requirements, but hey

the soup--joel mchale for president of the world! he is delightful.

 journeyman--best show of the new season but might not be back which sucks.

chuck and pushing daisies--got off to a slow love connection with these, but they've grown on us big time

grey's anatomy

private practice

the office

30 rock--who would have known that alec baldwin was a comedic genuis?


thank you for letting me bear my testimony about how tivo changed our life and how much we can't live without it. 

2 bedroom penthouse suite at Bellagio.

just last month megan and neal had to go down to las vegas on a tuesday evening for a work conference.  russ and i decided to jump on this fun bus and we drove down to spend the evening living it up as best as mormon kids in las vegas can do.

while checking in at the bellagio (***2019 UPDATE this was our first tine staying at the bellagio.  and we could never afford to stay there again.  true story.***) we were offered the chance to upgrade to a suite for a fee.  we were intrigued but declined.  we were staying in this room for less than 15 hours and who needed an upgrade?

25 minutes later we are checking into a 1300 square foot 2 bedroom penthouse near the top of the bellagio and we were in 7th heaven.  we had the most spectacular view from our windows.  the kind of view you only see in movies about mobsters or casinos and the filthy rich with connections.  we ooooohhhhed and ahhhhhhhhhhd and wished we had brought our camera to document for posterity.  nevertheless we loved every minute of our time in this suite.

december 19th, 2007--thank you.  you were such a good night for us.  we got to stay in a room fit for mobsters and royalty, go to tony & tina's wedding with the marchants and eat some incredible italian food, and laugh at how much food neal could eat at cheesecake factory.  

the power of britney or madeleine had an HUGE britney spears influence early in life

for all of you britney spears naysayers, i speak to you today about the healing and calming powers of her new cd, "blackout".

this is madelaine and she is my sister, megan's first child and my neice.  she is precocious little lady who is the sweetest thing in the whold world.  she has taken to crying whenever she's strapped into her car seat.

megan tried talking to her, singing to her, animal noises, clicking, whistling, the whole deal but still she won't stop crying. 

in frustration and desperation, megan turned on her new cd from britney spears and within 15 seconds she's stopped.  completely.

she sat through the entire britney black out cd without a word for the next 48 minutes while megan drove and laughed and called neal and me.  when the cd ended and it skipped to the next cd, "black celebration" by depeche mode, madi started to fuss.  she waved her arms and scrunched up her nose and started to cry within 40 seconds.  she switched the cd player back to britney and madeleine was quiet in less then 10 seconds. 

when megan told me about this i couldn't wait to witness it and worried she wouldn't do it again.  but i didn't have to worry because this little girls knows exactly what she wants.  and that is britney freaking spears, dammit! is that too much for a little person to ask for? 

it's been the cutest thing to experience in the car with her and megan.  little people are the best and so much entertainment.  we love watching this little one grow.