Shannon Video

Tonight at cheer camp (Maddy is going to a five day cheer camp and then gets to cheer at the high school football game in a week!) Mason, Aubrey and I were egging on Shannon about doing cartwheels and such. She kept claiming that she could still do a round-off at the ripe old age of 33....I was telling her that I didn't believe it.

Well...here is proof that at 33 she can still do a round-off!!!

Mason = Handstands

Mason was doing handstands while we were at cheer camp today. My sister didn't want him to do it, yet as Auntie I kept egging him on to do them. If you listen closely you'll hear my sister in the background saying, "You're going to break a bone!!!"

Phantom of the Opera

OH WOW!!

I went to see Phantom of the Opera tonight at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle. I saw this once before about 10-12 years ago, and had forgotten a lot of the details....it was captivating to watch again! I love this play/opera/musical....and of course nothing could make a person forget the scenes beneath the Paris Opera House focusing on the Phantom!

Brittany and I had seats right smack dab in the middle, about 10 rows from the orchestra pit/stage! It was fantastic...we even felt heat from some of the pyrotechnics they used. So between being late (my sister) and having a family that isn't much into taking pictures...there are no pictures of me tonight.

Here is the bill board for one of the greatest, if not the greatest, broadway musical ever! The Phantom tonight was sensational...as were the other cast members.

Another billboard....

I wanted a picture of the theater with all the lights on and such; however, it wasn't to be. First of all, we got to the theater just as they were closing the doors. Secondly, Brittany and I waited outside for Shannon and Ernie and by the time I decided to just head back to my car the lights were turned out! Bummer! Oh well...I have the memories!

I hired a Cleaning Service...

On Wednesday night Maddy came and asked me if she could come to my house Thursday after work and clean my house. She was going to the movies Friday night with her friend and needed some spending money. She figured she needed $14...enough to buy a ticket, popcorn and dibs...

So...I hired a cleaning service for a few hours on Thursday!Here is the list she had to complete...not too bad. I mean seriously...how dirty can a house with just one person get? She is quite the negotiator...she told me my house was a $20 job, but that she was being nice and making me only pay the $14....hmmm...wonder what standards she uses for determining the cleaning price of someone's house?

She wasn't so sure about cleaning the toilets!!! But hey cleaning house really means clean the things that don't get cleaned all the time!

Here is my smiling Maddy (after having done the toilets!)

Not only did she have to vacuum upstairs, the actual stairs, but she had to do the downstairs as well!

And here she is with her hard earned money...but hey, that looks like $15 not $14...I guess she got a tip!

Free Disneyland Tickets!

I know all of you enjoy FREE things...and I know all of you have to LOVE Disneyland. If you don't just absolutely love going to Disneyland (and California Adventures) then I think you might have a serious problem. It probably means your inner child is screaming at you to let him or her out once in awhile....let loose and have FUN!!!

Disney has been doing amazing marketing the last few years with the year of million dreams (or some other random number!)...and now they are letting people come to Disneyland FREE on their birthday during 2009! All you have to do is register your birthday and you get in free that day. All ready own a season's pass? No worries...they are giving you a card filled with money (the amount of your ticket) to spend on merchandise inside the gate, or offering you a Fastpass deal....they are honoring all birthdays next year...isn't that grand?!!

Cold Stone Creamery

Um, yummy yummy!!!

Cold Stone Creamery is doing free ice cream today from 5-8 pm! Sadly the closest Cold Stone for me is about an hour away. But I wanted to let all my friends out there in bloggerville know about this. So load up the kids, the hubby (heck, throw the dog in the car too!) and head out to Cold Stone for free ice cream today!

Plus, Cold Stone is an awesome supporter of the Make-A-Wish program!

Red Robin Birthday Lunch

Maddy is such a good girl...she always poses in the oddest places for me knowing that I am probably going to scrapbook it! Thanks Maddy for a fun birthday!

My friend Sarah is such a good friend! She is always willing to meet me for breakfast, lunch, dinner or a cup of coffee whenever I come over to her side of the mountains! I love hanging out with her and catching up on life happenings. Who would have thought we'd still be life-long friends after living across the hall during freshman year at Northwest...Thanks Sarah...love ya girl!

Here I am in front of the Statue of Lady! C'mon, we all have to have the same pose so I can scrapbook it properly...right?!?

And of course we made Sarah stand in front of the Lady when she got to Red Robin!

I'm not sure what she was laughing about...but it must have been pretty funny!

More Fair Pictures

Maddy's in there somewhere! This was one ride she couldn't convince me to go on with her!

Here we are on the Scrambler...getting ready to get dizzy, dizzier and even dizzier!

Again, another ride she couldn't convince me to go on....this was a wicked cool ride to watch though!

Self-portrait on the Scrambler!

Maddy on the Scrambler!

I'm a Swinging

Maddy getting ready to swing up, up and away!!

There she goes around and around!

I love the view of the swingers up high!

Looks like fun, right???!!!

Dajia's Day at the Fair

Peace out dudes...I'm hittin' the highway and blowin' this popsicle stand!

My Momma is absolutely the best!

Look what I got for fishin' at the Fair! It's red!

My Auntie...she is always making me smile for these pictures...and she is usually holding the camera backwards...

I was hoping to be an Indian Princess by taking a canoe ride, but alas, my blond curls makes me think that the Indian Princess thing isn't going to work out for me!

Goin' to the Fair!

Elliana Rose...this was actually her SECOND trip to the Puyallup Fair and she is only six weeks old! Isn't she a cutie patootie!

My sweet Maddy...she always has a smile for me! I'm glad she was able to spend my birthday with me!

Me! This is me at 34...cuz I've changed so much from 33!

Dajia was totally excited to ride rides with Maddy! And I played the Auntie card and promised her Cotton Candy if she was good...she loved that cotton candy!

Camille and the girls eating lunch at the fair!

1000th Post

Break out the Champagne....this is my 1000th post!

WOW!!!! 1000...that is such a large number, and I reached it one month shy of three years blogging. For some this post would have come a lot sooner....for others, they are still a long way off!

I'd like to thank all the people in bloggerville that take the time to stop by my blog and read it....I hope I can entertain you in some small way. I'd like to thank Marcie for encouraging me to post so she can have something to read at work! :) I'd like to thank Nina who I kind of met through blogging even though we went to the same church, but now is so far away....hope you are doing well. I'd like to thank my Mom and Susana who leave comments but do it anonymously (well, they sign their names...) since they are not bloggers! I'd like to thank the random people that have left posts advertising some get quick rich scheme, and even the person who left a comment in Spanish...with them my heart always skips a beat as it thinks, "yeah, someone read my blog and left a comment" only to drop when I see who it is!

I'd like to thank my sisters who have graciously endured hours of labor and raising children so that I have subjects to write about and to take pictures of. Without them, this blog would be pretty darn empty!


Most importantly...I'd like to thank myself. Because, let's be honest, Rachel Ann's Place wouldn't be a blog, well, without me!!! I have to do all the writing (and no, I don't stage writers' strikes)....I have to be the creative genius....I have to be the technical advisor when things go wrong....I have to deliver to you, my faithful followers!

I'm looking forward to the next 1000 posts...who knows the places we will go and the adventures we will take! Jump on board and see where this train is heading!

Zach and Maddy

When Maddy and I were over on the other side of the mountains, she got to spend the night wit Uncle Joe, Aunt Becky, Kurt and Zach....Joe is actually my Dad's youngest brother, so he is my uncle but Zach is Maddy's age! I used to watch the two of them when they were little...and now they are good buddies!

Here are the gangstas....kind of hard to be gangsta though when you are 9, white and live in the country!

Me and Zach. I love this boy!

Zach...picture compliments of Maddy

Maddy...not sure if this is a self-portrait or if Zach took it.

And this is what I ge on my camera when I let two nine year olds use it. Let's call it...

Berries in Foliage

I'll post more pictures of the fair and stuff later tonight or tomorrow.

I am 34!!

Well, I am almost 34...tomorrow is my birthday!!! Whoo-hoo.....

So I thought I would come up with 34 facts about myself....

1. I was born on September 16...and officially adopted and taken home on the 19th of September!

2. I have two sisers...Shannon (who is 8 months younger) and Camille (who is 7.5 years younger).

3. I have never been in a serious relationship (and have never kissed a boy!)

4. My favorite color is BLUE...the water, the sky, the water....

5. My favorite number is 8.

6. My favorite restaurant was Chang's Mongolian in Kent, but they closed so my new favorite is Impanema in Seattle.

7. I hate wearing socks and shoes...I love to go barefoot!

8. I started Kindergarten at 4 and graduated from high school at 17

9. My favorite music is country

10. My favorite singer (right now) is Michael Buble

11. I hate gardening...probably because my parents made us pull weeds out of the garden all the time..ick!

12. I hate camping...I've had one too many bad camping experiences through out my life

13. I have never broken a bone in my body...and no major sprains either.

14. I am considered legally blind if I do not wear my contacts!

15. My middle name Ann is after my Grandma Patricia Ann

16. My first car was a green Ford Fairmont...I loved that car!

17. I played clarinet in elementary school

18. I switch from an instrument to choir in Jr. High

19. I have lived in 3 states....WA, GA and CA

20. I have traveled to Europe and Asia

21. I love the Puyallup Fair (and I get to go tomorrow)!!!

22. Even more, I love Disneyland...and my goal someday is to go to EuroDisney.

23. I'm planning on going to Greece next year when I turn 35!

24. I'm 34 and almost done with school! I will be finishing my Masters Degree sometime next year.

25. I am terrible at remembering the words to songs...Susana thinks it is one of my better qualities!! LOL....and my sister Shannon just thinks I am a dork!

26. I love to Scrapbook!

27. I name my cars.....Haus was my car in college, Freddie was my Ford Explorer, and now I have Sadie my Saturn!

28. I don't like Chocolate...once I left a bag of Valentine's candy in my desk and work and months later when Susana found them still there she about panicked because there was chocolate not being eaten!

29. I have been a babysitter/nanny, lifeguard, medical assistant, receptionist, substitute teacher, retail clerk, promotional person for a radio station, administrator and many, many, many other "things"

30. My true calling is to be a teacher....if I have to stay in the workforce...because my true, true calling is to be a wife and mother...but that hasn't happened yet.

31. I haven't drank pop since December 31, 2007...coming up on one year.

32. I am extremely luck in winning contests (especially off of the radio)...I won $500 once!

33. I love Jesus

34. I am totally random....totally in love with life....fairly easy going.....very flexible (not physically but just in life)....I am ME!

Thank you Jesus for deciding that September 16, 1974 was the day for me to enter into this world. I couldn't have made it this far in life if I wasn't a Christian and didn't have God directing the footsteps of my life. I have been given wonderful parents, wonderful sisters, a great extended family and tons of supporting friends that I have met over the years. No one is in my life by accident...and I treasure each and every person that has come my way!

PS...If you happen to be at the Puyallup Fair on Tuesday look around for me...I'll be there ALL day long!

Welcome

Ellyson Ann

September 14, 2008

6:15 am

7 pounds 2 ounces

19 inches long

Proud Parents: Rodney and Holly

Mom and baby are doing great!!!

Ellyson Ann

It is a good day to be going to Puyallup!!!

Ellyson Ann decided that today is the day to come into this great big beautiful world!!!

My friend Holly went into labor this morning and headed to the hospital...I got a text from her Mom at 6:39 am letting me know!!!

Yeah...a new baby to love on!

Rearview Mirror

I am assuming (and yes Mama Q in high school algebra always said, "Never assume because all it does is make an ass out of u and me!!") that the lady behind me in the silver car at about 4:15 pm at the corner of Division and Broadway in Moses Hole, WA was playing Itsy Bitsy Spider with someone (hopefully someone young enough to appreciate it) in the backseat. Granted, I could not hear what she was saying...nor can I confirm that there was someone in the backseat although she kept talking towards the back....but I can tell you that she seemed to be making the hand motions for Itsy Bitsy Spider. HOWEVER, all she did was the water spout...what happened to the rain and the sun coming out?

I guess I'll never know.....

....but that is what I observed today through the rearview mirror. Strange things you see in those rearview mirrors.

Pay it Forward...

I have found another contest via blogging and through the SITS blog I have joined...SITS is basically a whole bunch of women who leave wonderful comments on all of our blogs for encouragement and such!



This contest is for a portable photo printer!! I really, really would like this as I am an avid scrapbooker and this is perfect for printing right at home in my scrapbook room! Go check out Tiffany's blog...One Woman's Rants and Raves to see how you can enter this contest too...and to read her fun blog.

Mad Rush

I have two assignments left to finish and turn in for this last class I have this term.....they have to be turned in AND graded/passed before Monday. So that means I need to get them in today if at all possible so that the graders can look at them, and if revisions need to be made I can make them and turn them back in!



UGH!!

Good thing it is slow at work, even with Shannon and Ernie gone, and I can do my paper at work. Now as long as I can stay off the internet....

Please Pray

My brother-in-law Ernie just found out minutes ago that his Dad died sometime between last night and this morning. He isn't sure if he simply passed away or if he commited suicide. He lived in Idaho Falls, Idaho and the cops are in and around his house not letting any family members inside right now. One of Ernie's sisters was able to get in for a few minutes and said the house was a mess, that is what is leading them to believe that it might have been suicide.

This is coming just after Ernie's Mom died earlier this summer. Ernie is a Christian; however, I don't believe the rest of his family is. I know none of them quite know what to do at this point or how to understand what is going on.

Please pray for all of the siblings, their spouses and grandchildren. I will keep you updated.

Ernie was able to talk more with his family and found out that thankfully his Dad didn't commit suicide, but that he died of a massive stroke. He will be leaving in the morning for Idaho to be with his family.

Irrational Fears

By nature I am not a fearful person...especially when it comes to things of God and faith. There are many things that if I wasn't a Christian would be very fearful to me; however, they are not!

HOWEVER....and that is a big HOWEVER...

There are a few things that I have an unexplained irrational fear about...don't laugh!!

1. Snakes...hated them as a kid...hate them now. I can live with this fear though because snakes don't generally hang out in my house....I have to go find them (which I don't thank you very much!.....except for the Thailand Zoo, but that is another story).

2. Frogs/Toads/Etc...don't know why...I like how they look and think they are cute, BUT I hate them getting close to me....ugh, ugh, ugh!!!!! Once they get within a certain distance of me I stop thinking of them as cute and start thinking of them as icky, icky, icky....

3. And my #1 irrational fear???? Mice/Rats/Gerbils/Rodents of ANY KIND!!! OMG...can't handle them. They give me the heebie jeebies, make me break out in heart palpatations and a cold sweat. I have had one too many bad encounters with these things to make them enjoyable. I know that I am bigger than them. I know that they can't possibly do anything to me. I know all that, but it still doesn't matter...

Why do I tell you all this?

Well, I was taking a 10 minute power nap on my couch during lunch today and at the exact moment I opened my eys I saw something scurrying underneath the entertainment center and back behind the TV. I have my center katywampus to the corner, so there is LOTS of room back there...but I couldn't even bring myself to look behind the TV and see what, if anything, was back there! I hit the side a few times with the broom, but NOTHING!!!

It is making me sick to my stomach to even think about having to go home tonight with this, this thing running around my house making itself comfortable and inviting all his other little buddies to come over and scare the crap out of me!!

Oh Lord help me! And help Ernie find the mice when he comes over tonight pretending to be the exterminator with mice poison and traps!!

Someone Please...

...fill me in on something!



I've been hearing about the book "Twilight"; however, I don't really know much about it. I've heard friends of mine are reading it, I know that there is supposedly a movie coming out, and that is about it!! What am I missing?

I'm usually pretty up on things; however, this one has me stumped. I figure I could just read the book jacket, but it is soooo much better to get a first hand report...



So fill me in!!



Please!

School House Rocks

I am doing a lesson plan/paper on sequential relationships and how to use that teaching strategy in teaching a new concept to my students in a history class....this is just homework right now!

I decided to write on how a bill becomes a law....so I went Internet surfing. I mean I remember the basics, but government isn't my strongest forte!

Guess what I found??? Those of you younguns won't remember, but us "older" generation will....I found youtube and videos of School House Rocks. Remember? These used to be on Saturday mornings...

So sit back and enjoy a brief 3 minute journey to the past...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEJL2Uuv-oQ

ok...for some reason youtube's embedding isn't working...so you'll have to click the link!

Wish List

What do I need a wish list for you ask!

Well, I'll tell you!!! My birthday is coming up...yeah for September 16th...I'll be 34!

So this list is mainly for my Mom (hint, hint!!)

So if I could have anything I really wanted...I would love to have this Cricut...it is a personal die cutting machine for my scrapbooking!! I am seriously considering buying it if I can get my hands on a JoAnn's coupon while I am over in Puyallup (did I tell you I was going to be in Puyallup for my birthday???...Yep, I am!).

The next thing I'd like is the Carrie Underwood CD "Carnival Ride". This CD has so many great songs on it, and Carrie is a wonderfully amazing singer!

The final thing I'd like is a cast iron pot so that I can make my popcorn on the stove without it burning!! I love to make popcorn on the stove...no microwave or air popper for me; however, the pan I have now is one of those really thing pans and my popcorn (not all of it) tends to burn each time!

So, not much! But a few ideas!

"If you want to do it, you can do it. The question is, do you want to do it?"

~~Nellie Bly~~

Please Pray

There is a family, Kevin and Tara Balcom, from my Puyallup Church who just lost their baby girl Monday morning. She was born via emergency c-section and had some chromosome problems, which caused heart defects. Little Kristen was born on August 29th and went home to be with Jesus on Monday September 1st.

Kevin and Tara are having a memorial service this coming Saturday, September 6th at Puyallup Foursquare Church at 10 am. If you know the Balcoms and can make it to the memorial service I know they would appreciate the support.

I ask that all of us lift this family up prayer as they wrok through the grief and sorrow of losing their little girl. The also have another little girl who probably doesn't really understand what is going on and needs to have extra love right now too!

58 years...

That is how long my Grandpa and Grandma Knutson (Pat and Shorty)...my maternal grandparents have been married as of today!! Happy anniversary to a wonderful set of people! My sister Shannon, Brittany and I went over on Sunday to visit them as there was a whole bunch of family visiting (my mom....her sister and family....her baby brother and family...and her oldest brother). We missed seeing a few people as they left before we got there on Sunday! It was a fun day to catch up with family and eat a good home-cooked dinner!!!

My grandpa is doing well (as lots of you know he has been very ill the last few years), so well in fact that he told his kidney and heart and cancer doctors that he was going hunting (again) this year. An activity that he really, really needs to give up, but hey when you are 80 I figure you should do whatever the Hell you want! You're old...you deserve it. If you die, then hey you die doing something you enjoy instead of sitting in a chair in your house or a nursing home...ok, ok enough I know!! When my grandpa told this to his doctors, they all told him NO!! One doctor even went as far as to actually kick my Grandpa in the shins...I think he shocked my Grandpa, but didn't deter him! Again, give the guy a break...he just sold his boat let him have this.

I don't get to visit my Grandma as much when there are lots of people there as she is busy cooking and such...but she is doing well too!

I love my Granma and Granpa so much! And wish them the best for many, many more years to come. I can only hope that when I marry that I see 58 years of marriage!

Side note--My grandparents were part of a DVD a few years ago for home dialysis...basically a how-to DVD. The DVD interviewed six patients and how they did dialysis at home. I found the link to my Grandpa and Grandma's portion of the video and thought I'd share with you all so you can see how cute they are! Remember, this video is two years old...my Grandpa now has a semi-permanent oxygen tank he carries around, he talks louder cuz he doesn't wear his hearing aids like he should and he is harder to understand these days because the disease he has makes it so that his saliva doesn't come in which makes his mouth dry! Click Romayne "Shorty" Knutson for the video!

Another Contest

This time I found the website Your Impact Matters, and the owner of this blog has done a few contests..this is my second time entering over there. This time the contest is for a recycled journal...the journals up for prizes are an "I Dare You" journal or a Japanese Bird type journal...both look fun! I encourage you to go over there and enter the contest...click here for the link to the contest post! Good luck!