Warning: Probably gonna be TMI (mom, that means "too much information")

So today was house cleaning day. I seriously only do it once a week. An hour or two of good old elbow grease pretty much covers it for a week. (One of the benefits of having a house that can be vacuumed completely without moving the vacuum to another electrical outlet) Anyway, I'm down on my knees wiping up the grime on the baseboards in the hall & I notice that there are little spots of blood EVERYWHERE!!! All over the walls, the doors, the trim, even the floor. Everywhere. It's like someone went a little crazy with the splatter paint. Remember "tole painting" in the 90s? You know, those little kitschy decorations and you had to use watered down acrylic paint & an old toothbrush to get just the right amount of splattering on your little Christmas decorations? Like that, but with blood. Nice, huh? It looked like someone had been making animal sacrifices in my hallway. After ruling that possibility out, I checked us all for open wounds. Nope, no open wounds....oh, but wait.... the dog. Charlie, bless her heart, apparently has some kind of an infection in her ears & spent the weekend at uncle Scott's scratching the crap out of them and so now, when ever she shakes her head (which is frequently, what with the infection & all) she imparts that perfect little splatter pattern on the walls. In blood. Lovely. I've cleaned them off 4 times today.
Good thing I love her more than my left leg.How could you not?
Next time "tole painting" is popular though, I know who I'm going to for some great splatter work.

Vegas, baby, Vegas!

We went to St. George last weekend. Matt golfed all day Friday & part of Saturday & then we went to Vegas. Sawyer spent most of the ride down in a cheeto-induced coma, I wish I would have been able to get a picture of her pudgy little cheese-product stained fingers, it was classic.I was a little leary of taking a 3 year old to Las Vegas, what with the porn-hander-outers on every corner, but it actually was very good, they don't hand their stuff to you if you have a kid, it was like an invisible smut-sheild. Wonderful! Grandma Susie has recently bought a Toyota Solara convertible that she keeps down at the condo & let me just tell you, driving the strip in a convertible is the funnest thing ever! We showed her the lions at MGM, very cool, the M&M store, the fountains at Bellagio, but her favorite, by far was Excalibur. She has been talking about "my castle" ever since. I would never have thought I'd have such a princessy girl, not that I'm a jock or anything, but she wants to be a cheerleader for goodness sake!

We finally found her a dance class today. Actually I decided to go with the first one we checked out because she threw the BIGGEST tantrum when I told her we had to wait until Thursday to actually attend a class. So yeah, as of Thursday, Sawyer is starting a Pre-Ballet class at Creative Arts Academy. Is it normal for me to be so freaking excited/nervous for her real, not at home, life to begin?!

It's gonna be so much fun, Boom-Boom!!!!

I wanna help with you, mom!

Sawyer has always loved cooking with me. Actually, who am I kidding, I never really cook, I bake. There is a big difference. Like between a size 6 and size 12 big of a difference. So yeah, we bake. As soon as I don an apron and get out my measuring cups, Sawyer runs over and says "I wanna help with you mom!" She has an apron, but it's fugly, just plain red with no personality at all. Anyway, the point of the story is that on Sawyer's birthday, which just happened to be on a Sunday when my amazing sister-in-law Jennifer's family was in town, we had a bit of a family party & Jen's mom just whipped up the MOST ADORABLE apron for her! Such a sweetheart, I love them. I cannot even tell you how much she loves this thing. The fabric is ridiculous. Thanks so much, Nancy!

Prop 8

okay, I NEVER talk about politics or religion even very often, but reading my friend Laura's (incredibly well-written) blog recently, I have to link to it, so if you have a minute, here is how I feel about Prop 8.

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl

We had a little party at Susie's tonight to celebrate Sawyer's 3rd birthday, a 5 soup buffet & rolls & salads & magical disappearing grapes (ha ha, Susie!). As always WAYYYY too much food & tons of fun. Matt did some games with the kids, and got the title of "best uncle ever" from Grace. Then we had cake & ice cream & presents. It was very, very fun and just what Sawyer wanted. She also wanted a "Barbie & the Diamond Castle" cake, but that stinkin' diamond castle appears to be made out of glass and is extremely tall, so instead she got a "mom is way over scheduled this week" castle cake. But it was yummy, and she loved it anyway. I tell ya, there is nothing better than the way she says "WOW!" at everything that is even slightly exciting. I can't believe my baby is three years old already. I really meant to have a little sibling for her by now. Best laid plans, huh? I gotta tell ya, this week has been pretty overwhelming, we had our YW in Excellence on Wednesday & I had a lot of little things that had to be done for that, and honestly, that was my only focus for the first 3 days of the week. By the time it was done, I felt like a complete failure in every other aspect of my life; wife, mother, housekeeper, friend, dog-owner, daughter and sister. I have no idea how other people, people with more children, more demanding callings in church, jobs, etc. handle their lives, and manage to somehow make it look all nice & pulled together. No idea! When I get stressed out, not only does my house turn into a landfill, my waist expands two inches, my husband gets verbally abused, my daughter gets ignored or snapped at, and my hair gets permanent pony-tail bend. Oh, and my scriptures gather a thin layer of dust. How do you all stay balanced? How do you decide what to let slide & what to stick to? I feel like I'm just treading water sometimes. I've really got to learn to not let my stress level change how I treat my family. That is what I really need to be learning & working on when these crazy, overscheduled times strike. So yeah, how do you do it?

dank you grandma & grandpa

I had no idea that Sawyer would freak out as much as she did when I told her that she got mail. The birthday card from Grandma & Grandpa today was completely the highlight of her day. She still has last years card on her dresser, they always find these cute little pop-up bunny cards that are so very Asian-cool it's not even funny. It's a great start to her birthday week. I cannot imagine better absentee-grandparents. We are very excited to have you be the best non-absentee grandparents. See you in May!!!!! We love you guys!

Oh-Geeee!!!

So my personal favorite part of our trip to St. George was the time Matt called me & told me that Downeast Outfitters had my lusted after chair for the whopping price of not $1200 (like the Pottery Barn wants for it), not $800, like I was willing to pay for it when I misread a Pottery Barn Sale ad, but $400!!!! In perfect condition except for missing the little extraneous lumbar pillow! I now own the Pottery Barn Green Ogee Madison Chair! You have no idea how much joy this stupid chair brings me. I am in love with it and therefore even more in love with my cute husband who found it for me & was willing to spend much more than I'm sure he was comfortable with for a not completely necessary peice of furniture. Oh, and he also bought that big ginormous couch as well, so no matter what I spent in St. George, he had me beat! Good times all around.

Girls Trip!

Alright, so now we're up to date and I can post about this last little trip to St. George. All last week I had the worst itchin' to go to some place sunny, to swim one more time, and deny the conclusion of summer. I'm so glad I was able to talk Susie into coming with us, Matt had to work, obviously, and I was go glad he didn't throw a fit about missing Halloween with Sawyer. We did so many Halloween-y things together, it wasn't a big deal at all. I was able to see my sister Jen & her cute kids and Doug & Shannon. Sawyer & I swam all day Saturday & no, I did not take her trick-or-treating, I know, I suck. But we did go to see Thriller at Tuacahn and that was WAYYYY better than any amount of candy, I think Sawyer would agree. She loved all the dancing & only had to cover her eyes a few times. It was mostly funny, not so much scary & we LOVED it! If you haven't seen this yet, you have got to go next year. It is definatley a new tradition for the Davis family. Oh, and Matt from So You Think You Can Dance was in it, so that was kind of a bonus.
Sawyer spent most of the weekend tormenting Zoey, bless her heart. She really made us appreciate Charlie & her patience with Sawyer. Actually patience is a bad word, Charlie seems to actually enjoy Sawyer lately, rather than just tolerate her. Sawyer seems to be old enough now that Charlie comes when she calls & they actually play together quite well.
Grandma went a little nuts at the Gymboree and Sawyer is now in love with her "kitty dress." She was literally weeping when I had to wash it, she has worn it to bed twice now. It is apparently the perfect dress for dancing in & I even caught her singing into the speaker stand. Susie & I were laughing our heads off. I think it might be time to take a year off from American Idol.

Susie's Halloween Extravaganza!

I am really catching up on my blogging tonight, aren't I? Okay, now we have Susie's Halloween party, which was not last Sunday, but the one before that. It was super fun to see everyone dressed up & have yummy, yet slightly creepy food. I should have gotten pictures of the meatball/eyeballs or the witches finger rolls or the worm infested jell-o. But here are some pictures of the fun costumes, be sure you check Sawyer's out, because it will not be featured again due to the fact that there will be no traditional trick-or-treating post because I am a bad mom & did not take her this year. (I'll explain later)

A-Rod & MadonnaHogwart's students & Spidey (I love Madeline's hair for this... perfect color!)And this guy is paying the tuition at Hogwart's on a circa 1970's cop's salary.The vultures waiting for the death of the pinataSawyer's "Unihorn" costume. Unihorn really makes more sense than unicorn, so I've stopped correcting her.And finally the pinata is popped by Officer Davis! I love this shot of glee on Jake's face! Classic Jake. It was (as always) such a fun party, thanks Susie!

The Zoo!

A few weeks ago, we took Sawyer to the Hogle zoo for family night. The weather was great & was really fun until we all got too hungry & started to get ornery. So we left. But it was fun. Did that whole "renew the zoo" proposition pass? It needs it. The parts that have been updated recently are awesome & stick out like a sore thumb compared with the parts that have been around since I was a wee little one. I think I love giraffes almost as much as I love calves. Look at those lashes! And ever since we chased seagulls at SeaWorld, Sawyer expects to be pushed at high speeds at any bird that dare to walk on the ground. The peacocks were no exception. She laughs like a maniac while she does it; the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it? :)

We're going on a trip!

Yesterday we randomly decided that Sawyer & Grandma Susie & I would go to St. George today. I really want to get in some more sun & swimming before I resign myself to the fact that summer is actually over. Sawyer has spent every single second since being told that we were going on a trip, saying "I can't wait till we go to.... what's it called again? (it's called St. George, Sawyer) I can't wait till we go to St. George!" She packed her princess suitcase with all her most important things like Octopus, her little Book of Mormon and her pink blankie and puppies. She freaked out when I busted out our swimming suits. Even though we will miss Daddy on Halloween, he promised that as long as we took copious amounts of pictures, that it would be okay.

not really sure what to do with these things....

I need some help here. I'll just come right out with it: in all my bra-wearing life I have never really found a good way to wash them without killing the copious amounts of padding that I seem to like to wear. Just throwing them in the wash certainly doesn't work, the straps get all tangled around the other clothes & make everything all bunched up, not to mention the lovely lumpiness that results. Hand washing? Are you kidding, Victoria? I don't know about you, but my secret is that I have zero time for crap like that. I did buy a "bra buddy" contraption from Bed, Bath & Beyond, and I really liked it until it fell apart the fifth time I used it. So yeah... how often & how you ya'll "warsh" your brassieres?

Black Island Farms, my pictures

Hey, alright, at the insistence of Melissa (love you!) I will post some of my pictures from our excursion with the Kettles. They probably aren't really as bad as I think, at least not the ones that I took after Jessica adjusted my settings. First off, let me admit that I love calves. They are so sweet with the longest lashes ever and soft little pink noses. I took soooo many cow pictures. Is that weird? And here is what Jessica & I did all night. I love hanging out with her. Not only is she rad with an amazing sense of style and so kind & cool, but she also is endlessly patient with my photography questions and always willing to share her knowledge. Plus, she comes as a package deal with a darling little boy and Matt's new man-crush, Danny. I tease Matt so much about his "girlfriend Danny," but I secretly am just so grateful for his friendship. Matt is a great friend & has not had much luck with friends who seem to appreciate him. I love Danny & Matt's friendship. I also love Sawyer's relationship with him. They are so cute together.On the way out, we stopped & let Sawyer get her face painted. I have fond memories of having my face painted at the Utah Arts Festival one year, and wondered how on earth Sawyer would stay still long enough for it. I guess when she's excited about something, it is possible to focus on not wriggling that long. She never ceases to amaze me. Ya think she liked it?

Black Island Farms Corn Maze

uh..... you know what? I was going to post a few pictures from our trip to the corn maze, but then I looked at Jessica's post & threw up in my mouth when I thought about what my pictures looked like. Go here for adorable, well edited pictures and cute narration.

Cabin + Fall = Good Times

Ryan & Stacey invited us to share their cabin weekend, along with Stacey's sister Kim, her husband Ben & their cute little Liam. (we all missed you, Dru & Melissa!) We love hanging out with these people! Matt & Sawyer went up on Friday night, but I had a cake Saturday, so I had most of the weekend to myself which, frankly, was very nice. I'm kind of a loner, I really enjoy being by myself. I just like getting stuff done and not having anyone to worry about.... but only for a while. Plus I knew that Matt & Sawyer would have a great time together, so it was good all around. Friday night I finished up the cake while watching Friday night Stand-up on Comedy Network, one of my fave guilty pleasures when I'm alone on a Friday. Then Saturday I cleaned the house, worked out, shopped a bit, got a massage & delivered my cake. Lovely day. The cabin trip was great, Lando, the great white dog, wore Charlie thoroughly out with his puppiness, she's still sleeping it off. Matt made a classic Wal-Mart purchase; a bee bee gun, and had a great time shooting cans and stuff, while I read and read. It is so beautiful up there during the fall. I love it! Oh, and no trip to the cabin would be complete without a game of frisbee-golf! Please forgive the nose-picking picture, I think it's hilarious & I love her little Eskimo hood.

it's soooo quiet here....

Sawyer is at a playdate, her first official one that has no ulterior motive of babysitting. I have things I should be doing, but I really am just missing her little giggles & tugs on my jeans. She is my buddy. But now she has buddies of her own, I guess. Very strange. Okay, what shall I do with these free hours? I need to:
-make a batch of caramel buttercream
-make a batch of vanilla & raspberry moistening syup
-make a batch of chocolate glaze (can you tell I have a cake coming up?)
-clean my car out
-somehow figure out how to wash my feather bed because Sawyer had an accident on it a few weeks ago & it has been stinking up my laundry room since then because I have no idea how to go about cleaning something that large (any suggestions?)
-prep my garden for winter
-load YW pictures onto a jumpdrive for Wendy
-clean up doggy doodoo
-figure out what cabinets & flooring we need for the basement from Ikea
-study scriptures
alright, the first shall be last & the last shall be first, right?
I think I'll start with the scriptures. Thanks for helping me sort that out.

Kids Say the Darndest Things vol. I

Sawyer is just entering that stage where you need to write down every single thing that comes out of her mouth because it's just too funny! I love her observations on life & especially her sassiness. I'm sure I'll hate it when she's 13, but right now I love seeing her little personality develop. I honestly can't say that I understand "baby-people". You know, the ones who want their infants to just stop growing, they want to savor every baby thing. I have never been that way, I love seeing Sawyer learn & grow & half the time I just sit back & let her figure things out herself because I simply want to see how she figures things out. She's really so smart, I'm not even biased at all. Baby-people are crazy anyway, those first six months are pretty much my own personal hell, what with all the sleep-deprivation. Hopefully I'll be better about it the next time around.
Anyway, this week she has come up with some zingers, and since I have that whole tapeworm problem, I can't remember but two of them.
1) On Wednesday I was trying to get Sawyer to climb up into the car and she was trying to set the world's record for Most Effective Dawdling by a Two (almost three) Year Old. Anyway, I won't say I didn't have a "tone" when I said "come on Sawyer, please climb up into the car!" To which she replied "okaaay, Mom! Don't freak out!" Seriously. I laughed sooooo hard! I think she learned that phrase from her dad. It certainly wasn't me.
2) We are staying at Becky (Matt's sister) & Craig's this week to watch their kids while they are in Russia. Pretty much the greatest job ever, these kids are all so cool & are so kind to Sawyer. Anyway, we were all lounging on Becky & Craig's bed when Caroline asked Sawyer to go help her make some Orange Julius which, of course, she wanted to do. She crawled across Matt to get off the bed, who decided that she's just the perfect weight for some chest presses. She got all huffy about being delayed & said "DAD! I have no time for this!"
I cannot imagine a cooler kid. I just love her to pieces. As my good buddy Jill said on Monday, "she is just full of joy." Everything is so awesome to her. If I whisper anything to her, act like it's a big secret, no matter what I say, she'll squeal with delight! I love you, Boom-Boom!

what else was I going to say?......

UPDATE 24 hours later & I still can't remember what it was I was going to say. That is certainly not for lack of trying. It has been driving me CRAAAAAZY!

OH OH OH WAIT!!! I just got it! I'm not even lying! I just thought I'd give it one more shot & there it is! k? You ready? Alright. So. The Twilight movie is coming out on November 21st, and there is going to be some big shebang at the 3 of the Megaplex Theaters, (fyi, the Gateway is NOT one of them.) for $45 you can go to this big "red carpet premier" Twilight "Prom" party and see the midnight screening. There will be all sorts of frivolity and I'm certain that it will entail an obscene number of insane teenage girls, but would anyone be down for that? I put myself and 5 others on the list just in case, but then I realized that it was the night before my first cake competition (more info on that later.) So yeah, I dunno. Let me know if you're interested though! And go to megaplextheathers.com for more info

Dear Couch, I love you, please come home with me. Love, Celeste

Took a little trip to Downeast Outfitters tonight, where Matt & I simultaneously fell in love with the Mammoth Sofa from Z Gallerie. It retails for $1499.99, but it is at Downeast for $839.99, and is in grrrrrreat shape. We thought we wanted a leather sectional, but this couch is just too cool and would be great for making out. (Don't worry, we'll get rid of it before Sawyer is up to any of that junk.)This picture doesn't do it justice. It's so stinking deep and when you see it you will want nothing more than to nap on it. And it WANTS you to nap on it. It says "no, don't get up. Please stay in my plush comfy arms forever. Please?" And you have to say "okay couch, just for ten more minutes. I love you, couch."

moving on

It's in a lovely buttery yellow/beige micro suede and is literally as wide as a twin bed, and long enough that Matt, at 6' 2" can lay on with without touching the armrests at all. Let's just say it is very aptly named.

And I am going to secretly buy this chair with my cake money. Matt would never approve, but I LOVALOVALOVA it. (wipe drool from chin.) Love it. Of course it's like as much money as I make doing cakes annually, but whatever, right? It's potterybarnarific.
I have decided that decorating sucks. I like love shopping for these things, but, like my dad says, (and Matt has now started saying,) I have champagne taste on a beer budget. Matt brought home a bunch of carpet samples tonight. Most frustrating thing ever! I want the basement to be nice, but it's really just kind of a starter home and so we don't want it to be too nice, but technically we could be here for a while, so I don't want to pick crappy stuff..... grrrrrr. There has to be a happy medium in there somewhere. I think if Matt had his way he'd turn the whole thing into a putting green; maybe a little mini golf course for he & Sawyer to play with. Lovely.
Here are two lovely things I learned today though:
1) THERE IS A MAC COUNTER IN MACY'S IN THE LAYTON HILLS MALL!!!!! Were you aware of that? No more going to South Salt Lake for Studio Fix or Strobe Cream anymore! Holy crap, do you know what that means? That there is the end of spare money as I know it!
2)..... uh..... I totally forgot what I was going to say. I have serious memory problems. I thought pregnancy was bad, but lately I have been dumber than EVER! I forget huge chunks of information for no reason at all, like a half a second after I was just thinking about them in depth. Matt & I will have lengthy discussions about something, make a decision on it and ten minutes later I have no idea what we decided. I think he is going to put me in a home. I honestly am pretty worried about it. I think I have a tapeworm in my brain. He eats pieces out of my cerebral cortex and ooops, there goes my memory of my thirteenth birthday. I wish he would just relocate himself to my intestine like a good tapeworm.
I still can't think of what else I was going to say.
This sucks, I'm going to bed.

This is how I feel about the election. President-Schmesident.