Cora's Pictures

Uncle.

And not the relative kind. Really. Help.

I have learned some things from Tara's absence:

1-I stll love mommies and I'll be a momma's boy 'til the day I die and longer.
2-I will never be a single parent and will never wish that on anyone either-no matter how bad it might get. Call me stupid but either I can listen to her scream at me all day, or I can never have me time.
3-If I post #2 you're all wondering--does she really scream at me all day long?
4-I still really enjoy my 2 days/48 hours straight at work
5-You are now wondering-Are #2 and #4 directly or inversely related?
6-Gag reflex sensitivity is present at birth and continues until about 6 months. Somewhere between 18 months and 2 years it comes back for those who suffer from it.
7-Ila has also figured out #6 and continues to prove it. Sometimes in the car. Sometimes at the table. Sometimes all over Daddy's lap at the table. No wonder why she does not want to eat. Most of it comes back up.
8-I don't need Tara present to procrastinate.
9-I don't need Tara present to stay up late, but I do need her here to go to bed before midnight.
10-Better get some homework done. It is piling up

The Lone W.

Two more days

Dear fellow bloggers,

I am so excited!! I get to leave all five children for 8 days with Will....Where am I going?

To visit Heidi in San Diego of course! I cannot wait to see her new baby and I am just dying to hold him. I will admit I am a little worried and maybe a little sick knowing how much I will miss my family, but I really want to do this for me and my friend. We have been friends for 12 years and still talk to each other almost weekly. What a better reason to get together then to go help her out. I have had great lessons from my personal nurse (Will) and Becky so I think I will know just how to take care of the new mom. Love you guys and blog you soon.

love,
Tara

PS Will is a great Dad and I know that he is just dying to take the reins for a while.

The Pictures of Explanation

Our crazy wind storm before the snow. Now we are practically buried.

One of my very few Christmas Pictures...I never take enough. I was so tired.

Cora with the Dora Globe.

The Basement, what can I say, its done. We will have to give it color later, but I am so glad and so are the kids.....

The kids room under the stairs.

FINISHED

Dearest Love,

Thanks for spending the entire last month working your butt off in the man cave. You stayed up so many nights until 2 am and later, so that we could have our basement finished by Christmas Eve. You bathed in paint, calked with a wierdo, and layed brick at a moments notice. I love you so much and appreciate you "sticking to it" more than you will ever know. I love you.

Love

Me

PS The new office is great and it is even better not having 3 kids in one room anymore.


Dear Blogetts,

I have been on Blog strike ever since the basement started. I hope to see you next year or maybe sooner. However, I am now the mother of 5 and this does complicate things. We took another foster placement on December 12th. I hope the adjustment will be short but I doubt it. This has been another busy year and I have so much to tell you all. Mostly, I love and miss you all and see all the fun things that have happened while I stepped out. I cannot wait to finish catching up. I also hope to get a new page this year because I think my current is over a year old.


Love

Tara

Should have called in sick both days!!!

Here is what I was doing Friday at work!!! That is a 9000 gallon propane tanker on its side with a 4000 gallon pup behind it. The tanker was going from I-80 to southbound I-215 out of Parley's Canyon. It was going too fast, tipped over, took out some jersey barriers, a light pole, and a bunch of those large cement sound wall panels where it stopped halfway in someone's backyard. This is the biggest Haz-MAt incident I have been on and may ever be on.

The cloud is propane and all 9000 gallons slowy leaked out. Thousands of residents were evacuated, freeways were shut down for 12 hours, the driver was hurt (I can tell you how it happened if you call me-you won't believe me!!) but survived, he was rescued by first arriving crews.

I was involved in a lot of research, hands-on monitoring, damming, more air monitoring, overseeing the uprighting of the tanker and much more. It was awesome and maybe the scariest, most nerve-racking thing I have ever done. I learned a lot and fortunately the thing never caught fire and everyone went home at about 1 a.m.

Some fun stuff-Propane has a boiling point of -40 F and the outside temp was 50 F. There was a large pool of propane under that cloud that was boiling-one of the coolest things I have ever seen. There was also a ring around the pool that was freezing the ground and building up frozen propane. I could write so much more but just feast on some of these pictures of first arriving units. (We are across the valley and the guy was rescued just as we were arriving). It was very surreal to say the least.

These are the guys who rescued the driver-Crews from Stations 112 and 106!!

Our (Station 109) engine and Haz-Mat Rig

This news story shows some of the stuff I did. I was one of the firefighters in gear by the tanker in the dark pictures. http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=148&sid=4863887

Statement from LDS Church ....

LDS Church issues response to Prop. 8 vote
November 5th, 2008 @ 1:03pm
Statement from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints


Since Proposition 8 was placed on the ballot in June of this year, the citizens of California have considered the arguments for and against same-sex marriage. After extensive debate between those of different persuasions, voters have chosen to amend the California State Constitution to state that marriage should be between a man and a woman.

Voters in Arizona and Florida took the same course and amended their constitutions to establish that marriage will continue to be between a man and a woman.
Such an emotionally charged issue concerning the most personal and cherished aspects of life — family, identity, intimacy and equality — stirs fervent and deep feelings.

Most likely, the election results for these constitutional amendments will not mean an end to the debate over same-sex marriage in this country.

We hope that now and in the future all parties involved in this issue will be well informed and act in a spirit of mutual respect and civility toward those with a different position. No one on any side of the question should be vilified, intimidated, harassed or subject to erroneous information.
It is important to understand that this issue for the Church has always been about the sacred and divine institution of marriage — a union between a man and a woman.

Allegations of bigotry or persecution made against the Church were and are simply wrong. The Church's opposition to same-sex marriage neither constitutes nor condones any kind of hostility toward gays and lesbians. Even more, the Church does not object to rights for same-sex couples regarding hospitalization and medical care, fair housing and employment rights, or probate rights, so long as these do not infringe on the integrity of the traditional family or the constitutional rights of churches.

Some, however, have mistakenly asserted that churches should not ever be involved in politics when moral issues are involved. In fact, churches and religious organizations are well within their constitutional rights to speak out and be engaged in the many moral and ethical problems facing society. While the Church does not endorse candidates or platforms, it does reserve the right to speak out on important issues.

Before it accepted the invitation to join broad-based coalitions for the amendments, the Church knew that some of its members would choose not to support its position. Voting choices by Latter-day Saints, like all other people, are influenced by their own unique experiences and circumstances. As we move forward from the election, Church members need to be understanding and accepting of each other and work together for a better society.
Even though the democratic process can be demanding and difficult, Latter-day Saints are profoundly grateful for and respect the ideals of a true democracy.

The Church expresses deep appreciation for the hard work and dedication of the many Latter-day Saints and others who supported the coalitions in efforts regarding these amendments.