changing it up

not that it's all that important but i'm finally getting around to changing the blog's name. way back in the day when i first started it, ella was just a bun out of the oven. and the name j.c.d.e (the first intial of our names) was about all i could think of in my post-partum haze. and now it's 3 1/2 years later and i still couldn't think of anything much more creative. but it's been totally bugging me that the L-man has been left out for this long.
shame, shame, i do know my name.

and i decided to use it, i guess.
and so cherie was here is now what i'll call this thing.
it does have some meaning though. it represents this little corner of my world where i come to be myself.
to enjoy the loves of my life.
to write down thoughts running around up there in my head that when spoken sound like gibberish (because i am infinitely better at communicating in the written medium).
to create a little happiness…
in the here and now.
and for years to come.

so in case you're looking. this is where you'll find me. 🙂

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it’s been a long long time…

since i've been to a professional sports game of any sort. in fact, i think i've only been to one. and i remember it vividly. oh so vividly. it was a date. nice guy. great guy. a childhood friend that i climbed trees with. only one minor problem. but for me it was major. he was shorter than me. 

for many girls that's no big deal. to me, it was. i will admit that i had (and still have) a little complex about it. totally shallow, i know. but at that time all i could envision in my mind was that classic scene of a groom carrying his lovely bride across the street from the SLC temple. back then, that was tradition. and how in the world was that ever going to happen if i married someone shorter than me? he would heave me up. stumble. trip. then fall. and i would squash him.

and that's about all i could think about on that date.

this time around, the game was much more pleasant. free tickets and a hot date by my side. (and he can pick me up without me squashing him. truth be told though, i hate to be picked up anyway.) too bad the Suns lost. but no worry, the tall, dark, hot, best date ever was all that mattered!

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mask family halloween: the play-by-play

'twas a fun halloween at the mask household! we had a pirate, a princess, and a pudgy toad. all recycled costumes, i might add. much to jeff's delight. he's all about wearing a sheet over your head rather than investing a mere fortune in a 4-hour frivolity. i'm cool with that. the kids were too. 

the evening started well. first, a little bribery from me to get some pictures in their garb. dallin wanted nothing to do with the bandana or the eye patch. i had to coax him ever so gently outside begging for just a moment of his utter embarrassment.

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then on to "cinder" ella. too bad being a princess has to be so uncomfortable. the dress was itchy. the shoes were clunky. and the hair. oh the hair. once again, mama begging, wait, more like chasing her down promising to make her look so beautiful. she agreed…and was pretty tickled with the outcome.

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and then mr. "catch me if you can" because i am hopping out of here to play frogger. he wiggled and squirmed and i followed him around trying to keep him from getting squashed by oncoming cars. he, of course, was having the time of his life. all while i was trying to save it!

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the gathering of loot was a hoot. ella, well, she had only one desire. suckers. just suckers. she would approach the giver and ask if they had any suckers. if not, she would turn and leave in despair. jeff and i had to smooth it over after every house. but not to worry. upon arriving home, she was overjoyed at her collection and proceeded to unwrap each one and take a lick. funny girl! 

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and dallin had wide eyes as his bag kept getting fuller and heavier. he inspected and protected his treasure with great care and even shared a little with the sticky-handed frog.

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i'd say it was a frightfully delightful night for all. 

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my walls will never be the same.

i love pictures of my family together. love love love LOVE THEM!!! 

but alas, usually i am the one behind the camera so we are short one person. which doesn't bother me but when i get the chance to capture my whole family on camera. well, that just sends me to the moon and back and there again. i love catching a glimpse of us at a moment in time. whatever that moment is. it just makes me happy to know that we are a family. mom, dad, sister, brothers. and we love each other unconditionally. even when one of us teases the other. or bites the other. or makes the other cry. or frustrates the other. 

none of that really matters when you get to eat donuts together. not to mention rainbow sprinkled donuts.

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we had the swell opportunity of getting some family pictures taken by my favorite photog ever, tara whitney. somehow she just creates the magic i crave in photos. probably her easy going style is what makes it happen. just like these pictures. we had no intention of getting photos of us eating donuts. but while we were standing in the alley next door, the kids saw a donut shop. and you know, can you ever say no to the call of a donut? 
first thought was to say, "hey if you be good, we'll bring you back here when we're done." but tara was cool with us taking them right then. now my walls will never be the same. for more reasons than many. 
i love these. i love us. i love donuts. what could be better than that? 

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blog renamed: oh the places he goes.

so i think i need to rename the blog–oh the places he goes. since most posts as of late consist of the crazy things i find my son doing, it sounds only fitting.

today's crazy stunt: 

i'm in the kitchen and decide to give buster (as i call him) some beaters to play with while i finish the laundry. i figure he's never touched them before so they'll occupy him for a good ten minutes. just enough time for me to move clothes from the washer to the dryer and put in a new load. i go into the laundry room about 50 feet away. all is well. then i hear a clank. which i figure is him banging the beater on something. i turn around. and where is he? he's sitting in my kitchen sink. 

how the kid does it so stealthily quiet is beyond me. i have to smile. he sure livens up my day!

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feelin’ the love.

just got home from the land of hilarious mormon billboards. every time we go i find myself actually looking forward to seeing what comical marketing we will see on the roads. sometimes i cringe. sometimes i laugh. my favorite this time…a billboard introducing the benefits of carpooling. the slogan…welcome to the promised lane. catchy, no? 🙂

aside from that, i adore taking trips to utah during this time of year. that's no secret of course. it does my body good to soak in the climate and even more so to spend good times with my family. the reason for our trip this time was this young man right here.

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he's leaving on a mission. so it gave us all a great excuse to gather and feel the love! no trip would be complete without a hoard of pictures. and this time is no different. i love capturing my family together. 

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picking berries with grandpa

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surfing at flow rider. like father, like son!

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the wagon was not a hit!

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goodbye utah! we're anxiously awaiting the next batch of mormon ads you've got for us!
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finally fall

in our home, there is one sure indication that it is finally fall…

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when i whip up a batch of these puppies, it is a sign to all that i am welcoming in the drop in temperature (ever slight that it is here) and getting geared up for my beloved time of year. the smell of pumpkin cookies wafting through the air always makes me giddy. now all i need to top it off is spiced cider from trader joe's. then all will be well with the world.

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(here's a link to those hobble creek candles just in case you wanted the info. and i also tried to answer your questions in the comments from the last post. hope it helps!)
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the trouble with tuna

sometimes i get to thinking my day-to-day blog posts are pretty trivial when compared to life events that are much more important (i.e. stephanie and christian's recovery, etc.).  then i sit back and think, but hey, this is what life is all about. a combination of the insignificant mixed with the meaningful and a little bit silly but sometimes grave sprinkled on top. it's being able to look at all of these things in perspective that helps us enjoy life.

that leads me to today's post. which is downright silly. but that is what's happening in my life today.

jeff has tunafishaphobia (an intense fear of tuna fish). he will not admit it, of this i am sure. and maybe it's a little harsh to call it a fear. but in any case this is what happens EVERY time a can of tuna is cracked inside the walls of our home. 

jeff:  with a look of great distain as if he is going to wither up and die "what's that smell? is that tuna fish?"

me: "yes jeff, it's tuna fish."

jeff: "where did you put the can?"

me: "in the sink."

jeff: "you really should rinse it out."

me: "jeff, i swear you have PTSD from your college roommates leaving tuna fish cans in the trash."

jeff: having a flashback to The Pad (nickmame for his BYU dwelling), "it would rot in there. nasty."

me: "rest assured, hon, i will dispose of this tuna can properly."

jeff: holds his breath and quickly bolts out the door to work secretly hoping that the smell will not be there when he returns home. 

and so i whipped this out today just for him.

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by the way, this is my FAVORITE candle of all time (hobble creek wassail). rhonna introduced me to it and it's been a fall staple ever since. i have made trips to Utah just for this candle. well, sort of. 

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oh, and did i mention…

that he also plays the piano.

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(p.s. lest you think that i give him free reign to put himself in peril every day, this happened while i was using the little girls room this morning. yes, i do momentarily take my eyes off him. perhaps i'll have to start using a porta-potty!)

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