Happy Halloween

Take a walk with me down Fisher's Halloween Lane.


Storybook Halloween, 1998. Sean (Cat in the Hat, age 8), Janessa (Pippi Longstocking, age 6), Stockton (Thing 1, age 4), Landon (Thing 2, age 4).

Don't let the cuteness of Thing 1 and Thing 2 fool you. We chose those characters for a reason!!


Sean, 2002. Age 12


Stockton, 2003. Age 9


Landon, 2003. Age 9


Janessa, 2003. Age 11


2007 (Can you guess who Janessa is?)


Sean and Jerry Robertson, 2007

Listen To The Mustn'ts

LISTEN TO THE MUSTN'TS

~Shel Silverstein

Listen to the MUSTN'TS, child,
Listen to the DON'TS
Listen to the SHOULDN'TS
The IMPOSSIBLES, the WON'TS
Listen to the NEVER HAVES
Then listen close to me--
Anything can happen, child,
ANYTHING can be.

A Hint of What's To Come

Photo credit: The Grateful Goddess
Overflow with gratitude and wonder at all the little things that bless your life, and you will soon awaken to the realization that nothing in life is a little thing. -- The Grateful Goddess

I have been thinking lately about the state of our country (who hasn't?), coupled with the general buzz sweeping the internet world regarding "green" living, simplifying, preparedness, getting back to basics, becoming more frugal and self-sufficient, and going homemade. I am so impressed with many of you: folks who rise to meet the challenges of the day with strength, ingenuity, resolution, hope, faith and charity. We must stay optimistic. And we have much to be thankful for.

So, here is what I have decided to do. In each of my blog posts for the month of November, I am going to write about something I am thankful for. And during the month of December, each blog entry will be a little "gift:" something pleasurable and good that I want to share.

Happy times ahead.


Quilt from Quilt Diva Julie

Click on this quilt graphic above to watch a cool video on this symbol of gratitude.

Funny Girl

Barbara Streisand was Funny Girl. Janessa is in close competition.
The other day she was home alone. She was paid a little visit by Mr. G. Normous Spyder. Now, Janessa has met and conquered many challenges...she has mastered a Mozart Violin Concerto. She has memorized all the president's of the US, along with their years in office and political party. She won a competition in Physics for building the strongest, yet lightest tower. So, when faced with her mortal enemy, can you guess what my tough daughter did? She calmly took a picture of it.



Then she frantically called the neighbor!!

(Okay...now here in the story, start singing the song, "I Need A Hero.")
Trevor, the white knight neighbor, jumped on his fiery steed (or in this case, his fiery sneakers) and trotted down the street to our home. Bursting through the door, sporting his shiny head....er...uh, I mean....shiny armamentarium, he slayed the mini intruder looming large in Janessa's mind.

Trevor, thanks for coming to Janessa's rescue.
Funny, funny girl. Funny, resourceful girl.

Get 'em While They Last

The economy has had the nerve to infringe upon cookie production. No, no..not sweet innocent cookies. If you love Mother's Circus Animal Cookies, buy a bag or two. And grab a tissue. The pink and white chemically-laden, saccharinely-sweet, frosted unidentified animals have met their untimely demise. After 91 years, the company has ceased production.

Bye, bye cookie that brings back childhood memories.

Peanut Butter and Pickles

Awhile ago, I wrote about dill pickle cashews. It occurred to me that nuts and pickles go together pretty well. So, guess what I had for lunch? A Peanut Butter and Pickle Sandwich. It's taken me over 40 years to discover this.

BTW, I also love bananas and cheese together, and apples sprinkled with chili powder. But I draw the line at Butterfingers dipped in Ranch dressing!!

Weekend in Provo

We had a great weekend with Sean. Brent and I relished every minute and enjoyed getting a glimpse into Sean's life as a BYU Cougar.


Photo credit: a4gpa flickr photostream
Provo trail in Autumn


The weather in Provo was a perfect balance of sunny warmth with a crisp Autumn nip.


The fall colors in Provo are spectacular right now: a natural variegated spectrum ranging from deep green to canary yellow to cranberry red and many hues in between.


Stayed at Justin and Amy's. Look at this fun pillow. You know sleeping in that bed is going to be great.



Outside the Apple store where we drooled over the new MacBook Pro


Dick's Sporting Goods in The Gateway is having a killer sale. Check it out. Their winter coats (Spyder, Columbia, etc) are good deals...for both children and adults.


We got this coat for Sean. (He's living in PROVO now!) It was listed for $250. We paid $100.


Taking a break from shopping at the Gateway.


Two of my favorite things


This dude was making a video for You Tube


Creamery on 9th about 20 steps from Sean's dorm. We dropped in for a "little loaf" of bread and milk on the way to the soccer game.


Price of milk: $1.05


Price of water: $1.09


Photo credit: Josh Sudweeks
We walked around the beautiful campus. Sean provided delightful commentary along with interesting tidbits about the buildings.


Photo credit: Josh Sudweeks
BYU Harold B. Lee library consistently ranks in the top 10 in the country. It has been ranked #1 in the Princeton Review above Harvard, Princeton and Yale.


Photo credit: Josh Sudweeks
Joseph F. Smith Building


Enjoying a little soccer at the Mountain West Title championship game.
I'm holding Sean's new coat. It works well.


Photo credit: BYU
BYU Women's soccer game


Photo credit: BYU
It was so fun to watch Katie Larkin. She led the Cougars to a 3-0 game, making them the champions in the Mountain West Conference.


Enjoyed a delicious meal at Zupas


Salad so fresh! I'm nuts about berries.


Sean's dorm


Quite a site to see the flocks of students walking to church


Outside the Conference Center after church




Content to be in Sean's shadow.


Thanks for a fabulous weekend, Sean!!
And thanks to the Anderton's and Drawe's for feeding my children left behind.
There is much good in the world.

Miss Potter

Having sat in our Netflix Queue for over 6 months, Miss Potter, coming highly recommended by my parents, finally arrived in our mailbox. This movie definitely made my all-time list of favorites. It is clean, wholesome, and family friendly. Beyond that, it is superbly well-done. The lush landscapes of England are a perfect backdrop to the lush character development of Beatrix Potter and the most famous rabbit of all time, Peter Rabbit.

I am not normally a Renee Zellweger fan. She has squinty little eyes. But as Miss Potter, she does a great job and is easy to love. Beatrix has admirable personality traits such as determination, strength, and independence. She is a bit of a loner, though, with her father and imaginary animals being her only friends. Despite this, Beatrix's father, Rupert Potter, is so supportive of his daughter’s artistic talents and imagination. Their relationship is such a tender part of the movie. And of course, I loved seeing Beatrix's drawings which are enchanting and sweet.

Ewan McGregor is wonderful as a timid and under-appreciated neophyte book publisher who is smitten with Beatrix. Their love story is believable and hoped for. And their courtship is so proper. I wish that young adults today were as refined.

I wholeheartedly recommend this movie! Grab some popcorn and plan a movie night.










Photo credits: Movie Shark Deblore

Good Writes

I was so happy when my friend Lori joined Good Reads because I love her analysis of things. Then awhile ago she sent me an email and said that in addition to GoodReads, we should have a website with ideas for GOOD WRITES.

Here are Lori's ideas:

Children's Book...."My Grandpa Wears Toe Rings" for the grandchildren of the aging baby boomer population

Mystery...."Why Do I Hear a Flushing Sound Each Time I Check The Stock Price" A guide for those who may never be able to retire.

Political titles.... "Why The Electoral Vote Will Have to Do As I Can't In Good Conscience Vote For Either Of Them"

Here is my contribution:
"The Day my Thong Cracked Me Up."

What ideas do you have?

Halloween Party

Last year on Halloween, we had a murder mystery dinner.

To celebrate the opening of the scary new theme park, 16 guests from Hurricane, Utah were chosen by Jack Ular, the owner of Castle Alucard and Vampireland to take a frightening challenge. The challenge was to spend the night in one of the rooms of Castle Alucard (aka Fisher house).

Those who successfully completed the challenge were to be awarded $5,000. Those that tried for the money were Shauni, Shayli and Whitney Spendlove, Justin Edwards, Scott Garrett, Chantelle Whiting, Sean and Janessa Fisher, Jerry Robertson, Shari Leavitt, Jordan Hall, Chance Steglich and Shad Johnson. McKenzie Drawe and Laura Barney, also dropped by.

Once the guests gathered, the butler (aka Sean Fisher) informed us all that Jack Ular had been murdered. The rest of the evening the guests tried to discover who the murderer was. Turns out it was Jerry Robertson, the sneaky snake.

In hosting this event, the kids and I turned our main living space into an old castle, complete with bats, crows, a marble bust I found at Michael's, cobwebs, spiders, framed pictures of the Count and white sheets draped over the furniture. I hung large gothic candelabras on the wall and our lighting came from about 40 candles (which I had been collecting all year) placed all over the room. (So glad we didn't set the place on fire.) I purchased black fabric from Wal-Mart and made black curtains and black tablecloths. One of the table decorations consisted of shriveled heads made from dried apples. We served taco soup, homemade breadsticks, bubbling witch's brew, bloody fingers, monster cupcakes and of course, brains.



It was really a fun evening. Sadly, I don't have one picture of the house or the guests who all came in character costumes. Everyone who came looked fantastic in their costumes. What a shame not to have pictures.






So guess what we are doing this year?
Nothing.

To host your own murder mystery, click here.

And That's What Little Girls Are Made Of

During clinic today I got a text from Janessa. She said, "I passed my test in US History with flying colors." Then, I came home and my dear darling daughter had cleaned the kitchen, done all of her homework and made Snickerdoodles. Then she made dinner. Right now she is helping Stockton with his math.