Mulcock Musings

October

2011-11-01T21:20:00.001-07:00

Random snapshots up the canyon after professional family pictures.

Tommy as Charlie Brown.

The Rodeo Queen. I KNEW those sparkly Vocal Ensemble earrings would come in handy one day!

Trick-R-Treating with Abby and Hallie

Popeye and Olive Oil. Cory looks great! He even won an award at the costume party! When choosing my costume I forgot one important detail: Olive Oil looks like a broom with a head. My body is not-so-broom-like. Oh well, when it's Halloween I've seen people proudly prance around in stuff that they will regret (when they sober up). At least I can say, "I am wearing this and I don't even drink."

Happy Halloween!!!

Night night.

Favorite Toy

2011-10-25T22:02:00.000-07:00

Be bop boogie to the sit-in-spin soundtrack.

It's a GOAL!

2011-10-10T14:48:00.000-07:00

Her first goal. High five with dad/coach. Team member jumping up in the background. Other kid not feeling too good. Busath photographer on site taking pictures. PERFECT!

How I Roll

2011-09-10T11:21:00.000-07:00

Another mass update from me. I can't even imagine that I once had time to nurture this blog. I would actually sit and think of clever things to say. I would futz around with getting the pictures just right. It was a labor of love. Now I barely have time to throw things on it. That's how my life is these days. It's how I roll. And that is why I can never have a pet.

Here is a picture of Grandpa Brad with two of his grandsons. We were all excited to take a picture of this cause Tommy and Josh are wearing matching outfits. I have to tell you that because from this picture you would never know that they were wearing matching outfits. Grandpa Brad looks like he has been wrestling two little boys and is gritting his teeth for this to be over. And that is how it really did roll.

Mollie is learning to ride a two-wheeler. This is her old bike, she got a new one for her birthday. We had to get a classic "dad teaching daughter to ride a bike" pic. She is almost ready to roll on her own.

I love these two handsome rollers. We had a nice picnic at Liberty Park in August.

The sole reason for including this pic is to highlight Tommy's roly-poly legs. They are like squishy marshmallows. YUM!

Butterfly in the sky!

After a nice night at Liberty Park

It's been a tricky month for us. Cory lost his job due to restructuring at Franklin Covey and totalled his car in the same week. We are so grateful to Kim and Rob who are lending us their scooter in the meantime! Mollie and Cory go on nightly rides together. I think Mollie's pink cowgirl boots make this picture perfect.

Mollie turned 5 and wanted a Mermaid costume for her birthday REALLY bad. She got the crown and the shoes too! See all of those sequins? They are ALL OVER MY house now! I even found one in Tommy's diaper.

Perfect cake for a 5 year celebration!

Tommy is 5 1/2 months in this pic and just about ready to crawl. He gets up on all fours and rocks back and forth and then lunges. He is ready to roll!

I neve realized before I had two kids how they would bond with each other. Even with a 4 1/2 year difference in age. Tommy smiles and laughs at Molie like no one else. Mollie loves to talk and ready stories to Tom. It's the best! They love each other a lot.

Mollie started kindergarten on August 31. She was so excited! I was so sad! We live far enough away to ride the bus and she wanted to do it the first day. So I sent her on the bus and then followed the bus in my car because I just. couldn't. let. go. yet.

Here are three of her sweet ward friends who are in her class: Quinn, Grace, and Emily

I didn't know that there was a bus stop at the top of our street, so I was waiting another street over for Mollie to get off the bus after school. Mollie, being kind of smarter than her mom, saw our street and just hopped off and walked to our house. She went in the back door and finding me not home, sat on the porch until the mailman walked by. He found her crying and wondering if her mom was "dead." He called the school and waited with her until I got home. In the meantime, I met her bus at another stop, saw all the other cute kids get off and pretty much wet my pants when there was no Mollie. I walked to her friends house and Mollie wasn't there either. Thanks to my friend lending me her car and watching Tommy, I sped home to find Mollie and we were reunited. Now that it's over and I have officially written it down, I can never talk about this again!

We went to Lake Powell with some friends over Labor Day and had a great time. Mollie went waterskiing for the first time and got up on skiis! Cory and I were on the houseboat and watched the boat go by with a little blonde speck on the horizon. It was Mollie holding a rope with one hand and waving with the other. Oh, how I wish I had my camera! It was darling - thanks to our friend Tim for teaching her how!

Cory let Mollie and some of the girls cover him with mud. Eeww.

Tommy got buried in the sand.

I love this picture because it says so much. There were 14 little kids on this trip and Tommy was the youngest. He pretty much got mauled by all of them. At first he was Mr. Friendly, but by the end of the trip, when a kid came within 5 feet, he screamed like a monkey. Here he is getting buried in the sand and by the look on his face...well, you can guess what he is thinking.

LOVES!

And finally, the vegetable stand. Our garden has been great this year and Mollie and Cory got this big idea to have a vegetable stand. I don't know if Cory or Mollie was more excited. Cory was worried that he'd have enough vegetables ("Julie, what if someone wants kale? I don't have any kale!") Utimately, it was Mollie's project so she and I spent an afternoon this week trying to sell vegetables. We put a sign out on Parley's Way and set up this table in our yard. We only had one customer, Grandma Mary. She paid for some vegetables and Mollie gave her change. I think Grandma Mary actually made money on the deal ;) Mollie was so excited and every time a car would drive by she would get things all ready: open and close her cash register a few times, sift through the tomatoes, sit up a little taller in her chair. Unfortunately, our neighbors only waved and smiled and kept on going. Mollie took it okay when I decided to be her customer and spend $5 on three grape tomatoes and a zuchinni. But seriously people! Are your hearts made of stone? Did you not notice a cute little kid smiling for all she was worth? She was working so hard and trying so hard it about broke my heart. I vow to NEVER drive by a lemonade stand again without buying something, circling back and buying a second round. Heartless, cruel world! I would buy anything from this cute thing! She was okay though and had fun, so I guess that counts as success!

And that brings us up to date.

Bee Dee and Bubbers

2011-07-07T21:57:00.000-07:00

Nicknames are the best. Mollie is Bee Dee as in, "look at that tiny little bee dee baby!" and Tommy is Bubbers as in, "He's got the strong! He's so squishy! It's a good day to be a bubbers!" One day they will loathe this. I don't care. I could talk crazy baby talk all day long when I think of my little kiddles. I am pretty sure I will still want to do it when they are at least 20.

Here are some pics taken in June and July

Chillin like villians

Mollie's first soccer stint

Sleeping Beauties (sometimes we refer to them as Stinkin Beauties, too)

This kid is SO easy to smile. Once you make eye contact it's insta smile.

My favorites enjoying the swing at the cabin

Sharing a good laugh

Tommy's blessing day (July 3rd). Don't they both look so handsome?

Grandma Jackie with Bubbers. Lil cousin Zander is in the background.

Grandma Mary

Grandpa Brad. Tommy's middle name is Bradford after him.

Pretty strong kid. Already wants to sit up and getting pretty good at it, too. Is that head being held up by those cheeks? I am pretty sure they are.

Pics that make my heart smile.

2011-04-19T14:56:00.001-07:00

Baby Tommy and other little people

2011-03-30T19:52:00.000-07:00

Announcing Thomas Bradford Mulcock, born March 14th at 5:37 p.m! He weighed 8 lbs and was 20.5 inches long. Everything went as smooth as a baby's bottom. We are over the moon about his arrival!

Previously I posted some name options. Maybe you noticed that Thomas wasn't one of the options. It's funny how we came about settling on his name. Cory and I both made a top 5 list of our favorite names and Thomas was the only one we both had in common. We still weren't sure it was exactly right, though. Then, on a Sunday walk the day before I delivered, Cory mentioned that he would like to name our son after his best friend, Aaron. After finding out that Aaron's middle name was Thomas, we knew right away that we had found a perfect name match for our baby. Bradford is my dad's name and not having any sons, we thought it would be fun to honor him and give his grandson his name, too.

Here are some "day of" pictures of us and Thomas

We came home from the hospital on March 16th and had a note from Mollie's preschool that Mollie had been learning all about leprechauns and the preschool couldn't wait to hear what sneaky things the leprechauns would do at our house on March 17th (hint, hint to mom and dad). We couldn't let her down, even though we were pretty exhausted. Thanks to a great dad, THIS is what Mollie woke up to on March 17th. Those crazy leprechauns turned our house all topsy turvy. Even the toilet water was green! I love this one of Mollie just staring in disbelief at the crazy living room tent, overturned furniture, pile of green markers, green books and green crayons and her leprechaun drawing. Those sneaky leprechauns!

Speaking of little people, here are some new pictures of Tommy at 2 weeks (yesterday). I love this sweet boy of mine! Having two children has practically doubled the size of my heart. You can tell by the purple princess crown that big sister is going to take really good care of baby brother, too.

Why is time already going so quickly? I can't get enough.

Pick a name, any name!

2011-02-25T14:35:00.000-08:00

Luke Mulcock
Peter Mulcock
Christian Mulcock
Matthew Mulcock
Andrew Mulcock
Brad Mulcock

Cast your vote...

February

2011-02-25T14:08:00.000-08:00

I don't know why I didn't take any pictures in January. Oh yeah. I know why. I hate January. I am sure we did some fun stuff, however, so I kind of feel bad that I ignored a month and let it pass by unrecorded.

Here are some pics of February. I like February a lot better! Mollie had a "Royal Ball" on Valentine's Day at her preschool. She got to dress up like a princess and dad bought her a rose. Funny thing about Mollie, she has never really perfected her smile for pictures. Some kids can turn on the most charming face as soon as you say "say cheese." But Mollie just comes up with all sorts of facial contortions. It's sad, because she has the sweetest natural smile and it's rarely been captured! Oh well, maybe it's the faulty photographer? Anyway, this is the best we've got on her way to the Royal Ball. The first pic is her "princess face," and the second is her "demure princess" look. The third is with her friend Maurea and it's definitely an improvement. LOVE the chubby chin.

We took a rare chance to be outside last week and go to Wheeler Farm with some friends and moms in the neighborhood. It was so nice to be out! Everything went without a hitch until I got talking too much and missed the part when Mollie started dipping her coat in the river and wanted to know what the "cute little animal" next to her was. Mollie sweetie, that would be a rat. Time to get the blazes home! I didn't take a picture of that. I have never seen a rat in person and now it's burned on my eyeballs. Ew.

Today's post is brought to you by these two lovely ladies who are currently tearing my house apart and having the time of their lives. It's totally worth every mess because I've read my scriptures, caught up on email, washed dishes and even put some shoes on (I am 9 1/2 months pregnant, so that is a least a 10 minute ordeal). Gotta love a good play date! Thanks for coming over, Quinn!

(Note Mollie's smile. Almost there!)

Christmas Programs

2010-12-12T20:47:00.000-08:00

It's so fun to have a child who is old enough to be in Christmas programs. We had two this week. One for Mollie's preschool, which was a program/parent interactive day and then our nativity program at the ward party.

It was so fun to go to preschool with Mollie for the day. When Mollie saw Cory and I come into the building, she was SO excited. I hope I remember the look on her face forever. We did lots of fun things together. Virginia Tanner Fine Arts always has a book for a theme and this year it was "Gingerbread Friends" by Jan Brett. We made gingerbread puppets (with a REAL gingerbread man) and Mollie gave us a puppet show, we wrote a story together about gingerbread friends, and we decorated a life-sized gingerbread house as a back-drop for the dance program she and her friends put on.

So excited to have us at preschool!

Coloring our puppets

The puppet show

Eating the props (Gingerbread Man: "I think I've lost my head!")

What should our gingerbread story be about?

Making candy to put on the gingerbread house

Family pic

The gingerbread house and Mollie in the door. She was the "dance leader" for the dances they did. She was also a candy cane.

Ride'em Mollie!

Having a great time swinging around.

Then our ward Christmas program came. Mollie was SO excited to be an angel.

Three angel friends: Quinn, Mary and Mollie

Mary and Mollie

The Place, This is it

2010-10-17T10:06:00.000-07:00

We went to "This is the Place" State Park yesterday for their "Little Haunts" event. We took Mollie and her cousins Hallie and Abby and they dress up as Super Girl, Jasmine and Dorothy, respectively. We went last year and I think this might have to become a tradition! It's the cutest thing: trick-or-treating at pioneer homes, hay rides, train rides, story-telling witch, petting coral, crafts and pony rides. It's the "place" to be for some non-scary Halloween fun!

Three cute girls on a train. Oh, and we saw our friends the Binghams there, too! They are riding right behind the girls. What an extra bonus!

I'm Due

2010-10-06T18:47:00.001-07:00

I'm due!...for a blog update. Oh yeah, and I'm due to have a baby on March 15th, too. That one's harder to forget since my pants can't be zipped anymore and I have been spending most of my summer trying to sleep off the sensation of riding a non-stop roller coaster. Blogs are much more subtle, fortunately, and can be ignored. But the stomach-tumbling part of my pregnancy seems to be over and I can finally give this little blog some much needed attention!

In between me lying face down on the floor most often, here are some things that we have been doing the past three months:

We had a picnic up Emmigration Canyon for my birthday and Cory rescued some little birds from Grandpa Brad's and Grandma Mary's window-well.

Mollie and Cousin Caleb got to have a sleep over, decorate bikes at our ward breakfast, and played in water from our local fire engine on the 24th of July.

In August, Mollie took swimming lessons with her cute friend, Leila, at our neighbor's pool.

The next one is random, I know, but Mollie went through a phase where she kept stuffing everything she could inside her pajamas. I have no idea what's in there. It's okay with me if I never find out.

Then, our Mollie Moo had a birthday on August 27th and turned 4. Woo wee, we sure had a party! After we opened presents as a family, we had 15 little friends (all under the age of 6 - yes, I needed some Tylenol afterwards) over for an "Under the Sea" party in our backyard. We collected seashells, played on the giant waterslide and in a kiddie pool, and made an "aquarium" on the wall of our shed.

I think Mollie had fun.

Cory took Mollie on a daddy-daughter hike to Secret Lake. Mollie got ready by herself. Then somehow, someone coaxed her into wearing something else and they went on their adventure.

Over Labor Day weekend, we stayed at Stein Eriksen Lodge in Park City with Cory's family. It was wonderful!

Then in September, Mollie started preschool at the Virginia Tanner Fine Arts preschool at the U. This is her on her first day.

And later we had ice cream with cousins Hallie and Abby to celebrate.

We made our pilgrimage to the Utah State Fair. Mollie rode the giant slide. Sometimes she doesn't like to have her picture taken.

Then Cory took Mollie on another daddy-daughter date to the U game. He bought her a cheerleader outfit and she met some new friends. Go Utes!

It's going to be a great fall!

Baby Bean

2010-08-03T21:31:00.000-07:00

Meet my baby bean. Bean-like today, lemon-sized tomorrow, will weigh as much as a loaf of bread soon after that. Not to mention all the stuff that happens after it is born and is no longer being being compared to food: first smile, first steps, wet kisses, off to preschool...time is slipping through my fingers....

Stop thinking about it. Today there is a baby bean growing inside of me. And I am in love.

Expected arrival: 3/15/2011

Recipe for Awesomeness

2010-07-11T20:30:00.001-07:00

Over the 4th of July we went to my parents cabin with my sister Katie and her family - Judd, Caleb and Adelynn, Emilee and her new husband, Matt, and my mom and dad and Angelee. We had a great time feeding the horses, slip-n-sliding, yehawing at the Oakley rodeo, riding bikes, making sock puppets, celebrating Caleb's birthday, and having Wii tournaments. It was wonderful. July + family = total awesomeness.

Who are these children coming down, coming down?

2010-06-27T08:24:00.000-07:00

..Like gentle rain from darkened skies....

How do I know, BY HEART, the lyrics to Saturday's Warrior, you ask? The music that I have sworn against since the time ten years ago when Cory started playing it to tease me? The music that I hate simply because once it's been introduced to your ears, it invades you head and lingers for about 3 weeks or more? Why?

Because I would do just about anything for Mollie, even if it causes me great distress and angst.

Mollie discovered the Saturday's Warrior CD amid our other CD's about a month ago. Since then it's been played non-stop in the house, the car, and even when the CD is not on, she sings all the words - she knows them all. Recently the primary president came over to film Mollie doing her favorite thing. That thing was dancing to Saturday's Warrior. I don't need to see the video, cause it happens every day at our house.

Speaking of performing, Mollie does that A LOT. When she sees a stage, or anything that might resemble a stage, she is there. This Thursday we went to the Art's Festival. One of the shows were two cowboys doing magic tricks with ropes and whips, etc. Before the cowboy could even ask for volunteers to help, Mollie's hand was in the air. Surprised by her willingness, the cowboy asked her to come on stage and help him. You might think a 3 year old would have stage fright. Nope. She was right there, doing her best to look "pretty" (I mean batting her eyelashes and all) and playing right along with the show. Oh, and she was doing all of this while wearing a green polo shirt and brown, yellow and orange polka dot pants. She fought hard to pick her outfit, I relented, and there she was standing there is mismatched clothes for all the city to see. Have you been to arts festival? Luckily, her clown outfit fit right in.

I often wonder, who is this child who came down, came down? Her ingenuity and spunk never cease to amaze me.

Here is Mollie pretending to be the Princess and the Pea - in a chicken suit, no less.

We hiked to Ensign Peak on Memorial Day. Mollie packed her "pack pack." Essential things such as a Hawaiian Lei, a stuffed buffalo, her baby, her baby's blanket, a few necklaces and a toy cat from Mexico were included. When we got to the top, she unpacked it all.

Here we are with Grandpa Larry

Overlooking the city, trying to spot our house.

Running through sprinklers.

Cowgirl minute (minute because that's how often she changes her costume)

Mollie made Dad a tie in primary for Father's Day. It was darling to see all the dads wear their ties to church. Cory's had a heart. She must know how much he likes hearts.

This isn't a great picture, but we have been working so hard on our yard this year. I should take some pics of Cory's square foot gardens in the back. There are still some improvements to make to our house, but we've come a long ways from where we started.

I like how there is a "glow" coming from the front door. That is there, of course, because of the harmonious, idylic lives we lead inside. I lie! I actually think it's the nuclear energy growing from the dirty dishes left too long in the sink. I think it's doing something to my head. I might be starting to like Saturday's Warrior. Better invest in a Hazmat suit. Or do the dishes. Hazmat suit it is.

S.O.S.

2010-06-09T21:53:00.000-07:00

I think that means, "save our ship."

What I would like it to mean is "support one's sag" or "save one's shape" or "I need help and there is no other acronym that means I need help." And today I am really counting on - no, praying - that my readers are women. You'll soon know why...

I just bought this swimsuit. I really, really like this swimsuit. I have been looking for a suit like this for a LONG time. It was the right price and they only had my size left. Do you believe in fate? I believe we were meant to be together.

BUT it doesn't fit me very well in one area. Two physics principles apply: volume and weight. I guess you could call me Chesty Sinclair or Bustie Larue. And curse you, gravity! I hope you catch my drift...

I am in love with this suit so my judgement might be a little clouded. I need opinions. Is it crazy to have a swimsuit tailored? Can it be tailored in the way I need it to be? Am I asking the impossible?

It's so hard to let go....

One for the Road

2010-05-14T08:18:00.000-07:00

Whenever we are leaving Grandma Mary's house, Mollie asks for some chocolate chips "for the road." If she doesn't get a snack "for the road," a bit fit ensues. You'd think we lived eons away from Grandma's house. You'd think Mollie would starve in the FIVE minutes it took us to actually get home. Of course we live VERY close and she WON'T starve. But, nonetheless, it's chocolate chips or death.

All of that has nothing to do with this picture, other than I just updated the blog and forgot to include this last picture. I figure it's one "for the road" as I get off the computer today.

A little description. Mollie, as most kids her age, is fascinated with dressing up. This ensemble is part 2007 Halloween chicken costume, part Sunday tights, and part giraffe print slippers. She calls it "Jack-O-Lantern." Can't you just see this on the catwalk?

Another more traditional costume. Cinderella with the ever-popular napkin veil. Classic.

Fabulous, baby!

Two weeks

2010-05-14T07:45:00.000-07:00

The last two weeks have been C R A Z Y F U N busy. These pictures are not in order that they happened, but you get the idea.

Cory's MBA graduation

The happiness speaks for itelf

Mollie's Spring Sing Preschool Program

Disneyland with the Thalmans

The parade watchers

Giving Lightening a Hug

The new Toy Story ride

The whole group

Princess Tiana

Mollie actually "bounced" over to visit Tigger. Pretty cute.

Loves.

No one in our party could handle the tea cups except me and Mollie. She wanted to spin. I pretended to turn the wheel. We both thought we were spinning A LOT. Win-win.

Love this face filled with anticipation

Hmm. Giving the stink eye to someone or something

Sleeping Beauty Castle

Arriving at Disneyland!

"I think I see Disneyland!" from the bus. (It actually was that castle-looking hotel across the street.)

Waiting at the hotel to catch our ride to Disneyland.

One Dollar

2010-04-17T20:16:00.000-07:00

It was our wedding anniversary yesterday! Lucky 13! In light of the fence that is going up in our backyard and some other expenses, we decided to go cheap on anniversary gifts this year. Really cheap. Almost pick-a-prize-from-the-gumball-machine cheap. Our budget: $1. Each.

It was actually pretty fun to think of what I could get Cory for a dollar. I settled on downloading a song from Itunes (which actually cost $1.29, but $0.29 over budget isn't too shabby).

Cory really out did me, however. After painstakingly scouring the dollar section at Target, he settled on this. I loved it.

What woman wouldn't want this? And what woman HAS this? I can hang it anywhere: my office, the kitchen, the bathroom, lie it over my body while sleeping so a certain 3 year old will let me sleep in. Genius, Cory. Simply genius. I think this $1 anniversay gift thing might just have to become a tradition. We had a good laugh.

Today Cory took Mollie skiing for the first time. What a great day to do it - it was warm and beautiful! Oh, and it was the very last day of the season at Park City Ski Resort, so it was a last ditch effort to take her this year, too. They skiied in short sleeves most of the day. Mollie did great. And her skiis! So CUTE. They were seriously no longer than my arm.

Is this a picture of a great dad, or what?! Cory and Mollie had a great time. Why didn't I ski, you ask? Cory had a season pass and Mollie - barely fitting into the smallest boot - was free. I decided my $60 day pass would be better spent at the outlets. So we divided and I conquered some great sales. I think it's safe to say it was a good day for all.

They Got Hitched!

2010-04-11T19:59:00.000-07:00

This week has been a flurry of preparation for my sister, Emilee's, wedding. All of my sisters, husbands and their kids were in town for the celebrations: Emilee's temple endowment, receptions in Ogden and Salt Lake, wedding ceremony, and wedding luncheon. These are the kinds of times that glow in my memory bank. And now we have a new brother-in-law! Welcome to the fam, Matt!

Easter Fun

2010-04-03T22:35:00.001-07:00

Deep Thoughts - Mormy Style

2010-03-16T20:47:00.000-07:00

"Deep Thoughts" by Jack Handy. A classic. I think I had the whole book memorized in 9th grade. How could Jack's genius be duplicated? Maybe it has...

My friend introduced me to the most wonderful thing today. A blog that I consider a great Mormon version of Jack Handy's masterpiece. If you are in need of a really deep, satisfying laugh, this is just the thing for you. I chortled so hard today at work, I had to shut my office door because people walking by looked ready to give me CPR.

www.myregisblog.com

Rubber Chicken Soup for the Soul.

Shower Power

2010-03-01T20:48:00.000-08:00

We have late church, which means Mollie usually gets her Sunday bath on Sunday morning. If things are running behind, we throw her in with me and she gets to take a shower instead. Well, yesterday, she decided that she was big enough to take a shower on her own. Really? Do you really? Are you sure? Yep, she was sure. No fear. She wanted to go for it. In so many ways she is SO UNLIKE me...I think I was afraid of the shower until at least 1o years old!

So she did it. Imagine a cute little three-year old body, lathering herself up, flipping her wet hair around, rubbing soap under her arms under the spray of the shower. She stayed in for at least 20 minutes all alone. I must admit I was skeptical, but she did a pretty darn good job washing herself. We peeked through the clear shower curtain a couple of times to check on her and it was simply ADORABLE. Clean as a whistle. No Irish Spring shower could have been better.

Speaking of Irish, I would like to officially hail the month of March! Usually I think of St. Patrick's day as a boring holiday, but this year will have special meaning. Cory will be done with his MBA by March 18! Sniff, sniff (with joy). Let's just say, in true Irish spirit, I will be doing a lot of kissing around that time.

So I say power to the little people: the cute little green guys who bring luck and joy in March, AND my darling little Mollie who harnessed her shower power this week. Better than a pot o'gold.

Picture Pages

2010-02-01T09:46:00.000-08:00

"Picture Pages, Picture Pages, time to get your Picture Pages, Time to get your crayons, And your Pencils! Picture Pages, Picture Pages, Open up your Picture Pages, Time to let Bill Cosby do a Picture Page with you!"

Does anyone remember this show and it's catchy tune? I do. It was on PBS and it was boring. But the tune sure sticks. It's all I can dredge up right now, due to this condition I have been suffering from called writers block. Just can't seem to awaken the creative lobe of my brain. My "just make it through the winter" lobe is large-and-in-charge right now.

So, without any further adieu, here is our PICTURE PAGE of January:

Mollie and some of her fellow gymnasts

Dinosaur Museum with Addelyn and Caleb

Mollie's new "owl" room

Mollie doing Yoga with Wii Fit

Mollie couture in my black nylons.

Another Mollie fashion statement. She is getting "married." Her veil is a yellow napkin.

A weekend in Richfield sledding and four-wheeling. Here are two little mommies.

Cousin hug.

Everyone at our favorite eating place, Big Rock Candy Mountain

He's mean. He's lean. He's taking no prisoners.

Grandpa and two of the ladies

Dad and Mol

Mollie and Caleb. Hanging on for dear life.

The favorite uncle and the kids. For the record, the thing stuck in Mollie's mouth is a plastic mushroom. She is pretending she is a baby with a binki. Imagination knows no bounds.

Excuse my pessimism

2010-01-06T20:42:00.000-08:00

Is it okay to not always be so cheery on a blog? Am I about to break all the rules? Please indulge me while I reminisce about what a difficult year 2009 was. I've just got to say how I am so excited for a fresh start in 2010!

Top 10 reasons why 2010 BETTER be better than 2009:

1. Not likely to need another $4000 transmission.
2. I've spent the last 20 months on a combination of steroids, breast cancer meds, and infertility treatments trying to get pregnant. Can you even imagine the raging hormones?! Goodbye! This year is going to be different (don't know how, but it will!)
3. Cory only has ONE more semester of school before he gets his MBA. Yes!
4. Because of #3 above, no one can raise tuition on us by 38% again!
4. Our last basement renter had a certain fondness for the "F" word, usually expressed as if his voice had sub-woofers. This year we are going to be a little more selective.
5. I planted a TON of bulbs this fall. Can't wait for them to pop-up in the spring!
6. We got our square-foot garden frames all ready to go. The seeds will go in at the first sign of spring! I can smell the fresh tomatoes already!
7. My sister Jenny and her husband will also be done with school and can move back to Utah. Mollie will get more cousins!
8. I am going to finally quit my job! (Don't hold me to that one, just wishful thinking!)
9. I am going to start running and not only that, start LOVING IT!
10. A new Target is being built out on 300 W. Dreams do come true.

Deregulation

2009-12-24T22:07:00.000-08:00

I really don't know what "degregulation" means in political or economic terms, but what it means for me and this little old blog is that I am de-password-ifying it. Officially declassified.

The showstopper

2009-12-17T20:30:00.001-08:00

Well, it happened. Our usually precocious, lover of the spotlight, Mollie, got stage fright last week at her preschool Christmas program.

I think it all started when I had to wake her up (never a good thing) to get her to the program on time. And having to put on a costume and cover up her frilly dress probably didn't help much. When her little class came out on stage, Mollie was not in line. After scanning the room, I saw her standing just off of the stage with a pouty face, arms crossed, and back turned. I could see the efforts of three teachers who seemed to be pulling out all the tricks you would typically see at a hostage negotiation. But she was not budging.

So Cory joined the negotiation efforts and eventually found himself standing at the edge of the stage, while Mollie sang along and clapped, in his arms. It was lame. Dear Mollie in 20 years: I didn't pay good money for your preschool every month to watch OTHER kids do cute thing on stage! Dear Mollie now: I love you and even though I was so steamed at you I could have lit candy canes on fire, you were still the cutest kid in the vicinity of the stage. Alright, the cutest kid in a 10 mile radius!

Stubborn one minute, wise-cracker the next. While I was working on something tonight, she presented herself to me in one of my sports bras and my jeans:

She was trying on my clothes, which was hilarious because, if you know me, you know that I am a far cry away from being able to wear a 3T. I asked Mollie how she got to be so funny and she said, "I wanted to scare you!" and then let out a ferocious lion's roar. Scaring me in my own jumbo clothes? Now that is sobering. So then I went to the gym.

End of story for a pretty fun day.

Halloweeners

2009-11-02T21:21:00.001-08:00

Here are some festive pics of us, the Mulcock Haloweenies:

Cory and Julie going to their adult costume party as "Milton Bradley."

Our princess fairy. I think in one week's time, this little costume was worn to six events. Lots of Halloween fun to be had!

Another Halloween down. Costume stress over. Life is good.

Axer Baggits, Speechless Butterfly, Dog Prayer and "My Baby Did It"

2009-10-15T20:54:00.000-07:00

Recent belly laughs brought to us by our in-house love monster, Mollie:

Part I, "Axer Baggits"
"Mom! I learned how to do some axer baggits in gymnastics! Watch me run and then do somersaults all the way to the bean bag!" Throw in a few skips, a twirl, some leaps, one-legged hopping, and you have some very fancy a-c-r-o-b-a-t-i-c-s, indeed.

Part II, "Speechless Butterfly"
Mollie and I were water-coloring and I was painting a butterfly. "What do you think, Mollie, should it have a face? Should we do eyes?" "Yes, but not a mouth because I don't want it to talk."

Part III, "Dog Prayer"
Lately, Mollie has liked to pretend that she is the family dog. Yesterday her name was Wilson the Dog. When it came time for family prayer, Mollie volunteered to pray. Her prayer went as follows:

"Arf, arf, arf. Arf arf, arf arf arf. Arf. Arf.....ARF" (which we think is dog speak for a typical child's prayer). Definitely not the way we want to continue to pray, but you got to give her some credit for the out-of-the-box thinking. Those "arfs" were pretty heartfelt, too.

Part IV, "My Baby Did It"
Did you know we had a baby? Yeah, it was news to us, too. It is a very naughty, tricky, and smart baby. Whenever something mysteriously appears, like big dents in the coffee table, or spilled food all over the floor, or a big smear of lipstick on the couch, Mollie makes sure that we know that "her baby did it." Hmmm..somehow I think that the invisible, nameless baby is not the culprit. But even after calling her out, Mollie works really hard to convince us that she is just an innocent bystander. I think this girl has a future in politics.

Private Parts

2009-10-09T08:36:00.000-07:00

Did that title get your attention? Well, don't get too excited. I am going to make this "part" of my life "private." That means that this blog is getting a password!

Is adding a password the natural evolution of a blog? First you lay your life out for all to see, then you realize that few people outside of your family even look you up, then you realize that you really aren't being TOTALLY honest with your life because you only write what you want people to think or know about you, and then you come to the realization that if you control who gets to read what you post, you can say anything you want (like the term "private parts" - so liberating)! Ok, ok, I don't really intend to make this blog more realistic or throw in potty words, but I do think privacy is probably a good idear.

So...if you want to keep reading my ridiculously cheesy posts, leave me a comment and I'll add you to the subscriber list. (I could say "leave a comment if you want to see our private parts." What a great play on words! Well, I won't say that, because first, it is distasteful and offensive, because that would probably rule out any comments at all, AND I might get arrested. So HARD to resist though).

Thank you for your patronage. I promise to be more mature in the future.

Fummer or Sall

2009-10-06T22:29:00.000-07:00

Fummer or Sall. What I mean to say is that a few weeks ago, the fine line between Summer and Fall was very, very fine. Wasn't it nice? I am wistfully thinking of those days of old. Here are some the memories from our Indian summer:

Red Butte Gardens with cousins Caleb and Adelynn. The kids thought it was fun to pretend to be Indians. After we splashed in the fountains for a while, we had lunch with the ducks at the pond. Who knew ducks liked peanut butter sandwiches?

Mollie at her first dental appointment! Funny story: a few weeks earlier, Mollie was fascinated by Grandma Scott's ability to take her teeth out. Later, Mollie was found in the corner trying as hard as she could to take her teeth out too. Sorry, Mol! Just one of the benefits of old age, I guess! She did great at the dentist's. Not one squirm or squeal out of her the whole time.

A visit to the Zoo with Cory's PMBA program

Our annual visit to the fair. Mollie liked to show the animals that she was a cowgirl in her pink cowgirl hat. And she showed her "chick shirt" to the ducks and chickens. I am sure they all appreciated it.

Mollie and one of her favorite people, Brandon

There is a First for Everything

2009-09-21T20:19:00.001-07:00

This month has been hard for me. My little and only baby is doing all of these big girl things! SLOW DOWN, LIFE! Please! Why does it always have to be a green light? I like RED LIGHTS. I want to stay right where we are for a while longer. I want to linger, I want to make moments into days. I want to put the brakes on these things called motherhood and childhood!

Here's the girl slipping through my fingers. Does she look ready for preschool or what?

Bring it on, teacher!

First day of preschool. Check.
First ride in a carpool. Check.
First day of gymnastics. Check.
First invitation to a birthday party. Check.
First time logging on to the computer, without mom's knowledge, without mom's help. Check.

Today I wanted to read Mollie some stories to get her to settle in for "quiet time" which now substitutes for the nap that she refuses to take and SO desperately needs. She is no fool and she is on to me. When we talk about the onset of "quiet time," she runs away. So today after I fell semi-asleep on the bed "waiting for her", she ran into the computer room and turned on the computer. There is usually no threat to her doing this because there is a secret key AND a password to log on. A few minutes later, I peeked in on her and there she was, staring at the desktop wallpaper, trying to click on random icons with the mouse. Huh?

"Mollie, how did you get on the computer?"
"I pressed F1"
"After you pressed F1, what did you do?"
"I did, M-O-L-L-I-E" (which happens to be our password - don't pass this out to hackers, okay?)

SHEESH. Do they teach computer log-in lessons in preschool now? I never ceased to be amazed. Time to change the password to "toosmartforyourowngoodpleasegotoquiettimenow." That should stump her for the next 30 years. By then she'll be begging for quiet time. I know I am.

Three!

2009-08-27T21:28:00.000-07:00

My little Mollie Jane turned three today! Aunt Emilee just sent me this picture of her. I am not sure how old she is in the picture (probably close to 18 months), but I do remember that I picked up this butternut squash at the grocery store and she treated it like her baby, holding it and patting it and talking to it. Mollie has been such delight - sweet, sometimes sassy, alamingly smart, and simply adorable! I could squeeze her all day if she'd let me. I love you Mollie Jane!

I am a robot

2009-08-18T22:25:00.000-07:00

I am a robot. I am a machine. Go. Work. Play. Repeat. Sleep a little in between.

Seriously. I am TI-RED from the last month. In addition to and in between the fun things that will be described below, we have been doing a lot of home repairs the past month. For one, I have conquered my life-long dread of painting a room. If you look straight into the room cross-eyed, the paint job is sheer perfection. Sure, if you look at it normally, there are definitely some visible flaws, but if I could hug it, I would. I love you, Ralph Lauren "Plateau." I feel like a real adult now.

Now for an introduction of what is to come. One of the most horrible memories of my childhood is sitting in the clubhouse of my Uncle Phil's condo complex and watching about 10 hours of slides from his and my Grandma's trip to Africa. Or England. Or someplace else that can be visited in less time that it took to watch those agonizing slides. Anyway, I hope the following is a little higher on the entertainment scale.

In July, Mollie and cousin Caleb played in the fountains at the Gateway. Mollie mostly just danced to the music and Caleb had a good time trying to stick his toosh in water's way.

We hiked Timpanogus (how do you spell that?) Cave over the 24th of July with Grandma Mary. Mollie was a trooper. She decided that there was "nothing to be afraid of" in the cave and got to be the ranger's helper by carrying his flashlight. Cory was a trooper too. He carried Mollie all the way up, and even ran some of the way. Sicko.

Mollie and Dad on a visit to the library at the "U"

We spent a few days at Snowbird compliments of Grandma Jackie. Mollie and Brandon panned for Gold (and other sorts of fascinating rocks). We got a great picture of all of us in Albion Basin.

Lagoon Day for Jacobsen Construction was great. Cory didn't come and so we ended up just riding the kid rides all day. Snore. Actually, watching your child have fun is just about as much fun as having fun yourself. But, why oh why do these little boats have the LONGEST line in the park?

We just got back from a trip to Yellowstone. Thumbs up, Yellowstone. Thumbs down, saying goodbye to our transmission and saying hello to a $4000 replacement. If I wrote about that story, this would quickly turn into something akin to a 10-hour slide show, so I will focus on the good parts of our trip. Here are some of my favorite pictures:

Me and Mollie and good Old Faithful

Mollie and Mom ("just the girls" as Mollie would say) in West Yellowstone.

Mom and Mollie getting ready to hike Uncle Tom's Trail.

The whole family in front of Yellowstone Falls.

Dad and Mollie and "Perla" the chipmunk eating breakfast at Lake Lodge.

The Buffalo. We saw a lot of these guys.

In addition to "Perla" the chipmunk, her toy buffalo and toy bear, Mollie brought her "Baby Borliff" along on the trip. Here she is showing Baby Borliff the buffalo.

And showing Perla a geyser.

Us and Momma Elk.

The Mollster.

Dad introducing Mollie to the wonders of nature. He's good at that.

Mollie's souvenir. She fought hard for this. It the thing that every kid wants - a rock and mineral sticker book, of course. But seriously, I think the salesperson was excited because it was the first one that anyone has ever purchased. We blew off the dust and Mollie was thrilled. Our little geologist in bloom.

The last shot of the trip. We followed this RV for a few miles out of Yellowstone on our way to Jackson. I couldn't read it very well, so I thought it said, "Goin Places Grillin' Tacos." How odd. But with an RV, why not? You could drive all over the country and grill tacos to your hearts content. As we got closer we realized it read, "Goin Places with Smilin Faces." How cliche, and disappointing. If I ever own an RV, you can count on it having something to do with tacos.

Deep Thoughts

2009-07-13T20:34:00.000-07:00

Here are some recent conversations between Cory and I. Who says that after 12 years of marriage there is nothing to talk about?

World Affairs
Julie: Cory, if you could be Chinese or Japanese, which would you choose?
Cory: Japanese.
Julie: Why?
Cory: Because I love Hello Kitty*.

*If you only knew how much Cory dislikes Hello Kitty...

Cultural Arts
Julie: Cory, you know those stickers on trucks that have Calvin peeing on things?
Cory: Yeah.
Julie: If you had one on your truck, what would yours be peeing on?
Cory: Well, if I were the type of person who actualy had one of those stickers, then myself.
Or I would have it peeing on one of those other guys who had one on his truck.

Stimulating conversation at it's best.

***DISCLAIMER: We really try not to use the word "pee" at our house. I originally wrote "sprinkle" and Cory insisted that I change it. He did not want to be known to the world as the guy who says "sprinkle." Hey, I am not about to rob anyone of his manhood. Sorry to give you a PG-rated post, however.

What do you do in the summertime?

2009-07-08T21:31:00.001-07:00

My fan club of one (hello sunny Florida!) let me know that she wants to see more on my blog. It's been awhile, hasn't it? So here is some major catch-up on the last two few weeks.

JUNE

One morning my two little early birds got up at 6:00 a.m. and disappeared. I didn't really mind, or care, or want to know where they had gone because I got to keep on snoozing undisturbed. Turns out, Cory took Mollie hiking up the canyon. What a pair of mountain goats I have!

We have had the greatest strawberry patch this year. Here is the evidence that Mollie likes to pick them and sneak them into her mouth without us knowing (Note to Mollie: work on your disguise next time)

We went to Canyon Rim park with Brandon, Mollie, Grandma and Breanna. After some swinging, we got ourselves the first snow cones of the summer.

Cory, Ben and Mollie and I went to the Art's Festival. They had some cool 3-D artwork and we tried on the glasses. Isn't this little thing a work of art herself?

While at the Art's Festival, Mollie got to try the tiniest little violin I've ever seen. She's a natural. My sisters Jenny, Beth and Ang would be proud.

Cory ran the Wasatch Back with some co-workers at Franklin Covey. Their team name: "Forget Win-Win, JUST WIN!" Pretty clever if you know your Seven Habits. Fortunately for our household, we've been sufficiently doused with Franklin Covey lingo. I loved the running, bobble-headed Stephen R. Covey they had posted on their team van. Classic.

Mollie and Dad, caught at an inopportune picture moment, at the finish line.

Here's our little twinkle toes. Not bad. Much better than those yehaws that get on "America's Got Talent." I think this is a little reminscent of "The Elaine" on Seinfeld. Also note the standard "costume" that Mollie must don almost everyday: a white undershirt, her pink skirt, size 9-month pink tights, silver shoes, a ponytail "in the back," and a few clips thrown in her hair for that extra dazzle. This ensemble has gone many places with us, depending on how much I feel like coercing and/or bribing her not to wear it that day. I am ashamed to say it has made it all the way into Costco...more than once.

We went to Richfield while Jenny, Hallie and Abby were visiting from Kansas and had a kid Caldwell birthday party for all the summer birthdays. It was a hoot. We played pin the tail on the donkey, musical pillows (chairs) and duck-duck-goose. The kids didn't get any of it. Especially funny was the musical pillow game. They just ran around, in every direction, until the music stopped and then they just wandered off. Cute little critters these kids are.

JULY

For the 4th of July, we went to the Evergreen parade, breakfast and carnival. Mollie was very enthusiastic about waving her flag at EVERYONE and EVERYTHING. Luckily, everyone she "accidentally" hit with it were pretty understanding. And no one's eyes got poked out. That sure would be unpatriotic!

More parade with Mollie's cousins, Nathan, Olivia, and Katie.

Loving Cinderella Park

Mollie said to the Bounce House, "Bring it on!" And it did. She didn't seem to mind. Wouldn't this be great in slow motion?

The girls and Grandma Jackie

Later that night, we went to the Stadium of Fire to see Grandma Jackie sing in the choir. Mollie was convinced that Grandma Jackie was not going to sing, she was going to dance. So everytime the teen dancers came leaping out, Mollie was on the hunt to see Grandma in her leotard. I am sure Jackie would have been flattered. Before the fireworks we got to see/hear the Jonas Brothers and SheDaisy. In her customary "get down" way, Mollie was busting a move for the concerts. Too bad I missed recording most of it. But we did get a few jerks -uhem, "moves"- on film.

Coming soon: New garden boxes, more time at the cabin, and a trip to Yellowstone! Stay tuned!

Dust in the Wind

2009-06-10T18:04:00.000-07:00

I'm just here to make an observation. Are blogs going the way of dust in the wind? Will my blog suffer the same fate as my cute-edged scissors, die cuts, embossing sets and rubber stamps? Cause after a few furious years of toting that junk around, it eventually lost it's allure (and would have lost it's place in my closet by now if I could bring myself to throw all that money down the toilet). Do you find yourself bored by the whole blogging thing? Is Facebook the new blog? I, frankly, have found all this blogging and social networking to be kind of lonely. So one-dimensional. Interactionless. So unenriching. I love looking at blogs, but I'd much rather have a nice lunch or a great phone coversation with someone. So instead of posting a quiz to find out how well we know each other, let's talk and learn something new! I'm going on a blogcation. Less Facebook and more face time!

How do you spell trouble?

2009-05-27T20:34:00.000-07:00

On Memorial Day Kris and Tracy invited us to go to This is the Place State Park. It was the place! I am officially in love. We only did a fraction of what you can do there and had a fantastic time doing it (see pictures below).

BUT FIRST, a little spelling lesson:

In the little pioneer schoolhouse each desk had a slate and chalk. Mollie sat right down and picked up the chalk. I was paying attention to the school teacher tell us about the school and I heard Mollie say, "Mommy, here is an 'O'!" Sure enough, there was an "M" then an "O" on her slate. Cory and I looked at each other in sheer surprise. Who taught her to write the letters of her name? Who taught her how to write at all? Not us. Then she continued with an "L," another "L", an "I" and then she paused. Thinking she might need some help, Cory said, "next comes an 'e,' but that's kind of hard." Undaunted, she went right ahead and Mollie rounded out her name with a capital "E." Holy Brother Brigham! Bring out the horehound candy! Our kid can spell and write her name and she doesn't even turn three until the end of August! I guess all those McDonald's cheeseburgers I craved while pregnant supersized her brain. How do you spell trouble? I'll tell you: trouble is a kid who will surpass her mother's IQ before long. Enjoy the pictures, I'd better get busy studying up on how to multiply fractions and memorizing the periodic table of elements....

The evidence

Spring Lambs

Mollie's first (and hopefully last) shave

Pioneer cousins

The train

Mollie and Pa

Pioneer Ladies

Puttin' Lipstick on a snake

Died and Gone to Heaven

2009-05-19T14:16:00.001-07:00

Well, first and most importantly, I had the most awesome weekend. Cory has been off of school for spring break, so he has had some extra time to spend with Mollie and give me some breaks. This past weekend he took Mollie camping for three days. I had that time to myself. I didn't take any pictures of me doing all the things I like to do when no one is in tow, but believe me, it was like I'd died and gone to heaven. I put about 100 miles on my car just driving to different shopping centers. I didn't even buy much, but it felt so liberating to go down every aisle of any store I pleased and take my time doing it.

Cory, on the other hand, was spending those three days living it up near Cannonville in Southern Utah. He and Grandpa Larry, Cousin Brandon and Mollie visited slot canyons, Bryce Canyon, slept out under the stars, went swimming and even ate one dinner out of a vending machine. Could it get any better than that?

Mollie reported that she liked seeing the cow poop and the piles of rocks called "Karens" (cairns). She showed me her scratches and scrapes from all the "booby traps" she and Brandon encountered while climbing rocks.

So here are some pictures of the adventurers in action:

Spring Sing

2009-05-02T20:37:00.000-07:00

Some things are so good they are worth singing about. I love spring blossoms, especially the ones on the tree right outside my bedroom window. These are absolutely breathtaking. I open my shutters each day this time of year and instantly feel like there is a bluebird on my shoulder.

Tonight we had our ward "Spring Sing" which was a musical variety show. I knew the Elder's Quorum was cooking something up when one of the other wives told me, "Did you know Cory was going to be in the EQ number....I had to talk the guys out of wearing speedos...." Of course all I really heard was the word "speedo." This was my face: ?!?!?

And this was my face as I watched the magic unfold: :)) (that's a double smiley face). If you can't tell who's who, Cory's the one with the sexiest legs. He's also the guy who "makes a big splash" at the end.

Nothing in Particular

2009-04-20T20:29:00.000-07:00

I've got no reason to post right now other than I recently took some pictures of these two cuties.

Cutie #1
My sister Ang getting ready Junior Prom this past Saturday. I did her make up and Mollie loved looking at her beautiful dress. Ang was four when Cory and I got married. I can't believe how time has flown.

Cutie #2
My Mollie. In red. My favorite little kid in my favorite color. Dress compliments of cousins Katie and Olivia.

Hippity Hop

2009-04-17T21:57:00.000-07:00

We had a great Easter. On Saturday, we had an easter egg hunt with the Mulcock side of the family. After finding a good number of eggs, Mollie disappeared for the majority of the afternoon playing with cousins and sloughing off various articles of clothing around Aunt Eileen's house. I hate that she is ALWAYS taking off her clothes, but I guess when she's ready to party, she takes it seriously. Who can be bothered with clothes? Hopefully, we pray, this is just a stage.

Then on Easter we had a low-key, but very nice day. We did a little egg hunt in our house. Mollie took a "quality, not quantity" approach. Upon finding each egg, she had to open it, eat whatever was in it (but only if it was M&Ms, everything else she passed up), and THEN proceed in the search. We went to church, took naps and then went to Grandma Mary's and Grandpa Brad's for a traditional Easter dinner: homemade Cafe Rio pork.

Happy Easter!

Biography at 2 1/2 Years Old

2009-04-14T17:23:00.000-07:00

I need to post some Easter pics, but before I get around to that, I had a perfect epiphany today. I was thinking to myself, "If I had to describe Mollie to someone, what words would I use?" Because, frankly, I sometimes don't think there are words to describe Mollie.

And then I had a vision of a pig. A pig named Olivia. A pig named Olivia who is eerily similar to Mollie. How did the author of this book know that one day I would raise Olivia?

And to prove this point further, on the way home from somewhere the other day, Mollie announced to me in the car, "Mommy, you know, you really wear me out, but I love you anyway." Right back at ya Oliv-Mollie.

You are My Sunshine

2009-03-29T18:50:00.001-07:00

Florida, you are my sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray. You'll never know dear, how much I love you. Please don't take my sunshine away!

We spent a week in Florida and got home this past Thursday. Mom, Emilee, Cory, Mollie and I all went to visit Bethany and Mark as they "suffer" through dental school in Fort Lauderdale. We also visited Miami, the Everglades and Orlando as part of the trip.

Even after being home for three days, I am still tempted to sell my house, my snow clothes, AND my soul to move to Florida. Ok, maybe not my soul, but I might consider handing over a non-vital organ or two in exchange for beachfront property in Ft Lauderdale. Make me an offer.

This is what I hearted about Florida:

1. Little creatures can just run all over the place without throwing any caution to the wind. We saw iguanas, turtles, weird birds, lizards, crocodiles and alligators strolling around everywhere. They were pretty laid back about us getting close to them. Take, for instance, this picture of our walk in the Everglades. Mollie and this crocodile - I know it's hard to see, but I promise it's there -were pretty close (Picture in your mind me taking a quick picture and then dashing to wheel her out of harms way. That's what happened).

2. Orange blossoms. We passed orange groves on the way to Orlando and they smelled SOOOO good. I wish I could bottle that smell and pump it out of my blog page for you to experience. We had to pull over and take a picture (I think the "O" arms represent "oranges"? Who knows):

3. Disneyworld. No need to say more.

4. Mollie at Disneyworld. Her face was priceless when she saw the Cinderella castle, rode the carousel, met Pocohantas and told her how she was "two and had blonde hair," gave Goofy a bear hug, waved goodbye to Simba in the Lion King show, stood in awe seeing the Disney princesses in person, and saw all the animals in the Animal Kingdom. More than once it all brought a tear to my eye. There is nothing, nothing that can compare to seeing your child so happy and filled with wonder. It's like getting to be a kid all over again.

5. How can you not love the beach? Mollie did. We all did. Mollie insisted that we call her Ariel from The Little Mermaid. We built a sandcastle, made sand angels, and soaked up the sun.

6. Vizcaya House and driving the coast. By this part of the trip, my camera battery died and so I didn't take any pictures of this. Hopefully Bethany will post some pictures on her blog. She and I and Mollie were able to visit this beautiful early 1900's mansion on the coast and then drive down the beach from Miami to Fort Lauderdale for the rest of the afternoon. It felt so "Thelma and Louise"-ish. Except we weren't on the run from the law and we didn't kill anyone and we didn't drive off a cliff at the end. But we were a couple of free-spirited, adventure-filled sistas really living the good life. It was great.

7. The best part of the trip by far was being able to be with my family. My sister Bethany moved away last summer and I miss her. It was so fun to be with her and Mark and everyone else. Beth and Mark were so nice to host us for this trip. Here we are (Emilee, Bethany, Cory and Mollie) on the Jungle Cruise in the Magic Kingdom:

Florida is pretty great, isn't it? I'd give it four and a half stars. Why not five? Well, I did not have ONE good hair day while in Florida. My hair+humidity=bad hair. But that's a small prices to pay, isn't it? I'm still up for moving there. Anyone need a kidney?

Just Exercising My Right

2009-02-28T20:34:00.000-08:00

Let's face it, when you give birth, you are bestowed a whole new bill of rights. The right to go ga-ga by making-up strange words and saying those words in strange voices, the right to say "poop" in everyday conversation, the right to ignore your child when she has a melt-down in public, the right to stop anything and everything you are doing if your child needs you, AND the right to brag. I am here tonight to exercise that right.

Mollie identifies our destinations by color. "Are we going to the red store (Smith's Marketplace) or the blue store (Albertson's)?" "Are you going to the red gym (Bally's) or the yellow gym (Gold's)?" Tonight we went to the green store (Dollar Tree) instead of a red store (Mr. Macs -come to think of it, I've never stepped foot in Mr. Macs. Maybe that should be a lifelong goal of mine ;) Anyway...)

So we cleared up what store we were going to go to and Cory casually said, "Hey, Mollie, do you see some letters?" She replied, "Yes. D-O-L-L-A-R-T-R-E" Cory and I looked at each other with the words "HOLY MOLY" in our eyes. Maybe it should have been "HOLY MOLLIE." Now she is our first child, and only child, so we are constantly amazed, and proud, at what she comes up with. But her ability to recognize letters and spell a word?...well, that pretty much trumps everything up to this point.

She makes us laugh too:

1. Mollie is slightly obsessed that everything and everyone has a "mommy." If there is a storybook character or even a real-live person or animal she sees without a mother-figure, it concerns her. "Where is their mommy?" is a constant question at our house.

A few days ago, Mollie "rearranged" our living room lamps. I came in to find this. Her explanation: "The wittle one just needed his mommy."

2. We went shoe-shopping for Cory today. Mollie LOVES to try on shoes when there is any sort of shoe in sight at any store. She goes for high-heels and funky colors. Today her favorite pair were a mismatched patent blue stilleto and a white leather high-heeled wedge. In an attempt to coax her out of them so we could leave, I said, "Mollie, let's pretend you are the customer and I will let you try THESE shoes on (her own)." Her reply: "Mommy, I am not a customer, I am just a kid who loves shoes!"

3. She has been able to spend time with her three cousins, Katie, Olivia, and Nathan since they moved here from England. Mollie has picked up that they say, "hiya" instead of "hi" like we do. Today she said, "Katie and Olivia say 'hiya' and we say 'hi', but that's okay because they are from China."

Hey, if being a "kid who just loves shoes" is diffrent than a paying customer, I am all for it. And if she's spelling words at two years-old, there will be plenty of time for geography lessons.

We love this kid.

XOXOXOXO

2009-02-18T20:23:00.000-08:00

Here are my two loves - two hearts that thump to the same beat. They are such a pair! Here are some reasons why I simply adore them:

They have incredible blue eyes

They are not afraid to try new things

They never get cold

They like peanut butter

They don't like jelly bellies

They always have a song to be singing, humming or whistling

They like to read "Fox in Socks" (count me OUT)

They like to go on hikes with their "pack packs"

They like really high swings, fast slides, and slippery sleds

They like fast shoes

They make my heart turn to moosh

XOXOXO to my my eternal valentines! I heart you!

Today's Reduced-word Post

2009-02-08T18:28:00.000-08:00

Note to self: Let's face it, this blog is often too heavy on words and not on pics. B-O-R-I-N-G. Trouble is, I don't have any photography skills AND I have this delightful, "biggest waste of $300" camera. But, nonetheless, here are some family visuals from the past two months:

Jumpin' Jacks with Caldwell and Broadbent cousins

Swimming with Caldwells. A rarity that we'll ALL together (Mom and Dad are photo-shooting)

Sledding with Mulcocks (Katie, Olivia, Cory, Mollie, Kim, Rob and Colin pictured here) at Donut Falls. We had no idea what was to come. This was taken just before utter mayhem broke out with freezing, screaming kids.

Sledding at Sugarhouse Park with the ward

See this donut remnant? It survived two walks up the hill and two sled runs. I think Mollie used it as a stress ball.

The many faces of The Mol

BFF

2009-02-04T21:44:00.000-08:00

My girl is potty trained! It's been a solid week without an accident, day or night time. It has been a monumental few months: goodbye to binkies and goodbye to diapers! I have honestly feared life without those two precious things since day one - knowing that those conveniences of life would one day be gone. I even found an dusty binky under my bed the other day, and held in my hand for a long time, fighting the urge to wash it and pop it in Mollie's mouth. I guess I am a recovering addict of sorts. But The Mol is doing great! I love that little bottom running around in mini-panties. Can't stop pinching those cheeks!

And here are some of the latest thoughts that Mollie's little brain has cooked up and have consequently escaped her lips:

"Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the Indians, and the dinosaurs and the mammoth" (we went to the Museum of Natural History for FHE. She clearly appreciated it)

"Mommy, I made a caterpillar!" (Looking into the toilet - I'll leave that one to your imagination)

"Mamma Mia! Here I go again! My, my, how can I resist you?" (Sung to her nursery leaders at church - I got the report later)

And here's my personal favorite, because it makes me look really good as a mom (and I can use all the help I can get with that). Mollie was pounding on the piano at my mom's house singing the ABC song. Then she started singing, "I Feel My Savior's Love." And she announced to Grandma, "We sing this at Family Home Evening!" And we did. Once.

Tonight she helped me make cookies and we made a "picnic" on the kitchen floor and ate them together. Mollie generously offered me some of her milk and a bite of her cookie. She loaded her plate into the dishwasher and said, "thank you." Then we rocked in our rocking chairs in the living room and she told me that I was her best friend. You think I am making this up. I am not joking. I just had to write it down so that I would believe it when she morphed back into the normal two-year old that she is most of the time.

Mollie and Julie. BFF.

Picture Princess

2009-01-23T13:57:00.000-08:00

My Mollie, princess-in-training. She likes to twirl, wear beautiful dresses, sing, change shoes frequently, and make demands. All she needs to be the princess of her dreams is to be officially granted her own kingdom (her parents are holding out on that one). Oh, and I guess a Prince Charming would come in handy too, but she's got her cousins Caleb and Brandon, whom she is set on marrying. Her checklist is almost complete.

Except this: Shabby Apple is conducting a "picture princess contest" and are searching for a little girl to win their new Shabby Baby spring line. Stop your carriages! Being a sucker for all things free and the darling clothes Shabby Apple sells, I am officially entering the contest with this blog post. If Her Highness were to choose a little Shabby Baby number, she would pick the lovely "Queen of Hearts" dress (http://www.shabbyapple.com/p-84-queen-of-hearts.aspx).

Here are some of my most recent, and amateur, attempts to capture little Mollie Jane:

Princess in title or not, she is our crown jewel.

Bless Yous

2009-01-18T20:25:00.000-08:00

Tonight after brushing teeth, Mollie said, "Mommy, look at at all of those 'bless yous' in the tub!" Huh? Sure enough, there were water droplets on the floor of the tub. She sure must observe a lot of really wet sneezes! ACHOO!

The Negotiator

2009-01-17T12:21:00.000-08:00

Who knew that my sweet little girl would start trying to manipulate me at such a tender age? I had no idea that things such as bath time, bed time, nap time, food time, get in the car time, put your clothes on time, say prayers time, sit still time, put your toys away time - pretty much any time I exercise any sort of my own will - all these times would really put my conflict resolution and negotiation skills to the test.

Take for instance, yesterday's lunch. The process took an hour, and she didn't even finish what was in front of her. Here are Mollie's best arguments for not eating her food and continuosly getting down from her chair:

"I'm just letting it cool down" (It was cottage cheese, kiwi, and carrots)

"I'm just fixing my chair" (Getting down, moving it back and forth, and then attempting to make a run for it)

"I'm just going to take a break" (Starting to get down and then attempting to make a run for it)

"I'm just going to go in the other room, play for a minute, then come back" (Getting down, seeing mom is going to grab her, ducking under the table)

"My stomach is thinking" (Getting down, standing by her chair, and tapping her index finger to her forehead)

So finally, we moved past lunch time and went for nap time. A good ten minutes after I thought she was asleep I hear a yell, "I'm HUNGRY MOMMY!"

Sometimes it feels like I am the coyote.

Blog Robber

2009-01-13T21:28:00.000-08:00

Long ago a feller could get himself locked up for hog stealin. I guess I'm about to bring the same concept into the 21st century by doin some "blog" stealin. Is there an unwritten code that you can't steal from someone else's blog? Well, I'm about to do it.

One reason for not updating my blog very much lately is that I my creative juices have been flowing...nowhere. In fact, my mind feels like a swamp. I definitely am suffering from an acute case of the January blues. And I have a cold, which helps nothing.

But I did want to note some things that have happened in my life. So here goes, my first blog steal:

Angelee, my sister, did an upstanding job highlighting our Christmas with the Caldwell side of the family. Please see http://maryangelee.blogspot.com/ for the full report. She did a nice job capturing Mollie singing, with her finger in her nose and all. Thanks, Ang, for your sweet skills: your bowstaff skills, your numchuck skills, and your holiday record keeping skills.

The only thing that Ang was not able to cover adequately about the holidays were two notable things: 1) Bethany and Mark became our roomies for two weeks during the holidays, we had a great time with them in our house and we miss them, and 2) Christmas with the Mulcocks was also a great thing, since Tracy and her kids arrived from England and the whole Mulcock pack of grandkids doubled overnight! We look forward to many good times with our newfound cousins.

And, introducing....(drum roll please), my second blog steal:

My cousin, Lacey, posted a fabulous "New Year's" blog about what she was looking forward to in 2009: a year devoted to herself. Sounds smashing! So I am stealing her idea. Here are some of the things that will be my "foci" in 2009:

1. I will have more fun and I will be more fun. A daily smile will be mandatory. I will laugh more. I will memorize dumb jokes...make it dumb pickle jokes. I will be unashamedly silly. This morning Mollie presented me with some "donut soup" that she had "prepared." I vow to eat more donut soup.

2. I am going to do something that I have never done before. Here are my multiple choice options:
a) Sew something that I will actually wear
b) Prepare my Relief Society lesson one week in advance so I can ponder, ponder, ponder
c) Get up early (at least once a week) and read my scriptures
d) Prepare to run the Wasatch Back, which I have committed to, do not want to do anymore, but can't think of a legitimate reason for getting out of it
e) Contract an semi-awful disease that will legitimately prevent me from having to run the Wasatch Back
d) All of the above
(The answer is "d")

3. Start something: A business. Start writing a book (my journal would count). A plan to get my Master's Degree. I will think less about doing and do more about doing.

4. Replace fear with faith. I've got too many fears. No good. Gotta let the real boss be in charge.

5. Treat myself like the most important person I am to me. (WHOA, NELLIE! Did you understand that last sentence?!) What I mean is, take care of myself. Recognize my needs and find heathly ways to meet those needs. Regard myself as the most important person in my life. I am special. Special needs.

6. Update my blog on January 13th. Hey! I can check this one off of my list! What a good start to the year. I can tell it's going to be a good one!

2009-01-02T21:07:00.001-08:00

...a Utah Man am I! K-eye!

We're U people. We're happy. Cory got to go to the Sugar Bowl with my Dad and brother-in -law. They had to fly to St. Louis, then Atlanta, then Mobile, Alabama and then drove from there to New Orleans. Who knows how they'll get home as standby passengers, BUT WHO CARES?! What a great game!

2008-12-14T20:32:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas 2008!

We skimped on sending out a Christmas letter again this year, so this is it, folks!

It's been a good year. We were able to visit some exotic places! Cory went to Bejing, China and Capetown, South Africa for work and Julie and Mollie went on the exotic...jungle cruise at Disneyland. We also went down to Southern Utah with Julie's family, which was not quite as exotic, but definitely a memorable adventure!

Cory started MBA school this fall and spent the better part of the year applying, preparing and studying for this new "adventure." Not quite as fun as traveling halfway around the world though! He still works at Franklin Covey on the International Sales team. School, work, church and family...not much time for anything else.

Julie is Mollie's mom and Cory's wife. And proud of it! She also works part-time at Jacobsen Construction in Human Resources. She enjoys having "creative control" over most things, which is how she talked Cory into dressing up like Papa Bear for Halloween, which he did not enjoy, but took it for the team! And Julie blogs, which is what brought this little family update to you today.

Mollie is two. Not terrible, but definitely two. Her nursery leaders put it perfectly: "she just knows what she likes." Right now she mainly likes the color blue and princesses. Everything else revolves around those two things. Lucky for us, most princess stories end with a wedding and a castle, which Mollie mistakes for the Salt Lake Temple. So she is always so happy when her princesses "get married in the temple!" We are too! This year, we thought we'd let her speak for herself:

She recently surprised us by learning the words to "The Twelve Days of Christmas." So festive!

So here we are the end of another year. The Lord's hand has been in our lives. We have been blessed beyond measure. We are so grateful for His atonement, life and love for us. Our greatest hope is that all of our friends and family feel the light of Christ this season and always. We love you!

Cory, Julie and Mollie Mulcock

2008-11-25T22:59:00.000-08:00

So long, farewell!

Today is a proud day at our house. We said a final farewell to Mollie's binkys. I have relished that she has always taken a binky, been such a good baby, and slept so well, and makes the cutest little "mmmm" sound when she gets it in her mouth, but all of those things couldn't outweigh that she is over two years old and it was just time to say goodbye.

Cory and I discussed our plan of attack very carefully. And this is what we came up with (actually it was Cory's idea, so he is the mastermind of this strategy).

We have a Richard Scary book about "what people do all day". We read it last night two or three times because there is a picture in the book of crying babies in the nursery of a hospital. PERFECT because THEY ARE NOT PICTURED WITH BINKYS. So to enhance the story, Mollie and I discussed how those babies might be happier if they just had binkys!

Our plan was hatched and in motion. This morning Mollie and I discussed it again. Why not take our binkys to share with the babies at the hospital? "Yeah!" says Mollie. She was on board. So we rounded up all the binkys and gave them a good scrubbing in the "bath" so they would be clean. Mollie gingerly dried them in a hand towel and we each kissed them goodbye. Mollie chose some purple wrapping paper and she "helped" me wrap them up like a present (Mollie was in charge of scotch tape). We put a blue bow on the top (again, her choice) and headed out the door.

Grandma Jackie and Aunt Brittany both work in the NICU of the new hospital, so we met them there. They helped us by getting a nurse in the nursery to come out and talk to Mollie and accept her gift. Then Mollie looked in the nursery window to see all the babies that were going to be so happy to have her binkys! Not a tear was shed and Mollie got lots of encouragement and congratulations on being a big girl. (Note: she did this all while wearing big girl panties too, so I am sure she was feeling very awesome).

We told Mollie she could get a treat and a toy at Target afterwards. Her treat of choice: a blue sucker (we bought a blue ring pop). Her toy of choice: A princess memory game that only set me back $4. Wow, that certainly could have turned out worse.

Since then, only twice has Mollie asked about her binky. When I reminded her of what happened today, she just silently thought about it for a moment. No tears. And she went to sleep...after about an hour of playing in her crib. Hopefully she'll learn how to settle in to bed a little sooner! But, so far, so good. I am so proud of my girl!

2008-11-23T15:50:00.000-08:00

Gobble Gobble

My neighbor introduced me to the greatest thing since sliced bread this month. Better than sliced bread because not only do you get the bread, you get fruits and vegetables and meats and rice and nuts and apple cider too.

I'm talking about The Community Food Co-Op of Utah. The Co-Op is basically just a food "network" that provides healthy, fresh, locally grown food one Saturday a month. They publish the foods that will be available each month, you place your order, give them your credit card number, and then a few weeks later you go pick up your food. It's like a simplified Farmers Market. It's so fun and easy!

This is what I got on Saturday for $40 and some cents:

In case you can't tell (I never professed to be a food artist) it's apple cider, almonds, cashews, pistachios, trail mix, red potatotes, broccoli, lettuce, a loaf of bread, bananas, tomatoes, oranges, kiwis, brown rice, avocados, spare ribs, swiss steak, chicken legs and ground hamburger. I love food and I love a bargain. It's a marriage made in heaven!

You can go to www. foodco-op.org to get more details. The more people who place orders, the cheaper the prices will be!

2008-11-14T08:38:00.000-08:00

Crazy 8 part II

I tag Tracy M too.

2008-11-12T21:38:00.000-08:00

CRAZY EIGHTS

8 TV shows I watch
1. LOST 2. The News 3. The Office 4. Cinderella 5. Winnie the Pooh 6. That is it. Seriously. Not cause I don’t want to, but because there is NO TIME!

8 Favorite Restaurants
1. Spagetti Factory 2. Z Pizzeria 3. Crazy bread from Little Ceasars 4. Cowboy Grub 5. The Gliretind at Stein Eriksen Lodge 6. Brookside Broiler 7. Hires Big H 8. The Lion House

8 Things that Happened Yesterday
1. I made Shepherd’s pie 2. I named my shepherd’s pie “Mr. Potato Head” so Mollie would eat it 3. Made a castle with blocks for Mollie 4. Went to Costco with my mom and Mollie 5. Ironed Cory’s shirts 6. Cleaned/dumped out Mollie’s potty more than I want to remember 7. Worked for a couple of hours 8. Went to bed early!

8 Things I’m looking forward to
1. Being pregnant 2. Bethany’s visit in December 3. Cory’s graduation 4. A Christmas bonus 5. Finding out what my real hair color is once it grows out a bit 6. The day AFTER I give my next Relief Society lesson 7. Book club 8. Reading Jenny’s UPDATED blog, and never looking at that rainbow again

8 Things on my Wish List
1. More kids 2. Tuition reimbursement 3. A new pair of running shoes 4. A new furnace and air conditioner 5. A new camera 6. Lose many pounds 7. More time with Cory 8. Less work, more pay

8 Things I Love
1. Haircuts 2. Seven layer dip 3. My sisters 4. Ok, ALL my family! 5. Mollie’s smell 6. Pedicures 7. Singing along to musicals 8. Jelly Bellys

8 things I hate
1. Cats 2. Bad moods 3. Not enough sleep 4. An unmade bed 5. Bare feet 6. Overcooked eggs 7. Republicans AND democrats 8. Fake boobs

People I’m Tagging: Katie, Jenny, Megan, Ang, Bethany

2008-11-01T13:56:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

Cute cousins: Brandon, Mollie and Breanna

2008-10-28T13:20:00.000-07:00

The Buddy System

Mollie is getting old enough to be my buddy. I put on lipstick, she wants lipstick. I talk on the phone, she wants to talk on the phone. I sweep the floor, she sweeps the floor. I do yoga, she does yoga (the other day she saw someone at the store raise their hands above their head and she said, "Wook Mommy! That wady is doing yoga wike us!") Since Cory has been busy with school, we really get a chance to pal around together. I absolutely love it. There is a part of my heart that goes all marshmellowy when I think about Mollie. She is my lover!
Here are some pics of the last few weeks:

Mollie and I completed the "Itty Bitty Salt Lake City" contest. This is us in front of our VERY last find! If you want details on the contest, check it out on Deseret News.com. We spent about 15 hours downtown looking for clues together. What a great partner!

Mollie helped me make dinner rolls on conference Sunday.

And she helped Dad make gingersnap cookies, too.

We got two HUGE pumpkins in our backyard pumpkin patch this year and Mollie loved watching them grow up!

Mollie drove the tractor at Wheeler Farm.

Mollie and Brandon gave "branches" to the tree stump at Wheeler Farm.

Mollie hiking to the "H" with Dad. Her backpack, by the way, is FILLED with rocks she carefully picked out and brought home.

Dad and Mollie built a castle/fort where she spent the better part of Sunday morning. She moved right in, bringing most of her toys, her blanket and some story books with her. She stayed there a LONG time, which prompted both Cory and I to say, "Why didn't we think of this SOONER?"

This face! Checking out the scenery as we rode the tram at Snowbird last weekend.

Getting a smooch from Dad.

Eyes filled with wonder.

2008-10-18T16:10:00.000-07:00

Tagged for Real

Oh, I am so honored to be tagged for real! (Thanks, Megan!) What I have to do is write six quirks about me and then tag 6 people. EASY. I am full of quirks.

1. I hate feet. People's feet on me, my bare feet on a floor (shoes are ALWAYS on), looking at feet, that Dr. Seuss book about feet. Bottom line: feet stink.
2. I still wear a pair of pajamas that I have had for 13 years. And there is not a show of wear on them ANYWHERE. Cory and I think these pajamas are immortal. They keep on giving. They are indestructible. I have been able to fit into them at my skinniest, my fattest, and my 9 months pregnant-est. The NASA space program should study the design and take them into space. I am not joking.
3. I like the group Huey Lewis and the News. I know the words to all their songs and I sing along. Definitely not cool. I don't care.
4. I do not like popcorn. Not once in my life have I purchased or been tempted to purchase a bucket of popcorn at a movie theater. Those humongous pickles, however, have always intrigued me. Do people eat those or do they sit next to the popcorn machine for effect only?
5. I think David Bowie is sexy. I can't think of a reason why. Could it be that white leotard he wears in Labyrinth? His fang teeth? I don't know. I really, really don't know.
6. When I was younger, these are some of the things I wanted to be when I grew up: an archeologist, an architect, and a lawyer. Archeologist because of our many family trips to Dinosaurland, an architect because I loved Legos and designing my own house plans on posterboard, and lawyer because I read every Nancy Drew book one summer and Nancy's attorney-dad drove a "sedan" (which I thought meant a "porsche.")

Now YOU'RE IT!

2008-10-09T21:55:00.001-07:00

I'm IT

Is it okay to tag yourself? Cause seriously, I read this tag on my cousins post and I want to answer too!

High School tag

1. Your High School's full name: Olympus High School
2. High School Colors: Green and Gray
3. School Mascot: Titans
4. Did you date anyone from your school? I went to most dances if that counts. Oh, and I sort-of dated a friend at the end of senior year. A GUY friend.
5. It's Friday night where are you: With Jessica.
6. Were you a party animal: Only when blaring Milli Vanilli out of my mom's minivan in the school parking lot late at night....so, no.
7. Were you considered a flirt: I tried my hand at flirting.
8. Were you in band, orchestra, choir, or other group: I was definitely a choir girl.
9. Were you in any clubs: Vocal Ensemble (Madrigals), Election Committee Office, Young Republican Club Officer, English Club...oh, and I was the founder of the John Rutter Fan Club
10. Did you ever get expelled or suspended: I was a very, very good girl.
12. Who were your favorite teachers: Mrs. Baskin my English teacher. I always sat on my desk instead of my chair in her class. It felt so "Dead Poets Society" ish.
13. Where did you sit during lunch: My sophomore year I was the new girl and had NO friends, so I mostly wandered the halls trying to look busy, then by senior year it was out on the grass or in someone's car driving away.
14. Who was your prom date? Trigg Randall junior prom. Chris Vandam the next junior prom. Joe Lebaron senior prom.
15. If you could go back and re-do high school would you: Sophomore year, no. Junior year, maybe. Senior year I loved - best time of my life.
16. Were you a nerd? If being a nerd means that no one likely remembers you going to high school with them, then yes.
17. Were you on any varsity teams? Never tried out.
18. Where did you go senior skip day? I am not sure on that day...wait, I think training table with Jessica and Matt, Josh, Joe and Scott. Other notable sluff days: going to see French Kiss with Jessica and Josh. McDonalds with Chris Sweeten and Scott Townsend to try and win Monopoly. And Brackman Bros. Bagels with various people. And bowling with Rebecca Neff. It's amazing what you can get done in just a few school periods.
19. Have you gained some weight since then? Sob.
20. What do you remember about Graduation: Singing "Walk Down that Lonesome Road" in Abravenel Hall with my Vocal Ensemble friends.
21. Are you planning on going to your 10 year reunion? I went to the 10 year. Won't be going to any more of those.
22. What kind of car did you drive? My mom's minivan.
23. What was your most embarrassing moment in high school? NOTHING will ever top the sheer humilation of singing and dancing to "Can't You Feel It?" at the Hello Day Assembly. Oh, the shame.
24. Did you go to homecoming and with who? I did go to homecoming and I can't remember with whom. Ted Cundick?** That sounds about right.
25. Looking back, what advice would you give yourself? Most of my friends were in the National Honor Society and I never did get involved with that. I should have. Also, it's a good idea to study for AP tests. Some you can get by on the skin of your teeth. Others...not so much.

** Correction: Homecoming date was Josh Gildea.

2008-10-02T21:10:00.000-07:00

Richfield

Last weekend Mollie and I visited the Thalmans in Richfield. Also on board were Mom, Angelee, Emilee and Dad. It was a nice, relaxing time! Richfield is so great because there really isn't that much to do. So what you do is talk, play games and enjoy each other. Those are the best times. We never do that in Salt Lake together because there is such a rush to Go! and Do! Richfield is where you can go to just be a family.

As I was packing my bag for the trip, I noticed Mollie was filling her "pack pack" as well. As she explained to me, "I'm filling my pack pack for when I go live with Cayeb." And this is what she brought with her (could she survive on a desert island? You be the judge):

Survival kit: a doorbell, chapstick, a Mexican rattle, an expired credit card, clip-on earrings, fake pearls, an assortment of plastic, fabric and foam fish and animals, a marker...and some keys, just in case. Survivor, anyone?

2008-09-17T22:12:00.000-07:00

Molly Dolly-isms

1. (Pulling up to Grandma Marianne's house. No one is outside. I get out and open Mollie's door.) Mollie (shouting): I'm here! I'm here everybody! I'm coming! I'm coming!

2. Mollie went to bed a few nights ago at 9:00 p.m. All was quiet. At 10:30 p.m., Cory came home from school. I say, "Hi, Cory!" And from somewhere in the back of the house we hear a muffled cry, "Daddy! I'm sleeping!"

3. Mollie and Dad went to the fair with his family without me because I went to the planning commission meeting. So a few days later I took Mollie again, just the two of us at the fair. I said, "Mollie, what should we do first?" She replied, "Um...see the quilts!"

4. "Mollie you are a good singer!" "No! I am a Mollie!"

5. Mollie is potty training and figured out a new technique to stay up later than her bedtime. One night after the third time of her calling out "I have to go potty!", getting out of bed and then not going potty, Cory called her bluff: "Mollie, do you really have to go potty? Because you keep telling us that you do and they you don't. Do you have to go potty or not?
(Pause - Mollie is thinking of how she can negotiate her way out off this)
Mollie: I went in my pants
Cory: (Not taking the bait) Good. It's time for bed then. Goodnight.
Mollie: (Lays down in her bed and goes right to sleep)

7. Me: "Mollie, you're the best kind of kid!" Mollie: "No, Mommy, YOU'RE the best kind of kid!"

6. My mom wrote me this email last week after she watched Mollie for me:
Mollie went through my purse, putting lip gloss on her nose, and between her eyes, as well as mascara. With the two black eyes, she flipped open my phone and hit the OK button. All of a sudden I heard her talking to somebody real on the phone, but hoped it was a family member, as I was in a deep conversation with a neighbor. Mollie just kept talking and talking in her own very deep conversation for a LONG time. When my neighbor left, I found her pulling down her "tulips" (pullups) in the bathroom and when I shut the phone which was off she said, "No, no, I'm talking to Caleb!" Lo and behold, in talking to Katie a bit later I find out that she called Katie and Katie put Caleb on and they had quite a conversation...at least 10 minutes or more. Picture Caleb walking around outside with the phone in one hand and his other hand on his hip. Picture Mollie saying, "Caleb, come on to Grandma's," "I can't," says Caleb, "My mom says it's far away." Mollie replies, "Can Abby and Hallie come over?" Caleb (after asking his mom), "No, they live in Kansas." Mollie, "Oh."

Who IS this child?

2008-09-12T13:45:00.000-07:00

Two is Too Fun

I have realized that it's a good thing that two-year olds are so funny. If they weren't, life would be tough! Potty training, stubbornness, emotions that can go from zero to sixty in under two seconds...and did I mention potty training? All things that might put me over the edge. Today Mollie woke up real early and was getting busy real fast. I said, "Mollie, you wear me out." She said, "No, I don't wear you out. But I love you anyway." She's sure got a way with words . Some days I could eat her alive, but most days I could just eat her up! I love these recent pics!

2008-09-11T20:54:00.000-07:00

Something to Smile About

Last night I participated in a 4+ hour long meeting with the SLC planning commission regarding rezoning the Walmart on Parley's Way by my house (where the haunted house Kmart is now). Contrary to what most people think, the issue is NOT about whether Walmart can come there. Walmart already owns the property and nothing can stop them from rolling in their roll-back prices. Yellow smiley faces will come people.

What Walmart has requested is a rezone of the property, which I and most of my neighbors OPPOSE! They want to build a new pinnacle of thriftiness, and to do that, they need it rezoned, instead of work with the building they purchased two years ago fully knowing it was zoned as it is. (Not to get too technical, but the reason why they can come in as a box-type store now is because of a grandfather clause that they will inherit from Kmart if they reuse 50% or more of the value of Kmart's building.)

The immediate outcome of rezoning or not rezoning will be EXACTLY the same: a Walmart store. Rezoning is unnecessary. Walmart can and WILL build a presentable building, no matter how it is zoned. How they build it is their problem. How the zoning affects the future of our neighborhood is OUR problem.

Rezoning opens the doors for future businesses to bring in more big box-like stores. One of the reasons why Cory and I chose to buy and live in an old house in an old neighborhood is the integrity and character of the community. Changing the zoning endangers that. It’s too late with the Walmart coming in, but years from now Walmart may be gone and there might be a chance to revitalize that property into something the neighborhood can be proud of. I could go on and on…don’t get me started…

Anyway, a few ladies from my neighborhood rallied and went to the meeting to show support for the cause. A few of us spoke to the commissioners (including me!) about the issue. From the onset, it looked like the Walmart representatives were going to get their way, but when over 100 people showed up and only 2 of them were on Walmart’s side, I think that turned the tide. I know it sounds like a yawner, but it was better than watching Jerry Springer! Seriously! The final vote was 7-0 in our favor. Now the issue goes to the City Council. If all goes well, Walmart will have to work within the confines of the current zoning, which they are perfectly able to do. The community master plan will stay intact and victory will go to the little people (like Mollie and her children)!

Walmart is launching a huge campaign to rally support. Don't get caught up in the emotion (this is not a Walmart witch-hunt nor is it a Walmart 911 call). Study the issue - rezoning - and form your own opinion.

2008-09-02T15:38:00.000-07:00

August-0 with Gusto

Whew! Is it time for snow yet? I am already ready for a long winters' nap! Here are the highlights of our bustling August:

We went to the Scott family reunion in Oakley

We spent two days at the Caldwell cabin with Brandon, Grandma Jackie, Grandpa Larry, Brittany and Breanna (this is the ONLY pic I took. I am definitely NOT blessed with photography skills OR a nice camera. Working on the latter, however...)

Cory and I got to get away to Las Vegas for a few days. The only thing we won was a pair of really nice grandmas taking care of Mollie. LUCKY!

We went to Lagoon for Cory's work summer party. Mollie was old enough to ride the kiddie rides this year. She didn't exactly smile, or squeal with joy, or seem like she was having a great time, but there were no tears, so that was enough. Way to go, Mollie!

She had a little trouble with the bumper-car concept.

Mollie also started swimming lessons for the first time.

We took turns with her each week in the pool.

We went to the Franklin Covey suite for a Bees game and fireworks. All the Salt Lake Mulcocks and Caldwells were able to come.

What kind of parents would let their kid...?! Oops. Mollie did fish lips on the suite window with Caleb and Brandon. Hey, what was I supposed to do? Especially since Grandpa Larry taught them how.

We enjoyed the fireworks together

At the end of it all, Mollie got to run around the bases with her cousins and Aunt Angelee in her "China dress" nightgown (Ang and Adelynn are in the lead)

On the 27th, Mollie had a BIRTHDAY and turned TWO and got lots of stuff and had lots of fun

We lost a part of our tree in a storm on Sunday and Mollie had fun "soaking" it all in.

A small event, but nonetheless, noteworthy:

Mollie was a sponge-curler-walrus for part of a day

And that was our August, up close and personal.

2008-08-23T13:51:00.000-07:00

Serenity Now!

By the end of this week I will have: worked 30 hours, thrown a training event for 50 employees, cleaned my house from top to bottom and everything in between, weeded my yard and planted flowers, hosted my book club dinner group, attended four family parties, attended a cousin's mission homecoming, finished a book, said goodbye to my husband as he attends 12 hours of MBA junk and works 40+ hours in one week, prepared and presented a Relief Society lesson, attended a Bees game, taken Mollie to her swimming lesson and to Discovery Gateway and the mall where she lost her left shoe, right shoe, pink puppy and brown puppy all at different times in the space of an hour that should have only been 15 minutes, had my hair done, watched three hours worth of the second season of 24 AND a special documentary about Judy Garland's life on PBS (why that was a part of my week is a mystery even to myself, but I just couldn't tear myself away).

I feel like my shelf-life is about to expire. How do all you women out there SURVIVE? I stand in awe of those of you who do all of this in a week and more. With more kids and/or more hours to work and/or more church responsibilities to fulfill. You may not feel appreciated, but know that I am sitting here thinking that you are an olympic champion. Gold medals to wives and mothers everywhere!

2008-08-06T16:05:00.000-07:00

Potty at my house!

We tend to treat Mollie like royalty around here, and this past week she really put new meaning into sitting on the throne, if you catch my drift. For a while now we have battled her compulsion to remove all her clothes (including diaper), sit on her potty, and then run around in her birthday suit until we can catch her. It happened again, but this time, she produced. IN the potty.

We were both caught unawares and had nothing to offer her in way of reward. So after some mad searching for something special and not finding many treats in the house, we let her have a taste of some chocolate syrup from the fridge. She liked it. (And feeling slightly pathetic about this, we vowed to go get some decent potty treats!)

This great event was preluded by Mollie discovering the Little Mermaid panties I bought for her a few weeks ago. I put the package in her pajama drawer and forgot about it. One day, after the customary removal of clothing, Mollie called to me to help her put on her "shirt." Excited that she actually wanted to wear clothes, I went in to help her. This is what I found:

If having a two-year old isn't a "potty," I don't know what is.

2008-07-25T07:41:00.000-07:00

Sweet 'N Sour

2008-07-22T15:37:00.000-07:00

July!

I LOVE July. It seems like every day of July is a party. My birthday is in July, for one, and then we get the 4th and the 24th to celebrate too. Lots of days off and watermelon and hamburgers and balloons and parades and swimming suits and late nights. Ahhhh. July is like medicine that gets us through the rest of the year.

2008-07-17T21:17:00.000-07:00

Tagged

I guess I've been "tagged" by a fellow blogger. Took me a while to figure out what that meant. When I go shopping with Mollie she pulls things off the racks, looks at each tag and says, "This is tute. It's nine dollars!" Oh how I wish everything was really nine dollars. So here goes. Hope you get your nine dollars worth.

1. Four places I go over and over:
- The kitchen to open the fridge and see if anyone has miraculous created a gourmet meal for me to heat up and serve
- To the candy jar at work
- To the washer and dryer to switch out a load. My laundry seems to reproduce itself, does yours?
- To put new dishtowels on the handle of the stove. Cory likes 'em off. I like 'em on. Love is a battlefield.
2. Four people that email me the most
- Gymboree
- Gap
- Ann Taylor Loft
- Sparkpeople. I need some real friends
3. Four of my favorite foods
- Seven layer dip
- Jelly Bellies
- Dove chocolates
- Nielsen's Frozen Custard
4. Four places I'd rather be right now
- In bed
- Outside under the stars
- In the movie, "Notting Hill" playing Julia Robert's character
- In the book, "Gone With the Wind" as Scarlett O'Hara
5. Four movies I would watch over and over again
- Grease
- Hairspray
- The Jerk
- Bridget Jone's Diary
6. Four people I am tagging
- Oh, let's not pick favorites. If you want to be tagged....you're IT!

2008-07-12T16:10:00.001-07:00

How to make a Great Fourth of July (recipe by Mollie Jane Mulcock):

Take one candy-bearing parade

Add a little something from the fish pond

Fold-in one bounce in the bounce house

Pour in five cousins, a few splashes and four paper cups

Sprinkle in one sneeze and a jump (tissue, please!)

Top it all off with one grand sparkle

2008-06-26T08:20:00.000-07:00

Are You All Tucked In?

One bedtime not long ago, Mollie figured out that she was the ONLY one going to bed at that time. Not only that, but she seemed to understand that once her door was closed, Mom and Dad would be breaking out the disco ball and the limbo stick and the non-alcoholic tequila (wink, wink). Not one to miss a party, she started to raise a stink. It was time for us to think outside of the box. So, to coerce her into her covers, we let her "tuck" Cory into bed first. She did a pretty good job, for a beginner, and she went to bed afterwards without a hitch. Cory did a good job as a "tuckee" and we pulled off our trick quite well.

Now Mollie has taken her new skill quite seriously. She likes to practice at various times of the day. She "tucks in" random things like her toothbrush, her Crocs, me, and her babydoll, "Cheetah" (yes, "Cheetah" is her Mollie-given name).

When was the last time that someone tucked YOU in? Could you use a good tucking? I gotta tell ya, it feels pretty good. Sure, you could go get a massage, or take a long bath, or eat a bowl of Nielsen's Frozen Custard, but nothing beats a good tuck in. We are quite enjoying our newly-found hobby.

2008-06-26T08:15:00.001-07:00

Some recent pics of Mollie and I messing around. I don't know why she looks so worried in some of these pics. Is it a "my mom is a weirdo, please save me!" plea for help?

2008-06-22T16:38:00.001-07:00

Things I'd Like to Do, but Never Do

I have this need to write something right now. Nothing in particular is striking me as important, so I'll just write. I like to write. I like a lot of things that I don't do enough or at all. Here are some of them:

- Sing. I love to sing. When I am driving alone, I sing at the top of my lungs. It feels great.
- Dance. In one of my former lives I had some pretty decent moves. I used to choreograph whole dances in my 100 square foot basement bedroom. It started with my modern dance days and pretty much ended with my high school madrigal days. Now I just do the Hokey Pokey with Mollie and it's fun, but just not the same.
- Watch movies. My husband doesn't like to watch movies so we rarely do that together. And when I have my own time, I always grab a book instead. But a nice chick flick always hits the spot.
- Eat Nielsen's Frozen Custard. I worked there for a year in high school and had a daily dose. That year I also lost 10 pounds. Hmm...maybe avoiding that stuff is only making me fatter!
- Talk to my sisters. Coming from a family of all girls mean that there is always a lot of talking going on. So much in fact, that it requires a lot of time to keep up! I wish I talked to my sisters more.
- Talk to my mom. Same dilemna as talking to my sisters. Mom always has something interesting to tell me and it's chicken noodle soup to my soul.
- Create things. I love the adrenaline of coming up with a new idea and putting it together. It's better than getting high. I think.
- Shop. I used to love to shop A LOT. Somehow it's lost some glamour over the past few years, I don't know why. I am sure Cory is grateful for that. But I do love the euphoria of finding the perfect pair of shoes, or buying something you think you would never wear and then wearing it, or finding the perfect gift.
- Sleep. I used to take naps. A time long ago and in a galaxy far far away.

Even if it's hard to do find time to do the things that you really like, it feels good to write them down. Maybe that would work with exercise too. If I just wrote about it, maybe it would have the same effect as doing it? Sounds like a good experiment. I'll let you know how it goes, but right now I've got a date with a Custard named Nielsen.

2008-06-13T21:45:00.001-07:00

Vintage

1978. Great year. I was one year old and was a flower girl at my aunt Gayla's wedding. My mom and I wore matching dresses, which she made. I don't remember the event of course, but there is a sweet picture of my mom and I with our cheeks pressed together, dresses matching, dimples and all.

Fast forward. 2008. Cory is getting Mollie ready for church. I am doing dishes. In the kitchen walks a reincarnation of ME...30 YEARS later! My mom saved the dress, Cory found it, and Mollie wore it to church. Not bad! Better than a trip to the DI!

Now if you are worried that we are resorting to desperate fashion measures, do not be alarmed. The line has been drawn. My mom made me a corduroy, bell-bottomed jump-suit with a matching quilted vest and a striped turtleneck for my first day of Kindergarten. That amounts to about 5 layers of clothing for an August school day. Ugh. It also looked like a boy suit. I hated it the minute I saw it. I can still see it swaying threateningly in my closet...my childhood scars tingle when I think about it. Maybe a little bit of 70's flower girl, but that's as much funk as I can allow. Mom, PLEASE keep that green Karen Carpenter-wanna-be-machine away from Cory!

2008-06-07T22:47:00.000-07:00

...And it's Still in Use Today

We got back from a Caldwell family trip to Escalante/Grand Staircase monument over Memorial Day weekend. 75% of the Caldwell family made the trek: the Keller Lane Kids, the Richfielders, the Brentwoods, and the cute couple who hole up in that prime downtown penthouse apartment. The only kin missing were the Munchkins in Kansas.

We did some great hikes (12 miles in all), ate A LOT of food, crossed our fingers that Caleb (our cute, lovable petrie dish of illness) didn't spread the love too much, listened to Dad add the words "and it's still in use today!" to pretty much anything he saw... and we came out of it all with no (visible) battle wounds!

Since this is my blog, I get to talk about Mollie the most. She loved wearing her Elmo "pack pack" filled with carefully selected items: her sunglasses, a plastic ice cream cone and her harmonica. She carried a stick most of the time and enjoyed hitting Cory with it from her "chair" on his back. She loved soaking her feet in the rivers and finding rocks and pointing out the "Arch, Mommy!"

She especially loved being with Caleb. One conversation at the bottom of a slot canyon river bottom has particular notability (and cuteness):

Mollie: I'm hiking!
Cousin Caleb: We're hiking!
Both: Giggle, giggle

Mollie: Yeah (sigh)

2008-05-06T21:30:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up, my mom wouldn't let us put on shorts for the season until the thermometer read 70 degrees. So we were CONSTANTLY calling "time" (remember the phone number that had a recording of the time and weather?) I remember once, but only once, when "time" said it was 68 degrees and we sweet-talked our way into shorts.

Anyway, I think we reached "short wearing weather" today. But I didn't call a number to figure that out. I was prodded by my sweet little 20-month old who asked to wear her "candles." Candles? Oh, yes, SANDALS. Little beacons that cast out the shadows of winter cold. Candles, sandals. Same difference.

2008-05-04T19:59:00.000-07:00

Let's Go!

Do you want to have fun? Real fun? The kind where you laugh so hard you wonder if your pants will stay dry? Here's a tip: Go on a trip. It can be anywhere. It can be for any length of time. The secret ingredient to reaching that giddy bliss is in WHO you invite. It doesn't matter where you are, it's who you are with!

Since Cory went to Africa I figured that I needed my own exotic experience...on the Jungle Cruise. So Mom and Katie (after much persuading...can you believe it?!) agreed to come on the wild adventure with me. Mollie, my Mom, my sisters Katie and Angelee and my nephew Caleb went to DISNEYLAND. Ok, so in this instance, the destination of our trip definitely made a difference, but regardless, it was SO SO fun just to be together (how much MORE fun it would have been if all the sisters and husbands and cousins could have gone...hopefully another time).

It was hilarious to watch Mollie and Caleb together. They were pals. They did a little Tiki dance at the Tiki room show, they met Mickey Mouse together, and Caleb showered Mollie (literally showered) with attention at the play fountains in California Adventure. She loved it. With her Minnie (Mollie) Mouse ears and his Mickey cowboy hat, it couldn't have been cuter.

Thanks, guys, for always making our time together the Happiest Time on Earth, and in this instance, the happiest time while visiting The Happiest Place on Earth too!

2008-04-23T22:34:00.000-07:00

Role Play

How do you explain to your your toddler that dad is going to be working in Africa for two weeks? Especially since that toddler's FAVORITE question (even if Dad just goes to get the mail or to use the bathroom or to turn off a light in another room) is "Where did Dad go?"

So explaining Africa is a toughie. You gotta do some improv. So we did:

Act I

Mollie: "Where did Dad go?"

Mom: "Dad took a ride in a plane"

Mollie: "Where did Dad go?"

Mom: "To Africa to see the elephants and lions and monkeys"

Mollie: "He's commin back?"

Mom: "Yep, he'll come back"

Mollie: "He's commin back!"

(Pause)

Mollie: "Where did dad go?"

Act II (repeat Act I)

Not bad likenesses of the Mulcock family, if I say so myself.

Have fun in Africa, Dad!

2008-04-16T22:11:00.000-07:00

"SO BIG" - A dissertation in 20-month-old independence presented by Julie Mulcock, novice in toddler affairs

This is the third and last post of the night because my ice cream is gone and my husband is asleep and I STILL have not started the work I need to do. BUT I had to add this in because I LOVE this picture of my Mollie:

THIS is Mollie to a "T." She has now reached the pre-pre-pre adult stage and believes that she is "So big!" Being, therefore, "so big", she is studying up, much like a botanist reads the latest advances in green things that grow. There is a lot to know, of course. Mollie's got to keep her edge.

2008-04-16T21:53:00.000-07:00

A lesson in politics

Monday was such a great day to attack the "land of desolation" otherwise known as our yard. So I put on my gloves and went out there to tame the dirt. Mollie was my helper. Julia, our friend downstairs, came up too and after they had filled and emptied their watering cans at least 50 times, things got a little out of control. Talk about mud slinging. Maybe these two little sweethearts have a future in politics? (But Mollie, deary, don't you think you have taken things a little too far with that toothbrush moustache?)

2008-04-16T21:10:00.001-07:00

Three Ring Circus

Well, I should be working right now and dieting to boot, but instead I am blogging and eating a bowl of ice cream. Rebel!

This past week the Caldwell Three-Ring Circus got underway with the arrival of Jenny and Katie and their kids from out-of-town (Kansas and Richfield, respectively). It was SO SO FUN to have some more cousins around to play with! We went to the park and fed the ducks and went to Gateway Discovery and made crafts and overflowed the kitchen sink on accident, which inadvertently caused a new form of "slip all over the kitchen floor in your feetie pajamas and eat diswashing soap bubbles" mayhem. All that fun and then everyone went home again leaving us with nothing but a lot of sticky doorknobs and fish lips on windows. (Insert frowny face here.)

Here are some favorite pics of the five Caldwells grandkids/cousins (In order of appearance: Caleb, Mollie, Abby, Hallie and Adelynn). Bethany, always the good sport, came along for the ride and provided a great set of extra hands!

2008-03-29T20:11:00.000-07:00

Molliestyle

Mollie had her first real haircut in February. She sat still as she was beautified.

She got to wear a "tiger shirt."

She got to pick out sucker.

She got to eat it too.

Life was good.

2008-03-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

Friday the 13th or March 17th?

I wish I had kissed a blarney stone earlier in the day on St. Pat's cause I had the most unlucky experience the night of the 17th. Sitting down for dinner at Brookside Grill in Sugarhouse, I wedged my finger between the seat and leg (which should have been attached and wasn't) of my metal chair and sat down. It hurt! So I pulled my finger out and left it's fingernail behind, or rather, left it dangling delicately on the tip of my finger. I didn't cry, I said a SWEAR (but just a little one). Free dinner, three stitches, an x-ray, the amputation of my fingernail, and a lollipop from Instacare. Not exactly a pot of gold.

Mollie Dolly in Her Easter Finest

Easter was so fun. Mollie loved carrying around her "Easter Bagset!" We are still patting ourselves on the back for being pretty tricky parents. First of all, at Grandma Mulcock's annual Easter Egg hunt, Mollie found about four eggs. She was fine with that, especially since we kept taking them out of her basket when she wasn't looking and rehiding them so she could find them again. I polished off her Cadbury chocolate eggs in the meantime cause my finger hurt and I deserved them. Then on Sunday morning, (we didn't buy any Easter candy) we filled her eggs with raisins and animal crackers and stickers. Mollie was happy and so were we. How many years will we get away with that? I think we are already on borrowed time.

2008-02-29T20:36:00.001-08:00

Today my boss was telling me about her daughter's "blob." It took me a minute to figure out what she meant (a deadbeat boyfriend? an oil slick in her garage? a dab of butter on her toast? a misfired bottle of glue? a cheap haircut?) The wheels kept turning and then I figured it out.

I hope you enjoy reading my blob.

2008-02-29T20:15:00.001-08:00

Oh, the places we've been!

This past weekend I created a wall hanging of our eight most favorite places. I meant to put it together as an anniversay present for Cory, but I couldn't wait to give it to him when it was finished. It was SO FUN to reminicse about all the places we've been able to go (thanks to Cory's flight benefits with Delta). What a beautiful, beautiful world! I wish I could save my eyes for my posterity to look through and see what I've been able to see. I guess that's what cameras are for (thank you, Mr. Polaroid, or Mr. Edison or Thomas Jefferson...whichever of you guys came up with the idea).

So here are our top nine places...in no particular order. I threw in the ninth for the blog only because the picture frame I bought only fit eight pictures. But it counts!

Parc Guell, Barcelona Spain

Williamsburg, Virginia

Goblin Valley, Utah

Volcanoes National Park, Big Island, Hawaii

Monhegan Island, Maine

Morella, Spain

Pompeii, Italy

Rio Cuale, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Coit Tower, San Francisco, California

2008-02-15T20:59:00.000-08:00

L-O-V-E

Valentine's day is for sure my favorite holiday. I am not so much into the romance as I am into the fun of sending valentine's cards and getting out all of my red decorations and just all of the surprises! Everyone is sneaking around being do-gooders and it's cool! Of course, Cory always makes it pretty romantic for me too. He got up at 4:30 a.m. to shovel our walks, go running, make raspberry cheesecake french toast, and feed Mollie breakfast. Then later I recieved chocolates and a dozen long stemmed roses. What a guy! I love Love.

Mollie received some Valentine's day cards in the mail from Grandma and Grandpa Mulcock, Cousin Brandon, Cousins Hallie and Abby and her friend Adam Burt. She has been carrying them around with her for two days now. She tucks them into her little purse like her own personal credit cards. So fun!

A few days ago Cory left his ipod on the couch. It was silent in the living room, which is always cause for alarm because it means Mollie is busy doing something naughty-ish. This is what we caught her doing....

She's got rhythm! The Caldwells might say she takes after her Aunt Evelyn ("I've got rhthym, you've got rythmn"). We are so proud.

2008-01-13T21:20:00.000-08:00

FASHION SENSE.

Enough said.

2008-01-10T15:06:00.000-08:00

Anyone who is anyone (ok, at least anyone who spent time in the Winder 11th Ward Primary during summer 2004), knows the Primary song that goes, "Here comes the Ox cart...oh....how......slow........" It's the world's slowest and most boring song (picture a pioneer ox - which is an ox with no shoes on wearing ten -make it fifteen - layers of long sleeve dresses while pulling a box-on-wheels full of of twenty polygamist children, three sickly great-aunts and one blind chicken and you'll catch my drift). The song was a hit with the kids in Primary because as the song progressed they would slowly slink, then slump, then collapse on the floor as the song literally made you feel like you were sinking into the depths of despair.

And that's how I am feeling about January 2008 so far. Oh...how...boring..... I am overexagerating of course, but we had such a great Christmas season, everything is looking so lusterless now. Sigh. Well, at least we had some good times last year, AKA, ten days ago.

Here are some pics. These are definitely limited because I forgot my camera almost everywhere I went during December.

We took Mollie snowshoeing for the first time and Aunt Emilee came along (can you see how much Mollie is enjoying it? Looks to me more like she's had too much of the ox cart song).

We took Mollie and cousin Brandon to see the Lights at the zoo.

Mollie Jane and cousin Hallie Jane -who are exactly one month apart- got to spend some quality time together (and other Caldwell cousins too).

Mollie did a whole lot of wardrobe changes...some prompted by her parents and some just cause she wanted to.

And after all the fun was over, we "shelved" 2007.**

**Yes, the line above is a pun on the video below. Hard to believe we could scrape for such a lousy end to this blog entry, I know.

2007-12-08T09:26:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO OUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY!

You are about to read our very first e-Christmas letter! We started a blog this year and figured, hey, why not save some cutesy Christmas paper by posting our message online?! That way when the holidays are over and you are all cleaning out your Christmas cards, you won’t have to pause and think, "Now what in the world am I going to do with this Mulcock letter?" Instead, you will be able to read this, close your internet browser, and move into 2008 guilt-free!

Cory is still at Franklin Covey and Julie is working part-time at Jacobsen Construction. We have had many "favorites" in 2007. For starters, we moved into our first house in January. It’s been fun to do yard work, shovel snow, park not one, but TWO cars in a garage, and sit on our own roof to watch fireworks.

We’ve been able to get a fair amount of travelling in this year too. Cory went to Malta and Paris in March for work and was able to stop by and visit his brother, Kris, and his family in England on the way.

In May, we went on the maiden voyage of the Disney Magic to the Mediterranean coast for our 10th anniversary. We visited Sicily, Rome, Pompeii/Naples, Sardinia, Florence, Barcelona, Marseilles, Monaco, Nice and Cannes. Mollie was a great little traveler at nine months old and she was a hit everywhere we went. In Italy, people would literally stop us in the street and say, "Bellissima! Bellissima!" and kiss their fingers to their lips - which, like any other proud parents, was music to our ears!

In September Cory went to Los Angeles for work and Mollie, Julie, Grandpa Larry and Grandma Jackie came out for a few days to be with him. We took Mollie to Disneyland for the first time and she… had no idea and will never remember it. But we had fun! With Mollie being our first child and all, we didn’t realize how vogue it is to get pictures taken with the popular characters. We ended up with only one character picture with her and the ugly, weirdo English Lord from Pocahontas. Does he even have a name? Ugh. We are such novices.

Did I mention Mollie? Our lives pretty much revolve around our little 15-month old. We ask her over and over what a kitty says because she answers with the most demure, sweet "meow" ever heard by human ears. She can run, dance, sing and will answer "ah" (yeah) to almost anything you ask her. She is a delight and a blessing and a hoot all rolled into a little blonde doll.

It’s been such a fun year, but it woudn't mean much without the gospel of Jesus Christ. What a miracle it is that we have a Savior who is the source of peace and happiness. The things that we do in the course of a year are inconsequential to the kind of family we are striving to become. We are grateful that through the Savior we can become more than we are. We are very blessed!

We love you!

Julie, Cory and Mollie Mulcock

2007-12-06T15:46:00.000-08:00

Mollie likes to put things around her wrists. We've just got to work on her fashion sense a little bit. So I guess we don't really need Santa. There are cheap thrills all over the house!

2007-11-29T21:49:00.000-08:00

Now, there are many, many, many, many very important things to be grateful for at Thanksgiving time, and I am not downplaying any of those things at all, but I would like to dedicate this blog to one thing that I am grateful for. I am grateful that I have a daughter with hair. Let my future children come completely bald, because I am getting my fun in now! Remember that Barbie bust you could get as a toy in the 80's? The one with the long blonde hair that you could brush, or singe with a curling iron, or wet down with kool-aid, or pull out in big clumps? I never had that toy (but my friend did, and boy oh boy did we do a number on it!) Anyway, Mollie is like my little Barbie head. What fun! I tried out curlers for the first time on Thanksgiving to make her "pretty." What really happened is that she pulled out her curlers about 50 different times in the span of an hour, and I kept reiterating the ever-dying incentive that if she wore them she would be "pretty." Finally we took them out to reveal...Mollie as a Benjamin Franklin look-alike. So the whole endeavor didn't work so good. But she did learn to say "turkey" and "gobble-gobble," which, I hope, made people think to themselves, "Hey, this kid not only LOOKS like Benjamin Franklin, she's as SMART as he is too."

2007-11-10T19:25:00.001-08:00

I just got a copy of our latest Caldwell family picture and thought I'd post it. Five sisters, three brothers-in-law, three nieces, one nephew, a mom, a dad, a Mollie and a Cory. That's the whole posse. There is nothing like a good family. I LOVE my family. I love Cory's family too, so it's a great life all around.

Hey, can anyone answer this burning question for me? Why are we always in the pursuit of all things worldly? No matter what we have we want more. I heard a story on NPR about a very young multi-millionaire who started a business and was able to retire. After living retirement for a while, he decided to start another business to see if he could make more money. I am thinking, HUH?! But it's true with me too. I have it all and yet I always want more. Do I realize that just by opening a closet full of clothes, taking a cool drink out of the fridge and turning on a light switch, I have more than 99% of the people who have EVER LIVED ON THE EARTH? So I am rich. I am wealthy. My personal fortune. I have enough.

2007-10-29T14:49:00.000-07:00

Mollie thinks that jack-o-lanterns are people. This is how I know this:

1. She likes to put her hand -the whole fist- inside of my mouth. She also attempts the same feat with jack-o-lanterns.

2. You can ask her to point to specific people and she will get it 99% right. "Mollie, where is Dad?" Got it. "Mollie, where is Bethany?" Got it. "Mollie, where is Mom?" And there her finger goes to the jack-o-lantern.

3. The "mom" jack-0-lantern gets frequest hugs and kisses and lots of attention from Mollie.

Question: In what way do I resemble a pumpkin? Is there something I am missing?

Well, anyway, here we are at our ward party. Mollie's friend, Julia, is also a "fowl feathered friend." Lots of kids at the party wanted to feel Mollie's costume. One little girl couldn't stop "petting her." She's just a little ball of fluff, which is great because from what I hear, there aren't many years that your kids will let you get away with putting them in something that people just want to pet.

2007-10-16T20:55:00.001-07:00

She talks. She laughs in the face of dead leaves. She likes the Utes. That's our girl Mollie!

2007-10-04T22:16:00.001-07:00

Goodbye to our good friend, 1994-Kia-Sephia-with-154,000-Miles. We'll miss you. You were worth every cent of the $600 we paid for you and the $600 we sold you for about 5 hours ago. So basically, you took nothing from us and gave a whole lot of love in return. You are the Giving Car. We swung from your branches and picked your fruit and we eventually sat on you as a stump. Now you have gone to a better place. Take care, "Ox Cart."