Halls Family: 3/1/09

Yesterday our puppies turned 1 year old, so we decided to have a birthday party for them. Kayla and I made cupcakes and then Kayla and Arleen made birthday hats. Kayla could hardly wait until her brothers got home from school! It was very windy outside and we knew their hats would just blow off, so we invited Apollo, Bailey and Zar into the house for the "party". It took a few minutes to get them calmed down because they were so excited to be in the house; we finally got hats on Bailey and Zar, but the yarn on Apollo's hat broke off. Apollo was mostly interested in Mollie (you can hear her barking), who was in the bedroom because she is at the end of her heat, but apparently still somewhat desirable. He was very conflicted all the time he was in the house. Mollie...cupcake...Mollie...bologna...Mollie...you get the idea. Here are a few pictures of the festivities! In the first photo, it's Zar (who has one ear that has never stood up straight - we think it was because he was so sick with parvo as a puppy), Apollo (the biggest) and Bailey (the smallest) . Below is a short video of the fun event. Those cupcakes went down really fast!! It's hard to believe that they looked like this one year ago!

1. I LOVE to travel...as long as I have enough money in my pocket so that I don't have to worry about expenses. If I start running out of money, I panic.

2. I really love thunderstorms and I have been known to be a "storm chaser". I like to get as close as I possibly can. There is something relaxing and comforting about the rolling thunder.

3. My family means more to me than anything else in this world. There is nothing that relieves stress more for me than spending time with them.

4. One of my favorite places to go is Hawaii. I've been twice (but without Michael). I enjoy walking on the beach, the gorgeous sunsets, the weather, the palm trees. The next time Michael and I will probably go with Jerry and Kaye.

5. I'd rather be hot than cold.

6. I've always loved being tan. My neighbor all through Jr. and Sr. High School and I had a contest every summer to see who could get the tannest the fastest. I would even go up on the roof of my house to tan because it was closer to the sun and I thought I'd tan faster.

7. I hate aging. If I had the money, I'd have plastic surgery - especially on my eyes - as long as it doesn't look like I've had plastic surgery!! I always tell Michael that I feel like my face is falling. (Maybe I shouldn't have spent all those years in the sun.)

8. I have 4 dogs. I would have more if I could. Mollie is our Queensland Heeler, and we have 3 German Shepherds: Mieke, Apollo and Zar. I especially love it when one of them sleeps on my bed right near my feet.

9. I don't like the wind. A cool breeze is nice, but I hate the cold wind (like today). It feels like it's biting you in the face.

10. I love to watch it snow. I don't like being outside in it, but give me a cup of hot chocolate and a roaring fire and I love to sit by the window and watch big, huge flakes of snow fall.

11. My best friend in the world is my sister-in-law, Kaye. We have been friends for over 35 years and there is hardly a day that we don't talk to each other. We can talk to each other about anything and everything. I totally trust and love her.

12. Don't send me to a pet store. I'd want to buy everything in there...except for the snakes...they can keep their snakes!! (If my brother, Jerry hadn't chased me with snakes while we were growing up, I might feel differently.)

13. I idolize my Mom. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't wish I could talk to her.

14. I have always loved to read. Most of my weekends were spent in my room reading mysteries when I was growing up.

15. I absolutely LOVE a clean house. If Febreeze really worked, I'd totally spray everything in my house with it so it would smell good.

16. Now that my children are grown, I love having them as my friends. It's awesome when this happens and it's great to have fun together. Of course, I still love being a mom and having them ask me for help and advice.

17. One thing I work on every day is trying not to be judgmental of other people. I always try to see the good in everyone and see their potential. My Mom taught this at a very early age and I hope I honor her in treating people the way they want to be treated. I hope my grandchildren always remember this about me.

18. I love to dance. I used to do Ballroom Dancing - my favorites are the Latin Dances and the Waltz. While in High School, I did Polynesian Dancing with some other friends. A good friend that I babysat for that was born in Hawaii and she taught me the Hula and other Tahitian dances. I loved it so much and we actually performed around Tacoma all year round, but especially during the summer months.

19. When I graduated from High School, I was accepted to BYU Hawaii. Sometimes I could kick myself for getting married and not going, but I know I wouldn't have the children I do today if I had. You know, it's always "what if...". I have visited the campus, though! Oh, and there's that thing about the education I could have had...

20. I recently attended an energy healing seminar and became certified to do energy healing. I believe this is something I can do to help others. It's called Calyco Healing and it's not as weird and crazy as it sounds. I have already been able use it on several occasions.

21. One of my favorite things to do is bake. I love to make bread, cinnamon rolls, pies, cookies and healthy meals for my family. The greatest compliment is when my kids tell me I should open a bakery.

22. I used to have to take a lot of flack for having 7 children and 3 step children. I wouldn't change a thing. Now I have 5 daughters-in-law and 2 sons-in-law that I really love. I can't imagine our family without them.

23. I've never thought of myself as a country girl, but I am now! We are going to have chickens, turkeys, a cow, horses, and pigs. We have our garden planned and will be ready to plant as soon as it's warm enough! The chicken coop is almost finished (thanks to Tara, Scott, Jared, Arleen and all the kids.)

24. My biggest fault is that I love Diet Pepsi. I know...I know...I've heard all the bad things, but I really enjoy it.

25. Going to a good movie is a favorite hobby and if it's REALLY good, I'll go more than once.