Answers

Here are my answers to your questions:

Amanda asked: "What is your most embarrasing moment?"

Amanda claims her moment would be pretty hard to beat, but I'm afraid mine tops them all!! I hesitate to tell this because It's almost as embarrasing to tell as it was to experience. But, here it is.

It was the end of my 8th grade year of Jr. High and I had spent the entire last two years madly in love with a boy who was WAY out of my league. He was always cordial to me, but obviously not interested. It didn't help that I was painfully shy and too afraid to persue him.

Right before our 8th grade graduation, the school took the entire class to Six Flags Magic Mountain for the day. I was looking forward to it and had picked (what I thought) was the perfect outfit. Remember when short, white denim shorts were "in"?

They maked my legs look tan.

It was the middle of the day at the park and I had yet to see my crush. My friends and I had just got off the raft ride and we were soaking wet. We were standing in line waiting for another ride when there was a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and there, in all his 8th grade glory was the boy of my dreams. I was speechless and couldn't believe he wanted to talk to me. He leaned over and whispered in my ear, "There's something on the back of your shorts." I twisted around to see if I could see what he was refering to.

If I could have ran and jumped off a cliff right then, I probably would have. I'll leave it up to your imagination, but it involves females and only happens once a month.

Of course, I had no change of clothes and my pretty white shorts weren't so pretty anymore.

Top that.

Emily asked: "What's your favorite book? Or at least a good one you read lately."

I haven't read a good book in quite a while. I love biography's and historical novels the most,
but lately I've gravitated towards books that can actually help me improve in some way.

I need all the help I can get.

One of my favorite authors is Sheri Dew. She is an incredible person and I always get so much out of her books. I read this book a while back and loved it. I still pull it out from time to time because I feel like it was written for me. It's a quick and easy to read and I promise if you read it, you'll love it. It's called, "If Life Were Easy, It Wouldn't Be Hard."

Tiffani asked, "If you could meet anyone, past or present, who would it be?"

This was a tough one for me. There are a lot of people I would love to meet. I would love to meet several of my ancestors, past prophets, presidents and Oprah Winfrey. I would also have to add Sheri Dew to my list just because.

Jen asked, "How do you maintain your sanity with all those kids?!"

What sanity? Actually, what keeps me sane is trying to always keep a positive perspective. There are days that I just want to crawl under my bed and hide. I've actually come close several times.

What really helps is having Caleb around who can help and is old enough to babysit now. Without his help, I would be insane. Weekly dates with my hubby are a must and I almost NEVER take all of my kids grocery shopping. That is a sure way to land myself in a mental hospital.

I've learned over the years to let certain things go. If my house is trashed and the laundry doesn't get done, it's OK. I have a lot to learn and I need to work on my patience, but I wouldn't trade my life for anything!

Cherise asked, "What is one of your long term goals as of present?"

One of my long term goals is definitely to finish my education. My dream is to be a teacher. I did things backwards and started college after I had children. I've been at it (of and on) for 3 years now and it's a little discouraging. I plan on picking classes back up in the Spring. I don't plan on working until our youngest starts school, so I guess I have 5 more years to get it done.

It has been a really challenging, but rewarding experience for me and the day I have that diploma in my hands will be a very happy day for me.

Jan asked, "What kind of face cream do you use?

I'm a huge believer in moisturizing my face morning and night (thanks Mom). I have tried every brand on the planet, but have recently fallen in love with this stuff. It's worked great for me.

I also love this face wash. It's magic.

Jan also asked, "How did you know that your husband was for you?"

There is no doubt in my mind that the Lord placed Rob in my life at just the right time. I couldn't have been more lucky.

Blessed, really.

He loved Caleb (4) and Kennedy (10 months) and I knew that he would always treat them as his own. He had every quality that I could ever hope for in a husband and more. I'm still working on deserving him.

Debie asked: "How did you and your hubby meet and how long after you met did he propose?"

I was living in Provo at the time and he was living in my hometown after landing his first "real" job there after BYU. He met my younger brother and they were actually in a band together (that's another post). Andy called me several times and told me I needed to come home and meet this guy he had met. It was a dark time in my life. My divorce had only been final for 6 months and I was struggling to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. Marriage was NOT on my mind. After one failed attempt to meet Rob while visiting my parents, I finally met him in November of 1999.

It was instant. I was in love.

I remember walking into my brother's house and Rob was playing guitar and singing. I always tell people, I heard him sing before I ever heard him talk.

I knew he was the one and the rest is history. We were engaged later that month and married on January 14th 2000. Fast, I know. I thank the Lord everyday for bringing us together. Rob is my best friend and I can't imagine my life without him in it. I'm truly blessed.

Memzy asked, "Do you pick your boogers? Tell the truth now."

What a typical Memzy question. My answer is, Don't we ALL, to some extent? I'll leave it at that.

Tim asked, "Truth or Dare?"

Definitely Truth.

Jenny asked, "I want an update on your garden, so how's your garden doing?" (with pictures)

This is embarrasing. Our garden started off great and has progressivly gone downhill. I guess it's not all bad. Our carrots, bell peppers and cucumbers are coming along nicely, but one of the monsoons blew through a couple weeks ago and killed our corn. I was bummed. We need to just pull it out because now I'm afraid it's going to kill our pumpkins (which are out of control). So, there you have it Jenny. I'll let you know if we get anything that we can actually eat out of it. I have big plans for next year.

Anna asked, "Who's your favorite sister? I know you can't tell (you could always pull a Grandpa Bailey.) How about what's the first thing you want to do after you have kid #6?"

I love ALL my sisters, DUH! They are my best friends.

For sure the first thing I want to do after baby #6 is get rid of the baby weight! I have it all planned out already. Anna has inspired me to start running again and my goal is to be able to run a 5K by Christmas (with one of one of my sisters or brother). We'll see if I can actually reach that goal.

Another first after this baby is born is to get a new hair-do. My hair needs some serious help and I'm afraid it's hopeless.

Kris asked, "I know you are away from all of your family. Do you wish that you lived closer to all of them, or do you like being far enough away that you don't have to see them all the time?"

My dream is to live close to my family. I love my family and think they are the coolest people in the world. If I COULD live close to them I would! It's really hard being away from them and I always look forward to any opportunities we have to be together. I also miss all of Rob's family. They are amazing people and I feel blessed that we were able to live close to them in WA for 3 years. Rob's sister Becky was and continues to be one of my closest friends. I'm excited to see my Mother-in-law in September and we have a big trip planned for next summer when we will get to see the rest of his family.

Erin asked, "How well do you and your ex get along? Always been curious about that one?"

I am very lucky. Steve and I get along really well. Rob and Steve get along really well. We committed, from the beginning to have a good relationship for the kids. There is no other way.

We have gone to dinner together and have involved each other in different things that involve the kids. Steve re-married about 5 years ago and his wife is amazing. I really like her and appreciate all she does for Caleb and Kennedy. She is expecting their first baby together in October and the kids are excited.

I'm really grateful for Steve and his committment to the kids. He has followed us all over the country as we have moved to be close to the kids. He sees them every other weekend without fail and has remained active in their lives. He is a good dad.

Tiffany asked, "When you have free time what's your most favorite thing to do to kick back and relax?"

Besides squeezing a good nap in, I love to read, watch a good movie and hang out with Rob in the evenings. My favorite time of the day is around 8:30 pm, when all the kids are in bed and Rob and I can just relax, watch one of our favorite shows we have recorded or just talk. We also love to play a good game together.

Becky asked, "If you won a million dollars, what would you do with it?? Other than pay off debt."

Unfortunately, a million dollars wouldn't go very far these days, but the first thing I would do after investing most of it would be to take an AMAZING family vacation. A month or so ago, Rob sat down and made a list (in order) of family vacations he wants to take us on over the next 10 years or so. We would definitely get to work on that list immediately. After that, we would build a bigger house and plan our retirement.

So, there you have it. If you read this far, you must really love me:) Thanks for the questions!