Princess Wishes!!

Well, we have two princesses that live at our house and their wish came true the other night when we were able to take them to

"Disney on Ice Princess Wishes." It was the perfect night. We started out at our house getting all dressed up. I found a great deal on two princess dresses at Value Village at Halloween time and couldn't help but get them. I was saving them for Christmas or birthday but they came out for the princess show. They were both so excited, squealing and laughing. We got them dressed up from head to toe and fixed their hair all fancy. We invited Grandma Kathie to come with us too. We jumped in the car and drove downtown. We went extra early because there was supposed to be some fun pre-show stuff. First we got to go into a special room where they had a little display set up for some of the princesses. (A picture of the princess and then a dress and some other little things.) They also had a Prince and Princess dressed up and standing there so they could meet them and get a picture. Then we headed in to find our seats. The girls were so anxious for it to start. They kept asking how much longer. Then about 15 minutes before the show was to start they did a little etiquette thing. They talked to the princesses and princes in the audience about bowing and curtsying. It was so cute. They got them all ready and then Cinderella and her Prince came out in a neat carriage and they had them bow and curtsy and wave to Cinderella and her Prince. And then they declared them officially Princesses and Princes. Kind of fun. Then the real show began and it was amazing. Grandma and I got a little teared up just seeing the girls so excited (we are just so sappy). Ariel is Hailey's favorite, so when she came out she was glued to the ice, clapping and laughing and smiling, just soaking it all up. Cinderella is Ashtyn's favorite and when she came out she said, "I can't believe it, she really is real." Just so adorable. They loved it all. We saw Tinkerbell (who brought magic and scenes to life), Mickey and Minnie Mouse (who introduced the theme and each princesses wish, then we saw, Jasmine, Snow White, Belle, Ariel, Mulan, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella, as it told just a little bit of their story. The show ended with all of the princesses with her prince and a sparkling carriage and fireworks. It was awesome and the girls loved every second. We can't wait to take them to Disneyland!! Someday.....hopefully. It will definitely be a night we remember for a long time!

The First Snow!!

Yeah we finally had the "First Snow" arrive. Ashtyn and Hailey have been asking me when it would come and now it has. They put on their boots and walked out in it before they went to school. They were pretty excited. When I first showed it to them, they just couldn't stop staring out the window, naming all of the things that the snow was covering. We were excited for the first snow too, not to drive in it, but it just makes winter seems funner to have it all white instead of just blucky brown. Our kids sure make a lot of things funner!!


I thought I would get one in there of us starting to put up our tree. It is truly beginning to look a lot like Christmas with snow and Christmas decorations. We love this time of year. So exciting, such a time of giving and sharing, and making wonderful memories.

OLIVER!!

So this year our Stake had a play again (they do it every other year). And this year it was Oliver. So of course I had to try out again because it was so much fun last time. Well, I did and I am glad I did. It is always so fun. Very time consuming, but worth it in the end. I was chosen to play Mrs. Sowerberry, the undertakers wife.

If you don't know the story line of Oliver Twist, here is a quick summary. In the Nineteenth Century, the orphan Oliver Twist is sent to a workhouse, where the children are barely fed and mistreated. He is sold to a house of an undertaker, after asking for more food at the workhouse. After he realizes he is very unwelcome he runs away to London. He arrives exhausted and starving, and is welcomed by a gang of pickpockets lead by the old crook Fagin. He meets Nancy, a young woman who started out pickpocketing for Fagin at a very young age. When Oliver is mistakenly taken as a thief, the wealthy victim Mr. Brownlow brings Oliver to his home and shelters him. But Fagin and the dangerous Bill Sykes decide to force Nancy to kidnap Oliver back worried that he will tell about them and their little group of pickpockets. Nancy goes to Mr. Brownlow and tries to help him get Oliver back, but Bill Sykes stops them. In the end, Oliver gets to go back with Mr. Brownlow, who ends up being his uncle.

So I played a very fun character. From the first time I enter the stage I am supposed to be feisty.....and rather rude at times to Oliver and my family. In my scenes, my husband Mr. Sowerberry and I are trying to decided if we want to take in this little orphan boy and we decide that he would fit the part and then we sing a song called, "That's Your Funeral."we laugh and act like we are so happy when people die because that is our way of earing a living. Then in the second scene, there is a fight between Oliver and Noah a boy who works for us. Then my daughter Charlotte and I come out and grab Oliver and throw him into a coffin. Then I get water thrown on me and then Oliver gets pulled out and is going to be taken back to the workhouse by Mr. Bumble and then Oliver pushes me into the coffin. Two very fun scenes. Here are some of my (and others in the play) favorite lines: "Henry really, it takes you twice as long to do anything as anyone else." "Bring up some of the cold bits we put out for the dog, it hasn't been in all day so it can go without 'em. I daresay the boy isn't too dainty to eat 'em, are ya boy?" "....you don't mind sleeping among coffins I suppose. But it doesn't matter much whether you do or you don't, 'cuz you can't sleep no where else." "Never in ALLL, MYYY, LIIIFFEE!!" "Well, and what if he did, you little ungrateful wretch. She probably deserved what was said and worse." Aren't those evil sounding......here are some of my favs while we sing from the song: "We're just here to glamorize you for that endless sleep. You might just as well look fetching when you're six feet deep." "We don't harbor thoughts macabre, there's no need to frown. In the end we'll either burn you up or nail you down. We love coughs and wheezes and diseases called incurable. That's your funeral, no one else's funeral, That's yoooouuuuur funeral!!" We are the funny, creepy couple.

I bet it is hard to picture me saying stuff like that but I did and it was soooo fun! I have a few pictures of me and Mr. Sowerberry and of course I got our coffin too. They even had to put makeup on me to make me look older. Just a fun experience. I have never done anything like this before. I did the Joseph Smith play with the stake two years ago but it was nothing like this. Oliver was a full blown play with lots of lines and choreography and music and scenes and props. Lots of work. My girls wanted to be in it too but they just didn't need anyone that young. Maybe next time. They loved watching the show. They both ran around playing on the stage when it was all over and I was showing them props and all the stuff behind the scenes....they were amazed and didn't want to go home. I had a blast and I recommend it to everyone.

MRSA info

Hello All,
Since my new job is MRSA Coordinator, I feel a slight obligation to inform my family about MRSA, and try to get you educated with the facts, not just what the media has to say.

First of all, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has been around since the early 1960's. It is a bacteria that is not killed by normal antibiotics. If you would like more general info on bacteria, and MRSA, click here.

The media has grabbed a hold of, dramatized, and glamorized what is going on, like they usually do.

The take home message for all of you is this:

WASH YOUR HANDS.

You know all those time you can hear your mom's voice saying "wash your hands" as you walk out of the bathroom, before you eat, or when you are about to pick your nose? Well, do it.

This country has a big battle to fight with MRSA, and it is not going away quickly, but we can keep ourselves safe and clean. Most of you probably already do it.

And, the great news is, that alcohol gel (Purell, etc) works actually better than warm soap and water. Just make sure it has at least 60% Ethyl Alcohol, or Ethanol.

This is a good link for you all also. It is geared towards the person that has MRSA, but you will find the info helpful, as you are sure to mix with someone that has it (store, school, church, work, etc). The section titled Caring for Yourself is particularly helpful.

I don't think there is any need for us to turn into hermits over this. No need to keep our kids from school, or stop going to the store. There are varying levels of germ freaky-ness we can get to, so find the one that works for you, and do it. Just remember,

WASH YOUR HANDS.

And when I say wash, I mean wash with warm water and soap, or use the gel. (Clean may be a better term). Wash them when you get home, wash them before you eat, wash them before you prepare food, after the bathroom, when you get in the car, before picking your nose (that one is for Carson and me), after touching your keyboard, after using the public phone, before and after visiting the doctor or the hospital, after shaking hands with a bunch of people, before you touch your face, before you play with your kids, before kissing your boyfriend (Jenni and HeberÜ), after sports, after time at the gym, and so forth. You get the idea. Get one of them small gel bottles, put it in your purse/pocket, and use that sucker. The more the merrier.

Please feel free to ask any questions you may have about this. I am willing, and would love to give you the facts as well as I can.

Stay healthy,
Sam

Fall fun!

Our family loves fall. We love the smells, the colors, the yummy fall food, the cooler weather that brings out the coats and scarves and mittens and the need for a warm toasty fire. We headed up to Greenbluff a couple of weeks ago with Ashtyn's preschool to enjoy an educational tour. We loved every minute. We got to go on a hayride, listen to bee talk (a little blip about bees and how they help apples grow and then we got to pick an apple to eat), go through a corn maze, pick out a pumpkin, sing the ABC's to a big talking pumpkin named Penelope, and the best part was the snack (donuts and cider). Yum! The girls loved it, unfortunately I forgot my camera so we have no proof of the fun times had.

Another fun part of fall is the leaves that turn colors and fall. The kids have loved going out and crunching and munching the leaves. They love it.

We have also had company come. Of course I know everyone knows that Ty came, but I am just not as fast as Arlene to get pictures on here. We loved seeing Ty and catching up with him. Ashtyn was very nice to share her princess room with Ty. She wanted to paint her room blue just for him and then paint it pink again after he left. Isn't that sweet. This is him showing us pictures of his kids to our kids. We also got him to play the Wii with us. That was fun. That same weekend we also got to a spend a little part of a day with my Aunt Carol that lives in Utah. She came up to visit my mom and so we got to see her. We took her and treated her to Dairy Queen. It was good to have some family come and visit!!

It has also been hunting season. Sam and I both went this year. Yes that's right, I went hunting this year. Can you believe it? Well, I decided I had to see what all this hunting stuff is about. It has been in process for a couple of years because I had to get my hunters ed taken, which I took with a bunch of 12 and 13 year old boys, and thankfully passed the first try. So this season I was finally able to carry a gun and head out into nature to try and find Bambi's mother. How sad is that. I was unsuccessful. After four outings with Sam, I didn't even shoot the gun. We did see some but I just never got a good shot. I was nervous too. Sam was successful this year. He ventured out with his dad and got a nice mule deer. So our family will eat MEAT this winter. Ha, ha, ha!! Sam also was able to spend a couple of nights with his dad down in the Blue Mountains. They camped and hunted and ate good food and traversed in the snow and had a great time. They were there to find Elk and were unsuccessful, but thoroughly enjoyed their time out in nature. They love to be out as much as possible.

We had our Halloween pumpkin fun too. We carved our pumpkin on the family night before Halloween. Grandma Kathie came and helped us.

And of course we had some activities to attend, the ward Halloween activity, including a carnival with some fun games and Trunk or Treat at the end. Hailey walked around with big eyes and hardly said anything. I think she was a little overwhelmed by all the people and what they looked like. The girls favorite part was the cupcake walk, because they got to eat a cupcake. And they loved dumping their candy out at home and looking at all their new treasures! Then on Halloween we went up to Carson's and took the kids trick or treating, which they loved and then we had the most delicious soup and decorated cupcakes and listened to a spooky story. It was great. Again the kids made off with too much junk food, but it is great fun!! This year, our house was full of princesses. Ashtyn had told me that she wanted to be a "Pink Princess" from head to toe. Crown, shoes, dress, and the dress had to go all the way to her feet. Adorable. Hailey at first was thinking about being Ariel from the little mermaid....she loves her......but she decided later that she wanted to be Princess Anastasia. So I found this dress and she loved it!! It is actually a Barbie dress and her favorite part of the whole costume was the little Barbie pin sewed on the front. They loved getting curls and sparkles on their faces too. They are the cutest little princesses that I have ever seen.

Fun Recent Pictures

I just wanted to share some more of our latest pictures. Our most recent family picture, it turned out pretty good. My cute kids giving me loves.

And then I just had to share this little sequence of pictures. We decided one night for family night to take the girls fishing down to the Spokane River, we never go because we would rather take them out in the little fishing boat. Well, this time because of our shortness on time we just ran down to the river, about five minutes away and stuck the poles in the water. Well, Daddy had fun fishing but the girls were only interested in the water. They started out fully clothed just dipping their toes in the water and by the end.......well you can see what happened. Pretty funny!!





I also wanted the girls to be able to show off their sunflowers. This year they planted a patch of sunflowers in our garden and here they are showing them off.

And these last pictures are just some silly ones of my kids showing off their silly, dramatic expressions, that keep us constantly entertained.


We love our little cuties!!

First Day of School

I know I am a little behind in my posts but I wanted to share anyways. My girls are both in school this year. I have them both in groups of moms that just teach on our own. Ashtyn is in a group with six kids and we rotate which mom teaches. And have occasional fieldtrips. And then Hailey is in a group with four kids. I didn't think she would be in a group till next year but a couple of the moms that also are in Ashtyn group have kids that are Hailey's age and they wanted to do just a one day a week simple version of it will mostly play but a little lesson and craft and snack. Hailey is absolutely thrilled to be doing it too. Last year she cried for the first two months every time we dropped off Ashtyn because she felt so left out. So they both have school on Tuesdays mornings and then Ashtyn also has school on Friday. It is great and they love it. The best part about it is the interaction we get with the other families. All but one of them are in our ward and it is just great for my kids to have these new little friends that they see at church and school. And it is good for me too, to meet other moms and make new friends.

A Brand New Position!

So Sam now has a brand new position at work!! Back in August he heard about other departments that were going to be hiring at the Veterans Hospital (where he has currently been working) and he was interested. His plan all along has been to do nursing in the ICU for about two years and then move on, to get more experience in other areas, to learn new things, to continue to challenge himself. Well, it has been two years this September, so he started looking and trying to think about what he wanted to do next. Well, he heard about this department in Infection Control and was kind of interested. So he got to know the lady there and tried to find out more about what she does. She told him that a new position was going to be coming up but she wasn't for sure when. The more Sam found out the more interested he was. And so we began praying to know about what he should apply for. And as we prayed we felt good about this and in an amazing way, the topic of infection and things like that came up in random conversations with people talking to Sam at church and just in daily life, and we really felt that it was because this was something he is supposed to do. Well, as soon as the lady in Infection Control knew there was an opening she let him know and he decided to go for it. So he applied and was called in after a couple of weeks for an interview. They interviewed four people. And guess who came out on top. The talented, young Samuel McComas. I say talented and young because his boss and him had a conversation one day and he was just talking about how he felt so young because at all of the meetings he goes to and out of all the people he meets, he is one of the youngest in the bunch and she said it's because talent rises to the top (referring to Sam). I thought that was such a nice compliment to Sam.

His official start to this job started with his trip to Pittsburgh to the MRSA convention. And after he got back, the following Monday he started in his new office, which was Monday September 17. Wow, I can't believe it has already been a month. He now has his own desk and he has to dress in nice slacks and button up shirts (no tie, but nice). As Ashtyn said, "Daddy, how come you don't wear your pajamas to work anymore??" And he even has his own business card. Isn't that neat. I am excited for him. Officially his title is MRSA Prevention Coordinator, and he is in the Infection Control Department. He is specifically starting a new program to help reduce MRSA in the hospital which stands for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Whew, say that five times fast. Here is a website that will tell you more about what he does and what he is trying to prevent.

http://health.msn.com/general/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100171996&GT1=10514

Fun Trips Away!

Sam and I have both had a fun trip that we got to go on. First my sister and I decided to have a girls weekend. We thought about her coming here to Spokane or me going there to Eagle Mountain and staying in a hotel and doing fun stuff around town. Well, then we let our imaginations run wild and we decided to dream big. I love Celine Dion and have wanted to see her in concert and she has been in Las Vegas for a while and I really wanted to go. Soooooo, Sam decided that would be a great birthday gift.....a little bit more than we usually spend, hee hee, but he wanted me to go before it wasn't in Vegas anymore. So I just needed to find someone to go with. Well, I asked my sis Wendy and we figured out how much it would cost and we decided to go for it. So we both flew out on Thursday evening, from our separate towns, to Las Vegas, we found each other in the airport and got a ride to where we stayed. Then we spent all day Friday on the strip. That was definitely a new experience, but it was a blast. There was lots to see, and we ran around trying to see as much as we could, without getting too hot. It was 107 the day we spent on the strip. Crazy Hot!! Then that night was the big night. We went to the Celine Dion concert and it was amazing. She is fabulous. I love her. She has the purest, expressive voice that just can create so many emotions for me. I loved every second. I am such a sap....as I sat there right before it began I was so excited and then she walked out singing and I just started to cry because I couldn't believe I was there sitting there listening to her sing to me. I guess that is what happens for me with music. Music stirs my soul. I love it. I love to hear it, I love to play it, I love to sing it, I love to just be in the middle of it and soak it all up and that is what I did and it was worth every penny. Besides her amazing voice there were amazing dancers performing nonstop entertainment around her. I am so glad I got to go. Then on Friday we shopped, checked out the Ethel M Factory(where they make fancy chocolates),ate out at In and Out Burger(yum), and then that night we went to the Fremont Street Experience and got to see the cool light show and jam to the live music of the Tony Marques Band that was playing. After the show we got our picture taken with Tony Marques. How fun! Maybe someday he will be big. Then Sunday morning we woke up and got ready and said our goodbyes and headed home. It was an awesome girls weekend. Hope we think of something fun for next year. When I got home I was so excited to see my family. My family was so excited to see me too. They had even bought me the most beautiful bunch of flowers. Can you believe how amazing they are?

Then a couple of weeks later Sam got to go to Pittsburgh for work. He went to a MRSA Convention. It was hard because he didn't know anyone from here that was going. But off he went. He flew out on a Wednesday morning and got settled in late afternoon. The time is three hours ahead of our usual time and so he missed a big chunk of day. Then he did a little sightseeing close to the hotel and then went to bed. The next day was a big day. He had his convention from 7-4:30 with only a few short breaks. Part of it was fun because he got to meet people from all over. The funnest were the southerners, because of their fun personalities and their accents. Then at the end of the conference that day he got to go on a Just Ducky Tour. He got to see lots of fun sights. Heinz Field, The Carnegie Science Center, PNC Park and the city skyline from the river, just to name a few. It was also funny to see how into the Pittsburgh Steelers everyone is there. There is Steelers memorabilia everywhere and almost everyone was wearing something that said Pittsburgh Steelers on it. Then after the tour he found a good place to eat and saw some of the night life that was going on. It was so lively at night, so many people just hanging out. Then the next day was more convention until late afternoon and then he headed back home. One of the funnest parts was the ride from the hotel to the airport. They had booked a shuttle bus, but it was full. So in order to make his flight, him and some other people leaving the convention ended up getting to ride in a Lincoln Navigator Limousine, SWEET, and it was actually cheaper than the shuttle. Can you believe that?? Then he was supposed to arrive at the Spokane airport at 9:50, but after four delays in Chicago (don't ever have a layover in Chicago) he made it home sometime just before midnight. Ridiculous. We were just glad that he got home. Whewwww!

We both enjoyed our trips a lot but we were glad to just be home together again.

Summer in a Nutshell

Well, I have taken a big break from blogging and now there is a ton I want to share. Our summer was great. It started with our awesome vacation to the coast. We went to Seattle for a day and saw the sites there. And of course we went swimming at the hotel, the kids love that part!! And then we stopped by the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium on our way to Pacific Beach. The kids loved all the animals. And then we stayed in Pacific Beach. It was amazing. We went to the beach the second we got there, before we even unloaded. We had to see it and hear and smell it. If you look at Hailey she has her ears covered.....she thought it was just so loud. So for the first twenty minutes we were there looking and freezing in our summer clothes and Hailey was just covering those precious little ears. It is amazing how refreshing the ocean can be, how it can just calm and rejuvenate you. It was a much needed vacation that was perfect. Looking at the pictures makes us want to go back right NOW!! This is the girls loving the beach...I think all kids love to play in the sand...me too. And the whole gang having a fire on the beach. And then the hole that Daddy dug and then put the kids in. They thought that was so fun. We are definitely going back.

Oh I almost forgot, another awesome thing that we got to go to while we were there was the sand and sawdust festival. It was amazing. Professionals were creating stuff from sand and wood. Here is just a couple of works of art. It was amazing how creative people are.

After that we had a fun McComas Family Reunion. It was so much fun to see everyone and all be there together. We missed Cody like crazy. But we did lots of fun things and made some good memories.

Some of our favorite things that we did this summer were just enjoying the outdoors. We went camping a couple of times. We found a great swimming spot that we went to a bunch. We went on walks and bike rides.

And of course we went fishing too. The girls get so excited to go fishing it is great. After we catch a fish they just play with it and play with it and play with it. It is funny.
We also went to a local bakery and got a fun tour with some fun free stuff.
Our favorite free thing was a little mini loaf. The girls just want to eat it whole like a roll.....no slices, no butter, no jelly, just big roll straight from plate to mouth. It was fun to watch them eat. There was also an exciting girl that was here visiting Spokane. We took the girls to go visit her and they loved it. So can you guess what she is?? That's right she is a dinosaur. A tyrannosaurus rex to be exact. And her name is Sue. Isn't she neat?? The girls sure loved her. Of course we made it to the fair too. Ashtyn loved the horses, especially Rose, and Hailey loved Annie.
One of our favorite things that we bought was a wheat grinder. We really wanted one to add to our food storage. So we spent a couple of months looking to try and find a good one that we liked. We also wanted it to be one that was a hand crank, rather than electric. Well, we found a good one and we have enjoyed using it. So far we have made biscuits and bread. Yummy.... there is nothing like warm fresh baked bread.





This is the girls by the garden. These are the sunflowers that they planted. And these are the birdhouses that they made with Daddy.
The summer was a blast. It just went to fast. But it always does. Hope the next one is just as good!!

(This is one of my most recent favorites of the girls. Aren't they cute??)