Ayres Insanity

  I turned 32 today and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I have accomplished a lot in the last 32 years and have the wrinkles to prove it, and dammit, I've earned those wrinkles!   Today was a great day, normal for the most part, but Russ took me to dinner tonight (thanks for the gift card mom). We went to a fantastic Italian place downtown called Biaggi's , which by the way, I would totally recommend, while my sweet sister in law Jenny watched our kids. Although reasonably priced, the ambiance was lovely, we sat by the fireplace and enjoyed an hour alone, just me, Russ and some great food. I had almost forgotten how nice it was just to be a couple.    Now don't get me wrong, I adore my children and not a day goes by that they don't make me smile, but raising children is hard and it's easy to get overwhelmed, so for a moment I was able to ignore the fact that I'm a scatter brained, frumpy mom, and just enjoy the company of my best friend. And when it was over

 A couple of weeks ago my sweet grandma was diagnosed with colon cancer. Because it hadn't spread, a surgery was performed to remove it by taking a piece of her colon. She is doing well and recovering nicely.   I went to the hospital today to pick her up and as they were preparing her discharge papers she brought it to my attention that 17 years ago today was the day my grandpa died. He had cancer too, and in my opinion, he died way too young. He was the love of her life.   I've never seen a couple so in love as they were, I remember as a child watching them stand in the kitchen together, both wearing aprons, canning peaches and he would put his arm around her and say "I want you kids to know that this is my sweetheart" as she looked at him with that adoring smile. How cute is that?   Russ and I are coming up on 8 years of marriage and I've always told him that when we "grow up" I want us to be like grandma and grandpa Whitney, they're the perfect

  Today is Valentines day and Russ and I have chosen not to celebrate. Not because we're opposed to tradition or hate romance, but for a few other reasons. 1- We can't justify spending $50 on a dozen roses when you can get them for $20 any other day of the year. 2-My birthday is at the end of this month so we wait until then to go out instead of having to fight everyone else for a babysitter and wait for two hours at a crowded restaurant on February 14th. And 3- We like show our love for each other every day of the year & I personally think that flowers and chocolates are more exciting when you're not expecting them.   Anyway, I will make some heart cookies for the kids and give them non expiring hug coupons like my mom did every Valentines Day, and I'm sure I'll make an extra effort to make my sweet Russ feel loved.    So to all you lovers out there, Happy Valentines Day!    PS. Here is a brief history of Valentines Day if you're interested.    http:

  The other day I was chatting with my mother-in-law, I told her that she should start a blog given that it was a fun and easy way to keep a journal. She told me that she didn't keep a journal because her mother's journal was "boring". Apparently all she wrote were things like "I mopped the floor today", or "I made bread today". So maybe the life of a mother is monotonous and mundane, but I'm making bread today and I'm going to write about it.   I started making bread a few years ago after attending an inspiring Relief Society activity. The recipe was quick and easy and very versatile, you could make anything from cinnamon rolls to pizza crust and I loved it, but when it came to a regular loaf of bread, although delicious fresh from the oven, it became crumbly after the first day. So then began my search for a great bread recipe. I tried several but there was always something that bothered me, some were to heavy, some too light, some too