The Mouths of babes..

I hope all of you amazing women had a good Mother's Day!
I wanted to share a small part of Cardon's Mothers Day gift that he gave to me.
He was so excited that he came in nice and early that morning to share this with me.
It's actually really cute. All of the blue parts - are the places where he filled in the blanks. :)

"My Mother is the most wonderful mom in the whole world. She's as pretty as a butterfly. She weighs 50 pounds (he whispered - I wanted to you to feel good.) Her favorite food is Cafe Rio. My mom looks prettiest when she gets meryed. (That's married for those of you who are rusty on 1st grade spelling.)
When mom was little she used to only listin to church music. (I am not quite sure where he got that - maybe it's because Ryan always teases me that I learned all these weird songs from girls camp.)
I like being with my mother most when I'm sad. I go on roller coaster's.
I think my mom looks funny when she makes funny faces.
But I know she's really angry with me when she sees me playing with bug killer. (Don't ask.)
My favorite thing about my mother is she's nice, she helps me.
I wish my mom would let me play the wii 1000 hours every day.
I wouldn't trade my mom for the wii. (That is REALLY saying something).

Oh - Jack Handy is SO right. "The face of a child says SO much - especially the mouth part." :)

Jack Bauer Wannabe's

I don't know how many Jack Bauer fans are out there. However, Ryan and I happen to be followers of the show 24.
There just seems to be some sort of endorphin release when Jack takes care of the bad guys.
Now it seems that he has influenced us to pick up a new hobby - sort of.

I have to say - SOOOO FUN!!!
Ryan, myself and our neighbors drove a couple miles from our house - up Price canyon and found a great spot.
We set up some targets and went to town.

I have to brag a bit and say I am pretty good with a 9mm! I wish I had a scanner and I would show you. :)
For now you will have to settle for some pictures.
p.s. okay Jack didn't have THAT much influence but he sure makes it look cool! ;)

I have never seen a cuter view of the back of a hospital gown!

This morning Luke was the lucky recipient of a myringotomy. He has had chronic ear infections for over 2 months. The ENT had pity on him and put some tubes in his ears this morning. Now the fluid that never drains and causes the ear infections has a way to drain out of his inner ear.


We had to be to the surgical center by 6:30 am. Luke wasn't allowed to eat after midnight. So we just grabbed him out of bed and stuck him in the car. He probably thought we were nuts. On the way there he kept saying "dark!" "dark!" - he knew something was up.

To prep him for surgery they had him wear this little hospital gown, those nice thick socks, and a hair net. It was both sad and funny to see.

Then the nurse came to take him for his surgery. Luckily it is such a quick procedure that Luke didn't need an IV - just the gas. The sad part was when the MALE nurse (I think a female would have been easier on him) took him from us and walked away with a very sad and scared Luke.

We had to wait about 15-20 minutes before they let us back into recovery. I could hear Luke all the way down the hall. A nurse (female this time) was trying to comfort him. He was pretty out of it and really sad. I pulled out a bottle (I am sure he was starving) and that seemed to calm him down.... until it ran out.

All went well so they let us leave. As we walked down the hall - Luke was still having a rough time. When we walked outside there were two DUCKS by the front door! Random! But it made Luke laugh - I think they were sent to help Luke. :)

Anyway, we have been home for a couple hours and Luke is doing great. You would never have known anything happened this morning. :)

I feel so blessed.

Spring pics

Here are some of the spring pictures that we had taken a couple of weeks ago.

Originally I was only planning on getting Luke's done. Since he has pretty much been shafted in the pictures area.

Actually, Maddy has too. When Cardon was little I took him every 2-3 months.


Anyway, I figured I would just take them all.
This was the FIRST time they were willing to cooperate with the photographer. Which is GREAT for pics but not for the wallet.

However, I justify my spending money on pictures quite easily. Why? It goes back to my wedding. I only had the photographer come to the temple when we were married. I didn't have any from the luncheon and only 5-6 snap shots from my reception. I hardly remember what it looked like! I didn't even get a picture with my mom or my roommates. Sad.






It was a tough lesson to learn. My advice to you DON'T under budget for pictures!!! Whether it's your wedding or baby pics. Get lots. Get them as often as you can. Treasure them. :)
So here are my kids - how I like to think of them - clean, happily getting along and smiling.

Tara's 3-ring circus

Cue the circus music... dee dee deedle de de dee de deedle..
You know the music I am talking about - right?

That is what life seems to be like. And I am this supposed tight-rope walker. Trying to balance family, work, internet usage and health.

I finally gave in and got a Facebook account. It has been as addicting as I thought it would be - and now my blog is loosing some serious face time. I need to be better!


My family has been taking turns getting sick - and I AM SICK of SICK!! All of us have been on antibiotics in the last 30 days. Lovely. Oh, and I will be making my 3rd trip to the ENT for Lukes ears. :)

My diet was going pretty good. Until I took a business trip to Phoenix where I indulged in some SERIOUS Italian food from Maggiano's. Once I gave into to the temptations - it's been harder to resist. Now that I am home - I need something else to look forward to - that keeps me motivated. Something like a warm tropical vacation - hint to Ryan if he is reading this. :)

All the while I am realizing that Maddy turns 5 in less than two weeks and will start Kindergarten in the fall. Cardon will be 8 later this year and get baptized and my little sweet Luke is turning TWO. The TERRIBLE two's - in fact I have already seen inklings of these days. Scary stuff I tell ya. Nevertheless, time is going by faster and faster. In someways it's exciting and in someways it's scary and in some ways it's sad. I am not ready for an 8 year old and a 5 year old going on 15. Alas, I am in the middle of the tight rope. There is no point in going back - only forward.

So if you are looking for tickets to the show - let me know! ;)

I am speechless....

Happy Birthday Grandad!

I just want to take the time to celebrate the birthday of a wonderful amazing man.
While we are sad that we aren't able to celebrate this day with him here.
We know that he is watching over his family - guiding and protecting us.

I first met Leonard when he and Anita came to Provo to visit Ryan. We had only been dating a couple of weeks and they invited me along.
From the very start he was so accepting and kind to me. Going forward, he and Anita always welcomed me to their home in Cortez. There we played lots of chicken foot and mexican train playing. He was just as competitive as I was - and at one point almost had me in tears! ;)

Another memory I have is of Leonard relaxing in his chair watching television and laughing. He was so laid back and you couldn't help but feel the same way around him.


Even after he became sick - he never complained and was always smiling.

Ryan and I found out (surprise!) we were pregnant with the first grandson to be born with the last name Tanner. Leonard started calling me "little mama" which seems like a little thing - but it meant so much to me! (Especially if you saw how BIG I was!)
After Cardon Leonard Tanner was born. Leonard carried 5 or 6 pictures with him everywhere he went.

I think Ryan makes Leonard proud. Ryan learned a lot from his father that he has carried on with his own family. He is a hard worker and provides for his family. He loves being home with his family. He loves the Lord and serves in his church callings and responsibilities faithfully. He has a way with the feisty little girls that makes them melt with his teasing and loves.

Leonard is sorely missed and eternally loved. I wish my kids could know him NOW but I am so grateful that we will be able to see and hug him again someday.

Happy Birthday Leonard!