Thursday, June 19, 2008

Asher's Debut

Now that I've figured out how this video thing works, I may go a little crazy with it.

This was filmed during an afternoon nap at which time Asher should have been sleeping. Instead he decided to do this the entire time. It seriously was like the John Jacob Jingle Hymer Schmidt song where it just repeats itself over and over without some type of chorus or refrain to break up the song to get to a stopping point. He somehow figured out a way to continue singing the song until I felt sorry for the kid and ended his nap time.


Untitled from Jaylee Draney on Vimeo.

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Emma's Dance Recital

This is Emma's 3rd recital she's danced in during her short little lifetime. I have the other two on tape somewhere that I'll try to share some other time. If you can believe it, the tickets were $18 each, and if you wanted to stay to watch the entirety of the recital after your child dances, you had to also purchase them a ticket. It's amazing what we'll pay to experience these things. Needless to say, Clint and I left after Emma danced.
This is a contraband video. The only personal filming a parent could do was during the dress rehearsal, and stupid me didn't get the camera set up before she came on, so instead of enjoying watching Emma practice her dance, I was fuming the whole time that I would have to pay $30 for the DVD, which I would pay in a heartbeat to capture the short two minutes of Emma's stardom on record. I eventually decided to tape it myself during the actual recital, which is forbidden because, obviously, they want you to purchase their professional DVD. Had Emma been in more dances, I may have done that, but as it was I had already spent $550 on dance lessons, $50 on her costume, and $36 on recital tickets, which works out in the end to $318 a minute, or $5.30 a second during her 2 minute long performance. I did my best to stick it to the man.
I am thrilled with how well she did, and so proud she is able to dance in front of hundreds of people without peeing her leotard. Every year without fail, I'm a bundle of nerves leading up to her performance, and every year after her performance, I tell myself that was the last season of dance lessons. Three years later she's still going strong.



Untitled from Jaylee Draney on Vimeo.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Don't you hate it when you have to call the dentist for your daughter to make an appointment, which you should have done weeks ago but kept forgetting, and you kick yourself every night before you go to bed that you accomplished quite a bit during the day, except you can't take care of this one simple task, and you vow that "tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow I will call the dentist" and then you forget again because life gets in the way and you have to drive to Target AGAIN to return yet another impulse item, and finally on the way home from running errands you repeat in your mind "call the dentist, call the dentist", and when you get home at 12:45, before you do anything else, you run into the house, look up the number, grab the phone and dial? And don't you hate it that between the hours of 12:30 and 1:30 Monday through Thursday they're out to lunch? And you know that it will be another 2 weeks before you get around to calling again and by that time every last one of your kid's teeth will have fallen out.

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

I Should Own Stock in Behr

My outlet for expression has deviated recently into creating perfect paint lines.


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I hate painting. I hate it because it's so obvious when it's not perfect. I imagine someone sitting in my bathroom relieving themselves, looking at the wall in front of them, and when it's a particularly long visit, they may find themselves trailing their line of vision along the top of the baseboards, up the door frame, around the ceiling, etc., silently taking inventory of all the paint blobs that seeped over their designated space. I hate it because I have no other handy talent I can contribute towards the continuing black hole of home improvement our house requires. I don't trust myself to do anything else, so with clenched teeth and paintbrush in hand, I tape and paint and re-tape and repaint, and my day's mood begins to depend on whether a perfect line emerges after I so gently peel off the tape at a perfect 90 degree angle.


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If you find me laying on the bathroom floor with my eyes gouged out by a paintbrush, make sure you get a good look at my smokin paint edges before you call for the coroner.

Monday, May 12, 2008

The 2nd Best Sister In Law There Ever Was

A few weekends ago, I attended Chelsie's graduation from NAU. She is entering the honorable field of teaching. I've known Chelsie since she was 12 years old. She was a cute, naive little girl who always wanted to tag along with her older brothers, much to their dismay. I've watched her grow into a very beautiful young lady. But it's still hard for me to remember that she's not the cute, naive little girl anymore. She's a grown woman who actually holds a college degree, has lived on her own, and has dated more boys than I have appendages. I still tease her mercilessly, which I'll need to put a kibosh on, since she'll soon be making more of a positive difference in the world than I currently do, and that deserves respect. Teasing, regrettably, is my way of saying I like you.


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Last Thanksgiving, Chelsie phoned all of her siblings and their spouses and asked them each to write a letter to whomever they had picked for Christmas (we each pick names instead of buying presents for all 9 adults). The letter was to be about why we are thankful for that individual. We all laughed with each other about how Chelsie was trying to shake things up. Chelsie had the best of intentions, but we still took this as an opportunity to tease her. Being the youngest, non-married Draney, she really has to fight to be heard and taken seriously. So, her plan backfired; we all ended up writing a letter to Chelsie. Chelsie got 8 letters read to her on Thanksgiving about why we are thankful to her. Here's the poem I wrote to her:



I’m thankful for Chelsie for so many reasons
To write them all would take 7 ½ seasons
From her radiant smile to her fantastic hair
From her helpfulness to the clothes that she wears
I value her opinion; she always tells the truth
I hope she has a daughter, but doesn’t name her Ruth
I’m thankful for Chelsie and all that she does
She is the 2nd best sister in law there ever was (can you guess whose the 1st?)
She has a flair about her; a great disposition
Engaged like 17 times and almost served a mission
Youngest of five, first one to finish school
Too bad in Flagstaff you can’t use your pool
We love you, We love you, We love dear Chels
Please next time let’s do something else

Sorry Chels, maybe next year we'll try it again.


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FYI - I'm currently accepting dating applications for her. If you or anyone you know loves to laugh, have fun, and has a strong testimony, please submit your photo and cover letter, along with a list your most redeeming qualities, 3 references, and the name of your last girlfriend. You must be taller than her, moderately attractive, and have nice teeth. Remember, she's the baby of the family, so you'll be dealing with 4 older siblings, 3 of whom are very protective brothers. Shy applicants need not apply.

2007_0423Spring20070386

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Mother

Growing up, I thought I had the hippest, prettiest mother.




Cheryl Before


I didn't know her then.
She did eventually blossom into this beautiful person -




Cheryl After 1




We were anything but a conventional family, and I both hated and relished this fact, depending on what the situation was. Somehow she managed to raise me, put herself through school, work, and eventually gain a masters degree in Art History. She is anything but boring.

I could list millions of anecdotes about her. Just last night she added to my ever growing list. My grandmother wanted to take a picture of us at the dinner table. My mother would not get into the frame until her lipstick was freshened. Then, for a good 10 minutes, my mother talked about how she wants to get a cow and churn her own butter. I told her the idea of unpasteurized milk made me gag, so she said she would buy all the pasteurization equipment. As if it were that simple. After the cow conversation, my mother struck up a discussion with the hot waiter about desert tortoises.

Thank you mother for being one of the most interesting women that I know. I love you!


Cheryl  After 1

Tagged by super-neat Rachel

Ten years ago I was....
1. Working at Chase Bank
2. Spending all of my free time with Clint, who had just gotten home from his mission.
3. Kissing
4. Making out
5. Lip Locking


Five things on my to-do list...
1. Organize FHE packets to hand out.
2. Get oil changed.
3. Carefully plan out the summer so Emma has somewhere fun to be everyday.
4. Lose 10 pounds.
5. Look for new mascara brand I like since the one I currently use is too expensive (any suggestions?).


Five snacks I enjoy...


1. Tomato, mozzarella, and vinaigrette
2. Chips and salsa
3. Tuna fish, mayo, and sweet relish on a Ritz cracker
4. Everything bagel with butter, cream cheese, tomato, and salt
5. Oreos and milk


Five foods I love...
1. Salt
2. Avocado
3. Toast
4. Cold Pizza
5. Hummus


What I would do if I became a billionaire...


1. Hire someone besides my husband to fix up my house
2. Buy 1 of every breed of horse
3. Buy myself a board membership on UNICEF
4. Go back to school
5. Read books all day


Favorite family recipe...


I hope this isn't a family secret -


Apple Pie in a bag


6-8 apples, peeled, cored, and cut into large pieces
½ cup sugar
½ tsp. nutmeg
½ tsp. cloves
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp flour


Mix all ingredients together. Place into a pastry shell. In the same bowl, mix together for the topping ½ cup sugar, ½ cup flour, and 1 stick butter. Dot the apple pie mixture with topping. Place in a brown paper bag and pin shut. Bake at 425 for 1 hour.




Five places I have lived...


1. Greece
2. Paris
3. New York
4. Hawaii
5. Disneyland


I’m sorry; did it say where I have lived, or where I would rather live? In that case:


1. Phoenix
2. Tempe
3. Boring
4. Boring
5. Boring


Favorite quote of the day...


"‘Tis better to be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt."


Can someone cross-stitch that onto a pillow for me?





Di, consider yourself tagged.