GO UTES!!

I know, I know...I'm turning into a sports fanatic! Well not really, but it might seem that way...football 2 days in a row?!
Tara had an extra ticket to the UTES homecoming game tonight, and invited me to go! It was a ton of fun! I only had to ask her what was going on about 10 or 15 times. I'm not too good at what ~ means ~ what when it comes to sports!

I feel like I can ask Tara anything about a sport and she won't look at me like I'm crazy...you see back in high school Tara asked me: "Who do you think is going to win the world series?" I looked at her and said: (with confidence) "THE 49ers". Yeah, I need help in the sports department!!

The game was so much fun. The guys behind us were a bit loud and had potty-mouths, but were funny to listen to. We were sitting there and one tapped me on the shoulder and said: "Excuse me, may I take your picture with your camera?" I said: "Sure, that would be nice." I turned it on and handed the camera back to him. He sat there looking really confused. I looked at the camera and told him he was holding it upside down! Anyway, little did he know, he helped me document an excellent night with my bff!

The final score was Utah 37 ~~ Weber State 21

GO UTES!!!

Thanks Tara for a great night out!

*W*A*S*P*S*

*Let's GO-* Let's FIGHT- *Let's WIN- *TONIGHT!!*

Last week at Carsun's Birthday party, one of her friends gave her the WHS Mini Cheerleading camp for her present. Totally cute gift idea!!

Her friends mom picked her up for practice every day and dropped her off at home afterwards.

Last night at the Wasatch vs. Uintah game they performed at half-time. it was cute...and boy was she PROUD!

When the mini's went on to the field, all of the parents went and stood on the sidelines...I think I was one of the few who stayed in the stands.(don't ask why) So from the stands, this is all I could see...

This is the best zooming my camera did @ night. ugh! :( (I'm not even sure if Carsy is in this...I had the camera pointed in her direction!!)It's a good thing that one of the mom's on the sidelines was the gift-giver! She told me she got some really cute pics...so once I get them from her, I will post one!

Gimme a W* - Gimme an A* - Gimme an S*- Gimme a P* - Gimme another S*

What's that Spell? WASPS!! Go WASATCH!! (yeah, I was NOT a cheerleader!)

Good Job BUG!

Birthday Boy

Today is Justin's birthday. Now he's OLD! He came over this afternoon to pick the girls up for "daddy's night out".
{I must say that it was weird watching him leave with the girls. Birthdays have always been such a big deal to me. It felt so wrong to not be baking a cake or taking him out to dinner! I guess that's something I'll have to get used to.}

They were going to bake a cake & watch a movie. I am certain it will be a birthday to remember.

Before Justin opened his present from Tika she wanted him to read the card she made him. It was so funny...I must share.

So he reads the card out loud:

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD! YOU CAN PLAY IN THE SHOP ALL YOU WANT! (IF YOU CALL US FIRST!)"

Funniest part is that I had no clue what the card said. Now look at his face below...I don't think he was too amused! :)

Happy Birthday Justin!

My Secret Love...

I have a secret love.

Some of you may know I truly LOVE Toby Keith. He is one of the HOTTEST men on the face of the planet. I went to his concert last night and guess what...for the first time I didn't feel guilty when I was imagining myself making out with him backstage after the concert. (and swatting his tight behind) Okay, maybe more than you wanted to know...but it's true. I love the man!

Tara and I are truly obsessed with him and how beautiful he looks and how sexy he sounds!! Toby Keith "BoomTown Tour" was the first concert Tara and I went to together our Junior year of high school. Ever since then, he has been a true favorite of ours.

A while back Tara got us 4 tickets. Originally (back in June) we were going to take Justin & Tara's brother Eric. But since things are a little rocky in that department, it was all up in the air until last Tuesday when Tara called me and told me that her uncle's memorial service was on Saturday and she would not be able to go at all. She was just about in tears. (about missing Toby) It was actually pretty sad.

A Toby concert without Tara? How would I survive? Simple...I took MELINDA! I knew she was a fan of Toby Keith...but I think that last night I might have convinced her to join mine and Tara's "obsessed with Toby" club!

Since I had 4 tickets I decided that we'd have girls night out. It was my weekend with Tika & Carsy and I thought they might have a fun time. I'm sure they didn't enjoy it as much as they would enjoy Hannah Montana, but it was suprising how many songs they knew!

And it gave them a look at what alcohol will do to a person! Tika was pretty entertained with all of the drunks running around singing off key and slopping their beers all over themselves! Carsy just kept saying, "uh...he's drunk!"

We picked Melinda up and went to dinner at a super yummy place I highly recommend it (and so does Melinda!!) It is called the SmokeHouse Barbeque. Yum! We had our waitress document our dining experience. (who knows how often we'll be able to do this??!)

Then we headed off to Usana. We took ponchos in case the weather started to act up. The lightning was pretty amazing. (nothing like the Derby though!)

The first group that sang was called "Trailer Choir" they sounded allright. Then "Montgomery Gentry" did a few songs and then the Big-Dog-Daddy made his apperance. I get butterflies when I see him! I love his face and his hair and his body and his voice and his arms and his hands and his rear end and....well you get the picture! I LOVE TOBY!!! The girls were so sick of me saying how much I loved him by the end of the night I'm sure! Melinda just agreed with me. (probably thinking I'd stop saying it!)

Anyway, although Tara had to be in Idaho, we had a great night. Melinda and I decided it's a must go to show for next year....and Tara cannot miss out!

Here are a few pictures of my Secret LOVE!!! I know most of you won't enjoy them as much as I do....but ENJOY! :)

Honestly if he asked, I would kiss him!!

Canyoneering Slideshow

Okay, now if you have not read the MASSIVE update I promised you all, you need to scroll down a bit & catch up! There is the massive update w/ pictures, there is a post about our day @ Zion and a slideshow of Zion pics and now the canyoneering day story and slide show (top slideshow)

Justin took the girls a few weeks ago to Provo and took them to Hansen Mountaineering and played on the rock walls. They learned how to rappel...they LOVED it! Justin got them each a harness, so now they are all ready for any adventure!

Justin & Jon were going to take the girls for the day on Saturday (Carsy's Birthday) Justin's other friend Kyle also tagged along with his two kids. They went to a place in Southern Utah called Yankee Doodle. I don't do well with this kind of stuff. So, since it was Justin's weekend, I just made him promise to take lots and lots of pictures! and he did:)

The girls had a great time, and said they only got scared a little bit! :) I am just happy to look at the pictures! I think if I'd have been there I would have had a heart attack!

I didn't even put a quarter of the pictures Justin took in the slideshow...if you want to see more, check out Jon's website. There's a link to it under my "fun blogs to visit: Jon's adventures" Once your'e on his mainpage, on the left hand side under "canyons" it says "echo/ yankee doodle - sept 08" His slideshow puts mine to shame. He has music and an explanation with each picture. He even put who took the picture! (time on his hands? yeah... he's a bachelor!) Enjoy...and now you are all pretty much caught up on what's going on in my life!! Hopefully I can keep up with it now....(we can hope, right?)

Zion Slideshow

Okay, I am tired tonight, but not as tired as I was last night! I am usually pretty emotionally drained on therapy days. The girls had counseling today. And I have not been sleeping well since all of this hit the fan! I sleep really good from about 9:00pm to about midnight and then I am usually WIDE awake until about 4:00am. So for those of oyu who have DirectTV I want you to know that you are paying your hard earned money for info-mercials for at least 3 hours of the night...there's NOTHING on!! Anyway, that's not supposed to be the reason for this post!

I am telling everyone about the slideshow...(above: bottom slideshow) On Friday (the 12th) we spent the day in Zion. We hiked up Echo Canyon. It is a slot canyon that was absolutely beautiful. Jon is a very avid hiker and knows Zion like the back of his hand. We went through a pool of boob-deep muck that smelled like cow-crap. It was kind of black and thick. It stunk so bad. (yes I was gagging...) Jon calls it a sess-pool. Anyway , it was super cold too! I could not believe how COLD it was! you know how when you go to the lake and you think the cold water is going to feel oh-so good and you plop yourself in and it about takes your breath away? Well the sess-pool muck was so cold it knocked the wind out of me, made me have to pee super bad and I felt like I wanted to scream and cry at the same time. (but maybe not in that order!!) Justin was shocked that I had the guts to go through it! It was something I'll probably never get the chance to do again - I had to do it! And besides, Justin didn't think that he would be able to carry me on his shoulders like he did for the girls! It was such a fun day and the weather was perfect! After our hike we went to the Zion Pizza Noodle. mmmmmmmmm.......BBQ Chicken pizza was to die for! We all stunk so bad I'm sure people all around us were either hurling their meals or loosing their appetites pretty quick! After dinner we went back to the hotel to swim. Justin jumped in fully clothed...why you ask? I have no clue. But then he had an asthma attack (or something to that effect) and we literally thought we were going to have to make a mad dash to the hospital. He ended up being okay in the end. It was a lovely day.

What you all have been waiting for.....

Okee - Dokee everyone! I am super tired and I must be honest...I had to fight the urge to just lay down on my bed and watch the news. Then I realized that updating everyone is so much more important...right? And so it begins!

(now would be the time to grab a drink or go pee if you need to!)

After the girls & I got back home from Moab on my birthday, things just didn't feel right at home. There was so much tension between me & Justin. We weren't talking and when we did it would just turn into a yelling match or an arguement. My best friend Tara had mentioned that she was headed to Mesquite the weekend after my birthday and invited the girls & I to tag along for one final excursion before school started. When I talked to Justin it was almost like he couldn't say yes fast enough! After Tika's orchestra "concert in the park" we were on our way!

It was cool and raining when we left and when we got to Mesquite the 106 degree heat was a nice change (yeah right...I seriously thought I was going to DIE!) The next day we loaded up and headed to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. What an AMAZING place! And you know, it was'nt as long of a drive as I thought it would be! We LOVED IT!
The next day we just relaxed in Mesquite and swam all day. Now when I say all day, I mean ALL DAY! Tara & I figured that we were IN the pool 8 1/2 hours! Too bad we weren't getting paid! That's more than a days work! And it was like pulling teeth with no novicaine to get the girls out to eat pizza for lunch! They're like fish!

When we got back home, the tension was still high...you could have cut through it with a dull knife! Justin told me he was going to move to the basement. That was weird. The following weekend almost had a mental breakdown. We were 10 days from celebrating our 12 year anniversary and Justin had announced that he was no longer happy in our marriage.

My Dad had a bagpipe competition in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and I decided I needed the support of my parents and that I was going to join them for the weekend. (Justin thought that this might be a good oppertunity to let them know what was going on with our relationship.) I left the girls at home with Justin and went to beautiful Jackson Hole.

The day after I got back, school started and we decided we would sit the girls down and tell them about the divorce over the following weekend. Tika is now going to the middle school and Carsy is in 2nd grade. They are growing way too fast! On the first day of school I had a meltdown. That was not too fun!

Then it was the world famous swiss days. (world famous? Can I say I have lived here for over 12 years and this year was my FIRST time? I am no longer a swiss days virgin!!) Melinda & Rod came up and ran the 10K and did an amazing job...and of course we had our boy!! :)

Justin & I sat the girls down and told them about the divorce. That was one of the hardest (well, probably the hardest) things I have ever had to do. I think the hardest part was that I did not want to get a divorce and I was sitting there explaining it to my babies. Justin and I sat down and split up the weekends throughout the rest of the year and let the girls just talk to us and ask questions. They are so amazing. I think that Justin and I are truly lucky to have been blessed with such strong daughters. I am so impressed witht their strength.

The next weekend it was "my" weekend. So I decided I wanted to take them to do something that we might not get to do very often, but something they would enjoy and remember. I took them to get a PEDICURE! Now for you adult women out there who LOVE pedicures like me...let me give you a bit of advice. Don't waste the money on little children feet. Save it for YOU! Just pay $7 for them to get a polish change! That was so much fun though!! I wish I would have had my camera to capture their priceless faces when the people were cleaning out their toenails!! Hilarious!

Need a snack or a refill on your drink? Okay, to continue...

A couple months ago Carsun asked if we could go to Zion for her birthday. At the time she asked, we were having issues, but not to the extent of a divorce. So we pretty much told her that she could plan on that for her 8th birthday. So it has been just sitting in the back of our minds for a while. I kind of thought that she'd change her mind because of the divorce, but no! She just wanted a "family weekend". What a sweet kid! Little did we know at the time that we would have gone to the mediator the day before and it would be such a hard thing to do! But thats when you bite the bullett and have a good time for your kids! And, I think for the most part we all had a good time. Since Carsun's B-Day fell on a Saturday, it was technically Justin's weekend to have the girls. So I spent the day alone (which was pretty nice & relaxing) and Justin & Jon took the girls canyoneering. We took Carsy wherever she wanted for her birthday dinner (Olive Garden) and guess what we did after dinner?? You guessed it- we went SWIMMING!

So- there is the Epps Girls update! ( I really want to say thanks to everyone that has supported the girls & I ...Justin too ... in this very difficult time! I love & appreciate ALL of you!!)

(okay I am having trouble with my blog & Photo bucket. I have typed this post 3 times and now my pictures won't rotate to make the slideshow. I am quickly becoming PISSY and I am tired. So- goodnight...I will do the slideshow of B-Day pictures tomorrow!!!)

alright, alright...

I know, I know!!! I said I'd do a MASSIVE update I know...but here's the thing. When we were in St. George Justin & I each had a camera. Since it was "technically" HIS weekend, he took the kids out on an adventure I would NEVER have been able to handle. So, I was waiting to get the pictures from him! So there! Now I have the pictures and at bedtime tonight, I will be blogging. (I promise!!)

We'll keep the blog!

Well everyone, the votes are in...
And the majority of the votes cast suggested we continue the blog where we left off 5 (now 6 ) weeks ago!
I am glad, cause what would I do if I got all the votes back & you'd suggested to delete it? I probably would have ignored you all!!
The point of having the poll was to kind of get the "word out" in a way that way that was easier than running into everyone at the store, having them ask how "we" were and me opening a huge can of worms about divorce and then the tears would start to flow and so on and so on...
So - - once the girls are in bed tonight I am planning on doing a MASSIVE blog update that will consist of 6 weeks. In addition to all of the stress in my life, I have managed to do a few fun things with the kids. I hope you can all find a few minutes throughout the week to catch up on all that the "Epps Girls" have been up to!

what's YOUR opinian???

Hey all!

I know it's been a while, but I need some help.

Take a look at my poll question to the right and VOTE!

I'll update the blog soon, depending on the majority vote!