I Believe in Superheroes!!!

Superman Luke

Batman Jack
(and his muscles...)

Better not mess with those Segura boys. They're tough!

Seven Things...

My friend Jen Hale tagged me. I've never been tagged before. Turns out it's kinda fun! You think about and remember things you normally wouldn't. So...here it goes!

Seven things I was doing 10 years ago...

1. I was a junior in high school
2. Planning the junior/senior prom
3. Dating a senior from another high school (so scandalous)
4. Going to lots of Glendora High School football games. Very fun!
5. About to turn 17...woo hoo!
6. I think this was the year I worked as a clerk at Ellsworth's Stainers, downtown Glendora.
7. Running...A LOT

Seven things on my to-do list...

1. FIND A NEW JOB!
2. Go to the gym
3. Write more letters/notes
4. FIND A NEW JOB!
5. Call/email people when I'm thinking of them. Even if it's just to say, hi.
6. Decide if I want to move
7. Oh...and FIND A NEW JOB!!!!

Seven books I want to read/reread...

1. The Book of Mormon
2. The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd
3. Mornings on Horseback; and other biographies, David McCullough
4. Music for Chameleons, Truman Capote
5. My Antonia; Death Comes to the Archbishop, Willa Cather
6. Where the Sidewalk Ends, Shel Silverstein
7. Emma, Jane Austin

Seven places I want to visit...

1. Greece
2. Australia
3. South Africa
4. Rome
5. Egypt
6. Loma Linda, CA (to see Jane, Catherine, Luke & Mack)
7. Riverton, UT (to see Megan, Jack & Kate)

Seven places I have lived...

1. West Covina, CA
2. Glendora, CA
3. Provo, UT
4. Orem, UT
5. Edinburgh, Scotland
6. Salt Lake City, UT
7. Arlington, VA

Seven things I would do if I were a millionaire...

1. TRAVEL!!!
2. Get rid of all debt (Guess this should have been #1)
3. Buy a home
4. Decorate my new home
5. Take my ENTIRE family on a fabulous vacation!
6. Not work for a year (Don't think this would last very long. I'd get bored.)
7. Start a non-profit

Seven snacks I enjoy...

1. Apples
2. Crackers
3. Cheese
4. Licorice (red or black...doesn't matter)
5. I really don't snack all that much. Is it boring if I leave the rest blank?

Seven things I can do...

1. Laugh (does this count?)
2. I'm good with babies and little kids. So they say...
3. Play the piano and cello
4. Sing
5. Ski
6. Organize, organize, organize!!! I even have my own label maker...LOVE IT!
7. I'm really good with names.

Seven things I can't do...

1. I can cook. I just choose not to.
2. Pretty bad at saying, no
3. Change a car tire
4. A toe touch (This was a constant battle when I was a cheerleader. Again, I could do it...just chose not to. I sound like such a pill!)
5. Go through the day without tripping or laughing
6. Wish I were a better pianist
7. Snowboard

Seven things that attracted my to my husband...Well, since I don't have one of those, I'll just list seven characteristics I admire most in others.

1. Honesty/Integrity
2. Humor - but not at the expense of others
3. People who are genuinely kind/thoughtful
4. Strong testimony of the Gospel
5. Loves their family/friends and makes time for them
6. Hard working
7. Killer sense of style (This one is just for fun!)

Seven favorite foods...

1. Ice Cream!
2. My Mama's pot roast OR her carrot cake
3. Anything made by Nanny!
4. Cafe Rio - either pork salad or a pork burrito, enchilada style. (My stomach just growled.)
5. Mexican Food
6. Diet Coke (Maybe this should have been in the snack category.)
7. Chinese Food

Seven things I say most...

1. Love you
2. Are you serious?
3. That's funny
4. Miss you
5. Thank you
6. How are you?
7. Can you please get that back to me by...

Seven people I admire most...

1. My parents
2. My grandmothers
3. My brothers and sisters-in-law
4. My friends
5. President and Mrs. Bush
6. Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan
7. The Founding Fathers

Seven people I tag...

1. Jocelyn
2. Noelle
3. Jennah
4. Karene
5. Mimi
6. Christine
7. Missy

When Tom & Stacey come to DC...

My Mom and Dad came to DC last weekend for their final White House visit. We had a wonderful time! And, I have to be honest, I LOVED having the them all to myself for a few days. It was great!

First item on the agenda was our visit to the White House. The day can pretty much be summed up by the below picture of Pops. If you want details, give him a call. He'll happily explain why he's wearing two tie bars. Just know that the expression on his face pretty much says it all.

~GETTYSBURG~

Mom and Dad headed to Gettysburg on Friday, while I was at work. They were very excited to visit such an important place in American history. However, I think they were a tad more excited to be in Pennsylvania. For those of you who aren't aware...My little brother, Mason, is currently serving an LDS mission in Pittsburgh, PA. When Mom & Dad crossed the Pennsylvania state line they stopped so my Mom could literally kiss the ground.

Mama sending her baby boy a kiss.

~EASTERN MARKET~

Mom & Dad have been to DC quite a few times since I've lived here. But, I've never taken them to Eastern Market! We woke up early Saturday morning and headed to Capitol Hill for breakfast and to explore.

While we were walking around, we found a lot of great things. But, the best lil' gem was the mother of all book stores, Capitol Hill Books. Just take a look at those windows!

Stace & Tom

Just contemplating life in a reading nook. Yes, I am sitting in front of a window. See all that light streaming through?

~HILLWOOD~

We left Capitol Hill and drove a little further into the District to visit the home of Marjorie Merriweather Post, heir to the Post cereal fortune. Not only was Mrs. Post a savvy business woman, but she was also an experienced art collector who displayed many of her finds in her Washington, DC home called, Hillwood. It is a breathtaking estate and definitely worth the trip. Although, there were some (i.e. Dad) who were a bit apprehensive with the idea of walking around an old house all afternoon. While en route to Hillwood, he asked if I would drop him off at my friend's house. (Dad thought my friend was sure to be watching football and in want of company.) But, don't worry, Dad ended up having a great visit. Mom and I of course loved everything about the place! (We weren't allowed to take pictures inside the house.)

In front of the main house.

With Mom and Dad in the formal garden.

I was IN LOVE with the beautiful fall leaves.

The backyard. Not bad, 'eh?

The Dacha. This is an adaption of a one-room summer Russian home that Mrs. Post had built on the grounds.

The estate even had a pet cemetery where we found the above headstone. It is in memory of Mrs. Post's beloved house dog, Bobo. Mom and I got such a kick out of this because the gradkids call my Dad, Bobo. A photo was absolutely necessary.

In the Japanese garden. If you can't tell...Dad is trying to scare me.

Oh! To be young and in love.

This was his favorite tree.

Mine, too!

My Dad is FABULOUS!!!

Trick-or-Treat

Sad story...When I went back to Target to buy my chicken costume (See previous post) it was nowhere to be found! Needless to say, I was heartbroken. I ran out of time to come up with another costume and spent the night dressed in black. Oh well. There's always next year. I will find that chicken costume and you better believe I'll wear it with pride.

Chareese, kinda-creepy-Andy, Millie & Katie Mags

With my gals. Michelle, Reese & Hope

Frank, the nerdy poetry professor, was a bit overwhelmed by this experience.

The happiest DC tourist you'll ever meet. The one and only, Joe. Please note the fanny pack. He wears it with such pride.

I couldn't pass on this photo-op! Would you? They were the most popular people at the party!

Trick-or-treat!

The Treatment of Bush Has Been a Disgrace

What must our enemies be thinking?
By JEFFREY SCOTT SHAPIRO

Earlier this year, 12,000 people in San Francisco signed a petition in support of a proposition on a local ballot to rename an Oceanside sewage plant after George W. Bush. The proposition is only one example of the classless disrespect many Americans have shown the president.

According to recent Gallup polls, the president's average approval rating is below 30% -- down from his 90% approval in the wake of 9/11. Mr. Bush has endured relentless attacks from the left while facing abandonment from the right.

This is the price Mr. Bush is paying for trying to work with both Democrats and Republicans. During his 2004 victory speech, the president reached out to voters who supported his opponent, John Kerry, and said, "Today, I want to speak to every person who voted for my opponent. To make this nation stronger and better, I will need your support, and I will work to earn it. I will do all I can do to deserve your trust."

Those bipartisan efforts have been met with crushing resistance from both political parties.

The president's original Supreme Court choice of Harriet Miers alarmed Republicans, while his final nomination of Samuel Alito angered Democrats. His solutions to reform the immigration system alienated traditional conservatives, while his refusal to retreat in Iraq has enraged liberals who have unrealistic expectations about the challenges we face there.

It seems that no matter what Mr. Bush does, he is blamed for everything. He remains despised by the left while continuously disappointing the right.

Yet it should seem obvious that many of our country's current problems either existed long before Mr. Bush ever came to office, or are beyond his control. Perhaps if Americans stopped being so divisive, and congressional leaders came together to work with the president on some of these problems, he would actually have had a fighting chance of solving them.

Like the president said in his 2004 victory speech, "We have one country, one Constitution and one future that binds us. And when we come together and work together, there is no limit to the greatness of America."

To be sure, Mr. Bush is not completely alone. His low approval ratings put him in the good company of former Democratic President Harry S. Truman, whose own approval rating sank to 22% shortly before he left office. Despite Mr. Truman's low numbers, a 2005 Wall Street Journal poll found that he was ranked the seventh most popular president in history.

Just as Americans have gained perspective on how challenging Truman's presidency was in the wake of World War II, our country will recognize the hardship President Bush faced these past eight years -- and how extraordinary it was that he accomplished what he did in the wake of the September 11 attacks.

The treatment President Bush has received from this country is nothing less than a disgrace. The attacks launched against him have been cruel and slanderous, proving to the world what little character and resolve we have. The president is not to blame for all these problems. He never lost faith in America or her people, and has tried his hardest to continue leading our nation during a very difficult time.

Our failure to stand by the one person who continued to stand by us has not gone unnoticed by our enemies. It has shown to the world how disloyal we can be when our president needed loyalty -- a shameful display of arrogance and weakness that will haunt this nation long after Mr. Bush has left the White House.

Mr. Shapiro is an investigative reporter and lawyer who previously interned with John F. Kerry's legal team during the presidential election in 2004.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122584386627599251.html

VOTE

THE NIGHT BEFORE ELECTIONS
Author Unknown

'Twas the night before elections
And all through the town
Tempers were flaring
Emotions all up and down!

I, in my bathrobe
With a cat in my lap
Had cut off the TV
Tired of political crap.

When all of the sudden
There arose such noise
I peered out of my window
Saw Obama and his boys

They had come for my wallet
They wanted my pay
To give to the others
Who had not worked a day!

He snatched up my money
And quick with a wink
Jumped back on his bandwagon
As I gagged from the sink

He then rallied his henchmen
Who were pulling his cart
I could tell they were out
To tear my country apart!

"On Fannie, on Freddie,
On Biden and Ayers!
On Acorn, On Pelosi"
He screamed at the pairs!

They took off for his cause
And as he flew out of sight
I heard him laugh at the nation
Who woudln't stand up and fight!

So, I leave you to think
On this one final note -
IF YOU DON'T WANT SOCIALISM
GET YOUR BUTT OUT AND VOTE!!!