Evertaster review by the Everforgetter

 Hello friends, Sharla here!  :)  As you know, I am absolutely OBSESSED with reading.  Well, it turns out my 11 year old son is following in my footsteps.  He loves to read as well.  So when I heard about Evertaster I had to try it out for me and for him!  He happens to be the same age as the hero in Evertaster, and he is just as picky an eater!  We both loved the book, and can't wait to see what he brings forth in the future.  

 But before I tell you more, does anyone have a cure for me?  I swear I cannot remember things to save me life.  It has been particularly bad lately.  So bad that the alarm will go off on my phone and a second later I still forget what I was just reminded of.  I wanted to post this Friday, set my alarm, and then when it went off I was going to go post it and still forgot what I was doing when I got to the computer.  lol  Anybody have a cure?? 

Anyway, here is more about the wonderful book:




"Wonderfully talented writing; funny."
--Orson Scott Card, NYT Bestselling author of Ender's Game

"Sidwell is a talented comedian, and that is certainly reflected in his writing. The characters are quirky and likable." --Deseret News

When eleven-year-old Guster Johnsonville rejects his mother's casserole for the umpteenth time, she takes him into the city of New Orleans to find him something to eat. There, in a dark, abandoned corner of the city they meet a dying pastry maker. In his last breath he entrusts them with a secret: an ancient recipe that makes the most delicious taste the world will ever know — a taste that will change the fate of humanity forever.

Forced to flee by a cult of murderous chefs, the Johnsonvilles embark on a perilous journey to ancient ruins, faraway jungles and forgotten caves. Along the way they discover the truth: Guster is an Evertaster — a kid so picky that nothing but the legendary taste itself will save him from starvation. With the sinister chefs hot on Guster’s heels and the chefs’ reign of terror spreading, Guster and his family must find the legendary taste before it’s too late.
www.Evertaster.com 

 "One of the most original, well-crafted and imaginative MG stories I've come across in a long time." - WordSpelunking Book Review

About the Author: 

In between books, Adam Glendon Sidwell uses the power of computers to

make monsters, robots and zombies come to life for blockbuster movies such as Pirates of the

Caribbean, King Kong, Transformers and Tron. After spending countless hours in front of a

keyboard meticulously adjusting tentacles, calibrating hydraulics, and brushing monkey fur, he is

delighted at the prospect of modifying his creations with the flick of a few deftly placed

adjectives. He’s been eating food since age 7, so feels very qualified to write this book. He once

showed a famous movie star where the bathroom was. Adam currently lives in Los Angeles,

where he can’t wait to fall into the sea.

You can learn more about Adam and his writing adventures here:


FB https://www.facebook.com/Evertaster

Twitter https://twitter.com/@Evertaster

Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5828904.Adam_Glendon_Sidwell

Pinterest http://pinterest.com/evertaster/

Go check it out, and ENJOY!!

Celtic Woman Winner!

Thanks to all who entered my contest!  As you can see, the winner of the Celtic Woman DVD and CD set is #6:

Aaron and Ashley WalkerFeb 11, 2012 10:18 PM

My husband loves their music! It would be fun to surprise him with a CD and DVD of theirs.

Congratulations Ashley!!

Celtic Woman Giveaway

You all know how much I love music, so I was very excited to have the opportunity to review the music of Celtic Woman!  After listening to the CD and watching the DVD I am definitely a fan.  These four women are amazingly talented and beautiful.  The blend of their voices is amazing.  I am excited to get to see them live in Salt Lake in April.

If you're not familiar with them, Celtic Woman is an all-female singing sensation featuring vocalists Chloë Agnew, Lisa Kelly, Lisa Lambe and Celtic violinist Máiréad Nesbitt.  They perform classic Irish songs (“The Water Is Wide,” “Green Grow the Rushes"), timeless pop anthems (“Bridge Over Troubled Water"), and inspirational songs (“You’ll Never Walk Alone,” “Ave Maria”) with their signature Celtic Woman twist.


You can check out the music here:

"Teir Abdhaile Riu":http://soundcloud.com/celticwoman-1/teir-abhaile-riu

DVD Trailer: http://goo.gl/53gX4

You can buy the recently released CD and DVD's here:

Believe DVD: http://amzn.to/yVl7Ob 

Believe CD: http://amzn.to/vZcIIN

And check out when they're coming to your town here:

http://www.celticwoman.com/north-american-tour-dates-2012/

Or, you can WIN your own copy of the DVD and CD here!!  

* Just leave a comment here of why you would like to win your own copy of the Celtic Woman CD and DVD by Feb. 13 at midnight MST.  

Good luck!

* I received one copy of the CD and DVD to review and will receive two tickets to the Celtic Woman concert. No other compensation was received and all opinions are my own.

The Baby Ache

Yes, yes, the Mom Nerd is still alive. I haven't written since blogger changed their look and set up.  I guess I've just been out of the blogging mood.  But today, I actually felt like writing.  So here I am.

Up for discussion today.....more babies, or no more babies?  I'd love to hear what you think.

So lately, since shortly before Christmas, off and on, I've had the baby ache.  Very, very badly I might add.  I think of a baby in my arms, and I ache inside so much I almost can't stand it.  The other day I had my youngest, 4 1/2 year old Winnie, in my lap.  He always wants me to rub his tummy so he laid down with his feet up by my face.  His feet are still pretty little, and still pretty cute, so I did one of my favorite mommy things and played with his feet.  But then when I kissed them.....

These are kissable feet!

Peee-ew!  Yucky stinky little boy feet.  So yeah, right then again the ache came.  For soft, sweet baby feet.

I used to ache for a baby girl, but at this point I don't even care if it's a boy or a girl.  And I think that's what scares me the most.

You see, analytically, these are the reasons why I am done having babies:

1. My twins are almost FIVE!  They will be starting Kindergarten next year.  ALL of my kids will be in school.

2. I have a part time teaching job that I LOVE!  And knowing myself if I had another baby the job would definitely be the first thing to go.  And that makes me sad.

3. It has been almost a year since I've had any kids in diapers. Need I say more?

4. We're still trying to buy a house, and really are not in good financial place to have another baby.

5. I really need to lose weight. And yeah, even though I lose when I'm pregnant, I always gain back when nursing.

6. I don't want my last baby to be lonesome with more than 5 years between them and the twins.


7. I don't want to have twins again. Really not sure I could handle that.

8. Do I really want more than 4 kids?  I mean really?

9. My twins are starting to get themselves dressed, their own shoes on, helping clean up, etc.


10. I'm getting old.  I'm about to enter an entirely new era in my life.  Do I want to start all that again?

   But then, what if there is a little spirit up there waiting for me?  Waiting for my family?





And is that why the ache won't go away?

For now, I'll look at some pictures of my babies, maybe try to talk some friends into letting me play with their babies, and hope the ache goes away.

But what do you think?  Baby or no baby?  That is the question.

Love love love Gardner Village!

So I had heard about Gardner Village, and I actually even tried to find it once, but we finally went tonight and I am in LOVE with that place! I can't wait to go see what they have for every season. Right now, they have it all decked out for Halloween, and it is so fun!


We were lucky enough to be sent four tickets to Ride to a Witch at Gardner Village as part of their Witch Fest. We got our tickets (which just happened to be BUGS!) And then went on a hay ride to their special little witch village with real live witches!

We were greeted by this lovely witch, much to the embarrassment of my growing 10 year old. lol

We were able to explore her adorable little house.
We busted some moves in the groovy witch cabin.

Helped one witch stir up some witchy (and smelly) brew.


Heard some spooky nursery rhymes, and had a very serious graveside service for Fred, the dead cockroach.
Overall, we had a blast! Make sure you get there and check out everything they have before Halloween is over! You will not be disappointed.

Now I just can't wait to go back without the kids so I can really relax and enjoy it.
(Shh, don't tell)
But aren't they adorable? Happy Halloween!

Sigh.

This was going to be a nice relaxing summer. No new jobs. No moving. Just chillin' and relaxin' to get ready for the new school year.

And it basically was. For most of the summer that flew by. Now Eldon and I both start back to work next week, and this weekend, we get to move again. Yay!!!

Now, I really don't have time to write right now. And I need to get to bed. But just to fill ya'll in, I'm going to share some facebook posts from the last few weeks. And yes, I admit, I am kind of a whiner.......

So, it's official. We are about to make our 13th move in the last 12 years of marriage. We were renting our home to own but our Landlord decided he needed to sell it right away. We looked into buying it but we just can't yet. We are hoping to still be in City Center but I haven't found anything to rent in our ward yet. I am so bummed but I'm sure it will all turn out fine.

July 21 at 4:33pm

I am so excited about the house we're moving into. It's amazing how things work out so well when you think it's the end of the world. We are so blessed! Will definitely miss our ward, but I'm excited to be in the same ward as Mandy Christensen, who I've been friends with since forever. And the house is AWESOME!July 22 at 8:40pm

The great thing about moving? You find things that have been missing! We found the ring my honey got me for Valentine's day. So happy! And I am so proud of myself, I finally cleaned out a "junk drawer" box that has been packed up and following us around for many, many moves. Found a few useful things, but most of it went in the trash can. So ridiculous!July 26 at 2:40am

So, so much to do today but I am so tired. Staying up until almost 6 in the morning was not smart.July 28 at 12:22pm

Went to the temple with my cousin and her soon to be husband tonight. So happy for them!July 29 at 1:04am

I spent all day packing and organizing and I swear it doesn't look like I did a thing. Thankfully my Mom was working on our laundry and made a major dent in that. Plus she cleaned my laundry room and closet. She rocks!July 31 at 12:03am

Twelve years ago I knelt across from Eldon Carbine and was married and sealed to him for time and for all eternity. After the last 12 years, I'm not sure eternity will be long enough.July 31 at 9:44pm

Should be cleaning and packing instead of sitting in this chair.....it'll happen eventually.August 2 at 10:08am

Having very mixed emotions today....and not a little bit of stress. But grateful anyway.August 7 at 9:02pm

I am somewhere in between exhausted and dead....and it can only get worse. lolMonday at 7:19pm

Pray for a miracle....because it's going to be a miracle if I get everything done in time. And still get ready for my school year. Ugh, I hate moving!!Tuesday at 1:57pm

I keep sitting down for a "second" on FB because I really don't want to pack. Realized while my mind was wandering today that stressed backwards is desserts. That would explain my chocolate craving. Another weird thought I had was that devil spelled backwards is lived, which is the one thing the devil can never do. Okay, okay, back to packing. sigh.5 hours ago

And that brings us current. So the consensus is that I really don't want to move, and I'm a pretty big whiner. But it will be over soon. :)

So what have you been doing this summer?

(PS Still checking out the books and music for my winners. It will take a little time!)

Letter to Me

The envelope says

To: Sharla Merryweather
read on November 16, 1997.

January 2, 1997

Dear Sharla,

Hello. Well, happy 18th Birthday! Now, as you read this I want you to look at your life as it is and if you aren't where you're supposed to be, get there quick!

Okay, this is what I expect of you. First of all, you better have a good attitude and be smiling a lot. It's your senior year but don't get stressed and overwhelmed. You should be going to church and seminary regularly and I expect your testimony to be stronger than ever. You better not have a boyfriend, or have had a boyfriend, and I hope you've been dating (group or double) good young men who are members with the same standards as you. You better not have made any big mistakes, either.

You better have gotten good grades your junior year if you want to go to BYU. I expect your GPA to be a 3.5 or higher. Preferrably higher.

I hope you're still striving for a temple marriage because that is the ONLY way you can fully be happy. Okay? And pray about it, a lot, before you make the big decision.

Now, when that time comes I expect you to raise a family and be sure to ask for council from your Father in Heaven and the leaders around you. Heed to the prophets teachings. Don't forget to go back and read your patriarchal blessing.

Sharla, look around you at who your friends are and their influence on you. Make sure they are good friends that will uplift you. And remember to be a good friend. Okay?

Sharla, you are a daughter of God and you know it. Yet be humble and every grateful to your Father in Heaven. He has given you so much!! Stay strong.

Love, You

Yep, that was me. Word for word, typos and all. Do I sound self righteous? There is a lot of advice I gave myself that is still really good advice. And I'm happy to say for the most part I did listen to myself. I just thought this was so funny I had to share. It's good to remember who I was, especially when I evaluate who I am today.

The Box

Wow, I just realized it’s ten minutes to five in the morning and here I sit, less sleepy than I was hours ago. I tried falling asleep but my mind wouldn’t shut down. That to do list of mine just didn’t want to lay to rest. So I decided to get up and keep cleaning and organizing. After a few minutes I reach for a largish shoebox that is taped up, no markings to be seen. I thought it was full of old cassette tapes, but realize it’s too light for that. So I open it up…….

and take one giant leap into the past. This box is filled with letters. Most of them from 1998-1999, the year I graduated from High School, and my first year of college/the year I got married. Right away I see letters from old beaus, and determine right then that I will throw those away without reading them. Seriously, I should not have these after 12 years of marriage.

That part was pretty easy to do, although one hilarious letter jumps out at me. One of the missionaries I was “writing” gives me some pointers on marriage. I love it. My favorite is “Don’t put your bed in the front room of your house just to watch TV laying down.” So funny. I guess he got lots of pointers in Mexico about what married people should NOT do.

As I’ve sat here for obviously the last two hours I am transported back to those years. I can see myself at the crossroads. I read letters from my sister and Mom to me at college; I read letters from my brother on his mission, before life seemed to come between us. I read letters from wonderful friends. I find a letter to myself to open when I turned 18. I remember that I did read it, although a few weeks late. I find an old Stake Dance Card, my driver’s permit, old school awards.

But what I rediscover is myself. I can remember that youthful joy and excitement that I felt at that time. Looking forward to a future where I am married in the temple to the man I love with a family of my own. I knew that once I was there it was all smooth sailing.

And I realize, this silly little box that has followed us around for 13 moves will be taped back up, and will follow us for as many more moves as we may yet have.

And maybe in 12 more years I’ll discover it again.

And realize once again that the young girl I once was really did get everything she ever dreamed of.


And for the record, I’m totally going to cash in on the “coupon” from my sister saying that she’ll make my bed for me anytime.

Who says a trip down memory lane can’t be useful?