Ryan has Dinner Making Skills!

So, Christmas is over. I can't believe it has come and gone already. We put the Christmas, well let me rephrase that, WE started putting all the Christmas stuff away and I finished putting all the Christmas stuff away. I'm not sure how I get stuck with this daunting task every year, but somehow midstream everyone seems to magically disapear. However, while I was putting everything away in boxes and bags, Ryan did make dinner. He made a really good dinner- breakfast burritos with sausage, eggs and cheese and warmed up pancakes from the day before. So, I have to tell you what the kids said about Ryan's dinner making abilities. Zack says, "Dad this is actually really good food." I giggle a little bit. Maycee says, "Dad, I think I'm falling in love with your food." I giggle a lot. Maycee seems to be falling in love with a lot of things lately- Zack's friends, the cute little Carston at preschool, but this was by far the funniest. Don't you think Ryan should cook more?
We hope you have a wonderful New Year with lots of laughs!!

A Not So Silent Night

So I decided yesterday at the Grocery Store, probably because I was a slacker and hadn't planned anything else, that the kids and I would put together a Gingerbread House for Family Home Evening. Ryan had to work and I thought that it would be fun, easy, and a creative project for the kids. Well, it was creative! Ok, it was pretty fun, too. And, it wasn't too hard. It was a good thing that I have a little cake decorating kit with different little tips to do some fun stuff with the icing. The kit only came with the Gingerbread, the icing and a little piping bag that I guess you'd cut the tip off of and try to decorate with that. So, anyway, I did all the icing. It just seemed easier (and a lot cleaner)that way.


Zack and Maycee did all of the candy decorating. They put gumdrops on the roof and by the front door, and these little tiny colorful candies around the edges like Christmas lights. I was pretty impressed with them at this point. I guess they have grown out of the "throw everything on anywhere" kind of stage.
Which, I will admit, I'm kind of glad about because I tend to be a little obsessive/compulsive about stuff like this.

Now, remember how I said that Zack and Maycee did the candy decorating?Well, Avery was there, but all she did was sit and lick the frosting off of everything; out of the bowl, off of the beaters, taking little swipes with little fingers at the Gingerbread House. You can't tell very well from this picture, but Avery's face is covered with white icing and a little chocolate from the peanut M&Ms the neighbors brought over.

Aahhh! The finished masterpiece. We did pretty good, right? There was only minimal yelling, "Don't move it, I'm trying to do the windows." "Quit eating the candy!" "Keep your hands to yourself!" But, it was worth it. It really was a fun project. I think we'll do it again next year. Hey, did you notice the cool icicles? Yeah, I did those! :)

I'm sorry that I haven't written for so long. It seems that we have been so busy, but I couldn't tell you with what. Tis the season, I guess. I can tell you that I am pretty much done shopping. Christmas cards have been sent. Neighbor gifts have all been made and delivered. So, I think I can kind of relax now. Yeah, right! Anyway...

I was reading a friend's blog and she had this cute questionaire on there. I learned a lot about her and I thought I would share some of our likes/dislikes, traditions, etc. Merry Christmas!!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Mostly wrapping paper and, this sounds a little odd, but between my family members we wrap and exchange gifts in fabric gift bags that my aunt made. They are neat because we give them back and forth to each other and we don't have to throw anything away or take the time (and paper and tape) to wrap anything.

2. Real tree or Artificial? Fake. Last year we finally broke down and bought a beautiful 9 ft. pre-lit tree. Love it. I especially love the pre-lit part. It seems in years past that I Always had to do the lights on the tree. Granted, I am kind of a Nazi about how the lights should go, but I still got sick of doing it alone. I also like that we don't have to water it, which could have been kind of interesting with our dog this year. I will admit that I miss the smell of a real tree, though. I guess that's what candles are for.

3. When do you put up the tree? We don't really have a set time. Somewhere between Thanksgiving and, um, Christmas?

4. When do you take the tree down? Again, no set time. I love to put up the Christmas decorations. But, around the first part of January I start to feel a little clostr0phobic (I'm sure I didn't spell that right) and I have to put everything away. Our house seems to gain square footage when all the Christmas stuff is down.

5. Do you like egg nog? Yes!! Which is probably not a good thing. I try not drink too much of it. I do, though, thanks to my parents, dilute it with a little milk. My kids love it too. All of them when they were young, and Avery now, call it Neg Nog Juice.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? I really don't know. That's a tough question. I had a great Christmas every year. I loved the Barbie furniture and clothes my sister and I got one year. I got a cool new bike another year. And, I'll never forget the year my family got it's first computer.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, I have lots. I kind of collect them. I have some from different countries like the Czech Republic and Mexico. I have some that are antique and some that are handmade. I take out all the glass in my China Hutch and put all my nativities in there.

8. Hardest person to buy for? Um, probably Ryan's parents. Although, I think we did pretty good this year...

9. Easiest person to buy for? Definitely Zack and Maycee. Every commercial they see, they yell, "I want that, I want that!" I have so many choices!! Maycee is escpecially obsessed with "Qick Gems, by Conair". Her dad is a sucker and called and ordered them. Don't tell!

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Definitely mail. I hate to admit that my technological skills seem to be dwindling each year I stay home with our kids.

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I think I am not going to answer this question. :)

12. Favorite Christmas movie? Definitely, Christmas Vacation, hands down.
"Eddie, I wouldn't be more surprised if I woke tomorrow morning with my head sewn to the carpet."
"Aunt Bethany, would you say grace?" "Grace...she died 30 years ago!"

Love it!

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Usually around October.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Again, I am not going to answer this question. No, just kidding. I never have, unless it was a white elephant gift.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Oh my goodness. "It's the most wonderful time of the year..." I love when the doorbell rings at night and it's a neighbor delivering some kind of goody. But, my all-time favorite treats at Christmas is the candy my Grandma used to make: peanut brittle, pecan logs, fudge, chocolate covered cherries. Oh my goodness.

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear.

17. Favorite Christmas song? Probably Silent Night. Sinead O'Conner sings a great version of this.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Both, kind of. I don't know if driving to either my parents or Ryan's parents is considered "traveling", but we split the time between them.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeers? Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, and Rudolph. I think that's all of them, right?

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? A Star.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning. Although, when we were younger we woke up so early we could almost consider it Christmas eve.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Lines. Lines. Lines. At the post office, at the store, everywhere.

23. Um, somehow I lost #23 question in translation.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Christmas eve dinner: clam chowder and rolls. Christmas morning: yummy breakfast at the Normans, and before I got married, my mom's Breakfast casserole. Christmas dinner: Turkey or ham and mashed potatoes and all the trimmings. It's like Thanksgiving all over again!

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? I don't know. I really was spoiled for my birthday. But, I'll tell you what I really want even though I know it's never going to happen. I want a dog that doesn't pee or poop on the carpet. I want new carpet. I'd like a finished, organized basement with a CLEAN toy room in it. (that's more unlikely than the dog that doesn't pee on the carpet) But, I got my new car, so really, I'm good.

My Movie Review

Last night Ryan and I, because it was my choice, went and saw August Rush. It's a movie about an orphan boy trying to find his parents, who actually don't know he exists. The mother, Keri Russell (thought the baby died at birth) and the father, Jonathon Rhys Meyers, HELLO!, both are musicians, aren't together anymore and live on either sides of the country. The boy is a music prodigy and tries to find his parents through music. I loved this movie. It was romantic and a little suspenseful. It was kind of a chick flick, but Ryan liked it. I cried, and I don't usually cry in movies. I think I liked it even more because of the music and the message it sends that music is truly Felt and can touch a person in a way that nothing else can. I think I've felt the Spirit more through music than anything else. Anyway, it was a good show. No more cheesiness. So, girls, I've found the guy to play Edward in the movie. Jonathon Rhys Meyers, sorry Ryan, is one Hot boy. He would be perfect for the part. Seriously. Check him out. www.jrmfansite.org

The Rest of the Story...

Finally, after four weeks and a really dirty, smelly little cast, Maycee got to go to the Doctor and get her cast off. She was a little nervous when I told earlier that they were going to cut it off with a little saw. Her eyes got really wide and she said, "They are going to cut my arm off with a saw?" After I quickly explained that they were only going to cut the cast off, she seemed a bit better. But, I was nervous that she would not let the nurse near her when we finally got to the office. However, I underestimated one of my children again. She was a perfect Angel. They zipped that cast off real fast and now Maycee is back to normal once again. P.S. The paint on Maycee's face is from Indian Day at preschool. Cute, huh!

Emily is 30! Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday Em. I can't believe that you are 30. She was lucky enough to get a new Pilot (earlier post), ugly BYU parafenellia and Tommy Girl. Just so everyone knows, Emily is a great Mother, wife and most important Best Friend. It doesn't take anyone long to see all the wonderful attributes and traits that she exibits. I feel so lucky to have such a Hot Momma to call my wife. She is the best most caring mother out there. Good luck to all those women-folk who want this same title.
I love you Emily.

Happy Birthday to ME!!!

Yesterday we bought ourselves a new SUV. We were done cramming our poor kids into the back seat of our car. They looked like sardines packed in the back seat, although Avery was not complaining with her big car seat-it is nice and roomy.
I finally convinced Ryan that it was time to get a new car and boy am I happy!! It is a 2005 Honda Pilot. It seats 8 people but you can fold down the seats if you want to. It is a cool blue color with a hint of green/gray.
It will be great for road trips and carpools. Yahhooo!

7 Random things about me...(Heather did this and told me I had to also, but it was fun!)

1. I hate candy corns. Not sure why, but yuck! Ryan always tries to get me to eat a couple, but I can't do it.

2. The other day on Oprah, it was a Utube special and there was a couple on that danced the last dance of Dirty Dancing at their wedding as their wedding dance. They had it down to every move. Isn't that a nice husband to learn that? It was her dream to dance this dance. So, anyway, Oprah had them on to show everyone and as they were dancing she surprised them by having Patrick Swayze pop out and start dancing with her. I started crying!!! Is that ridiculous or what! But, who has not dreamed of dancing THAT dance with Patrcik Swayze?

3. I have been to Hell and back. Seriuosly, there is a town in Norway called Hell. I went there about 12 years ago, even have it stamped in my passport. Pretty little town, you never would have guessed...

4. I LOVE Mexican food. Love it.

5. I have this thing about white dressy shoes, like heels or sandaly shoes. I think they shouldn't exist. And don't even get me started on white shoes with panty hose of any color!!

6. I am a "preppy" at heart. I love Polo shirts. I am drawn to them at the store. I used to wear them all the time in high school. I have some in my closet right now that are at least ten years old. I can't get rid of them. And, every spring I buy one or two more to add to my collection.

7. I used to have an all black cat growing up name Panther Bill. She was a girl.

Guess who went poop in the toilet...(unless you have young children, you may not want to read on...)

Yes, Avery has been very excited to go to the bathroom in the toilet for a week or so now. She just goes when it is convenient, like when she's about to get in the tub, or when I'm changing her diaper anyway, but yahoo!! She has gone poop the last two days in the toilet!! She gets on and then off and then on and then off. She would do this all day if she could. She screams at me and tries to kick when I try to put her diaper back on, so I usually let her run around with a nudie booty for a little while. I'm sorry to anyone reading this that does not have young kids. Yes, I am a bit of a freak, but that comes with being a mom. Maybe you have to be a mom to realize the shear joy that this little act by my 18 month old has brought me. This could be the end of diapers for us!! (I said could be.) My mom said that I was potty trained at about 18 months, so it is possible. Wish us luck!!

Trick or Treat!

Zack wanted to be Link from the Nintendo game Zelda this year. I loved that idea and as soon as Maycee heard that she decided that she wanted to be Princess Zelda. It was so fun coming up with these costumes. It really only took me a couple of hours to sew Zack's and it turned out awesome. They even had the pointy ears! So cute! Avery was a little bear this year. Don't ya love the hand-me-downs? I made this costume for Zack about 6 years ago. She loved it- I was surprised that she didn't mind wearing the hat at all. And, she loved growling like a bear at everyone.

I Love a Parade...Halloween Style

Zack and Maycee both had Halloween costume parades for their schools. I love to go and see all the costumes that creative people come up with.

The Great Pumpkin...search!

Last Friday we took the kids and my niece, Emma, to the pumpkin patch to pick out pumpkins for jack-o-lanterns. We had never been to this patch before, but we will definitely go again. As you can see, it's huge! But, our kids picked out their pumpkins in about 30 seconds. Then, they wanted to pick out more. Too bad they could just get one. I think we'll make this a tradition. It's much better than picking out a pumpkin out of the big bins at Walmart!!

Book Report

Well, I finished the Stephenie Meyer's Twighlight series books, and I loved them!! I was captivated enough to finish all three books (all over 500 pages) in about a week and a half. I feel a little guilty about my motherliness in that week and a half, but needless to say, no one starved to death, so my kids aren't too scarred. All three books were good, but I think I liked the first one best. I think I tried to identify with Bella the most- comparing myself in my mind with her averageness, and clumsiness. And, of course, wondering if I would have fallen for Edward in High School. Um, yes, I would have, no question. And then, wondering what I would have done when I found out that he was a vampire. And then, slowly coming back to reality, I realized that here in the Real World there are no vampires. But, I have to admit, I was sucked in so far, that the line was blurred between the Real World and Forks, Washington. Which is why I think I really loved these books. Were you ever in Walmart or driving down the street and saw someone and thought, "If there were real vampires, that guy definitely would belong to the club." Anyway, if you haven't read them, do. I can't wait for the next book to come out. It's only a whole year, right? And, I will go crazy (in a good way) when a movie comes out. I hear it's in the works. So, here is my poll...what actors would you vote for the different roles? Comment back and let me know. Here are my votes...
Bella...I don't know her name, but she is Julie, the coaches daughter, on Friday Night Lights.
Edward...this one is harder, but, my guess today is the main guy from High School Musical
I don't know, I'll probably change my mind.

This is for you, Dad...

I have to make a quick change to my hunting rant blog... I wrote that my dad has only gone deer hunting once. And, it was very funny, the next time I saw him he was very quick to tell me that he has gone hunting several times after that. He never shot anything...but, he did go. So, I apologize, dad- You are a Hunting Manly Man.

Maycee Broke her Bones!

On Saturday I heard a knock on the door and slowly got up to go get it, until I heard Maycee crying, and then I started running down the stairs to grab the door. My neighbor, Scott, was carrying a bawling Maycee and told me he wasn't sure how it happened, but Maycee fell in their back yard and was hurt. They had rented a jumping castle for their son's B-day. Of course, I told him thanks, but I'm sure she'll be fine. I kept telling her that ALL afternoon as she spontaneously kept bursting into tears. I honestly thought that she was overreacting and being a dramatic 4 year old girl. I do feel a little guilty that we waited so long to take her to the doctor, but how do you know? It turns out that she broke 2 bones right above her wrist. She'll be fine, though...now. Although, when she called my parents to tell them what happened, my mom asked her how long she had to wear a cast, she told them, "Um, twenty years." Ha! Ha! Maybe she was trying to make me feel guilty for waiting so long to take her to the doctor's.

Zack's 7th Birthday

Zack got this quilt- homemade by my mom- for his room. (thanks, mom!!)Cute, huh?

He loved all his gifts, but I think his favorite toy was a Transformer mask/hat thing that you wear and when you talk you sound like a robot or a Transformer :) (thanks, mom and dad Norman!) He got that from G&G Norman. And, Zack's friend party was a Pirate Party. All the kids dressed up as pirates and we had a treasure hunt and everything. It was really fun. But, that's just the mom talking...

It's October...here we go again.

So, here I am sitting here on a beautiful day and my husband has the day off of work. A rare feat. But, is he sitting here with me? No, and do you know where he is? Well, if you know Ryan at all and you know what the current month is, then you very well know that Ry has gone hunting. Of course, it's a yearly event, that lasts somewhere around a month. You know, to be quite honest Ryan did tell me when we were dating, 9 or 10 years ago, that he liked to hunt. And, I thought I understood what that simple statement meant. Boy, was I in for a big surprise! I didn't know anyone up to that point in my life that hunted. My Grandpa did back in the day, but nothing I can remember. In fact, the only thing I had ever heard about this hunting thing was a story about my Dad (he is definetely not a hunter.) So, just a few weeks after my parents were married, my Grandpa took my dad deer hunting. (He had never been before.) Somehow, my dad got lost from the group and ended up spending the night all alone on the mountain with no fire or anything. My poor Grandpa and my uncle were looking all over for him. I say my "poor" Grandpa because he had to call my mom and let her know that he had lost her new husband. She rushed down to where they were. The story ended happily- of course he was found. But, that was the last time my dad ever went, so obviously I was pretty clueless about this whole subject, and the fact that I would be a widow for about a month out of every year. To be fair to me, though, Ryan and I met the last week in November and got mar'mried in July. So, when he said he liked hunting, there was no real evidence of and no real way to prepare me for this huge event that takes weeks to prepare for, buying tags ($$), going to Cabelas several times- spending way too much money on jackets, hats, gloves, camel packs, bullets, under armor (this is just this year), going grocery shopping, packing the hats, gloves, camel pack, bullets, under armor, coats, etc., getting the trailer packed, and actually being gone. I'm not even going to mention what happens if they do kill something and bring it home. That is another blog altogether. I don't get it. But, that's okay, I've decided. I probably never will. But, I love that Ryan is passionate about something. He could be some boring guy that does nothing and doesn't want to do anything. And, any spitefulness that I may harbor is really just my jealousy surfacing. I truly wish I had some great big Thing to look forward to doing with my family or friends every year. Something that I could look forward to and prepare for and get my kids excited for. Something that I was really good at and that I could bring up for topics of conversation. (My topics of conversation range from 1 year old to 7 year old-Avery, Maycee, and Zack :) So, I may sound resentful, okay sometimes I am, but it's really because I'm jealous. I really love everything about Ryan- even the Hunting part.

Our family field trip to Cabela's

Ryan celebrates his Birthday by Graduating!!

Can you believe Ryan got his MBA? Yes- he is finally done with school...forever. (I hope!) He finished his last class on Tuesday September 18th and then celebrated his 31st birthday on the 21st. It was a great week. Ry even took the whole week off of work. It was nice. I put him to work, though, in the yard. We finally finished our big fire pit surrounded by sandstone in the backyard. But, I hope I made up for putting him to work by giving him a new Motobecane Mountain Bike for graduation and his birthday. He loves it!! That's what he says anyway. So, we had a great big party with family and friends the other night and celebrated our great Dad and husband. Yeah!!

Maycee and Barkley

Yes...we got a new little puppy. He is a handful, but we love him. Maycee loved him so much she decided to treat him like a baby and put him in her doll stroller. Barkley didn't last long in there.

Zack

Here is Zack on his first day of 1st grade. He was so excited to get his new lunch bag-even more excited than going to school.

Avery

Avery

Happy 1st Birthday Avery

Millcreek Campfire