Christmas 2010

Our Christmas was like a whirlwind from start to finish. It all started when Nolan appeared by my bed at 5:59 AM.

He had already spent the previous 59 minutes patiently reading a book in his room in hopes that the hands on his clock would quickly move up an hour.

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So... we all got up and headed downstairs to the living room where the annual Christmas traditions begin each year.

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(please notice how DARK it is outside at this ungodly hour...I don't think anyone else in the neighborhood was up yet)
This year, Nick made a birdhouse for Connor in shop class at school. He was so proud of it and well he should be-it's cut, sanded, and painted to perfection. Connor was proud to be the lucky recipient!

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I love this kid!

Hazel's big present was "baby". It's a small stuffed fox and she LOVED her "baby" as soon as she pulled it out of the gift bag. She immediately took her new love to her bed and even decorated her bed with a bow she found lying around. She's such a great dog!
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Bacon is a big deal at our house, so Santa brought Nick a stuffed version that says "I'm bacon" and Nolan got a Ba Co N shirt (periodic table of Barium, Carbon, and Nitrogen- yes we're nerds) and he was beyond happy to try out his new drinking straw goggles. (yes we're weird)

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(Left-right... Uncle Tim, Cousin Josh, Sister Sarah, Connor, and Uncle Russ)

Later on that day, Connor's family joined in the fun. Our house was stuffed to the max with all kinds of relatives from across the state.

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It was loud, crowded, and FUN.

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Connor's cousins- Christina and Erik. They are quite possibly the sweetest siblings I know.

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Here's Connor's Grandmother, Marie holding dear sweet Ashlyn. She was the youngest member of the family until we got the much anticipated news that a new baby girl was born to our ever growing family on Christmas night at 11:30!

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Connor's cousin, Kerrie had her very first baby that day down in California. The whole family was on pins and needles waiting and hearing the details as the day unfolded. Luckily, her daughter, Hero, was born healthy and everyone was thrilled to hear good news!

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Our house has a hard time catering to this large of a group but we managed.

I love Connor's family, they are a great group of caring people. Everyone chipped in by bringing food to share, making my hosting duties much easier.

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New babies, handmade gifts, lots of smiles, kids playing, yummy food, hugs abound, close family, and laughter is what I loved about this years' Christmas.

Birthday Perfection

If you are going to celebrate a birthday soon. I totally recommend you do it just as I did the other night. But first you need to find an amazing husband, two very caring boys, and a stellar friend who can fool ya like nobody's business.

Saturday was my Birthday. I'm old...That's as much as I'll tell you. :) No pictures were taken, and that was totally on purpose.

I got to sleep in... Sleep is a big deal to me. I LOVE it.

Then I noticed my house filling up with wonderful scents of bacon and french toast being cooked to perfection by my family. It was delish.

I was instructed to relax on the couch and to watch as much HGTV as my little heart desired. (without hearing any complaints) I have a problem, I am addicted and I'll be the first to admit it.

Then it was present and card time... Nolan was practically bouncing around in anticipation of me opening my gift. My boys made the nicest handmade cards with sweet birthday wishes inside.
I ripped open the wrapping paper and found an iPod touch! Happy Birthday to me!! My other iPod was barely functioning and I really LOVED my ipod so now I'm in ipod heaven! Nick and Nolan were excited for me but mostly envious. They've been pining for ipod touches for months now. Luckily for them, I share.

We spent the rest of the afternoon together and I asked them to play Balderdash with me because I think that game is hilarious. Connor almost rolled his eyes, but agreed to play with the birthday girl! (Connor despises that game.)

I received a birthday text from my dear friend, Karen, stating she wished she could have called but was in a bind 'cause her little boy was sick... I believe her words were "I'm up to my armpits in puke, but I wanted to wish you a happy birthday!" She also managed to ask me "How are you spending your day? Shopping for walkers? Looking for burial plots?" Nice, huh? Nothing like a sweet birthday greeting from an old friend.

Connor had told me he had made some reservations for us to go have a nice dinner together, just the two of us. We don't get "dates" very often, so I was really looking forward to that.

After coming downstairs from trying to get my old self looking somewhat decent for a night out, I was shocked to see my friends Karen and Brad sitting on my couch looking quite dapper! What?!! My hubs and Karen had been arranging this whole birthday surprise for a week or so and I was ecstatic! I love surprises, I love my husband who made my birthday extra special, and I love my dear sweet friends Karen and Brad who travelled across the mountain pass and lied about puke just to surprise me!

We had so much fun that night. We ate like calories were going out of style. We laughed a lot. We got caught up on each other's lives. We learned new things about each other (sippy cups have more uses than I first previously thought). :) I love that the four of us get along swimmingly, it was a perfect birthday celebration in my eyes.

This was the perfect ending to an already perfect day. Thank you Nick and Nolan for catering to my every need and for being so sweet all day long. Thank you Connor for always making birthdays such a special treat. I love you! You and Karen totally pulled one over on me! Thank you Karen for always being my rock of a friend. I can't remember my life without you in it and for that I'm grateful. You are the best!

Oh Christmas Tree

We bought a $10 tree cutting permit from the Forest service in hopes of having a fun family outing to find the perfect Christmas tree.

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As a kid, I have fond memories of doing exactly that each and every year.

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The only downfall to this method is not knowing how tall a tree really is. They look so much smaller in the forest... But when you try to bring the tree indoors you quickly learn your tree is twice as tall as you thought. Which is why the trees from my childhood ended up being square most years. (My dad would hack the bottom and sometimes the tops off, just to get the blasted things in the house!)

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We drove all the way up into the mountains only to be flagged over by a ranger stating that the forest roads were VERY icy and slick. They recommended that all vehicles, even 4x4s, chain up before making the trek any further. Being without chains, we decided it wasn't worth risking our lives teetering along the steep, cliff hugging roads just to get a tree so we had to turn around.

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The boys were pretty bummed out.

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But we were dressed for the weather and had a big thermos of hot chocolate waiting for us in the back of the rig, so.....

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We found a place along side the main highway that looked like a perfect candidate for some fun in the snow to lift our spirits.

We had an epic snowball fight!


Slid down small hills using only our slick snow pants as sleds!

And of course, drank the hot chocolate!

Two happily tired boys just taking it easy in the snow.

On the way down the mountain we drove past a Christmas tree farm where we were able to chop down the perfect tree... and it's not even square!

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I love moments like these, where your original plans get sidetracked only to make way for an even better plan!

A Day spent in the Big City

A couple of months ago, Connor's employer moved from one big city to another BIG city and last Saturday, we got a chance to check out his new digs.

Seriously AWESOME new digs!Yeah... those full length windows are the backdrop to Connor's high tech desk. I'm trying not to be too jealous because when I'm at work I have a nice view of store shelves stocked with prunes and odwalla juice. Not fair.

He gave a tour of the building, several floors of ultra fancy furnishings, and unbelievable views around every turn.

On this 16th level, employees can go outside to walk around the rooftop garden. Life's rough.

Nick and Nolan had to try their best Dr. Evil pose when they spotted this crazy chair...

I can just imagine the serious meetings that take place in this spot!

After touring the place and munching on the most delicious Christmas brunch that his employer treats us to every year (YUMMO) we decided to walk around Seattle to take in the holiday sights since the weather was divine for a December afternoon.

It's impossible for kids not to smile when they are going through a revolving door.

Pike Place was our first stop. I love the energy emanating from that place. Artists EVERYWHERE...selling their lovely creations and playing music to raise your spirits.

We walked a few blocks to do some shopping and we enjoyed seeing all of the holiday lights and bazillion holiday shoppers taking advantage of the lovely day.

I have to admit that we don't make it to the BIG city very often... This was apparent when we spied a man dressed from head to toe in a shiny spandex super hero outfit walking down the sidewalk and Nolan blurted out "Do you think he lost a bet?"

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I had to remind Nolan that you see all kinds of interesting people when you get out of the suburbs and into the city.

It was pretty funny!

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It's nice to finally get to see where Connor spends his workdays. I don't know how he can get any work done with those amazing views right behind him. One of his co-workers said to keep an eye out for "ugly naked guy" who sometimes makes an appearance in one of the buildings nearby. Ick. Just avert your eyes Connor.