Let's Take it Outside

Oh... Sunny Days!

It was a scorcher today, 90-plus degrees...Time to break out the Banzai Falls for a little slippin' and slidin'.

Nick and Nolan like to play "Lava Monster". Here they are hanging on for dear life perched above the deadly pool of lava.

Hazel and Nick enjoying the beautiful Spring day on the patio. Love. Days. Like. This!


Look at that handsome young man!

I'm so ready for Summer to get here...Can't beat a weekend spent outside, on a lounge chair, tall glass of ice-tea by your side, and the sounds of birds singing and kids laughing. It's the best!

Blessed are the children of mothers

Happy Mother's day MOM!!

My mom has got to be one of the most generous and giving people I know. She's always the first one to offer her help whenever someone is not feeling well and needs extra care. When she's helping them physically she is also helping them emotionally when she gets them to smile and laugh. She is a funny lady and we all know laughter is the best medicine! She is a wonderful mom and I'm so glad that she is MINE! She is also one of the best Grandmas around... She is a constant source of fun and is so great at letting them "help" her with cooking, gardening, and crafting. She has unlimited patience and her love for each and every one of them is so apparent in the way she talks and interacts with them. We love you mom!!

This lovely lady is my Grandma Ruth. We have always called her Grandma "Salty" and now her great-grandchildren call her that too! She is my dad's mom and she is such a fabulous lady! She is a constant source of inspiration to me and I'm hoping that when I get to be her age, I will be as healthy and active as she is today! This lady's social calendar is booked people. She is sweet, funny, and a card player extraordinaire! Love you!!

Now, I have been fortunate enough to have these ladies brought into my life because of Connor. His mom, Pat, is a fabulous lady and an amazing mom. Lucky for me she taught Connor how to grow up to be such a wonderful person. She's a terrific grandma and Nick and Nolan love spending time with her!

Connor's grandma is one of the most amazing people I have met. She is so kind and has a quiet confidence about her. Her family ADORES her and for good reason! She's caring and sweet and can't be beat!

Now, here are the two kids who call me mom. I feel like the luckiest mom in the world because of these boys. They are sweet, funny, kind, compassionate, smart, artistic, creative, athletic, well-behaved, adorable kids and they are all MINE! Lucky me!

Here's a shot of Nick when he was only 10 mos. old. I love this picture because of the look in his eyes...They have a deep and intensely sweet look about them.

I also love this picture because of the look in his eyes. This one cracks me up each time I see it. He's proud of his hammer and doesn't want anyone to mess with him!

Love, love, love this picture of Connor with Nolan... I guess if it wasn't for this wonderful man I wouldn't be a mother at all. Love you Con!

So it's quite evident that I'm the luckiest lady around...My life is filled with joy and happiness thanks to all of these wonderful mothers. They have each touched my life in different ways, I love each and every one of you!

Have the Happiest of Mother's days.

How Bizarre, How Bizarre...

This morning, Connor, left a message on voice mail asking me to call him at work so he could tell me about the interesting thing he found on our driveway as he was about to leave for work...

Needless to say, I was intrigued! Was it a coyote? A mysterious package? A giant lump sum of money? My mind was spinning up all sorts of scenarios...

I called him back ASAP.

He then went on to tell me that as soon as the garage door went up he noticed a woman hobbling down the street near our house. As soon as she saw our garage door open, she made a bee-line straight towards Connor.

Connor said she looked like she was about mid-40's, very disheveled, bedraggled, and quite dirty. I believe he used the words "crazy lady" when he told me what he had found on the driveway.

She began to tell him about her crazy night... Which apparently started with a fight she had with her "best" friend. For whatever reason she decided to leave her friend's house in a huff, and thought she'd follow the train tracks to see where she'd end up. (brilliant) On her trek down the train tracks she managed to twist her ankle and fall down. Apparently, she fell into a nearby ditch as well because her pants were wet and muddy. Doesn't she sound lovely?

Then she asked Connor if she could come into our house to borrow the phone so she could call her sister to come pick her up. Connor politely offered to call her sister on his cell phone and was willing to give her a short car ride to the front of the neighborhood where she could wait for her sister to come get her.

As Connor and "crazy lady" were driving through our peaceful neighborhood she spoke up and asked if she could borrow his phone again to call her "best" friend to find out if she was still mad at her. (What?!!) To which Connor responded "Um, no...I'm sure you can deal with that later...buh-bye."

He left her on the curb and went on his merry way to work... In my car. That he asked if he could borrow for a fun change of pace. He apologized for the dirt she may have left behind. :)

How's that for a change of pace?

Connor... I hope your day has gotten back to normal after such a wacky beginning! TGIF!!
Maybe she was able to help us get rid of the new-car-smell that has been over powering us. :)

Cowboy boots and square roots

Yee Haw...Ride 'em cowboy!

Can you tell I just spent two days in Ellensburg?

We just got back from a rip roarin' good time on the CWU campus. Nicholas was participating in the MATH OLYMPIAD 2008.

What is that you ask?

It's a math competition between several Washington State elementary schools. Only 5th and 6th graders are allowed to participate. Nick joined his school's math club back in September and has been honing his math skills ever since.

They work hard all year just to get ready for this big event.

Now, getting up early every Tuesday morning to do math is not what most kids prefer to do. Some of them truly enjoy working out equations and the like, but for most attendees.... I think it's the promise of the BEST field trip known to kid-dom... A trip to Ellensburg to have a giant pizza party at Grant's pizzeria and a swimming pool party at the local pool.

Then reality sets in on day two when they remember that they have a job to do. They have to put their craniums to the test! They work in groups of four trying to solve some pretty difficult math problems. Seven pages of story problems that deal with algebra, geometry, probability, number sense, etc etc etc. I saw the test, it was NOT easy. I was feeling a little uneasy about my skills when I saw what they expected 5th and 6th graders to do.

Here's our school's crew!

I even felt a little guilty when all of us moms decided to see the sights and get a coffee at the Dakota Cafe while our kiddos were slaving away. Especially when I saw the GIGANTO cinnamon twist doughnut I was about to sink my teeth into! YUM.

Here we are just shootin' the breeze and having fun.

(Jodie, Mona, Sarah, Beth, Lori, and Moi)

At the awards ceremony after the competition, they honor the groups that had the best score out of each category. And the one lucky group who had the best overall score gets to go home with a fancy gold medal.

Hmmm... What is that around Nick's neck? That is THE fancy gold medal I was just talking about. YUP-- My awesome kid was one of the four recipients. Isn't that the coolest?

WAY TO GO NICHOLAS! All of your hard work and early Tuesday morning club meetings really paid off.

Nick, my Nick, Josiah, and Preston

Nick was so proud of himself he could have lit a room with all his beaming! It was a lot of fun and you can bet your boots we'll be back next year!

Wouldn't you like to know?

My friend and faithful commenter, Karen, has asked me to answer the following questions...

1. Four places I go over and over-

Kohl's, I'm an addict and it's a fun place to hang out while Nick and Nolan are at TKD.
Safeway, work and shop, work and shop, work and shop.
quiznos, I like their flat bread sammies. YUM.
Fred Meyer, What's on your list today?

2. Four people that email me-

Connor
Suzan
Shannon
Brenda

3. Four of my favorite foods-

Haagen Daaz- Swiss Vanilla Almond ice cream!!
Onion Rings
Chocolate Chip cookies right out of the oven
Watermelon

4. Four places I'd rather be right now.

Disneyland-especially just sitting down for a wild ride on Big Thunder Mtn Railroad!
White and sandy tropical beach watching my kids play.
Snoozin' (I can't sleep!)
Sitting in my mom and dad's living room, just chatting away! Miss them.

5. Four movies I could watch over and over-

Raising Arizona
Christmas Story
Forrest Gump
When Harry Met Sally

6. Four people that will respond-

This will never happen, because my friends and family never comment...
except for my dear sweet friend, Karen and my loving hubby!
I'm told I have readers, but I'm growing skeptical.

Now I Know Why They Are Called Bangs

In an attempt to change my hairstyle that has pretty much been the same since 1989 I've decided to grow out my bangs...again.

I've done this a number of times over the past decade or so, with not a great deal of success...hence I still have bangs adorning my forehead.

But, I mean it this time!

Really.

Why can I birth a child, but can't seem to grow my bangs past my nose?

I mean come on.

Just because I look like a total goofball for having bangs down to my nose, yet the rest of my hair looks proportionate...
Just because my bangs poof up to be the size of large danish pastry every time I blow dry them...
Just because they are CONSTANTLY poking me in the eyes every time I try to see the world around me....
Just because they cause me to whine so much that my husband secretly wants to take a pair of scissors to them in the middle of the night just to have the insanity stop....Is no reason to hack them off.

I mean, I can do this folks. I will do this. Just you wait and see.

However, in my crazy hair hating rage I came to this next conclusion...
Are they called bangs because when you try to grow them out, you really want to grab a gun and shoot something? HMMMMmmmmm.

Why can't men notice new haircuts?

My sweet innocent 5th grader has been attending Band class since the first week of September, 2007. He was instructed to purchase a binder for all of his sheet music and decided to design a cool cover sheet for the front....

Look at the great bubble lettering and musical note. Nice huh?

Now, I've seen this binder dozens and dozens of times over the school year. I've seen it on the kitchen counter, Nick's desk, on couch cushions, etc. etc. etc....

So why on earth did I not notice what Connor noticed tonight when he saw it lying on the kitchen table?

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OH MY GOSH!

As soon as Connor saw this he immediately went over to Nick and covered the non-mammary section of the word with his hand then asked Nick "Why are you drawing things like this on your notebook?"

Nick's initial response was a look of bewilderment. A "what are you talking about" look flashed across his face. Then all of a sudden his eyes got real wide and he turned beet red with embarrassment.

He, being the sweet innocent kid I know and love, was shocked by this development (pardon the pun). Then he said something like "No wonder that kid in class asked me about the letter "B" on my binder that one time."

I haven't laughed that hard in a long time.

I have a feeling that Nick might be designing a new cover sheet for his binder sometime this weekend!

The mommy missile is no more...

Lookie at my new little red set of wheels!

In an attempt to bring our monthly costs down, Connor and I purchased this little number last weekend. We are saving mucho bucks and "saving planet Earth" as Nick would like to put it.

(We even brought it home from the dealership on Earth Day...isn't that too funny.)

It is a Toyota Prius and it get 45 miles to the gallon- gotta love that!

Now, I know it looks tiny, but it is actually very roomy inside. Connor bought an SUV a few months back so we decided there was no reason for both of us to have huge vehicles. The only thing I'm worried about is the fact that I can no longer haul half the neighborhood around. (That might actually be a good thing)

It is a blast to drive and is very high tech. It doesn't even have a key. Weird? Yes!

The dashboard looks like it came out of an episode of Star Trek, therefore we refer to my new car as the "Jetson's" car.

So, you won't be able to miss our family coming down the street anymore when Connor is behind the wheel of his big "voodoo blue" Tonka truck and me in my red Jetson's car!

(The mommy missile has found a new loving home. Connor's sister, Sarah, is now the proud owner and will put it to great use up in Bellingham with her lovely, soon to be expanded family.)

Who needs 7-Eleven when you've got 9-Eleven?

Picture me, Nolan (nine), and Nick (eleven) in the car yesterday afternoon...

Nick- "Mom, I'm going to open up a store on our front lawn over the summer."

Me-"Really, a store?"

Nick- "Yup, I'm going to buy candy from the dollar store and split it up into little cups and sell 'em for 25 cents. I should probably sell juice or lemonade too... I'll need a good cooler for that."

Me-"Hmmm...that sounds quite interesting." (Thinking to myself, at least this kid thinks of something to sell that someone might actually want to buy. No egg rolls for this kid!)

Nolan- "Oooh...Ooooh...Ooooh... Can I work at the store too?"

Nick- "Um, ya, I guess you can work there..... But don't forget, I'm the manager!"



So, if you're in the market to purchase some Mike n' Ikes, Milk Duds, or Gobstoppers and wish to wash them down with some lemonade that is stored in a good cooler....Be sure to stop by our place this Summer!

Time well spent

What a weekend...

Sunshine so warm if felt like a Summer day.

Two great girlfriends to help me spend my weekend away.

Countless Woodinville wineries offering up small sips of their best wines, delicious appetizers, and live music.

Getting to break out my favorite capris for the first time this Spring!

A picnic with friends on a grassy lawn dappled with sunlight after a day of wine tasting.

LOTS of laughter. My friends are funny... I'm sure it's not just the wine.

Driving home into my driveway only to be greated by a little blonde headed boy with a big grin on his face jumping up and down with joy that his mom is home. (BEST PART OF WEEKEND BY FAR)

A wonderful hubby who enjoyed his weekend with his boys BBQ'ing and hiking.

These are only a few examples of how wonderful my weekend turned out to be. It was a nice escape, relaxing, and fun. Now if only I had remembered to bring my camera! Total rookie move... I need more practice with weekends away. :)

And the Fun Continues.....

Today, I hung out with my boys, my nieces, and nephews who spent the night last night. It was a full house. It takes me a little while to adjust to having six kidlets in the house, but they are all fun and entertaining in their own way. And THEY were having fun, and that's what sleep overs are all about!


Next, I plan on taking my boys out for an ice-cream cone to celebrate another day of Spring Break. YUM.


Tommorow it's my turn for a little fun. My friends, Marianne and Shannon, and I will be embarking on a whirlwind girls weekend. I'm so stoked about getting away with these two even if it's only for 2 days. We will be spending the night up in Woodinville and visiting a few wineries at an event called the "Passport to Woodinville". We will be sipping different varieties of wines and thoroughly enjoying some delicious food in the sunshine that is about to grace our skies.
And when we aren't at the wineries, we will be within walking distance to some fabulous shopping. Happiness abounds!

Life is good.

Mo happiness....

1. It's so nice not eating lunch all by my lonesome this week.

Gotta love Spring break.

Today, the boys and I drove to Tacoma to take Connor out to lunch.

We had fun at the "Rock" chowin' on pizza.

Thanks Connor, we loved seeing you today!

2. We mourned the loss of our ancient washer and dryer for about 13 minutes a couple weeks ago.

Then we mourned the fact that we practically had to take out a loan out to purchase new ones...

But the mourning stopped as soon as I turned those babies on.

HOLY COW!

I'm in love with my new dirt extracting, high speed-spinning, super duper drying beauties.

I had no idea a HUGE load of laundry could possibly dry in under 35 minutes!

My old dryer took at least 70 minutes to dry one load of laundry.
I hate to think about how much time I've wasted waiting for our tidy whities to dry over the last 17 years.

Isn't it funny how the littlest things in life can bring such joy?

A whole lot a happy

This is a week of happy.

I'm lucky to say many things have made me happy this week and there are a few happy moments up my sleeve.

First... It's Spring Break and I'm LOVING it! Time spent with my boys just makes me plain happy. No doubt about it, bring a smile to my face, happy.

So far this week we have.....

Had a movie night. "Alvin and the Chimpmunks" had us laughing out loud. It's pretty cute.
Spent a day in downtown Seattle pretending to be tourists. Always a good time.
Dug for some change and spent some time at the local arcade. Boys dig that for sure.
Put on our lovely bowling shoes and had a fun afternoon at the bowling alley. STRIKE!
Who knows what the rest of the week will bring. I'm hoping for some sunshine and more fun.

Karen's Birthday made me happy, knowing she was touched by my post made me happy, and the fact she didn't hate me for posting some photos from way back made me very happy!

Next.... My good friend, Brenda, with whom I work at the pharmacy has decided to stay and not leave to go to another pharmacy. Hip Hip Hooray for us!! I was so bummed to hear that she might take another position at a pharmacy closer to her home, but she chose to stay because she knows she's happy where she is and because her not-so-healthy father is nearby if he needs her.
I just love this gal, she makes work fun and she is so great at what she does... She is such a positive person and I think she makes me a better person just by being around her.


Today, marks the one week point for my latest push at getting healthier. My sister-in-law, Shannon, and my friend, Bill, asked if I'd be interested in joining their attempts at getting in shape. I think this was the push I needed to get me going. There is nothing more motivating than knowing you have to report to others on your progress. We all told eachother what our goals were, how we planned on achieving those goals, and then every single night we have to email our progress reports. SCARY! But, so far, it seems to be working because I'm 2.4 pounds lighter than last week and I feel better about myself and have more energy. All good things.

So... Happiness abounds and I'll bask in it's glow

More happiness to follow...check back soon to get the latest installments.

Happy Birthday Karen

Happy, Happy Birthday to the most loyal, hilarious, compassionate, caring, crazy, and wonderful friend a gal could ask for.

Happy 33rd Karen!

Here are 33 facts about my dear friend...

1-I met her when she was only three years old.

2-She had and probably still has her baby blanket that she so lovingly referred to as "wubbie".

3-She is an amazing ballet dancer. 16 years or so of dancing will do that.

4-She makes the funniest monkey face I've ever seen. And I saw it a lot as a child!

5-Karen is BY FAR, the most hilarious individual I know. It's all in the way she speaks.

6-She once referred to her chest as "Shock and Awe" and I almost drove off the side of the road from laughing so hard. (see what I mean, funny! her word choice skills are stellar!)

7-She is allergic to apples.

8-We threw a small party for the neighborhood kids when I was about 11, and we served skittles and gave wheelbarrow rides to our guests. We also encouraged everyone to "Mingle"! :)

(Karen and me camping in 1982, Being wacky circa 1987, typical day w/Karen-198?)

9-She has the tiniest little toe nails on her pinky toes! You practically need a magnifying glass to see them!


10-We once had a contest to see who could walk barefoot on the hot asphalt street the longest. It was a scorching Summer day! Look what boredom can lead kids to do.


11-We also tried to make a swimming pool out of a large cardboard box lined with plastic. Key word there is "tried".


12-We killed a cricket that we named Jimminey, buried him, and made a song up about him... we both still know the lyrics.


13-We loved to choreograph dances in her basement to the rocking tunes from Abba. (most of the dances started out with a fancy cart wheel as we entered the room!) We were totally rad.


14-We used to drive around the Kirkland waterfront while listening to Depeche Mode- hoping to see some cute guys.


15-She was the best Maid of Honor- EVER!

(Karen & Brad's engagement photo-1997 Karen's Senior photo-1993)

(Karen being the best Maid of Honor ever - Jan. 1993)

16-Her mom had a garage sale one time and we thought it would be a fantastic idea to make and sell egg rolls. What?? What kid sells egg rolls? Why not cookies? Weird kids from Renton that's who!

17-Karen has a phobia of driving off bridges into water.


18-I can't eat a egg salad sandwich without thinking about her. (Her mom would always make them whenever we went to Lake Wa. for an afternoon of swimming)


19-She is by far one of the most loving mothers I have ever known. She was born to be a mom.


20-She is a fabulous teacher!


21-She was always afraid to spend the whole night in our backyard camp outs. We always ended up going back inside to the safety of the house. :)



22-She makes the best salads I've ever had. And her homemade croutons are to die for.


23-When we used to play "house" as kids, she always pretended that her husband's name was Tom.


24-She wrote a poem about scotch tape that was published in our high school year book.

(Look at the little Freshman- 1989)

25-We went camping together at least once a year and each time holds a funny memory. (New inventions, vomit, boys... I won't go into the details.)

26-Christmas at her house was like someone winning the lottery. She had mountains of gifts to show me each year.


27-She loved "life", and by that I mean the boardgame Life. I actually had to hide the game because I was so sick of playing it with her. I told her I had "lost" it somewhere. Nice, huh?


28-There is a booth in a DQ in Renton that we claimed as "ours" because we would always sit there every time we rode our bikes for a "full meal deal".


29-She has amazing taste in clothing and always looks put together & absolutely beautiful.


30-One of her in-laws thinks she is Puerto Rican... And Karen has no intention of telling her the truth. (She's part Canadian and part Portuguese and has the best skin tone around!)



31-That girl is FLEXIBLE! I think she can still do the splits and I KNOW she can reach far beyond her toes- I'm extremely jealous, as is my hubby.



32-She's got amazing decorating taste- her home is lovely and welcoming.


33-She is a friend that anyone would be grateful to have... and I count my lucky stars that she was introduced into my life when I was only seven years old and that I get the pleasure of calling her my friend until my dying day.

I hope you spend this day doing something you enjoy. Maybe listening to a little Abba? Perhaps a lunch that includes egg rolls? Whatever you end up doing, have a happy day and remember that you are loved more than you know!

Two Wild and Crazy Guys

It's that time of year again... Crazy Hair Day at school. My boys absolutely love this day... They knew exactly what they wanted done.

Isn't he handsome?

He could really hurt someone if he ran into them by accident.

My little porcupine boy!