Fun

We went to Disney on Ice last night with Grandma Nan. Oh-My-Gosh, we had fun! The kids were mesmerized. We got there early and everyone got to pick which kind of junk food they wanted for dinner. Aubree and I had pizza, Ty got a giant hot dog, Daddy got a Chicago dog and Grandma got a gyro. We waited for the show to start while we snarfed down our food. The show was magical. There was the Lion King, the Little Mermaid, Lilo and Stitch, and Peter Pan. Oh, and we had fantastic seats! 5th row. I tried my best to explain to Ty how lucky he was and what an awesome Grandma he has. Some kids never get to go see a show like this. And some of them do, but have to sit in the nose-bleed seats and they sure don't get to eat yummy crap. We had fresh donuts and a giant box of popcorn, the smell of which was so strong it made me a little queasy! ( I was pretty sick a couple nights ago - not quite ready for all this junk food.) AND Grandma bought Ty and Aubree a fun light up show souvenir. Jack Pot! These are some lucky kids. We saw Santa this week, ate caramel corn, went to the children's museum and came home with a year pass, watched fun christmas movies. It's been a blast.

Time seems to get away from me

How can it have been so long since I wrote here? Let's see. For christmas this year, Justin got me a plane ticket. One of my oldest friends just had her first baby and it was killing me that I wouldn't see her get to be a new mommy or see her precious sweet boy till this March when he'd be 4.5 months old. He could be sitting up by then! She wouldn't feel like a new mom anymore, I would miss one of the most exciting moments in my friends life. And of course, the fact that I am not having any more babies has a lot to do with wanting to visit so bad. So Justin worked from home and got my girlfriends to take a few shifts with our kids so I could go see Chelsea. It was great. I got to spend 4 days holding that sweet little lump. I got to catch up with my good friend. I got to read stupid magazines and a great book. I am so grateful that she let me come so soon after Jack was born - 2 weeks! Just two weeks after he was born, she let me hang out and hold her new baby, it was great. Then of course I saw my family. Kids, I did not tell you about this because you would have been devastated that I went to visit a Gramma without you! But it was fun to hang with the Gorden family, just the 4 of us. It's been a long time since that happened. We went to see the Pee Wee's and it was really nice to visit without my sweet wonderful little maniacs running the show. : ) In the evening at PB house I got to crochet without distraction. Good stuff. As usual, as much as I loved my trip, it's good to be home. I love my peeps.

Stolen from the pages of Great Big Love

The crap I’ve done is in bold and italics
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band at school (clarinet in jr high)
4. Visited Hawaii - sadly, no
5. Watched a meteor shower (with Daddy right after we met)
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world (land, many times)
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis (I think, my memory fails me these days)
10. Sang a solo (at church)
11. Bungee jumped - no way dude!
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch (uh, yeah)
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train (although I was to young to really remember)
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked (just once)
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill (all too often)
24. Built a snow fort - this year for sure!
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse (I think)
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language (not with any success, LMAO)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling (snorkeling)
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie (an extra on a tv movie)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business (check it out! http://www.bluestarbutterflies.etsy.com/)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen (not quite, but I built out houses for people who lived in plywood boxes)
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma - tried, they wouldn't take it, I'm not qualified!!
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check ( I do believe)
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt (um, yeah)
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone (fractured a pinky and probably broke 2 toes - one for each pregnancy)
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby (two of 'em)
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake (when I was a kid?)
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

We bought a spaceship!

I realize not everyone will appreciate this, but I made Aubree a sweater! I bought the pattern on etsy.com from Anji.Beane ~ http://www.anjibeane.etsy.com. I am very proud of it. It took a long time and a lot of weaving in of yarn ends which I do not love to do. I swear this looks just like something you would buy and Gymboree. Can we just have a moment of silence to be impressed? Thanks.


And now, I introduce to you, our spaceship!! I can not believe how excited we all are to have a mini-van. I was reluctant even though I could no longer deny that it would make my life easier. And these days my goal in life is to simplify. SO. We went, we drove, we talked down the price, we bought. And I loved it from the first moment. I am surprisingly not embarrassed to drive a mini-van. Maybe it's because I'm older now, or maybe I've been a mom long enough. Or maybe it's just because it seems like everyone drives one these days. I love this car. And so do the kids! It's a 2007 Toyota Sienna 38,000 miles has an mp3 hook up and seats 8. Woo Hoooo.

Hollowweeny, pretty witches and spider men

Hope

Obama's acceptance speech highlights @ Yahoo! Video

I spy

Here it is! Finally, the I-Spy quilt. I am proud to say, my kids adore it. My new sewing machine worked wonders for me. It's the most fun I've had making a blanket in quite a while. Yay!! Picking the fabric was an adventure, the cow border is bovine, wait, I mean divine. (LOL) Ty and Aubree have their favorite pieces and fight over who gets to sit where. We watch movies on it, have picnics on it, play games on it. I am so happy we finally have this fun toy/game/blanket I've been dreaming about for so long. In addition to the fun fabric I used every stitch I could find on my new machine. Did I say FUN???