liam and addy playing pretend together

this is actually a whole video but it didnt upload it to the blog like i thought it would. i will try again.

have you seen this twilight fans?

click to enlarge.

Liam trying to wink

And Last But Not Least...

I had a poker tournament for shawn's birthday. We had a great time- it was a blast, and it didnt hurt that Shawn got first place and won the t.v.! The other prizes were a netflix membership, some board games and a Nacho Libre dvd, which my mom won! My mom was in the top 5! i couldnt believe it, and i dont think she could either. My mom has never played poker in her life. Battling shawn for first was my brother, who lost on this play....

He folded late in the action with a 10 in his hand! Note the reaction...

Boy that looked painful Miles.

And now here's just some random pictures from the party. It was alot of fun and we are definitely making it an annual thing!

Miles doesnt look so happy being the queen, does he??

Next up....

The next birthday we have is Addison's which was a couple of weeks ago.She turned 3! I had a fairy tea party for her and invited all her girl cousins. We did fairy makeovers...

which involved lots of glitter, and tutu's and hairbows that my sister in law tiffany made for all the girls. then we sat down to eat...

and apparently in this picture addy is using her fairy wand to turn abby into something while her back is turned. The other reason i chose this picture is because it's the only decent one i have of the table and also the cake. i wanted to do a doll cake so I got a thumbelina doll for it. It turned out really cute, and the reason i'm bragging is because SHAWN DID IT!! i know, right? he did a great job. maybe cake baking and decorating will become a new hobby for him. My waistline hopes not.

Addy was so cute this year when we sang happy birthday. She totally knew all the fuss was for her and she was just soaking it up.

And of course, Thumbelina had to be cleaned up when she was taken out of the cake.

It was a great day, and we had alot of fun with family. Addison got alot of fun stuff, and some of it was put to use a little while later....

Werent they just laying her in my arms yesterday?

Birthdays

First, i have Liam's birthday, way back from New Year's. He turned 6!! Man, where does the time go? I blinked and he was big! No more blinking. Enough of the blinking!! Anyway, we had his brother-cousin over for a few days and took them and another friend to a super fun park for cake and presents. Pretty low key but it was all i could manage after the holidays. Which is why I am going to start celebrating his half-birthday and having a party for him at the end of June. That way we can make a big deal about him, and throw a big party at the pool or whatever. And he can feel special, and I wont have another big celebration to plan for on New Year's eve. And now, with one picture, i would like to show you all why i love this boy so crazy much-

He can always make me laugh.

Wow. Just Wow.

http://blog.pinkcakebox.com/party-dress-cake-2008-05-17.htm



Look at all those amazing cakes. I need them.

my favorite christmas pictures

these pictures are of my brothers, Miles and Mate, trying to put together Addison's Rose Petal Cottage on Christmas Eve. In this first one I love how the little cottage is all caddywampus while Miles intently studies the directions.

i can only imagine how many christmases my father wore this same expression, while putting together some bicycle or barbie dream house.

total. complete. frustration.

but in the end, it was all worth it, just for that excited smile.

8th Anniversary

For our anniversary we had planned on going to Dallas and spending a day or two. Well, we stopped in Sherman to do some things, and whaddya know we got stuck there! There was freezing rain that iced up the highways so we decided to just stick around Sherman. The next morning we got a call from my sister in law that Addison was throwing up!! I know what a date killer. So we ate at Johnny Carino's (which honestly wasnt that great) and headed home. I am calling a major redo.

My cheeks- full of air. Shawn's cheeks- full of bread. Dont get between the man and his bread basket!!

Wow. Have I really been married 8 years?

All The Cooks

All the lovely ladies that cooked up a storm! (Liam is so about to steal an orange roll.)

Holy Moly

Okay so I havent blogged a meaningful blog since before Thanksgiving. Whatever. The important thing is that I'm blogging now right? Right. So for your viewing pleasure but mostly so the guilt will stop eating away at my precious sleep here are some pictures from Tgiving. The fam on both sides came to our house this year and it was heaven. Family at my house + delicious food in their hands when they knock on the door = Heaven. I wont say what it equals when they dont have delicious food in their hands. Joking!! Just a joke. I love my family! (and when I say "my family" I do mean shawn's family too.)

Addison and her cousin Arieanna waiting patiently for FOOD!! Arent they the cutest????

Me and my momma.

Me getting totally, completely unarguably owned in arm wrestling by my SIL Tiffany. I love the expressions on Miles and Shawn's faces as they witness the carnage.

a new cookboook

So i love Oxygen magazine, and one of my favorite ladies in there is Tosca Reno. She is the nutrition writer for the magazine, and practically started the Clean Eating movement by herself. Well she has some books about clean eating, and her cookbooks are awesome! The one I just picked up at Sam's the other day is the eat clean cookbook for kids, and it's got some really great, really kid friendly and super easy stuff to make. I totally recommend!

Gratitude 11-15-08

You know, today was one of those really mundane days. Just a hang out at the house, no makeup , stay in your jammies practically all day kind of day. So when I sat down to blog a gratitude list, I'm embarrassed to say that nothing really sprang to mind. So today's list will be a little...boring maybe. We'll see what I come up with.

1. watching a movie with my kids that I watched when I was a kid. (All Dogs Go To Heaven)

2. finding my running shoes online for 90 dollars instead of 130 dollars. (last year's model. i dont care.)

3. leftovers for dinner

4. my kids going to bed without any fuss tonight

5. liam "working out" with me today

6. the funny thing addy said to me while on the potty- "mom my toot sounded like clarky's squeaker toy!!" *cue hysterical giggles*

7. cold, crazy windy weather that makes it perfect for Chicken Tortilla Soup tomorrow! yum!!

8. my Real Simple mag coming in the mail today

9. being able to incinerate calories for 24 hours with one 20 minute workout. (google HIIT)

10. Addy snuggling me all day because she doesnt feel good.

11. i'm grateful i can come up with all these things to be grateful for even on days that feel boring and barefoot house-wife-y. That in itself is a blessing, no?

BONUS NUMBER 12: Twilight coming out this next weekend!!!! how could I forget??

Just a Couple...

of random things that are floating around my head.


1. Can you believe that it's almost Thanksgiving? One day at Hobby Lobby right before Halloween, they were playing Christmas songs!!! Crazy. I am looking forward to Thanksgiving this year- my family is coming down and we should have alot of fun. Also, I am looking forward to Black Friday, because shhhhh, we are getting the kids a trampoline this year. I am very nervous about this because I know all the things that happened to my brothers and I on our and our friends' trampolines, but Liam has been BEGGING for one, and I am consoling myself with the fact that we will be getting the safety net thingy that goes around it. Of course, that doesnt keep anyone safe from flying ninja kicks to the cheekbone and hospital trips to repair said shattered cheekbone (right Miles?) but I'm not going to think about that.

2 .I am so glad that I have YW counselors now!! Yea! I heard they were awesome Sunday when I wasnt there- they had just been called in Sacrament that day too! I had no clue they were getting called and they just jumped right in and gave the lesson. P.S. it is really hard to run YW with just yourself and your secretary. Do not attempt.

3. This article really burns me up.

That's all for now. There's alot more floating around up here, but I will save you from boredom by not writing about it.

I really, really

really hate hormones.


Was pregnancy, labor, and delivery not enough of a challenge?? Do we have to have a monthly one too?

i used to get really bad cramps until i started taking my Barleans supplement. (see list, "supplements i swear by" at the side). I also used to look 5 months pregnant because I would be so bloated- it didnt matter what i did, i would always look chubby around "that time". Seriously, you should look into that supplement. I looooove it.

So now my only monthly challenge is the witchi-ness. I cant stand the fact that I cant control my mood or thoughts. My words, I have ever so kindly been reminded by my husband, are a different story. I can control those. I wish he would stop being so good at pointing out what should be glaringly obvious to me.

So, I am trying harder to think about what I say before I say it. It's that or take a vow of silence for a few days a month. Or duct tape. Or maybe a combination of all three?

Because I really, really, dont want to look back on my life when all is said and done and realize I sounded like Kate from Jon and Kate plus 8 on TLC. I mean, I love her and her little family, that is one of my favorite shows, but boy she can really be hateful to her husband. I dont think I'm that bad, but then again I'm not about to go ask Shawn and find out the truth.

All I'm sayin is, "Why do women have to have periods?" will be one of the first questions I am asking Heavenly Father when I see Him again. What about you? What will be your first question??

today i am grateful for...

1. homemade pizza with whole wheat crust
2. my husband who cleans the house every morning while i am at work
3. that my family is coming for thanksgiving
4. cooking with my kids in the kitchen
5. karma-what goes around comes around people!! So dont talk bad about someone to get them fired so you can have their job, because then the economy will crash and the company you badmouthed someone to work for will crash and you wont have a job!! bwahahhahah!!! ahem...sorry.
6. my husband having a job
7. my new furniture

well what are your thoughts??

How do you feel about the outcome of this presidential election? I, for one, am not happy. And alot of the people I see and talk to everyday are not happy. Yet all that is being shown on the major news stations are people so hysterically happy they're crying, Oprah and Jesse Jackson among them. Young idealist college students gave Obama this presidency, and they wanted "change". I want change too, we all do, but does nobody realize just what kind of change we are about to get? I could be wrong. I hope I am. We shall see what the next 4 years bring.

did you know..

that in mexico the word for christmas is belize doddy-da?

just ask liam.

I am so embarrased...

I just logged on and saw that the date of my last post was JUNE 28!!! That is terrible!! But, by way of explanation, I have not had the internet. Right now I am at my in-laws house using theirs. I really wish I could post some pics so you could see everything we had been up to- but I guess I'll have to settle for telling you.

Well, we got moved in. That was way fun and I enjoyed every minute. Seriously. Those boxes did not sit for long before they were emptied and BURNED!! bwahahahahah!!!! (just kidding on the burning- we reused them and let other people use them like the responsible global warming conscious people we are. Well. Maybe I did burn one, just for fun.) I love living in my house and waking up every day in my OWN room, and decorating my kids rooms, and all that fun stuff. Oh, and p.s. on the kids rooms, you know how I was asking for floor painting ideas? Yeah, well, I said forget that and we got carpet. Way too complicated for my peel-and-stick sensibilities.

This summer we basically went to the pool everyday and got brown as nuts. Liam became so much more comfortable with the water and by the second week we were there he was jumping in and doing tricks and putting his head underwater. BIG, big steps for Mr. Liam. (who by the way hates it when I call him that).

The end of the summer we were getting Liam ready for SCHOOL!! Wow, how exciting. He loves his teacher, loves his friends, and it's so fun to me to catch him singing a little song to himself that he learned that day in school or something. However, I have been dying for details of his days away and it has been like pulling teeth to get him to tell me!! The first day I was all spastic, I will admit that, and probably a leeetle annoying with all my questions (as evidenced by his answer to me finally "Mom, are you going to ask me all these questions everyday when I come home?") so I just have to be ready for when he's feeling chatty and starts talking. It's like "whoa, liam are you talking about school? let me drop this hot pasta pot and listen!"

My brother Miles just came home from his mission in Canada- how awesome is that? We had a fun weekend hanging out with him and seeing his face again! Welcome home Miles!!!

Let's see, what else? I guess just the day-to-day things that we all do. It's funny how you can be so busy but upon reflection you cant really remember what you were so busy with! I've got to go ahead and hop off for now but hopefully I can post some pics soon. Have a great Wednesday!!

Okay Maybe I Lied...

Today we didnt move anymore, but we finished painting the master closet and the pantry. Shawn was like, "let me spray this, it wont take but 20 minutes." I should know better by now not to trust his time estimates... yeah, it took all day. But while he was doing that I finished painting the master tray ceiling, so at least I felt like I was doing something instead of having a wasted day.

Anyway, here are some pics of the house- sorry there are so many but I wanted to show my family how it had turned out.

As you walk into the master bedroom.
The faucets in my bathroom. I love them!
Front on view of my closet.
Entry

Dining room.
Ha, this is how our first moving day started out. The car wouldnt start!!!
Kitchen. Where my stand mixer is there will be a microwave someday, but we didnt feel like shelling out the major moola for the one that matches the oven right now. We dont really use the microwave anyway, so we can wait. Right now it's a good cubby for the mixer! Through the door there you can kind of see where the laundry room is, and then to the right of that hallway is the guest room/workout room and guest bath. I dont know why the hall color looks diff from the kitchen color because they're the same.

Breakfast nook.

Front door. I am in love with it.

Okay, that's all. When ya comin over??? :)