A LONG Drive

We went to Oregon for Christmas this year and will spend New Years in Arizona. That means that we did a LOT of driving. The kids did a great job being patient and entertaining themselves in the back of the truck (we towed a trailer then a boat so couldn't take the van). It must have been particularly hard sleeping and sharing the back seat with the dog too. Luckily she's a good pseudo-mama to them....

I am SO Thankful

Every day my hubby drives to work and busts his hump so that we can have a home, cars, food and the other nice things we enjoy. Even when it's nasty icy weather and the kids and I are staying home because school has been canceled, he goes to work in weather like this:
I got so lucky that he found me. He is a good man.

Happy Thanksgiving

A little Turkey comedy for your day...

What to Make

DON'T EAT THIS!!!!

THIS IS A CRAFT, NOT A FOOD!!!

But it's still fun to make. Who wouldn't love HOMEMADE SLIME?!?!?

Here's what you need:
2 Bowls
Part A:
3/4 c warm water
1 c white glue
green food coloring
Part B:
4t Borax
1 1/3 c warm water

Mix Part A ingredients in Bowl #1.
Mix Part B ingredients in Bowl #2.
Pour contents of Bowl #1 into Bowl #2 and let sit - DO NOT STIR - for 1 minute.

That's it, your slime is good to goo! We found this fun tip on the familyfun website and the kids had a blast playing with it. If it congeals just microwave it for a few seconds. Other than that, easy cheesy lemon squeezy. Both kids and their daddy loved making this. It was perfect for little hands and big ones too.

Selling Ice to Eskimos

We attended the local Rotary auction last week and, like previous years, the kids got to present a few items to the cameras and were televised across the greater mountain area. The first item the presented was a quilt that sold for about $400 (above). They also presented and doll that sold for over $300 and a rocking chair that also sold for over $300. Man, put those kids in front of a camera and people just melt like chocolate :)

LBBOL

Last weekend we went to visit our friends to shower one of the ladies with gifts while she's pregnant. I just love baby showers. There is so much to be thankful for in this world and children are one of the best blessings to be thankful for. Here is the host (my sister, Lyss), The mom-to-be, Sarah, and yours truly, in post shower bliss:
Congratulations Miss Sarah & Wally on your upcoming baby girl. I can't wait to meet your daughter. I just know you two will make great parents.

Happy Veterans Day

Thank you to all of the American Soldiers who have fought to protect what society is often trying to tear apart...

Tea Fit for a Princess

My little darling was invited by a friend to join the birthday girl in a day of princesses, pampering and partying. They met in Upland at Olivia's Princess Doll Tea House and got to dress up and show off all of their royal moves. They were super cute to see dressed up together. I will truly miss these days when they are gone.

The Best Costumes

My kids decided last year that they wanted a particular Halloween costume. In a weird twist of fate, they AGREED on the costumes. Let me reiterate that..

NOT ONLY did they AGREE on something,

They agreed on a HALLOWEEN COSTUME, which everyone knows is a BIG deal for kids.

NOT ONLY did they AGREE on a Halloween costume,

They agreed a YEAR IN ADVANCE on the costume.

NOT ONLY did they AGREE a YEAR in advance on a Halloween costume,

They agreed on the SAME COSTUME for both of them.

Impossible you say? Well, improbable, certainly. But nothing is impossible for

United States Soldiers!!!

1 party, 4 highlights

Every year, at the end of October, we pack up the kids and head west to our old alma mater. It's a fun chance to watch the kingsmen play football, have some fun, and catch up with old friends. Ironically, although we all spend the majority of the weekend together, we all come home with different highlights. This year was no exception. For my hubby, I'm sure the highlight was getting to golf with some college friends:
For my little girl, of course, the highlight was getting her face painted pretty:
The highlight for my little man was getting to sword fight with the kingsmen:
And for me? Well, I guess it's not one thing in particular that stands out, but just having the chance to spend a fun weekend together as a family (and the free carnival games):

My little fishermen

We had a tremendous time in Mexico this month with Nana and Grandpa and Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Tanyon and Aunt Lyss. The time just flew by in a blur but one great day that stood out was when Grandpa took us all out fishing. The kids caught fish all by themselves (a grown up usually held the pole to keep it from being drug into the ocean). The fish they caught were as long as their arms and plenty of them, probably more than 50 altogether. We couldn't get the poles in the water more than a few seconds without something attacking the bait. It was a great day, including the encounter with the seal who thought our catch was his lunch. Luckily we were able to outrun the little stinker. Here's a couple shots of my two victorious fishermen on our beautiful day:

Pickin' Punkin's

We tried something new this year and headed out to Cal Poly Pomona for their annual pumpkin patch. Some friends met us out there and braved the crowds for a chance to find the perfect specimen. That was an easy task because there were SOOOO MANY pumpkins! It was funny because the whole experience was over so quickly that we were kind of surprised to find ourselves ready to go shortly after arrival. I guess that's what happens when there are so many great pumpkins to choose from~

In Good Hands

We were originally considering keeping our little darling home this year for home schooling until the school was willing to put her into advanced classes (around 2-4 grade). We reconsidered when we learned a little more about one of the teachers. She is so sweet to the kids, very organized and well, just has her act together. Although I was a little tentative at first about how much time was being wasted in the classroom on non-learning activities, I am so happy that we decided to keep her in school. She is beginning to bring home some advanced homework and all of the "non-learning" activities are the parts that she reports about when I pick her up. It is then that she is learning coping and dealing social skills that I just can't teach her at home. I am glad now, even though I know she is not learning at her highest potential yet, because (like I originally guessed) a big part of what children learn in school has nothing to do with textbooks or worksheets. Her teacher is well equipped to monitor and guide those activities as well. Our little kindergartner is indeed in good hands.

Eeek! Spiders!

Last night I spent several hours putting chocolate covered sunflower seeds on mini nutter butters that I spent an hour covering in chocolate, which were on top of several chocolate mini-cupcakes that I added pumpkin and dried blueberries to so that they'd be under 80 calories and still taste delicious and have the same crunch that you hear/feel when you step on a spider. You see, today was "S" day at the kindergarten that my daughter attends. I thought it would be a cute snack to help reinforce the letter S for the kids. What kind of crazy, lunatic mom spends that much time spider cupcakes that the kids will devour in under a minute? I guess this kind. If I can't deny it I might as well own it.

Wanna make your own spider cupcakes? Here's what you do. Mix a boxed cake mix with 15 oz of pumpkin and 1/3 cup of water. Pour it into cupcake tins that are lined with papers. When they're done (check with toothpick), remove and let cool. Top them with a little orange frosting to make the spiders stick then top the frosting with a chocolate covered nutter butter (I used candyquick - I LOVE that stuff). Then decorate with chocolate covered sunflower seeds to make them resemble spiders. A word to the wise though. At 8 legs and 2 eyes that makes 10 seeds a cupcake. So for a class of 24 plus the teacher that makes 250 sunflower seeds. I made 30 then gave up. This made enough for another 24 undecorated cupcakes that I took to the school's office to hopefully butter them up for the next time my daughter is tardy that they might just rush her along and go on about their day.

My Little Bikers

Some girlfriends and I got the kiddos together for an afternoon of bike riding the other day. It was cute to see them playing so well together on their various levels of bikes, trikes and scooters. There were no casualties and minimal whining which always makes for a better day with friends. I think that applies whether they're 5 or 50.

'Atsa Nice Pizza Pie!

Recently we were invited by some friends to join them for a tour of the local Dominoes pizza parlor. The kids got to walk all over the store, investigating everything it took to produce one of the best pizzas in our area. They were particularly fond of playing in the cold cold refrigerator where they discovered TONS of shredded cheeses and got to poke at some rising pizza dough. From there they moved on to being mesmerized by the magnet that goes on top of the delivery cars. It was stuck to the side of a vending machine and the kids took turns trying to pry it loose from the magnets holding it on. The highlight of the day however, had to be when they all got to make their own pizzas. They stretched the dough, spread the sauce and sprinkled on the toppings. Then they got to place it on the conveyor belt that led it through the oven. When it popped out the other side of the oven it was transported to the cutting table where they got to participate in cutting and boxing their own pizza pies. We thanked the Dominoes employees profusely and headed to the local playground to enjoy our feast. What a great way to teach kids the appreciation of cooking food and how everything happens in a sequence and rewarding them for a little hard work. Great GREAT idea for a playdate. Thanks Lauren!

It's Good to be Mist

I spent the weekend with a few girlfriends doing some scrapbooking at one of their houses. When I got back, my little darling had prepared this note for me. She is SO STINKIN' SWEET.

Woops.

The kiddos got invited to a tea party for one of their little toddler friends a couple weeks back. It was a party open to both girls and boys so we loaded up the kiddos and headed on over. I had packed up some Triscuits and cut cheese slices into little leaves and acorns for a festive fall touch to the dish. Since we were pretty excited about going, we stopped by the local grocery store and picked up some petit fores from their cutesy bakery.

The tea was going smashingly, with the kids playing on the playground and then a few hide and seek games and it was time to eat. Everyone was having a great time, enjoying the treats when the host's daughter began crying and then vomiting. Everyone looked shocked and then panicked about what could possibly be wrong. As it turns out, the little girl has nut allergies...BAD nut allergies. Guess what is in petit fores? Almond paste.

Did I know that before I bought and brought them? No.
Would I go back and NOT bring them if I could? Absolutley.
Is there anything I could do at the time except apologize profusely and offer any help I could give (which was really none)? Nope.

I felt HORRIBLE. The poor thing threw up the whole rest of the party and didn't get to enjoy her pretty tea party that her mommy had thrown for all of us. Who gets mommy of the week award for that week? Not this girl. Woops.

Mental Snapshot

This is what exhausted looks like. Thanks Uncle Eddie and Erika for letting us visit, swim in your pool and giving us a place to crash in Phoenix.

How to Prepare for Bed - by my daughter

Here's the list she prepared for herself the other night at bedtime. There are seven things on the list. Can you read them all?