3 Boys and a Brewery

January 2011 snow fun

2011-01-19T12:42:00.001-08:00

PLEASE NOTE: Beth did not write this post. I screwed up and put the post on her blog instead of mine. I'm going to try to put a link on my post so I don't have to do the darn thing over!

Since there has been alot of snow up on the rim since the first of the year and the boys have a three day weekend, we all decided we should go up to the high country and play in the snow. The weather cooperated with fairly mild temps for the middle of January.

Lots of snow on the north side of the cabin.

Wipeout!

High flyin'!

Goin' really fast!

Even Dev hauled his sled up the hill!

They saw 5 deer in the yard and were able to get pretty close to them.

Haulin' snow to the front yard......

The boys were in a cooking mood. Logan was in charge of the hash browns. Not TOO many went down the burner.

Time for washing dishes and little Mr. Dev wanted to help!

A new Lego Buzz.

Logan is the organized one of the bunch and made an itinerary for the next morning:

7:30- wake up

8:00- start breakfast

8:30- eat breakfast

9:00- put snow clothes on and go outside

Everyones clothes were laid out with their names on, which made everyone stay on schedule. Logan made pancakes and I was in charge of the bacon. They were outside by 9:00 on Sunday.

This was the day that Logan mastered standing up on the sled, going down the hill and over the speed bump!

The deer came back to visit across the street and back over to our side yard.

Our friends, Pam and Steve, just happened to be in the neighborhood so they couldn't resist a little snow fun!

Dev did a "face plant" into the snow and got a scratched up cheek.

Time to cook again. Dil was scrubbing potats to bake and looked out the kitchen window to see...

the deer again having some supper in the back yard!

And here is Logan mushing up stuff for meat loaf! They all ate it....in addition to lots of oatmeal cookies and "roof bare floats".

They were so busy having fun in the snow that they didn't take time to shoot their new BB guns. Maybe next time.

Christmas 2010

2011-01-06T11:38:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year 2011, Friends and Family! Here are some pictures of what we've been up to the last month!

Here are the Boys playing in the snow up by the cabin just before Christmas. The snow didn't last long so they had to hurry to build a snowman!

These are cakeballs! I probably made 50 dozen of the darn things the month of December! Many friends and coworkers put their orders in and I dipped and dipped and dipped away!

We made some special food to attract Santa's reindeer! It consisted of oatmeal, sprinkles, glitter, and popcorn kernels! The boys sprinkled it in the front yard so the reindeer could find us and of course have a snack while Santa was doing his duty!

We went on our annual Christmas light tour around the neighborhood Christmas Eve. This house we stopped at was amazing! The entire garage was set up with a village of miniature houses, actually an entire town. I can't imagine the work that was put into this. It was really awesome!

And while we were out looking at lights, Santa came! How come he comes while we are gone every year?

The boys were of course all smiles with Santa's loot!

One of the "hits" of Christmas presents were these Beyblades! All the boys love them and even Grandpa and Papa got a lesson on how to play them! For those of who are clueless as to what Beyblades are, they are little metal tops that have interchangeable parts. The boys use their own special strategy to build their Beyblade and then they battle in a plastic stadium. The last top spinning is the winner!

These giant candy canes Santa brought kept them busy for a couple days. I think even Toni got ahold of one at one point and enjoyed a few licks herself! Imagine that!

A couple days after Christmas, Arizona experienced some very cold weather. We are not used to multiple days of below 32 degrees at night! In fact, it got down to 22 degrees New Years Eve! It even snowed in the greater Phoenix area. We were not fortunate to actually see any of it but we were sure this funny looking cloud was a snow cloud!

And here we are bringing in the New Year with our neighbors! Usually we sit in the driveway and huddle around a nice warm fire. But this year it was a "No Burn Day" which means it's illegal to burn even wood outside in a firepit. So we had to celebrate inside and ended up having a few dart and pinball competitions! We sure love our neighbors!

That's all for now! Happy New Year!

Here's What We've Been Up To The Last Month...

2010-12-08T11:01:00.000-08:00

It's been a busy month as usual! Here are a bunch of pictures from our goings on! (in no particular order because I messed up the upload!)

This was taken at the NASCAR race at PIR in November. We had lots of Redneck fun like always!

DVB turned 3 last week! This was his 2nd cake! Pictures of his 1st cake to follow!

DVB really wanted a "Buzz Quad" for his birthday! Since the Buzz Quad he had his eye on at Walmart was too small for him, Bobo and Grandpa bought him a bigger one with Buzz stickers to put on it! He loves to ride it up and down the side walk! Although it looks real, it is actually a 12v battery operated deal. It goes 5 mph which DVB has already mastered! It'll be fun to take it out to the desert next month when camping season gets rolling again!

He wore this hat for 3 days before his birthday! We really didn't have an official party for him, just a normal Friday night gathering with our neighbors! The poor 3rd child always gets the shaft!

He also really wanted a Buzz scooter but we couldn't find one. He was happy with the McQueen one his brothers did find for him!

This was DVB's first cake! Toni, aka Old Iron Guts, decided to make sure it tasted ok! Frickin dog! She ate about 8 cupcakes right after I brought it in the door!

Now we are backtracking to Thanksgiving! This is my new Vikings hat a friend had made for me! What a cool surprise and it really came in handy because camping in the desert in November was freezing! I know I'm a wimp!

Here are the cousins making a teeter totter out of a dead tree which later became firewood!

Here's a pretty sunrise on Thanksgiving morn!

DVB playing with nature!

Mr. Deputy made a stop at camp once again! And it was the same one who stopped us this spring. I was more than happy to welcome him into our compliant camp this time! I thanked him for the warnings he gave us earlier this year! His response, "I think I am giving out too many warnings!" I think his new name should be The Grinch!

Here's DJB geared up for a spin! He's such a nice, calm, slow, cautious rider! Just how I like it and very unlike his older brother! *sigh*

DVB is ready to go too! He likes to ride with Momma because Papa goes too fast! What a good little boy he is!

Check out this huge bone I found on one of our rides. I think it's a cow femur.

And now for some random pics...

GOB has the boys taking part in a family tradition he did as a little boy~nut cracking at Christmastime! The boys love it!

This was from my bday. LOB was so proud to have a cake for me! This was also the day the Vikings beat the Cardinals!

Mr Naughty Kitty tipped the Christmas tree over twice before he figured out it wasn't so great to have a tree land on himself!

This is just a goofy picture of a silly Bikinins/Sponge Bob fan!

This was DJB's thanksgiving turkey project for school. He told me what to buy for supplies and he dreamt up this creation himself! It was a "family" project so all rules were followed!

And the Goofball once again doing what he does best~being cute and goofy!

Our house is almost prepared for the most exciting holiday of the year! We just have some baking to do and a tad bit of shopping! Nissy, the elf, is back as he always appears after Thanksgiving. He's working hard at observing the monkeys and reporting back to Santa every night! So far his presence is working and the boy have been cooperating nicely!

That's it from 3Boysandabrewery until after Christmas, so here's to a Merry and Magical Christmas to your family from ours!

THIS is where I have been....

2010-11-05T14:51:00.001-07:00

.....Sitting at my sewing machine for hours, days, and weeks-it seems!

Here are the fruits of my labor. 33 blue jean purses are ready for our first craft show Mom and I have coming up in 2 weeks! Now back to the sewing machine I go to finish the 75 feathered coolie cups and 36 embroidered baby burp rags I have left to make! See Ya!

I'm In A Blog Funk But We Have a Genius Amongst Us!

2010-09-09T13:57:00.001-07:00

I'm in a blog funk! I just can't think of anything too creative to write! So instead I'll show you some pictures from....um....the last month!

This was from the first day of school, a month ago! LOB started 3rd grade and DJB started 1st. LOB has the same teacher he had in 2nd grade. DJB has the same teacher LOB had in first grade! Both kids are happy and are doing well. I should do a separate blog post on LOB's Stanford 10 scores from the spring! We may have a genius on our hands. Oh who am I kidding, I'll just brag about him right now, ya know since I'm in this blog funk, it could be another month before I think of something better!

So here it is: LOB scored in the 92% in Reading Comprehension and 99.9% in Math! Is that incredibly amazing or what?!!! These scores are his genius performance compared to students in the same grade across the nation! So proud of him I am! (especially of the math part-he must have gotten GOB's math genes, no doubt!)

Mr. Monster thought he was going to start school too! He packed his backpack for the first few mornings with his lunch, snack, and water. He even tried to jump out of the van on the second day with the boys declaring, "I go to first grade"! I told him he couldn't go to school with diapers on (still working on potty training!) and he said, "OK, I'll just put them in my backpack!"

This is just a silly picture of DJB taking the cat for a little spin using miscellaneous parts like a basket and part of a grocery cart!

I just thought this was funny! I was hoping that he wouldn't decide to jump! He's up on the second floor looking down at me!

Here's a project I probably won't do again! The fruit and vegetable co-op I belong to had a special on sweet corn from Olathe, CO. I paid $20 for 24 dozen ears of corn. So I called in the troops and had them shuck the corn while I cut it off the cob and bagged it for the freezer. Although it's nice to have several bags stored away, it only made 19 bags with 3 cups each. It was a little too much work for too little in return-plus I had to share with all the neighbors! It was a lesson learned, that's for sure!

And would you believe I have no other excitement to report? Let's hope I can snap out of this blogging funk soon!

Part 3: Camping in the Rockies!

2010-08-19T13:59:00.000-07:00

So here's the last part of our Mega Vacation! GOB drove up to Gunnison, CO and joined us for the week with our camper and quads. (I think I may have forgotten to mention that GOB only spent the week in MN with us and he had to fly home to work.) Anyhow, back to the vacation details. We also met up with our friends C & G who live near Grand Junction, CO. They spend a week in the same area of the Rockies every year with several other families. So altogether I think there were about 12-15 other families with their campers. We had a great time riding the quads all over the countryside. I discovered that my quad isn't exactly comfortable to ride in that neck of the woods. I could really use a 4x4 for the next time we go up there! Thankfully, there is always an abundance of quads parked around and people just kinda share them. The boys didn't ride theirs much because "they wouldn't go fast enough"! The elevation we were at combined with the cheap Chinese carburetors in their quads, made for slow riding according to the boys. LOB did mange to flip his quad however so therefore it really could go fast enough! He did not get hurt but it scared the crap out of himself and Grandpa . So below are a few of the pictures I snapped...

The boys are chomping at the bit to leave the campground in Gunnison and head out to the wilderness!

We saw this old gold or silver mine on our first quading trip. There were several in the area. It's amazing to see how good they still look after 100 years.

This was a house near the mine.

The boys are standing in front of the ice box where they must have stored their food.

Here's a pretty picture. I'm pretty sure we were on top of that mountain way up there too at some point.

This one kinda looks like a postcard. Not too bad for a cell phone pic if I do say so myself.

I can't remember what exactly this is but what amazed me was how they could have possibly got it up there! On this quad ride, I made myself sick! I swear we were climbing over boulders and could have flipped a couple times-me and my zero bit of experience! Thankfully our friend G let me ride his 4x4 beast back down the mountain and he rode my made-for-flat-terrain-and-dirt-quad!

DVB didn't get to go on this ride. He stayed at camp and flirted with all the teenage girls!

Im not too sure what Grandpa is thinking about in the picture...maybe that he thinks he needs a 4x4 quad too?

This was the sign that greeted you in a nearby town to our camp. It was a cute, old, little town in the middle of nowhere.

This was another quad adventure. Each day we went on one long ride. This one was to St.Elmo, CO. It was about a 2 hour trip in the rain! Next time, we are bringing proper rain attire with us! I was soaked and cold! But these cute little chipmunks made up for it. It's the main attraction of the town, also in the middle of nowhere. There were about 20-30 of these little guys and they would come right up and eat sunflower seeds right out of our hands.

See that brown creature? It's called a Whistle pig. It kinda looks like a beaver/ground hog/wood chuck.

This was the only deer we saw. I'm surprised we didn't see more wildlife.

This was the last trip we took and this time we took the truck. And thank goodness we did because that would have been a very very long quad ride! And thank goodness Grandpa drove cause it was scary enough to be the passenger on this steep and very twisty road. This was a train station back in the early 1900's. It was a passenger train that wound it's way up the same path we took and then cut through a mountain and ended up in Denver on the other side.

They were checking out the turntable. Mr. DVB is heavily addicted to Thomas the Train so he was in heaven seeing the actual train stuff!

This is what the terrain looked like way up there above the trees!

And this is the last picture I took as we had to go back to reality!

We sure had a great time on this leg of the trip too! The boys had a blast digging, cutting down trees, and being in the great outdoors! I forgot to mention the nice cool weather! I could have done without some of the rain but we didn't let it ruin anything! Thanks to C & G for the hospitality and we hope you'll let us join you again sometime!

Masive Vacation Part 2: Iowa!

2010-08-18T13:28:00.001-07:00

Here is part 2 of our very long vacation. We spent a week+ at Great Gram and Gramps house. It was a very eventful stay. From a nasty flu bug that knocked several people down, to an ER visit for unknown bumps on DVB's head, and to Gram needing a little heart tune-up, our week in Iowa went way too fast and we didn't get to visit much as we would have liked to with all our family. It was a memorable stay to say the least!

This was the first night we arrived! We always enjoy the family picnics with all the cousins and aunts and uncles. Almost everyone was there, just missing a few cousins. (boo)

We even got to meet up with Aunt J in Galena, IL. She happened to be visiting her family in IL so we met in the middle for just a couple hours. We had lunch at Culvers and then went shopping in a bunch of cute little shops. We wished we could have spent more time with her.

This picture was taken at my Great Aunt and Uncle's country house. I hadn't been there in many years so it was fun to see it again.

These are the mysterious bumps that showed up all over DVB's head! Every morning he would wake up with more. Finally I kind of got worried and took him to the ER for the lack of an Urgent care. Then come to find out we took him to the ER for mosquito bites/black fly bites! WTH! I haven't gotten the bill yet but I bet it will be a pretty hefty co-pay for bug bites!

And the next day, the extremely contagious flu bug took over our vacation fun! It started with DVB. Then it knocked down, LOB, DJB, Me, Gram, Grandpa, BoBo, and Aunt M. Somehow, 82 year old Great Gramps was spared! I'm still not quite sure how he got so lucky! But after everyone had their day with it, we were almost back to normal. Although, our vacation was coming to end shortly there after.

This was a day DVB felt himself, while I didn't, so I sat with him outside while he played. This is a little potty training lesson. See how hard I work on it, with a book in hand?

These are some funky caterpillars that Great Aunt J captured for the boys. They were supposed to make it back to AZ so we could see them transform into butterflies but......they were forgotten in the back of the truck until about, um, say somewhere in Kansas I believe! Ooops!

Here are the boys are strapped in for the trek to Colorado via Buzz The Bus. Also on this day, we found out that Great Gram needed to have a triple bypass surgery on her heart. We were only 5 hours into our trip so BoBo turned around and went back and stayed a few weeks to help Gram recover. She did amazingly well, her Doctor's say. 20 days post-op, she was back at work! We know your tune-up, Gram, will bring us many more years with you!

So that was our Iowa vacation. Thanks to all our family for your hospitality and we hope next time we can see EVERYONE and spend a lot more fun time with you all!

Next up: Part 3: Camping in the Rockies!

Our Long Awaited Return To The Blog World! Part 1: MN

2010-08-17T13:45:00.001-07:00

So now that I think I am totally caught up from being on vacation the whole month of July, I can finally justify updating the blog. Boy, have I caught a bunch of heck for taking so long! Sheesh!

So here we go! These are some of our pictures from our week spent with Grandpa and Grandma B! We all had a great time. The boys have lots of fun memories from the week on the farm! And Grandma B kept us busy busy busy with all kinds of things!

DVB found a relaxing chair right off the bat!

We like to bring Teddy, the Dog, a new toy or treat when we visit. But this time we picked one out that he could have cared less about. DVB couldn't understand why he didn't want to play with it, Toni (our dog) would have loved it!

The boys found the black cap bush right away too! But they were a little on the sour side!

Of course the big tractor had to come out right away too!

This is a fort that Grandma B made for the boys! Fort Grandma, we called it!

And after only 2 hours of being on the farm, LOB crashed on a stump in the fort and scraped himself up pretty good! Bummer!

This is Flippy the Frog that I found in the garage and the boys, especially DJB, played with for the next 4-5 days! Poor frog!

I thought it was so strange to see milk in a bag!

Papa tried to teach the boys how to trap gophers. This was their first catch! Just the tail of a streaky gopher!

Here are all the cousins together! They had lots of fun playing!

We always go down to the neighbor's dairy farm to visit too. DVB loved the little kitty who knew where to get a yummy drink!

We usually get to see baby calves too! This one is sucking on LOB's finger!

Cousin L posed so nicely with the boys!

And yet ANOTHER tractor ride! The boys would do this all day long if you let him!

We visited the new National Eagle Center in Wabasha, MN.

This was almost a perfect picture!

And after a few day's practice, Papa got his gopher trapping touch back! Look at these big, fat, pocket gophers!

These are gopher feet! In MN there is a bounty of $1.75 per set of feet! Gross! But the boys thought it was FUN!

And Teddy the Dog got to have a nasty snack after the feet were removed! gag!

We also visited 96 year old Great Grandma! She's doing pretty darn good for 96!

We got to visit a neighbor's goat farm too. Here a goat is trying to get into the chicken coop!

The boys picked eggs and it even inspired at least DJB to try to eat scrambled eggs! yay!

The neighbor had so many nice flower beds and this beautiful pond with fish and frogs in it.

Of course there's nothing like taking a tour of the next door cemetery and finding your family plot while drinking a beer!

Grandma B taught the boys how to make butter~it was pretty tasty!

We took in a nearby town's parade.

And the boys took home just a tad bit of candy from that parade!

Papa got a few handy man jobs done around the farm too! See him up in that tree?

Another highlight of DVB's trip was about 4 sippy cups of fresh cow milk straight from the bulk tank!

Needless to say he didn't eat supper that evening! His belly was just a tad bit full of milk!

Thank you to Grandpa and Grandma B for the great vacation!

Up next----Part 2: Our week in Iowa

Birthday, Tooth, and Plates!

2010-07-01T15:19:00.000-07:00

We finished the first half of 2010 with lots of fun!

DJB lost one of his top teeth on LOB's 8th birthday! He said he just knew he was going to loose it on LOB's birthday! GOB pulled that sucker out while eating supper! It was just a hangin' there and it was grossing me out! The Toothfairy ALMOST failed once again but remembered to leave the $$$ at the very last second! Good lawd, that's a horrible job! (for me anyway!)

We really weren't planning on having a big party for LOB's 8th birthday. But at the last minute, we threw one together with the Hoodies. It's so hard to fathom that he is 8! In 8 more years, he's gonna want a car for his birthday! Scary!

Tiger, the cat, is enjoying the benefits of birthday presents!

On LOB's birthday I asked him where he would like to go for lunch. His response, "Hooters!" I just about peed my pants laughing! Sadly, we did not go to Hooters but we did try out Culvers for the first time. It was good and the boys really enjoyed the custard.

And ending June with a big bang was finally succeeding on getting the boys quads legal! It took 6 months of time, numerous phone calls, 1 close call with the PoPo, a few naughty words, a tad bit of frustration, oodles of paperwork, several dollars, and SEVEN trips to the MVD (idiots) to get those puppies legal! It's a LONG story but we are now law-abiding and will be spending a week riding them in Colorado later this month without a care of being stopped by the PoPo! Yay!

I'm thinking the rest of the month I will be taking a blogging break. We have a very fun month on tap and without the use of my laptop, blogging would be very difficult. But be expecting a doozie of post when I return! Happy 4th of July and we'll be back in touch just in time for school to start! Yahooooooo!

Not Only Do We Have A Brewery....

2010-06-23T09:38:00.000-07:00

But we have a vineyard too!

I planted this grape plant as one little twig a couple years ago and it never really did anything but grow and then die last winter in one of our cold snaps. I trimmed it back to the ground and it started to grow like crazy this spring. In about March, I noticed clusters of tiny grapes growing on it as I tried to weave the tendrils a little neater on the lattice. And then, I forgot all about it...that is until last night the boys mentioned that the grapes in the backyard taste really good!

And sure enough, we picked our first crop! There's about the same amount still on the vines that aren't quite ready yet. They are kind of small but they are sweet and tasty! I guess we can call them totally organic too! Or maybe GOB fertilized it with dog poop without me knowing? Who knows! Just kidding! LOB says we should plant some more! I agree, maybe we should!

Do you thing I have enough to make a bottle of wine?

CAUTION: HUGE, LONG Overdue Post Ahead!

2010-06-16T13:27:00.001-07:00

This is the post in which I catch up for about the last month of our life! We've been busy busy here at 3 Boys and a Brewery! Sit down, grab a beverage, and enjoy our adventures from the last month!

DJB graduated from Kindergarten. His teacher Ms. S was so incredibly awesome! She cried and cried when she had to say goodbye to him. She said he is a student she will always remember. I sure wish he could have her as a teacher for his whole school career! I told her many times what a wonderful job she did teaching DJB-it was a transformation beyond explanation! I also told her I really hope that she stays at our school so she can work her magic with DVB in a couple years!

There were about 120 Kinder grads! They sang a bunch of cute little songs with cute little dance moves.

Here he is receiving his diploma from Mr. M, the principal and Mrs. D, the assistant principal.

Then there was a celebration in the classroom.

Now on to Memorial Day weekend fun!

We had lots of company for the weekend that we spent up at the cabin. There were 6 little boys and 1 little girl to keep busy; not to mention 6 parents who needed the relaxation time! On one outing, GOB brought out his arsenal of guns! Well only 15 of them! The company also brought a few of their own! So needless to say, after several hours of shooting, we had a ton of used ammo to clean up!

This poor little future sharp shooter did not enjoy being confined to the back of the truck for too long!

LOB was shooting his Cricket with a new scope attached!

This is Curt helping DJB line up a target!

Cousin A had to manually toss a few clay pigeons a few million times, I believe.

I guess GOB threw a few too with his side-hip-helper!

It was a fun weekend with friends and cousins!

Now onto Momma's girls only trip to Mexico!

I went with 3 of my wonderfully fun neighbor girls to Puerto Penasco, Mexico-it's a quick 4 hour drive just south of us. The 5 days away were absolute heaven! It was very much needed and very much recharging! We had tons of laughs, several hours of soaking up the sun, many bargain-filled shopping trips, and maybe just a few beers while we enjoyed our time away!

This was the view from our 5th floor condo balcony.

What a beautiful Mexican sunset!

Here's the clan!

This cute little boy made a few bucks off of us suckers! He was selling bracelets on his lunch break while we were having shrimp tacos and tecates at a little shack!

These are a couple of my Mexican purchases! I just had to have the beer drinking monkey and the cute little Tecate dog was too cute to pass up also! I had to buy "Poncho" a poncho to cover up his junk because he is anatomically correct under that little cover-up! But I thought he might be kinda warm this summer so I got him a much cooler outfit for $3 on ebay and named her "Ponchita" for the summer!

My Mexican get-away was one to remember for a long long time! We are thinking of going back down for Fall Break with our campers and we thought we'd let the rest of our families join us!

This is just a miscellaneous picture of my cute little boys! They are all Toy Story maniacs and just had to have these pool towels! They are looking forward to the release of Toy Story 3 this weekend!

Next up is our most recent weekend adventure!

GOB and I got our own quads last week. We didn't like sharing with the boys any longer! Since the weather was unseasonably cool (high 80's, low 90's for June is unheard of in AZ), we couldn't pass up a weekend of trying out our new toys in the desert dirt! We found a great, flat camping/riding area that is just about 30 miles east of our house a few months back and have returned there several times since.

This is my new ride. It's a Honda 250 something or another. I don't know, but it goes plenty fast for me! She's a little on the plain side so I'm in search of some PINK decals for her! I'll post a picture update when I get her all prettied up!

We all ride safely, of course!

This is GOB's new beast! It's a Honda TRX 700 something or another. All I know about this one is, is that it can go WAY too fast! He's going shopping this weekend for lots of protective gear!

Here's our cute little fam all geared up for a family ride! Just before this picture we were out toodling around and DVB actually fell asleep while riding with GOB!

So what's next up on our adventure agenda? Well, my first born will be turning 8 years old next week so that calls for a celebration! He actually opted for a "friend-only" party instead of the big ol' shindig his Momma likes to throw! Boo hoo! He's getting too big!

The month of July will be very adventurous as well! Our calendar is jammed-packed, full of fun!

Has Anyone Seen My Camera Cord?

2010-06-10T13:26:00.000-07:00

Here I psyched myself up for a blog post, had a title and everything! And now I can't find my camera cord to upload my pics! Darn it! The post would not be exciting without pics to go along with it! We at 3 Boys and a Brewery have been busy! So..............

Don't mind me, I'm just going to remind myself what to elaborate on as soon as I locate my cord to attach pictures to my thoughts:

1. DJB graduated from Kindergarten; LOB will be a 3rd grader!

2. Momma took a girl's trip to Mexico.

3. Summer fun.

4. New toys.

5. DVB can sing!

6. Memorial Day weekend fun.

7. Let's see what else I can think of while I hunt for my cord! Arrrrrgh!

We Have Not Vanished!

2010-05-23T20:11:00.001-07:00

We have not vanished off the face of the Earth, just in case you were wondering!

I've been a workin' fool. First I covered a week for one of the girls to go on vacation and then covered last week and this coming week for the other girl who had her gall bladder taken out emergently.

The boys will be done with school on Thursday of this week. They are pretty darn excited and I'll admit too that I'm ready for a homework break!

I am looking forward to my girls week in Mexico that's coming up right around the corner! After all this working stuff, I'm really going to cherish my time away!

So, most likely, until mid June ****gasp****poor bloggy blog will take a nap! We are so crazy busy, the blog probably won't even cross my mind! But I should have some good blog material after all the upcoming excitement!

Happy Mother's Day: Here's Your Paycheck!

2010-05-06T17:04:00.000-07:00

I find it so interesting that every year about this time an article or news clip talks about how much a mother should be compensated for in a dollar amount for all of the professions she juggles to make her family run. The article I got these numbers from said that a mom should earn $375,000 per year for all her hard work.

Here's how they broke it down:

Childcare - $13,000 ( X 3 please!)
Recreation Worker - $15,000 (That would be about right!)
Chef - $40,000 (I'd feel guilty to take that much so go ahead and cut that one in half!)
Food Service Worker - $20,000 (dishwasher, server....I'll take it!)
Meal Planning, Dietitian - $41,600 (ya, no good at this one either, take all but a 1/3 of that one away)
Housekeeper - $9,000 ( I'm pretty sure I deserve WAY more than this!)
Nurse - $35,000 (What? Nurses make way more than 35K!)
Management Analyst - $41,000 (delete!)
Family Financier - $44,000 (does it mean because I pay the bills, I earn this?)
Investment Manager - $39,000 (investments? In what, love? who has extra money to invest-besides retirement?)
Psychologist - $29,000 (I do believe I have some experience in child psychology)
General Office Clerk - $19,000 (that'll do)
Social Worker - $30,000 (that's a little on the high side)

So after the negotiation, I'll be willing to take less than the recommended yearly salary of a mother. How does $244,000 sound? Oh, and I would like a week of sick time and 4 weeks of paid vacation too! Deal? Deal!

How much are you worth?

Happy Mother's Day to my mom, mother-in-law, Grandma, Aunts, Cousins, and girlfriends! I hope you are all spoiled rotten on Our Day!

Notable Nonsense!

2010-05-05T12:16:00.000-07:00

I have lots of little things on my mind to write about so I thought a tidbit post would be best before I forget everything notable!

*Cats DO NOT like to be pushed into the bathtub especially when there's water in it and most especially by a two year old!

*It's getting hot here, I'm going to have to break down and turn the a/c on! suck! We've been lucky and have had a wonderful spring!

*The boys only have 16 days left of school! It's hard to believe that LOB will be going into 3rd grade and DJB into 1st grade in August!

*Overheard in the gameroom on Sunday: DJB to DVB: "What, do you think this is an open invitation to put your train on this track?"

*I hollered at the kids multiple times recently when the cat went missing and I was sure it was because they were leaving the doors open! Then when I knew the doors were all shut, he got out again! He must have been just waiting to escape while the door to the dog kennel was open and he could go through the dog's door! Little poop! I think he wants to leave us!

*Airline ticket prices are ticking me off! Enough said!

*The Deputy that ALMOST gave us tickets for having "illegal" quads on Easter weekend, got shot in the abdomen by an AK47 by a group of 17 illegal immigrants that ambushed him! He lived!

*I'm soooo happy Siobahn got kicked off AI! I couldn't stand her!

*Apparently I am getting old and no longer know the cool lingo/slang! When a neighbor put on FB that her daughter said the new trees the association planned by their fence "were up in their grill", I was confused. I drove by and saw the trees and they were no where near their grill! After admitting I didn't get it, everyone was laughing their butts off like I was an idiot! "Up in your grill" is equivalent to "Up in your face!" You learn something new everyday!

*LOB and DJB think they need their own cell phone! Really? Let me think about it. Um? NO! Crazy!

*Toni, the dog, is going to be three years old next week! Which one of you promised me that she would be well-mannered by now?

*I am getting extremely excited to go on my all-girls trip to Mexico in a couple weeks! Momma needs a break!

*I had heard that it was cool to light a scorpion with a blow torch. We tried it, and it really wasn't cool. It's guts just boiled out it's body! Yuck!

*A friend of mine told me to hang a plastic baggie of water and pennies up to keep flies away! For real! I'm gonna try it the next time I don't want to be bothered by flies!

*That's about all the notables that come to mind at the moment! Toodle looooooooo!

While The Cat Was Away....

2010-04-27T17:19:00.000-07:00

...We Mice Played!

The boys took a little train ride at the school's Spring Fling. We certainly donated our share to the fundraiser! Ugh!

DVB and I went to our local outdoor mall and did a little pre-shopping park playing!

On Sunday I was feeling brave so after they all got haircuts, we went to Red Robin for lunch. They were very well behaved and ate all their lunch! Amazing news right there!

DVB doing a little stump sittin! We were waiting for DJB's class to arrive at a local dairy farm for a tour. I had been there when LOB's class went there 2 years ago and thought DVB would enjoy it too!

This is DJB feeding a 25 year old horse a carrot.

DJB hugging a chicken, no a rooster! (right?)

This picture is for Grandpa B! DVB would not get off this tractor!

DVB found some cute little bunnies.

So while GOB was away enjoying his Talladega experience, we kept ourselves busy. We are now anxiously awaiting his arrival and I'll now be checking out for a few days! I wish! Actually, I'll get my girl's time away the first week of June! I just booked the resort last night and I'm counting down the days! Paybacks!

Here I Go Again....

2010-04-15T12:42:00.000-07:00

I think I will change my goal of blog posting to once a week since that is all I can seem to find time to do these days! It's making me feel a teeny tiny bit guilty but i don't think I'll lose any sleep over it!

I'm going to a Tid Bit Blog update today...a little of this and that to catch you all up on our exciting lives!

1. NASCAR was fun last weekend. 4 nights and 5 days of being surrounded by Rednecks is about all I can handle! Nothing too exciting happened this go around except for the horror that LOB and I witnessed as our neighbor dropped all his drawers to the ground! Yuck! Nasty! Gross! Scarred for life!

2. DVB is coming along wonderfully, all of a sudden, with potty training! That right there is pretty exciting news!

3. BoBo and Bumpa left today for the summer. They'll be back in August after they travel the USA! You too can travel along by reading their blog www.buzzboboandtheboys.blogspot.com

4. GOB just got back from a work meeting in FL and will be leaving again soon for a fun trip to Talladega! (he's meeting up with Uncle B, Aunt J, and his in-laws) Don't worry, I'll be getting my kid-free all girls vacation the beginning of June!

5. I'm on the lookout for some good airline prices to fly back to MN/IA in July. I'm getting very frustrated with the fluctuating prices! How can an airline change it's prices by $100 in one day?! Anyway, my wonderful job granted me the whole month of July off! So I plan to be on vacation the entire month! We will start in MN and make our way back home via a week camping in the Rockies!

6. DJB and LOB are looking forward to their really long vacation-I can't believe they have one month of school left! We haven't told the MN grandparents that we are planning a trip back there yet (but they'll know now!) The boys are excited to go to the farm! Like CRAZY excited! So be ready up there!

7. Mom and I spent the last few days Spring cleaning. While GOB was gone, we tackled the garage! It's a big feat, believe me! We also dug out tons of baby stuff to get rid of this weekend at our neighborhood garage sale. I'm calling this "The No More Babies Garage Sale!" LOB and DJB think for some reason, that they are entitled to at least 50% of the profits because all the stuff used to be theirs! Hmmmm? I'm not too sure about that logic! They have also priced a few of their prized possessions which they are sure will sell for precisely $75! I'm afraid they may be a little disappointed come Saturday afternoon!

8. Well that's all for now! I'll update sooner if we happen to have any exciting breaking news, otherwise you won't hear from me again until next week! Have a great weekend!

Camp and Quad: It's All We Do These Days!

2010-04-06T13:39:00.001-07:00

Sorry, my blog readers! My poor little blog has once again been put on the back burner! Ever since we got our toy hauler and the quads, we spend as much time as we possibly can using them! Therefore, my blog material is the same from every weekend-we don't do anything else these days! But that won't stop me from posting some more pictures from this past weekend that will probably look similar to the last ones! Sorry, but that's all I got!

The boys built a couple model rockets and had a BLAST setting them off! On Sunday, LOB attached a big ugly black beetle to the rocket and sent him to outerspace! We were all amazed that he survived the trip and LOB continued to play with him! Ewww!

Everyone was having a grand ol' time until the Sheriff showed up! Doh! So I have to explain this picture. Brett, a neighbor's son, was getting a ticket for not having plates and registration on his dirt bike. But notice all the kids meticulously lined up under the camper? GOB's quick thinking is what that is all about! He's hiding the 2008 expired plates on the camper! Somehow, I'm still not quite sure how, the rest of us got out of getting tickets. We could have gotten about $1500 in fines because we didn't have the correct permits and other paperwork. GOB made me talk to the PoPo because he wanted the ticket in MY name (in case I had to go to court)! Anyway, I told the Sheriff that we were legitimately working on getting the proper stuff but it's all a process that is not fast! Thank goodness that he believed me! So needless to say, the quads were parked for the rest of the weekend. We sure weren't going to take any more chances because I'm pretty sure the Sheriff wouldn't have given us a second chance!

One of our neighbor's nephew came out with his legal sand rail. I had never ridden in one and let me tell you, it was fun! I should say it was fun until I got splattered with cow poop! Ewwww!

Somehow the Easter bunny knew we were out camping and he delivered a few hundred eggs to the desert!

We hope everyone had a weekend as great as ours was!

Our semi-annual Redneck NASCAR Weekend is coming up next!

There is a New 6 Year Old at Our House!

2010-03-23T12:38:00.000-07:00

We have been celebrating DJB's birthday for about 3 days straight! The boy is so confused as to which day was actually his birthday!

On Saturday, we had 2 parties. The first one was with a few of his school buddies.

Here is DJB playing a fun game. I spread M&M's out on a table and the boys had to suck them up to a straw and they had to run them over into a cup. It was pretty funny to watch!

Cake #1.

Opening gifts with the buddies!

This was party #2. We had all our neighbors and family and friends over for a bbq.

I swear it's like pulling teeth to get this kid to smile! At least Cousin Big J smiled!

And this is #3! Yesterday was his actual birthday so I asked him what he wanted for supper and he said a cheeseburger and a banana split! That's easy! I stopped at Sonic on my way home from work and fulfilled his wish!

Happy 6th Birthday, DJB!

Another Great Weekend Spent Camping!

2010-03-17T13:34:00.001-07:00

We had another great weekend of desert camping! The weather was perfect! Here are a few pictures of the good times we had!

Cousin Big J and LOB-riding buddies!

Since DVB doesn't have a quad we thought we'd better bring his bike! He can ride that puppy anywhere!

See GOB's new truck? I still haven't written about it yet!

GOB taking me out on my first real spin!

Cousin A and Cousin Big J...

CRAZY Cousin A!

LOB and Cousin S had to make a run back to camp while out on a long ride to get more gas for GOB who ran dry!

Here is BoBo taking her first spin. Why don't you toodle over to her blog so she can tell you all about her first experience!

Monkey see Monkey do!

Here is a family photo!

"Can you hear me now?" That's DJB in the helmet!

Silly Cousin J's! Taking a much needed break-eating fudgesicles!

DJB and Co. spent much of the weekend digging a tunnel to China! At least it kept them busy and kept camp nice and quiet!

DVB doing tricks!

Dirty Bird DVB! Good thing we have a nice warm shower to hose him off with now!

Cousin S giving BoBo a Facebook lesson of picture posting from her cell phone! Cousin S has soooo much patience!

Waiting for the boys to get the fire started! Hurry! It's cold!

After a little Boy Scout lesson, they finally got it going!

Toni stole someone's chair! Anytime someone would get up from their chair, Toni would jump right up into it! She does this all the time. It's funny, though, because she is not allowed to sit on the furniture at home! I guess the ground was too cold for her!

GOB taking DVB on spin on BoBo's Smashed Crashed Banana!

And a good time was had by all....

Up Next: It's Party Time~DJB will soon be turning 6!

Funny and Naughty!

2010-03-10T13:28:00.001-08:00

So I really should be embarrassed to share these things with the blog world! But what the heck! I can laugh about them all now!

Here's scene #1: We are eating at Oreganos last week. It's like 8 pm. DVB is so done with sitting still so I let him toodle around the outdoor area as the rest of us finish eating. All of a sudden he walks up to another table and takes one of their chicken wings off their plate! AN ALREADY EATEN CHICKEN WING! I'm not sure, but I probably screamed out loud! The guy who he took the wing from says, "Oh it's ok. It's an already eaten one!" Me thinking: Really, no that's not good! *puke*gag*barf* OMG, what's your medical history? Do you have any communicable diseases? I didn't really ask him but I really wanted to!

Here's scene #2: We met the cousins at a Harlem Globetrotter game last Friday-one day after the chicken wing scene! I was preparing myself the entire day for the prospective behavior Wild Man might try to pull. So the show starts, they have his attention for about, oh, 2 minutes! Then he throws a fit because he wants to play with my iPhone. So to shut him up, I give it to him. Then he runs up and down our isle a few million times. No big deal... At halftime I bought the boys a basketball to share, wrapped in a shopping bag. He throws a fit and wants to hold the ball. Fine! Hold it! Then all of a sudden he bounces the ball of the kid-in-front-of-us's head! *gasp* Why didn't he go to BoBo's for a sleepover? Why oh why did I even for one second think he would actually cooperate? BTW, the game was fun, very entertaining! GOB says we can check it off the list though! What a party pooper!

Here's scene #3: This time it's DJB! The boys are getting dressed for school Tuesday morning. LOB says to me, "Mom, DJB didn't wear underwear to school yesterday!" Me: *coffee spraying out of my mouth* What? How could you possibly not wear underwear?" DJB shaking his head up and down almost proudly: "LOB is right. I just forgot to put them on!" Me: "OMG! You didn't tell your teacher, did you?" DJB: "No." Then I texted GOB and told him I now have to do ass checks in the morning and he proceeds to share the text with his coworkers! *mortified* And how LOB knew was a question I did not ask!

And last but most likely not least for the week: Scene #4: DJB again. As I'm making the boys supper last night, DJB out of nowhere says, "Mom, you know there's a kind of worm that can get in your ear and make you go crazy (as he's waving his hand by his head and nodding his head up and down)!" Me: *beer spraying out of my mouth* "Oh, really? I had no idea!" DJB: "Yep! And I've seen them at the cabin so you better watch out!" WTH? Where on Earth did that come from?

So that's been the laughter causing scenes at our house this week! I tell ya, you never know what to expect from DJB's mouth and I do, however, know what to expect from DVB's behavior! Good times, I tell ya!

Last Weekend's Fun!

2010-03-09T11:56:00.000-08:00

I thought I should you all how much fun we had last weekend!

After purchasing the required safety equipment, the boys were going nuts-o crazy-o to ride those new toys! So we packed up the truck and went out to the desert!

Here is DJB on the "Pumpkinator"! I had no idea that they had named their quads. But why wouldn't they when everything else has names like our campers!

This is LOB on "something about green slime" I can't remember the name!

GOB had to take them for a spin first to make sure they were safe.

Of course Monster Man didn't want to be left out of the fun! Surprisingly, he only asked to ride once! Maybe it's because his foot was HOT on his first ride!

Here DVB is telling me his foot is HOT! Oh really, why?

Oh maybe because his foot was resting on one of the HOT pipes! It melted his new Bizz shoes!

Then the boys asked BoBo to take one for a spin! Hilarious!

GOB geared her up!

Notice her riding apparel? Capris and tennis shoes!

Here's LOB and DJB toodling around. This area is designed/approved for off road vehicles. It was actually perfect because we could see them riding around without having to worry too much about other vehicles and obstacles.

After a long stretch of a ride, LOB needed to take a rest!

DJB teased us by poseing like he was going to take a nap on GOB's homemade ramps!

DJB was a little skittish at first when it came to riding his quad. His first spin only lasted about 2 minutes! But his next ride was about 45 minutes and then he really had to take a break!

More resting! We had such beautiful weather to ride in! I wish it could be 75 degrees all year long!

Then Grandpa took Pumpkinator out!

And last of all, we went scouting for a camping spot for the future. Does anyone blame me for not wanting to cross this creek with a brand new truck (whole other blog post) and a 28 foot camper? Thanks, I knew you were on my side. This area was beautiful but was not appropriate for our little inexperienced riders. Hills, corners, and water will have to wait till this Momma is a little more comfy with the riding skills of these miniature ATVers! AND, there was zero, nill, nada, zilch for cell phone service. Not that I can't live without my cell phone, but what if there were an emergency? Just sayin'!

New Toys!

2010-03-04T12:08:00.000-08:00

I used to think I would be the last person on Earth who would ever buy a quad for their kid! For Pete's Sake, they are dangerous! I've heard about many accidents. There used to be no way in heck that I'd let my boys ride one!

But then a few weeks ago we went camping with the cousins. They brought their quads and LOB and DJB watched them buzz around on them. When Cousin S asked if the boys could ride them I said they could only ride with Greg. After they all took turns riding with him, LOB wanted to try it on his own. *gasp* Very nervously, I obliged and watched Cousin S gear him up from head to toe. And after lessons from Cousin A and GOB, he toodled off! He got more brave and more brave and more brave and then bored of riding in circles. LOB then somehow talked GOB into jumping on another quad and going down the path a little farther. Suddenly I look up on the hill and there I see LOB with GOB behind him going down the VERY steep hill. As I peered through my hand covered eyes, Cousin S told me not to worry, they had made it to the bottom safely! Let me tell you both LOB and GOB got an earful from me when they got back and LOB had the biggest smile on his face that streched from here to China!

So after our fun camping trip with them, LOB repeatedly asked for his own quad. And to finish up this story, GOB did a ton for research for a couple weeks and finally decided on buying 2 mid-size quads for the boys. Well actually, they are for everybody! They are able to hold a 286 pound person, the problem is, is that the frame is big kid size so it's a little tricky for an adult to drive. But it is doable! GOB is still searching for a regular size quad deal so he can toodle with the boys. I'm sure it won't be long before he comes across one...

Don't worry, this little boy wont be doing any riding any time soon!

Tonight we are going shopping for some of that head-to-toe gear! If only the boys could just ride those quads in a bubble, I'd be a calm, relaxed Momma!

Oh, and by the way, the Boys are under an agreement that the quads are their birthday and Christmas presents for at least the next 10 years! Ya, right!

New Bizz Bed

2010-03-02T13:47:00.000-08:00

We have been trying for a few weeks, well actually months, to get DVB to sleep in a regular bed. It has not gone well. As soon as we get him settled, he starts acting goofy! He jumps around, tries to escape, says he wants whoever is not laying with him! It's been frustrating to say the least. LOB and DJB both transitioned easily to the "big" bed! GOB and I discussed just taking the crib out of the room and only give him the option to sleep in the big bed or on the floor on the crib mattress. But as I was strolling through wall-e-world, I spotted this Buzz Lightyear toddler bed! DVB, as well as all the boys and Grammy, are infatuated with everything "Buzz". Most of you know that Grammy and Grandpa's RV is evened named "Buzz." Anyway, DVB seemed interested so I loaded up the bed (on clearance-whoo hoo) and the matching linens (which cost more than the bed!) into the cart! Then we ran across a new pair of "Bizz" jammies that DVB said, "I like it" and proceeded to throw them and 4 other pairs into the cart. (I put the other 4 back when he wasn't looking! What a shopper!) And then we ran across a pair of "Bizz" tennis shoes. Tennis shoes were the real intention of the shopping trip (I'm done spending $40 on a pair of shoes that are outgrown in a month or left out in the rain from a previous trampoline jump!) So to keep with the theme of the shopping trip, we threw them in too!

We buzzed home (get it? ha, ha!) and I assembled the bed, washed up the linens and put it all together! Here's how the inaugural test went:

That looks like he approved, right?

So it's now naptime. I tuck him in, reinforcing what a big boy he is now, blah, blah, blah, and walk away. Um, no! All of a sudden he says he has to go potty! Uh, ok! Saying to myself, "You must try! Maybe he really does have to go. Could he really be making excuses at such a young age not to be going to bed? Nah! Can't be! Take him!" Then I watch for an eternity for impending pee but no such luck! Back to bed we go. I then decide to lay in the "big" bed next to the new toddler bed. He proceeds to bounce around, mess with his music machine, blah, blah, blah. After 15 minutes of me pretending to sleep, I give up! I tell him I'll be back with the cat to take a nap with him! He bought it! And he didn't see me slip the child-proof knob dealy on the inside of his door! Bwahahahaha! Then I jumped into the heap of laundry to fold to keep me busy and hoped for a short lived tantrum!

And alas! Not even 5 minutes, well maybe 10, I found this:

Phew! Success! After he slept for an hour, I propped open the door so he could get out when he awoke. About an hour after that he made his way downstairs.

Let me tell you that bedtime this evening has gone about the same. This time LOB went to lay with him. It maybe took him 15 minutes to settle but hopefully this will improve as he gets used to his new "Bizz" bed!

On a totally unrelated note: Here's the latest crazy picture of the cat! He crawled into the middle of the entertainment center and went back behind it and came back into it in a glass door covered cupboard!

I do have a post in mind for later this week! I know! I actually have some material! So stay tuned.

Oh, and I must do a shout out to Grammy! She has her own blog now! So if you are interested in listening to her go on and on about her grandbabies, here she is: www.buzzboboandtheboys.blogspot.com

No Material!

2010-02-23T13:11:00.000-08:00

I can't think of a single exciting thing to blog about! I need some material! And it's sad that all I blogged about last week was how sick DVB was! But everything has been calm and quiet around here-hard to believe, I know! I'm working a few extra days this week and next so it'll probably remain quiet for a while. We are planning on a fun weekend ahead if it doesn't rain. Maybe the weekend will inspire some material if nothing else does by then!

He's All Better Now!

2010-02-17T13:55:00.001-08:00

This was poor DVB last week but after a few albuterol treatments and some yummy tasting antibiotics.....

....he looks like this! He's just about back to his 100% self!

DVB and Tiger like to play pinball. It's hilarious! The cat chases the ball around! He even runs toward the machine when someone turns it on!

This trike is the best gift DVB has ever gotten! I'd bet he has put at least 100 miles on that puppy since Christmas! He even rides it around inside the house-round and round the kitchen island! Thanks Uncle B and Aunt J!

So he has one more day of breathing treatments and a few more days of antibiotics and he's back to normal. The doctor said today that he was so so close to having to go to the hospital. Thank goodness that didn't happen!

Sick Little Boy...

2010-02-10T12:24:00.000-08:00

Poor DVB is a sick little boy. It started with a fever on Saturday followed by yucky vomiting Sunday. Tuesday afternoon after his nap I decided to take him in to Urgent Care because he still had a fever and I thought he was breathing kind of fast. So the doctor there diagnosed him with pneumonia in the left lower lobe and sent us home with a prescription for antibiotics. Finding the rx was a whole 'nother fiasco but I did eventually get it filled. GOB and I tried 3 times last night to give him the antibiotics but he wanted nothing to do with it-it smelled like bubble gum but must have tasted tasty. Every time we got it in him, he puked it up a couple minutes later. This morning I took him into his Pediatrician and she was so disgusted with the Urgent Care's care and treatment. She did agree with the pneumonia diagnoses but was surprised they didn't do a breathing treatment and the choice of antibiotics prescribed. She also recommended never going back there. I then had to tell the doctor that I work for that organization and that I was so embarrassed to admit that. *gasp*

Anyway, she did a breathing treatment in the office because his pulse ox was 89. Fortunetly after the treatment, it went up to 93 so she sent us home with a rx for albuterol breathing treatments. Here I had just come across that darn machine a week ago (it got a lot of use when LOB was a baby and once or twice with DJB) and thought to myself that we hadn't had to use it for a few years! She warned me that he was on the edge of needing oxygen so to watch him very closely. Also, they tested him for RSV in which he did test positive for. And after a couple injections of antibiotic, we were finally sent on our way. He does have a new prescription for oral antibiotics but she assured me that he'll take it a lot easier than the other junk that he got yesterday because it tastes better.

So that's been our week so far. The poor boy even looks horrible. But hopefully in a day or two all the meds will kick in and he'll be on the mend! Meanwhile, the rest of us will be taking bathes in hand sanitizer so we don't get this junk-cause it's nasty!

2 At A Time!

2010-02-09T11:18:00.000-08:00

So every night when it's bed time usually both LOB and DJB give us a million and one reasons why they can't sleep or why they don't want to go to bed. Here's some examples: "I'm not tired. My eyes won't close. I'm thirsty. The tv is too loud. I forgot to tell you something. I'm hungry. Did you sign my school folder? Do we have school tomorrow?", ect. But last night LOB came up with a new one. "I have 2 teeth loose." Well, really, they've been loose for a few weeks but you know it's reason not to go to bed. As he wiggled and giggled the 2 bottom teeth, I decided to go to bed because DVB has been sick since Saturday and I knew I'd be in for another long night. So GOB quickly whispered as I was walking away, "What do I do?" Me: whispering back, "Like how to play Toothfairy? I Tell him to put the teeth in a plastic baggie and put them in his toothfairy pillow." (duh?) GOB still whispering: "Well how much money should I give him?" Me: "How about 2 bucks a tooth?"

So this morning GOB tells me that the teeth came out and he left the money. I hear LOB wake up while I'm in the laundry room. He said, "YES!", you know like boys do? and checks out his loot. He jumps out of bed and is so excited to show me the holes between his teeth, telling me he can't decide which hole to stick his tongue through. (such a boy!) Then as we are driving to school he says, "Mom, the Toothfairy lowered her prices!" If I were drinking coffee, it was one of those moments that it would have sprayed right out my nose! I explained that the first 4 front top and bottom teeth are the biggest and must be worth more money! He agreed! whew!

Sheesh! It's getting more and more difficult to play these fictional characters!

Grandma B in MN, notice the family freckles?

Campin' With The Cousins!

2010-02-04T11:22:00.001-08:00

We had a TON of fun camping with The Cousins this past weekend. They took us out to one of their favorite spots out in the desert. They brought out all their ridin' toys. I knew they had them but never thought that we'd be thinking of getting a couple until I saw how much fun GOB and The Boys had with them. So here a few million pictures of all the fun we had with them. Hopefully they will let us go out with them again soon!

Besides all the quad riding, the cousins brought out their model rockets! Big fun! We'll have to get some of those too! Those cousins, I tell ya, they are quite the influence of fun stuff!

5....4.....3......2......1....blast off!

DVB borrowed a itty bitty quad from some of the Cousin's cousins!

Here's Cousin A taking a break. That ridin' stuff is hard work. Well, only if you ride like him! Thank goodness he's fully geared up when he's tearin' it up!

I loaded my pictures in backwards again. Here's LOB geared up in Cousin Little J's gear. After riding around with GOB, he decided he wanted to take the quad for a little spin by himself! ****gasp****

You can tell he's smiling big time and you can't even see his mouth!

DVB enjoyed washing my broom in a nearby puddle! Oh well, he had fun!

Toni loved trying to swim in the puddles! Such a lab, she is!

GOB is probably telling LOB to slow down! Thank goodness the quad has some speed limiting do-dad on it (sorry, I'm a little uneducated on quad lingo!) That's Cousin S walking by in the background and that's the only pic I have of her!

Here are all the Boys! Look at all those smiles!

I can't believe how much they all enjoyed riding!

DJB just preferred to toodle around with GOB. He never showed any interest with riding one by himself! ****whew!****

Here's DVB pouting when he had to give someone else a turn to ride with GOB!

One happy dirt diggin' camper!

This was one of the first rides LOB took with GOB before he got brave and rode on his own!

DVB getting his way! I think he'd ride with GOB all day if you let him!

That's Cousin Little J showing LOB how to do it!

This look is DVB watching all the traffic of other people riding quads, sand rails, and dirt bikes!

DJB doing a little more dirt diggin'! Good thing for dirt or he'd be bored!

I think this is Cousin Big J riding his dad's quad! Oh Big J, be careful!

This is a picture of our view. That's Four Peaks with snow on it!

Toni got to run off her tether for the first time. I was surprised she didn't wander off! She ran and ran and ran, she could barely get up off the ground by the end of the night!

Happy camper for sure!

Look at silly Cousin Little J! He's a hoot!

And then my camera died and I didn't bring the battery charger! Darn it! There was so much more to show you too! Like the Christmas Tree burning in the fire pit! Like Cousin Big J and his friend riding their dirt bikes! Like Toni playing with her new friends Taily(who hated Toni!)and Kona The Fire Ember Eatin' dog! Oh well, like I said hopefully we'll have tons more of these Cousin Campin' Weekends and we'll have more pictures of the fabulous fun we have!

This Post is So Lame, I Know!

2010-01-28T11:44:00.000-08:00

So I know that this post is so lame! But since I don't have anything better, you are subjected to looking at pictures of the cat! You can just hit the close button right now if you want to. My feelings won't be hurt....*sigh* But if you want to see some silly pictures of Tiger, scroll on down. And NO Little Brother, I don't carry my camera around with me all day and take pictures of my cat like you do! Ha!

Tiger seems to think this is his perch! It was ok until we caught him doing this...

....trying to catch a snack!

And then try to roost IN THE CAGE! The boys took Oreo, the guinea pig, out to play and the cat decided to make himself at home!

While doing something in the kitchen, I heard DVB in the bathroom talking to the cat. This is what I found! DVB said he was washing "Tiggy's hans!" I thought cats weren't supposed to like water but this cat doesn't seem to mind. He likes to hang out in the sinks as well as jump in the shower when someone is done!

Apparently, Little Tykes climbers are attractive to not only kids!

Toni and Tiger are buddies now. The cat is definitely in charge! It's funny!

Sorry for the boring post but I felt like I had to post something! We have a fun weekend planned so there will be better photos coming soon!

Holy Rain!

2010-01-22T11:28:00.001-08:00

We have got more than half a year's worth of rain in 4 days! You out of state people might think, pffft, 3-4 inches is nothin'! But where we live, this is unheard of! It's not supposed to rain this much in the desert in such a short period of time. And if it does, it means flooding. Massive flooding! All of our neighborhood parks and green belts are now lakes. The kids say they go to school on an island! It's going to take weeks to dry all this water up!

This is our main park that I would guess is now a 2 foot deep lake complete with real ducks!

This lake usually has a side walk down the middle of it. I couldn't believe the kids who were trying to ride their bikes around it! I bet they were a little wet and in a little trouble when they got home!

This is the school. The drop off line this morning was about 3 blocks long in each direction! There wasn't even any crossing guards out! I think every kid either rode the bus or got dropped off! Imagine 800 kids' parents, in the pouring rain, where it nobody knows how to drive in it, trying to drop off their kids! What a mess!

DVB liked looking for the ducks in our new lakes!

I'm sure you are all laughing at us wimps with all this rain! It really is a big deal around here. And we are not even close to having any damage like the poor people just an hour north of us who got 5-8 inches of rain! Now that's a mess! Not to mention the several feet of snow the mountains got!

But looking at the bright side, Spring is going to be beautiful! I better make a doctor appointment to get that allergy medicine refilled!

This Is Delish! You Gotta Try It!

2010-01-20T10:57:00.000-08:00

I've been in a soup mood with all this rain and wintry weather. Of course all the boys in my house turn their noses up at soup! But that didn't stop me! I whipped up a batch of this yummy stuff and I have enough to eat all week! I don't know what everyone else is going to eat! Ha!

Chicken Taco Soup- I modified from original recipe from Allrecipes.com

1 onion, chopped
1 (16 oz) can of black beans, drained
1 (16 oz) can of pinto beans, drained
1 (15 oz) can kernel corn, chipotle flavor, drained
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1-2 cans or bottles of beer-depending on how soupy you want it.
2 (10 oz) cans of Rotel with green chilies, mild, not drained
1 package of taco seasoning
3 whole skinless boneless chicken breasts
shredded cheddar-optional
sour cream-optional
crushed tortilla chips-optional

Directions:
Place the onion, beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer, and Rotel in a crockpot. Add taco seasoning and stir to blend. Lay chicken on top of the mixture, pressing down until just covered. Set crockpot for low heat and cook for 5 hours.

Remove chicken breasts from the soup and shred it. Then put it back in the soup and continue cooking for 2 hours. Serve topped with cheddar cheese, sour cream and crushed tortilla chips! Enjoy!

I didn't top the soup with anything and it was still delicious! Hope you like as much as I do!

The New "Woody" (with picture overload)

2010-01-19T12:00:00.001-08:00

We finally had some time to do some camper shopping a couple weeks ago-we had been meaning to for about a year or so! Actually, that would be GOB finally had time to shop. I let him go on his own and weed a few out for me to look at. Then he made me do the wheeling and dealing! Blech! I hate doing that but he seems to think I'm good at it!

Anyway, I digress...

So after tons of shopping, stocking, prepping, packing, and reorganizing, we took "Woody" out for his maiden voyage this past weekend! Every one was so excited. We thought we should try a camp ground for our first outing so we could easily test and try out all the bells and whistles! We chose a state park just out side of town. Here are a TON of pictures of the new rig and our first outing!

This is "Woody"! He is a used 2009 28 foot toy hauler. I'll have to explain where the name "Woody" came from some other time!

Here's the back door. It's so nice and easy to load all our toys in here. Although we aren't using the space for real toys like 4 wheelers and dirt bikes, we can still manage to take advantage of the space!

Here's the living area. The couch and table both fold flat for beds. Also, there are 2 bunk beds. This area is supposed to sleep 8 people!

This is LOB checking things out!

This is the master bedroom! It's nice to have a little separation from the rest of the camper!

This is the kitchen complete with a microwave, stove, oven, fridge, and freezer! The only thing I'm missing is a dishwasher! I guess that's why you're supposed to use paper plates while camping, right?

Here's the bathroom! It's so wonderful! Let me tell ya! A toilet, shower and running water in the sink make camping a little more convenient!

LOB and DJB trying to play a stacking game...

Here's how I set up the beds for the boys. DVB was supposed to sleep in his peapod. LOB and DJB were supposed to sleep on the bunks!

But this is how they wanted to sleep! On the floor!

This is the view from our campsite. My camera lens must be a little dirty!

Here's the boys coming back from a hike. This park had some great hiking trails.

Toni LOVED camping! No, the cat did not get to come along! The boys tried to convince me to pack the cat but camping with a litter box doesn't sound too good to me!

Sure wish I would have cleaned off the lens!

DVB is having a snack! Look at his feet crossed!

GOB was checking out all the connections and buttons and figuring things out!

DVB loves to dig in the dirt and move rocks around!

This was so funny. We were hiking down a trail and DVB decided he needed to take a break!

He's not exactly a great hiking partner!

Checking out a metal coyote along the path!

Grammy and the boys! Grammy or BoBo as DVB calls her, and Grandpa or Bampa, came to visit us. They have their RV parked just about 5 miles from where we were.

Well, there you have it, the new camper! We are hoping we can take Woody out once a month. And of course the 4-5 days at NASCAR twice a year we'll be using it. Hopefully we can add a couple more weeks during the year camping in other states too for vacation!

Happy Trails to us!

Lately...

2010-01-13T12:59:00.000-08:00

Lately, we've been busy! When aren't we? I know!

Lately, I haven't been keeping up my blogging duties!

Lately, it's been easier to Facebook! So find me on there if you want more frequent updates!

Lately, we've been spending a lot of time (and money) on getting our new camper stocked and ready to test out!

Lately, I've been meaning to put some pictures on here of said camper but I can't seem to find the time!

Lately, I've been thinking I should really do a better job at blogging and I promise (maybe) that next week I'll have a little more time to do so! And I'll find that time to post some pictures!

Gotta run! I'm busy!

My First Award!

2010-01-06T09:23:00.000-08:00

I received an award! Ooooh, I've never got a blog award before! My BFF sent it to me!

I'm supposed to tell you about 10 things that I enjoy. Ok, I can do that!

Here they are in no particular order:

1. My Family, of course! Well, usually! You know...when everyone is cooperating, playing nicely, eating their supper, cleaning up their toys, doing their homework, listening the first time. I don't ask too much of my family, do I? That includes GOB too!

2. Crafting! I haven't had much time lately but I should would like to work on some of those projects I have stacked up in my craft closet! Someday!

3. Shopping sans children! No explanation needed there!

4. Friends! We've got a great group of friends in our neighborhood that we enjoy hanging out in the front yard with. I sure wish I could get together with my oldest friend more often! Well, not that she's old, but she's been my friend the longest of any other friend I've had!

5. My pets! I may say that Toni is a PITA (pain-in-the-ass) but she can be sweet and I can't imagine our house without her! And new little Tiger makes me happy too! He's so sweet and cuddly!

6. I'm not ashamed to admit that a glass or bottle of beer makes me happy. Michelob Ultra on tap would be my first choice but I also enjoy Blue Moon, Bud Light Lime, Gordon Biersch Hefeweizen, and a few others!

7. Eating dinner out! Preferably without children! Anywhere!

8. Working! I know this sounds weird to most, but I do enjoy my job. I didn't realize that I missed working as much as I did after not working for 5 years. I really like the people I work with and for. It's fun!

9. A clean house! I used to me a little better at keeping things organized. Lately, I've been a little laxed on the organization...my closets look like a hurricane has blown through them! But when I do have a clean house, it makes me happy!

10. School! Like the place I drop DJB and LOB at every morning for 9 months of the year! I really wouldn't mind year round school! They really enjoy school at the moment and I am really happy when they jump out the van door in the morning!

So there you have it! 10 things that make me happy. Of course there are many more but this will do for now.

I'm supposed to pass this award on to other bloggers. There is a problem though. I don't personally know any other bloggers that BFF didn't already tag. Oh well, thanks for the award Mrs. ESPN! It was fun!

They Named Him "Tiger"

2010-01-01T08:08:00.000-08:00

LOB, DJB, and DVB love their new kitty! We adopted him from the Humane Society the day after Christmas. He's about 1 year old. This cat is the most mellow cat I've ever seen! Right away he was comfortable with the chaos in our house! He's even tolerable of the dog! He's wonderful with the kids. DVB drags him around and he could care less! He's perfect! So here are a few pics of the little guy!

The cat's name changed about 30 times before everyone agreed on a name. In the shelter, his name was Sebastian. He was also briefly named Buzz, Gizmo, Spike, Mr. Whiskers, Tinsel to name a few. Finally everyone decided "Tiger" was the perfect name for this orange kitty. DVB calls him "Tigo."

Ooops, I forgot to correct this picture so you'll have to turn your computer instead! Anyway, he's laying on his back on my lap! Talk about being relaxed and comfortable!

The Christmas tree came down pretty quick after Tiger's arrival. The boys got a good laugh when he tried to climb the tree!

The highchair was one of the first spots he checked out!

Stay tuned for some more "Tiger Tails" in the future!

The Best Christmas Ever!

2009-12-29T04:50:00.001-08:00

I've heard the boys say a couple times now, "It was the best Christmas ever!"

LOB and DJB were eagerly awaiting Santa's arrival on Christmas Eve. They were just sure he would show up after dinner. They were even tracking his flight pattern on a website and were updating his status to us quite frequently; Mongolia, Malaysia, Norway, Spain, Ireland (probably not in that order!) So while we were eating dinner I came up with a plan. It went like this: Suddenly Grandpa got sick and the computer broke so the boys couldn't get their updates. So while Grandpa puked and Papa fixed the computer, the rest of us loaded up in the car and drove the neighborhood looking at lights. As we were driving around, we came upon a house just a couple blocks from ours. Santa was standing in the driveway! Total fluke! How perfect! He came up to the car and we told him we'd hope he'd be going to our house soon! Meanwhile, Grammy who was along with us, was texting Santa's helpers to make sure they were setting everything up correctly. We continued to drive around and then LOB said, "You know, how come I didn't see Santa's reindeer on the top of that roof?" I said, "Oh, they must have been on the other side where we couldn't see them." LOB then replied, "It's always something. There is always something that isn't quite right!" Grammy and I started busted up laughing! LOB has just about figured it out! So finally the text came in that we could come back home. The boys were sure that Santa was going to come while we were gone so they raced to the front door. Here's the climax of the story: So as we opened the front door, Santa was just leaving out the back door! Perfect! It went off without a hitch!

LOB also remembered that when Santa came last year, I had snapped a couple pictures of him. Well, I really used the capturethemagic.com website and uploaded my pictures of the loot and added Santa to the pics. This year, GOB snapped the pictures with the real Santa and it's funny how they look almost the same as last year's!

Looks like Toni had a little fun with Santa! Santa brought LOB and DJB electric scooters and DVB a new 3 wheeled scooter. And some other loot too!

So in the eyes of the boys, Christmas was perfect! It was so fun to see their excitement!

Next up: (in a day or 2 or 3!) Our New Family Member! Wait for it, wait for it!

A Plethora of Pictures To Catch Up!

2009-12-17T11:15:00.000-08:00

I found my camera cable! So here's a plethora of pictures from over the last month to catch up!

Here's the first pic on my new little camera! Aunt J and DVB!

On Thanksgiving we went to a local zoo! It was the perfect day to go! We will never go to the zoo again on any other day than Thanksgiving! We owned it!

They have a really cool petting zoo!

Aunt J really liked the baby deer!

LOB was thinking about taking this turkey home and cook it up!

There were goats and deer all over the place!

One of the best things about this zoo is that you can get so close to the animals. Here, LOB was feeding the baby giraffe!

So cool!

DJB's highlight of the trip was petting the sting rays! In fact, at one point in the last month, he was planning on asking Santa for 2 sting rays! *gulp* Thank goodness Santa's helper talked him out of that one!

I thought this little monkey was so stinkin cute!

And now onto DVB's 2nd birthday! We had planned a Vikings vs. Cardinals birthday party for him but as it turned out, not many people were able to come because of the late game time on Sunday. So we cancelled the party and saved the decorations in the hopes of a Vikings Super Bowl Party!

Here's the Birthday Boy hiding in the new and improved toy box that my Grandpa B made for me many years ago. Bampa repainted it and it's now full of toys again!

Here's DVB playing in his new tunnel that attaches to a play tent!

DJB had fun playing with it too!

DVB wasn't too thrilled with the candles! Maybe I won't have to worry about him playing with fire when he gets older!

He did, however, like to play with his cake!

OH MY GOSH! Everyone is smiling AND looking at the camera! It's a miracle!

And finally here's the end of picture plethora! Last Sunday Mom and I baked about 60 dozen cookies! My neighbor has asked me several times to make cookies for her clients. It's always fun, but a big project! So in this picture is "Nissy" the Elf helping me bake a couple red velvet cakes for cakeballs! Remember last year? She/He watches the kids during the day and at night time, she flies back to Santa to report the kid's behavior. Remember that the elf is supposed to move every night? If only I could remember to do it! I can't tell you how many times I've woken up during the night to move the elf. I can't tell you how many times I've moved it just in the nick of time! I can't tell you how many times I have forgotten to move the elf! And my co-elf mover-supposed-to-remember-also-helper IS NOT HELPING! I only have to remember 8 more times and I only have to think of 8 more places for Nissy to hide! Wish me luck!

So I feel better now, I'm all caught up! Next up will be LOB and DJB's school program!

Happy Blogiversary To Me!

2009-12-16T16:19:00.000-08:00

Happy Blogiversary (probably not even a word) to me!

It's been one year since the birth of my blog! Although I haven't been able to keep it up as much as I have wanted to, it's been fun! We'll keep it going as long as we have readers! I know you would all miss the weekly action at our house if we didn't keep on blogging!

Does anyone know of a blog-to-book archive? I'd like get a copy of all I've written but I haven't come across exactly what I am looking for! I'd like a printed book if I could find a company that does it!

So here's to another year! Cheers! Happy Blogiversary To Me!

The No-Parent-In-The-Picture Christmas Card!

2009-12-15T12:18:00.001-08:00

So after multiple attempts to get a decent Christmas card photo, I've decided that it is just not going to happen! I give up! This is what I am sending out! It's real life, you know? It depicts EXACTLY how we roll! BTW, Santa and Mrs. Claus are the CEO (Mrs.) and VP of the hospital GOB and I work at.

I hope every one's Holiday planning is going well! Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to say, "Bring it on!" A trip to the post office and a few million envelopes to address are the only things left on my list besides wrapping Santa's gifts! I have a request for some lefse from my Dad so maybe, just maybe, I'll find some time this weekend to whip up a couple batches of it!

The 13 Course Meal!

2009-12-10T11:32:00.001-08:00

I am so lucky to have my own personal IT guy! He got the pics from his phone to my desktop for me! The quality of the pics aren't great but they will do.

So this restaurant a vendor took us to in Chicago was called Moto. I was really looking forward to this experience after we got the invitation. I had checked out their website prior to going and was intrigued by the description of their food. So in no particular order, because I uploaded the pictures all crazy, here are the 13 courses we noshed on while drinking fine wine and beer!

This was a 3 piece dessert course. It consisted of a mini cheeseburger that actually tasted like a banana split, a cherry bomb complete with a flame, and a log that tasted like pumpkin pie! Yummo! The cherry bomb even kind of blew up in your mouth!

This dessert was called Ants on a Log. It was a celery sorbet. It doesn't sound appetizing but let me tell you it was! I can't remember what the white stuff was, but the ants on top were made of chocolate!

This may look like a dessert but it was far from it! It was some kind of duck puree with a mole sauce. The white stuff was really spicy hot! They called it a Mexican cannoli. I really didn't care for this course.

This one was called Reuben Lasagna. It was delish! It tasted just like a Reuben sandwich!

Cuban Cigar! I really liked this one too! It was a pulled pork wrapped in kale leaves. The ashes were ground up poppy seeds! GOB didn't care for this one. It even had an edible paper label on it!

A rarity, I know! A picture of me!

This one was kinda cool. The chef had the pineapple rings wrapped in aluminum foil and were in a soda keg pressurized with CO2. The pipette had a capon broth in it. So as you took a bite of the fizzy, jerk flavored pineapple, you were supposed to squirt in some of the broth. It was tasty, but weird!

This one was called Seared Buffalo Hot Wings. It was capon breast on top of shredded capon leg. The paper was edible and VERY spicy. Also the little red dot was another spicy sauce. I can't remember the white sauce...probably bleu cheese or ranch flavor.

This one was called Loaded Fries. It was a dollop of mashed potatoes with bacon, cheese, and onion on top. The funny part was when the waiters poured what we thought was candle wax on top of this dish! It turns out the candle that was burning at our table was actually made from beef fat! Again, weird but tasty!

This one was called Gruyere and Onions. The cheese was melted to the side of the bowl and then the waiters came around and poured the hot broth in the bowl. The curly thing on top of the onions was like a dehydrated onion puff. GOB said it tasted like a Funyun.

This was actually our 2nd course. It was called Scrambled Eggs and Muffin. The egg looking thing was actually a extremely light puff that tasted like garlic-it just melted in your mouth. The scrambled egg was a puree of carrots and something else I can't remember but it was good! And the other thing looked like a tator tot but it was a shrimp bite. Very creative!

The very first course, I forgot to take a picture of. It was an extremely thin piece of garlic bread with an edible paper on it that had the vendor's logo on it.

This was a very fun experience. It was something I wouldn't probably go for if we had to foot the bill ourselves. It also took 4.5 hours!

Also, the restaurant had just finished filming a reality tv show there. It will be on in 2010 on the Planet Green channel (a Discovery channel) and is called Future Food. I also heard that the chefs that own this restaurant were on the Food Network's Iron Chef show one time! It'll be cool to watch the show!

I Want to Show Pictures But I Can't!

2009-12-09T12:18:00.000-08:00

So I sit down today with intentions of writing a post about our Chicago trip. The problem is, that I can't find the cord to my new camera to upload the pics. AND, the pics GOB sent me from his phone are horrible quality so I can't put those up either! Arrrgghhh!

And to boot, it looks like my laptop is teetering on dying! Every little wiggle I make, the power cord plug-in light thingy is flickering on and off! Guess I better ask Santa for a new laptop!

So wish me luck that my IT guy can help me out tonight with my issues! I'll be back later!

Happy 2nd Birthday, DVB!

2009-12-05T06:37:00.000-08:00

We got home just in time for a birthday party! It'll be a mini party this time but DVB won't mind! We had planned a Vikings vs. Cardinals party on Sunday afternoon but since the game time changed, most of our friends couldn't come. So we are going to save all of our Vikings decorations in hopes to celebrate a Super Bowl!

GOB and I just spent 5 days in the Windy City! And let me tell you about that wind! Brrrrrr! We had a great time despite the chilly weather. And to be honest, I'd go to Alaska for vacation just to be kid-free for a couple days!

GOB and our boss were in Chicago to attend the annual RSNA convention. I just went along for the kid break and all the fancy vendor dinners! I did go to the convention one day just to experience it. They say 50,000 people attend. I'd say that 45,000 were from outside the US! It was ridiculous! Those foreigners have NO etiquette! Rude! Disrespectful! Anyway, it was pretty cool to see the state-of-the-art equipment and what companies have planned for the future.

When I have a little more time, I'll have to write a post on the most cool dinner experience I've ever had! So wait for it! Oh and the shopping on Michigan Ave and State St! Now all I have to do is find time for a little blogging! Hopefully I'll be back in a couple days!

Blog? What Blog? I Have a Blog?

2009-11-22T16:52:00.000-08:00

I know I've used this excuse a million times, but man-o-livin life is CRAZY around here!

First up: NASCAR. Uncle B joined us for 5 days of camping in dirt and watching rednecks! We wish Aunt J was there too but she joined us a couple days late due to work.

Even the dog loves NASCAR camping. She enjoys being the camp watchdog!

DJB liked to run in and out of the pop-up! Notice the snow cap? It was a might bit chilly during the night!

DJB stole the world's largest lollipop from one of his brothers!

Here's a portion of our camp.

Next up: Thanksmas! What? Didn't you know about that holiday? It's the 2nd or 3rd time we've combined Thanksgiving and Christmas. Since Uncle B and Aunt J were in town we decided to celebrate the holidays. We even put up the christmas tree-complete with only Vikings decorations! Ya know, we have to celebrate our team's fabulous year!

Here's P playing a little Clone Wars Wii with LOB.

Uncle B showing the boys how to operate the mini remote helicopters they bought for the boys!

DJB picked out this carniverous plant farm when Uncle B and Aunt J took them to Toys r Us.

Mini remote control helicopter!

Uncle Bent, as DVB calls him.

Aunt J in her new apron.

UB and AJ are THEEEE coolest evah!

The boys have wanted these for a long time and they didn't even know that when they bought them!

Next Up: An extra 5 days with Aunt J! She changed her ticket to spend some more time with us! We're planning on a not-so-crazy week. On Thanksgiving day we're going to a local zoo we haven't been to in years! Hopefully everyone else will be home eating turkey and we'll have the zoo to ourselves!

I planned on putting some more pictures up but my camera took a poop! Looks like we'll have to find some time this week to go camera shopping! Any suggestions?

Too Much Going On...

2009-11-17T13:17:00.000-08:00

We are still around but there's too much going on to find time to write a blog post! And if I could find the cord to my camera, I could post some pictures from our fun weekend at NASCAR. It's probably buried in the bottom of the camping crap or maybe under the piles and piles of dirty laundry. But for this week, we're going to enjoy our company. Aunt J and Uncle B are here till Monday. Maybe next week we'll be back to normal....

The Great Toy Purge of 2009

2009-11-06T11:26:00.000-08:00

Whew! The Great Toy Purge of 2009 is complete! 4 garbage bags of broken toys, misc. game pieces, and garbage later, all toy boxes are clean and the toy room once again organized! All baby toys were put away for a future niece or nephew (get moving you 2!) I feel like I've accomplished a major project today. All that work only to make room for more toys on the way for next month's festivities! Oh well, it will stay organized for at least a couple hours!

So as I'm cleaning and organizing away, I came across the HUGE set of Little People stuff we've accumulated over the years. Oh perfect, I thought! DVB will love these and since I put all his baby toys away he'll need something new to play with! And that he did for 1.5 hours straight! Heaven, I tell ya! I brought all the toys that were downstairs, back upstairs and I brought the entire set of Little People downstairs. I set them all up for him in their matching accessories and people/animals. I must say it was kinda fun! He was most attracted to the garage set-go figure! He's really into cars right now. Maybe after his nap he'll explore the farm, or the amusement park, or the zoo, or the pirate ship, or the race track, or the castle, or the airplane... I'm pretty impressed, I might add, that almost all the pieces were found to the sets. I'm sure if I dig out the in toy boxes in the garage or through LOB's bedroom, I'd find the rest. Nah, that would be too much work!

It was just like Christmas for DVB! Hopefully it'll keep his interest for at least a couple more days!

Babybook Entry Post

2009-11-05T11:25:00.000-08:00

DVB you are growing so fast, it's time for another update! In the last two weeks your vocabulary has at least tripled it seems! You are even putting together 3 or 4 words. Most of your free time you spend following your brothers! I must say you keep up pretty well! You are a tough little bugger, sometimes even tougher than your older brothers!

Here's some of the things you are jabbering about:

peetza - You LOVE pizza! Thank goodness since we eat it at least once a week!

milky - The first thing you ask for in the morning is a cup of milk! We go through a gallon a day between all you boys, including Papa!

ju - aka Juice - Occasionally you'll accept a cup of 1/2 juice, 1/2 water.

turkeeee - We put the pookins (pumpkins) away and now the turkeys are out. You call the turkeys "pooky" like you did the Halloween decorations! I'm trying to teach you to say gobble gobble-we might get it down by turkey day!

ticken - You call the turkeys tickens! Aka chickens!

Toni - You finally got that T in Toni!

arrrgh! - Whenever I get mad at Toni, I make an arrrrgh sound in frustration! Now whenever you see Toni doing something naughty you make the sound too! It's hilarious! I guess it's better than saying a naughty word!

bank - aka blanket. You've cut back on your blankie fetish! But you still like to have about 3 of them in bed with you!

boots - You LOVE to wear your hand-me-down cowboy boots. You like to stomp your feet in them!

wanna - Wanna go ouside! Wanna milky!

cuz - The other day I asked you to do something and you replied No! So I said, why? And you said cuz!

shippy - You know the cupboard where the sippy cups are!

cup - Lately you've been asking for a cup instead of a shippy! :(

boke - aka broke! When Toni chewed up one of your wooden cars you said, Toni boke!

moob - If anyone or anything is in your way you say, moob! And whoever better respond quickly or you'll moob them!

moobie - The other day in my mini van you said, moobie on! How spoiled is a almost 2 year when he can watch a movie in the car?

oh, man! - This is another phrase you picked up from me! The other day you walked into LOB's messy room and you said, oh man! And OH MAN, you were right! Last Sunday when we were watching the Talledega NASCAR race, you said, oh man! big cash! when you saw Ryan Newman wreck!

Gog - aka LOB! For awhile you called him Go Go but now it's Gog!

Day - aka DJB! DJB doesn't like you calling him Day! He tries to tell you to call him D!

Guys - It's so funny when you call your brothers, guys!

Bampa - You know, Grammy probably was hoping you'd say her name first! Whenever Grammy asks you who's boy you are you say, Bampa! And sometimes all she has to do is look at you and you say Bampa like a little smarty farty!

mash cash - One of your favorite books is called SMASH CRASH! I think I've read it so many times I've got it memorized. Not to mention its been looked at and read so often that's it's missing a few pages!

iddy biddy spidey - Another one of your favorite books is a version of The Itsy Bitsy Spider! I always sing the words and all of a sudden you can sing it! Too cute!

monkey - You have a stuffed animal mouse but you call him a monkey!

I was trying to get a picture of you in your wild thing jammies that Grammy and Grandpa bought you!

Here's proof that you are always looking for trouble!

I can't believe you are almost 2 years old! Most of the time we laugh at your silly little antics! You are very entertaining! But there are times your strong willed attitude can be frustrating. Thankfully, you are usually in the entertaining mood!

Are we going to start seriously working on that potty training next?

Trick or Treat!

2009-11-01T14:12:00.000-08:00

We had a super fun Halloween! We TONS of trick-or-treaters! I don't know how many pounds of candy we gave out, but it was a lot! GOB took the boys around the neighborhood while I handed out candy. I love seeing all the costumes! What I can't believe is all the rude, disrespectful kids! What ever happened to manners? Or how about actually saying "trick or treat"! Anyway the little kids were cute. And I found out that apparently LOB is very popular at school. It's funny how many kids said, "Are you LOB's mom?" It was pretty cute!

After we shut down the candy factory, we hung out with a bunch of neighbors till 1 am. It was a blast! They introduced us into a dice game called Left Right Center. GOB and I didn't win any rounds but had a great time playing! We are however, a little on the lazy side today! That's how much fun we had!

The boys were dressed as Star Wars characters. LOB's mask still creeps me out! DVB hates it too! He SCREAMS NOOOOOO when LOB has it on or even shows it to him!

Doesn't he make a cute little Yoda?

Next on our activity schedule is NASCAR. We're looking forward to seeing Uncle B and Aunt J and our WI cousins! More fun is coming right up!

Pooky Poonkin!

2009-10-30T12:25:00.001-07:00

It's pumpkin carving time! DVB calls them "poonkins." And anything halloweeny he says is "pooky!" Too cute!

There's a few excited boys around here! To them, tomorrow cannot come soon enough! Both DJB and LOB had field trips to the high school for a play today. They also have their "Fall" parties this afternoon. I was kind of ticked that "the school" as a whole decided not to let the kids dress up for Halloween! For Pete's sake, can't kids have fun anymore? Sheesh!

Here are a few pictures of our pookin carving! Next on my to-do list is to find a recipe to roast the seeds...

I swear the kid will eat ANYTHING! Even raw pookin guts! Ewwww!

Have a save and Happy Halloween!

Dear DVB,

2009-10-27T14:52:00.000-07:00

Dear Little ~~Devil~~ DVB,

Today you totally embarrassed me in public! Today the old lady's who usually just want to pinch your cute little cheeks just shot your mother the most nasty dirty looks ever! Today I was just trying to ignore you but then the little old lady's would give me even dirtier looks! Today I just wanted to snap some dirty looks back at them and throw my hands in the air! Today in the hopes of making you semi-happy while shopping at the mall, I handed you a half a pack of gum! *GASP* And you ate every.single.piece! (I know I'll pay for it later) Today I even paid $1.25 for a bottle of"Coke" for YOU (thanks Grammy!) to see if that would shut you up! Today I could not find one thing to make you happy! Today you are taking a nice long nap to give your mom a much needed recuperation period. Today when you wake up from your 3 hour nap, I really hope you are happier! Today I still love you but please kick this attitude! I really hope tomorrow is not like today!

Love,
Momma

No More Snaggletooth!

2009-10-22T18:55:00.001-07:00

We can't call LOB Snaggletooth anymore! Now we're calling him a vampire! How perfect for Halloween!

He went to bed last night and about 30 minutes later, came down and said, "This tooth has to go!" He wiggled it until it was hanging by a thread. I swear GOB should have been a dentist! He LOVES pulling the boy's teeth. Well maybe not LOVES it, but doesn't mind doing it unlike me who can't even stand to look at a loose tooth! And this one was a bloody one! I can handle other people's blood but not my CHILD's blood! NASTY!

So here's the funny part: LOB finally went to bed after looking at himself in the mirror for a half an hour and spitting blood all over the sink! Then I mentioned to GOB that I didn't have $5 (LOB specifically said he really wanted that $5!). All I had in my wallet was a 10 and a 1. So GOB scoured through his wallet and then checked out his stash in his truck. I scoured threw a few places and couldn't even find 5 - $1 bills! Then I came across LOB's leftover money from vacation and VIOLA there was $5! We both laughed that we had to borrow money from him to pay him! Now I need to replace that $5 before he notices!

I'll be gone for a couple days from blogging....it's Oktoberfest time in our house! Lots of work to do! See ya in a couple days....and I even have blogging material...LOB's basketball season, the almost finished counter-tops.....I'll catch up one of these days!

Fall Break Fun!

2009-10-18T13:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures from the boy's fall break this past week! They have spent 8 days with Grammy and Grandpa up at the cabin! ALL 3 BOYS! It's been a wonderful Fall Break for GOB and I too!

LOB has been studying Native Americans in school recently so one day they took a road trip to a Navajo Reservation. I am told that this little hut is called a Hogan.

I'm not sure what this car has to do with Native Americans. I'm pretty sure Navajo Indians didn't drive cars. Notice both boys holding bags? Before they left, I gave each of them some money to spend on their trip. What they bought follows...

Rocks! They bought rocks! Oh well, I must say they are very pretty rocks!

Here's proof they visited some Indians!

Looks like LOB has the stitching gene! It counts as stitching doesn't it?

Now for some other pictures from the week...

Here's my baby with his new found obsession, hat wearing. Notice also that the poor kid was dressed with socks and sandals on! Nerd!

Here's my 3 cutie pies all sittin' in a row in their matching jackets! I have to match them while I still can! This picture was titled "soda break". You'd think G and G would refrain from inducing the already existing wildness with caffeine! I know better myself!

This looks like they spiced up the homemade swing set and club house. My guess is is that they fought over the ONE existing swing and Grandpa got sick of listening to the fighting over it! That Grandpa though, he can build anything!

Wearing other people's shoes is another obsessison of DVB's! Those look like DJB's cowboy boots!

This picture was titled, "Caged"! G and G figured out that sometimes DVB just has to be tied down! I don't blame them!

And one final picture...looks like supper time.

There were a couple other good pictures but Blogger wouldn't upload them. One was of a new shooting gallery they boys and Grandpa rigged up.

Thanks so much to Grammy and Boppa (as DVB calls him) for a wonderful, quiet, peaceful, productive, relaxing, eating out week for GOB and I! We are recharged and ready to resume life as usual! We are so lucky, aren't we?

What Should We Call Him?

2009-10-14T08:35:00.000-07:00

So here's the post I've been meaning to get to for the last week or so!

DVB is a MONSTER! Or is he a DAREDEVIL? Or is he a WILD MAN? Or The WILD THING? Man-a-livin' this boy is full of spunk! In a 4 day span recently, he somehow eluded a visit to the Emergency Room multiple times!

Incident #1: After walking the older boys to school, DVB and I decided it was a perfect morning to climb around one of our neighborhood jungle gyms. He was having a blast climbing up and down, sliding down all the big slides like he has done it a million times before. Then as I look up at him from the bottom of a tube slide, he turned around lickety split and walked right off a 5 foot platform! Bam! Somehow he landed smack dab on his butt! He was totally unscathed! I don't get it!

Incident #2: Two weekends ago GOB took all the boys up to the cabin to go turkey hunting. As I am told, everyone was scattered throughout the cabin getting settled in. GOB then inquired if anyone knew where DVB might be. Then they heard the crash! My parents have a coffee table that they have had for years. It's half glass, half wood. I guess Triple D (Daredevil DVB) decided to lay down on the glass half and all of a sudden the glass gave out and broke into a million pieces, him landing on top! Totally unscathed once again! Incredible!

Incident #3: While still at the cabin, the boys were playing outside. DVB was practicing his balancing skills. Then he decided to JUMP off the railroad tie he was balancing upon! His 6 inch plunge did not keep him unscathed this time! He scratched up the whole right side of his head and cheek! It could have been worse!

Needless to say, I'm sure one of my future posts will be pictures from our first Emergency Room visit. I know, I'm jinxing myself! But it's just inevitable!

Snaggletooth!

2009-10-09T08:37:00.000-07:00

I know I said I already had a post in mind for, hmmmm, let's see....Thursday probably! But life got in the way again! I ended up having to work and now I have some exciting news to precede the Daredevil DVB post!

We have a Snaggletooth in the house! LOB FINALLY lost one of his top middle teeth! I say FINALLY because they both have been loose since May! The Tooth Fairy even remembered to come and she left $5.50! (it helps when you set the alarm clock for oh say, 12:00 am!)

So I promise to get to that DVB post in a couple days. Grammy and Grandpa are taking all 3 boys for the whole week next week for Fall Break! So I know since I have a kid-free week I can't make any excuses about lack of time! Although my to-do list is quite long and I am working 3 days next week!

Squirrel Anyone?

2009-10-06T12:47:00.000-07:00

There was a little excitement up at the cabin this past weekend. GOB took all the boys up to go turkey hunting while I stayed home because I had to work. There's lots of stories to tell from the adventurous weekend but I'll have to tell one story at a time. You know, I have to stretch out the blogging material!

Here's what Grandpa emailed me shortly after they gave up turkey hunting and switched to squirrel:

So this was a banner day for LOB and me. We decided to take the boys out after some tree rats . We packed a lunch and hit the woods. Didn't see any squirrels while we ate but we decided to road hunt. In short order we spied the first of 4. GOB chased it into the perfect tree, a dead pine with no needles. It went up about 15 feet and sat broadside. LOB sat in my lap and held the rifle himself and popped it. His practice this summer with the BB gun gave him skill to iron site this rat and knocked him out of the tree with one shot. His next one was a much bigger challenge. It went to the top of a 60 footer. He had to lean against a tree and took several shoots to hit it. He wanted to quit but his Dad was patient and they worked together and he got him. He wanted three so DJB and DVB could have a tail and so it was. The only help he got was finding the critter in the tree and loading the gun, He has a cricket single shot hand cock rifle just his size. No scope iron sites !!!!!

So I'm not sure who is more excited, Grandpa, Papa, or LOB!?!

Normally, they skin the squirrels and Grammy eats the poor little scampers! *GASP* I know, totally gross! But she said they were too scrawny to bother but they did keep the tails! LOB wanted to hang them in his room but I shot down that idea in a nanosecond! I told him to go staple them to the tree in the backyard!

Story #2 is on deck for tomorrow. I already thought of a title: Daredevil DVB!

Delinquent Blogger!

2009-09-29T16:18:00.000-07:00

Do I still have any readers out there?

I know, I've been bad, very bad! Somehow this thing called life is getting in the way of blogging recently! Sheesh! I haven't even had time to read all the other blogs I love to read! Between refereeing, chauffeuring, cleaning, cooking, coordinating, shopping, working, socializing, practicing, refereeing, planning, fall tv watching, refereeing, my poor little blog has been on the back burner! (Not to mention my delinquentcy in seeing my god-daughters! I can't even remember the last time I saw them! Do you still love me?)

But I'm not giving up! Don't you worry about that! Until things settle down, you'll only get to hear from me a couple times a week! You know the holidays are coming up and as you can imagine it's CRAZY around here! I'm sure there will be some good blog posts to come from all that hoopla!

So here's a little funny I came across this weekend! LOB is in a weird stage right now! He's mouthy, sassy, non-compliant, ungrateful, stinky, and I think he thinks he's turning 16 or something! He wants alone time. He wants to listen to music. He wants to redecorate his bedroom. Who is this boy? My first born baby?

Here's what he's posted on his door...I put the stickers on that say "caution, keep out" and the skateboards but he added a few of his own....

I had been looking for this "No solicitors" sign I bought a while ago to keep those Church Knockers from ringing my door bell (that's a whole 'nother post!). I'm not sure where he found it or even if he knows what it means but at least he knew where to put it!

Please knock!!!!!!! Get it? Me? I don't knock, I bang!

Tony? Who is Tony? Tony Stewart? Or Toni, the dog? Frankenstein? I asked him if he even knew who Frankenstein was and he gave me a very accurate description! It's good to know that GOB and I are on the O.K. list. But notice DJB isn't? Yes, there's a little sibling rivalry goin' on over here! Remember me mentioning refereeing a few times earlier? Ugh!

I Have to Tell you About This!

2009-09-24T17:58:00.000-07:00

This is so cool- all you pedicure lovers out there must click on this link!

http://www.minxnails.com/cylantscart/index.php?p=catalog&parent=10&pg=1

I did a patient this week that had THEEEEE coolest pedicure evah! Here I am supposed to be squishing her boobs and all I could look at were her toes! I always look at people's feet! You all know I'm a shoe lover so naturally looking at people's toes would be included! She had silver with the black fish net and it looked sharp!

Anyhoo, on the link above you'll see all the designs available. It's a film-like sticker-like dealy that a licesenced nail tech applies to your toes or nails with a special heat lamp. By the looks of the official website, there are only a couple locations in my state that do it but you can bet I'll be checking into it further. My patient said her tech charges $60 but it lasts 3 months! My toenails grow really fast but I think I could get 2 months out of it! But just think, no chipping, no dulling, just plain shiny and beautiful for weeks!

So cool! I can't decide on a design though~there's sooooo many cute ones! Polka dots, plaid, camo, zebra stripes, oh it goes on and on!

See This Cute Little Pumpkin?

2009-09-20T18:24:00.001-07:00

See this cute little pumpkin?

Yes, he's cute today but yesterday was a whole different story and there's no photographic proof of it!

So I worked yesterday morning. At about 9 AM I got a text from GOB. Here's how it went:

GOB to me: Do you want to go pick up a new keg today?
Me to GOB: What? It can't be empty! (it was only 1 week old)
GOB: Oh yes it can!
Me: No way! I don't believe you!
GOB: While taking a shower
GOB: LOB sat on pot taking crap (he was supposed to be on DVB watch)
GOB: DJB glued to tv
GOB: Monster Man pulled the tapper

Yep, you guessed it! 3/4 of a barrel of Michelob Ultra was released onto the kitchen floor! I heard it made it to the oven so that's about a pool of beer 15 feet in diameter! Thankfully, I just had to give the beer scented floor a good scrub when I got home. The Boys did a pretty good job soaking it up with kitchen towels! Oh well, lesson learned! Save The Beer!

But today is a whole new day and the Little Pumpkin is as cute as can be! He LOVES this old old old Halloween costume! However, I don't think the older brothers are going to let it be his official costume this year. I hear they have plans of being 3 Star Wars characters and they plan on making DVB be Yoda! Oh joy!

A silly pumpkin has got to be cuter than ugly Yoda!

We'll let you know who wins!

DVB Update!

2009-09-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've updated DVB's milestones, you know since I can't find time to keep up his babybook. Remember my blog is taking the place of the babybooks?

DVB you're finally starting to communicate with words! Thank goodness because the grunting, and screaming is really getting old!

Han - Translation: hand. You love to wash your hans.

All Done or all gone - that little tidbit of communication is so helpful!

eeee - translation: eat! That one helps us out too!

go - whenever you want to go, you try to pull and tug the person you want to go with you!

on - you love to turn the lights on and off or the toys that do on and off. You say "on" but haven't figured out off yet.

Whoo hoo - I bet you get that phrase from me! You even use it in the correct context!

Shushes - Translation: Shoes! You love to put your shushes on because you know going outside is next!

Mommy - yay! you finally say Mommy! When you wake up in the morning you start calling for Papa and after 5 times you call for Mommy! So cute! And when you really want either of us it's more like "PAAAAAAPA, MOOOOOOOOOOOMY!" and you are loud!

Mine - This wonderful word was learned at daycare! Now everything is mine, mine, mine!

Ha - Translation: hot. It's funny you know the difference between hot and cold!

teet teet - Translation: tweet tweet! You call all birds teet teets! You're not much of a animal sound maker other than teet teet, mouw (meow), moo and rooooooar!

waa waa - Translation: Water. You are a huge water drinker. You carry your sippy cup wherever you go.

Ooookaaay - Translation: okay! You answer "okay" with any question. It's hilarious! We are so happy you are so obliging!

see - It usually goes like this: "see papa see papa see papa" You look out the windows and say "see Papa". You do a great job keeping track of him!

e i e i e i - When we practice LOB's spelling words, you have to join in and say "e i e i e i!"

In other milestones:

You can't go anywhere with out your blankey. It really started when you started to go to Miss C's for daycare. But it's ok, it's your little security blanket!

You can't say "yes" but you nod your head yes and when you do it, you about knock yourself over with that big ol' noggin of yours!

You got your second professional haircut. Papa just wants me to scalp you like your brothers but I'm not ready to part with that soft, blond, baby hair of yours! You did absolutely fabulous with sitting like a perfect angle for your haircut. Unlike our first experience!

You pooped in the potty for the first time FOR REAL yesterday! You came up to me and said, "Poo poo" so we rushed off to the bathroom and after you got on and off your little potty 10 times you finally decided to unload! We might finally be getting serious about this potty training stuff!

I can't believe you are growing up so fast! In 2 months you'll be 2 years old! Could you slow down a bit? You are at such a fun stage right now - well, with the exception of the little temper tantrums you have every once in a while!

It Was Once a Box of Chicken...

2009-09-13T17:42:00.001-07:00

It was once a box of chicken from Costco...

Then it carried my Costco items in the house...

Then it turned into a boat for DVB to play in...

And now it's a basketball court! How's that for recycling?!?

LOB's first project of the year was to create a building that could be found in a community. For example, a Taco Bell, a church, a school, a house, etc. LOB chose to make a basketball court. Because what would a community be without a basketball court? The directions said that this project should cost absolutley $0! And it was to be created with stuff from around the house.

The backboard poles were made from a mini glue sticks, the rims were made from twisty ties (that was my idea!), the ball was made from twisty ties (my idea), the paint was from GOB misc stash (green with glitter) and the players were from a on old wooden train set (DJB's idea) that LOB colored with sharpies! LOB completed the entire project with exception of the glue gun operation!

And get this! It's not even due until Friday, the 18th! YES! Project complete!

It Was a Busy, Productive Weekend And a Milestone!

2009-09-08T11:56:00.001-07:00

Holy cow! We made some huge progress on the kitchen remodle this weekend. It feels good to be nearing the end of the project. The logistics of the last piece of counter top, the island, are brewing in GOB's head. He did rip out the old island counter top and installed the new sink, RO water, and soap dispenser. Oh! And the new fancy garbage disposal switch!

The miniature helper loved his new hiding place while it lasted!

He's a little difficult to work around but he sure takes some darn cute pictures!

Oh no! He went down the drain!

This picture cracks me up!

DVB has figured out how to move around the kitchen chairs to get to where he wants to go! He moved a chair over to the new sink and climbed right in!

But the most EXCITING news of the weekend:

DJB lost 2 teeth! We didn't even know they were loose until Saturday! REALLY loose! Infact, the 2 permanent teeth were already a 1/4 of the way in behind the baby teeth. So it didn't take much to yank those suckers out. Amazingly, he let GOB pull them out with little fight! So the toothfairy had to pay out for 2 teeth! DJB was just tickled and said, "I don't think it's normal to loose 2 teeth at once! I wonder what the tooth fairy will think. Maybe she won't be able to carry both teeth." After further questioning, he told me the toothfairy is the size of a mouse, has very tiny eyes, is sparkly, and carries a bow and arrow-like pack that holds the rolled up money! What a goof!

LOB is a little bent since he didn't lose any teeth until he was 6. Also, his top middle 2 have been loose since May and are still no where near coming out!

LOB had his first basketball game on Saturday. I had to work, therefore no pictures were taken of the event! GOB said he was too busy wrangling DVB. I'll snap some at next week's game. LOB says one of Dads of one of the players on his team plays for the Suns. I'll have to do a little investigation on that rumor!

Before and After But Before It's Done!

2009-09-05T18:04:00.001-07:00

I'm taking a little time out of our massive construction productive weekend to show you a couple pictures of our progress!

This is a before picture when the wall was a drab taupe...

These are 2 of the construction crew. However, they are NOT very productive and are extremely messy so they got fired after this picture!

This construction worker is fired too. Leaving an open ladder around for this lad is a leeetle dangerous!

Here's an after picture of the new red! I love it! I don't know what that spot is left of the blinds. Don't ghosts show up in pictures like that? ha! Also, I'll take any and all suggestions for maybe some window treatments. Gram, when are you coming to visit? I really like what you have in your kitchen!

After a little detail work, this quarter of the kitchen will be complete!

And now this is what I'm looking at right now! No kitchen sink! I guess that means I won't have to cook tonight! I better dig out the take-out menus! Do I dare ask GOB to take his time so I don't have to cook the rest of the weekend? I'm sure it won't be a problem! *wink*

Laptop Up!

2009-09-01T19:00:00.000-07:00

Yahhhooo! I'm up and running again. But, things are rockin' around here right now so I still don't have much time to blog!

Last weekend I decided to paint. Originally, I was just going to paint one wall red. Then I decided all the baseboards needed painting and I didn't want to repaint them white so I chose a light beige color. Then I decided that most of the walls downstairs really needed a fresh coat of paint so I jazzed them up with a darker brown. It all looks great BUT, GOB is still constructing countertops and we all know the speed he works at! SSSLLLOOOWWW! He's doing a great job but I'm about ready to go bonkers with this construction mess! So needless to say, I still have a lot of painting to do but I'm working around GOB and I have to remember to sssslllloooowww down! We're in no rush, really. It just has to be done by the endish of October for our Oktoberfest party!

Also, we decided to drop our new cell phone provider because we couldn't get coverage in our house after multiple attempts to make it work. So we had to decide which company to change to. Him...haw...him...haw! We decided to try out AT&T now and we went with the iPhones. So now I can't stop playing with it and it's driving me crazy because I really should be painting while DVB is napping and not playing with my phone! I should have listened to my brother who told me, "DON'T GET IT, YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO PUT IT DOWN!" Yep brother, you are right!

Wish me luck for a little more productivity and less playing for the rest of the week!

Just Sayin'

2009-08-28T12:11:00.001-07:00

It isn't the same to blog on a PC as it is on a laptop-both reading and writing! My creative juices just don't flow when I'm plugged in, I guess. Looks like my replacement part is on it's way so we'll be back to normal in a couple days. And I was smart, I ordered 2 connectors! Now we'll never be in this predicament again!

Oh, I guess I could try blogging on my Blackberry but that would be really painful!

We'll be back in business soon...besides, I have no material! *covers mouth* I hope I didn't just jinx myself again!

Laptop Down!

2009-08-26T11:58:00.001-07:00

I swear my children thrive on making my life difficult! They scrounge the house to find things to destroy so I have to spend money to replace them! Last week it was the freezer catastrophe. How many hundreds of dollars were thrown away in that mess? Now today it's my laptop power connection. This will be the second time they have bent the prongs in the connector! Yesterday it was the bbq island mini fridge that I found open! That's the second one of those that we've had to replace also! I know, I should be thankful for these piddly little $100 replacements. Someday it will be cars with $1000's of damage!

So heaven for bid I have to actually use a PC instead of leasurly sitting on my couch to blog! Wish me luck in finding a new power adapter. If I recall correctly, the last time it was a little difficult!

I Spoke Too Soon...

2009-08-22T16:52:00.000-07:00

So remember on Thursday when I said our house was pretty quiet and we had no exciting news to report? Um, ya, 5 minutes after hitting the publish post button, all heck broke loose!

Here's exhibit A: (please note I do not have photographic proof of additional upcoming debacles!)

Doesn't this freezer look brand spankin' new? No, you are wrong-it's 10 years old! But it is bleach smelling clean. When I walked into the garage early Thursday evening, I was greeted with a rather unpleasant odor! Come to find out that the boys failed to close the freezer door after noshing on Popsicles the night before! Yep, you guessed it! An entire freezer FULL of food ruined! Arrrrrrgh! GOB got the duty of cleaning it out since he got to go to Happy Hour that night! Ha!

Our next catastrophe was when DJB decided to go into the backyard to play. The dog decided to barge in the door at the same time. She went between DJB's legs and lifted him off the ground! It looked like DJB was riding a bull for one nano second. Unfortunately, he didn't let go of the door knob as the bull was bucking and took a head first plunge onto the tile floor. One big goose egg later, he said he wanted to "sale" Toni because he didn't like her anymore! ER diverted...no concussion.

Next, DJB went upstairs to get his pj's on. He comes SCREAMING down the stairs in a frightful scene! I go running thinking it had to do with his noggin crash! No! He found a SCORPION in his bathtub and it was ALIVE! Get this: then the boys tell me they had found another one downstairs the day before! LOB says, "Papa, didn't you tell Momma about the scorpion?" Papa says, "No, LOB, there's some things Momma just doesn't need to know!" Mr. Bug man will be coming Tuesday to super soak us in scorpion killer!

So that was our excitement for the week all in about 15 minutes worth of time! I could have done without all of it!

On to other news:

GOB is making awesome progress on the counter top project. 2 big chunks are installed and he's been demoing the next section today. We finally compromised on a sink for the the island. Now I just need to decide on some paint colors to freshen up the walls and some new kitchen faucets. It's going to look sharp! I've already told GOB that our next project will be sprucing up the bathroom down stairs! I'm thinking a new vanity with matching concrete counter top since right now there is a pedestal sink which I hate because I have no storage and maybe tile up the wall in some decorative pattern. All that should keep him busy until at least the end of the year!

LOB was the sucker who had to unplug the the stove. Look closely behind GOB and you'll see the new counter top. The boys had fun helping smash travertine! What a mess!

This is just a funny I picture I thought I'd include. DVB and DJB are about pound for pound! They love pushing each other around in this plastic dump truck!

That's all for now. We are enjoying a nice pleasant, productive weekend! Geez, I hope I didn't just jinx myself!

Spilled Sea Monkeys and Hiding Places

2009-08-20T17:35:00.000-07:00

It's been a semi-uneventful week around our house if you can believe it!

The most action was when DVB spilled the Sea Monkey container. I must be desperate for blog content for that to make it in the weekly news! Anyway, LOB and DJB were REALLY upset. They had followed the directions closing and the Sea Monkeys had just "patched". Oh well, we'll try again. There is a Seamonkeys.com so we can order some more eggs or just go to Wally World and buy a new kit. We'll see, hopefully they'll just forget about it!

In case you were wondering, Sea Monkeys are the size of a period at the end of a sentence. It takes a magnifying glass to see them. I have no idea how many were swimming around before they got spilled but it kinda gave me the heebie geebies so I had to wash the floor 3 times!

DVB has found a new hiding spot. Luckily I saw him discover his new reprieve! He can't figure out how to turn the handles on doors yet but is a little obsessive about closing them!

DVB had a better week at daycare. On Monday afternoon of week #2, his sitter said he was a whole different kid. He was happy, playful and interactive. I guess I was under the impression that he was all those things last week but she must have not wanted to make me feel bad. So I'm a little confused but I'm glad he turned his frown upside down. She accepted the dates that I am working in September so he must we welcome back! He's also getting used to the idea of being dropped off and isn't making such a fuss for GOB. Also, the sitter says he walks around the house saying "ba-ba" all day. I said no, that would be "Papa", he's a little attached to his Papa. He walks around our house too looking for Papa!

We are looking forward to next week being "normal." I am only working Monday so we can get into a new routine. GOB has discovered that he too has been spoiled the last 5 years not having to get kids ready for school and dropping off and all the rigamarole associated with it! I think he's looking forward to a normal week too!

Successful First Week for Most!

2009-08-16T14:46:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd better check in with all my blog readers. Remember I said last week that we had a busy 2 weeks coming up? I don't know how you full time working parents to do it! I have definitely been spoiled the last 5 years! I've realized that it is VERY difficult to keep the house AND kids AND husband AND errands under control while working 40 hours. I am very thankful that I have the choice of when I want work in most wonderful job ever! I'm sure next week when I get a nice fat paycheck with 80 hours on it I won't mind saying 'yes' the next time I get asked to cover for a vacation!

So everyone had a successful first week of school. That is, all but DVB. He figured out the daycare drop off deal on day 3. The first day he cried when GOB dropped him off-leg clinging and all! Day 2, GOB sent him in the door and he took off running to play so he ducked out quick. Day 3, he cried when GOB turned onto her street! Day 4 and 5 were the same! Thank goodness GOB does the dropping off! I get to do the good part of rescuing at the end of the day! The daycare lady says he's fine during the day. He eats, he plays, he takes a great nap. But he cries when he gets dropped off and picked up! I'm sure he'll be more used to the idea by the end of this week but the problem is, is that then he'll only be going to her on Mondays! He'll survive, I know!

DJB had a WONDERFUL first week of Kindergarten. At the end of the week the teacher sent home a huge stack of papers that they had done during the week. I was TOTALLY AMAZED at that work he had done and how accurate it was completed. Here I had been a worry wort all week thinking he would be inside his turtle shell but I was far from right on that one! I never knew he had it in him! Is he intimidated by his own mother or what's the deal? Whatev!

LOB loves his teacher as well. She seems a little on the strict side but I bet she's a great teacher and is very well organized. As I was reading through the instructions of nightly homework, I noticed her policy was a little on the harsh side if the child forgot to have his or her parents sign the daily behavior report. It said, "The student will suffer consequences if the Tiger Report is not signed for 2 consecutive days." Yikes! So I asked LOB what the consequences were and he said he wouldn't get to eat his snack! I don't think so, she can't withhold snack time for delinquent parents! It's funny, the first thing he did everyday when walking in the door after school was to have me sign the report right away!

GOB made great progress on the counter top project. I believe the upstairs counters will be ready for install tonight after the last coat of sealer is applied. 2 parts of the kitchen counter top will be ready for install tomorrow night! Yay! So the kitchen will be 1/4 done tomorrow. Now I need to decide what to do with the back splash. There was travertine there but GOB's ripping that off so I'm thinking just to sheet rock it, texture, and paint it. Maybe I'll do some decorative stencil or something on it...options, options.

So that's our update for the week. It may be another week before you hear from us again! Until then, I hope you have a great week!

It Was a Success!

2009-08-10T17:31:00.001-07:00

The first day of school was a success! They both want to go back again tomorrow! Yay!

I was worried about DJB being a little too much on the shy side but his teacher said he did great! The only sad time he had was when he dropped his spoon and then wouldn't eat his applesauce at lunch time! I asked him if he knew anyone in his class, knowing he didn't, and he said, "Ya, I know everyone!" Duh! He's excited to do science tomorrow too!

LOB likes his teacher too. She seems very strict. I noticed in her instructions to parents that if the parents fail to initial the behavior chart each night, the student will suffer consequences the next day! Geez-O! She's serious! I asked if she was as nice as last year's teacher and he said yes. I'm not worried about him at all! Oh and the funny thing was, he said he asked his teacher permission to go check on DJB today and she let him. Awww! What a great big brother! I'm so proud of him!

And now for DVB's day...Thankfully GOB dropped him off at his first day of daycare because I had a feeling he might not be ok with it! GOB said he cried and was holding onto his leg as he was walking out the door. I'm SO glad it wasn't me! But Christine, his daycare provider, said he did great too and she said he's very smart for a 20 month old. She said he crawled up on the couch and was looking out the front window. She has never had any kids that have done that! He also didn't want give up his little snuggie blanket all day-usually he only sleeps with it. I'm so glad I thought to throw one of those in his bag!

Check out the hair! They even did it!

I gave GOB specific instructions to take a picture before he dropped everyone off. So when I called to remind him, he asked, "What do you want me to take a picture of? You can't see their backpacks in the picture anyway." Hence, the funky leg contortions in the picture! Oh well, it got done, that's all I wanted!

Breaking Potty News!

2009-08-09T16:00:00.001-07:00

DVB just pooped in the potty!

He was standing by me and said "poo poo." So GOB took off his diaper and set him on the potty but he got up and toodled over by the kitchen table and laid a turd on the floor! Then GOB put him back on the potty and he finished up his job there! Yay!

Be thankful I spared you the pictures!

We have a busy week ahead of us! School starts tomorrow! Can I get another BIG YAY? Also, DVB will be going to daycare for the first time! And I'm working all this week and next! So like I said, it will be a crazy place around here! You may not hear much from our house this week! So have a good one!

Desperate Teet Teets!

2009-08-07T13:55:00.000-07:00

Look at these poor birds. They have resorted to eating dog food! These guys must be desperate for anything! We even saw one drinking the dog's water! Or maybe that's what birds normally eat in the heat of the summer in our state!

I bet next, we'll see is them driving off in that little Chevron car!

Here I thought the birds flew North for the summer! Silly me!

Note to self: You know those empty bird feeders and dry bird bath aren't just yard decorations, fill them up for the poor little teet teets! (DVB calls birds teet teets!) Sheesh!

Southpaw?

2009-08-06T15:58:00.000-07:00

So I wonder if there is a medical study out there that correlates being a southpaw with one's stubborn, wild, out-of-control personality. You know, because many people have likened DVB to his Uncle B. He's left handed and he was a monterous child! Just wondering... (you know I love ya, bro)

So as he's painting, LOB is assisting and was speaking to him in babytalk.

I said, "LOB, he does speak English."

DJB, "He does? He speaks English? That's funny, English!"

I said, "Hey DJB, you speak English, too."

DJB totally amazed, "I do?"

These boys crack me up sometimes!

I guess speaking English must be as cool speaking Spanish. DJB always likes to listen to people speaking Spanish. The problem is, is that I don't remember too much of it so when he asks me what they are saying, I just make something up! But I do remember some and I believe the landscapers were talking about a tree the other day, I think...That makes sense, right?

Updated: Sparkly!

2009-08-05T15:08:00.000-07:00

Updated...at bottom

This was HILARIOUS! DVB loves loves loves shoes! Anybody's shoes! These happen to be little neighbor girl's sparkly shoes! We just had to take a picture and pretend he was a girl just for one super second!

LOB was messing with my camera and accidentally had it set at .3 mega pixels so you can't see the sparkly cuteness of these little shoes!

In other news:

GOB took the day off work and has been outside building all day. I'll have to post some progress pictures soon!

Now we're off to the vet! The dog has a rash from one end of her belly to the other. It's normal for her to get it this bad about 4 times a year. She is allergic to something but I don't want to pay the $300 for the test to see what it is. The vet thinks it's an environmental allergy and not food. Or maybe it was the entire box of Dunkin Donuts she ate on Sunday! Does anyone want to take any bets as to the estimated cost of this vet bill? They always try to talk me into a "new" drug and it only costs $125 per month! NEVER! I'd rather pay for a hydrocortisone shot and antibiotics every 3-4 months!

5 days till school starts, ya know, in case you were wondering! Yaaaaahooooo!

UPDATE: I won the bet to LOB for the vet bill by $11! It was $211 if you must know! I think he guessed $1035! Thank God he wasn't right! Flippin' dog! We have a new plan and no I did not fall for the drug that today he said would be $175-200 in her case (weight)! She's now on antibiotics for 6 weeks with a side car of hydrocortisone!

To The Dog:

2009-08-04T15:23:00.000-07:00

Toni:

I'm SICK of it! I'm sick of you stealing food off the counter! I'm sick of you picking stuff out of the garbage can! I'm sick of you chewing anything and everything in sight! You are 2 years old! ENOUGH!

You probably realized that we lost the other half of your previous shock collar! (M.I.A. after last NASCAR trip) I'm sure that's why you think you can get away with this crap again! But guess what? I have a NEW BIGGER and BETTER vibrating/ultrasonic/static collar coming in the mail! The ebay seller says I'll have it in my hot little hands in 3 days! Ha! You just wait sucka!

Oh, and it has a barking feature on it too. Don't worry, I know you don't bark for no reason. But I may suggest it to those annoying dogs who live behind us!

You have gotten out of hand but I bet by this time next week, you'll once again LISTEN or you'll get to feel that leeeeetle tickle that will bring back memories!

This new one comes with a fancy case-now we are sure to be able to keep track of all the pieces in one nice and fancy carrying case! No more lost parts around here!

OK, now I am done writing a letter to my dog....

I'll let you know if she's back in ship shape next week!

Tonight's Request Was...

2009-08-03T20:23:00.000-07:00

after he lugged a few hundred pounds of concrete up the stairs...

GOB: "Honey, can you bring me up a Budweiser and a coolie cup?"

ME: "OK..."

ME, when reaching the top of the stairs and seeing the countertops in place, "OH WOW! That's looks awesome!"

Here are a few pictures of ~~Budweiser~~ his handiwork!

He looks slightly homeless in this picture.

Budweiser View #2! Obviously a little finish work will mint this out!

Budweiser View #3! He embedded a slice of a geode stone we got at a rock shop. I really don't care for it but he's in love with it!

What? No Budweiser in this pic! I'm surprised DVB isn't nabbing a swig! Don't mind all the toys under the desk. We definitely keep a spotless house around here! Sheesh!

So now onto the rest of the project! The kitchen! I can't wait!

While GOB was demolishing the kitchen on one end, my helpers and I made 14 pints of salsa out of 25 pounds of roma tomatoes on the other end! ($10 for 25 lbs-DEAL)

DVB thought it was a "nana" and DJB kept calling them potatoes!

So I know you were wondering if you could hire GOB to redo your countertops but the answer is NO! He's mine! All mine! Bwahahahaha!

T minus 6 days till school starts-but who's counting?

3000 Hits and Tidbits!

2009-07-31T13:03:00.000-07:00

Did anyone else realize I've had over 300o hits? Ok, maybe only 200o in actuality. Maybe, just possibly, 1000 of them are my own hits! *embarrassed* Has anyone ever clicked on that map over on my sidebar and seen all the different countries some of those hits come from? Very interesting, I'd say!

In other news:

My mother joined Facebook! Do you believe it? Nope, me either! Up until now she sure enjoyed hearing all the "gossip" from me but now she'll get to find it out for herself!

10 more days till school starts! Hallelujah!

DJB just told me he was going outside to plant his peach seed so we could grow some vegetables! Huh? He asked for some "soil" to plant it in. What's wrong with "dirt"? He wondered if it would grow into a bush or a tree? Then he said he's going to need a garbage bag because he'll have to climb the peach tree to pick the peaches and put them in the garbage bag! Now he said, "I'm going to get to work. My peach seed is ready for planting!" (coming out of the bathroom, drying his peach pit off with his shirt!) He just now asked me for some worms! I said, "why you need worms?" He said, "worms grow the plant!" Duh! This boy is quite the character!

The guinea pig, Oreo, got a bath today and a clean cage and a nail trim. That's big news, huh? It is since I can't remember the last time we did all those things! Yuck! For some strange reason this creature keeps living!

Toni's boyfriend Buster is coming over tonight. They have both been exhibiting a strange behavior towards objects like pillows which makes the kids laugh hysterically! It's funny to watch the kids since they have no clue! Toni has no girl parts but Buster is FULLY intact! He's going to be "studded out" soon and needs a little practice!

I gave LOB and DJB haircuts today trying to use the techniques I observed when I took them for their first professional cuts a couple weeks ago. They turned out ok, I thought. I was happy with the fade part in the back and sides. LOB however cried when he felt the top of his head! Apparently I cut it just a tad bit too short. Actually it was much longer than I normally cut it but he wasn't too happy with me! Oh well, it's just hair!

Well, that's all for the exciting tidbits around our house! Have a great weekend!

Do You Want to Know How They Found Me?

2009-07-29T19:24:00.000-07:00

I thought so.

I always get a kick out of reading on Google Analytics about how people found my blog. So I am going to humor myself and comment on just a few of the "keywords" that people actually typed in Google and came across me! Ha!

3 boys brewery owner
Yep, that's me! What can I do for you? Well, actually, I'm not the owner of the actual brewery in New Zealand. I'm still waiting for them to contact me for a little advertising banner on my blog page. I really do get quite a few hits looking for them, not me!

3 boys band my wife
Um, no band here...I don't think you'd want me in your band. I'm not very musically inclined. Thanks for checking though.

boys haircuts
Yes, boys do need haircuts. Do you like my kid's haircuts or what?

big butt washing
Well I'm not sure how I can help you. I will say be sure to use plenty of soap when you wash that big butt!

baby and dog butt
Please, don't let your baby touch your dog's butt. It's just not clean, ya know!

biggest boy’s butt
Well none of my boys have a big butt so you better keep on looking somewhere else for the biggest boy's butt!

boys 7th birthday
Were you checking my blog for some birthday ideas? Oh, I'm flattered!

breweries on youtube
Well, I've never actually video taped GOB brewering beer. But if you need a lesson I'm sure I could post something?!?

playing in the rain
Ya, we like to do that around here too. If it's not lightening, that is. I'm pretty sure lightening and playing in the rain is not advisable!

in other pet related
In other pet related....what? Something other than dog butt related or what? I need a little more info...

fresh & easy
Ah, yep, we like it fresh and easy around here!

The following are all the keyword combinations related to washing a dog's butt, I guess! I just can't comment on all of them. You know, I do have other things to do around here besides blogging! You people are weird. I say just let your dog wash his/her own butt for Pete's sake! Nasty! I should say these are just a few, believe it or not!

how to clean a dog’s butt
dog butt clean
dog butts
dog with the biggest butt pictures
cleaning dogs butt
happy butts wash
wash baby butt
why is dog chewing butt

buzzed hair in blog title:boys
How nice of you to remember my blog by my boy's adorable buzz cuts! Thanks!

chicken pops
Yep, DVB had a case of those a couple months back.

cute tweens
Um, none of those around here yet. I've never even typed the word tween, I don't think!

dirty feet sleeping
Oh, you should never sleep with dirty feet! We certainly don't around here! 3 boys never have dirty feet! Nope!

early birthday comments for boys
How about, "Happy Early Birthday!" ? That's pretty simple, huh?

freckle feet
We have a freckly face around here but no freckle feet!

homemade bike tricks
I have seen a bunch of homemade bike tricks around our house. Thankfully none of them have taken us to the ER!

lizard in our house
Lizards are not welcome in our house. I'm sorry there's one in yours. But don't worry, it won't be long before it keels over. Just sniff around, you'll find it! Or better yet, get a cat!

lizards 4 sale
Why didn't I think of that? We could have sold all those lizards the boys have caught over the summer! Darn!

Marley-like
Oh no! Is your dog Marley-like too? I'm sorry! I can definitely empathize with you! What has your dog chewed up?

no more teachers no more books song
Fortunately we'll only be singing that song around here for less than 2 more weeks! Is there a song out there about school starting up again? Oh ya, I'm not musically inclined...

patent brewery
I wouldn't mind having a patent on a brewery some day. I have to win the lottery first!

real babysitter
Yes, thanks for checking. We finally found a real teenage babysitter and a real daycare provider! Whew! That's hard work!

teachers party
Teachers should definitely have parties! If only they could enjoy a few alcoholic beverages at their parties! They sure get the shaft, it's just not fair!

So there you have it! Entertainment at it's finest! Kinda rednecky, huh? I'll wait a few more months before I bore you with all the jabber about dog butts and breweries again! It's funny though, right? I thought so!

Leashes: They Aren't Just for Dogs!

2009-07-28T12:31:00.001-07:00

As we were discussing the dangers of small children visiting the Grand Canyon the other day, my dad said he saw a little boy up there with a monkey backpack/leash on. Then my mom said she thought DVB would be a good candidate for one of those.

Duh?

Why didn't I think of that? We always struggle with keeping him near us in a restaurant or at store when he's not in his stroller. I can think of many occasions we could have really used it! We never needed one with LOB or DJB. They usually always cooperated when we were out and about. But we all know DJB is a totally different animal. An animal who needs a leash!

So off to Tarjay we go...and lo and behold, they had a puppy one! One of the words DVB says constantly is "puppy." It was only $11.99! I almost got 2, but I thought we better make sure he doesn't mind a puppy on his back! Ha!

Ha! I love it! He can't get more than 4 ft away!

"Puppy puppy puppy!"

"C'mon DVB, let's go for a walk!"

I think he likes his leash! So I guess we'll pick up another one next time we're at Tarjay and keep it in GOB's truck! The actual leash part looks like the puppy's tail...too cute!

The girls at work warned me that people might look at us funny or give us dirty looks for having our kid on a leash. They all said they've used them on their kids and totally agreed that the people who flash the dirty looks don't know what it's like to have a wild child!

So if you see me on the street you better flash me a smile and tell me I'm a smart mom for keeping my wild child under control! Ha!

Pretty Quiet Weekend Around Here...

2009-07-26T15:32:00.001-07:00

It's been a pretty quiet is weekend around here this weekend.

Unlike last weekend when this was the scene. Yes, that is our neighbor, S! And yes, she's hiding behind our couch. Why? She was hiding from kids in a game of neighborhood hide and seek, of course! If I can remember correctly, they didn't find her! Ha! We had such a good time just bs-ing that at 3 am we thought we really should call it a night! That doesn't happen very often around here! We're gettin' too old!

GOB is FINALLY making some progress on the countertop project or as I call it "The Project of the Year!" (the kitchen countertop starting falling apart in May-just so you have a reference point) If you personally know GOB, you know that every project whether big or small, electronic related or wood related, takes him a long time to plan. Every detail must be thoroughly planned and supplies accounted for before he can even think to start for another week or 2! I'm not giving him crap, it just takes L.O.N.G.E.R. to do things his way! Hee hee! I know I'm lucky to have such a handy man!

He's made a semi-air conditioned, plastic walled workshop in the garage. He really wanted to do the project inside but.... um ya, I nixed that idea!

Here he is displaying one of the three parts to the upstairs desk countertop. He decided he needed some practice before attacking the kitchen countertops. The existing top up stairs was also black formica. If you look really close you'll see the fancy edge. That was a couple weeks worth of research alone! What would we do without the internet these days? I can't even imagine how many hours he's spent reading and rereading...

This is one of the molds for the third part which is ready for the concrete.

I will say that I can see my kitchen looking normal again in oh, about 2 months! Whew! Then what will the next project be?

LOB and DVB decided to cool off by jumping on the trampoline with a sprinkler!

DJB's been building Lego creations and who knows what else. I'll probably find some more alien pee tomorrow!

I worked a couple hours yesterday and today. So other than those exciting things, we're just trying to stay cool inside being lazy!

The Last Big Adventure of Summerfest!

2009-07-22T18:19:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of Summerfest, Grammy asked the boys were they would like to go for a road trip this summer. At first the boys picked Legoland in San Diego, California. Ok, sounds good. Let's all go! Then a couple weeks later, they decided to go to The Grand Canyon. Huh? My kids passed up Legoland for The Grand Canyon? Whatev! You guys can go and I'll pick them up. Once you've seen The Grand Canyon, you've seen The Grand Canyon! You'll regret it some day boys but now you can say you've seen The Grand Canyon.

So they loaded up the ~~Hilton on Wheels~~ RV, and parked it in Williams, AZ. They took the Grand Canyon Railway to the canyon which I believe was a couple hour train ride each way. Then they spent a few hours at the canyon toodling around feeding squirrels illegally and touring museums.

Looks like they got robbed while on the train...

LOB's comment of the trip was, "It was big fun."

DJB's comment of the trip was, "It was fun because of the squirrels."

Yep, it looks the same since the last time I saw it, oh about 10 years ago.

This look like Grammy and Grandpa got suckered into a souvenir!

Yah, this view looks the same too!

Anyway, GOB, DVB, and I are very thankful for our 7 week vacation from LOB and DJB. Thanks, Mom and Dad for the honeymoon (your words, not mine!) Ha! Boys, it's boot camp at home in 1.5 days! Back to picking up dog poop and taking out the trash! Hee hee!