I'm POOPED

It has been a crazy few days... don't I always start out like this? The boys are doing well in school, swimming, gymnastics and hockey. Parker lost one of his front teeth. The other one is loose too. I keep telling him to wiggle it so that he can sing "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth". He doesn't think I am funny. He keep drooling now too. It is so cute! I tell him it reminds me of how much he drooled as a baby. That little boy wore bibs 24/7 to catch all his spit. Maybe I should offer that to him now... can you imagine him wearing one into first grade. He would kill me!!!

We are starting to get ready for Christmas. We really need to shop early since we have so many kids. As always new kids to our house will get a bike for Christmas. I'm not sure what everyone else will be getting. We have decided to simplify this year. Our kids really do have enough toys. This year we are going to take all the kids for the weekend after Christmas to Winter Park. They have a tubing hill, and ice skating, and pool... it should be a lot of fun.

We are still in the process of finishing the kids rooms up. Parker and Owen switched rooms. Parker has upgraded to a Big bed... a high loft bed that he loves and Owen has inherited his low loft bed with the slide. We decorated Parker's room in a pirate theme BUT we kept everything easy so that way when he wants a change we won't have to repaint. That was crazy! We still need to repaint Owen's room. He wants a hockey room. Don't laugh... but his favorite team is the Leafs. I know... I am shocked too! He just loves them! He gets all excited when he sees them on TV. I'm not so sure I should take him skating back home with his Leaf's jersey on... I don't that is a safe option. We bought a 7 foot fathead of a leaf player for his wall. We have been buying hockey sticks to put up randomly around the room... and I need to get some pucks that I can stick to the wall.

We got a placement of two little boys the other day. They are adorable... I'm not sure how long they will stay. They sure are alot of work. Owen is having fun playing with someone his own age. He isn't jealous at all... no surprise there though!

Ski season is about to start. I think we will wait until the beginning of December to head up for the first time. We signed Parker up for ski school starting in January. He should have a lot of fun this year. I am hoping we can take Owen off of his leash too. James is terrified to let him go on his own. We will see how much control he has. He is so much stronger than last year, so I think he will be going down by himself after a few runs.

I also started to sell Juice Plus+. I am somewhat excited about this new venture, but I am really doing this so that I can buy mine at a wholesale price. It has made such a difference in my life, energy, body and mind! Not to mention that Parker and Owen have almost stopped all of their asthma medication because of it. What a nice feeling!

That's all for now.... I need to post more often. Time is a factor lately.... I need more hours in the day!

Fall Break... Vomit.... More Vomit... & the Pumpkin Patch

We found a potty in the middle of the pumpkin patch... who would forget a potty???


James found a good one... he loves to carve them!



The boys looking for the perfect "little" pumpkin for Owen. Our rule is that you have to be able to carry it to the car yourself.









What a fall break it was. We had three days off of school to enjoy the kids. I had such great plans... the museum, skating, swimming... On the first day Parker threw up all day. On the second day we got out for a little, but then Owen was complaining he was sick... then the vomit came again. On the third day of our Halloween party, one for ourselves and one for the kids at the YMCA Owen was puking all day "JOY"!!! That night Brendyn decided to join him. Later that night... James was feeling a little jealous that everyone was throwing up that he decided to start as well. I was feeling pretty lucky that I didn't receive the "gift of vomit", but on Sunday morning the gift was given to me as well as Daniel. James and I were both sick and praying for death. My lower back and sides still hurt today. How on earth do the kids run around and play with this is beyond me. We took all of Sunday off, lounged around and did nothing, feeling like crap. We are all much better today. We took a trip to the pumpkin patch, saw some animals and played in the hay. It was fun! Now I need to catch up on laundry... if I miss a couple days... I am catching up for what seems like weeks!!!

This week should be fun.

Lots of Halloween activities and candy!!!

More gray to come

It seems like life is spinning in circles. It has been crazy around here. It always seems like there is something to do.

Owen has been testing us in every way possible lately. If I have to hear one more thing about "poop" I will go crazy. He has burned his hand on the stove (it wasn't anything bad thank god), James had to give him the Heimlich since he was choking on a fruit snack (very scary!!!!), he almost got hit by a car running into the road... Many, many gray hairs are coming, I can feel it!

James made me my first Canadian thanksgiving dinner the other night. I know we were a week late, but with James out of town all last week it just wouldn't have been possible. It was nice to enjoy the company of good friends and good conversation... even a little celebration dance for the eBay winning!!! The turkey was fantastic, the mashed potatoes (my personal favorite) were even better. He made pumpkin dip and fruit salsa with my favorite Cinnamon chips.... Thanks husband!! Now I need to put in order for KFC for you thanksgiving. I am sure it will be just as wonderful as mine was. :)


On Friday night James and I went out by ourselves. It is so nice to spend time alone with him. Tracy watched the kids again. Thanks Tracy!! We decided to go out to dinner and then to one of the haunted houses around town. Dinner was great, better than expected actually! The little Hispanic woman asked me for ID, then laughed and said "you look jung". She made my night!! I must say I felt rather old in line for the haunted house though. It was mostly high school kids and their parents. It was lame. The only time I was scared was when a bookshelf almost fell on me. Hey, that is my real fear! I am terribly claustrophobic, a little secret I will share with you all. So, I have come to the conclusion that a visit to a haunted house was much better in my twenties when I was drunk, than in my thirties trying to take a break from my children. It was a fun night though, thanks to James' great sense of direction we made it out of the maze. If it were left up to me I we would have still been there.

Lisa and Fernando are leaving on Thursday morning. To be honest, it will be nice to have them go back home. They have had some pretty trying behaviors that I have worked through, but they are still struggling. Now I need to prepare myself for the next group that will come. I am just going to wait for the phone call, instead of picking and choosing my ages. It just seems to work out better that way. I am secretly hoping for a younger girl with an older brother. We are lacking estrogen in this house!

We are off to another week with Halloween just around the corner. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. It come right after Christmas.... I would much rather have presents than candy!!!


Oh ya... I almost forgot... The snow is falling in the mountains... do you know what that means??? Ski season is almost here. Loveland and A basin have already opened... Now, I have to wait until the middle of November for Copper and Winter park. I am thrilled!!! I think the boys will do so well (James included). He told me the other day he was excited to go skiing this season!!! I have brainwashed him well!

"let it snow, let it snow, let it snow..."

Pound puppy dashboard

While going to King Soopers today to get some groceries, I hate grocery shopping BTW, I saw a very interesting car. It was an Cadillac, white in color with a very interesting decor. All along the dash of the car were different miniature stuffed pound puppies. There was probably 25... NO JOKE... all the same size but arranged by color. This is crazy. Now bobble heads I could see... but not 25! This adds to my theory that as we age, we become crazy! I think by the time you are seventy you are reverting back to your childhood and becoming young and stupid... AGAIN. Hey, we were all young once, and made some stupid choices in life... right???

It has been a busy week and this week does not look any better! James will be out of town all week. I am going to change my workouts to the evening, that way I can have a break from the madness.... Madness being my children! James and I are planning to go out to dinner on Friday night and then go to a haunted house. The last one I went to was before we had Parker. I believe it was at Eltich's with Catherine and Chris. Man I miss you guys!! Did you have to move all the way to the east coast??? Anyways, it should be fun. It will give me something to look forward to all week.

I know many of you, if you haven't already, are having your Thanksgiving dinner tonight. I am extremely jealous. Every year James tells me he will cook just for me on Columbus Day (The Canadian Thanksgiving) yet it never really happens. Yesterday when some of you were eating turkey, I was at a great birthday party! Thanks Cindy it was awesome and the kids had so much fun! Tonight, when the rest of you will eat that yummy turkey, I will be at the YMCA working out... and probably having mac and cheese for dinner. On the upside, James said he will make me my "thanksgiving" dinner this coming weekend. I am excited! The catch to this is... I will have to make his for him and and the family in November. Those of you that know my "culinary skills" know that we might be eating KFC that night!!!

Back to laundry.....

This whole Hockey thing makes me tired!!!

It has been a very busy few days.

Ladies... Thursday night could not have been any better! We went to go see the show Girls Only: The secret life of women. Before hand we all had dinner, which was amazing! Good food, great conversation, news friends, and a super hard chocolate canoli that was less than desirable(I didn't need the extra calories anyways!). The show was very funny. I was very upset that I didn't get a parting gift that was thrown at the end of the show. Maybe next time :)

Saturday James and I went out to dinner and then to a movie. We usually choose our movies based on the time they end, due to having to pick the kids up from Kids Night Out at the YMCA. We decided to chose the movie "blindness". BAD CHOICE! I kept looking to see what time it was. I honestly think about 15% of the movie was a blank screen. I could have fallen asleep. James thought the gang rape orgy was somewhat interesting... hmmm I have to beg to differ. On a good note, we had Cold Stone on the way home. That always makes me happy.

Today was CRAZY! Parker was at hockey in the morning, Owen had his hockey class at noon, and then they both had lessons at 4. Needless to say my laundry sat folded on the couch (still is sitting there) to be done tomorrow. It was fun, but I just felt like I was running around like crazy all day. It is fun to watch the boys play. Parker is having so much fun. He really enjoys playing. He has two other boys from his class that are in it too! Owen actually made it through his whole class without losing his attention. He does get bored easily, I mean honestly, could you skate around your hockey stick for 5 minutes without going crazy? He did a great job today.

Another start of a new week. Halloween is coming. We took out all of our costumes and decorations tonight. I think we might have a Halloween party. We're not sure yet. James tried on this really cool ghost buster costume. It was skin tight and he wore it without anything underneath. I couldn't stop laughing. It was so funny. Something a sick old man would wear, for sure! I will try to convince him to wear it. I snapped a picture, but it didn't turn out.... bummer!

Owen's video from his YMCA hockey class

James usually uploads these to youtube, but he has been so busy lately. Here are a couple of short clips of my little "O" skating at his YMCA hockey class. Owen is in the red jersey with white socks, number 3, the smallest one in the bunch and he holds his hockey stick way up in the air.

Weekend Fun

Owen doing warm ups! He is Number 3 in the red jersey.



Streching....




Hi mom and dad!!



I am going to score a goal on my coach!



I SCORED!!! He was so excited... He skated over to tell us!!



Owen pushing his friend on the chair.



Owen's turn to be pushed!! He was smiling the whole time!


It was a nice weekend, relaxing with the kids. James was working on Friday night and most of the day on Saturday, so the kids and I hung out and had some fun. We went to the VIP event at Mr Goodcents, free food and firefighters, can it get better than that? Later that afternoon we headed to a park for Fayth's 1st birthday party. It was fun to watch the kids run around and hit the pinata. Fayth was so cute eating her cake. It seems like yesterday we went to go see her after she was born. Time seems to be going by way to fast, and that would mean I am getting older faster (I'm still recovering from finding the gray hairs).

Today we went to see Owen's hockey class and then out to lunch. Owen did great at his class. He had to push another little boy on a chair. James didn't think he would be able to do it, man was he wrong! Not only did Owen push the chair with the little boy on it, he was faster than I ever thought he would be! We went out to lunch at the Smiling Moose. I don't usually eat at new places, but this was amazing!! It was so fresh and yummy. I've had really good food and many different places lately... it is either better food or my taste buds are craving anything since I've been living on celery and cucumbers lately!

The Avs Game

Jack the Zamboni



The other Zamboni named...??? Owen loves "boni's" so this was fun to see two at the same time!







We had such a fun time!

I want to thank Brady for the AWESOME seats. Parker is going to bake you some yummy cookies!!! We were so close that the kids (we took all 6 of them) were scared when the players hit the glass! We were in section 122 row 5, in seats 17, 16, 15 etc.. right by the blue line!

Parker and Owen were up dancing and cheering. Parker told me he was a little scared to play hockey now. When I asked him why, he told me he didn't want to get hit like the "big hockey players". We explained that they will not hit like that during his hockey season. That made him feel much better.

Owen, on the other hand, kept asking when he would see blood. He wanted to see a bloody hockey fight. There was one fight, but no blood. I think Owen was rather disappointed. Should I be worried about this?? He had fun watching the goalie and saw up close two goals. After watching all of the hockey players "skate fast and skate fast backwards" he told me he is going to work hard so that he can skate with them. He has big dreams!!!

Here are some pictures from the game! I would have taken more my the battery died in my camera. :(

You won't belive what I found this morning!!!

This morning started off like any other typical school morning. Waking kids up, getting kids dressed, brushing teeth... changing shirts since they got toothpaste all over themselves... etc. I always brush Parker's hair and then spike it up in the main floor bathroom, then I take a quick look to make sure I look somewhat decent in the mirror. This morning I found something. Something that I have never found before. As I stood and looked in the mirror I found one HUGE GRAY HAIR. I am only 32, should I be getting gray hair already??? It was really long, how long was it there before I realized??? I plucked it out quickly and then thought, maybe it is just a really light blond hair. I grabbed Parker and asked him (I was still holding this gray hair in my hand shaking) what color the hair was. He looked at me and said "It's gray, no wait it's white...".

OMG!!!

I tried not to panic, although to be honest I think I was on the verge of tears. I am not ready for this. I am not ready to be old. I have never dyed my hair.... Now I would have to start... so I was going over a million things in my head as I frantically searched my head for more of the dreaded "gray hairs" I found 2 more. I plucked them out. I know "rumor" has it that they will grow back 2 times more if you pluck them, but I just couldn't have them in there. Maybe they have always been there and I just never noticed. Where are my friends, my honest upfront friends, when you need them to tell me... Maybe I have more in the back of my head that I don't know about. I am going crazy!!!

On another note things have been busy around here. We are going to the Avs game tonight since Owen does not have skating lessons. That should be fun! Parker has his Limo to Lunch today. I had to buy cookie dough out the yin yang for that, but it was worth it to see the smile on his face. Parker was off of school yesterday so we took full advantage of the time together. We went swimming in the morning, then skating in the afternoon. It was nice skating. Parker and Owen were the only kids on the ice. They went out there with their sticks and pucks and had so much fun together. I had to bribe them to get off the ice! Normally, Owen is done after about an hour. It was a fun day.

I was going to volunteer at the school today, but with Parker going out to lunch at 10:30 for his limo ride, I figure I would come home and catch up on laundry.... I know you guys are all jealous!!!

Walls, Missing Dogs and Hockey... what else?

What a busy weekend. Not a fun one... just super busy.

James and I went out to dinner on Friday night. It was nice to have great food, my goodness I want to go back to that restaurant again, and fun walking around Belmar shopping with my husband. The kids were having fun of their own at Kids Night Out. They came home singing "Under the Sea" and with little dolphins full of colored sand (those will disappear very soon, who gives a 3 year old colored sand to take into the house??).

On Saturday we started to build our wall downstairs. We were debating if we should, or shouldn't, but in the end James won. It does look much better! James and I ordered in Chinese that night and played Risk. I haven't played that game in ages. No, I didn't cheat. Well, okay, I did! But I always cheat at board games, so anyone who plays with me knows this going in. It adds extra "fun" detective piece to the game! hehehe I still lost??!!??!?

It was this afternoon that we realized Clyde was gone. He is so old and just lays around during the day, we didn't even notice that he was gone. I called and left a message for animal control, no luck. The kids left the gate open so he probably just walked away. No running for him. He is 16 years old! We are so worried about him.

Sunday was busy too. We all slept in. I had a horrible dream about a fire and looking for Parker and Owen. I woke up to Owen patting my chest telling me that "I'm right here mom". I must have been talking in my sleep. It still gives me chills to think about it now. I took Owen to his hockey class and after driving half way there I realized his hockey stick was in the van. I didn't want to drive the 20 minutes back home, so that lucky boy got a new stick. He did much better than last week in his class. He really likes this one older boy in the class and has a lot of fun skating around. He is a fast little guy! After skating Parker, Owen and I headed to Mary's house. Parker had fun being the center of attention for once. He was shooting a video for the Juice Plus he is taking. His dramatic side was in full force and he did awesome. They are going to use the footage at the convention in Memphis next month. We have seen huge differences in both Parker and myself since taking Juice Plus. The energy piece is amazing and his asthma has not been an issue at all. When we got home I got a phone call from Animal Control, they found Clyde. James didn't want to go get him. He thought of this as an easy out. I personally couldn't see him sitting in a cage for the last few days of his life. I know Clyde is old, and probably won't make it very long, but I couldn't leave him there. So, he is here, eating like crazy and whining as usual!

Time to throw in a load of laundry and get ready for the week ahead. I hope everyone had a great weekend!

The smell of popcorn

James is out of town again, is anyone noticing a trend?? Anyone who has spent more than 48 hours in my house knows that James cannot stand the smell of microwave popcorn. He doesn't let any of the kids make it, or even me sometimes. I am now taking advantage of the fact that he is out of town, AGAIN, and made my self some popcorn for lunch. Yes, you read that right, for lunch. It sounded so good I couldn't resist. I just got back from picking the boys up from school. I walked into the house... what a wonderful smell. I don't understand why James doesn't like it.

I volunteered at Parker's school today. It was fun, but I didn't intend of staying as long as I did. His teacher is nice, yet very strict, which I think is a nice match for Parker. After I was done I had to run and get Owen from Happy Valley. I was going to work out, but really didn't feel like it. Owen got upset, he wanted to go to Child Watch. He loves playing at the Y when I work out. He just loves the staff and all the children. I figured I would use him as my motivation today.

I am usually pretty particular about which elliptical I use. I like the third one in from the left. Why? It has the best view of the mountains! You can't beat working out while looking at the Rocky Mountains. Also, it is between TV number 3 and 2 which is always on HGTV and Fox News. Then I get a little dose of reality with a little dose of home renovation all while listening to great music. I am really enjoying getting back into my routine. I am going to start my cycling classes next week. I miss them, I just had to get back in shape before I went again. I might try the 70's cycle on Wednesday nights. Then grab Owen and take him to skating lessons after. Anyways, I was happy I went today. I got to try that Zumba class that everyone has been talking about. I only was able to stay for about 15 minutes, Owen was in Child watch and I had to pick him up at 1, but it was so much fun! Granted I am a much better dancer when there is alcohol involved. I looked stupid, but was laughing and had a great time! Next time I will arrange to stay for the whole class. I finally got the nerve to weigh myself again... I am now down 20 pounds. That explains what happened on Tuesday. I was walking out of the Y. I had my bag, Garin's bag, Owen's bag and Garin on my hip. We were crossing the street and I didn't have a hand for Owen to hold. I told him to hold onto my pocket while we cross the street and walk through the parking lot towards the car. The more we walked the more I noticed that my shorts were falling down. By the time I got to the car, one side of my shorts was about half way down my thigh. It is a good thing I was wearing my pretty panties that day! Owen was laughing... "I see your underpants mommy"... it was funny! No one was around THANK GOD! I am refusing to buy new clothes until next year. Hopefully I won't look like too much of a slob with all my baggy clothes!

Happy Mommy = Happy Children and Husband

What a couple of crazy days! Things have been so busy around here lately. Owen had his little hockey class at the YMCA on Sunday. He did well! He had so much fun, and he was one of the fastest on the ice. I am very proud of that little boy. His listening skills were good, they got a little poor as the time went on and when he got tired, but he is still only 3. I felt much better on Sunday, thank god! I needed to feel better, things just don't stop around here.

Yesterday was interesting. James, for some twisted reason, thinks that all I do all day is chat with friends, go out to eat, play.... basically sit on my butt and eat bonbons all day. I was hoping to write a play by play of my day. Maybe then he will realize that I am running around like crazy most times. Well I don't have time for that. I tried, but I only made it to 9am and then realized that took me 20 minutes... FORGET IT.... I am busy James... get over it!

I did go out to breakfast with Cindy. As always, the conversation was fabulous, the food was wonderful and Bodie was adorable! We should be able to get this girls night planned out. Thanks for the help. I do think Thursday will be slightly better for me too!

I am trying a new approach to life. It is called if I do things for myself, I will be happier and in turn do more things for the children and my husband. I have been the most dedicated mother to my children for so long. Their needs always have come before mine. That is what parenting is about. I am now realizing that I need to fit time in for myself into that equation too. It has been nice. A hard balance, but well worth it in the end.

I was supposed to have the afternoon free. Kalina was going to pick up Parker at school and bring him back to me. Kalina called feaking out and told me her car wouldn't start. I ran to gather up all my children, drove (very fast mind you) to the school to pick up Parker, and then over to Golden to pick up Kalina and her 3 boys who were stranded at the school. It is at times likes these that I am thankful for my "sports car". I am not sure if all of you know but when I gave birth to Owen we just didn't have enough room in the Subburban for everyone. So we made the choice (OUT OF NEED) to buy a 12 passenger van. I nicknamed it my sports car. Luckily I have that. We all piled into the car and I took them home. When James got home from work we went back to pick them up and see what was wrong with the car.

Another reason I am so lucky: To have a husband that can fix almost anything!!

We ended up having it towed to our house and James will fix it today when he gets home. This whole ordeal took us from 5 to almost 8. It was fun to let the kids play. They never do get enough time with each other. I had James feed the kids something fast for dinner and put them to bed while I drove Kalina home and got some yummy Chipotle for us! The highlight of my evening (I love chipotle) was dinner and the great uninterrupted conversation with my good friend. Yes, so we were sitting and waiting for a tow truck, but when have we spent that much time together?? It was fun making the best out of a bad situation!

Then the surprise phone call from Vic. I think we talked for almost 2 hours! It was so much fun! It felt like we were in high school again gossiping and giggling like little kids! I can't even tell you how much I miss you Vicki. If that whole situation with "little Stubby" doesn't work out... I am sure we can go out here and find a man. For some reason they always flock to us when we are together! Just this time I won't be able to go home with that very attractive lawyer with the nice car... (he freaked me out... what was I thinking???!?!?!?) I can go home to James and the boys.

Oh yes... and to add to my elderly drama.... I got rear ended today. Yes, by someone in the over 70 population. The damage to his car was moderate and nothing happened to my "sports car". I think he hit the trailer hitch on the back. The kids were screaming and freaking out. Parker was saying he wanted to call the police... It was VERY funny, since we weren't even hit that hard.

I will share a piece of art work that Owen brought home from school the other day. He drew a pictures of what mommy does best and what daddy does best. Mommy is best at shopping and daddy is best at working. ha ha! That little boy knows us well!

Sick... and tired... and still sick

Friday I had a great breakfast, with a great friend. It was nice to sit and chat for almost 2 hours!!!! Unbelievable! Right after that is when it started to hit me. My throat was sore, but nothing else was up.

James was upset with me. I was really mean and rude, and I am sorry (no laughing this time). He told me that he got a 75 cent raise, and I chuckled slightly, which really made him mad. It was mean. I was not being sensitive to you, and I'm sorry. Now that I am sick, I'm getting the cold shoulder, which is a real bummer since all I want to do is lay in bed and watch movies all day. I guess you get what you give.

Owen starts his little hockey class tomorrow. This opportunity just fell in our laps, and we weren't really looking for it. I hope it works out. We were just trying to sign up for Stick and puck, but they changed all the times. I really didn't want to be up and out at 6:30 on a Sunday morning. They know Owen well over there at the YMCA so they told me to put him in this class. He doesn't listen well at all, but we will see how it goes. I would much rather him be closer to our house, I hate to drive 20 minutes north, but let's see what happens.

James has been making many comments to me about my inability to sit still or be in the house for more than a couple hours at a time. After this weekend.... I agree, not that I didn't before. I want out! I just always have to be busy. I guess that is how I can handle so many children, they keep me going in circles most days, and it really doesn't phase me. We have a kids night out on the 19th over in Belmar. I like that one. It is short but James and I walk across the street and sit at BW3 and get some drinks and some wings and play the trivia games for 2 hours. It is fun and a nice unwinding experience before the weekend starts. The kids have fun too! Lisa and Fernando will be gone all this week for outdoor lab, that will be nice!

Tom we have been thinking about you. I am glad that you got a match and your transplant was successful! We think of you guys often, wish you lived closer, not that Loveland is far. We will all stop by to see you when everyone is feeling healthy.... you don't want these germs!

Bunco Night

I'm back from another fun night at Bunco with the girls. We didn't have enough people to play, but we sure had fun. Thanks Shelly for being such a wonderful host. As always the food was wonderful, no need to eat dinner before heading to your house! The conversation was great. It is nice to get a mix of people and see every one's perspective on things. I hope the brownie with the "white creamy filling" goes over well. I would like to hear an update on that one! Sitting here I realized that I should have taken you up on your offer to bring home that delicious banana bread! You need to teach me how to bake... I am really lacking in that department.

BTW: I am not sure if I mentioned this to you.... Shelly you looked awesome tonight! I loved your hair!

I got home around 9 ish... to my sitter who put all but one of the 6 to bed. Of course my little, sweet, devilish Owen was smiling at me as I walked in the door. Alissa did a great job! It pays to have 5 brothers and sisters. What a talent she has with the kids. Thanks for laying in our bed and trying to get Owen to sleep Derek. It never works... but you gave it a good try. Tomorrow is back to the same. I feel spoiled getting to spend so much time with my friends lately. It has been really nice. Twice in one week!!!

Out of town again

James is gone again until Friday. I must admit the overtime is nice, but I miss my husband. I met him today before he left so that I could say goodbye. I could have done it this morning, but he left so early, like 5 am early, and I was not in the right mind set to give him more than a grunt. I brought him a surprise to take on the road with him, he didn't even want it. I had to chase this special thing down all morning.... okay so it was the darn dog that got out again and the only way I could get her back was to give in and let her ride in the car. I am just amazed that James didn't want the company. I can picture him riding with Lucy.... awww James... it might have been a good bonding experience!

Parker had his first baseball game last night. He did well! He hit the ball on the first try and made it to the base. He is so cute when he runs. I really don't like baseball. It is so boring to watch... yawn! He was having fun, that is all that matters. Owen is starting his swim lessons next week. We missed this week because he was so sick. I'm not going to take him skating this week either, he is still not himself yet.

Bunco is tonight. I haven't been in almost 2 months. I miss chatting and hanging out with all the girls. It should be fun! Maybe I can remember to take the camera and snap some pictures. Thanks for coming over today for lunch Rachel. I made my gourmet pizza, yummm! Let me know if you want to take those boxes of clothes off my hands. I am taking advice from some friends and starting to get rid of things that I do not need. If anyone wants to come over and help organize... feel free! No need to call either... just stop on by!

I am so sad to say goodbye....

This is the time of year I always dread. The weather starts to change, the mornings are cooler and crisper each day. Fall is coming! I love Fall weather. I like to see the leaves turn and start to fall from the trees. It is nice to be able to put on that sweater you haven't pulled from your closet since last year. Moving all your short sleeved shirts to the other side of the closest. With all the new, comes the goodbyes to summer. I am not a sun person, you can tell by my white pasty skin.

The sadness comes with putting my flip flops away. They are so comfortable and easy! Now there are sock issues to deal with, so confining! My nice pedicures will have to wait until next year, well maybe I can squeeze one more in this year!!! I am hoping for warmer weather so that I might be able to rescue my flip flops from their winter storage to wear once or twice this fall. It was a great summer!!

On another note... Parker has started baseball. He really is enjoying himself. His coach is a great guy and works really well with all the kids. There is another first grader from Parker's school, so he was VERY happy! He is still somewhat afraid of the ball, but when looking around, so were most of the kids. Owen in enjoying going to child watch to hang out with all the kids while Parker plays baseball. I am enjoying being able to work out in the evening and see a different crowd at the YMCA while Parker practices. His first game is on Tuesday. I will post more pictures then.

Try Hockey was last night. Parker was very tired! Owen did well for the first 20 minutes.... then he did his own thing for the rest of the time. He got super tired and wanted off the ice at 6. He was hungry and cranky! He got home, we ate, bath and right to bed with no complaints.... I wish I had that every night. That little boy loves hockey so much, but his body is still so little that he can't skate for 2 hours like the big kids can! I need to remember that he just turned 3! Even if he acts like he is 16 sometimes!

Garage Explosion.... Ouch my foot!

James was cleaning the garage all day yesterday. To be honest and admit my faults I am a pack rat. I can't seem to get rid of things that "someday" we might need and use. It is just that "someday" never seems to come soon enough to get it out of his garage. Out of pity for my poor husband I decided to help him out a little bit today(it also could have been due to his bitching and complaining too). What a nice wife I am, no need to mention that most of the crap in the garage is mine. I was sweeping.... man I hate to sweep, and I was picking up stuff from our garage sale that was in June(no need to comment I know I should have done it sooner). It is really a mess. I still can't stand to give away the crib. Owen's little teeth marks are still on it from his gnawing phase... (aw how cute!!). I even found this adorable little bikini top (who knows where this Hawaiian tropic beauty came from). I put it on on top of my shirt and was having a GRAND time trying to make this fun! James was bitching and moaning as he always does when he tries to organize the garage. I was singing and dancing.... with my Hawaiian bikini top.... it was about a girls size 10 if you can even imagine that (okay it was on top of my clothes....thank god... I might have been arrested otherwise) but the neighbors were still staring at me like I was crazy. Sometimes you just have to have a little fun!!!

THEN all the fun came to an end... I swear I broke my foot! Okay, it really isn't broken, but it sure felt like it was! I was walking the bikes back into the garage... being my usual bubbly and a wee bit clumsy self.... when the bike got stuck on something and the kickstand jammed VERY HARD into the top of my foot. I screamed some obscenities, okay so I am a bit on the wimpy side! I am a strong enough to admit that I am a baby when I get hurt. So, if you can picture this, I am laying on my back on our old coffee table, that is now in the middle of our driveway, with my "way cool" Hawaiian bikini top, whining with my foot up in the air.... My lovely, sweet and ever so caring husband went to go get me ice. We need not mention the words that were coming out of his mouth as he did these "wonderful" things for me. I can now, after an hour, FINALLY walk on my foot again. I have a bruise, that I know will triple in size within a few days... BUT I did get out of cleaning the garage!!!!

So the rest of the day is left for naps, lunch, try hockey (we will see how Owen does this time), finishing folding all that laundry and then family over for dinner afterwards. I feel great after just hanging out last night. The kids had fun at Kids Night Out, and I finally got to see Mamma Mia! I thought I would have to wait to see that one on video. Lisa, I thought about you the whole time I was watching that movie. I remember how we used to play the ABBA CD as loud as we could in David's car singing and driving everyone crazy! I hope everyone had a great weekend.

Oh and Vic..... I will call you tonight.... I have to talk to you about something!!!!!! It will be a bit on the later side though... around 9 my time, 11 yours!

I got a ride in a police car today!!!!!!

This week has been full of craziness. Before I tell my police car story, I need to mention that I think the elderly population of Arvada is going crazy. This is my third incident with elderly craziness in 2 days! What is going on??? Maybe there is something in the water.... will that be me in 60 years??? God I hope not!!!


I need to set the story up so that it is understandable. I have children at 4 schools here. Lisa and Fernando go to one, Asia at another, Parker at another and Owen at Preschool. My mornings are crazy but it usually gets off without a hitch. Asia leaves around 6:45, Lisa and Fernando walk to school and leave at 7:05, Owen starts school at 8:45 and Parker is the last to leave and be to school by 9 am. This morning was like any other day. Telling Fernando that he cannot wear the Guinness shirt he mom bought him (what mother would buy their 11 year old beer paraphernalia???) to school that day and to make sure and take a healthy snack. No, Cheetos are not healthy boys abd girls! They left the house and I began to get the little boys ready. I didn't have Garin today, since I volunteer at the school on Wednesday mornings. Rachel picked up Owen to take him to school. Parker and I headed out of the door at 8:45. On my way home I noticed a police car sitting in front of the house. Now my usual reaction to this would be to laugh and ask the very good looking, young, handsome officer what Derek has done now. He started to tell me the story of how Lisa and Fernando were assaulted by two elderly ladies on the way to school this morning. I guess one of the ladies asked Fernando about where Chris and Nicky have been. When Fernando responded "None of your business", the ladies proceeded to grab his arm (hard enough to leave a mark). Fernando pulled his arm away, then the other lady grabbed Lisa, leaving finger print bruises on her arm. I was shocked! We live in a nice neighborhood. Nothing ever happens on the way to school. I then got to hop into the police car.... I RODE IN THE FRONT... NOT THE BACK.... and show the handsome, young, very attractive officer where the only 2 elderly ladies I knew lived. It was short ride, but now I can cross off "ride in a police car" off my list of must dos. Did I mention that the officer was young and handsome??

The reason for my griping!

This is when I caught Max on the couch. They said he couldn't even go upstairs when we first got him. They were wrong! He was such a sweet boy!

Last night James and I sat on the couch, yes as I said before I was a blubbering mess, and were deciding what to do about Max. When we rescued Max about 7 months ago we knew about his hip problems and were aware that his life expectancy would be shorten because of this ailment. I think I mentioned earlier that Max had been sick this weekend. He has been slowly becoming less active, although let's face it he is a Newf so basically he wasn't moving at all anymore. We tried last night to feed him treats, ham, turkey anything that would be tops of the list of special doggy treats. No luck! He just sat there, he wasn't even drooling anymore. James had to go to Kansas today which left everything in my hands.

All of you know I do not handle stressful situations well by myself. I had a meeting to go to today, and I was watching my sweet little Garin too, so it left me in the house thinking about what I should do all morning. By 11am I was done, I needed to get out of the house, and Owen begging me to go skating was the perfect opportunity to leave. We got back and I put Owen down for his nap, then headed off to my meeting! Many thanks to Grandpa for sitting here at the house and watching Owen for me, you are lucky he slept the entire time!!! When I got back I was greeted with Ethan's smile. I love that little boy Kalina! Kalina watched all the kids for me as Derek and I took Max to be put to sleep. It was heart wrenching. He could barely walk. I couldn't lift him by myself, he is about 120 pounds. He could barely lift up his head, except for the beeping of a horn that he heard. It was a long drive. I tried to get things out of my mind. James should be doing this. I hate to stereotype men's jobs and women's jobs.... but this should have been his. He is much less emotional than I. So I could barely squeak out his name when they asked. I filled out the paperwork, my writing was even worse than usual if you can believe that. I said my goodbyes and we walked him into the office. I will miss his drool (yes as gross as it was, it was a part of him) and his chasing the kids around whenever they honked a horn or squeaked a toy. He had a better life with us than he would have in the shelter he was at for months before we got him. It was the right choice to make for Max, at times I wish there would be an option for me if I were to get older and no longer have control of my body.

Thank you Kalina. Your kind words help me put a smile on my face this afternoon. I would not know what to do without you! You are a great friend. Thanks for taking the time for me and the children. I know you are busy. I think I took care of the thank yous and the hugs today! The hugs were SO needed!!! Now I just owe you that cup of coffee.....

Rachel, your stopping by after Kalina left was a nice surprise too! It got my mind off things and got me thinking in a more positive way. It is always nice to let the kids run wild in the backyard while we drink a "beer" (ha ha) and chat about everything that is going on. Thanks for the hummus, the chips and the cookie dough. Maybe I can just hire you as my personal shopper??!!

I am really lucky to have great friends. I couldn't imagine life without you guys!

All Good Things Must Come to an End

Things have been really good lately. The kids have been good, well as good as to be expected, school is going well, work is going well, friends are great, family is awesome.

BUT: Like James told me last night, as I was a blubbering mess on the couch (I am way too sensitive), Life can be awesome but you have to expect a little bit of shittiness from time to time. So, this is my time for shittiness! When I was talking with Kalina this morning I think you said something like "welcome to my side". It made me smile. You always have the ability to make me laugh! Thanks Girl! Thanks for the pep talk and the help. It always takes a good friend to pull you back to reality sometimes. Your help this afternoon will be greatly appreciated and rewarded with what I have to offer: A big hug, a nice cup of coffee and a huge THANK YOU!! Hopefully, I can make it until this afternoon without crying again.
I won't really go into details on what is going on just yet. I want to remain composed and just put it out of my mind until later this afternoon. The standing joke around our house is every time James is out of town "SOMETHING" goes wrong....

Murphy's Law applies to our family. Is every family like this?
Let me quote a few:

• If there is a possibility of several things going wrong, the one that will cause the most damage will be the one to go wrong
• If anything just cannot go wrong, it will anyway
• If anything can go wrong, it will
• Smile . . . tomorrow will be worse.
• Everything takes longer than you think.
• In case of doubt, make it sound convincing.
• If you think you are doing the right thing, chances are it will back-fire in your face.

Now that I got out all the negativity... back to the Miss Susie Sunshine Routine.... la la la la la la..... James told me last night that if I wouldn't throw in a few sarcastic comments and negative thoughts now and then he wouldn't remember the person he married! It is true... but I'm trying to strike a balance with the positives and negatives! IT seems to be working.

On another note Owen is driving me crazy again. He is very much into makeup and looking pretty. He keeps telling me he wants to play with "girl" toys. I guess that is what happens when your best friend is a little girl! He was watching me getting dressed this morning. "Mommy, What's that" (pointing at my bra as I was putting it on). "It's a bra, girls wear them". He looked confused. "But I want to wear one". I was chucking at this point, this little boy had been running around all morning with my lipstick tell me he was trying to make himself look pretty. "They only make them for girls Owen". This is when the fit began. My 3 year old son, on our bed at 7 this morning kicking and crying that he wants to wear a bra too! If it were up to me I would have just let him wear one... James would have KILLED ME! It might have been worth the laugh though.

This is the craziness of my family! I am hoping for a good afternoon with the help and support of Kalina. I can't thank you enough!

More to come tomorrow

Awesome Weekend... and it isn't over yet!

The only way we can keep Owen calm.... just kidding We were playing cowboys!!!

It is just like roping cattle!!!

Owen getting ready for bowling

Parker is really getting good... he beat me!

Owen wanted to go chase his ball down the alley!

This has been such a nice weekend. It makes me appreciate good friends (Thanks for you help Rachel! ), family, my husband and our neighbors. James has been pretty stressed at work, being that he has been doing the work of two people for weeks now. We have had nothing going on lately and to be honest, it has been nice. Things have been so chill and relaxed. Next week will be crazy again, but we will worry about that later.

On Friday we all just hung out and watch movies. It was nice. Denise and I got a free moment to go and get our nails done. It was nice to chat and sit without husbands and children running around! We have both been so busy lately. I am awaiting the coming of October!! HA HA!!

On Saturday we just stayed around the house for most of the day. It was calm and relaxing, although Max did puke on the floor upstairs and we finally today got the smell out. The one thing I hate about my newfs is their gross drool, but first and foremost is their sensitive stomachs. Thanks mom for the cleaning tips. It worked and now our house doesn't smell as bad as yesterday. In the evening, I dropped Parker and Owen off at the rink for their skating lesson. Tracy agreed to stay with them at the rink and then take them to dinner before bringing them back home for us. James and I were going out for the night. She took them to Dairy Queen, which is a luxury for them lately since I have become the food Nazi around here, and then to buy some cool bug stuff to play with at home. As always, I am a little paranoid with the boys getting in a car with someone I don't know very well, but it was great. Sometimes I just need to let my guard down a little! She was great with the boys and they had an awesome time and they have talked about it all day long.

James and I had a blast! We went to Red Robin... YUM! I could live on their strawberry lemonade if I had too! Then went bowling... man does that go by quickly when you have no children with you! The highlight.... I actually beat James in bowling. I suck at bowling, especially ten pin bowling! So, I won the bet and got to sleep on on Sunday!!! THEN, I was asked for ID. I can't believe that they thought I looked under 21. It felt awesome! I was feeling like I was in college again. There is no need to mention that they asked everyone for ID, even the elderly couple....
Then we went to the comedy show. It was funny, full of good catholic jokes, which brought back memories of the good old days in Catholic school back in Canada. Memories....

Today was just as relaxed as the day before. We decided to take the kids bowling. It took us longer to bowl one game with them as it took us to bowl three. Owen likes to throw his balls overhand.... which you can imagine what that sounds like. His balls went so slow at times the bowling staff had to come and rescue them. Owen thought it was funny!

I hope tomorrow brings us more calming times. James starts his new lovely schedule (this is me trying to be positive about his CRAPPY schedule) of being out of town on and off for the next three weeks.

Let's see if I can keep up my Miss Susie Sunshine routine now......

Oh and I found Brady and Brandon's surprise for me today stuffed in the Tupperware! It is almost a week later that I opened the bag.... THANKS GUYS!!! Parker and Owen were THRILLED!!! It is a good thing I brought them in from the car on Monday, otherwise we would have had a huge mess!

I am a CHICK MAGNET

I have been keeping this information to myself for awhile now, but it is driving me nuts!

With being so busy running kids everywhere and being so focused on the family (no reference to the church PLEASE), myself has been lacking. I have felt grumpy and stressed. In January I made a choice to try to be nicer to people around me. Well it didn't really work out so well. I was too busy and neglected a lot of things I should have been paying more attention too. This last 2 months I have been making an effort to smile more, talk to new people, go out of my way to be nice, and being a great mom and wife. I have been enjoying this "new outlook" on life and things in general. I have always disliked those happy Miss Susie Sunshine people. Maybe, there is something to be said about them. Maybe they are just making the effort to make the world a better place?!! So, back to my effort. In the last month I have been asked for a date by 3, yes THREE, lesbians. Let me clear something up. I have gay friends, I love my gay friends, but there are certain things that I personally cannot perform. I think women rock! We are awesome people, loving, caring, compassionate and very decent people. But, I'm not gay. I love men (one man more than the rest). Now, I am going to be all over James to replace that ring that was stolen from me many years ago. Maybe I could make one out of tinfoil for now??!! Just Kidding!

Just venting. I think it is kinda funny! I saw this shirt today that I wanted to buy. I think I will pass, it might make this problem much worse than it already is. Let me know what you think! You can put your comments up on here too guys, it is much easier than the emails I get. It might save you time too!!!

This, That, and the Other

Things are going well around here. School has been in session for about 3 weeks now and the routine is starting to settle in for all the kids. James and I are starting to spend more time together, with just the two of us. It has been very nice. This will sound weird, but now I remember who I fell in love with many years ago. At times I feel you get lost in life, children, and busy schedules. I am now beginning to see that taking a little time, will go a long way into making things run smoothly. I am amazed at how long we have been married. I never thought I would want to be with anyone for so long, having long relationships in the past and myself getting VERY bored with them. It is always a surprise living with James and nothing is ever the same. I appreciate him more and more everyday! (A nice way to say thank you James for staying up late last night and completing all of the training classes we needed, it was nice of you to let me sleep!!!!)

I knew mentioning my bout with insomnia would bring it back. The last 2 nights have haven't been able to sleep. I won't mention it again. hopefully it will go away.

Owen and Parker got new hockey jersey's from Grandma in the mail. They wanted to put their names on the back. Parker wanted "Trevino" which is the norm I would assume, but Owen refused. I tried to talk him into Trevino, no luck. I tried to talk him into O-Man, no luck. He was set on "O" just the letter "O". I do call him O a lot, as do most of the people around him. I just thought it would look so funny on his jersey. When we took him over to Sportline even the lady tried to get him to write something else. No luck! So, O it was. We added quotation marks to make it more than a big O.... the big O. It was funny. It actually looks really cute, and tells a lot of his personality. As for the jersey.... please friends understand this was all Grandma... it is a Leafs Jersey. I've got to know at least one Leafs fan out there right?? It reminds me of the Adam Sandler song every time I see him wear it. The one where he is bashing The Sens. ha ha!

Karate is over, baseball starts next week as do swimming lessons. I have been going to the Y more this week. Owen has been packing his lunch and having fun with all his friends in child watch. Parker baked Brady and Brandon cookies a month ago, and they actually remembered to give me the Tupperware back! Thanks Brady! I am glad you enjoyed the cookies. It nice to know so many people at the Y. It feels like a family away from home! Parker loves to bake, it is to bad I can't cook anything very well. Do frozen burritos in the microwave count as cooking???

Squeak Squeak

I did something so funny last night. James was mad, but isn't he always.He always gives me such a hard time about everything. I was laughing so hard I almost peed my pants. I am still chuckling now. Sorry James.... it was hilarious!



Lola, (our very tiny full grown cat) was in a very frisky mood last night. She was running around the house like crazy. We then discovered that there was a moth in the house she was chasing. It was very amusing to watch her run around and around. We then went upstairs to put the kids to bed, brushed their teeth and tucked them in. James and I got dressed for bed, well I got in my jammies and James just gets down to his boxers. He fell asleep pretty quickly. Luckily my bout with insomnia has passed (knock on wood), so I was getting sleepy too. All of a sudden Lola jumps on the bed, like a total freak, jumping all around. Now, I know this is mean, but I had to do it! James needed to get to work early the next day, I think he needed to leave by 5:30 or something, but I wasn't thinking about that. When opportunity knocks to drive my husband crazy, I take it! SO I started screaming "Lola is chasing a mouse, there's a mouse on the bed". James jumped out of bed so fast, he is terrified of mice, kind of like the elephant and the mouse syndrome! He was scratching his body, like it had ran across him and jumping around, yelling: "where, where". I couldn't stop laughing. I am laughing now! When he finally woke up and realize what I did, boy was I in trouble. I still couldn't stop laughing. I am laughing now just writing this. Priceless! I haven't had an opportunity like that since I hid behind the trailer when he was looking for the raccoons, and I jumped up and scared him. Although, that time I was lucky I didn't get hit. He was waving his fists all through the air!



Good times! Sorry James! I hope you aren't too tired today!

Always Listen to the Parents

I am getting my baby fix now. I have little Garin, who is about 8 months old now. It is amazing that this little boy can already pull himself up. He will be walking soon. I am watching him for a few hours each day while Kalina works over at the school. He is a joy! Lots of smiles and drool! It is nice to have a baby around again. It makes me sad thinking how big Owen in getting. I have had a hard time getting Garin to take a nap. I tried so many things, some of which worked, most which didn't. Kalina told me to just lay him across my legs while I am sitting at the computer. I didn't think that would work, man was I wrong! You can tell you spend most of your time working at home Kalina. This little boy is out. Now, I am sitting here at the computer trying to figure out how to spend my time. I should have listened to you in the first place, it would have saved me a lot of time!

We had a nice relaxing weekend. I probably should have been doing laundry, but that never happened. Our new foster son is fitting in nicely. We will know more on Tuesday concerning length of stay etc. Him and Parker are getting along very well.

Owen had another meltdown on the way to school today. We have to drive by the Apex, where he skates, to get Parker to school and to go to Happy Valley. He was so angry that we couldn't go skating, in his words "NOW". I am not sure how long this skating obsession will last. I could do without the screaming fits! My mother seems to think it is funny. Maybe when he is 20 I will look back and laugh.

I am starting back into my work out routine at the YMCA. I really have been needing this for quite sometime now. I have been taking the Juice Plus for almost a month now. I have dropped 10 pounds and now none of my shorts fit without a belt anymore. I am slowly on my way to where I want to be. If anyone wants to go on a bike ride or roller blade in the evening let me know. I ran into an old friend last night at the Park with Owen. It was nice to see you again Katie! It has been awhile. Sorry I was all sweaty and gross. Owen had fun riding as fast as we could the two miles to the park. That extra 45 pounds could be felt with every pedal.

Our Day at Heritage Square

Parker and his good friend Ethan.


Parker and Owen on the flying bananas

Owen and I on the carousel. He was very upset that I had to ride with him "I am a big kid".

Owen on the go kart.
Swings....

The Trevino and Johnson boys watching the magic show

You have to click on this picture to make it bigger and check out Owen's face! Priceless!

After completing the summer reading program at the library this summer, all the kids received free passes to Heritage Square. We haven't been able to go all summer... well that is not totally true. It has been so HOT I have been making excuses not to go all summer. Lisa and Fernando were on a visit with mom today. We just received a new placement, Theo, who just turned 10, so we decided to go. It was nice to run into the Johnson family! Parker was so happy to see Ethan and ride some of the rides with him. Parker never did ride any of the "big kid rides". He is still too scared! We saw a really cool magic show, saw some ponies (Owen wasn't scared!!) and rode the go karts. It was nice and cool. It started to rain at about 3:30, which was a perfect excuse to leave.

Now that we are home I should go to the grocery store. It is my least favorite thing to do, I think it ranks somewhere between laundry and folding laundry! James and I decided that I would make the list and he would go shopping. After I gave him the list he actually had the nerve to ask me to sort it by aisle. That would make his job a whole lot easier. Ya right! I would be here until 10pm trying to do that. He has very high expectations, but sorry, it won't be happening!

Owen's First Day at Happy Valley & Our 10th Anniverasry

Owen at Happy Valley


Getting ready to go inside, he was so excited!



Parker helping him find his name, Parker went to Happy Valley too and was a peanut!


Owen's first art project. It was the kissing hand!




Owen and his best friend Ellah. Those two are too cute together!


Owen started Happy Valley on Wednesday. He had so much fun. He was happy to see old and new friends in his class. It seems like such a nice group of children. He is enjoying his three teachers and they seem to have a connection with him. They are fully aware of his fear of "farm" animals. Today Miss Wanda told me Owen went down to the barn to feed Oscar the sheep. That is a HUGE improvement. He actually walked past the area where the horses are too. Most of you probably don't know this but last year on field day at Parker's school he saw horses. Parker's school is nearby to many trails that can be accessed by horses. They had set up hurdles as an event in the field far west of the school. Owen was taking a turn running INTO the hurdles when he saw horses. He screamed so loud and started crying and running. It was very scary for him, personally I was giggling. This little boy would probable jump off the roof, but won't come within 10 yards of a horse. So today when he walked by the enclosure I was very proud. They took the time to help him slowly overcome his fear. We will see if he will ride the ponies next.... I wonder....



My flowers! James got off early and tired to go to 4 different stores looking for red roses. This was the closest he could find! They are so pretty.

On another note, it was James' and my 10 year anniversary. I was greeted with flowers and chocolates. What a great husband I have! I wanted to go to Vegas, but with the kids in school this early it didn't work out as I had planned. We had Tracy watch the kids for the night and we had a blast. We usually do kids night out at the YMCA once a month, but this was so much better. We weren't looking at our watch all night to make sure we were back by exactly 10. I could relax,( the last time I left them with Katie I think I called 3 times to make sure all was okay). I trusted that they were in good hands. James and I went out to dinner. I had a few to many Maragritas. The last time that happened, since I don't usually drink, was at Val and Gabe's wedding. That was a night to remember too! We then went to Dave and Buster's. That place is so much fun! We had a great time reconnecting and having fun. I don't think we talked about the kids too much! It was fun singing in the car on the way home! I was driving James crazy I'm sure. I talk a lot to begin with... and over analyze things.... and say too much when just a thank you or a quick word will do.... and talk too much... did I say that already??? I am sure that I drove Tracy crazy when we got back. Oh well.... it is what it is... Tracy reminds me so much of my good friend Kalina. If anything I hope she will just grow to accept my idiosyncrasies as most of my friends have.

I had so much fun and can't wait to do it again. Soon! Hopefully we can have a girls weekend.....??? Denise it sounded like so much fun! Let's make time! I would love to see April again too!

Let's hope it doesn't rain this weekend! Have a good one!