Family Day

We usually try and have some type of "family night" on Tuesdays - Mondays just never seem to work out. This week, we went to Classic Fun Center (the old Classic Skating on 90th) for the first time. And you know what, we loved it! It's pretty inexpensive, and there are all sorts of things to do! We weren't quite ready to tackle skating with McKenzie yet, so we did take a pass on that one. But, we did have a ball on the big inflatable climbers, bouncers and slides. McKenzie was a blur running from one to the other, hardly ever standing still. But, I think Cris had more fun than anyone! I think we are going to have to add this to our list of regular haunts!

My busy little girl and I. Do you see those rosy cheeks! She was working hard!

Cris scooped up Allison and took her for a ride down the slides, too. She loved it!

Alli loved laying back and watching the kids play!

A cute, but slightly blury, shot of McKenzie in one of the tunnels

I don't usually get to see Allison with a bottle, so this was a treat for me. I was surprised to see she holds it herself, and even put herself to sleep. Aww, precious!

Paper and Stickers and Glue! Oh my!

I'm getting ready to go to the scrapbook expo. It still feels really funny saying those words. I always secretly laughed and the crazy ladies who packed up all of their scrapbooking supplies, waited in hours of lines and all sit together in a great big room cutting and gluing pictures. What was the big deal?

My mother and sister in law started going, and came back with reports of how crowded the place was, how crazy people dressed up in matching jammies with their friends and how hectic the whole experience was. "No thank you!" I thought. But, they did bring home some pretty great deals and some really cute products.

After a few years of them hounding me, I finally gave in. I think this will be my fourth or fifth expo. And you know what, I really do like it. I love to scrapbook, so a weekend of that - without children interrupting is blissful. We've come up with a few of our own traditions, and I enjoy spending that time with Ashli and Terri. We've taken tons of fun classes, and a class or two that was pretty pointless. However, I still look forward to every March and September when the expo rolls around.

But, there are a few things that I am sitting her dreading:

• The long admission lines. People start lining up at midnight the day before. What the heck?! Ladies, your pictures will still be ready for cropping when the sun is up!
• The crowd. Whats up with people who suddenly stop in the middle of an aisle and have an in depth conversation. This place is crowded - Move it or I'll be tempted to plow you over! (Ok, I never really would do that, but I can't say I'm not tempted to tackle a few people every year)
• People who are never on time. For the sake of my mother and sister-in-law, I will not name names. LOL! :)
• Loading up and carrying my junk. Do you know how heavy paper is?!
• And by far the very worst: the bathrooms.

Maybe its the insane number of same-sex people crammed into one building. Maybe its the glue fumes? Or maybe it's the Mexican food in the concessions stand. I do not know. But whatever it is, those bathrooms reek! And it gets worse as the weekend wears on. We're talking plug your nose, hold your breath, run in only when you are certain you'll pee your pants if don't go NOW. It's horrible!

Last year, I was pregnant at both expos. It was not pleasant. Smell = puking. Not fun. And this year, I'm still not certain I won't gag. So this year, my only request is, ladies, do you really need to do that in public?

2 Days Sober!

Two days with no sugar and no soda! Can I get a woo-hoo!?

I'm especially proud, because yesterday I went to the movie theater, and remained sober! Do you know how hard it is for me to not have a snack or a Dr. Pepper during a movie? (eek! I sound like a junkie!)

Technically, it's been three days, because I started a day before Cris and I made our little wager. However, according to him, I am unable to count that first day. He's grasping at straws already! Ha! And although I usually try to be a little more sensitive to his pain, I have to admit that I giggled a little when he had to head to the medicine cabinet to help him deal with a painful caffeine headache. Thank goodness I wasn't that addicted! Honey, I'm sorry, but you are TOAST!

Fun at the cabin

This past week, we were able to get a little R&R at the cabin. Malory and Devin went up with me and the girls Friday morning, and Cris met us after work Saturday evening.

I don't usually spend much time at the cabin in the winter (there's SO much snow!) so it was a little different from the summer water fun I'm used to... but we still had so much fun! I took a million pictures I'd love to post, but I narrowed it down to these:

My moms dog, Beans, went with us. McKenzie had a blast taking him for walks, even if it was just on the deck! We did get to play on the swing set a little, but most of the trip was spent indoors.

McKenzie warming her tootsies by the fire. Isn't this what winter is supposed to be?

Alli worked on her sitting up skills, and just about has it down! Quit growing up girlie - you're only 5 months old!

We watched a few movies and cuddled on the couch. Cris and McKenzie dozed off. Too cute!

Aww!

This is McKenzies silhouette in front of a pile of snow that had fallen off of the roof. There was about 2 feet on the ground when we got there, and another foot fell Monday night.

Here's a picture of the storm. It was SO peaceful to sit near the fire with hot cocoa and a book or a cuddle from one of my girls.

Watching my girls enjoy the cabin, brought to mind some of my favorite memories from the cabin. Here's my Thursday Thirteen list:

1. The whole family sitting on the porch, eating cherries and spitting pits
2. Catching skeeters and tadpoles in the pond
3. Watching my dad fly fish on the river, and him letting me reel them in
4. Jessica and I thinking we were cool when were 12 and met some boys there
5. Sharons mighty fall into the pond
6. The worlds best hide and seek games
7. Grandma repeatedly attempting to make fudge, but it never turning out. (She can make fudge, just apparently not at the cabin!)
8. The hummingbirds fighting over the feeder while we watch through the window at breakfast time.
9. Grandma Dona rescuing fallen baby robins by picking them up with a teaspoon, and climbing a ladder to put them back in their nest.
10. My brother, Bob, claiming to have been bitten by a snake when it "jumped up" and bit him
11. The cabin smell.
12. Yahtzee!
13. I had to include a story for number 13: I was there when Grandma and Grandpa were setting the rocks around stream in front of the cabin. I startled a small skunk from the brush, and took off running. Grandma yelled at me, "Push its tail down! PUSH IT DOWN AND IT WONT SPRAY!" I wasn't convinced so I ran to the porch near Grandpa. Grandma took after that skunk with a shovel, trying to push it's tail down. She eventually knocked it into the stream and tried to drown it with her shovel. I remember Grandpa taking a sip of his diet coke and shaking his head while he said, "sometimes I don't know about your grandma..." with a big smile on his face. I think she fought with the skunk for an hour before we lost interest and went inside. I still don't know who won, but I don't remember her smelling like she was sprayed!

The Battle of Wills

Yesterday, I told Cris that I was trying to give up drinking soda. I normally don't drink much of it, but while I was pregnant, I craved it like no other! I think the habit stuck and I had way more than I should. But, I didn't like the feeling of needing a Dr. Pepper. That, and my mom gave me a guilt trip, telling me that women who average one soda a day have a 60% increase for getting diabetes. So, I decided I needed to be done. Cold turkey. AHHH!

I asked Cris if he wanted to give up soda with me, and you should have seen him laugh! He has a bigger addiction to soda than I, and really no desire to stop. After a little fun teasing, he agreed to give up soda, if we could make it into a challenge. However, he said that his addiction was stronger than mine, so I had to give up candy as well. I agreed, as long as he stays away from fast food. To make it interesting, the person who gives in to temptation first must buy the other a prize. He said he wanted hunting equipment, and I told him he could buy me a spa package.

I can't bear the thought of him rubbing his victory in my face, so I am pretty motivated. Sanctuary Day Spa, here I come! :)

Oh, and is it cheating to have a cold Mountain Dew waiting for him when he gets home from work? LOL!

Go Jazz!

I am a little behind on posting, so you'll have to bear with me while I dump a whole bunch of stuff onto my blog at once. Sorry!

2 weeks ago, Cris and I were watching the Jazz game at home. McKenzie was hunkered over her big bowl of "pot kern" (pop corn) watching the game, too. She looked up at Cris and asked if he'd take her to go see the "Boozer game" in the green seats. How could we say no? We tried to explain that Carlos Boozer was injured, and probably wouldn't play, but she still wanted to go so badly.

So, last week we went to watch the Jazz play the Rockets, which was an AWESOME game - even if we did have the worst seats in the house (can you blame us for being cheap and buy the $9 seats in the very top row? We were taking a three year old and weren't sure we'd make it through the entire game) And luckily, Boozer played!

We filled McKenzie full of junk food and soda, because, really, whats a game without all that? And ended up making a few trips to the potty - which was not too easy, considering the location of our seats. On one of the trips, McKenzie smiled at a Jazz employee. He asked her if she was a Jazz fan, and she said "Let's Go Jazz!" He chuckled and asked her if she'd like a Jazz tattoo. She was so polite and kind, I was VERY proud. Apparently he was impressed, too, because he complimented her and loaded her up with all sorts of Jazz gear like a hat and thunder sticks. She was so proud to go and show her daddy!

Thank you, Grandma Terri, for watching Allison. It was such a fun, special trip for us to have some quality time with McKenzie. The only bad thing: every time she sees them on tv she begs to go to another game! We've created a monster! But, daddy couldn't be prouder! :)

Picture Tag: Sixth and Sixth

In celebration of Mindys first tag, I'll play along!

6th folder, 6th picture:

This is my brother-in-law holding Allison the day after she was born. Cute, isn't it? He is going to be a daddy this July. Can't wait!

I tag MALORY and any one else who wants to play along!

Sink/Cradle

We were having one of those days where mom didn't have enough hands to go around. McKenzie needed her hair brushed for preschool, both girls wanted lots of attention, I hadn't had a chance to brush my teeth yet, and Allison didn't want to be put down. We tried bringing the bumbo seat in the bathroom, we tried laying her on a blanket on the floor, we tried everything! Each time my normally peaceful and easy going baby would scream. So.... we got creative!


I put her in dry sink and she instantly relaxed. She coo'd to her reflection in the mirror and enjoyed being able to watch McKenzie and I. Workded great! (Until it was time to take her out!)

This picture makes me laugh. She looks so relaxed and comfortable. Silly girl!

Look at those eyelashes!

Play date

The neighbors invited us over for a play date today. We were going to have a Valentines themed lunch (where everything was pink) and then let the kids play together. Sounds like fun right?

Instead, as soon as the kids saw each other they started beating each other. One pulled the chair out from under the other, someone pushed someone else down, someone got bonked over the head with a sword, kids cried that the applesauce was colored pink, and juice was spilled everywhere. McKenzie was being picked on by the older boy, so she threatened to punch him, and then they started to fist fight! FIST FIGHT! Where the heck did she learn that!?

After forty minutes the total chaos didn't subside. The only thing the kids shared was pain... and taking turns bawling. They didn't eat a bite of lunch. I was embarrassed by McKenzie's behavior, even though there was enough blame to go around. I had had enough. I set down the baby on the couch, while I tried help straighten up my poor neighbors ransacked living room. When I picked the baby back up, she was covered in slime. STINKY SLIME! She had just experienced a major diaper malfunction - all over their couch! MAJOR BLOW OUT!

Do you think we'll be invited back?