Spell Medallion

M E D D A L I O N. That was the word that Hayley misspelled in the spelling bee, but not too bad, she came in 2nd place out of her school and will be going on to district. Congratulations Hayley! I am so proud of you!

Post Christmas Follow-Up

Christmas Eve at Grandma's

The Finished Room (Before Picture too scary!)

Zach wishing for more presents

Hayley excited about Electronic Monopoly, she looks like she is crying though!

Tyler and Justin opening their scooters at the same time. We made them open these last!

Christmas was good, the kids and hubby are all back to school and work, and life is quiet. I think the kids all had a good Christmas, Santa was extra nice, the kids must have done something right. Zach had already used most of his Christmas presents prior to Christmas, but there were a few gifts still under the tree. His big gifts were his skis and Powder Mountain season ski pass. He has been going a lot with friends and loves to ski! I wish I could find a sport this kid does not love! Hayley wanted a new bedroom for Christmas and a new mp3 player. The bedroom was a big success and turned out so cute! She is officially in her "teenage" room, no more little girl room. Tyler and Justin got motor scooters, and the weather was nice enough they were able to go ride around the neighborhood on Christmas day. Glad to be back to normal life though...

Christmas Lights

Tonight for family night, we took the kids downtown for dinner and lights at Temple Square. The kids and I rode the commuter rail and met Kris at the Gateway station. We then took the kids to Bucca di Beppo for dinner. We enjoyed an authentic Italian dinner there and the kids enjoyed some of the funny pictures hung throughout the restaurant. The pizza reminded me of my trip to Italy, and the kids all agreed that they liked the pizza thin and greasy!

From there, we made the trip through Temple Square to see the holiday lights. The kids even got to go inside the Tabernacle for the first time. It was a great way to kick of the Christmas holidays.

Merry Christmas!

My Little Trick or Treaters

This year Justin and Tyler went as the Super Mario Brothers, Mario and Luigi. They were a hit everywhere they went, even teenage boys told me how much they liked their costumes. And Hayley went as the Progressive Insurance lady, Flo. I loved how easy her costume came together, my favorite kind. Halloween was a bit rainy, but the kids got quite the loot between Trunk or Treat Friday night, and Trick or Treating on Saturday night. Happy Halloween!

One Year Older

Tyler celebrated his seventh birthday last week. Other than being busy with sports, it was a great one! He got to play his first basketball game on his actual birthday which he didn't seem to mind, then we celebrated with friends over the weekend. I let him have a late night with 8 other boys for three hours, which after the invitations were sent out I started to worry about too much time to kill. Thanks to the help of the whole family, we all had assignments and divided and conquered the entertainment of 10 boys for 3 hours! Whew!! Because it was so crazy, I didn't realize until after the boys left that I didn't take any pictures! The agenda was pizza, outdoor games, haunted house where they fish or treated for their goody bags, campfire with marshmallows, donuts on a string, and watching Scooby Doo until the parents came. Glad it's over and glad Tyler had a great birthday!

Portland

Kris and I at the Pittock Mansion

The Heathman Hotel (which I am told is haunted, after I stayed there!)

Kris enjoying the king size bed without children in the room

The concierge or bell boy (I am not sure what a concierge is, but I know this hotel had one)

Last week, Kris and I went to Portland, Oregon for the weekend. Kris had a convention for work up there, and I went along for the ride to visit my sister. For his convention, they put us up in a hotel way fancier than we are used to, complete with a concierge, robe & slippers, bed turn down service, and a stocked refrigerator and goody basket that I found out, were not complimentary, but very expensive! The first day we had a free day to spend with my sister and her three kids. We explored the grounds of the Pittock mansion, then went to Sauvie Island which my nephew corrected me by saying it is "Sauvie" not "Suavie" as in the shampoo. Thanks Chad! There, we visited a pumpkin patch had some lunch and then ventured to the beach of Sauvie Island. Afterwards, our gracious host and taxi cab driver, Missie, dropped us off at the hotel where we got ready for dinner with the other attendees of the convention, and afterwards were treated to a comedy club in downtown Portland. Had a good time, just glad we went to the milder 8 pm show rather than the 10 pm or midnight showing which can get raunchy. Most of the other people from the group, kept the drinking going and went to a bar from there, while Kris and I opted for the quiet hotel room for some rest after our really early morning flight. The next day, Kris had a workshop to attend all day, so I went shopping with Missie, hung out at their house for a while, then we picked Kris up so that we could go out to dinner with just us adults. Had a great time at a lovely Italian restaurant, said our goodbyes to Missie and James and enjoyed one last night away from the children who were being well cared for by parents. Thanks to Mom, Dad, and Missie to whom this great weekend wouldn't have been possible!

I Should Be a Camera Man (Woman)

Okay, so my oldest child had his first official touchdown today. He has had several in practices, a few in scrimmage games, come close to several in real games, but today he scored his first (almost had two), and I was fortunate enough to catch it on film. I will preface this by saying that I was holding the camera, the snap went off and I thought "I should try catching this play on film, just in case..." So I did, and Zach always mentions my skills, because I always catch the good plays...

I get excited, can you tell?! Anyways, luckily a guy on the team video tapes all the games, so I should have this play in video come next week. Great job Zach! Also, check out this cool picture the coaches' wife took of Zach in action. (He's #88 in black and yellow)