Christmas Madness

Have you ever thought about completely covering your house in Christmas lights? Why would you do that some may ask...well, here are a few reasons.

So that people from all over would come up and gawk at it in amazement? How about doing it just so that your neighbors would think of you more often? Even if they wanted to think about something else they couldn't because of the burning light shining into their bedroom windows and the crazy traffic that goes flying through all night. How about doing it just so that you and your family could get to know more people? You better believe that if you are going to completely cover your house in Christmas lights you are going to be on TV, and you are going to have all kinds of crazy people walking all the way up your driveway just to take a look.

Whatever the reason, this nice family in Boise has done it and you better believe mom and I were right there to participate with all the crazies in walking all the way up the driveway just to have a better look. Isn't it beautiful!

Just a few things to keep in mind in case you would like to follow in the footsteps of this great family here in Boise...be prepared to start early. I'm talking 2 months early! Also be prepared to pay a monthly electric bill of about $1,200.00! Good luck...maybe next year you'll see mom and I dancing up and down your driveway instead!

CHRISTMAS PARTY 2007!!!

So, this years Christmas Party was a hit. It was so much fun to sit around with family and visit. The food was excellent as usual and I think everyone had a really great time.
The kids were so fun to watch as they chased each other around and got excited over all the presents to open. Shayne, Ashley's fiance, made out with by far the funniest of all the gifts. He went home with a bunch of granny panties and a bright blue women's scarf.

Page was the first name drawn in the white elephant and she got more gifts stolen from her than anyone else. I think she went home happy in the end though.

Kayden was so funny to watch. He got excited when Kaitlin got a popper and had to try on the crown. He is getting so big!

After eating, visiting and playing all of the games we sang a few Christmas carols.



After running around all morning and then partying all night mom and I were exhausted! We jumped in the hot tub and then crashed on the couches!
HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Just for Sheila

1. Wrapping paper or gift bag? - Wrapping paper for sure...it takes more effort to open...you gotta make people work for the goodies inside!

2. Real tree or artificial? - Well, I have never owned a tree myself but I love real trees. They just smell so good and then it really feels like Christmas.

3. When do you put up the tree? - After Thanksgiving of course! You gotta start early so you can enjoy it longer!

4. When do you take the tree down? - My parents don't normally have a set time but pretty close to New Years I think.

5. Do you like eggnog? - I love love love eggnog! I have to put milk in it though so it's not so thick but I would drink it all year round if I could.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? - I can't think of just one I've gotten so many great ones!

7. Do you have a nativity scene? - Yep, it's really small...it belongs to my roommate, but we have one!

8. Hardest person to buy for? - My Dad for sure! I'll look and look and look and still come home with nothing.

9. Easiest person to buy for? - Shelly...we like all the same things so I just have to think about what I would want.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? - I can't think of any Christmas gifts that I didn't like. I'm so loved!

11. Mail or e-mail Christmas cards? - I love to get Christmas cards with family pictures in them. E-mail just seems like cheating for some reason.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? - I really like the Muppet's Christmas Carol we use to put it on all the time and sing to all the songs.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? - When I have money.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? - Only when they are books and I am done reading them and someone else would enjoy them more.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? - Green olives, cookies, eggnog, and Papa's fudge!

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? - I love Clear twinkle lights on the tree with ribbon!

17. Favorite Christmas song? - I am a total sucker for Wham's song Last Christmas, John Lennon singing Happy Christmas war is over, and any song off of Amy Grant's Home for Christmas cd.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? - Okay, I love to stay home if all the family is here but I love to travel and think that Christmas would be more fun (when there are only a few of us) to take off somewhere exciting!

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? - I'm sure I can...I think (like Sheila) I may have to sing the song to do it.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? - I don't know, I think I might like ribbon. Erin's tree is beautiful and my mom normally does ribbon to.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? One on Christmas Eve & all the rest on Christmas morning (one at a time)

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? - Traffic!!! Oh, and all those dumb songs that they make up just for Christmas that are just plain depressing. Like the Christmas shoes song...I hate that! Christmas is suppose to be a happy time with happy songs not songs like...let's sing about this kids mom dieing and how he has to run all over town to find her a pair of shoes to see Jesus.

23. What I love most about Christmas? - The smells, the music, Kids all excited, the lights and the SNOW!

24. Do you always get a new pair of pajamas for yourself or someone else? - Nope.

25. Do you decorate your home on the outside? - Well, seeing how I live in an apartment we can't do a whole lot of decorating outside but we do have our door decorated with ribbon to look like a big Christmas package.

Happy Day at the Electric Chair

I know, I know you are all going to be absolutely shocked but I actually found a stylist that I didn't hate. I was looking a long time ago for a new hair stylist and I came across this place called the Electric Chair. The name made me laugh, so I decided to look into it. Turns out it is owned by two brothers one of whom calls himself Dr. Dread. They are all tattooed and pierced everywhere which only sparked my interest more. After trying and failing to convince my mom that she should go check them out first I got brave and made an appointment.
Robin cut my hair yesterday and while it is WAY shorter than I had originally wanted I still love it. It is actually even again. Mom was so impressed that she booked her appointment for the next day and she came out with a great hair cut as well. I mean she's no Patrick but it's the best I've found so far!

This is what Boise looked like yesterday when I left the office...beautiful huh! I just wish Boston would share some of that snow instead of selfishly hogging it all!

Shelly and Hailey are Back!

Shelly and Hailey have been here for the past week and it has been so much fun! Hailey is so happy and funny. She does this fake smile thing that just cracks me up. I wish I would have gotten a picture of it...maybe next time. Below is just a little sample of what happens when Grandma and Aunt Sarah take Hailey out for a little shopping trip during her nap time. You do what you can right?

Hailey loved Dad, they played the entire week that she was here. By the way, isn't mom's tree beautiful!?!

Hailey got a little wild at church so I took her out and we played in the hall. She was running around like a mad woman and then out of nowhere she came over to me, held her hands up for me to pick her up, threw herself sideways and fell asleep. Apparently she had had her fun and was ready for a nap. I have to say, I don't know how some of you moms out there don't have massive muscles from holding sleeping babies. Hailey about broke my arm off while she was sleeping!
This is Shelly being...well, Shelly! It was so much fun to have Shelly and Hailey here this last week, I really do miss having everyone close so we can see each other all the time. Love you guys!

An Overdue Update!

Okay so I know it has been forever and I have a few pictures to share. So here goes...my past few weeks in pictures!

FUN AT THE BAZAARS!

We have been spending quite a bit of time at the bazaars in town. I have to say it is probably one of my favorite things about the Christmas season. We have done it ever since we were little and I am so glad that I am actually in town this year to enjoy it!

Sheila, Grandma Nona and Mom being cute while eating at the Caldwell bazaar. Now check out the bottom picture and you will see Sheila cracking everyone up! I think we were talking about how to take a proper picture and look your best and Sheila pulled this face out of no where!

Audrey and Cindy (pictured below) checking out all the great crafts.

IT'S MY PARTY!

So, November 18th was my birthday and I actually got to have a party! I don't think I have had a real birthday party since I was like 8 so I was really excited! I invited all the girls over for a hot tub party and let me tell you...it was a blast!

Enjoying the food and company!

It started out at 5 but by the time we were done there were 11 of us in the new hot tub! It even started to rain while we were out there but none of us went in. We were all soaked from head to toe by the time we got out.

Mom didn't have candles like she had thought!

Okay, just check out this scary clown on my cake. It was so funny because my Dad went out and picked up the cake at a little Mexican bakery and she stuck on the clown before he could tell her not to. We all had to laugh because the majority of us are totally creeped out by clowns.

OFF TO BOSTON!

This is an actual fire escape...just beautiful!

We took the T quite a bit and it rocked us to sleep almost every time!

Kristin cooked Thanksgiving diner for the first time this year. It turned out really good but we couldn't resist having a little fun and making the turkey dance before hand!

The Turkey was pretty heavy so we had to get Kenley's help to flip it over a few times.

Everyone loves stuffing! Kristin's was excellent!

Okay, so Cora cracks me up! While Kristin was getting ready one day Cora and I played in her hat and mine. Just check out the funny pictures I got.

Cora, telling me how it is in her cool cowboy hat!

Story time!

She was doing this fake laugh thing that just cracked me up. I also thought she looked a lot like Fievel in this hat that was far to big for her little head. Her ears were the only things that held it up!

Watch out America's Next Top Model Cora's got one of the best Model faces this world's ever seen! ha,ha,ha!

This is the most Fievel like picture I think!
Cora wouldn't hold still so Kristin could change her diaper so we decided to take pictures. (Kristin this ones for you!)

Then mom said, "That's enough, we can't go anywhere until you get dressed!"

Poor baby Cora

There's the baby we all know and love!

All in all Boston was amazing! I had tons of fun spending time with Kristin, Kenley and Cora and I may just have to relocate!

So, there you have it...my last few weeks in pictures! Hope you enjoyed it and I promise, no more blogs this long!

I wish I wasn't...But I SO am!

Let me just start by saying that a long, long, long time ago I was a BIG fan of scary movies, scary shows and all things that made you jump 10 feet in the air. Shelly and I would stay up till all hours of the morning watching Monster Movie Marathons and X-Files. We were partners when it came to going to scary movies as well. I don't ever remember having nightmares or anything like that, I just remember laughing so hard when we would jump or scream. It was fun and we shared a room so if something was going to get me in the night...it would have to go through Shelly first which would give me plenty of time to run for my life! Sad thing was...it was always Shelly that scared me half to death at night time.
Now, Skip ahead a few years to college. I went with my roommates and FHE brothers to see The Ring. I hadn't seen a scary show in a while and let me tell you...that show scared the pants off of me. I didn't share a room with anyone and I had a TV sitting at the foot of my bed! Bad Combination! I started to have nightmares and I swore I would never watch scary movies again because it just wasn't worth it.
Now, Skip ahead a few more years to...oh I don't know... a few weeks ago. Sheila comes into work telling me about this TV show, Supernatural, that she had borrowed from the Brants. She would come in and tell me about different episodes and ended up convincing me to borrow it after her and Ryan were done. I tried to watch it with my mom but it turns out she is a bigger baby than me and she didn't even make it through the first episode. I then turned to my roommate to watch it with...she works nights at the hospital so that didn't work out so well. Everyone I could think of to watch it with was either out of town, out of the country or didn't like scary shows. So, I began watching them by myself. I have to tell you, I was super scared at first especially when I basically live alone these days and there are all kinds of scary noises out side my building at night but now I find myself falling back in love with scary shows again. I am loving this show and the story and it has Denny (for those of you who watched Grey's Anatomy) in it sometimes. I think you should all take a look because it really is fun to watch. It's about two brothers who hunt all things supernatural trying to find the demon that killed their mother. Check it out!