Dear Santa

Dear Santa,
Wut I wood rily wont for cris mis is a fr real Hors. or I Wood like a I fon or a ulechric gutar or a yooculaly.
Love, Audrey

Dear Santa,
I have been very good this year. For Christmas, I would like an American Girl. The one I would really love to have is the "Just Like You" doll with medium skin, brown hair with highlights, and brown eyes.
With it I would like the curlicue daybed, the butterfly bedding, the nightstand and lamp set, and the sit and relax chair. That is all that I would like for Christmas this year. Merry Christmas!
Sincerely, Sadie

Dear Santa,
I would like an iphone, xbox 360, wii, longboard, drum set, (unreadable) flow board.
Take your pick.
Sincerely, Jackson

Dear Santa,
Please help my children not to be upset when there are no iPhones or Electric Guitars or Wii's or grossly overpriced American Girl furniture under the tree on Christmas morning.
Sincerely,
Their Mom

I Report, You Decide

Okay, so I got my ugly ornament from Jeanette. My ornament to her is apparently still in the mail but I sent her a text telling her to be very afraid to go to her mailbox for the next couple of days. (She's actually in Hawaii and won't be back until right before Christmas and knowing her, she won't be checking this blog while on a vacay.)

Take a look at these beauties and help us decide who wins this year:



The grinch-like stocking is long, measuring about a foot and a half and is covered in tiny little obnoxious beads that keep falling off.
The lovely lady is about 8 inches tall and sports a stylish feathered outfit and wings (in case the feathers don't work, I guess).

They are both so....unique, I can't decide.

More importantly, today is my firstborn's birthday!! He is 11 and will be 'crossing over' into Boy Scouts tonight. Happy Birthday Jackson!!


Boy, do I love that kid.

This Could Get Ugly

It is time to for the mailing of the Ugly Ornament.

For the last 5 years (this will be 6), my friend Jeanette and I have exchanged ugly ornaments every year for Christmas.

Each year we try to one-up each other and give the ugliest.
Sometimes she wins, but mostly I do. ☺

Not that she hasn't given me some real doozies in years past.

Like Fran here:
(the fact that she is an ornament with a name is a sure bet she's gonna be ugly)

And this delightful thing that would look lovely on someones tree with that sort of theme and color scheme but it occupies about one quarter of ornament space on our tree:

This one looks like someone lost their lingerie
and it somehow ended up on my Christmas tree:

I don't have any pictures of what I have sent her in the past but I have one for this year, I just can't post it until she gets it in the mail.

You might think I should send her this one:

But that little guy was a honeymoon purchase, handmade by the people of St. Maarten and he's had a special place on our tree for the last 13 years.

So what if my kids are a little confused about what race Santa is and whether he rides a sleigh or a tricycle? They don't care, just as long as he gets here.

♫ I don't care how you get here. Just get here if you can. ♫
(You know that was in your head too... ☺)

Cookbooks & Cupcakes

A recommendation:

I recently headed up a cookbook for our church and the results were awesome and all the credit goes to the company we used to print them.
Seriously, if you ever do this (a family cookbook would rock!), it is much easier than you think. The company we used is Morris Cookbooks. There are a few different ways you can do it but the cheapest and easiest way is to have everyone submit their recipes by going online and typing them in. As they are submitted, the chairperson (you) goes through and proofs them, checking for spelling errors or typo's. The price depends on how many recipes you have and how many books you order. We ordered 300 cookbooks with 421 recipes and the total cost per book was only $4.25 for a nice quality book. Guess what my kids' teachers are getting for Christmas? ☺


The 120 cupcakes. Actually it ended up being 125 but who's counting.
More pics here.





At the end of the night in true Oprah fashion, we gave away all the cake plates. People were jumping up and down and crying and passing out....

Just kidding.

But someone did call me Oprah on her way out the door.

Numbers

23- Number of days left until Christmas.

34 - The number in years I am fast approaching.

4 - The number of kids I have at home today because I was too tired and sick to get up to take 3 of them to school.
Yeah, yeah. Call DCF on me.

18 - The number everyone in our house uses to exaggerate the amount of something.
"Okay, there are about 18 pairs of socks outside by the trampoline."
"I have asked you 18 times to get in the shower."
"How come Sadie got like 18 cookies and I only got 2?"
Actually any number starting or ending with 8 works...80 billion, 58 thousand, etc.

5 - The number on the clock when I get up to go work out with my peeps.
Before you're too impressed, we only started 2 weeks ago and I am sick this week so I haven't been able to go. And don't tell anyone...but I actually really like going that early. I am so not a morning person but it is such a load off to get it done before anyone wakes up and I don't have to worry about trying to work it in later in the day.

27 - The number of new e-mails in my inbox when I logged on.
I know. I am so popular.

3 - The number of Advil's I took this morning to get rid of a major headache.

31 - Number of projects I want or need to do on my current To Do List.
There is no 8 in that number. That's for real.

6 - Number of kids currently on the trampoline that I'm about to open up a can on.

120 - Number of cupcakes I have baked and still have to decorate for a Christmas party tonight.
No 8 in that number either.

38 - Number of friends I have on Facebook.
Laura G. is so much cooler than I am. ☺

4 - Number of new cousins my kids will have around March of next year, when my sister and her hubby officially adopt them.

55 - The number of Christmas cards I'm sending out this year (give or take a few).
If you didn't send me one last year or the year before, you're not getting one. I give 2 chances.

8 gazillion - Number of loads of laundry I have to do today.

Are You Smarter Than A Six-Year-Old?

Audrey (from the back seat of the car): "Mom, I feel a little sick and I even threw up a little in my mouth but it didn't come all the way up it only came up to my uvula but not past that it's a good thing it only came up to my uvula and not out of my mouth all over the van but I swallowed it down maybe my uvula stopped it from coming out."

Me (driving, scratching my head trying to figure out what a 'uvula' is): "Yeah, it's a good thing. What did you say you think stopped it from coming out?"

Audrey: "My uvula."

Me: "Oh. Yeah. Good thing."

At this point I'm pretty sure she is referring to that hangy thing in the back of her throat, but she is famous for mispronunciation, and I adore it so I hardly ever correct her, unless I think she's going to be embarrassed by it someday (I was thinking this could be one of those times).

For example, this is a 'molder cycle':

And this is a 'booby':

And up until recently, this was a 'rooth':

Well, I didn't want to correct her without knowing what the real word is, so I waited until we got home to look it up.

Turns out, that little hangy thing in the back of your throat is called a uvula and she learned it in Kindergarten.

I'll never underestimate her again.

View From The Beach

Here is our view from about 20 miles away of the Space Shuttle Endeavour launch last night. It was really spectacular.

To compare, there was a full moon:

And the shuttle:

I also got to catch up with my first college roomie that I have not seen in almost 15 years....Did I just say FIFTEEN? Oye. People who talk like that are old. It was fun getting caught up after all that time. Hopefully it won't be another 15 years before we get together again.

Movie Review

Fun movie. Loved the music as usual. Gabriela and Troy had some real chemistry going in this one. ☺
Jackson, Sadie and I had the theater to ourselves - except for the cute geriatric lovebirds in the back. ♥

Off subject: I just discovered the 'compose' tab on this posting page.
How sad is that?

About as sad as my infatuation with High School Musical...

Daddy's Boy

Every day around 4:45, Justin can be found pacing the driveway, waiting to hear the rumble of the truck coming down the road.

Madam President

Highlights of our quick visit to Disney on Saturday (2 parks in 4 hours):

While riding on the tram to get to our car to go home, Audrey leaned over and whispered in my ear, "If I decide to run for president, my first job is going to be the rule 'No More Doing Drugs'."

I said, "Good Idea."

Then she said, "And no re-piercing" as she stared straight at a girl sitting facing us with about 28 earrings in each ear.

And then there was this:


This NEVER happens. I mean it. NEVER. So it had to be documented.

And the new Toy Story ride was very cute!

I Love

I love that Sadie tries to find proof that she's part dog.

I love that Justin lets me work in the yard or garage without wandering into the road too many times.

I love that the forecast today is clear blue skies and 75°.

I love that I don't really care that my house is a mess because I have been outside all day.

I love it when Justin is tired of sitting on my lap and he hops off and says 'ee ya' (see ya)!

I love that no one gets mad when he stops to pee on the floor as he streaks through the house to get into the tub.

I love that my man gets home no later than 5:00 every day, and he doesn't bring a shred of work with him.

I also love that he gets all the Jewish holidays off. And we're not even Jewish.

I love that Jackson fits into my rollerblades and has taken them over so I can get a new pair.

I love it when Audrey tells me I'm the best mom she's ever had. (I didn't realize I had competition.)

And I really love these pictures. Happy Halloween!!

Pumpkin Perfection

Time for our yearly obligatory pumpkin carving family night.
This time we went to the Methodist church pumpkin patch to get our gourds.

That's right. No Walmart pumpkins for us. We spared no expense this year.




It was boys...


vs. girls...


Clearly we won.
How does it go, Audrey?
Girls Rule. Boys Drool.

Tagged

Two people tagged me to do the same post so here ya go!

6 Random Things About Moi

1. I have 3 kidneys.
I know what your next question is: 'How do you know?'
I had an ultrasound when I was 18 for a pain in my side.
And no, I do not pee more than normal.
I often wonder if one of my kids will need one someday.

2. I have been snow-skiing ONCE and it was a painful and humorous experience. It took my sister and me 2 hours to get down the bunny slope.
"Snow Plow!!" automatically comes to my mind when skiing comes up in conversation.

3. I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Most of my blogger buddies and readers know that but some might not. If you want to know more about my Mormon faith and what I believe, go here.
My religion defines who I am. My every day centers around my resolve to live according to it's teachings. I don't drink, smoke, swear, watch R-rated movies or other movies or shows with explicit content. I go to church every Sunday and for the days in between, I try to read my scriptures and pray. I love my family more than words can really say, and I love my Savior even more.

5. I like to make things. I like to cook, sew and craft, but I also like to paint, refinish furniture or remodel things. Some husbands bring their wives flowers. My man brings me power tools from time to time. I once tore out the vanity in the kids bathroom and put a new one in all by myself. When I decide I'm going to do something, I have to do it and I can't wait around for Steve to get home from work to help me. ☺
I would love to have a huge workshop with every tool imaginable. Like those ones they sometimes do on Extreme Makeover Home Edition. ☺

6. I like to mow the lawn. I don't really like to do any other kind of yard work. There's just something satisfying about the look and smell of freshly trimmed grass. We have made one attempt at a vegetable garden since we've lived here, but we weren't serious enough about it to keep up with it. Maybe we'll try again this year.

Okay, so now I'm supposed to tag some people. I don't remember who has or hasn't done this yet so don't do it if you already have! I tag Jill, Marisa, Annetta and Celeste. Have fun!

Photo Of The Day

After being bathed and PJ'd, Justin apparently thought he needed a little more tub time and dove in with Audrey.

Judging by the murky bath water, Audrey apparently had a great afternoon playing in the mud.

Week In Review

GOOD - Only one more month until Justin is old enough to go in the nursery at church.

BAD - He's such a scaredy-cat, I will probably have to stay in there with him.

COOL - When I got carded at Walmart for spray paint. Actually, that falls in the Very Cool category.

NIGHTMARE - When I didn't wear a bra to drop the kids off at school because we were running late and I didn't think I would have to get out.
I was wrong.
That's when babies come in handy to hug nice and tight.
(Too bad I couldn't use him to hide my morning breath.)

EXCITING - Jackson has gotten pretty darn good at tennis. All that dinero for lessons is paying off.

HUMILIATING - He whooped me 4 games to 2....my back was hurting...☺

FINALLY - I finished my Spooky Tree.

BUT - I have a thin layer of black spray paint all over me so my skin looks a little grey.

CUTE - When I sing 'Old McDonald', Justin chimes in and sounds like a broken record cuz he can't get past the 'E-I' part. 'E-I-E-I-E-I-E-I-E-I'...you get the idea.

GOOD - I inventoried our food storage situation and I know what we are lacking and I'm on it.

REALLY BAD - I had some cake mixes that were about to expire so I made a ton of cupcakes to freeze. I ate a lot of them. With frosting.

FUN - Justin had little friends over for the very first time.

BUT - He went down for a nap about 20 minutes after they got here.

HAPPY - Audrey turned 6!!! I can't believe my baby girl is 6!!!

SAD - I can't believe my baby girl is 6...

SAD (The don't want to talk about it kind) - I'm reminded that I lost Audrey's baby pictures through her first year when our old computer bit the dust several years ago.

GLAD - She's my daughter and I love her so much. She wakes me up with her crooked smile every morning. She makes me laugh with her off-the-wall questions and her witty comments. She humbles me with her sensitive heart. She amazes me with her intelligence. She is truly one of my jewels.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEAUTIFUL GIRL!!!