Meet The Robertson's

Andrew's Visit

2009-05-18T08:08:00.007-05:00

Here are a few pictures of when my brother Andrew came last month for a visit. It was really nice to spend some time with him and get to know him better. We had a great time!
One of the tings we did when he was here, was to take the kids and go play at Potowatami State Park near Sturgeon Bay. It was a pretty nice day for early spring here in Wisconsin. We climbed the 'look out' tower to get a nice view of the bay. There was still alot of ice on the water.
It's pretty pathetic to say, but after climbing all those stairs as fast as we did to keep up with all the young ones, Andrew and I both had sore quads the next day...argggh!

The little ones had fun playing on the park equipment. This was the first outing to a park after a long winter.

After, we headed over to our favorite place, Culver's Custard! I was so excited because they were running a special that day for a buy one Concrete and get another one for free. Love good deals!!

Dave took Andrew out on the Ahnapee River for a morning of canoeing. Andrew said he had never been out on a canoe before so I think he had a good time. They saw a lot of wildlife.

Dave, Andrew and I hanging out on the bay in Fish Creek.

On of the traditions we have when family comes to visit from Utah is to take them to my favorite restaurant in Fish Creek called The White Gull Inn. It's a darling little inn that had wonderful food. One of the traditional meals they serve that is customary for the peninsula is called a Fish Boil.

They put some fresh, local caught whitefish in a big pot along with some red potatoes (in separate baskets).

Then the Mater Boiler adds what he says is, "a pinch of salt"...

...then he trows some kerosene on the fire and the pot of boiling water heats up really fast and the oils from the fish boil over resulting in a much tastier, less fishy tasting fish. It's quite a show!!!

The meal is served in the restaurant along with some wonderful breads, coleslaw and delicious cherry pie a'la mode! It's a great meal! If you're ever in the area, call and we'll have to take you there. You won't be disappointed!

2009-05-12T15:08:00.007-05:00

This is a long one! But at least it's getting me writing on my blog.

1. How old will you be in five years?
41

2. Who did you spend at least two hours with today?
Chloe and Makaela

3. How tall are you?
5'6

4. What do you look forward to most in the next six weeks?
Having Dave home for the summer

5. What's the last movie you saw?
Bedtime Stories

6. Who was the last person you called?
My mom

7. Who was the last person to call you?
Connor's teacher (the last person I wanted to talk to!)

8. What was the last text message you received?
I can't remember. Don't text.

9. Who was the last person to leave you a voicemail?
Connor's teacher...just great... :/

10. Do you prefer to call or text?
Calls

11. What were you doing at 12 am last night?
Sleeping!!

12. Are your parents married/separated/divorced?

Married

13. When is the last time you saw your mom?
A couple months ago.

14. What color are your eyes?
Hazel

15. What time did you wake up today?
5:30a.m

16. What are you wearing right now?
Blue athletic wear bottoms, red t-shirt and red hoodie.

17. What is your favorite Christmas song?
Oh Holy Night or What Child is This?

18. Where is your favorite place to be?
Anywhere with my family (mostly home though)

19. Where is your least favorite place to be?
Chucky Cheese

20. Where would you go if you could go anywhere?
England, Portugal and Tahiti.

21. Where do you think you'll be in 10 years?
Same place doing the same thing, probably

22. Do you tan or burn?
Mostly tan with an occasional burn

23. What did you fear was going to get you at night as a child?
The Boogie Man in the basement

24. What was the last thing that really made you laugh?
Watching failblog.org videos on youtube with the family

25. How many TVs do you have in your house?
2, but only watch 1 of them

26. How big is your bed?
queen

27. Do you have a laptop or desktop computer?
desktop

28. Do you sleep with or without clothes on?
I guess with...

29. What color are your sheets?
red paisley

30. How many pillows do you sleep with?
1

31. What is your favorite season?
late spring and early fall

32. What do you like about fall?
The colors, the crunch of leaves, the crisp air

33. What do you like about winter?
being warm by the fire with my family close by in our home

34. What do you like about the summer?
family camp trips and vacation time, flip flops, water, capri's, the beach, ice cream, loud music/windows rolled down, boating, suntanning and relaxing, reading, running, biking --I could go on but I won't.........

35. What do you like about spring?
Buds, flowers, getting back outside after a long winter, starting up on BBQ, mowing the lawn, fixing up the yard, the freshness in the air

36. How many states/provinces have you lived in?
3...Utah, Portugal and Wiconsin

37. What cities/towns have you lived in?
Salt Lake City, UT., Heber, UT., Orem, UT., Provo, UT., Lisbon, Portugal, Gresham, WI., Sturgeon Bay, WI., Algoma, WI.

38. Do you prefer shoes, socks, or bare feet?
bare feet...I really shouldn't because I suffer from plantar fasciitis right now...should have more support on my arches.

39. Are you a social person?
sometimes

40. What was the last thing you ate?
Shredded Pork taco salad

41. What is your favorite restaurant?
Victoria's

42. What is your favourite ice cream?
Anything with chocolate and peanut butter

43. What is your favourite dessert?
anything really

44. What is your favourite kind of soup?
Enchilada Soup

45. What kind of jelly do you like on your PB & jelly sandwich?
It's a tie b/w raspberry and strawberry

46. Do you like Chinese food?
Yes, as well as Korean, Thai, Japanese, Mongolian, Mong, and Indian.

47. Do you like coffee?
No. I think it's sick and makes people have stinky breath.

48. How many glasses of water, a day, do you drink on average?
Maybe 4 but I need to drink way more. I get busy and forget.

49. What do you drink in the morning?
Cold Milk or Water

51. Do you sleep on a certain side of the bed?
Yes, the right side.

52. Do you know how to play poker?
No and honestly I don't care to know

53. Do you like to cuddle?
Sometimes...(Stuart is saying over my shoulder, "Me...no"...hahaha!)

54. Have you ever been to Australia?
No

55. Do you have an addictive personality?
Yes

56. Do you eat out or at home more often?
Home

58. Do you know anyone with the same birthday as you?
Yes, I know lots of people with my birthday. My best friend growing up (that I've known since I was five) shares my birthday.

59. Do you want kids?
I have already been blessed with the little darlings.

60. Do you speak any other languages?
Portuguese and took three years of French and a year of Russian in high school.

61. Have you ever gotten stitches?
Just after child birth and after surgeries.

62. Have you ever ridden in an ambulance?
Nope--hope I never have to

63. Do you prefer an ocean or a pool?
Either one would be nice

64. Do you prefer a window seat or an aisle seats?
Window Seat

65. Do you know how to drive stick?
Yes. Had to take over driving my sister's husbands car for her when she couldn't get it in gear going up a hill. Very embarrassing!

66. What is your favorite thing to spend money on?
Pandora beads.

67. Do you wear any jewelry 24/7?
Of course!

68. What is your favorite TV show?
24 and American Idol

69. Can you roll your tongue?
yup

70. Who is the funniest person you know?
Connor

71. Do you sleep with stuffed animals?
Just my husband, if he classifies

72. What is the main ring tone on your phone?
Just whatever is on my cell phone. Nothing fancy.

73. Do you still have clothes from when you were little?
I don't think so.

74. What red object is closest to you right now?
My sweatshirt and a tea towel.

75. Do you turn off the water while you brush your teeth?
Yes...I'm a wanderer while I'm brushing.

76. Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed?
Most of the time it's closed

77. Would you rather be attacked by a big bear or a swarm of bees?
How about neither!

78. Do you flirt a lot?
Pretty sure I don't with others but I do with my husband

79. What do you dip a chicken nugget in?
BBQ sauce or sweet n sour

80. What is your favourite food?
Any Oriental

81. Can you change the oil on a car?
No, I leave those duties to the husband

82. Have you ever gotten a speeding ticket?
Yes...slightly speeding though a school zone when there were no kids around...very expensive.

83. Have you ever run out of gas?
Nope

84. What is your usual bedtime?
B/W 10 and 11 PM

85. What was the last book you read?
Deception Point by Dan Brown

86. Do you read the newspaper?
I read the news online

87. Do you have any magazine subscriptions?
Church magazines and Cookie (which was a gift...don't really like it.)

89. Do you watch soap operas?
no

90. Do you dance in the car?
Just bop the head up and down

91. What radio station did you last listen to?
Whatever plays good music.

92. Who is in the picture frame closest to you?
My kids

93. What was the last note you scribbled on a piece of paper?
Ebay purchases between me and my mom for Pandora beads

94. What is your favorite candle scent?
Cranberry Mango- Scentsy

95. What is your favorite board game?
Settlers of Catan, all the way!!!

97. When was the last time you attended church?
Sunday

98. Who was your favourite teacher in high school?
A teacher that I had in Portugal...Mr Duckett

99. What is the longest you have ever camped out in a tent?
Three days (one day too long)

100. Who was the last person to do something extra special for you?
My kids made me some cards and gave me plants for Mother's Day and my brother-in-law made me breakfast in bed for Mother's Day while we stayed at their house.

2009-05-12T08:41:00.003-05:00

I know I've been the biggest looser on my blog lately. We got the part for the computer but I haven't figured out how to get all my info off it yet. Dave is going to help me figure it out this weekend and then I'll be able to get some pictures on here. This was kind of a funny tag I saw on my friend D.J. blog. Thanks for the good idea!

1.YOUR REAL NAME:
Sara Robertson

2.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME:(sisters and brothers middle names)
Dawn Ann Perry Joseph

3.NASCAR NAME:(first name of your mother's dad, father's dad)
Ellis Newton

4.STAR WARS NAME:(the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name)
Robsa

5.DETECTIVE NAME:(favorite color, favorite animal)
Red Dog

6.SOAP OPERA NAME:(middle name, town where you were born)
Gayle Salt Lake (???...doesn't sound so good)

7.SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd fav color, fav drink, add "THE" to the beginning)
The Green Dr. Pepper (sounds pretty intense--I know)

8.FLY NAME:(first 2 letters of 1st name, last 2 letters of your last name)
Saon

9.STREET NAME:(fav ice cream flavor, fav cookie)
Moose Track Macaroon

10.YOUR GANGSTA NAME:(first 3 letters of last name plus izzle)
Robizzle

11.YOUR IRAQI NAME:(2nd letter of your first name, 3rd letter of your last name, first two letters of your middle name, last two letters of your first name then last three letters of your last name):
Abgarason

12.YOUR GOTH NAME:(black, and the name of one of your pets)
Black Poppy

13. STRIPPER NAME: (name of your fav perfume/cologne, favorite candy)
Ralph Hot Snickers (sounds sexy!)

Connor's blog

2009-04-30T20:39:00.002-05:00

Here's a little shout-out for Connor's blog. He was a little jealous that Oliver was getting comments on his blog and so he asked me , "Can't you advertise for me too?" So here's his link :)
planetconman.blogspot.com You guys are the best! Thanks for making my little boys happy!

Oliver's blog

2009-04-24T08:31:00.001-05:00

Oliver has recently made a blog and checks daily to see if any one has looked at it or made a comment. So here's your invitation...oliverspurdyblog.blogspot.com. Connor has one too. Pretty entertaining for his mom...I don't have his address right now, but I'll link it on my side bar later.

Waiting, Waiting....

2009-04-20T08:02:00.003-05:00

We recently had to buy a new computer, which is very exciting, indeed! Dave wants to put our previous hard drive (which was only a couple of months old) onto our new computer as extra storage and back-up. The old hard drive has my photo program on it as well as my picture files. So hang on while I patiently wait for this thing we had to order to get the old hard drive to go on our new one. I have lots of pictures I want to put on of Easter and of the visit of my brother, Andrew.

Mama and Papa, my birthday and other happenings.

2009-03-31T13:14:00.013-05:00

Mama and Papa Have Come for a Visit!!!

It's been a while since I've posted anything. You might be wondering where I've been? Well, my parents came for a visit from Utah and we've been so busy playing, cooking and going out on the town that I haven't had the time to sit down and load pictures and write anything. We've had a great couple of weeks and have made a lot of memories. I've posted some of the pictures we took, but I wish I would've taken more. Umph!
Here's a few of the highlights...

The first Saturday my parents were here, Stuart and Connor had a three on three tournament here in town. I really think they liked having Mama and Papa here to cheer them on. Papa said they were good players, calling them "little scrappers". Stuart had some great games, scoring half of the teams total points. He also did a great job playing defense.
This was Connor's first experience playing basketball in a competitive way and we were all really impressed. Papa said he set a pick like nothing else!

I like these pictures of the kids with Mama and Papa. They all have a great relationship with their Mama and Papa. Oliver and Papa are two peas in a pod; teasing each other all day long!

That night we took my parents to a nice restaurant in Sturgeon Bay for my birthday called Inn at Cedar Crossing. We all enjoyed our meals, as everything is always so delicious! After dinner for dessert we went to Culver's and had some custard, Mama's favorite! We actually made several trips there during the visit!
Mama didn't want her picture taken this night at the Inn because she had some kind of allergic reaction earlier that day, and her eye and surrounding area all swelled up. I promise she was there!

On Sunday the 22nd, it was my birthday. We went to church and then enjoyed a great meal made by Mama. She made pot roast, mashed potatoes, bread and salad with homemade Thousand Island dressing. Yum!!

Then they sang me Happy Birthday and we had cake and Culver's custard, of course!

One of the great traditions my dad does with the kids is to "Call the Magic" into the treasure box. (I've posted an essay my nephew wrote a couple of months ago about this tradition.)
The kids LOVE it and beg him to do it every day!!

Poppy even got in the action and took a sucker from the treasure box! She thought if she hid on the other side of the couch we night not notice! No, NO, NO, POPPY!!

Mama in all her glory...in the kitchen. My kids have told me that I'm a good cook, but only second best! They all think Mama is the best cook ever! I'm OK with this because really, she is the best!

This is poor Mama after spending the whole day in the kitchen last Sunday, making a delicious meal of Feijoada, molho, Mama bread, and Danish Dessert. She was pooped!
(all that I can add is this picture was taken right before "Poo-lates" #2...that's all I'll give away, Mom! :)

Us girls, getting ready to hit the town. It was so fun to take off for the day and go shopping! We went to a garage sell, a jewelery store to get Pandora bracelets and then to TJ Maxx. Fun times!

For my birthday, Dave got me (but I went to pick it out with my mom) a Pandora bracelet. They are like a charm bracelet but instead of jangly, loud charms, they are silver (or gold) beads. My mom and I both fell in love with these! She got one too and bought her a couple of charms for her birthday coming up and for Mothers Day (I guess I won't have to worry about shipping anything out to her, as I stink at this and she always gets her presents too late!) We spent many an hour drooling over the catalog deciding what charms we wanted next. It was funny because one morning I woke up and told her that I had dreamed about Pandora. She started laughing and said she did the same thing!

Another funny thing that happened were these shoes that my mom bought for Chloe at the Garage sell. As many of you know, Chloe has had a fixation of the wizard of Oz and has taken on the identity of Dorthy. My mom saw these shoes and knew that Chloe had to have them. Even though they are 10 sizes too big, it hasn't deterred her from wearing them all over town. She clomped all over Green Bay wearing these things. It brought many a smile to other shoppers faces! Chloe even sleeps in these things. Oliver told her the other day..."Chloe, I have news for you. Those shoes are too big for you!". "NO THEY'RE NOT!!!", she replied!

Going to church wearing the ruby slippers, of course!

On Friday, Dave took the boys to La Crosse so that Stuart could play in another tournament. That left me and Chloe home with my parents. We decided to go out for a bite to eat since we didn't need to cook for the whole gang. I took them to one of my favorite places to eat, Victoria's in Green Bay. It is an Italian Restaurant that puts Olive Garden to shame! I always get the same meal every time I go there, Fucilli Milli Gusti, but my parents order Chicken Parmigiana over a bed of fettuccine. One thing Victoria's is famous for are their portions! When my dad first saw his plate, he said loudly for every one around to hear, "GOOD GOLLY!!" He told the waitress that he'd eaten in restaurants all over the world and he'd never seen portions of that size! They had a huge plate of pasta covered with two enormous breaded chicken breasts.
I've never gone to that restaurant without taking a box home. In fact we all took some home. We ate our dishes for dinner that night, lunch the next day and dinner as well! I'd say we got our money's worth!

We always love when Mama and Papa come! We get them all to ourselves to spoil and love! We are looking forward to the next time we see them this summer in Utah and are looking forward when they can come back to our house when Oliver's gets baptized in November. But until then we'll miss them lots!

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!

2009-03-17T08:00:00.005-05:00

This morning for breakfast I made the kids some GREEN steel cut oats for breakfast. They seemed slightly concerned when they looked in their bowls!

Oliver asked this morning if I knew where an orange marker was. I asked him why he need one and he said so he could draw an orange beard on his face. I guess he wanted to be a leprechaun. I told him that I thought a green shirt would be fine to wear to school and maybe we'd have to look into making a beard with yarn after school.

Last night for dinner I made corned beef, cabbage, potatoes and carrots, and Irish soda bread rolls for dinner. I made the Irish dinner last night instead of tonight because Dave and Stuart weren't going to home tonight. I thought it was so tasty! The kids liked it too, even the cabbage! They normally devour carrots but they all said they didn't like them too well. Maybe the carrots tasted funny to them because I cooked them in the crock pot with the meat and potatoes. Who knows!!
My sister, Emily, gave me the recipe for the Irish soda bread. It was the first time that I had ever tried making it and I thought it was pretty good. They are a heavy, quick bread with a crusty crust. They are quick and easy and that's what I liked about them! Here's the recipe if you want to try them out.

Irish Soda Bread Rolls

2 1/2 c. + flour (I used 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all-purpose)
1 c. oats
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. currents or raisins (I used currents to add some sweetness)
1 1/2 c. buttermilk

Combine dry ingredients and add buttermilk to make a manageable dough. (You may have to add a little more flour so that the dough isn't too sticky.) Stir to just combine. Overmixing produces a tough dough. Form into rolls and roll in some flour. This recipe made 8 rolls for me. Place on a greased or parchment lined cookie sheet. Cut crosses on the top of the roll and bake for 35-40 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Best fresh out of the oven!

Oliver's Busy Week

2009-03-15T15:59:00.006-05:00

DESTINATION IMAGINATION

Oliver had the opportunity to be involved with a program called Destination Imagination. I wasn't familiar with this before I moved to Wisconsin, but it is a neat thing for kids to get involved with after school. It's a world wide program that kids get to compete in, first on a regional level, then state, then nationals, then world. (In fact, the school the kids used to go to before we moved to our current city, took 1st in world level for several years.)
What the kids do is meet together for several months after school with a "coach". The kids are given a challenge that they have to overcome as shown in a play/skit. They have to come up with the idea and solution all on their own, create their set, write the play and come up with ideas for costumes. It's a great way for them to let their creative juices flow!
Oliver has had a couple of opportunities in the last few weeks to let his artistic side show through the stage. He told me a few days ago that he thought that maybe his "destiny" was to be an actor! We'll see!!

THE PINEWOOD DERBY

Another big thing on the list to do this week was to help Oliver build a Pinewood Derby Car. Can I just say, the more I do this event with my boys, the more I hate it!? To me, all it is is a place for the dad's who know what they're doing to make their kids car the best and the fastest thing to hit the track! It is so hard to compete at these races if you don't know what the heck you are doing! Let just say, based on Dave's look in the following picture, that he doesn't get into it too much. He wants our boys to make the car themselves as much as possible, which is the right thing to do. But on the other hand, I know they can't preform next to these "daddy pros" who build their boys car. What to do?? Well, Oliver's car didn't do that well...30th out of 31! I felt bad for him, looking at the disappointment on his face when his car lost every round. I heard several other boys who didn't preform very well go up to their dad's and say, "You stink at building cars!!!". Sad.
I do know that Oliver had fun making the car and he especially had fun after the race, zooming his car around the gym with his brothers and buddies.
I know there are other Pack's out there that have a "daddy race" for the dads to compete in. I wish ours would do that and leave the kids to do their own with just a little bit of help in the carving of the car. But until then, this mommy feels too much pressure!
(* Note: After re-reading this post on the derby with Dave, I realize that it sounds a little harsh and bitter. I'm not really that upset about it, but these are the things I feel about it.)

Daybook, March 9th

2009-03-09T14:29:00.003-05:00

Outside my window: Well, beside the new snow from last nights' snowstorm- 6 1/2 inches (old news, same old-same old), I see the Utility Company trimming my trees out in the front yard. I love these big trees as they provide such nice shade in the summer and beautiful color in the fall.
I am thinking: I am glad Chloe seems to be feeling better today. Last night she had a fever of about 103. She has a bad cough too. Sometimes my kids seem to feel better in the day and then get sick again at night.
I am thankful: That my parents and my brother, Andrew are coming for a visit in the next couple of weeks for my birthday. Can't wait!!!
From the kitchen: Last night I made cinnamon rolls for the family and the neighbors (enjoyed one for breakfast this morning!). Tonight I'm going to make chicken pizza and salad. My kids really like this flavor of pizza using Ranch as the sauce, chicken pieces cooked with garlic pepper, pineapple tidbits and lots of mozzarella cheese. I know it sounds really weird, but it's so good!
I am creating: A clean home. With my mom coming, spring cleaning has bumped up on my priority list! When I ask the kids to clean and I want a really good, through job, I say "Clean 'LaVaunimuska' style." (My mom's name is LaVaun) They get the message and know what standard I want! This is the standard that I'm trying to clean too! :)
I am going: Nowhere! Dave's car is out of commission, so I'm left without a car...not like I was going anywhere anyways!
I am hoping: That our tax return gets here quick! Then Dave can get a new car and I can pay off some bills! How fun for me.
I am reading: Another spy thriller. My favorite!
I am hearing: I am listening to Chloe play and watch "Reading Rainbow".
Around the house: I just mopped my floors. This is something I don't do enough because the same day I do it, someone walks in with their shoes on and the floors get all muddy again. Then I'm always on the kids to be careful not to get the floors dirty. Not really worth I guess. But after they're clean I realize how much I love it and how it's not really that hard to clean them.
One of my favorite things: Girl Scout Cookies. My neighbor girls brought over our order last night and I'm trying really hard to ignore them in the kitchen! My favorites are Samoas and
Thin Mints.
I am wearing: Sweats and a sweatshirt. I wanted to get my cleaning done and then get ready for the day, but it's taking me too long. I don't think getting ready is going to happen for me today.
Plans for the week: Clean, clean, clean!!! Also a few haircuts. Dave has Friday off, so we may have to go out to lunch at Inn at Cedar Crossing. It has yummy food! Dave is also taking the boys to Motor-Cross at the Resch Center on Saturday. He's not really looking forward to it, but the boys are. Bring some earplugs, Dave!!

For a few hours I felt like I was in India...

2009-03-08T13:38:00.002-05:00

Last night Dave and I went on a double date with some friends of ours, the St. John's. We drove to Green Bay to go to a restaurant called Taste of India. I had never had Indian food before so this was exciting for me.
Just a little back ground on my ethnic food history... Before I had married Dave, I hadn't had a lot of ethnic foods. I had lived in Portugal and had tried some interesting things from the cooking there, but as far as loving and craving really different foods, that came with Dave subjecting me to all kinds of different things. And I'm glad he has...
Last night we had lots of yummy things. We started out with some thin crispy bread called puris that was served with different chutneys to dip in. These were some very good and unique flavors I've never had before. We also had a serving of the tradional Indian bread called Naan (similar to a puffy tortilla).
Following that we had an appetizer called Samosa. They were a type of fried pastry filled with potatoes and peas. Yum! It was kind of funny because on the plate that the Samosa's were served on, there was a bed of greens with a spice sprinkled on the dish. We all took a lick of the spice to figure out was it was. I had never had this taste before and couldn't figure out what it was. We all decided that it tasted like a hard cooked egg. Very interesting!
After that we had some main dishes that we all shared so we could try different flavors. We ordered Palak Paneer (spinach curry with cheese, was my favorite!), Lamb Curry (Dave's favorite), Matar Paneer (Green peas and mushroom curry), and a dish called Tandoori which was a bunch of different types of meats and veggies grilled in a clay oven.
I also had a drink (which was more like a dessert) called a Mango Lassie. This was a yogurt drink flavored with mango and rose water. So, so good! After the meal they served sweetened fennel seeds which apparently you suck on, then spit out. Dave didn't know this and he had chewed and swallowed his. He said that wasn't so good! :(
After feeling cooped up in my house for so long it was so good to get away, even if it was for a few hours. Dave and I joked that we felt like we were some where far away as the waiter staff could hardly speak English either!
So, I highly recommend Indian food to you if you haven't tried it. Very different then any thing I've had, but so good. I thoroughly enjoyed this meal and am going to try my hand at cooking some of these dishes for my family in our rotation of meals!

Funniest blog post ever!

2009-03-03T16:24:00.011-06:00

I was linked to this blog through a friend of mine, Sean. You just have to read this funny post. Maybe you saw this on the national media circuit this week, but it is worth reading from her perspective. I had tears streaming down my cheeks! Hilarious!!

Krazy Kaitlin
Feb. 25 post "I'm Engaged!"

I Spy...

2009-02-26T08:25:00.006-06:00

I am: Sara, a daughter of God.
I think: I need to be nicer to myself.
I want: To be debt free.
I have: The best family in the whole world.
I dislike: Kids that don't get along with each other.
I miss: My family in Utah.
I fear: My kids won't make the right decisions when they're teenagers.
I feel: Sad that we are having another big snow storm tonight, Enough already!
I hear: Barbie- Rapunzel movie playing.
I smell: Oatmeal that I had for breakfast.
I crave: Chocolate and peanut butter anything.
I cry: Before that 'time of the month'.
I regret: How I treated my parents in my youth.
I search: The news for any shocking stories.
I wonder: If I'll have to babysit other people's kids forever.
I love: Dave, more than anything!
I care: When my neighbor's sidewalks aren't shoveled.
I always: Have gum in my purse.
I worry: About the health of my parents.
I am not: Liking politics these days.
I remember: Old and dear friends.
I believe: In God the Eternal Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ and in the Holy Ghost.
I dance: When I'm listening to my ipod while I'm cleaning.
I sing: When I'm listening to my ipod while I'm cleaning.
I don't always: Tell the people I love how much they mean to me. I need to do that more!
I argue: With Connor more than I should. Walk away!!!
I write: On my blog when I'm feeling creative or feel like a copy-cat.
I win: When I stay on task during the day.
I lose: At Settlers of Catan to Dave more than I'd like.
I wish: I had a Bosch bread mixer.
I listen: To Chloe sing Wizard of Oz songs all day.
I don't understand: Why some people abuse their kids. So very sad.
I can usually: Pull things together last minute. Wish I didn't do this. I used to be more prepared.
I watch: American Idol with my kids.
I need: A massage from Suzanna.
I forget: To take movies and books back to the library on time.
I am happy: When there is love in my home.

Chloe as Dorthy in The Wizard of Oz

2009-02-25T14:09:00.005-06:00

Little Miss Chloe decided she wanted to pretend and be Dorthy...all day long. She went up to her closet and picked out what she thought was the prefect "Dorthy" dress. She was cracking me up dancing and prancing and singing all the songs from The Wizard of Oz. After we watched the video back on the camera I said, "Chloe, you are too funny" and she replied, "I sure are!!"
Notice the hand gestures and how she preforms for herself in the reflection of the TV. Haha!

The Land of Oz

2009-02-25T09:52:00.008-06:00

Here are some pictures from the musical, The Wizard of Oz, that the family was involved with last week. It was a great show and we all had a great time!

Munchkinland

Sorceress of the North

The Munchkin Mayor

Dorthy singing with Munchkin Chloe

Dave the Tin Man getting oiled

The Fabulous Four

Chloe turning into a Munchkin

Connor getting make-up on...just what he always wanted.

The Robertson Munchkin kids

Chloe and her buddy, Margret.

Oliver transformed into the Wicked Witch of the West. He was the shrunken version of the witch after the big witch, Bubonia, gets thrown into the cauldron of shrinking potion.

Big and little Bubonia.

The Tinman and the witches, Influenza and Mombi.

The Cast and Crew

Here are the bio's of the kids as they appeared in the program for the play. (Their dad wrote them if you can't tell.)

Stuart Robertson has participated in many plays, but most of them have been the ones his basketball team runs on the court. He loves sports, but finds time to practice the trombone and the piano. Stuart has sung at Solo/Ensemble before and has gotten a first place rating. He has also been in choir before, but this is his first musical.
Connor Robertson has a little know fact about himself; his first name is David. He was named after his Dad. Connor probably got his good looks and sweet stage skills from him too! His previous stage experiences include being the "jolly swagman" in the song "Waltzing Matilda" during an elementary music concert.
Oliver Robertson has preformed many times before this show, but mostly for family members. He loves to sing. Sometimes Oliver sings until his brothers can't stand it any more and then he sings just a little more. It keeps things exciting at his house. When Oliver and his brothers play "Rock Band", he usually is the lead singer. "Mississippi Queen" is his signature song. Oliver plays a Munchkin and the little witch that climbs out of the cauldron.
Chloe Robertson is three years old. She loves that her Daddy's the Director. Chloe has her Dad wrapped around her little finger! This is her first time on stage. Chloe's favorite part of being in the show has been meeting the other cast members, especially Margret Hintz.

The Tin Man Diva

2009-02-11T12:12:00.002-06:00

As many of you know, Dave is the high school choir teacher at a local school around here. They are about to do the production, The Wizard of Oz. It is always such a stressful time for Dave as the play is so time consuming. To put more pressure on him he has to deal with some kids that only think about themselves. Now I know that that is nothing new, teenagers=selfishness, but the majority of the kids he works with are just delightful and great to be around. He does have a couple of kids that I want wring their necks!! And they are the ones that make life miserable for Dave.
Case in point, the Tin Man. This kid thinks he is Gods gift to the music program at Dave's school. He is a senior this year and is one of the last kids to come through from the previous choir director program (Dave replaced him). I don't think this boy ever gave Dave a chance because he would never compare with his beloved teacher. Last year this boy (let's call him B) had the main part for the production Pirates of Pensance. Not until the day before the opening night did he have his lines down. Dave was a nervous wreck! So this year when he cast B as the Tin Man he did so with much trepidation.
B hasn't been the easiest kid to work with this year. He comes in and criticizes the other kids for not knowing their lines when he himself doesn't either. He has also had some issues with not showing up for rehearsal when others are counting on him to be there. A couple of weeks ago he came into Dave's office and said he wasn't going to be at practice that night because he wanted to go do something else. Dave knows that kids have a lot of activities that they are involved with but from the start he said if they needed to miss they'd have to clear it with him in advance, not the day of. Dave explained to B that they were working on his parts that night and he really needed to be there. Well guess who doesn't show up or call? B! Then his mom had the nerve to call and chew Dave out for being too hard on her kid. After that episode Dave made it clear that if B wanted to be a part of the play he had to commit to the show and show that he really wanted to be there.
A few days ago B came into Dave's office and said that there was a concert that he really wanted to go to. He ask if he could miss but Dave pointed out that it was a few days before opening night and he really couldn't miss since he had a main roll and a lady would be there to fit his costume. B said he didn't know whether or not he would go to practice or not so Dave said, "You're going to to the right thing and come to play practice where the rest of the cast needs you to be." So you guessed it, B choose to go to the concert instead. That really put Dave in a conundrum. It's three days till opening night...he told this kid if he missed he'd be cut and besides that, he was so sick and tired of B's disrespectful attitude, but at the same time who can learn the part in three days?!? He didn't know what to do. He thought, "I can't let this kid have this much control and put me in this position. But then why should I have to go through all this turmoil to either find a replacement or frantically learn all his lines!". I was so mad! I encouraged Dave to make the right choice and cut him, he can't set a bad precedence for the rest of the students. To make matter's worse, Dave found out that the next day at school the boy was bragging to his friends that, "Mr. Robertson doesn't have the nerve to cut me. It's only a few days before the play. He says he'll cut me but I know he won't do it!"
B doesn't know that the worst thing to do is give Mr. Robertson a challenge...he'll take it every time! I know!
So here we are, staying up too late running Dave's new lines every spare moment we have till opening night! I know he'll make a great Tin Man though! I was already so impressed at how well he did last night when we were practicing.
I guess I just have to use this as an example to teach my boys about comitting to something and that if you say you're going to be somewhere where people are counting on you, you have to be there no matter what other better thing comes up. I also will use this to teach my kids that they need to be respectful to their teachers even if they don't agree with them.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-02-10T12:10:00.004-06:00

Lately I've been trying out new recipes for the cookie of the week that I've been making for the kids to eat after school and for the pit crew at Dave's play practice. This recipe I just had to share!! It is a wonderful cookie that I'm sure will be a favorite. I got this recipe on allrecipes.com. Almost 1000 people gave it 4 1/2 stars so I had to put it to the test. Yesterday I gave one to Dave's principle at his school (he is also Dave's good friend) and asked him if he were to rate this cookie out of 5 stars what would he give it. He said he'd give it a 6! So try it out for yourself and see if it's a hit at your house!

Ingredients:

1 c. soften butter
1 1/2 c. white sugar (I used 3/4 c. white sugar & 3/4 c. brown sugar)
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. all-purpose flour
2/3 c. cocoa powder
3/4 tsp. soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used 1 bag of Reese's peanut butter chips & 3/4 c. choc. chunks)
1/2 c. chopped nuts (optional, I didn't use)

Note: Sorry to those who tried to make this recipe before I fixed the mistake. A friend notified me of a typo in the recipe. So sorry. It's correct now!

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In large bowl, beat sugars, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Sift with a wire whisk in another bowl; flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Stir into the butter/sugar mixture and mix until well blended. Mix in the chips and walnuts. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet.
3. Bake for 8-10 minutes in the preheated oven, or just until set. Cool slightly on the cookie sheet before transferring to the wire racks to cool completely.
4. Enjoy and try not to eat too many!!

Getting To Know You...Getting To Know All About You!!

2009-01-29T16:00:00.003-06:00

My friend Suzanna tagged me this in an e-mail, but since I don't do a lot of correspondence that way, I decided that I'd tag people here on my blog. It's a long one so don't feel like you have to do this. I love to read these types of post on other peoples blogs though. I just helps me get to know you better...

What time did you get up this morning? Slept in till 6:00 a.m.- usually up at 5:20 a.m.
Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds
What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Wall-e...don't get to go that much...
What is your favorite TV show? 24 and American Idol
What do you usually have for breakfast? Some sort of cereal
What is you middle name? Gayle
What food do you dislike? Never had it but liver, heart...internal organs. YUCK!
What is your favorite CD at the moment? Nothing particular...Mix of songs...what ever is on my IPOD
What kind of car do you drive? Dodge Grand Caravan
Favorite Sandwich? Any Subway sandwich
What characteristic do you despise? Kids that don't listen to their mom
Favorite item of clothing? Jewelry-makes an outfit
If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? England with Dave and Portugal with Suzanna
Favorite brand of clothing? Anything on sale
Where would you retire to? Any place that didn't have ice on the sidewalks for half the year.
What was your most memorable birthday? When I was 6 and got a brand new bike
Favorite sport to watch? Packer football when they have a really good season...last year!
When is your birthday? March 22
What is your least favorite chore to do in the house? Cleaning bathrooms and putting away laundry
Are you a morning or night person? Used to be a night person, now I'm a morning person.
What is your shoe size? 8 1/2
Pets? 1 dog, 1 hamster, and 1 snake
What did you want to be when you were little? A mom and a hairstylist...did both!!
How are you today? Stuffy, tired and a bit lazy
What is your favorite candy? Reese's PB cup mixed in frozen custard...does that count?
What is your favorite flower? Lava Tera Mallow and Hollyhocks
What day on the calender are you most looking forward to? Middle of May...snow should be gone by then and also sometime in June when we go to Utah!
What was your maiden name if you are married? Ficklin
What are you listening to now? King Fu Panda, the movie.
What was the last thing you ate? Sushi roll
Do you wish on stars? No, but I love to look for shooting stars
What is your favorite color(s)? I love red, celery green and saffron yellow
How is the weather right now? Cold and it's making me depressed!
The first person you spoke with on the phone today? My friend, Jenny
Favorite soft drink? Dr. Pepper, but hardly ever drink it
Favorite restaurant? Victoria's for Italian and White Gull Inn for a fish boil.
Real hair color? What it is right now for the first time in 18 years, brown.
What was your favorite toy as a child? Barbies and dolls
Favorite season? Late spring and early fall
Hugs or kisses? Depends on who's giving them, but of course Dave's kisses and my kid's hugs.
Chocolate or vanilla? No brainer...chocolate.
Coffee or tea? Neither, but I love steamed milk with flavors.
When was the last time you cried? Right before that special time of the month a couple of week ago.
What is under your bed? Nothing
What did you do last night? Went to YW and made scripture cookies.
What are you afraid of? Something bad happening to one of my kids
Sweet of salty? Both, whatever the craving is.
How many keys on your key ring? 3
How many years at your current job? 12 1/2
Favorite day of the week? Saturday when everyone is home and Monday when everyone leaves!
How many towns have you lived in? 6, Lisbon, Portugal; Orem and Provo, UT.; and Gresham, Sturgeon Bay and Algoma, WI.
Do you make friends very easily? Yes, but sometimes I'm not in the mood to be social and I don't reach out.

Little Miss Chloe

2009-01-28T22:05:00.004-06:00

This is just one of those things as a mother that I was so excited about. I called my mom to tell her what Chloe has been doing and told her that I'd post her drawing on my blog so she could see. So, if you don't mind the little brag session about Chloe so that my mom can see just how smart I think she is (OK...I'm a little over the top about this!), feel free to read on.
On the first day of Christmas break for Dave last month, Chloe decided she wanted to color her dad a picture while he slept in a little. I got her out some paper and the markers and set her on the table while I worked on doing the morning dishes. Up until now she didn't really ever draw anything particular. She kind of scribbled around and drew circles and stuff. About twenty minutes had gone by and I came to check on her project. When I first looked at it, I thought, "Well...which brother helped you do this, Chloe?" Then I realized that they were all at school still and that she had done this herself.
This was the first time that she actually drew little figures for people. I liked how she drew herself and her dad. She, with the longer hair and her Dad, with the shorter hair. She even got the faces pretty right. Then, the most amazing thing to me was the fact that she wrote his name down the side of the daddy figure! Wow!
This little girl loves her dad. She's got her dad wrapped right around her finger too!

"Coooooommmme Maaaaggggic!!!!!"

2009-01-27T21:10:00.005-06:00

This story was written by my nephew, Gary Crofts (17) on his blog. I read it yesterday and was laughing and crying at the same time. This story absolutely captured the essence of my dad and his special little tradition he does with the grandkids. Even when he flies here to Wisconsin to see his "Cheesehead grandkids" he totes the treasure box along! I called my dad after I read this to see if he had read it. He was so tickled that Gary wrote the story and that the grandkids love the treasure box so much. My dad made me promise that we would have it read at his funeral no matter what. Thank you Gary for letting me copy this to my blog. I could have never done the "magic" justice.

Ever since I can remember, Papa has had the Magic Treasure Box. Coming across the Atlantic from Spain, the miniature pirate's chest sits on the top of Papa's armoire and is usually brought out on Sunday evenings and special occasions like Thanksgiving, the Fourth of July, and especially the Grandkids Extravaganza. He used to send us to go fetch it, but NO PEEKING or else. . . "see this belt right here?! (he hardly ever really had one on) I'm gonna. . ." "Spank your bum!" came our reply. hahaha. Papa loves to tease. :) We'd go get the box and obediently keep it shut tight. Papa would be in a big chair with about ten grandkids all gathered on the floor around him looking up in quiet anticipation and astonishment. There would be excited whispers and suppressed squeals of delight. The Magic Treasure Box always had a certain air of mystery that hung about it. How it produced handfuls of saltwater taffy and chocolate kisses was always a topic of debate and awe among the cousins. Each time before the ritual began, Papa would slowly shake the box and take a quick peak to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that there was nothing inside beforehand. I could have sworn that one time he let me look all the way inside and it was completely empty - just as I thought it would be. Now that everyone was comfortably seated, the quiet had settled in, and the suspense was starting to build, it was time. . . Time to "Call the Magic." (Looking back, this sounds like a horrid voodoo ceremony arising out of the misty swamps of Louisiana. . . *cough cough* :-/ . . . haha but it was just wonderful and innocent excitement.) Papa's wide eyes and solemn countenance would do a slow scan of all our faces to make sure we were paying attention. Twenty wide eyes would stare back at him. The silence was excruciating. Finally, holding the Treasure Box on his lap, Papa's arm rose high above his head and the haunting strains of his shaking voice started to be heard, first very quiet and low. . . "Cooooooooooooooooooommmmmmme maaaaaaaaaaaaaaagggggic." With each phrase Papa's hand made its descent, drawing the magic and its accompanying sweets into the box. "Coooooooooommmmmme maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaggggic!" Each call successively intensified in volume and gusto causing more and more excitement to boil up in our little hearts. "Briiiiiiiiiiinnnnng usss some CAAAAAAAANNNNNNDYYY!" If our eyes could grow any larger. . . they did. "NOOOOOOOOOONE of that NAAAASSTTYYY kiiiiinnndd ooooooonlyyyy the GOOOOOODDDD kiiinnndd!" By now Papa's thunderous voice was billowing throughout the house, his large flabby cheeks violently flapping back and forth, as the magic words flowed from his mouth, some of them indecipherable. We knew not whether they came from Portuguese Gispsies, Brazilian Indians, Louisiana Cajuns, or Mozambiquan tribesmen. "COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMME MMMMMMAAAAAGGGGGIC!" Papa was exhausted from all the work. As he asked for our help, ten little arms would spring into the air and with the anticipation spilling out of our capacities we'd let out a final shrill wail of "Cooooooooooooooooommmmmme mmmmmmmmmmmaaaaaaaaaaaagggggic!!!!!!!!" We could hardly contain ourselves now. Again Papa stared at us with eyes as big as saucers and said in a whisper, ". . . Should we see if it brought us anything?" The lid of the Treasure Box popped open and there before our eyes was a bounty of sugary treats. A jumble of hands flew for the box in a chaotic scramble, each of us taking enough to fill our mouths and our pockets. Wow!! . . . He had done it again.

"...None a that gummy kind, only the chocolate kind!!..."

I think I know the lesson this dog is trying to teach me...

2009-01-27T11:38:00.005-06:00

I think I've got it figured out!
I'm about half way done with my doggy duty and to tell you the truth my attitude has been pretty stinky! I appreciated the kind words of compassion that some of you shared with me from my last post but I realize that that is just what I'm missing in my life...compassion!
Just as an update, the dog has been great at his own house...no pee! (Well of course there's been pee, but only in the appropriate places!) It has been somewhat of a trail in my life to go there more than several times and day and spend a couple of hours there or sleep on the couch for the night to let the dog stretch his little legs. I have vocalized that you couldn't pay me enough to ever do it again. But, I have done my fair share of complaining about this and being a martyr...time to move on and grow a little from this experience.
I was talking to my sister Emily today and she had been blogging about a recent trip she and her daughter made to El Paso, TX. (They were suppose to go to Mexico, but because of recent violence there they had to move there trip) My niece, Jane and her fellow classmates, had saved and fund raised a bunch of money to go and do service and help with the less fortunate there in El Paso. Emily's blog was filled with inspiring acts of service and great attitudes. This got me to thinking...do I have to go on a service mission to Mexico or El Paso to gain a better feeling of charity? No, I decided. I don't need to go any where. I can change my attitude with my family, friends, acquaintance's and even dogs that I agreed to help watch to be a more Christ-like person.
Lately I have felt a little down in the dumps...maybe from being cooped up all winter or maybe from not having Dave around very much to help out as he is highly involved with the musical at his school right now. But I do know this...I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and have a more positive outlook on my life. There...I feel better already! :)

The Amazing Peeing Pooch!

2009-01-24T11:14:00.004-06:00

If any of you have been on my Facebook page you would've seen that I've had a bit of doggy drama in my life. I don't know how I get myself in these predicaments but lately it seems to me that I have found myself in some positions where I'm asked to do some things that I really don't want to and then they turn out to be more drama than I care for.
Last week an acquaintance called me to see if we'd doggy-sit her dog while they went to Florida for 10 days. I was a bit hesitant to do this but I thought well, it might come in handy for us to have some one we could call on if we ever needed anyone to watch our dog for us. I asked if the dog was house trained and all that and she said of course; that he had never peed in her house before. I suggested that before they go, they bring the dog over to see if he's get along with our dog, Poppy.
The dogs were doing their doggy thing...running around, playing and smelling each other. Things seemed pretty normal and it looked like everything was going to be OK. About a half hour into the visit, Poppy was smelling him and he lifted his leg and peed on my living room rug. The owner just about died and said, "COSMO, WHAT THE H*LL!?!?!" Well, that should've been a sign! She apologized and just summed it up to being the nerves. Oh well...
A few days later they brought him over at about 7:30 p.m. The owner told me she was going to be going to bed early since they had to leave for the airport at 3:00a.m. They brought over all his stuff and bid him goodbye...that's when the drama started.
I'm telling you, that dog started to pee, and he peed and peed and peed! I was near hysterics! Every time I finished cleaning one pee he'd go and pee some where else. Now I don't want you to think I'm totally dense by not putting him in the kennel right away, but I didn't realize what was happening till after he'd peed 5 times. That includes on the couch, the carpet, the rug, the rug by the front door, and a blanket...
I didn't know what to do. I felt bad to call the owners because I knew they were in bed already and it seemed too late for them to make other arrangements. But after talking to a friend and my sister, Natalie, they both HIGHLY ENCOURAGED me to call the owners. I took the dog to their house and decided that it would be best to have the dog stay in his own house and then I'd go three times every day to play with him and take him out.
Now, two days into this arrangement I'm realizing what a pain in the butt it is to go out to their house for a half hour in the morning, have the boys go and spend two hours after school and then go for an hour before bed. How do I get myself into this??? I'm glad I can help out but originally when I agreed to it, it was just going to be having another dog around to play with my dog. Oh well...I guess I still have lessons to learn.

Oh What Do You Do In the Wintertime, When It's Freezing Cold Outside?

2009-01-22T08:58:00.005-06:00

As many of you know, we have been very cold here in Wisconsin this month. We have also been very cooped up in the house and are all suffering from cabin fever. Last week it got so cold here that school was canceled Thursday and Friday. They also had Monday off for Martin Luther King Day. With the babysitting job I have, this leaves me with six kids to keep entertained! Luckily for me they are pretty creative kids so I didn't have to do too much, but I took some photos of some of the crazy things they did to keep themselves busy. I got a kick out of some of them.

Here they spent some time putting as many bows and clips in Oliver's hair as they could.

I was pretty impressed how many they got on his head.

Chloe and Sadie spent some time organizing my fingernail polish. Who would've thought! They would group them by colors and then line them up by their favorites. Of course we had a painting party with the girls. The color of choice was pink with green polk-a-dots.

This little activity has become an annual tradition of the kids. (And by annual I mean ONE TIME ONLY! As they would love to do this every week...but I say no!) What they do is draw names out of a hat for each other. Then they take some time and use my scrapbooking stuff to make a card for that person. Then the chaos starts! They start at the kitchen table with the name of the person they had, then they each take a ball of yarn and weave and wind it ALL over the main floor of the house. At the end of their line, they hide their card they made and a treat from the cupboard for their person. Then they each take turns trying to follow their line of yarn to find their prize. This takes most of the afternoon, a great way to blow alot of time!

Chloe said it best..."It looks like a spider web in my house!"

Another fun thing they did was to get into the Halloween costumes and play dress-up.
Whatever it takes to keep them happy and out of each others hair.

Who would've thought... Lima Beans???

2009-01-15T07:43:00.003-06:00

You know, as mothers we think we know what our kids will eat and what they just won't...or so we think we do! Last night I was making dinner and asked Stuart to go down to the freezer and get a frozen vegetable. He came up with what he thought were frozen peas. I said, "Stuart, these are Lima beans. I don't think you guys will eat these!" I asked him if there were any other vegetable and he said no so I thought what the heck I guess I'll try.
I know I didn't buy the Lima beans. I believe they were from Camp Susan and we ended up with them when we divided the left over food.
I cooked them in the microwave, sprinkled them with salt and put a pat of butter on them. I almost didn't even put them on the table because I thought there was no way they were going to eat them, but they were all willing to try... which surprised me as well.
It was a success! They ate them and some even said that they were their new favorite vegetable!
I let that be a lesson for me...if you don't try, you'll never know!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! (MAN, I'M GETTING TOO OLD FOR THIS)

2009-01-10T09:36:00.006-06:00

Every year for New Years the Robertson family has the traditional gathering. Dave's family is getting so big that it's hard to get together in one place with out trashing the place or feeling like your going cuckoo-crazy with all the kids and noise everywhere. So for the last couple of years we meet at the YMCA during the day to swim, play racquetball and basketball. We found that this works really well so that not one house is getting destroyed and the kids have some where to get together and play. After we did that we went to Paul and Lisa's house for pizza. It worked out prefect!
Not wanting to call it a night, we took the party to the Torbenson's house for a party in Green Bay. (yes, we were all invited...we just didn't crash the party!) They have a large house to accommodate such an event. There must have been about 70-80 people there! The picture above shows all the shoes by the front door. I couldn't even fit them all in the frame!

When we walked into the kitchen to bring the snack that we brought, Connor's and Oliver's eye's almost bugged out of there heads! They couldn't believe all the bottles of soda! (This picture was taken after about half had already been thrown out.) They thought they had died and gone to heaven! Dave's brother, Adam and sister-in-law Ruth with their youngest, Trent, are in the photo.

Connor eyeing all the yummy treats and snacks!

Dave, Adam, Oliver and Calvin watching a football game.

Connor playing darts.

Chloe sleeping on the couch while her best buddy/cousin, Olivia watches. She was wondering if Chloe was going to wake up and bring the New Year in with her. I don't think so!

Chloe was out for the night and I wasn't too far behind her! I could not stay awake! I ended up sleeping the night away with her on the couch while everyone else partied and played. I'm getting too old to stay awake this late!

I did manage to wake up right before the clock struck 12:00 am! Everyone piled in the kitchen to do the count down and enjoy a glass of sparkling cider. The kids all had noise makers so even if I had stayed asleep on the couch, there would be no way to sleep through all that noise!

Looking old and tired for 2009! Oh well, HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Our Christmas from Mama and Papa...a pukey experience!

2009-01-07T08:37:00.010-06:00

This year for Christmas, my parents sent us a gift of money with instructions not to spend it on bills, but to do something as a family to make a memory. Well, that we did! So as a family we decided how we wanted to spend the money. The kids decided they wanted to go to eat at the Chinese Buffet. We don't take the kids out to eat at restaurants very often because with six people in the family it's about $60 a pop! So we headed down to Green Bay with empty stomachs ready to get our money's worth! It was a smorgasbord of yummy food. Everything from sushi to General 's Tso's chicken to the jello square that the kids love! We were all looking forward to it. I realized that this was probably my "Last Supper" as the New Year was a few days away so I kind of let myself loose. We all loaded our plates full of Chinese delights and went back for second and third helpings! As the meal wore on we all started to feel the effects! Oliver was the first to show signs of the abuse we gave our stomachs. He came up to Dave and I with puffy cheeks signaling that something bad had happened in his mouth. We directed him to the bathroom where he could take care of things. Stuart wasn't looking so good either, as the picture below will show. By the end of the meal, I was absolutely nauseous! I knew that if I got in the car I was going to "loose my lunch" as well! I sat there for a minute hoping it would pass. It didn't. I excused myself to the bathroom and came back feeling...shall we say...much more comfortable. We paided the bill and walked out to the car where Connor started looking "green". Oh no! You guessed it, Connor started puking all over the parking lot! Dave was mortified, saying he was the the only responsible eater out of the lot of us! He's probably right! I called my mom and told her that we made a memory with the Christmas money and puked it up all over Green Bay! What a waste!

Another fun thing we did with some of the money was to go to St. Vincent de Paul (like a thrift store). We had so much fun finding treasure for each of us. We found a sweater and shoes for me, two shirts, jeans and some cool Sketcher loafer's (brand new) for Dave, ties for Stuart, a shirt for Connor, a game and shirt for Oliver and a doll for Chloe! What fun! All for $27! I love bargain hunting!

With the rest of the money we bought an epansion game that goes along with our favorite game series, Settlers of Catan. My sister, Liz, introduced us to this game about 2 1/2 years ago and we've be playing it ever since. It's a blast!

Well, thank you Mom and Dad for the great memories you helped us create! We had fun spending (not puking) the money!

Oliver the rock star!

2008-12-31T06:43:00.006-06:00

We got Rock Band for Christmas. Oliver has decided that when he grows up he want to be a lead singer for a rock band. (Just what his parents always wanted for him...*sigh*...just kidding!!) He asked if he could be ALL TIME singer when we play since he's so good. As the movie clip will show, he totally gets into it. It's hilarious! He didn't realize I was recording him when he was singing. So after, I showed him the footage and he said, "Hey, I sound better than that! That video makes me not sound very good!" Ha ha!!

Daybook Dec 29th

2008-12-29T09:46:00.003-06:00

Outside my window: I look outside and of course I see WHITE. We have gotten somewhere around 40 inches of snow so far this winter. We have several more snow storms coming this week with 5 in. forcasted in each storm. The boys and Dave are constructing a quinsy, which is a snow cave. They pile a huge snow pile in the back yard and let it sit for a couple of days. Then they dig it out and put a tarp on the ground inside. They plan on sleeping out there sometime this week. They've done it before and they say they stay toasty warm. I, personally, think it's crazy!!!
I am thankful for: I've been enjoying having Dave home during the Christmas break. Sometime his profession as a teacher drives me crazy with all the extra hours he puts in, but during vacation times, I'm very grateful for his job.
I am thinking: I am thinking of the New Year coming up and all the things I'd like to accomplish. Every year I attempt to try to loose weight. I always start gun-hoe but fizzle. My friend Jenny and I have been exercising everyday faithfully for 8 months. I was running several times a week, but I had a hip injury so I had to give that up for the time being. We still do the elliptical and stationary bike and weight lifting 6 days a week. I've lost about 17 lbs. but I have so much more to loose. I know that I need to give up the amount of carbs I eat every day. Starting this week I'm going to do the South Beach diet. I've got to dedicate my self to do it for longer than the six weeks that I normally do. Please pray for me to have the dedication. I'm tired of failing at this year after year. I know it's in me...I CAN DO IT!!!!
I am hearing: I am hearing some MAJOR rocking out from my boys. We got RockBand for Christmas. It is fun to play together but sometimes the noise gets to me. It's fun to watch them though. Oliver totally gets into it! I have recorded him singing and I'll have to post that for your viewing pleasure.
From the kitchen: Today we were suppose to have a couple from church come over for lunch but they called and canceled. I had already started cooking so we'll just have it for dinner tonight. I'm making Baked Pork Cutlets (pork chops dredged in yogurt and breaded in crushed Ritz cracker, sage and garlic salt...yummy!) mashed potatoes, baked apple slices, honeyed carrots, orange rolls and flan.
I am creating: Nothing really. Too busy playing Settlers of Catan, Risk, RockBand, and sledding with the family.
I am going: We're going to go sledding a little later today. We are all a little stir crazy.
I am wearing: Still in my workout clothes. Got to go get ready for the day pretty soon.
One of favorite things: I got some new perfume for Christmas, Hot by Ralph Lauren. I feel pretty when I smell good! ;)
A few plans for the week: Tomorrow the kids have dentist appointments in Green Bay. Later that night I'm getting my hair cut! Can't wait for that! Wednesday, New Years Eve, we have plans with Dave's family to go to the YMCA and swim during the day and then go to Lisa and Paul's for pizza. We'll be home to bring the New Year in but Dave's mom and maybe other family will come to our house to play games and stuff. I'd like to take down the Christmas stuff on Friday and Saturday and get the house back to order. It all went by so quickly!!

Does anyone else feel like pulling out your hair???

2008-12-28T16:08:00.001-06:00

OK!! I'm having SERIOUS problems in the blogging world. Some times I wonder why I'm torturing myself blogging, when most of the time I'm ready to PULL MY HAIR OUT!!!. Alright...let me back up and take a deep breath. Maybe some of you out there can help me. I don't even know if I can explain my problems without sounding totaly confusing! I have major problems when I'm putting up alot of pictures. I can't seem to put them all up and then blog about them without erasing one or more of the pictures as I'm trying to arrange them. I'm finding it VERY frustrating. It seems like it should be such an easy thing either to click and drag the photo to where I want it (but that seems to just stretch the picture) or to do the simple copy and paste (but sometimes when I do this, when I right click to paste the photo where I want, the picture or journaling above that lights up in blue and it erases that image!!! )
Yesterday I was trying to do my Christmas blog. What I thought would take me 1 hour TOPS ended up taking me 2-3 hours!!! I had to keep going back into my photo albums and uploading images over and over! My poor family! I was in the WORST mood by the time I was done, I don't think they are really fond of my new hobby of blogging. What to do? Can anyone give me pointers on what they do when they are loading pictures and creating a new post? My family and I would GREATLY appreciate it! Thanks. Sara

2008-12-27T14:54:00.019-06:00

Merry Christmas!!

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. We didn't have a lot planned so it was nice to just be relaxed together as a family. On Christmas Eve, we had our friends, the Struck's, come over for pizza and games. It was nice to visit with them. Then at about 9:30 the gang (minus me, Chloe and Oliver...they were sleeping) got on their snow stuff and went sledding. That might have to be a new family tradition! They came back laughing and giggling about Sam going down the "Slide of Death"!! We have a great sledding hill at the local park and on this HUGE hill, there is a metal slide that goes down the length of the hill. I guess Sam put his plastic, hard sled on the metal slide and went lickety-split down the slide! Dave said he'd never seen such terror on a full grown man before! Dave was laughing for days at the thought of it!
We went to bed a bit late, but before we did we put out some "cereal and milk" for Santa. Dave told Oliver that Santa was getting kind of tired of cookies, but that he had heard that Santa was CRAZY for Golden Grahams! It must have been a big hit because there was a lot missing from the box the next morning!

Connor was the first one up at 6:00a.m. I was pleased that they slept as late as they did. (My poor sister Natalie was woken up a 3:30 in the morning!!) He ran downstairs to sneek a peek, but Santa was one step ahead of him and had everything wrapped up!

Oliver wasn't too far behind Connor! He was so excited he started to make crazy signs with his hands!!!

The boys all went into Chloe's room to try and wake her up! I thought they weren't going to have much success...she was not wanting to wake up! She didn't have much of a memory from last year to know what was going to happen if she woke up and went down stairs.

But finally after a few minutes of begging by the boys, she managed to pull herself out of bed!

The kids were all amazed at the piles of presents. They were most "impressed" with the size of Chloe's present! They said, "It's bigger than her!!!"
(It would be days before the living room was as clean as this moment !)

It didn't take Chloe too long to not be tired and ornery when she saw her stocking full of goodies and treats. Her eyes were twinkly and full of wonder!

Stuart with his stocking!

Oliver looking forward to a bubble bath!

Interestingly enough, Connor was pretty stoked about the Axe deodorant he got in his stocking...whatever!

"Tiny tot's with their eyes all a glow...."

Oliver's big present was a new bike.

Connor was hoping for a Rip-stick! (I'm hoping he doesn't break any bones on that thing!)

Stuart got a new MP3 player. His old one (the one he had for a month) went through the laundry at my mom's house. Hopefully he'll be more carefull with it!

Here's Miss Chloe with her new kitchen! She loves this thing!

The boys playing Rock Band!

Connor and Oliver playing Dance Dance Revolution.

We really enjoyed our day together. After we let the kids play with their toys for a while, we had some brunch. We made oatmeal pancakes, bacon, cinnimon rolls and orange juice. The rest of the day we snacked on treats and left over pizza. We were all so full and kind of sick of food that we weren't in the mood to eat our Christmas dinner we had planned! Oh well! No one was coming over and we didn't have to be any where so we said, "What the heck! We'll have Christmas dinner tomorrow!" And that's just what we did! We had steak, baked potatoes, raspberry pretzel salad, veggies and Emily's Blue Ribbon Rolls! We were too full for dessert so we'll have that another night during our vacation.
I love that fact that our Christmas this year was so "low pressure". It was so fun to just relax and do what we wanted without having to worry about entertaining or going somewhere or keeping the house spotless. I LOVED IT!!!
I'm so grateful for this time of year where we can spend time with the ones we love and to worship the baby, Jesus Christ.

A friend is...

2008-12-17T08:02:00.003-06:00

Oliver had an assignment to do for school. He was suppose to make a card for a friend. I let him dive into my paper stash and he created this cute card for his friend, Uriel.
I thought it was so sweet, creative and thoughtful.
Like Oliver said to his buddy, Uriel; a true friend is good to us and doesn't want us to do things that get us in trouble. I know how important it is for our kids to surround themselves with friends that will be good influences on them and help them choose the right. I hope and pray that they always seek out the best of friends and are good friends to their peers.
Throughout my life I have had friends that have been both good influences and not so good influences. I'm grateful for all the friends I had when I was a kid and that I have now that are true friends and want what's best for me.
Friends enrich our lives and are there to help us when we need them. Thank you to all my friends!!!

Big Soft Ginger Cookies

2008-12-16T07:00:00.005-06:00

I made these cookies last week and my family LOVED them. They usually don't go for the harder gingerbread cookies recipes, but these were delicious! They are just what they say: big, soft, gingerbread cookies. They stay soft too.

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. margarine/butter, softened
1 c. white sugar
1 egg
1 Tbs. water
1/4 c. molasses
2 Tbs. white sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the margarine/butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients in to the molasses mixture. Put in refrigerator for a couple of hours so the dough isn't too sticky to handle. Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll in the remaining 2 Tbs. of sugar. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. (Can flatten slightly, but I didn't. They were prettier a little fatter.)
Bake for 8-10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Can drizzle icing if you want. Store in an air tight container.
Taken from allrecipes.com (love this site!!)

Deck the Halls!

2008-12-15T09:01:00.009-06:00

This is a post idea that I "blog-lifted" from my sister, Emily. Thanks for all the good,creative ideas, Em!

This is one of my favorite Christmas decorations I have. It is an ebony, carved nativity from Mozambique, Africa that my parents sent us when they were on their mission. Some times I leave it up all year because it's so special and neat!

I made this nativity before I was married at a Super Saturday meeting for the ladies at our church. Being in a small branch out in the middle of nowhere, I don't have the opportunity to get to go to many of those anymore. I used to make a lot of cute things for my house when I lived out in Utah. I sure miss them.

These are just a few of the Christmas dolls that my mom made for me. I have lots of memories of my mom at the sewing machine sewing and sewing, getting ready for the Christmas boutique she had every year to make money for our Christmas. To this day I don't know how she did every thing to get ready for Christmas. With all her baking, sewing and shopping, she managed to get it all done and give us kids wonderful Christmases.

One of the things I like to do with the ornaments that we collect or that are given to us, is to hang them on garland on the banister on the stairs. Each of them have a story from where they came from or who gave them to us.

This is one of the kids favorite decorations. It is a snowman that sings and plays the piano. One of Dave's former piano students gave this to him.

Some of my priceless decorations I have are these two Santa's (on both ends). Before my Grandma Fay died, she'd loved to do ceramics at the senior center she'd go to. For a couple of years she gave these Santa's From Around the World out to all her grandchildren. I wish I had more of them. I love the them!

This is a Santa that my Grandma gave me. It stands about 3 feet and to the kids it signals where our elf, Twinkie, is going to leave his prize for the night!

My Christmas decor around the house is in gold and red. Sometimes I wish I had a different color scheme or a different style but that would break the bank! But for the most part I'm pretty content with what I have.

I love Christmas because we get to deck the halls and have lights and decorations that bring back fond memories of when we were kids.

After the holidays are over and everything comes down, the house seems so bare. I can hardly wait till the next year to put it all up again!

Sleep, Little One, Sleep

2008-12-09T11:16:00.014-06:00

The sky is dark and the hills are white
As the storm-king speeds from the north to-night,

And this is the song that the storm-king sings,

As over the world his cloak he flings:
"Sleep, sleep, little one, sleep;"
He rustles his wings and gruffly sings:
"Sleep, little one, sleep."

On yonder mountain-side a vine

Clings at the foot of a mother pine;
The tree bends over the trembling thing,
And only the vine can hear her sing:
"Sleep, sleep, little one, sleep:
What shall you fear when I am here?
Sleep, little one, sleep."

The king may sing in his bitter flight,
The tree may croon to the vine to-night,
But the little snowflake at my breast
Liketh the song I sing best,--
Sleep, sleep, little one, sleep;
Weary thou art, anext my heart
Sleep, little one sleep.

Eugene Field

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree!!!

2008-12-09T08:04:00.010-06:00

The kids were so excited to go pick out a tree at Muskrat City Gun Club Tree Farm. Our little pre-lit fake tree was on the fritz so we decided to get a real tree. I was kind of surprised at how excited the kids were to have a real tree and how much it meant to them.

Oliver wasn't feeling at his best today but he tried to paint on a happy face.

On the hunt for the perfect tree!

The thing I liked about this tree farm is that they weren't the perfectly groomed, painted tree. These tree were a little more natural and scrawny. Just the way I like them!!

As we were looking around for a tree another family had been looking at this tree but then walked away to look at others. They didn't come back for a while so we came upon it and thought it was a good looking tree. I felt kind of bad when the family came back to get this one while we were in the process of cutting it down. We thought that they didn't want this one. I guess, "You snooze, you loose!" They ended up getting a different tree that they liked better. No hard feelings!

The boys had a blast zigging and zagging through all the trees. It was fun to watch them chase, tag, tackle and dive in the deep piles of snow! Even after we found our tree they begged us to let them stay and play.

Chloe didn't care much for being in snow up to her hips. Her footing wasn't stable so she had me carry her all over kingdom come! After a while of this I was like, "OK...let's get the tree and get out of here! My arms are killing!!!"

The great adventure of going to the tree farm is searching for the tree, cutting it down, dragging it out to the car parked a mile away, strapping it to the car and hope it doesn't fall off!!...oh wait...

It did fall off!!! Luckily for us Dave took the back roads home and the tree didn't sustain too much damage as it tumbled around on the road!

Dave said he planned it that way so all the limbs of the tree that were covered with ice and snow would be cleared so we would be able to bring it in the house right away! Ha Ha, yeah right!!!

We pick out a Blue Spruce. Although it is very beautiful, it is a beast to touch. Neither one of us wanted to put the lights on because it was sheer torture to get poked every time you got near it. Dave and I took turns, he wearing yellow rubber gloves and me with my winter gloves on! Next time I told him I wanted something more soft to the touch, that doesn't kill the Christmas spirit when you touch it!!

A few days later after our wounds on our hands and arms had cleared, we finally managed to decorate it. Because it is so much bigger than our previous tree, I think we need more ornaments to fill in all the space.

We really like this tree this year. We created a lot of memories picking it out and decorating it. It finally feels like Christmas. Ahhhh!!!!

Daybook December 8th

2008-12-08T08:25:00.004-06:00

Outside my window: There is just a ton of snow. We had about 11 inches on the ground and then last night we got another2-3. Tonight we're suppose to get a whopper of a storm. They're saying 10-12 inches! Yikes!!! So much for global warming!!
I am thinking: I am thinking how our Christmas break is getting scheduled up with lots of goings on. So much for a quiet, nothing-happening vacation.
I am thankful for: I am thankful that I have the little babysitting job. Even though it is sometimes an inconvenience, it sure has helped our family out financially.
From the kitchen: Tonight I think I'm going to make one of my kids favorite meals, Chicken Casinni. It's a rice, chicken, cheese and broccoli casserole. My sister-in-law, Lisa, gave us four gallon bags full of pre-cooked, seasoned chicken cubes. They are so convenient to use in casseroles. She has a friend in GB that works for Schriber Foods and he brings her loads of frozen shrimp, chicken and veggies. I'm so glad she shared the bounty! I think I'm also going to start making Christmas goodies to put in the freezer for gifts.
I am creating: I am creating a Holiday House! It's almost done. I just have to finish decorating the tree. We got a gorgeous Blue Spruce but I'm telling you, that thing is VICIOUS!!! The needles are so sharp, I dread even touching it. We've already got about 2/3 of the lights on it. We're really loading on the lights this year. We'll put about 1200 lights on it. I love lights but I think maybe we're putting too much on it as it look noon-day when it's lit up and all the other lights are off. Oh well.
I am going: Today Stuart has a basketball game here in town at 4:30 so we'll go to that. Then at 7:00 he has a Christmas band/choir concert. Maybe they'll get canceled because of the storm coming. Dave also has his Christmas concert tonight but once again I'll not be able to make it because of the kids concert. Luckily for Dave, his mom and Don are coming up to see it. At least he'll have a little family support there.
I am hoping: I hope that if the boys school gets a snow day tomorrow, Dave's school in SB will too. His school doesn't get canceled very often because most of the school district is in town and they usually have the roads clear. Here's hoping the snow totals are big enough. I guess I think, "If we're going to get snow, let's do it BIG!!"
I am reading: Right now I'm reading The Book of Lies by Brad Meltzer. It's a pretty good book. Suspense/intrigue...my favorite!
I am wearing: I am wearing a red sweater, white long-sleeve t-shirt and jeans.
One of my favorite things: Listening to Chloe sing right now. Her singing resembles Snow White! Hahaha!! Another one of my favorite things is this time of year! The decorations, plans, holiday food and overall good feelings!! FUN, FUN!!!
A few plans for the rest of the week: Nothing major going on except a few of Stuart's basketball games. He has games tonight, Thursday and a tournament ALL day on Saturday. I'm also going to try to get caught up on laundry and housework and gift wrapping.

How do you do Christmas?

2008-12-06T06:37:00.006-06:00

You know me....love the 'listy' blog posts!! Here's another one for your reading pleasure!!!

Wrapping paper or gift bags? At Christmas I wrap with paper but any other time of the year I love the convenience of the gift bags.

Real or fake tree? The last couple of years we've had a fake, pre-lit tree but when I plugged it in this year 2/3 wouldn't turn on. So today we're going to cut down a real tree. The kids are so excited!

Hot chocolate or apple cider? I LOVE hot chocolate made with our cappuccino maker. (we use the steamer to make it frothy) I also love the smell of wassail simmering on the stove.

Favorite gift as a child. One of my memories is being so excited about a pair of boots that I got for Christmas. I wore them to bed that night!

How many Nativity sets? I wish I had more, but I have 3 now.

Worst gift? When I was a young woman, one of my boyfriends gave me 2 towels that didn't even match each other!!! Yikes!

Favorite Christmas movie? I would have to say that I really enjoy the movie Elf. Hilarious!

When do you start shopping for Christmas? I always start my Christmas shopping on Black Friday. It's hard for me to focus on Christmas before the holiday season.

Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? I have to admit that... OF COURSE I have.

Favorite thing to eat at Christmas. I love all the food during the holidays but one of my favorites is a dessert my mom makes. It's a Danish Rice Pudding and she'd hide an almond in. Who ever got the almond won a prize!

Clear lights or colored? I'm a mostly clear light gal, but I do use some red in with it. Much to my families dismay, I'm not a fan of multi-colored lights.

Favorite Christmas song. I love all the Christmas songs. Every style, genre, age, whatever. I recently put together a playlist of Christmas songs. Maybe I'll post it on here for the holiday season.

Angel or star on my tree? I have a star on my tree these days.

Hardest to buy for. I'd have to say my dad. I never know what to get him so he usually gets a gift card to Barnes and Noble or a tie. He always says he likes that the best though.

Easiest to buy for. My kids! Who doesn't have a blast buying toys and knowing that their kids are going to be a excited to get them?!?

Worst Christmas. I can't think of a worst Christmas experience but I guess something that leaves a sour taste in my mind is when one of my aunts was being a *you know what* to my mom right before she was going on their mission to Africa around Christmas time.

Things I like about Christmas. I love Christmas!! I love the smell, the lights, the decore all over the house, the family parties, the games played together, the kids and Dave having a couple of weeks off from school, the food, the shopping, the feeling of joy, the traditions and everything else that goes along with this time of year.

Things I would change about Christmas. I guess I would have to say that I think we get so caught up with all the happenings and the commercialism of the holiday season that we don't give the focus that we really need to the real meaning of Christams...CHRIST!

Traditions: Twinkie, sleeping in the same room Christmas Eve, reading the Christmas story by the fireplace, lining up single file, youngest to oldest, on the stairs to go see what Santa brought, Christmas brunch and Christmas caroling with our friends the Edwards.

Our house elf, Twinkie

2008-12-04T16:10:00.007-06:00

TWINKIE

We happen to have a cute little elf that comes to our house everyday in the month of December. Twinkie brings little goodies and prizes to the kids as long as they're behaving. Every morning they wake up with excitement to see what he brought them while they were sleeping. Sometimes he'll bring a box of sweet cereal or candy, a Christmas book or video or sometimes he won't bring anything if the kids have been naughty or fighting too much.
When I was a little girl, he used to come to my house. One year I woke up and ran to see what Twinkie brought us. He would always leave our prize under the advent calender. My mom always had the house cleaned and vacumed and we had carpet that would show footprints on it. When I approached the spot, I saw little footprints leading up to the calender and walking away in the carpet!! Oh the MAGIC!!!
Twinkie is a very busy guy these days. He has to go all over kingdom come to see everybody. He visits cousins and second cousins (on my mom's side) in Utah, Arizona, and Wisconsin. When we lived in Portugal he even went all the way there!!!
We LOVE Twinkie and hopes he'll always visit!!

Little Miss Kitchen Queen!

2008-12-04T08:09:00.003-06:00

My little Chloe loves to help me in the kitchen! We have so much fun together putting recipes together while the boys are at school.

If she ever sees me cook anything she runs in the kitchen and says, "I want to help!!! I need my 'acrun'!" (apron) We make bread, cookies and casseroles. My favorite thing she says when we're following a recipe is, "Now we neeeeeeed...." and we pick out the next ingredient. It cracks me up!

She's gotten really good at counting out how many cups of flour or whatever else we're putting in. She's also starting to recognize what the different ingredients are and where they are in the kitchen. She's always so proud of herself after we've made something together. I love to hear her tell her dad and brothers, "I made that!" She told me she really wants a pretend kitchen set for Christmas so she can make food for her 'babies'. I think she'll get one, but honestly, I don't think she'll have as much fun playing with it as doing the real thing with me.

I remember wonderful memories of spending time in the kitchen with my mom when I was a little girl. She always made such great food for us. I remember helping by stirring the raspberry jello with ice cubes in it for Sunday dinner. Don't ask me why that's the memory that sticks out, but it is! Looking back I wish I would've taken more opportunities of being with my mom in the kitchen when I was a teenager. I wish I would've learned more before I left and got married and had to cook my own dinners. I've learned a lot from her since then though whether it's over the phone or in person. When she comes out for visits that's one of my favorite things to do with her is helping her in my kitchen when she cooks for us. I've leaned so many great things from her.

I love to spend time with Chloe in the kitchen. I hope that she won't ever not want to come in and "help".

The Long Winter Is Upon Us!

2008-12-03T17:49:00.004-06:00

The last couple of mornings we have been blasted with snow.
It's quite a chore to shovel everything before school but it lends to a good workout.

Our next door neighbor, Joyce, is an elderly lady who is widowed so we shovel her out too. We also have an older couple that live a couple of housed away and when it gets bad we'll help them shovel out. The man, Herb, likes to get out and do some of it himself, but they live on a corner lot so they have lots of sidewalks to do and sometimes I worry that he'll give himself a heart-attack. I guess he has a reputation around town as being a grumpy old man, but he has been nothing but nice to us since we started helping him out. He makes the kids wooden toys and find baseballs at the ball park and throws them in our yard for the boys. When ever I drive by and he sees us, he gets the BIGGEST smile and waves and waves! It makes us happy to help these wonderful neighbors.

We have a snow blower but it's so big and heavy to use, we only pull it out on the days when the snow is just too heavy and too much. On those days, Dave goes out with the "big guns" and does the entire block! So when it's a few inches here and there we usually just do it the old fashioned way.

The ABC's of Me!

2008-11-17T19:56:00.000-06:00

I love lists. I love to make them, read them, check them off and read other people lists. As I have explored the blogs of others, I'm drawn to the posts that have these cute little 'tags' or lists on their pages. So here's another list I've made to help you to get to know me better. Enjoy!

A- Attached or Single- Attached to my best friend, Dave.
B- Best friends- Besides Dave, my best friends are my mom and my sisters; Felicia, Natalie, Emily, and Liz.
C- Cake or Pie- It depends on the recipe. But I guess I favor Door County Cherry Pie with vanilla ice cream from The White Gull Inn.
D- Day of choice- Saturday for sure! Especially if nothing is planned and we can all sleep in and just be home together.
E- Essential Items- I would say my very most essential item is my make-up. One time we went to visit Dave's mom for the weekend and I forgot my make-up bag...horrible, panicky feeling!!!
F- Favorite color- I suppose I have a combination of favorite colors. I love mossy green, saffron yellow, and ruby red. These colors can be found all over my house.
G- Gummy Worms or Godiva Chocolate- Are you kidding???? Chocolate, hands down!!
H- Hometown- Orem, Utah!! I have a lot a pride saying that I'm from Utah. Some of my teenage nieces and nephews here in Wisconsin would call me a U-tard when I first moved here...let's just say they don't say that anymore! ;)
I- Indulgences- I have to say I can't think of very many indulgences I have, but I guess one of the things that I do as an indulgence and when I just want to "check-out" is play hand-held Solitair. I know, it's such a time/brain waster!
J- January of July- Absolutely July!! I love the 4th of July! In Gresham and Algoma our house has been on the parade route. That's a big deal in small town Wisconsin! I also like spending the 4th in Utah with my family when we are visiting that time of year.
K- Kids- My kids are Stuart (12), Connor (9), Oliver (7) and Chloe (3). I've got the best kids in the whole world!!!
L- Life is incomplete without- Life is incomplete without having any family to live by. I been so blessed to have the best in-laws for my family that live by us here in WI. We all get along great! In fact, because my husband has so many brothers, the wife's have formed a coalition and formed a group called the SILC club (Sister In-law Club Club). We pretty much rule the roost!
M- Marriage Date- June 8, 1995! Almost 14 years!!!
N- Number of Siblings- I am one of seven kids. When I was little I hated being from a large family, but now I appreciate it so much and enjoy each of my siblings and my relationship with them.
O- Oranges or Apples- I would have to say apples, especially with a caramel dip or a cream cheese/brown sugar dip. But I can't resist fresh-squeezed orange juice either.
P- Phobias of Fears- I used to be afraid of snakes until Stuart got one for a pet and begged me to hold it. It's funny because I get the hebee-jebee's looking at it in it's cage but it seems easier for me to hold it. He's kind of cute in his slithery kind of way.
Q- Quotes- I have a vinyl sticker quote on my wall that says, "When there is love in the home, there is joy in the heart." How true that is for a mother with young kids that don't always get along.
R- Reasons to Smile- I love having a three year old in the house! She says so many funny little things lately.
S- Season- Living in Wisconsin, the winter season can last 6 months. So when spring and warm weather come around my soul feels so joyous!! I love to go out in the yard to pull weeds and tidy up after a long hard winter. I also love watching my perenial flowers grow and spread.
T- Tag Friends- Whoever wants to do this list, go for it!
U- Unknow Fact About Me- I hitch-hiked on a freeway in Portugal with my friends when I was 14 years old and got picked up by a man! Oh...THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU Guardian Angels!!!!
V- Very favorite Store- TJMaxx. Love the deals and the one of a kind treasures you can find.
W- Worst Habit- Lately, spending too much time on the computer and Facebook.
X- X-ray, Ultra-sound or Mammagram- Plenty of x-rays with 6 broken bones, plenty of ultrasounds with 4 kids and zero mammagrams. I guess they're in my near future as I'm in my mid thirties.
Y- Your Favorite Food- I love ethnic foods, especially Thai, Korean, Japanese and Chinese to name a few.
Z- Zodiac- Aries March 22.

Fall Fun

2008-11-14T08:00:00.000-06:00

FUN WITH FALL LEAVES

One of the great things about living in an older home is that we have a lot of mature trees in our yard. This has provided endless hours of playing in the leaves for our kids and their friends.

Last month our kids had off a couple of days from school. It was beautiful and warm outside. I told them to go play outside and enjoy the beautiful day. I was so impressed with the creative things they came up with to play in the yard to keep themselves occupied.

One of the games they played was to create a maze throughout the yard. They would rake all the leaves so that it made a little trail around the yard that they would have to find their way out of. This took them a long time to work on. I was so impressed with their determination and creativity.

Another thing that they played for a long time was to get a toy spider (about the size of the palm of my hand). They would gather almost all the leaves from the yard and pile it in a big, enormous pile. One of the kids would hide the spider in the huge pile while the other kids closed their eyes. Then the kids would have to dig and jump in the pile of leaves till they found the spider. Such simple fun!

The only problem with fall for the mommy is that when they'd come in from playing outside to get a drink or go to the bathroom, I had so many dead leaves in the house from them sicking to their clothes and falling off in the house. I had to sweep and vacuum a million times that day. Not too bad of a price, though, considering I didn't have to pay any money to keep my kids and their friends entertained for the whole day!

I guess as the weather turns colder and snowier, we can look forward to all of the creative play
from the kids in the white stuff. Stay tuned!

Daybook November 12th

2008-11-12T09:06:00.000-06:00

A little look into my life this week....

Outside my window: I look out my living room window and see my sweet neighbor's house. She lives in a turn of the century Belgium brick home. I love the texture and color of the brick. My neighbor's name is Joyce, or as we call her "Grandma Joyce". We've kind of adopted her as a own. She's very sweet and thoughtful.
I am thinking: How could I have spaced the Rain-gutter Regatta tomorrow night for scouts?!? It is going to be a frantic day and night of pulling it together. Dave wasn't too excited about this.
I am thankful for: Having a new van. After not having a second car for 2 months I appreciate the fact that I don't have to stress if it's raining outside and worry about my kids getting wet walking to school. Just the little things that make life so convenient.

From the kitchen: Yesterday I made a new recipe for the basic chocolate chip cookie. Wasn't very pleased with the recipe. I made the first batch and realized it needed more flour so I had to adjust. The kids liked them and that's all that counts. I made Jambalaya and acorn squash for dinner. I'm not sure what I'll make tonight. Probably something really easy as I will be helping make sailboats for the Rain-gutter Ragatta!

Chloe helping me make cookies for the kids .

I am creating: I am making a pieced blanket made out of old cashmere sweaters. It is really turning out nice. It's so soft and cozy. I've pieced it all together and now I'm working on making crazy quilt stitches on some of the seams. I've got to make a cute border around the edge or put a binding around it. I can't decide...any ideas?

I am going: Tonight I am going to YW in Sturgeon Bay. At the moment we only have one girl in our program. This month another girl is turning 12 and then in April we'll get a third. Yeah!!
I am hoping: I hope Connor will make a change with is behavior. Lately we've struggled with him being disrespectful and sassy to us. He's a good kid with a smart mouth. It seemed like the consequences we were imposing only had a short term effect. This week I've decided to have in stay in his room for a few hours after school. He can't watch any TV or video games or have friends over. It seems to be working. I feel like this is his Achilles tendon. I'll cross my fingers.
I am reading: I just stared reading the book, 'The Absolutely True Diary of a Part -Time Indian' by Sherman Alexie. It's a National Book Award book written for Young Readers. My librarian recommended it to me and told me that it was her most favorite book she read in 2008. We'll put it to the test. So far I really like it.
I am hearing: Dora the Explorer on the TV, Chloe's favorite. Have to be careful though...she'd watch this same DVD all day if I'd let her. I also hear my neighbor girl, Lydia, use my scrapbook stuff in the front room. She has a little case of "the runs" and didn't feel like going to school, so I said she coould come hang out with me while her parents were at work.
One of my favorite things: English roses. I planted a few new bushes this year and they did just OK. The last couple of weeks we had some really warm weather and my bushes had grown some new stalks with a bunch of roses on them. I was shocked!! Roses in November. I cut them off and brought them in the house. They look beautiful!

I am wearing: I'm still in my work-out clothes from this morning. I should really be in the shower instead of playing on my blog while the baby is sleeping!
A few plans: The kids have off school on Friday so I told them thatI'd take them to Green Bay to watch a movie called "Wall.E" Then on Saturday we're having a birthday party for Oliver. On Sunday I have the sister missionaries for lunch after church. It's going to be a crazy weekend for us!

The Amazingly Patient Pooch

2008-11-11T08:06:00.000-06:00

Our dog Poppy has amazed me lately. When we go to church we put her in the kennel because we are usually gone for 6 hours or so. We always put some toys in her kennel with her and some chew toys to keep her busy and not too bored. I've noticed that when we get home and let her out she'll run around the house and says hello to all the family members and then she'll go back in her kennel and get her toys and chews. I had noticed that her chew toys were never wet or chewed on and just chalked it up to her not really being in the mood to chew.
Last Sunday Dave put her in the kennel and gave her a dog biscuit. She loves her treats and will devour them when we give them to her. When we got home that afternoon she did her routine with the running around and then went in the kennel to pull out her stuff. Well low and behold, what does she pull out? Her dog treat!!! She had waited with that thing in her kennel right in front of her nose and didn't touch it till we got home! I wish I had her self control!
Here is a video of Poppy sitting and waiting for her treat. She'll sit there and wait as long as it takes until we give her the OK to get her treat! She's not the perfect dog but she's making a lot of progress. She still struggles with the command "come", but she's getting better. We think she's finally mastered the potty issue after a year, but I wish she'd give us signals like barking or scratching at the door when she need to go out. But, Rome wasn't built in a day! We are sure glad that we have Poppy in our family!

Gather around the Fireplace

2008-11-10T09:32:00.000-06:00

What wonderful memories gathering around the fireplace bring. When I was a little girl, some of my fondest memories were on a Sunday evening, my dad would start a fire in our fireplace. All of my brothers and sisters would get so excited! My dad would lay his big body across the floor in front of the fireplace and stretch his arms out wide. All of us kids would pile in like sardines in a can and rest our heads on a part of his arm. I can still recall the smell of his Bruit deoderant as I'd lay on my spot on his arm. He'd make "plans" with us about when we'd go on a mission to Brazil (little did he know!) or he'd tell us stories about when he and Uncle Max were little boys down in Lousianna . Those stories always started out like this: "Once upon a time in the land of...", and then all us kids would yell, "OO-PAPA-DA!!", and he tickle us and say, "I'M THE ONE WHOSE SUPPOSE TO SAY IT!!!" Such fun! So now it's our turn to create memories like that for our kids.
Yesterday it got really cold outside and started to snow softly. After we got home from church and had ourselves some lunch, Dave decided that it was the perfect night to have a fire. We got out blankets and pillows and laid around the fireplace. Dave started out by going around the family and asking the kids different questions to get them started on recalling experiences they've had in their short little childhoods. It was so fun listening to their memories from their prespectives. One of the questions was, "What was the most embarrassing things that has ever happened to you?" Oliver told how just the other day when he had to go get an x-ray for his collarbone he had an embarrassing thing happen to him. The doctors office had Chloe and I wait in the examination room while an x-ray technician took Oliver to get his x-ray. She layed him on the table and told him to hold still and not move. Then she left the room. I guess that Oliver had to go to the bathroom pretty bad but the lady was no where in sight. Oliver being the kid he is knew that he was suppose to hold still and not move. Well, you can imagine what happened! He was so embarrassed! He came into the room and explained what had happened. I said that it was ok and as soon as the doctor saw us we'd go home and give him a bath. He had a long t-shirt on that covered his pants so I told him no one was going to even see the mess. Well, the doctor came in and asked if he could take off his shirt! His eyed got as big a silver dollars as he looked over at me in panic! Poor kid! He laughed and laughed when he told us all this story!
Other questions we aked the kids were to tell us when they were the most scared, the most happy and the funnest thing they had ever done. We asked questions until we couldn't think of anything else to ask them! They didn't want the evening to end. They begged us to ask more!
We've also had a tradition of telling them Oo-papa-da stories and stories from Dave's childhood (or as they like to say "Gandpa John stories"...Dave's dad was kind of notorious for doing some crazy things!). We've had a great time as a family getting together this way. We haven't always had a fireplace in the homes we've lived in before, so we've enjoyed talking around the firepit outside or in our tent when we'd camp.
You know, sometimes what our children want most of all is our undivided time and attention. What an inexpensive, wonderful time we shared gathered around the fire!

Happy Birthday, Oliver!

2008-11-08T12:29:00.001-06:00

HAPPY 7TH BIRTHDAY, OLIVER NEWTON!

I can't believe that you have been in our family for seven years already! Time has gone by so fast. You have been a joy and a delight in our family. You have a such a tender heart and you always want to do what's right. I love you so much!
It was fun the other night when you and I were talking about when you were born. I told you how you were my hardest labor and how I felt like you were never going to come out. The doctor had tried to induce me a week before you were due. I was really tired of being pregnant so I took the bait. We made all the arraignments for your older brothers to be taken care of, so we went to Green Bay and checked into the hospital. They started me on pitocin (the medicine which gets mommy's body ready for they baby to come out). I was having labor pains all day and night but my body was not cooperating. You just weren't ready to be born! The next day came and I knew that you were not going to be born that day either. I was so sad to leave the hospital without you in my arms.
The next couple of weeks we tried again. My body was a bit more ready than before but I still needed the help of the medicine to get me going. My body has a hard time having a baby on it's own. I always have to have medicine to help me get the baby out. So they hooked me all up and we waited and waited. It seemed like the time before. Nothing was happening again. The next day came and I was getting so frustrated and sad. I thought I'd never get to see you! After lunch on that second day, I was sitting on a chair and Mama was sitting by my feet. (Your dad was getting a cat-nap in the waiting room.) All of a sudden I had a special and warm feeling come over me. I saw something in my mind and knew that you were with your heavenly family and that you were ready to come to this earth finally. Within minutes my labor pains came on with a vengeance and I delivered you within the hour. I hardly had any time to get the necessary pain killers. But that's OK. Here you were! A perfectly beautiful baby boy!
Oliver, we love you and are so glad you're a part of our family!!!

Crazy 8's

2008-11-03T16:28:00.000-06:00

Stacy had this on her blog and I liked reading what she had to say. I think these post help the reader get a little more insight about the person who is doing the writing.

8 things I'm passionate about:
1. My husband, Dave
2. My kids; Stuart, Connor, Oliver, and Chloe
3. Politics...listening to Conservative radio
4. My friendships
5. Keeping in touch with my extended family
6. Watching flowers grow in my garden
7. Crocheting, embroidery, scrapbooking, cashmere sweater blankets, stamping
8. Cleaning...when I'm in the mood

8 phrases that I use often:
1. Knock it off!
2. Do you want a time out?
3. Why aren't you listening to me?
4. Tuckle, tuckle ,tuckle (bed time routine)
5. I'm tired... I've got to go to bed
6. I love you more!!
7. Do you have any homework?
8. What time will you be home?

8 things I want to do before I die/on my wish list:
1. Loose weight
2. Run a half marathon
3. Have more patience with my kids
4. Serve a mission with Dave
5. Have a really fun, extreme, family vacation
6. Get out of debt..pay off all those student loans, car loan, home loans
7. Help change someones life.
8. Make a difference.

8 things that I've learned from the past:
1. Always say your sorry...admit that you were wrong.
2. Even if you make a lousy dinner...it still "makes a turd".
3. Wait to get new carpet until the puppy is a year old.
4. Some grumpy old men at church will NEVER change and be nice.
5. Never assume your husband can read your mind and know what you want him to do.
6. Always tell your kids you love them even when they are driving you crazy.
7. Don't let 6 little kids play with your scrapbook stuff...GLITTER EVERYWHERE!!!!
8. Don't let cute little toddlers pretend to talk on my new cell phone...it might end up in the toilet.

8 things I currently want:
1. A new van, but got one 3 days ago
2. New running shoes
3. Someone in my family to come and visit from Utah.
4. More income
5. New clothes for me and my kids
6. An endless supply of socks in my boys drawers
8. To jog faster and farther

8 places I want to see/visit:
1. England with Dave
2. Scotland...Still think it's a beautiful place even though I hate a Scotsman from there.
3. Portugal with my family
4. Australia
5. Florida Key with Dave and the kids
6. Brazil with the Ficklin clan
7. Korea, where Dave served his mission
8. All over Europe

8 favorite places to eat:
1. Victoria's
2. Mongolian bar-b-que
3. The King and I (Thai restaurant)
4. Los Hermanos
5. Tony Romas
6. Red Robin
7. The White Gull Inn
8. Culvers Custard

8 shows/movies I can't live with out:
1. 24
2. American Idol
3. I don't watch a lot of TV, but we do love to rent movies
4. Dora the Explorer (Keeps Chloe occupied while I need to get stuff done-is that bad?)
5. Sponge Bob (kid occupier)
6. Nacho Libre (kid occupier)
7. Harry Potter (kid occupier)
8. The Wiggles (kid occupier)

8 things that happened yesterday:
1. Went to church
2. Saw Crusty Jack (grumpy old man at church) roll his eyes and huff a dozen or more times.
3. Relaxed
4. Went to bed a 7:00 p.m.
5. Ate my last BLT sandwich with tomatoes from our garden
6. Watched a movie with my family
7. Had a fire in the fireplace
8. Didn't worry about the dishes in the sink

8 things I look forward to:
1. Kids that will finally listen to me.
2. Kids that will get along.
3. Being out of debt.
4. Dave coming home at night.
5. Kids coming home from school.
6. My walks on Crescent Beach every morning and seeing the sunrise
7. Visiting Utah next summer
8. Getting a new roof

8 things I love about fall:
1. The smell of leaves.
2. The sound of leaves crunching under my feet.
3. The smell of fall candles burning.
4. Turkey dinner with all the trimmings.
5. Having the sun come up earlier so it's not starry when I go to exercise outside.
6. Fires in the fireplace.
7. Raking with Dave
8. Watching the kids jump in the leaves and make mazes with them.

Wow! That took me a lot longer than I thought! Give it a try, it's kind of fun!

Happy Halloween

2008-11-03T10:46:00.001-06:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

STUART THE OLD GRANNY
Stuart was the cutest granny I ever saw! He got so many laughs from neighbors and friends. One lady couldn't tell whether he was a girl or a boy dressed up like a granny!. I thought it was clever that he had his little purse for his treats! He came home about half way through the evening to change his shoes and get a bigger bag for candy.

CONNOR THE GANGSTA RAPPA
Connor is one cool dude! I kind of scratched my head when he told me what he wanted to be...I didn't want to encourage any behavior that is unbecoming a good LDS boy, but Dave and I figured that it is a "pretend" dress up day and as long as it's just for fun, what the heck! He was tickled when we found the huge bling thing and tatoo sleaves at Walmart. With all his attitude he had that night, I thought he was pretty legitimate!

OLIVER THE PHYCHO CLOWN
Phycho is exactly how I felt when we were trying to get four kids ready for trick or treating on Halloween. We had been gone all day buying a new car and got home with 15 minutes to get kids ready to go out for the night! CRAZINESS! Dave helped out by helping with Oliver. Poor guy had no hope of doing a really sweet job on the make-up because I kept saying, "Hurry, hurry!!!". After all was said and done, I thought Oliver's, shall we say, "creepy", make-up was awsome for the effect he wanted.

CHLOE THE PRINCESS FAIRY
Chloe was in seventh heaven in her fairy costume! She was so excited for her first 'real' Halloween. I think this was the first year she really got it. She would practice all day pretending to knock on doors and say "trick or treat" and "thank you".
Her little friend, Raina, came to trick or treat with her. When Raina showed up the girls were dressed nearly the same way! Sometimes it's hard to tell the two apart. They sound the same and look the same. (Except Raina recently "cut" her own hair) Chloe loved having a huge bag of candy all her own. I'm thinking, I'm not loving that fact!

Daybook Ocober 22, 2008

2008-10-22T13:28:00.000-05:00

My sister Emily had done this on her blog and I really liked the idea. I think I'll give it a shot as a weekly post and see how it goes. I think it gives me an idea to start writing with and might give you, the reader, a little insight to my days.

Outside my window: I can see the beautiful trees in my yard and how the leaves are finally starting to fall off the trees. I think about all the work we have to do to rake it to the front of the yard so the city can suck them up. I'm wondering when we'll have time to do it.
I am thinking: I am thinking about the new job I've taken on with watching a three month old in my home everyday from 7:45 in the morning till 3:45 in the afternoon. She' a very good baby but it is strange for me to go back to the days of feeding, changing diapers and wondering. It is especially difficult with taking care of a baby that is not my own and always wondering if the parents are going to be pleased with how our day went. You'll hear more about this subject, I am sure.
I am thankful: I am extremely thankful for the great husband I have! Yesterday I was having a pretty bad day and he was so good and patient to let me unload on him. I've told him on numerous occasions that I believe that he has saved me from a life of prescription medication because he had kept me grounded and calm...well most of the time. (Don't get me wrong...some folks really need medicine no matter what anyone else does for them...I understand the nature of the beast!)
From the kitchen: Today I have plans to make the kids some chocolate cookies...maybe after the baby gets picked up by her mom. Cookies are my absolute favorite things to eat and I don't have a lot of control around them so I get kind of scared to make them. Cookies, get thee hence!!! Tonight for dinner I think I'll make Shrimp Alfredo. I made it last week and it was a huge hit with all the kids. I have left over ingredients so I better use them up.
I am creating: My blog! In the last couple of months, I've learned so much on the computer. Still have a long way to go!
I am going: No where! With watching someone else's newborn, I think I'll be pretty much staying put for a while.
I am hoping: I am hoping that I will keep up with my workout routine. Feeling better than I have in a long time!
I am reading: Stuff on the internet. I know I shouldn't spend so much time on the computer but I guess I feel like I'm making up for lost time. We were without the internet for two years and I missed it so much. I really do need to find a new book that will capture me. Any suggestions?
I am hearing: Rush Limbaugh on the radio in the kitchen. Love that guy!!! (I am my mother's daughter, for sure!!)
One of my favorite things: Having a clean and organized house. Lately it's been cleaned and organized in parts of the house at a time but I'm having a hard time getting it all done at the same time. A part of life!
I am wearing: A pink, ribbed, turtleneck top with blue jeans and a darling necklace and earring set that Mom made for me that goes great with the top. I especially love the necklace because mom incorporated a polished stone that Grandma Fay had made and set into a silver thingy (Don't know the term...but you get the idea)
A few plans for the rest of the week: Not much going on during the day besides watching Mikaela and doing a few haircuts this week, but we do have plans for the weekend. On Saturday we have football for Connor and a boy scout hike for Stuart in the morning. In the afternoon we're going to head to our old town of Gresham to go to a wedding reception. That night we'll sleep at Auntie Sarah's and then go to church with her on Sunday. Looking forward to seeing all my old friends there.

Fall Football

2008-10-21T10:52:00.001-05:00

FOOTBALL SEASON

This football season was crazy with two boys playing!

This was Connor's first year playing and he loved it! We think he actually liked getting all dressed up in his uniform more than he really liked playing!

We were really proud of Connor who decided that he would miss the first three practices because they were on Sunday. He knew that this would mean that maybe he wouldn't get as much playing time and would be behind the other boys in learning the plays but he was ok with that.

This year Stuart played for the seventh and eighth grade teams. His number on his jersey was #15, just like Papa's number, when he was in his glory days.

Stuart is a bit smaller than some of the kids his age, but that doesn't keep him from plowing right into a kid that is twice his size. He's pretty fast and doesn't have a lot of fear. A couple of the other parents and coaches told us that he is so much fun to watch play because he has the biggest heart out on the field. He gives it all he gots!
Coach Schmidt told us at the end of the season to make sure we "hung Stuart on the laundry line to stretch him out a bit before next season and give him piles of pasta every day so he can bulk up". We'll see!

Oliver enjoyed going to the games because then he'd get to play ball on the sidelines with his buddies and his dad. He can hardly wait till he's in 3rd grade so that he can suit up.

Chloe and her dad messing around on the sideline.

Chloe always liked to go to the games because one of her best friends would be there. Her name is Raina and her brother played on Stuart's team. The girls would walk back and forth on the bleachers and make 'grass cakes'.

During Homecoming every year they have a tradition here to go out during homecoming week and toilet paper the town. They toilet paper their school, main street, the elementary school, the police station, the library and all their friends houses.

It's kind of interesting to me because the police supervise them and make sure everybody is safe and not getting into too much trouble. I guess that's good. It's the only time of year that it's allowed, so they get it out of their systems and you don't see the toilet papering any other time of year. The town looks like a mess for a couple of weeks until the toilet paper all disintegrates. If I remember correctly, when I was in high school in Utah we never toilet papered our own school, we would go to our rivals school and do something...but I was NEVER involved with anything like that! :)

Discipline in the Robertson home!

2008-10-17T16:15:00.000-05:00

I'm sure a lot of you parents out there can agree that finding effective discipline is never easy! We struggle to find what works the best and when we do find it, it looses it's affect. We've done just about everything, minus beat them silly. When they were younger we would have them get out my old baby dolls from when I was a kid and they'd have to sit and practice being nice to the doll. They didn't like that so much, especially when Dave threatened to send the dolls with them to school.
Another method of torture we've used is to have them do chores together. They usually end up fighting more than not so then I have them do more chores. It's a very effective way to get a lot of work out of them but not so effective in stopping the fighting!
A new method that I have recently incorporated is that when they misbehave or fight, they have to walk on my back or rub my feet. I love it!! If they're going to upset the spirit of our home, I might as well get repaid for feeling sad because of their misdeeds. Is that bad? All I have to do is threaten a need for a massage and they get the message! Very effective!
The other night, they were going at it again so Dave had them sit and hold hands together while they looked at each other and smiled. They had to do this for ten minutes. If they let go or started arguing again the timer was reset. Pretty effective!
Oh...just a minute...someone is knocking at the door...what did you say, Connor?...Social Services is here??? Oops got to go!!!!!!

I guess I'm a tree hugger!

2008-10-17T15:51:00.000-05:00

Poor Oliver!!

He looks like an absolute mess!! He was playing outside and had a run in with the apple tree in the front yard. It kind of scared me because he scratched his face right across his eye and I was worried that he poked or scratched his eyeball. No major injuries except he looked horrible.

The next day we went to Green Bay to play with his cousins and he got even more scratches on his face from jumping on the trampoline!

At church on Sunday when everyone asked what happened to his face, he just shrugged his shoulders and said, "Well, I guess I'm a tree hugger!"

Look who can reach the pedals!

2008-10-17T15:12:00.000-05:00

Chloe has waited a long time to reach the pedals on her tricycle so that she could cruise the neighborhood with the big kids. We went outside the other day and it was gorgeous. It was the perfect fall day. We wanted to stay out and play so we pulled out the bikes and what do you know? Chloe finally reached the pedals. We had made an attempt in the summer but it wasn't quite time. But she must have had a growth spurt in the last couple of months because now she can ride like the wind! She was absolutely proud of herself and showed all the neighbor kids and her brothers.

**Meet The Robertson's**