It's a Jordan Thing!!!

Mocha Joe & Catching Up

2009-11-29T11:58:00.000-08:00

Mocha passed yesterday and we all took it pretty hard. She brought so much joy into the house for being so small. She was a member of our family for three years and we will miss her so much.

Audrey donated her hair to Locks of Love again a whole foot. She has short hair now and it suits her so well. It is a very nice change. When she first got it cut we were all in shock but now it just seems so natural.

We are working on this years Christmas card in our spare time (that is a laugh) this years card is a real labor of love considering we don't have any spare time. I am working 40+ hours and that is before 3:30 so I can be home for the girls. I am worn out. Wes is not having to work as much over time because of my job so we have been getting to spend more time with him and that is very nice.

Audrey's first Violin Concert is next week and we are all very excited. She has really taken to the instrument and it is really nice seeing her take interest in something other than books. Hannah's Christmas Concert is in two weeks and this will be Hannah's first. Her old school's did not think it was PR to have one, rubbish if you ask me. We love seeing them so excited.

Audrey and Hannah are doing amazing in school and I could not be more happy with the education they are receiving. They are blooming and it is a beautiful thing to see.

Thanksgiving was lonely, I will not lie. It is getting really hard always being alone for the holidays but I really am trying to keep a happy attitude. The food was excellent and it was really relaxing. Wes was awesome he washed the dishes as I cooked and cleaned up everything afterward...that is defiantly something to be Thankful for. We went and saw a Disney's Christmas Carol. Wes enjoyed it but us 3 girls thought it was way too scary and way to serious.

I LOVED New Moon!!! I LOVE Edward!! I thought they did a really good job.

I have had to cut some things out of my life in order for me not to crazy, unfortunately blogging has been one of those things.

Hello Again

2009-09-16T15:23:00.000-07:00

I am so sorry that everyone has had to get on my back for a post. I have been beyond busy. This summer has been CRAZY. I have not had anytime for myself, let alone put it down on paper. We moved into a new house, I started a new job, Grandma came for a visit and Danielle was here for a month and a half. Throw in 2 birthdays, a Wedding Anniversary and a Partridge in a pear tree and you can see why I have not blogged.

I really like working at Welch Allyn, it is really weird to work there. I work upstairs with all the stuffy suits and Wes works downstairs with all the relaxed and fun people. I am learning a ton and I am very, very busy, 3 days a week I type 8hrs straight taking transcription. Another reason why I really have had no desire to blog, I am sick of typing, my fingers scream NO at me every time I go near a keyboard. On the 4th day I work on spreadsheets, file and get to mail things around the world for the Customer Service Department…that is exciting. I don’t work Fridays. I also fill in for the receptionist when needed. There are over 2000 names in the Welch Allyn directory and it is all computerized. That was oodles of fun to learn. I changed my hours so that I am home 10 minutes before the girls get off the bus. Wes is coming to work to have lunch with me, that 30 minutes is are quality time together, that is what happens when you work two different shifts. We still get our Friday date, yay!!! I am exhausted but like where I am and what I am doing, this has been a good change. I also like that I am contributing monetarily to my shopping habit.

The girls love their new schools and we are BEYOND happy with the schools. So far they are everything I could ask for in an education and that is saying a lot. Audrey was fitted for her violin and she is in the books and bagels club before school. Her teacher also is the sign language teacher so she is learning sign every day also. Hannah has a teacher that is going to teach her, I know what a novel idea. Hannah is happy to go to school again and that makes me so happy and has renewed my hope. Here is to a great school year. It holds a lot of promise.

Wes and I celebrated are 9th Wedding Anniversary on the 9th day of the 9 month of the year 2009. That was really cool. The years just seem to be flying by. He bought me the most beautiful pair of black pumps and chocolate. What more could I ask for in a man? He bought me shoes and chocolate…perfection. I got him a new pocket knife and a sketch book, he thought that was perfect too.

I LOVE OUR HOUSE!!!!! I will post pics I promise. I just have to buy a new camera, or I need to figure out how to get pics off the phone. We are saving up for a dishwasher and garbage disposal and a few other things that will make life much easier. Everyone must come visit because you will never want to leave, I just don’t know how Wes and I found such a little piece of heaven not to mention the food I will cook for you all. It will be yummy:)

Danielle left yesterday and I felt very depressed, chocolate did not make me feel any better. I wish that she would come back.

I will attempt to blog once every couple of weeks and maybe I will get bit by the blogging bug again.

P.S. – Mocha is still alive and kicking.

Here's What Has Been Going On In The Jordan Household...

2009-06-18T10:45:00.000-07:00

School ends next week on the 25th we all can’t wait. The girls are soooo ready for it to be done and they have worked so hard this year that I just want to keep them home for the next week.

Audrey was on the front cover of the Marcellus New's paper dressed as a duck from her school play, this was very exciting.

Wes’s schedule changed at work so he gets to come home an hour earlier this is a great big smiley face:)

Next Friday is the last day we will be babysitting the boy next door and I am so thankful this is coming to an end. We have been doing it for a year and the girls need their summer to themselves, I probably sound horrid but all good things must come to an end. Wes and I have also decided that I am going to stop cleaning houses and find a part time job working in the Skaneateles Village at one of the shops for the summer…I am burnt out cleaning up after rich people and ready to move on to the next chapter of my professional life. I am hoping to work for the school district when the new school year starts. The district office is right (I mean right) across the street from our house.

Danielle is coming for a visit at the end of July till September and we are very excited to have her. Grandma is coming August 12th till the 25th and the girls are counting down the days and so am I.

I weigh 104lbs!!! This is monumental I have been able to gain 12 pounds this last year. It is a struggle to keep it on (I lost 2 lbs on vacation) … I have to eat constantly but am very proud of myself. I am hoping to gain 6 more.

Other than packing and doing routine Mommy stuff that is all for now.

Skaneateles Here We Come

2009-06-18T10:27:00.000-07:00

We are moving on July 11th to our new house and it not a duplex!!! Yay!!! This is the third duplex we lived in a row and I am so ready for my OWN single family house.

We are moving to a village called Skaneateles (skinny-at-less) right on the Skaneateles Lake, the house is about 5 blocks away. Wes’s work is only a 3.5 minute drive. Audrey’s school is right around the corner to the left (grades 3-5) and Hannah’s school is a few blocks away around the corner to the right (grades K-2). I am VERY HAPPY Audrey is not going into middle school next year, that would have happened if we had chosen to stay in Marcellus. 4th grade is too young for middle school.

The house is a Victorian Colonial built in 1894 and has been completely refurbished except for the kitchen but we will tackle that problem later. It reminds me of a house that Anne of Green Gables would have lived in and I fell in love with it instantly. It is a smaller house, living room, dining room, 3 bedrooms 2 full bath (washer and dryer in the downstairs bath, which I love). It has a great big backyard with extensive flower gardens (lets pray I get hit with lightening and all of a sudden my black thumb turns to green) and a large front porch that wraps around the front of the house. Porch Swing here I come!!! We are in a great neighborhood… so no more band sessions at 11:00 at night, no more pitbulls and partying teenagers and inconsiderate neighbors. I can’t wait till the 11th.

The house does have some downfalls, the kitchen is really small and I only have one counter. It is the only room in the house not to have had a major renovation so it still has the orginal one-basin kitchen sink with a place for your dish rack but no counters. There are no counters around the fridge or the stove (the stove is electric, that will be remedied … I need the flame). There is no light switch and it has the old paneling for the ceiling and I am not going to even talk about the tile on the floor. The kitchen has white and red wallpaper …horrible. Wes and I found a beautiful Tuscan wallpaper with grapes and I am going to make it look like an old world Italian Mamas kitchen. The rest of the house makes up for the kitchen though: there is the most beautiful Victorian wall paper in all the rooms, real hardwood floors, the bathroom downstairs has a vaulted ceiling and the bathroom upstairs has the original claw bathtub … so classic. It has a spiral staircase and windows abound, all the light in the house is amazing. There is a stain glass window in the front foyer of the house and it makes me smile just thinking about it.

I am going to have a lot of fun making this house our home.

Holy Cow

2009-06-18T09:39:00.000-07:00

Audrey went on a field trip a couple of weeks ago to a local "working" farm. I thought that this was going to be a good experience for her. She has not been exposed to the "country" side of life, it's no secret we are "city" gals.

Audrey comes home from school and tells me that she witnessed the birth of a calf and that it was stillborn. I asked her to repeat herself because I thought I had misheard and she said that she had seen the birth of a stillborn calf and that it was really sad and gross. She then went on to explain that the Farmer told them the calf suffocated and had the cord wrapped around its neck. Some children started to cry and others thought it was cool. Audrey told me that it made her really sad and hurt her heart.

Has everyone lost their frakken minds, not to mention their good judgment? I did not give permission for my daughter to witness a birth and if I had I would of thought the minute the farmers knew the calf was having problems they would have taken the children out of the barn. Well, I had a COW and it was not pretty.
Audrey is not a sheltered child as many of you know, but it is Wes' and my responsibility to introduce certain situation to her...there is not this big rush to let her know everything about everything at the tender age of 8...Call me Crazy. This like me saying, "well we live in the city so lets go down to the local gang and watch them blow someone away because that is normal for this area" (I am not exaggerating either...West Valley anyone?)

True to form Wes and I went and saw the Principle the next day and let him know how disappointed and unhappy this "High Maintance Mother" was. We called into question the judgment of the Teachers and Workers. He told me that it is a "working" farm and is suggested by that title...well excuse my naivety. I have written a letter to the farm expressing my outrage and just because it is a "working" farm does not mean that everything has to be shown...why don't you just take the kids down to see the cows get slaughtered and dressed if that is your attitude.

A Mother's Love

2009-05-15T08:32:00.000-07:00

This week Audrey has had her school play “Nuts!!” As you all know Audrey was Mrs. Duck. Wes and I were able to go and see her last night. I was so proud of her and thought she did such a good job that I was crying. I was overwhelmed with love for my little girl who just a few years ago depended so highly on me and now she was able to remember lines, sing, dance and speak so that the whole audience could hear her. I think it was ironic that Mother’s Day was on Sunday because the girls were thinking about how special I was to them and wanted to celebrate me but in all honestly I think Mother’s Day really is about know how blessed and special I am to have been given two such perfect little girls and never to take them for granted. My love for them grows each day and I am awed at how much they are changing and growing.

P.S. Wes made me Waffles - That is HUGE and they were delicious!!!

Imagine All The Pictures

2009-04-02T10:16:00.000-07:00

Imagine all the pictures, well that is what you are going to have to do. My memory card reader is on the friz and I can't find the cord for the camera to plug it into the computer. I have a ton of pics, so I better get cracking on getting it fixed.

Dear Tooth Fairy...

2009-04-02T10:02:00.000-07:00

Sensitive Tooth Fairy information!!!

Last Thursday Hannah came to me and asked if we could write a letter to the Tooth Fairy asking her when she was going to lose a tooth. Hannah is 6.5 yrs old and the only person in her classs not to have lost any teeth. She has been really disappointed that her name is not on the tooth chart at school yet.

Hannah and I sat down and wrote the following letter -

"Dear Tooth Fairy,

When am I going to start losing teeth?

_________________________
Please put date on the line.

Love,

Hannah Jordan"

Hannah put the letter under her pillow and was really excited. I waited for Wes to get home from work and told him the situation and that Hannah had a letter under her pillow waiting for Fairy writing. What were we to do?!! We finally came to the conclusion that we were not going to do anything and tell Hannah that only teeth can bring the Tooth Fairy to a child's pillow, because teeth are magic. The following morning Hannah was disappointed but took the answer we gave her and told us that we were right.

Hannah had NO loose teeth. The following Saturday Hannah came to me and said that she had a loose tooth. I felt so bad for her because she wanted it sooooo bad, I leaned down but actually started wiggling her bottom left tooth in the front. I was very happy. Hannah then told me that the Tooth Fairy must have come when she put the letter under her pillow and sprinkled Fairy Magic on her and that is how she got her loose tooth. Hey, works for me!!! The next day (Sunday) Wes pulled her first tooth and I have never seen such a happy little girl. You would have thought she had won the lottery. It made us so happy to see her so excited.
She did tell me though that having a baby can't hurt as bad as losing a tooth. I just smiled at her, you got to love the innocent:p
The best part about this whole story is that Hannah (and Audrey because she was there) will be able to take that feeling of Magic through her life and even when she finds out the truth she will always have a small piece of her that says that there really is magic and dreams do come true even if it is only losing a tooth to get your name on a chart at school.

p.s. The Tooth Fairy brough Hannah $2.00 a doller for losing her tooth and another dollar for having to wait for so long.

Audrey's play is...NUTS

2009-04-02T09:56:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has followed my blog knows that for some reason this year the theme has been Nuts. Nuts in the gerbil food, being able to eat certain nuts and then trying to cheat death by eating the deadly ones, being married to a nut, the list goes on and on. Well there must be something in the cosmos because Audrey's play this year is called you guessed it "NUTS". It has all kinds of different types of Nuts that the children get to dress up as and squirrels (well that makes sense, every play needs squirrels) and forest animals singing about Nuts. Audrey found out that she is going to be Mrs. Duck married to Big Rooster and mother to Chicken Little who sees...what else, Nuts falling from the sky. I am thnkful that she was not cast as the Peanut, I would not be able to go around her for the next month and a half...lol:) Audrey is excited and nothing brings me more joy then listening to 4 songs all about nuts and animals who love them over and over again.

Keytastrophe

2009-04-02T09:42:00.000-07:00

Last Firday the girls and I went and did the routine grocery shopping and dinner out. It was a very peaceful day, that is when I should have known that things were just too good to be true. The girls and I came out of the grocery store around 8:30 and I started searching for my keys, and sure enough I found them in the ignition locked in the car. I guess I should be happy that its been over a year since my last keytastrophe. Last month I had left my keys in the ignition and was lucky that Wes was with me and he gave me the "look" and I gave him a cute smile. He's right though I have a key issue...for some reason I lose them in the house and unfortunately several times I have locked them in the car. I am overly compulsive about everything else so you would think I would be able to overcome this problem.
I went into the grocery store and asked if they had security that could help get into the car, they did not. You can only imagine how much I was dreading having to call Wes at work and tell him that the girls, groceries and myself were hanging out in the dark cold parking lot and the keys were in the nice warm car. Lucky for me I came up with a brilliant idea, I called Audrey's friends father and he came to our rescue. He was able to get into the car and I took my grumpy girls home to bed...You think this story ends don't you...oh no, we haven't gotten to the good part. I got the girls to bed and wanted to make myself feel better so I grabbed a CHOCOLATE EGG that our friends had brought over. I thought it was MINT but in reality it was HAZELNUT. I bit off the tip of the egg and had it in my mouth, I had not even swallowed and my body started heaving and my lungs started to swell shut. I spit the deadly chocolate out and then I started getting hives in my throat, mouth, lips and face. So I ran for the emergency bottle of Benedryl and drank more than prescribed and shot myself with my Epi Pen. Lets all be thankful that I did not swallow and lets be even more thankful it was not a peanut. I was able to start to breathe again and I could feel my lungs returning to their normal size. Lesson learned...if I am going to comfort myself with a foreign piece of chocolate make sure I have my food taster taste it first and see what happens to him...(Love you Rabbit)

Mommy Saved Me From A Great Big Spider!!

2009-03-18T09:08:00.000-07:00

Mommy saved me from a GREAT BIG SPIDER and I didn't even know it....

We were getting ready to leave the house to go grocery shopping. This means hats mittens etc...

Audrey needed her glasses cleaned so I walked a few feet over to the entertainment center to the tissues, when I turned back around Hannah had her white winter hat on and a GREAT BIG SPIDER (about the size of a quarter) was on the side of her hat!!!! It looked like it was getting ready to climb down her face. I consciously did not make a noise because I did not want to traumatize her for life. I moved insanely fast ... took the Kleenex slapped the spider off her hat and then rapidly and repeatedly stomped on it with my shoe as hard a s I possibly could. I just kept silent but what I really wanted to do was start screaming -

"You had a huge spider on your head and it was getting ready to crawl down your face and everyone should be completely freaked out right now!!" "Die, Spider Die!!!"

Both the girls had a startled expression on their faces like I had finally cracked. It was not until I lifted up my foot that they saw a large glob of spider underneath it. They started to understand and then Hannah started to comprehend where the spider had been. I told her in the most soothing voice I could muster ... that Mommy protected her and that it was no big deal and to finish getting ready to go. We have not talked about it again.

I guess there is a silver lining Spring is actually on its way.

Update

2009-03-17T11:26:00.000-07:00

The weather is beautiful and the snow is gone. I am so happy. Even though we are going to go through another cold snap I am happy that the sun is shining.

I thought it was about time that I updated my blog. I guess I will start with Valentines. Wes and I went out to a nice little Mexican restaurant. It is really hard to find good Mexican food around here, but this one meets my high standards. We went and saw Taken afterwards with Liam Neason. Great movie!!! It was so refreshing to pay a ton of money at the theater and actually feel like we got our monies worth.

We took the girls to Rochester over President’s Day weekend and went to the Science Center and Imax. We saw a Dinosaur movie…it was ok. The movie suggested that Dinosaurs are now birds. I don’t know if I would pay that much money to go do it again. I love taking the girls to do new things and get them to explore and find out about new things. We have been watching The Muppet Show with the girls. I LOVE that show, I really wish that they would bring back The Muppet Show for primetime now. It would be so refreshing to have such a great family show on TV. Not to mention that great pool of celebrities they would be able to take advantage of. I mean who would not want to do a skit with Kermit!!
We saw the movie Australia, great movie. Transporter 3 is really good too. We took the girls to Race to Witch Mountain, it was ok I would wait for DVD for that one. I have been watching Veronica Mars…Cris you need to get them on Netflix for you to watch when Chad is not home. Great show!!! So impressed and it is good.

Audrey had her State Reading and Math Tests and I am glad that they are done. I personally think they are a waste of time. They could have been doing so much more in class. Audrey scored 100% on the Reading Pre-Tests and 96% on the Math Pre-tests. We will not have her scores back from the actual tests until next year. Audrey is doing really well in school. Audrey is now working on the school play and doing reading projects. She is also writing a report on the Chinese Silk Road. Did you know that a woman discovered how to make silk? Cool huh!!

Hannah is finally starting to blossom academically, not to mention she has grown 2 inches this year. Wes and I have taken over her education at home. We have been so disappointed with how this year of Pre-first has turned out. We made a mistake by not putting her into first grade. We should have gone with our first decision. Hannah is not happy at school and her teacher has not done anything that we were promised. Hannah has been having school with me for two hours after she gets home. She is now reading fluently, writing and counting up to 100 and we have been working on her printing. We are so disappointed in her schooling (not in her) but at least we have the means and the time to give Hannah what she needs so she can be successful. Wes is going to be giving her class an Art lesson on Thursday. Hannah is very excited.

Wes got an EXCELLENT review at work for the year!!! I am so proud of him. I am still cleaning houses and watching the kid next door but I am thinking that in the next few months that is going to be changing. I am so ready for something new.

We bought some new furniture for the house a new coffee table and a couple of end tables. I am happy with how the living room is shaping up. We finally bought the girls a new dresser (and matching bookcase). They put their NEW Disney Princess TV on it (that is a whole other blog). Yay!!! Not to mention now we don’t have to put their clothes in plastic bins or hang everything up.

For those of you who do not know my Mom was in a car accident a few weeks ago and it has been really hard not being in Salt Lake to take care of her. I hate being so far away…especially when someone you love has been hurt and needs you. I am looking forward to seeing her in Texas at the end of next month.

That is all for now. I am really going to try to get back into my groove of blogging.

Q&A With My Girls

2009-03-17T10:20:00.000-07:00

My sis-in-laws did this Q&A with my nieces and nephews on Facebook. I thought it was so cute that I did it also. I posted these answers on Facebook, but thought those of you who do not have Facebook would like to see them too:)

A Interview with Audrey
1. What is something that mom always says to you?
Behave

2. What makes mom happy?
When I help my sister.

3. What makes mom sad?
When she is sick.

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
She tickles me.

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Hardworking.

6. How old is your mom?
33 (but I am really 32)

7. How tall is your mom?
5'5

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Cook.

9. What does your mom do when you are not around?
Talk about parent stuff on the phone.

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Chef on Food Network.

11. What is your mom really good at?
Cooking

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Sewing.

13. What does your mom do for a job?
She cleans houses.

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
Salmon.

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
She is very, very kind and sweet!!:)

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Wilma Flinstone.

17. What do you and your mom do together?
We practice cooking.

18. How are you and your mom the same?
We both have the same skin and wear glasses.

19. How are you and your mom different?
I am younger.

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
She is kind to me.

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
He is funny.

22. What is your mom's favorite place to go?
Disney World.

23. What is a place your Mommy doesn’t like to go?
Going to see stupid movies.

24. What is Mommy’s favorite store?
Williams and Sonoma

25. What do you love most about Mommy?
She is beautiful and she cooks good.

A Interview with Hannah
1. What is something that mom always says to you?
I love You!!

2. What makes mom happy?
When I read.

3. What makes mom sad?
When I do something wrong.

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
She she tells silly stories, when she squeaks and sings.

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Like a Strawberry Shortcake Toy...hopefully I smelled like one too:)

6. How old is your mom?
I don't know.

7. How tall is your mom?
29 finger steps. (She counted me with her fingers.

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Cook.

9. What does your mom do when you are not around?
Goes shopping.

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Because you cook really good.

11. What is your mom really good at?
Taking care of me.

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Sewing.

13. What does your mom do for a job?
She washes houses.

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
Pizza with Mushrooms.

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
She can drive a car:p

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Eeyore (but happier).

17. What do you and your mom do together?
We read.

18. How are you and your mom the same?
We are both girls...that is mostly the only thing.

19. How are you and your mom different?
Lots and lots of things.

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
Because she is my Mom.

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
When she is sick he takes care of her.

22. What is your mom's favorite place to go?
Movie Theater. (I would perfer the Movie Theater at Disney World).

23. What is a place your Mommy doesn’t like to go?
Seabreeze.

24. What is Mommy’s favorite store?
Williams and Sonoma and Wegmans

25. What do you love most about Mommy?
She is a beautiful lady.

The Ringlet Incident of 2005

2009-02-17T12:50:00.001-08:00

It has been a while since I have bloged...I have not really been in the mood. We have all been sick and dirty white snow outside has been less than inspiring. Here are a few blogs that have been sitting around just waiting to be posted.

The other night I was washing Hannah's hair and I found a great big glob of hair sutck together by some unnatural substance. There wasn't a chance of getting the hair back to normal so I called Wes and he brought me the dreaded scissors and I cut the glob out of her hair. We were lucky that you can not even tell that she had impromptu hair surgery.

This seems to be a routine with Hannah, every few years she has to have some chunk of her hair cut off but thankfully she has stopped doing it herself. In 2005 when we were living in Airdrie, Alberta, Canada, I was at work and got a phone call from Wes telling me that she had cut off her most precious ringlet that hung perfectly in front of her face (Shirley Temple would have been jeleous). I was devastated. In 2007 when we had moved to New York, I took Audrey to get her bangs cut and Hannah must have felt left out because that night I found blond hair stuffed under the entertainment center. The crazy thing is that she did such a good job cutting her bangs you could not even tell.

Creme Puffs and the Flu

2009-02-17T12:39:00.000-08:00

(I wrote this blog the week of my birthday...so just pretend it wasn't a few weeks ago)

I turned 32 this week. 31 seemed to go by very fast. Wes and I decided that we would celebrate the weekend before my birthday (thank goodness we did). We wnt to Rochester (45 minutes away) to a swanky mall. I got to go shopping for my own birthday gifts...love this!!!! Wes got me a pair of Jeans, Audrey got me my favorite Godiva Chocolates and Hannah bought me a beautiful Chinese tea set (50% off, which made it even more fabulous). We then went to dinner at Biaggis, an Italian restaurant. I was pleased with the food. We have had a really hard time finding good places to eat in Syracuse, it seems Rochester has them all. I had a wonderful birthday dinner with my family, they were so sweet and generous!!! On Sunday I made an assortment of Creme Puffs instead of a cake (I make cakes for everyone else, I wanted something different) and Lemon Riccota Cookies. A few friends came over and we stuffed ourselves with the yummy puffs, cookies and long stem strawberries. It was fun having everyone over...it was very low key and relaxed.

Wednesday night around 11:00 (an hour before my b-day) I started to feel quite sick. By the time I went to bed I was running a fever and so began my "Birthday Flu"!!! Wes stayed home from work and took care of me and the girls and I laid on the couch in a cold sweat moaning and groaning and wishing the day would just end. January 30th came and the flu was gone. I am thankful it only lasted 24hrs.

Thank you to everyone for the well wishes and gifts (you know how I love gifts) ... that is what makes my birthday so special: having family and friends as special as all of you!!! (That could be a Hallmark card) (Yes I know I am a dork).

The Rocky Economy

2009-02-17T12:27:00.000-08:00

( Warning I'm about to rant and rave so read at own risk)

Wes and I have been together now for 10 yrs and it has only been the last couple of years that we have been financially comfortable, and I mean comfortable like I can buy the roast at the super market and not have to worry about using gas money. I can even occasionally buy a movie and not feel guilty.

I am getting really sick and tired about hearing how bad the economy is right now, like this is something new. Hello, there has been a majority of us who have had to scrimp and save just to make ends meet...we have already been living paycheck to paycheck. What really set me off is Hannah brought home a Parents & Child Magazine from school the other day and there is an article called "A Silver Lining - Our rocky economy offers timely opportunities for family bonding, life lessons, and yes, fun."
Such as; renting DVD's, going to the library or park or playing games at home. The article suggested that your child will become acclimated to these mundane activities and might actually start having fun. What the? I am sure there was a time when you gave your kid a stick, a rock, and a can and said knock yourself out. I mean, what have families been doing for together-time that I am not aware of...I am sorry they can't jet off to the Caribbean for the weekend. I have been hearing everywhere that families now have the opportunity to spend quality time together because they are broke.

Call me naive but why aren't families doing thse things no matter what economy we live in? I think there is a much bigger problem than just how much money they have in their wallets.

I am VERY thankful that Wes has a job that we do not have to worry about him losing and I am happy that we are moving up the financial ladder but I would like to think that no matter how much money we have we will always make time for our family and spend time together.

I have so much more to say on this topic but I am going to finish this rant for now.

Can Your Phone Make Pancakes?

2009-01-14T10:47:00.000-08:00

Wes and I have been giving money away to AT&T, so we decided to switch to Verizon. Pretty much everyone we know has Verizon. I wan planning on getting a standard phone but I fell in love with the EnV2, a flip phone with it's own keyboard. Wes is a real sweetheart because he was generous enough to let me spend much more than we were planning on something that he would rather go the way of the dinosaurs and phone booths would become all the rage again.

Let me tell you this phone can do it all. I can get online, it's an Ipod, camera, video recorder, and I am sure I could program it to make pancakes!!! Not to mention it is very pretty.

A New Year Update

2009-01-14T10:40:00.000-08:00

We had a pretty low key New year's. Friends came over and we played games and ate food. 2008 went out and 2009 came in and life went on as usual.

We were able to go up to Wes's brother's to see our new baby niece Amelia. She is a gem and just beautiful. I was so happy to be able to hold her and get to visit with her, she was only 15 days old.

Wes with his B-day baby:)

Audrey had her New York State Language Arts Test this week and we will not get the results until she is in 4th grade, but Audrey was excited and happy to take them. I am sure she did a brillant job.

We have been watching Smallville. We flew through season 6 and we are now working on season 7. Love that show!!! We rented the Dutchess ... people put the movie back and and walk away slowly. It put the D in Depressing. I felt like I needed an anti-depressant after watching it. American Idol has started, Yay!!! I can not wait for LOST next week!! I love the new show True Beauty on ABC after the Bachelor. It is great and in a lot of ways redeems the bad rap reality shows have gotten for being so shallow and fake.

Nothing much else going on here in our neck of the woods other than snow and more snow and FREEZING cold temps:P

Here's One For Ripley's Believe It Or Not ...

2009-01-14T10:24:00.000-08:00

A couple of days before New Year's I was in the kitchen doing the dishes and I looked down and saw a piece of paper on the floor ... no big deal right? I walked over, picked it up and it was the warrenty for our IPOD that we had bought 3 yrs ago in Canada and was going to expire in 2009. I had searched EVERYWHERE for this warranty (the IPOD is broken) and then out of the blue it just showed up on my kitchen floor. That is what I call good customer service ... when the warranty tracks you down.

Disney Movie Rewards

2008-12-31T10:15:00.000-08:00

For the last 3 years I have been collecting disney Movie Rewards. You get the points when you buy Disney movies and go see Disney movies in the theater. I have been saving up to get the Disney Princess TV with built in DVD player ... it is 3700 points = 185 DVDs + some movies in the theater. I have not been going out and just buying Disney titles to get the points, I have only purchased movies that we are interested in owning, lets face it, that's about all of them because I am a Disney freak.
Well on Christmas I finally got the last 200 points that I needed to reach 3700 points. Hallelujah!!! I was so happy. I went online to redeem my points and come to find out that the Disney Princess TV that I have been waiting patiently for, for the past 3 yrs is currently not available. UGGGG!!!! This did not make me happy, I wrote a scathing email to the Disney rewards people asking when it was going to be available again. I got a response yesterday and here is an excerpt from the form letter that they sent me ... they could not even take the time to personally respond to my disappointment.

"Disney Movie Rewards offers many unique and exclusive rewards, and some may be limited in quantity, you may want to consider redeeming your points sooner than later."

Well, duh ... if I would have had enough points I would have redeemed them sooner than later. I am not going down without a fight. If this is the last thing I do I am going to get that TV ... they have not heard the last from Jenny Jordan (did you hear the evil laugh?).

Number 200 is about Chopsticks:P

2008-12-31T10:13:00.000-08:00

My 200th blog!!!! Yay!!! I reached my goal of writing 200 blogs before 2009:)

(Megan - I am happy that I had enough material not have to blog about the contents of my fridge)

The day after Christmas we went to Rochester (about 45 minutes away) and went to the Children's Museum. We also went to our favorite Chinese Restaurant for Dim Sum. Hannah and Audrey have mastered Chopsticks. They have been eating all their food with them. It is so adorable.

Persuasion

2008-12-31T09:57:00.000-08:00

Great Grandma gave the girls Apples to Apples Jr. for Christmas (they love it).

Here's the set-up: Hannah was the judge for this hand. The green card was 'Frightening'. Wes played the red card 'Power Drill' and I played 'Airplane,' Audrey's card was not frightening so she had no chance of winning this hand.
You could say that Wes and I are pretty competitive people ... so much in fact that we forgot that we need to nurture our 6 year old, not convince her that all her worse fears are going to come true. I started telling Hannah that planes crash and burn and fall from the sky and that is REALLY frightening. Wes is telling her that power drills can go right threw people. Wes looked at me and started laughing and we realized what we were doing ... can you say traumatized? It didn't seem to phase Hannah ... she is so loyal to me that she was going to pick my card anyway. So she picked Airplane (which made me happy), but we are going to have to watch ourselves the next time we play.

Dollhouse Part 1

2008-12-31T09:24:00.000-08:00

Wes, with his other baby:P

Hannah just kept screaming "It's a dollhouse Audrey, It's a dollhouse!!!!" I have the girls opening it on video, hopefully it won't take me long to figure out how to post it on my blog.

It was so satisfying to give them such a cherished and heartfelt gift. They have already spent hours upon hours playing with it. I will be taking the girls to the hardware store to buy the paint and we will be painting and decorating the inside. Wes and I came to the conclusion that we were going to kill ourselves trying to finish it by Christmas and also the girls would really have fun giving input and being able to help us with the construction. To tell you the truth we could leave it the way it is right now and they would be perfectly content ... but that is not going to happen.

Christmas

2008-12-31T09:03:00.000-08:00

Christmas always goes by so fast. You take so much time preparing for it and then poof it is gone.

Wes and I decided that this year's festivities were going to be very relaxing and spent together having fun. Christmas Eve day we went and saw the movie Despereaux, it was very cute and well done, though the movie was very different from the book.
I had made Christmas Eve dinner the night before. Roast with a Porcini Mushroom Ragu, Marcarpone Mashed Potatoes and Steamed Green Beans. Dinner was excellent, if I do say so myself and I am happy that I didn't kill myself making it on Christmas Eve. The girls and I had also made Santa's cookies, so they were all ready to go. The girls were so excited ... I am so happy that as you get older you don't lose that nervous anticipation for Christmas morning. I was just as excited as the girls. After dinner we turned on the Polar Express and then we each got to open up one present. Us girls got into our Christmas jammies and we put milk and cookies and carrots out for Santa and of course his reindeer.

We got the girls to bed (waited about 90 minutes) and then the work began. Our next door neighbor came over and helped Wes move the dollhouse downstairs and I got the privlege of wrapping that bad boy, it took a whole roll and a half of wrapping papper .... it was a lot of fun. (Look at Dollhouse Blog for pics).
I got all the gifts under the tree, did some other "special" duties and hoped we had not forgotten anything. Christmas Eve is what being a parent is all about. I love the feeling of bringing joy and wonder to our little girls and as they get older it gets more exciting for us.
I tried to convince Wes to let me go and wake the girls up so we could open up presents (about 1 a.m.) I have a harder time waiting then the girls do. He said we had to go to bed and get a few hours sleep ... he is no fun.

8:00 rolled around and the girls came in and woke us up. We all got freshened up and I got the Strata I had made the night before into the oven for breakfast (it takes 90 minutes to bake, it is perfect for Christmas morning). We took the girls into the living room and their little eyes got so big, they started squeaking in octaves that only dogs could hear. It was very exciting. We all agreed that we were going to go very slow and draw out the opening of presents as long as possible. We turned on the TV to the channel that was playing Christmas songs and showed a Yule log burning. Hey, you work with what you have.

We opened up the gifts from all our family and friends first and I felt homesick but thankful that everyone had thought of us. Thank you all:)

The girls asked to open the great big gift but we told them that they had to wait and they were very patient and enjoyed everything they received. Hannah got an Art Easel from Santa and it came with paint brushes ... I thought she was going to die from happiness. Audrey was in book heaven (it is Wednesday and she had finished almost a dozen chapter books).

Wes did an excellent job shopping this year. He always has so many doubts about his shopping abilities when it comes to buying me things but he has been spot on lately and my Christmas was perfect.

We ate breakfast and played with all of our new toys. We then went and saw Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler. That was a great movie, loved it. We came home, ate Swedish Meatballs, and just enjoyed having one of the best Christmas's ever. This was Wes and mine 10th Christmas ... I can not believe we are in double digits.

Babies For Birthday Presents!!!

2008-12-22T10:11:00.000-08:00

Wes's 36th birthday was on the 19th. Our neice was born at 5:00 p.m. on the 19th. Amelia Johnna Jordan, 7lbs 3oz, 19.5 inches long with dark black hair. Wes was so jealous that I got a nephew (Aiden) on my birthday that he had to have one too. We are very hapy that Mia made it safe and sound and that Lauren (my sis-in-law) is doing well.

Wes had to work on Friday so we had his b-day celebration on Sunday. It was a very low key birthday but I think he really enjoyed it (I just asked him if he enjoyed his b-day and he said yes). I made Wes dinner and the cake of his choice. He got a woodworking book and exercise equipment so that he can get buff again ...

I have expressed several hundred times on this blog how much I love and adore my husband. So what's one more time - I love and adore you and hope that you have a memorable 36th year filled with happiness and glad tidings of peace and joy (ok I stole that last part from a Christmas carol) (He just called me a dork, doofus and dweeb). I love you too!!!

Playing Catch-Up

2008-12-22T09:49:00.000-08:00

Its been quite busy around the Jordan casa these last few weeks. I am forcing myself to sit down and blog, before I forget everything that has happened.

We went to Niagara Falls for our friends' wedding the first weekend in Dec. It is an extreamly beautiful place to get married - in JULY - it was sooooooo cold. Niagara Falls in December is just painfull! The wedding was very quaint but nice and even though I was an ice cube we were happy to be part of their celebration.

We went and saw Bolt. That is a really cute movie. I think Wes and I enjoyed it just as much as the girls did. Then the Stomach Flu hit ... I am so happy that we got it in the beginning of December and not around Christmas.

Wes and I got this year's Christmas card put together, which always takes so much time ... that also explains my lack of blogging (not to mention the other "project" that needs to be finished by Dec 25th).

Saturday the 13th Wes and I were able to attend the Welch Allyn Christmas party. We had so much fun. We both got gussied up, got a sitter and braved the weather. They had complimentary Valet parking, that made going worth it right there and then. The party was at Welch Allyn's Lodge (In the February issue of Martha Stewart Weddings, there will be an article on the Lodge). A beautiful building, very romantic and rustic ... the snow added a very "Look I'm on the cover of a Christmas Card" kind of feel (maybe that will be next year's card). They had a roaring fire inside and hot chocolate when you walked through the door. There was tons of food. Wes and I had thirds ... I shocked all our friends at the table. I think I finally probed to them that I am not anorexic and do know how to use a fork and a spoon. I will give the quality of food a 7.5 ... not bad for a work Christmas party. The wait staff was nice and very prompt, almost too prompt, you got up to get something and your food would disappear. They had fondue fountains for dessert and several types of pastries.
We went on a horse drawn carriage ride. I know it sounds romantic, doesn't it? Well, I started having flashbacks of Niagara Falls ... it was so cold. Me in my little red dress (which by the way was not too little, just was made of really thin fabric) and heels. I was squished between two of my girlfriends from "work" so that we could share the blanket. Wes sat across from me. I felt so bad for those horses having to take people around the lake, over and over again, in the freezing cold weather.
Before the hypothermia started to set in we made it back to the Lodge and sat in front of the fire to thaw out. Dave Allyn (the great-grandson of the founder of Wes's work) has a band and they were REALLY good. They could play anything. They guy sang an AC/DC song and sounded just like Brian Johnson. It was insane. Anybody that knows me knows that the minute I get the music bug you can't get me off the dance floor ... I am not shy about feeling like I am making a fool of myself. Wes caught the bug, which is really rare, and danced the night away with me, it made me feel so loved and cared for. We had a great time at the Christmas party and it really set the mood to start the holiday season.

We have soooooooo much snow!!!! If places like California and Vegas are getting snow just think how much more we are getting. It is snowing almost every other day and just dropping truck loads ... not to mention how cold it has been. This last Friday (Wes's b-day) we got 10 in. of snow in 4hrs. The girls were sent home early from school. There is no doubt that we are going to have a White Christmas - I am just hoping we do not have a snowed-in Christmas:P

Thursday, Audrey went caroling at the Senior citizens home and at a few other businesses in the community. She has been practicing for weeks and was constantly singing and doing her little dance in preparation for the "Big Event" ... she was so cute. Did you know that they learn hanukkah and Kwanzaa songs also ... eveything has to be so politically correct.

This weekend we had the only family Christmas evernt of the season. We went to Shirley's (Wes's oldest sister) for the girls to exchange gifts with their cousins. Audrey and Hannah each got a Build-A-Bear ...

Attention Grandma: Hannah named her Bear "Violet."

I have about 95% of the Christmas shopping done, that is happy. Hannah has her school Christmas party today, Audrey's is tomorrow. They also have a school sing-a-long tomorrow. Christmas break starts on Wednesday and so does Wes's vacation. Yay!!!

Letters To Santa

2008-12-22T09:18:00.000-08:00

For every letter mailed to Santa at Macys $1 was donated to the Make A Wish Foundation.

The Art of the Sale

2008-12-22T05:59:00.000-08:00

The second week in December Wes and I did the bulk of the girls Christmas shopping at Target. I am not going to bore you with the details of everthing that we bought for them (there is a point to this blog). One of the items we purchased was the Target Disney Doll Set with 7 of the Princesses in it for $59. Well on Tuesday I was in Target and saw the same Princess set on sale for $42.99 - that is an $18 difference! I asked one of the clerks about their price adjustment policy and she said you have 7 days. I thought that was stupid because I bought it more than 7 days ago ... so I went home, unwrapped it, got my receipt, and returned it. They gave me $64 and some change, I then went to to the toy aisle, picked up the same set for $42.99, and The Little Mermaid 2 ($19.99). I went to the cashier and paid a $4 difference for the set and the movie. Now that is what I call getting your money's worth. I took it home, wrapped it back up, and put it under the tree. The girls did not have a clue. Take that price adjustment Grinches.

I have seen so many ridiculous sales this season that I am glad Wes and I waited until this last week to do each other's Christmas shopping. I am keeping my eyes open for any other sales items we have previously purchased. Happy shopping:)

Twitterpation

2008-12-22T05:57:00.000-08:00

We watched the first Mummy movie (Sunday afternoon). It got to the part where Rick and Evie start to fall in love. I asked Hannah if they were Twitterpated yet.

Hannah - "What is Twitterpated?"
Me - "Fall in love."
Hannah - "Yep, they are definitely Twitterpated."

Just doing my part to keep Bambi alive!!!

My Beautiful Girl

2008-12-02T09:23:00.000-08:00

Beautiful on the inside and out!!!

Audrey

2008-12-02T09:17:00.000-08:00

Audrey donated a foot of her hair to Locks of Love two weeks ago. She did an awesome job. Getting her hair cut did not phase her one bit. Her hair now comes right below her shoulders and it looks GREAT!!! We decided to cut her hair so that she could learn how to take care of it and wash it on her own. It was impossible for her to take care of her own hair when it was to her butt. It has been so nice not having to brush out endless knots.

A Public Service Announcement for those who cut hair for a living (not talking to you Megan) - When a 8yr old girl comes and sits in your chair and asks you to cut off a foot of her hair...DO NOT turn to her and ask her is she is scared and can't believe that she is going to cut off all her beautiful long hair. This is counter-productive and also really ticks off the Mother who is standing there trying to put on a brave show for the 8 yr old girl. Instead, use some common sense and filter what comes out of your mouth so the Mother does not have to give you a dirty look and SHHH you.

We went to a restaurant called Moes (Mexican) after Audrey got her hair cut and the poor little thing ended up getting food poisioning from the Salsa Bar. I felt so bad. She gets her hair chopped off and then spends all night throwing up...on the upside we did not have to worry about her hair getting in the toilet.

On a serious note, I want Audrey to know how much it meant to me that she donated her hair. She did not put up any fuss and did it with a smile on her face. this shows me what a caring and thoughful daughter we have. Audrey's hair is her signature...that is the first thing everyone says about Audrey and she was able to look beyond her physical appearance and give willingly. Your Mommy is so proud of you.

A Minnie & Mickey Christmas

2008-12-02T08:59:00.000-08:00

My Tree Skirt

Matching Tree Topper

Matching Stocking

A Little Thanksgiving

2008-12-02T08:45:00.000-08:00

Wes and I were able to go volunteer in Hannah's class last week. They were having a Little Thanksgiving. It was very cute. Each child made their own Indian hat (boys)/Pilgrim hat (girls), place mat and teepee center piece.

We served them some tradional Thanksgiving foods;)

My little Indian

When we were leaving I looked down the hall, I swore I saw Audrey reading. Guess what... she was:)

Snow Bunnies

2008-12-02T08:41:00.000-08:00

Twilight

2008-12-01T10:23:00.000-08:00

Wes and I went and saw Twilight on Saturday. I went into the movie with very low expectations and was pleasantly surprised. I thought that the movie followed the book well and had a good representation of the characters. Of course it was not as good as the book but I found that once it was over the movie started to grow on me. Wes really liked the movie and was surprised at how well Stephanie Meyer re-representated the Vampire mythos.
I really liked Edward!!! The actor was hot and I am not ashamed to say so because if he hadn't have been the movie would have been a flop. I thought Edward and Bella had great chemistry.

My First Black Friday:P

2008-12-01T09:49:00.000-08:00

Hard to believe that I have never participated in Black Friday seeing that Shyrl is my Mother, but it is true. I am used to Boxing Day but that does not even come close to the the horror/crazy stories of Black Friday I have heard over the years. This year I knew the sales were going to be well worth the effort, and the loss of sleep, so I ventured out into the darkness hoping to find some light and keep some cash in my pocket.

We left Paul's and Janis's house around 11:00 p.m. and headed over to the mall ... The Disney Store was having an amazing sale at Midnight and I was dead set on getting the matching Tree Skirt (they only had 3 left in stock) to match our Minnie & Mickey Tree Topper. The girls thought it was quite exciting that they got to go to the store so late and we were the first ones there...that did not last for long, a crowd started gathering but I must say Disney Folk are very polite and did not try to butt in line. I am happy to report that at the stroke of 12 I was able to get my Tree Skirt at 60% off and the girls their Christmas Jammies also at 60% off. I saved so much money I was able to get myself the matching stocking. I saved $65. I was soooooooo happy:)

I took Wes and the girls home and waited till 3:00 a.m. to head over to our Super Walmart. Now remember this my first experience with this CRAZINESS so I had no idea what to expect. I got there and about 450 people were lined up inside in the front of the store. A Manager was on the P.A. telling all the customers that they were not allowed to have anything in their carts or be by the merchandise until 5:00 a.m. I started questioning my sanity. I knew I was going to save a good amount of money but was waiting in line for two hours with a bunch of WII hungry lunatics ... worth my safety? I guess so because I stayed. The woman behind me was there to get one of the 40 WII bundles they had on sale and she was telling her daughters to do "what ever it takes" to get back to that section. Knock people over, hit them, pretty much anything. She meant it too. All I could think was "Wow" ... I was appalled. The store started to get so crowded that there was no longer a line. At about 4:30 the Manager got on the P.A. and told us we could all go and stand in front of the sale items we wanted. There were well over 1200 people in the store. I have never seen so many people scatter so quickly. I walked back to the DVDs, it was nice to take a stroll with no one around.

Now whoever set up the sale items clearly was not thinking straight. The DVDs were smack dab in between the 52 inch HD televisions and the 32 inch TVs...those people were out for blood, there were only a certain amount and they made it a point to let everyone around them know that they were not leaving without that precious item. It was scary. So I am thinking I am going to get trampled to death just so I can get a few copies of Kung Fu Panda and some Pet Shop Toys. The other people waiting with me to get the DVD's were very kind and we all came up with a plan so we could all get what we wanted. It was refreshing to know that in the midst of all the madness there were still some friendly and kind people not willing to bludgeon you with their cart.

5:00 a.m. hit, and it is still all a blur. I can't even explain the things that I saw or what people were shouting at other people. All I know is that I got my movies and now had to make my way to the other side of the Super Walmart so could get the Pet Shop Toys. I am very lucky I am so small and persistent ... I got crushed in between two carts and trapped in the Video game section (that is where all the maniacs were) but I was able to push my way through and get my Pet Shop Toys. I was full of adrenaline. It was a high I have never felt...the people in the toy section were like hungry hyenas on speed...it was insane.
I started mapping the best way to get to the front of the store and figured that getting to the paint isle would be the safest exit...who is buying paint on Black Friday? It took me about 4 minutes to squish my way threw the crowd and I only had to go a couple of feet. I have never been so relieved to see a can of paint. I finally felt safe, it was a wasteland. I saved about $40. Next year if I decide to brave Black Friday I will definitely go for a bigger item.
I then headed over the the Bonton and got a few games for 50% off. It was not crowded and everyone was pleasant.

I guess I was still really pumped up when I got home because Wes thought he was going to have slap me of sedate me to get me to calm down from the adrenaline. I guess I could not stop telling him about everything that I saw and repeated the story a few times (this is all kind of fuzzy) with more enthusiasm each telling. I ended up getting a few hours of sleep.

Did you know that we had people in our family in all time zones at Walmart for the early morning sale. Andy was Pacific, Mom, Aunt Robyn and Danielle were Mountain, Marcie was Central and I was Eastern Standard Time. Look, we all did something as a family:P

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-12-01T09:43:00.000-08:00

I had my most relaxing Thanksgiving ever...I did not cook. I only had to make 3 things (candied yams, a pumpkin cheesecake pie and vegetables...I can do these things in my sleep) and then we went over to our friends' (Paul & Janis) house for Thanksgiving. It was really weird at first. I am so used to doing the whole production and always being so busy that just being able to relax was a little bit of a shock at first. Don't worry, I acclimated. Paul went to culinary school...I think he is our only friend who is not intimated to cook for me. Dinner was lovely, very stress free. What was even better was Wes and Paul doing the Thanksgiving dishes!!! I got to play with their 6 mo old baby boy and plan my attack for shopping on "Black Friday." Wes went out of his way to make sure that I had a peaceful Thanksgiving...I am Thankful for him and his thoughtfulness.

Catching Up

2008-12-01T09:34:00.000-08:00

Nut update - I can eat Pistachios...I am not sure quite yet what I think about them. We were at the mall the other day and I finally got fulfill something I have always wanted to do. I got to eat warm Candy Roasted Cashews. They were AMAZING!!! I have so missed out.

It has been snowing like crazy here. We have a ton of snow and it is supposed to snow all week. We put the Christmas tree up and the decorations and that seemed to help with my "snow depression." All of a sudden it seems alright to have snow...just for the sake of Christmas.

I had a Pampered Chef Party two weeks ago. It was snowing really heavy so I had a lot of people cancel but I still had a pretty good turn out. I went to my first Pampered Chef party in October...now only if Williams and Sonoma would start doing parties. Anywho...I thought some of their products were quite good (and some I would not touch with a ten foot pole) and decided to have my own. I made the food and the consultant (who is a friend) demonstrated it. We had Cranberry Fizz Punch, a Dark Forest Trifle and a Mediterranean Cheese Dip. The Cheese Dip was outstanding.

I'll Take Gerbil For 1000 Alex...

2008-11-20T11:52:00.000-08:00

I got a phone call from Hannah's teacher this evening. She asked me if I could send in our bag of Gerbil food so she could take it to the School District. She needs to prove that there is indeed a Gerbil food without nuts, so that Hannah's class can procure the classroom Gerbil. I really hope that they're getting a Gerbil that can juggle or swallow swords...what a hassle. On the same "Gerbil" note; Ms. Buso (Hannah's teacher) asked me if our Gerbil died today and that she was sorry. I told her that Indiana Jones died about 2.5 months ago. I guess Hannah finally felt comfortable talking about it in class, just not the specifics. That is Hannah for you, Hannah Standard Time. Ms. Buso felt really bad...I told her not to worry, that we had another Gerbil, Mocha Joe, and she was still alive and kicking. Though...two nights ago when I was putting the girls to bed we passed by her cage and she way laying in her cage and looked like she was dead...we shook the cage (I know, Shaken Gerbil Syndrome) and she did not move. I thought for sure she had died but when I started to really give up hope. Mocha got up, looked at us and went into her little house. She is always taunting me!!! She was probably thinking I would open the door to check on her and she would make a run for it...ha, ha...I am on to her evil plan.

In other news we took the car into shop before it could ask for it's Christmas Present. I am really hoping that the car will take note of the effort and leave our Christmas bonus alone. We ended up having to have some extensive work on the front end (tie rods, bushings etc...) and had to get 4 new tires. I told the shop that I only had a $1000 to spend. I smiled pretty and they gave us two 20% off discounts, 10% for AAA, and a $50 rebate on the tires. The total came to $999.71. Good Stuff:)
Whenever I have to put that much money down to fix the car or something in the house I always think of how many clothes or Little Pet Shop toys I could buy with a thousand dollars. The car is driving like a dream, so I guess I can cope:P

Twilight Quiz

2008-11-13T09:24:00.001-08:00

Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

Over Exposed

2008-11-12T09:42:00.000-08:00

We went to JC Penny's to get our Christmas picture taken. Frankly, I should have gotten the school nurse to take the pics...that is how bad the experience was

I should have know that these pictures were destined to be a failure. I had to go to 5 different stores just looking for a pair of white dress shoes for Audrey and could not find any, so ended up with silver. The dress that we had bought for Audrey, the only one that fit her, had a smudge on the front (we got a good discount for it) and it did not match anyone else's clothes. Saturday morn, I took the girls to get their hair done...that was a lot of fun, but the girl had quoted me $10 for each of their updos (even after she had seen Audrey's hair and told me it would be fine) but after it was all said an done she charged me $20 for Audge's hair.

The girl who took the pics clearly wanted to be somewhere else. She asked me what the pictures were for and I said that we were here for the family Christmas-pic...pretty straight forward. I guess I should have drawn a little diagram with stick figures so that she could understand better. She called the girls "you" and not once did she try to get them to smile, to pose them (I posed them) or give a flying whoot that we were even there. The only pic that turned out decent was lucky. She blamed Wes being so tall for her equipment not working (when she clearly had no idea what she was doing) she hit me on the head with one of the lamps and did not even say sorry. AHHHH!!! So we get done and are told to wait 15 minutes to see the pictures. 15 minutes pass...then 30 and then 40 and by this time I am seething. I go and ask when we can see our pics and am told that they are short staffed and that we are going to have to wait another 40 minutes to an hour. My voice started going up exponentially and that is when the manager screamed out that they would give us two free sheets. I thought, ok, I have a coupon for no sitting fee (because hell would of frozen over before I paid $40 for that photo session) and a free 8x10...that is 3 free sheets. Alright, we will walk down to the bookstore and wait.

We get back and the same girl (I will not call her a photographer because she isn't) shows us the pics on the computer. She took 25 shots and they had made a few of them into those special fancy sheets that cost more money and those were the only ones she showed me...I asked where the originals were. She pulled up the pics and only ONE of the family pictures were even on the screen. Her Manager had gotten rid of the rest because they were so lousy. I had steam coming out of my ears. I kept telling her "I need a minute, I need to talk to my husband" and she just stood there like I was speaking Russian. So I grudgingly decided on a couple of pics for my free sheets, and was told I could not have them because they were special sheets and were excluded. I wanted to just walk out but we had spent so much money just getting everything for the pictures that I was not going to walk out empty handed. Then low and behold the girl's cell phone goes off...I am in the middle of asking her a question and she tells me to be quiet and tells the other person that she is supposed to be off and she is trying to get out of there. I looked at her and told her to go and get her Manager and leave. Good Riddance!!! That was probably the highlight of the whole experience.

(I did call and complain to JC Pennys customer service. They are sending me a coupon for two free sheets and a free photo session. Yippee:P)

So we had a major dilemna: we still needed Christmas pics and didn't want to pay anyone to do them. We didn't want to drive two hours to the good photographer, so if you want something done right, do it yourself. We got home and took pics of the girls and then our neighbor came over and took our family pic which turned out FABULOUS!!! I can not post any on this blog because that will ruin the Christmas card but here is a good pic of me.

The Land of Cashews and Almonds

2008-11-12T09:27:00.000-08:00

I finally got up enough courage to try an Almond again. I have been craving them so badly that I have been replacing the taste of Almonds with the "Almond scent." I have been smelling cleaning supplies, fabric softeners, hand creams and candles...just to quench my new-found passion. I broke down Friday night while Wes was home, and ate an Almond Joy. I slowly ate the chocolate bar and nothing happened so I ate the other one. AMAZING!!! Wes was worried the whole time but was so relieved that the past Almond experience was not just some weird fluke and was actually a revelation. He got so excited and started pondering what nut I could try next. We settled on Cashews because those are his favorite.

We went to the store the next day and were in the nut isle...it felt so weird, so foreign and strange. I felt like death could get me at any minute but I had to explore a new found journey...of nuts. (I know I sound so dramatic)

We started looking at roasted Cashews and, low and behold, the Cashews are roasted in PEANUT OIL. Who was the genius that thought this was a good idea? So, we looked at another brand and, the same thing. So all these years (I am almost 32) I thought I was allergic to tree nuts but come to find out I was allergic to the oil that some idiot was roasting the tree nut in. We went to the nut bins to see if they had any organic Cashews and they did; safe, as far as peanut exposure.

That night I took the little Cashew out of the plastic bag and smelled it ...no reaction. I then stared at it a little while. I had never even felt a Cashew, so that was a little strange. Then I took a bite... HEAVEN...forget the Almond. I mean, my life has been meaningless without the Cashew. Everything was perfect, no swelling or itchiness. I ate another one and then my mean husband took the bag away from me and told me I had to wait until the next day to try another so we could see if there was going to be an allergic reaction of any sort. I woke up the next morning and everything was right as rain. Thank goodness I made that mistake a couple of months ago or we would never have had this epiphany. To think I don't have to be scared of these two nuts just as long as they are natural and not roasted is a big load off my shoulders. The next nuts I am going to try are Macadamia Nuts and Pistachios.

A Non-Violent Revolution

2008-11-12T09:19:00.000-08:00

No matter what your political views I am so happy to have witnessed with my own eyes the wonder of the United States' democracy in action. It was marvelous. We had a Non-Violent Revolution. People are dying by the hundreds-of-thousands (Congo) or have fought wars for years on end and still were not able to accomplish the same thing that happened peacefully on Nov 4th. That is the true Majesty of this country. I was very proud to be an American, very happy to be a Veteran, very happy just to be a part of history. Honestly there have been many times this election year that I was happier to be a Canadian. I am lucky and blessed to have two countries to call my own.
I have waited a few days to write this blog because I know that Wes' and my political views are the minority in the family. I am just so happy that in my lifetime, I was able to witness a black man elevated to the highest office in the land and to have heard his acceptance speach. People will talk about that night for generations.

Dollhouse Update

2008-11-03T09:49:00.000-08:00

The dollhouse is coming along quite nicely. Wes has the structure done and is now working on the facade. He is making trim for the windows, shutters and a doorway. I will soon be painting it and we will be putting the siding on. I can't wait. Then we will start decorating the inside.

The house is just a bit smaller then Hannah

The kitchen and dining room will have hardwood floors, the bathroom tile and the bedrooms will have carpet.

We really have to get a move on things...Christmas is right around the corner. We are so excited to give this to the girls. I have already gotten to play with little pet shop toys in it (though, it is made to fit a barbie perfectly) it was so awesome!!

Halloween Parade

2008-11-03T09:33:00.000-08:00

We had beautiful weather on Friday. It felt like a summer day. The evening was even warmer. This is the second year in a row that we have had great weather on Halloween.

The girls had their school parade. Hannah got to march with all the other grades this year, that made her happy. They are both looking so old.

My Cheerleader

Peter Pan with Tink

Wes took the day off so that he could go trick-or -treating with us. We went down to the village (the houses in the village get about 1000 kids) it was so cool and we felt really safe. There was a strong police presence and the streets were blocked off from cars. We were out for about an hour and half (we got a lot of candy). We then went to Wes's work and his coworkers gave out more candy and had small party. Everyone ooggled over the girls. It was a very good Halloween.

Halloween 2008 II

2008-11-03T09:29:00.000-08:00

Here is a pic of my hair...for all of you who are curious. It has gotten very long.

Halloween 2008

2008-11-03T09:19:00.000-08:00

Hannah is a Cheerleader from High School Musical

Peter Pan

Does Wes look scary?

Wes's Pumpkin Creations

2008-11-03T09:01:00.000-08:00

Wesley outdid himself this Halloween. We are so lucky...the girls and I told him what we wanted, and he made them:)

The Witch from Bugs Bunny (Hannah's Pumpkin)

Woodstock (Audrey's Pumpkin)

Snoopy "World War I Flying Ace" (Wes's Pumpkin)

Owl ( Mine...Because I love Owls)

Clowning Around!!

2008-11-03T08:53:00.000-08:00

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Squares

2008-10-31T07:58:00.000-07:00

It snowed today and was bitterly cold...I am huddled up in my warm cozy home pretending that I am on the beach in Hawaii. I am not ready for the snow. (Happy to report that I woke up this morning and all the snow is gone). They say we should be in the high 50's for Halloween.

Thank you to everyone who has sent postcards to Audrey. She has 9 so far. There is still lots of time to send one if you haven't already. Wes and I had Parent Teacher Conference with Audrey's teacher today. I am so proud of my little one (I know she is 8) the teacher had nothing but wonderful things to say about Audrey.

Mrs. Kringer summed it up -

"What a sweetheart! Audrey is an outstanding student and an absolute joy to each."

I am also happy to report that we had a "normal" school experience, we did not have any run-ins with the "crazy nurse."

I took Audrey to see High School Musical 3 ... it was good. The new Tinkerbell movie is also excellent. For those of you looking for a good movie to rent, the Hulk is really good and I am looking forward to Get Smart on the 4th. I finally finished Alias. I took a break and watched the second season of Ugly Betty (that is a great show!!). I am going to watch LOST (also by JJ Abrams) now. I have watched all the seasons but that is definitely a show you can watch over again just like Alias.

One of my favorite things to make this time of year is my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Squares. Try this recipe, you will really enjoy them.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Squares

Makes 24 *Prep Time: 30 * Total Time: 2.5 hrs

If you can't find pumpkin-pie spice, substitute 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 3/4 tsp ginger, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, and 1/8 tsp each allspice and cloves (all ground).

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbs pumpkin-pie spice
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 large egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 package (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips

1 - Preheat oven to 350. Grease 9x13 baking pan. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, pie spice, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

2 - With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed until smooth; beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in pumpkin puree (mixture may appear curdled). Reduce speed to low, and mix in dry ingredients until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.

3 - Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake until edges begin to pull away from sides of pan and a tooth-pick inserted in center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely in pan.

Fireworks For Two

2008-10-27T10:03:00.000-07:00

Wes and I finally celebrated our 8th Wedding Anniversary last weekend. (This weekend we celebrated our meeting 9yrs. ago). We had dinner at a beautiful restaurant on the bank of Skaneateles (pronounced skin -e-atlas) Lake. Wesley had the Rack of Lamb and I had Gnocchi (potato pasta)...the dinner was good but the view was better.

After dinner we went to the cutest bookstore/cafe. On the way home to get changed into casual clothes to go to the movies, we saw fireworks coming from the direction of Wes's work. Talk about random. We drove coming from the direction of Welch Allyn and, low and behold, someone very rich was having the 4th of July Spectacular for their wedding at the Lodge (Wes's work has all their company parties there and rents it out for special events). It was so romantic. I turned to Wes and told him he shouldn't have, fireworks were too extravagant.

Wes and I have come up with an excellent idea for the girls Wedding funds. We are going to tell the girls for every $1 they put into their wedding fund we will match it. I think this is a great idea. Just think, if they save enough money they too can have fireworks....NOT!!!!

Hubby Tag

2008-10-27T09:45:00.000-07:00

I have already done this tag but I thought I would do it again for Emily and try to give some different answers.

1 - Where did you meet? - In the barracks at Ft. Polk Louisiana.

2 - How long did you date before you got married? - 11 months

3 - How long have you been married? - 8yrs

4 - What is your favorite feature - His shoulders

5 - What is your favorite quality - His quick wit and intelligence

6 - Does he have a nickname for you - Bunny

7 - What is his favorite food? - He has several, pretty much anything I cook for him.

8 - What is his favorite sport? - Competitive Trampoline

9 - When and where did you first kiss? - The Kings Court (soldiers hang out) on a Wednesday.

10 - What is your favorite thing to do as a couple? - Argue politics and world economics....I am not kidding.

11 - Do you have any children? - Do Audrey and Hannah count?

12 - Does he have a hidden talent? - Why, yes he does...I just found out that he can snap bottle caps from behind his head and hit targets. I guess back in his college days he was really, really good at it.

13 - How old is he? - He is 35 for just a couple more months.

14 - Who said "I Love You" first? - We said it together.

15 - What is his favorite type of music? - Hard/Classic Rock

16 - What do you admire the most about him? - He is a wonderful father and husband. He strives everday to provide and take care of us. I love that my husband is always trying to learn something new.

17 - Do you think he will read this? Yes...I know he will because when he gets home I am going to say "read this".

I tag - Cristine, Mom, Aunt Robyn an anyone else who has not already been tagged.

Trip to D.C.

2008-10-16T12:37:00.000-07:00

The White House

The 4th of July Parade

National Monument

Apple Orchard

2008-10-16T10:40:00.000-07:00

At the Apple Orchard a couple of weeks ago. Notice Audrey is wearing glasses:)

Hannah's B-day Party

2008-10-16T10:31:00.000-07:00

See Cris the perfect bow!!!

Yummy

2008-10-16T10:21:00.000-07:00

Look Mom, this rice krispy square is bigger than me!!!

Audrey's B-day Party

2008-10-16T10:10:00.000-07:00

See BYU

Wes drew this Pet Shop Dog for "Pin the Bow on the Puppy"

Audrey's chocolate cake

First Day Of School

2008-10-16T09:57:00.000-07:00

First day of school

Tomatoes

2008-10-16T09:37:00.000-07:00

The Garden

Green Tomatoes Everywhere

I kept the tomatoes in my window sills until I was ready to use them

Yay...they are starting to change color:)

Have you ever seen?

2008-10-16T09:00:00.000-07:00

During the summer we went to a State park. Wes and I noticed this sign -

Ponder with me people?

Faux Pas

2008-10-15T10:54:00.000-07:00

We had some of our friends over on Saturday for dinner. After dinner we played the game Apples to Apples (see Cris, I do listen to you, I went and bought the game). For any of you who have not played Apples to Apples the object of the game is to match up red apple cards (these are random cards with names of people, places or things) with a green apple card (these are description cards with words like...loveable, miserable, majestic) the judge picks the red apple card that matches best with the green apple card. The judge changes every hand...you need 8 green apple cards to win.

I was the judge for the following round and the green apple card for the round was LUCKY (so the card that best describes the word lucky) everyone had given me their red apple cards and the first card I flipped over said ANNE FRANK. Oh my gosh, I thought I was going to pee my pants, I was laughing so hard. I had tears running down my face. Our neighbor did not know who Anne Frank was and was just trying to get rid of that card...she felt so bad when we explained that Anne and her whole family were murdered in a Concentration camp by the Nazis. Not exactly lucky:P

Simply Dangerous

2008-10-15T10:52:00.000-07:00

Hannah went to a birthday party over the weekend. When we came to pick her up the first thing she told us about was the cat that was imprisioned upstairs.
"Do you want to know why that cat is Simply Dangerous? He bites, scratches and STARES at you!!!!"

Sounds dangerous to me.

Pictures

2008-10-14T12:25:00.000-07:00

Pictures...Yay!!!! I have 476 pics to choose from, it is going to take me weeks to get the ones I want posted:)

I love this pic of Audrey and Hannah. They are waiting for Hannah's friends to arrive at her birthday party.

Weekend Update

2008-10-06T09:08:00.000-07:00

Audrey received her first postcard at school from Grandma (Great-Grandma). Audrey was so thrilled and excited. Thank you Grandma!!! Audrey also got a 94% on her end of unit math test (it was 4 pages). This a great big Yippee...thank goodness she is starting to take after her Dad when it comes to arithmetic.

I found the girls Halloween costumes at the Disney Store. Hannah is going to be a Cheerleader from High School Musical; it was 25% off (cheaper than buying the Cheerleader outfit at Target). When we walked into the Disney Store I saw the Peter Pan costume at 40% off and jokingly asked Audge if she wanted to be Peter Pan. She turned to me and said yes and got all excited. The girls have watched a lot of the Broadway productions of Peter Pan and Peter is always played by a woman so Audrey thought this was a great idea. I tried to convince Hannah to be Tinkerbell but she would not budge. I am going to be Snow White and Wes is going to be a Skeleton. Halloween should be a lot of fun this year. Wes took the day off and the girls only have a 1/2 day of school.

I got the new Giada De Laurentis cookbook. It is a great Italian cookbook. I highly recommend it. It has a lot of simple and eloquent recipes.

We went and saw Beverly Hills Chihuahua (try typing tht 10 times fast). Please save your money, do not be lured in by the cute and singing and dance number in the commercial, it is not even in the movie. A great movie to watch is Leatherheads with George Clooney and Renee Zelwigger, or Iron Man with Robert Downey Jr. Do not waste what small amount of sanity you have left watching a movie about rich spoiled Mexican dogs.

We went to the Apple Orchard and Pumpkin Patch. It was awesome. They must have had at least 1000 apple trees, and they had many varieties. We took a wagon ride out to the orchard and ate so many apples (you got to eat all the apples you wanted while picking). We got 14lbs of apples for $6. We also got 3 beautiful pumpkins for $5. The orchard is about 15 minutes from the house and we will definitley be going back before the end of the season.

Have You Callled Jenny?

2008-10-06T09:06:00.000-07:00

The girls and I were watching T.V. the other night. A Jenny Craig commercial came on. Hannah was not really paying attention until she heard "Have you called Jenny? Jenny's food is great!!!" Hannah looked at me and said, "They love your food, too!! Wow, Mom you are so famous." That is the only time tht I have not been annoyed by Jenny Craig.

Does Your Gerbil Food...!!!! Have Nuts?

2008-10-01T07:24:00.001-07:00

Monday morning I got a phone calle from the school nurse. This is how she started off the converstation, "Hannah's class is not going to be able to get Gerbils because the Gerbil food has nuts." The face I made was priceless. I took a breath and asked her to repeat herself. I then informed her that we have had Gerbils for two years and not once has Hannah eaten their food or had an allergic reaction to it. Furthermore, putting that responsibility on my daughter's shoulders was asinine. So for 30 minutes the nurse and I went a couple of rounds on the phone about nut allergies and the people who have them. Wes and I were so disgusted by the converstation that we went over to the school to talk to the Principle. We brought our Gerbil food which just happens to be NUT FREE. I know...contain your amazement. The Principle was at a meeting but we got to talk to the VP who informed me that earlier that morning...before the nurse had called me....they found NUT FREE Gerbil food and would be able to proceed with the "Great Gerbil Experiment". I told her I would have appreciated more of an open dialogue between them, the nurse and Hannah's teacher, and asked that Hannah's teacher call us, not the nurse. I felt better. The VP was great and I should have walked out the door then and gone home, but the nurse wanted me to pick up a form for our Doctor to fill out. I should have listened to my good shoulder angel and left the building. Wes and I told the nurse what we had just been told about the Gerbil food and she did not believe us. I had to go and get the VP to tell her what was going on. Daft...or what? Then we got on the topic of her wanting Hannah to eat by herself again. That was a battle she was going to lose and frankly I don't think she understands who she is trying to tangle with. All she could get out was that the school was going to be held liable for anything that happened to Hannah and that they had to cover their butts. I kept asking for a form to fill out stating that they would not be held responsible. If she had her way all the children will allergies would eat outside in a plastic tent with armed guards, not because she wanted what was best for the kids but because she doesn't want to be held liable. Of course, I mentioned Canada and that Audrey went to a Nut Free School...and all she could stammer out was that this was not Canada and obviously there was something wrong with how Canadians do things. This made me laugh...absurd.

The only really good thing that came of the visit was that we got to see Hannah eat lunch. There were only two children in her class eating peanuts and they were not by her. We got to see Audrey going to Art class. Wes and I talked to Hannah's teacher and gave her the name of the Gerbil food that we buy at Petsmart...not the moon.

A closing note - Mocha Joe endorses food without nuts, she says her coat is extra shiny and she does not have that salty smell.

Update

2008-10-01T07:07:00.000-07:00

I am allergic to Lentils...I learned something new about myself. They are in the legume family, same as the peanut (peanuts are a legume not a nut, but I still consider peanuts nuts just out of sheer stubbornness). We went over to a friends house for dinner on Saturday and had this delicious lentil soup (by the way I have had lentils before) and the next morning my face was swollen and my eyes were all puffy. Very sad because I enjoy lentils. Lets just all be grateful it was not a jelly donut.

(Note - The rest of this blog is political, read at own risk)

We have technology back in the house and just in time to watch Wall Street have one of the biggest financial fiascos in history. Yay us. I got to see the first Presidential Debate. I was completely unmoved and disappointed. I didn't see any real change...the only thing I have going for me is that I like one guy a little more than the other, Yippee. I am happy to watch Heroes, Dancing with the Stars and the Amazing Race, but am saddened to see that during our break from technology, world crisis escalated and politics only got worse.

New York State is going to take hardest hit from the resolution not being passed by the government. 28% of New York State's revenue comes from Wall Street. 80% of our education budget comes from the State Budget and they say that the education budget will be the first thing that will be slashed and it is already $9 million in the red. Hold the phone....we can build a new state of the art stadium for the Yankees when the "old" stadium is a historical landmark (Babe Ruth, played there people) and still can be used (in a few months it will be turned into a parking lot) maybe that money should be used to got to the schools. Hmmm...I just do not understand.

This does not mean that I am in favor of this bail-out actually I think that our credit and loan system should get a complete over-haul and maybe this is the rude awakening the dishonest and greedy money lenders need. People have lived on credit and borrowing money for so long that they have forgotten how to survive within their means. I am quite sure that our Congressman and Senators are going to lose quite a bit of money that has been lining their pockets over the last decade or so, from these corporations. Maybe we should heed the advice the Romans gave us and remember - Rome did not fall in a day....maybe we should fix the real problems and learn from the mistakes of our predecessors.

Audrey's B-day Party

2008-10-01T06:51:00.000-07:00

I am so happy that birthday season is over for now!!!

Audrey wanted everything decorated in blue and white, so the house looked like a BYU Pep Rally...this was not good, I am a UTES fan all the way. So I bought silver and purple chocolates, purple and white flowers and scattered Little Pet Shop toys all around the house. That really added to the birthday ambience.

Audrey had 10 kids come to her party, I also had 5 adults to help me, that was nice. I found out that a bunch of 8-9 year olds are a bigger handful than 5-6 year olds...weird, huh, even with adult help. When the kids first got to the party they made nametags for their stuffed animals and then everyone went around the room and introduced their animals. Then they made foam elephants, gorillas and lions on popsicle sticks for their animal to play with. This was a fun craft but I am very happy that Wes and I made some the day before because it was not as self-explanatory as I would have liked.
We ate baked ziti, salad and bread. We played a couple of games. Wes drew the cutest picture of a Little Pet Shop toy dog and they played pin-the-bow-on-the-dog. Audrey then opened her gifts. She got a lot of books, a gift cert to the book store and some money to go and buy books. She was in heaven. She also got some clothes, 2 webkins and the movie Annie. Wes and I gave Audrey her American Girl Doll Felicity...it was love at first-sight. All the other kids were so envious and I was happy that for once Wes and I were able to give Audrey something she really wanted. We paid sooooo much money (a note for grandma; about $130, it is a doll from her favorite series of books, very good quality) for that doll, but it was worth every penny. Hannah can't wait until she is 8 so she can get hers. We told the girls if they wanted any others that they would have to save up their allowance and by the dolls themselves.

We then had my French Chocolate cake decked out in a Little Pet Shop motif and I bought candles that the flames were different colors when they were lit. Very cool. The only thing that would have made her happier is if she would have had family and close friends to celebrate with. Audrey had mentioned several times in the last few weeks how much she misses everyone.

All in all, I think Audrey had a very good birthday:)

Are Your Kids Friends With Bullies?

2008-10-01T06:39:00.000-07:00

Wes and I learned something very important at Audrey's birthday party. Audrey invited 10 of her friends and she only had one friend that we disapproved of, so she is doing a pretty good job picking healthy friends. This girl was so obnoxious, rude, and unbearably bossy to the other children. She was even bossy to her Mom when she came to pick her up and that was o.k. with the Mother. She was bossy to the other parents and I even had to reprimand her at the party for saying something mean to one of the other children. Then to put the cherry on the sundae this girl had to be the center of attention when Audrey was opening up her American Girl Doll and started shouting out what Doll it was when she saw the name on the bottom of the box, the opposite end of where Audrey was opening it up. I was livid!!!!

After Audrey's party we explained the different types of bullies to Audrey and what qualities make a good friend and what qualities do not. We told her that she is not allowed to play with this girl anymore. Wes and I were bullied a lot in school and this is something my daughters will not have to tolerate. Once a year is not often enough to meet their friends so I think every 3 months I am going to have a gathering of all their friends so I can get to know them and see how they interact with one another in a group. I want to make sure that no one is taking advantage of Audrey's sweet, naive nature and that she has good friends and in return is being a good friend.

Hannah is still having a hard time making a lot of friends. Hopefully this is something that will change as the year progresses.
Last year a little girl was bullying Hannah and she did not want to return to school. I sent a note to Hannah's Kindergarten teacher and that day I got a phone call and the bullying stopped. Hannah already knows how people should treat her. It is amazing but at the same time I think she already has trust issues. I would be embarrassed and even ashamed if I knew my girls were being mean to other people. I frankly do not understand. That's the real crisis facing this world: people not being taught to be kind and considerate to others.

Aunt Robyn...I Found The Answer!!

2008-10-01T06:31:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago I was talking on the phone with Aunt Robyn about our tomatoes and how they were still green. We were brainstorming on how to get them to turn red (all the worry was for nothing because ALL 80 dozen - o.k. that is an exaggeration - turned red).

Here is what you do if you are on a time table and you need your tomatoes to turn red;

Put your tomatoes in a brown bag with a couple of bananas and the ethylene from the bananas will turn your tomatoes nice and red. You can also put a couple of bananas next to your tomatoes where ever you are storing them (NOT IN THE FRIDGE) and they will turn..just not as quickly.

This helpful little tidbit of knowledge came from my favorite chef Jamie Oliver...LOVE HIM!!!! Thank you Jamie. So the next time you are bored, let a tomato and a banana hang out and see what happens:)

(We got a little over 18 dozen tomatoes this crop)

Dear Audrey

2008-09-19T06:22:00.000-07:00

Dear Audrey,

Today is your 8th birthday. I want you to know how proud we are of you and what a beautiful person you have grown into. As I promised, the following is the story of your birth. Your story is a little sadder at times but the day of your birth is a day I will always hold dear in my heart.

Some interesting facts -

I craved lobster, crab and any kind of fish...you culd not get enough. (This is probably why you are so smart.)

I could not eat pizza, even looking at pizza on T.V. made me sick.

I wore Army BDU maternity clothes for the majority of your pregnancy. You looked very cute in camouflage.

I ended up losing 16 lbs (all muscle) when I became pregnant with you. I went on the baby weight loss program.

Daddy read several books to you when you were in my womb; Lord Of The Rings, the Nania series and a few others.

Mommy loved drinking root beer for a couple of months, until I learned that the root beer in Louisiana had caffeine in it. That explained why I couldn't get enough of it. Mommy went cold turkey after that.

After you were born, we were moved to another room, Mommy was watching the television. On the news they were doing a story about local singers trying-out for a Jazz basketball event, when I spotted that one of the hopefuls was my best friend, Tricia (Cunningham) Erickson! Mommy hadn't seen Tricia in about three years. Hi!!! Tricia:)

The following is your story -

Mommy and Daddy were stationed at Fort Polk, Louisiana and we found out that you were coming to join our family. We were ecstatic. Mommy had not been that happy in a very long time. A few weeks went by and we went for our first ultrasound and found out that we were having twins...I will not lie to you, Mommy and Daddy felt overwhelmed but so happy.
Mommy started to get nice and fat, and we were getting ready for you both to come into our family. Daddy loved watching me waddle like a penguin to the Rigger Shed (that is where he packed parachutes).

Six months into the pregnancy, Mommy got really sick. I got to take a helicopter ride to a city called Shreveport, Louisiana (it is not a place you need to visit) and the doctors told us that you were both in trouble...you are turning 8 so I will be honest with you...the Army hospital did not do everything that they could to help you and your brother. Instead of putting me on bed rest they sent me back to Active Duty and sometime between that hospital stay and a few weeks later you brother passed away. I know that this makes you sad, it also makes Mommy and Daddy very sad but I want you to know. You were so strong and brave and you fought really hard to come into this world. That is when Mommy and Daddy did everything in our power to protect you and Mommy got out of the Army. We moved to Salt Lake and lived with Grandma and Grandpa Breakfast. For the last few months of the pregnancy you could find Mommy wherever she was because I was always eating ice chips and crunching really loud. That is all you wanted. We couldn't keep enough ice in the house.
Mommy was still really sick and at 7 months my pelvis fractured (I believe it was a break). This was very painful and Mommy was miserable...but I kept taking really good care of myself and you got stronger. Even with the 16 lbs that Mommy lost I weighed 145 pounds which is really big for me. After you were born Mommy suddenly lost 55 lbs.
Mommy and Daddy did not know which baby had survived. The doctors could not get a good view of the important parts so before were you were born we did not know if you were going to be a boy or a girl. We had talked about naming you Audrey from early on...Mommy and Daddy thought that Audrey Hepburn was classy, very graceful and beautiful and I knew that my daughter would be too. In fact we had come up with so many names that we chose to give you three. The last two were not decided until after you were born. We had a few boy names picked out, but I thinnk I knew that my little girl would be coming into the world. We did decide to name your brother and picked out John Wesley (after Daddy's late father and Daddy).
Mommy was not due for you to be born until the 2nd week in October...you were 5 weeks early.

September 17th (1.5 days to go...)

As I had mentioned before, Mommy was very sick and miserable. You had been giving me contractions for weeks before you were born (the doctors gave Mommy medicine to stop you from coming a couple of times: you just wanted out). Andrew Johnson was your doctor, and Mommy liked him a lot...two days before you were born he told Mommy that we were not going to wait any longer and you were going to be born. They really wanted to give me a C-Section, that is when they cut your tummy open and pull out the baby. I told them No...only if you were in danger would I agree. As usual Mommy got her way. It is the Rook in us. Mommy and Daddy were so happy, I was admitted to LDS hospital (downtown Salt Lake) and Grandma, Grandpa, and Great Grandma were there to help Mommy. The Sydney Olympics in Austrailia were on T.V., this is an important detail in your birth story.

Doctor Johnson and the nurses thought you were going to come into the world very quickly because you were trying so hard to get out. They broke my water and Mommy started hard labor. Mommy was in so much pain because of my pelvis, and just childbirth in general that I asked for the pain medicine right away (epidural). Well this was a bad choice...it stopped my labor all together and the nurses had to give me yucky medicine to get my labor started up again (patosin). This was when I knew you were going to be stubborn, just like a Rook. They started Mommy out on a #3 drip and by the time you were born, we had maxed out at a #22...(just so you know that is not normal). I hope that you never have to experience patosin. Well lots of time passed by and Mommy played cards and watched the Olympics. Lots of people came to visit (Uncle Eric, Uncle Andy, Uncle Kurtis, Aunt Danielle, Zack, Nate Derrick, Nick and I am sure there are others I do not remember).
The pain meds had worn off around hour 20 and Mommy was so tired. Dr. Johnson came into see us and checked me and said you would be coming in a few hours. He said he was going to go home to have dinner and would be back. That made me happy, but he was wrong. Dr. Johnson actually got to stay at home and go to sleep for most of the night. The nurse came to check in on me at 3:30 a.m. and told me she was going to call him to come back to the hospital. Praise the Lord!!!!

At 5:15 a.m. Audrey Katherine (after Catherine the Great and Katherine Hepburn) Shyrl (after Grandma) Jordan was born weighing 6 lbs 2 oz. and 19 inches long, with pitch black eyes and a TON of black hair, you were so beautiful. The minute that you were born you filled a great big hole in Mommies heart and I knew that you were very special. A whole team of nurses were waiting for you. The doctor put you on my tummy and Daddy cut the cord. The nurses and Daddy whisked you away to the neonatal unit. Mommy was not done yet about 15+ minutes later your brother was born and the doctor got Mommy all put back together. Daddy followed the nurses as they took you to another room.

(Wes typed the following)

In there, they cleaned you up, and used a little vacuum to suck the mucous out of your nose and mouth. They checked your eyes and ears to make sure you were alright. Daddy stood right next to you when they did this, and he was speechless that he now had a daughter. Uncle Andy, Uncle Eric and two of their friends were standing at the door watching us. They were all very happy. We were very happy. Then, the nurses wrapped you up like a little burrito in a baby blanket, put you in my arms, and said, "Every Daddy should have a Daughter." I walked you back to Mommy's room, and as I did, I talked to you. You opened your eyes when I said, "Do you recognize my voice?" They were two beautifully, deep black eyes. I asked if you recongnized my voice because of all the books I read to you when you were growning in Mommy. When we returned to the room, I put you in Mommy's arms.

When Daddy came back I looked at you and said lets name her Sydney...remember Mommy had just watched 37 hrs of the the Olympics and frankly I deserved a gold medal for what I had to do to get you into this world. This the name we had them put on your baby bassinet: Sydney Diane Shyrl Jordan. The doctor told Mommy that you were ok and that they were going to watch you. They could not believe how healthy and strong you were.
I gave you so much love, I did not want to let you go. Grandma and Great Grandma came in and gave you kisses and lots and lots of love. Everyone else had gone home ( I think they thought you were never going to be born). That is when Grandma gave you your cow, Creme Moo Le. She had bought it at a gift shop in the hospital. A few hours later Grandpa breakfast called and asked how "Cindy" was doing instead of "Sydney" and from that moment forward you were back to being Audrey...we had come to our senses. We only stayed in the hospital for 2 days and then we went home. For the first few nights of your life you lived in Aunt Danielle's room. One of the best stories is when you were 3 days old. Mommy had to go to the store with Grandma and Daddy was left to watch you all by himself. Mommy called home a couple of hours later to make sure that everything was ok and see how Daddy was doing. He told Mommy that he was hungry but was afraid to leave you alone so he could go make a sandwich. I told him that you would be fine. When I got home Daddy told me that he hurried to the kitchen and checked on you 3-4 times while he was making his sandwiches. Little did he realize that you weren't going to begin rolling for another six months. Right there and then I knew what a wonderful father you had and how lucky we were.

Another story about those early days when our little family was borrowing in Aunt Danielle's room comcerns a stuffed elephant we gave you. We both woke up with you in the middle of the night to feed you. You could not have been any older than two weeks. Daddy picked up the elephant to toss it into another part of your bassinet in order to clear some room to prepare your formula. In the process, he said, "Chuck the elephant" meaning to "throw" the elephant. Mommy and Daddy looked at each other immediately and had a moment of understanding. We laughed for a long time about it, because it came out sounding like I was calling it Chuck. The name stuck, he was forever named Chuck. We were soooooooo tired.

Audrey I want you to know how important you are to me (us) and that you are my inspiration. You are an awesome big sister and you have the kindest heart. I know that as the years go by you and are going to surpass every dream that I have for you...well, because your Audrey...and your already doing just that.

Happy Birthday my darling girl...may you always know of my deep love and devotion to you.

Mommy

You are my sweet little girl. I look at you and see so much to be proud about. Audrey, you are one of a kind. Happy Birthday!

Daddy

Postcards To Audrey

2008-09-16T10:11:00.001-07:00

Audrey's 3rd grade class is doing a postcard project and I am asking for all of you to help. I am going to take advantage of having my family scattered everwhere throughout North America.
When you get a chance please send a Postcard from wherever you live to:

Audrey Jordan
C/O Mrs. Kringer's Class
KC Heffernan School
2 Learners Landing
Marcellus, New York 13108

Please add an interesting fact about the city or state that you live in. I will be very THANKFUL!!! It is hard on the girls not having any family around to participate in school activities and projects, this would make Audrey not feel so left out.

Goodbye Indy...

2008-09-16T09:56:00.000-07:00

Indiana Jones died Friday (Sept 12th). She almost made it to her 2nd birthday (Oct 14). I know she was just a Gerbil, not a dog or a cat, but we loved her just the same: she was part of our family.

I was very sad (and yes I did cry)...I was grateful that the girls were at school. Really it should not have come as a surprise, she never exercised a day in her life, and all she did was eat.

Wes and I brainstormed of ways to tell the girls, thinking that they would take the news hard. I took them to the mall, bought them their favorite pretzel and we sat down on a bench (public places are always better, the girls usually are more reserved). I started off by saying "I have some sad news," they were both curious and asked me, "What?" I then told them that Indiana had died. The first thing out of Hannah's mouth was "Now we are closer to getting a Guinea Pig!!!" (We told the girls that when the gerbils died we would buy a Guinea Pig) That's Hannah for you...I know that she was sad and was trying to be strong for the rest of us but always looking at the bigger picture.
Audrey had a delayed reaction. At first she was concerned for Mocha, she did not want her to be lonely, and then she was fine. It was not until later that night when she had been in bed for a couple of hours that she woke up crying and heartbroken. I comforted her and explained the lifespan of different animals, and Indiana was old and had lived a very comfy life.
The next morning Audrey wrote a letter to Indy saying goodbye, and Hannah drew a picture and taped it on her wall by her bed, and I did the best thing to cure sadness, we went to the chocolate shoppe. We each got some chocolate and said goodbye to Indy. Later that night the family went to Petco and looked at Guinea Pigs...they were sooooo cute. Wes felt like he was betraying Mocha, it was so adorable, I love seeing that softer side to him. It was a sad weekend but this has been one of the more important lessons about life we have taught the girls.

P.S. I promise when Harrison Ford dies, I will say "Harrison Ford died." When I talked to Megan, and Mom (and she talked to Dad), I told them that Indiana Jones had died, they were so shocked that Harrison Ford had passed away...no, no, my gerbil. I think they were all relieved that Harrison did not die, I too am thankful that Harrison is still with us.

Standing up for Nuts

2008-09-15T11:23:00.000-07:00

We went to Audrey's 3rd grade orientation last Wednesday. I really think Audrey is going to have a great year. I hope that her teacher is up to the "challenge" because Audrey really needs to be "challenged" this year. 2nd grade was so easy, it was laughable.

She still has only 20 minutes of homework a night (that includes her 15 minutes of mandatory reading by the teacher). I raised my hand during question-and-anwser time and asked if more homework was available. Every parent laughed at me and thought I was crazy. What is so wrong about your child loving school work and willing to learn above and beyond? Of course I am going to nourish that. Nutty!!!

Then the topic of Nut allergies came up and it has been only this year that we're certain that Audrey is not allergic. Mrs. Kringer asked if any of the children had nut allergies; nobody raised their hands. Then, some loud-mouth (well, she was) piped up in "Hallelujahs", and saying what a pain in the butt people with nut allergies are...you can only imagine my reaction. You will be happy to know that I held my tongue. Fortune was on my side when I was filling out the class volunteer sign-up and that woman just happened to start talking to another parent about what a pain and how inconvenient it is for everyone when there is someone allergic to nuts. I turned around and told her that I was deadly allegic to nuts, and furthermore, I have children that are allergic...she became quiet very quickly. I swear the nerve of some people...do you thinnk I put in a special request to be allergic to nuts (not to mention all the other allergies I have) just so I can be an inconvenience to the PTA?:P I'm allergic to nuts and I am proud.

I really do not understand this school district's stand on Nut allergies: their solution to the problem is to segregate the children (Hannah, she gets to sit with one other girl) who have the allergies by making them sit at another table all by themselves during lunch. In Canada, Audrey went to a "Nut Free School". I do not undrstand why this is such an inconceivable concept. Not only do the children have to be afraid of dying but also can't be with their friends at lunch.

Unity

2008-09-15T11:12:00.000-07:00

I dreamed I stood in a studio
And watched two sculptors there.
The clay they used was a young child's mind.
And they fashioned it with care.

One was a teacher; the tools he used
Were books and music and art;
One was a parent, with guiding hand,
And a gentle loving heart.

Day after day the teacher toiled,
With touch that was deft and sure,
While the parent labored by her side and
And polished and smoothed it o'er

And when at last their task was done,
They were proud of what they had wrought,
For the things they had molded into the child
Could neither be sold or bought.
And each agreed he would have failed
If she had worked alone,
For behind the parent stood the school,
And behind the teacher, the home.

Audrey will be writing completely in cursive by the end of this year. She is going to be studying China, nigeria, and Australia and has two New York State tests.

For those of you who want to know Audrey's daily schedule, here it is:

8:50 - 9:02 - Arrival, morning jobs, announcements and Pledge

9:05 - Specials -

Monday - Library
Tuesday - Art
Wednesday - Music
Thursday - Computer Lab/Enrichment
Friday - Music

9:35 - (MWF) - Morning meeting

10:00 - Snack
10:00 - Math
11:00 - Cursive
11:20 - 11:45 - Gym
11:45 - Science/Social Studies
12:30 - Lunch
1:05 - English Language Arts
2:35 - Planners
2:45 - Recess
3:00 - Read Aloud
3:18 - Dismissal

Lucky # 8

2008-09-09T09:33:00.001-07:00

Today Wes and I celebrate our 8th Wedding Anniversary. The #8 is very lucky in Chinese lore and twice as lucky celebrated in 2008. Wes and I have been showered with so many blessings of luck through our whole marriage that I am really looking forward to the great things to come this year.

I want my husband to know how much I adore and cherish him. Our marriage has been full of so many extremes, but the one constant is that I can always count on our love pulling us through...we have are own modern fairy tale.

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments, love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove.
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempest and is never shaken:
It is the star to every wand' ring bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Loves's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come,
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom:
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

William Shakespeare

Of course, I gave him a card with two penguins on it, but I thought Shakespeare would express my words more eloquently.

Wes gave me two cards one with these cute little stuffed animals (which he loves and thinks is the cutest thing next to slice bread, and so do I) and the following;

There aren't enough words to tell you I love you,
Not enough ways to show you I care,
Not enough laughter and good times to wish you,
Not enough wonderful moments to share...
A million bright mornings would not be too many,
Long evenings forever would still be too few,
For I need you and love you so much that it seems
There aren't enough days in a lifetime with you.

We are going to be celebrating our anniversary in October. It is hard when you have every other celebration happening in the same month, we should have planned better:P So here is to lucky #8 .... and lets face it, if anyone needs luck, it is me. Love you Rabbit!!!! (Hey, you have a lucky rabbits foot...ha, ha, ha)

Dear Hannah

2008-09-05T07:27:00.001-07:00

Today is Hannah's 6th birthday. I was thinking about the day that she was born and how long ago it seems but how fast the time has flown by.

Hannah often asks me the story of when she was born so I thought that I would document it on my trusty blog.

Dear Hannah,

This is the story of how you came into this world.

Daddy and I had a hard time getting pregnant with you, but then we got the Happy news that you were coming to join our family.

You craved ice cream cones without ice cream and loved to eat all the time. You kicked Mommy a lot and always had the hiccups.

You were almost named Haley but at the last minute Daddy agreed with Mommy about naming you Hannah.

You were born 4 weeks early but, don't worry, by the time you were 3 months old you were extra plump.

September 3rd 2002 -
I was doing my work study at Salt Lake Community College. Daddy and I were both going to school, Daddy was finishing and Mommy was just starting.

I knew that you were coming but Mommy was in no rush to get to the hospital. I went home, took a bath, made sure I had everything I needed, and we took Audrey over to the Butler's apartment. We then went up and down the stairs (5 stories) 10 times. You probably think this is silly...but I was in labor with Audrey for 37 hrs. Just so you know, 37 hrs is one full day and half of another one. Mommy did not want to do that again. Mommy & Daddy wanted you to come into this world much quicker than that. You were born at Jordan Valley hospital, the same hospital as your Aunt Danielle. Your Doctor was Maria O'Neida and she was Aunt Danielle's Pediatrician.
Daddy and Mommy played card games (I won a lot) and took strolls around the maternity floor. Great Grandma came and helped to take care of me. Grandma was living in California and she did not get to Salt Lake until a few hours after you were born.

You came in 12 hrs!!!!!!!

On September 4th @ 5:00 a.m. you were born. You were so small and pink you looked like a little piglet, but much cuter. You were crying very loud. You weighed 5lbs 13 oz and were 19 in long. You had no hair. The doctor put you in my arms and Daddy cut your umbilical cord. The nurses then took you and wiped you down and wrapped you in a blanket and put a little white cap on your head. Mommy and Daddy were so happy. We told you that your name was Hannah McClain Ireland Jordan. Daddy gave you lots and lots of kisses and cried. Great Grandma held you and gave you lots and lots of kisses and cried and then Mommy held you for a very, very long time and gave you lots of kisses and cried.

Doctor O'Neida told Mommy and Daddy tht you were having a hard time staying warm and that you had to have some tests done. The nurses took you to a special room and put your little arm in a cast so that they could give you an I.V. and special medicine. This made Mommy and Daddy very sad. Mommy rocked you in a rocking chair in the little room and told you were going to be alright. Grandma got to the hospital and Daddy went home to get some sleep. Grandma wrapped you up like a little burrito and sang to you and gave you lots of kisses and I don't think she cried.
Daddy went home and got Audrey (who had a cold) and brought her to see you. She gave you so much love and held you for the first time. Audrey watched Sesame Street when she came to visit you. Audrey brought Mommy McDonald's (that was happy).
We had to spend two extra days in the hospital but you were starting to stay warm all by yourself and you got all better.

We took you home to West Valley, you had a "baby animal" bedroom. You took your first bath in the bathroom sink and you slept a lot. We had been home for a day when you stopped breathing, this really scared Mommy and Daddy....Mommy turned you over and hit your chest as hard as I could and you started to breath. Everyone was really scared but after that you have been perfectly healthy and perfectly loved.

You are such a good girl, you are so kind and caring and Mommy , Daddy and Audrey are so happy that you came to our family. You have had a hard 6yrs of life compared to many children but you have given Mommy strength and courage and the will to fight...that makes Mommy love you even more then I will ever be able to express to you in words.

Happy Birthday!!!!

Love,
Mommy

(*Next week I will add pictures to this blog.)

Almond Joy?

2008-09-05T07:15:00.000-07:00

I have been craving lots and lots of chocolate lately...what's new. I have been sick of eating the same chocolate, so I thought I would experiment. I got hooked on Lindt's - Chocolate with Chiles & Cherries; very, very good...sweet with a nice heat. I have been going through a bar about every 2 days, and had to go to the store on Saturday to pick up another. I started getting these tummy aches and thought it was just because the time of the month.

I was watching Alias (Season 3 disk 4) last night and, all of a sudden, it occurred to me that I was crunching on something and did not recognize the flavor...so I looked down at the wrapper and panic set in as I read the name of the chocolate I had been eating. Cherries with ... Almonds!!!! (The wrapper was identical to the Cherries & Chilies.) I never had an Almond before so it made sense that I did not understand what I was eating. Usually when I eat a nut my throat starts to swell up, and all kinds of other nastiness happens: like the time I ate some pesto, (which I loved) but pesto is made with pine nuts, and swelled up like Odo from Deep Space Nine; or the time I ate a walnut in a chocolate chip cookie...the stomach ache was so bad that I compare it to being in labor. European chocolatiers like to put hazelnuts in their chocolate and I wish I did not have such a severe reaction, it is very similar to what happens to me if I come in contact with a peanut but not as bad.

I had eaten half the chocolate bar and just sat there on the couch waiting for catastrophe to hit, but then I realized that is why I had been feeling like a seagull who had eaten an antacid. All I was going to have was a slightly painful tummy ache...no big deal.
I finally was able to taste an almond and not have to depend on somebody trying to describe the taste to me. I still have not had cashews, macadamia nuts, brazil nuts or pecans. Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't. Almond joy has nuts...Mounds don't:P

New Layout

2008-09-04T19:41:00.000-07:00

Dear Jenny,

Ta Da!!!

Let me know what you think about your new layout and header. . .Yours came out too big too and cut some stuff off, but I don't know how to fix it. If you don't like the color scheme, I can change that too. Hope you like it!

--Megan

We Got Maized

2008-09-03T10:56:00.000-07:00

We had taken the girls mini golfing a few weeks ago and there was a maze. I told the girls that we would go back and do the maze...Wes and I decided to do it this weekend. To start off with, the place was about 40 minutes from the house...we got there and everybody cost $4.00 each (at least when you play mini golf, Hannah is free). I asked the guy how big the maze was and he said it was pretty big, so in my idiocy I handed him over the money. We punched our cards with the start time to see how fast we could find all the letters in the word "MAZE" scattered through the maze and depending on how fast you were you got a prize. We got done in 11 minutes...we paid $16 for 11 minutes and the girls got a lollypop. I felt like marching back to the cashier and demanding a refund. We got so ripped. They have these huge corn mazes out here that you pay a few bucks to go through and your lost for days...now that is getting your money's worth.
(We did eat corn on the cob that night for dinner...get it? Maized!!!)

On a really great note; Audrey rode her bike by herself for the very first time this weekend. It truly is a miracle!!!

You may be saying to yourself, "She is almost 8..."

Audrey is wired differently then most of us. You can give her Twain, Shakespeare or any book, ask her to read it (and she's done in a matter of hours), write a 10 page paper, and then teach the book to others, but getting her to do anything that has physical coordination is a big challenge. Her mind just gets too wrapped up in trying to "solve the problem," when there isn't any. When she finally rode her bike, we were so proud, and , I did cry.

To Veal Or Not To Veal

2008-09-03T10:52:00.000-07:00

Did you know that I will not eat Veal? I think that the killing of baby cows and keeping them chained up in little dog houses is cruel and unjust. There are so many great foods made with Veal, so it makes me sad on one hand, but I will stand firm. Wes makes fun of me all the time because of this...I get mushy every time I see a calf and outraged every time I see Veal on the Menu.

We were driving the other day and we passed by a herd of cows. Hannah chirped up and said, "I just saw two Veals!!!" This is after Wes had been telling her to call the calves veals just to get my goat. I think I am going to have to put my husband out to pasture.

I Would Like More Pink With That...

2008-08-26T08:36:00.000-07:00

We had a very eventful weekend. I can not believe how much work goes into planning a 6yr old's b-day party, and it was still really low key. Hannah had a wonderful time. The little girls showed up in princess dresses...we made crowns and played pin the lips on the frog. We ate strawberry "flower" sandwiches, pasta salad, berry rice crispy squares, strawberries, pink marshmallows, and pink lemonade. I made a strawberry mousse Tinkerbell cake. We opened presents ("she" or should I say "we" got lots of little Pet Shop toys...yay) and then they played outside for 10 minutes and then everyone went home. An hour and half is the perfect amount of time for a b-day party. Audrey was a really big help, Wes had to work and she was perfect for the job. She made sure all the girls had everything they needed and helped me serve and clean.

(side note - I can not believe how picky kids are when it comes to food. I can put anything in front of my girls and they will eat it...if they don't eat it they don't eat...two out of the 4 girls did not like fruit/vegetables of any kind and since everything was laced with strawberries or vegetables they did not have much to eat.)

When Audrey and Hannah had their 4th and 2nd birthday party in Tooele (that is Utah for those of you who do not know) I tried my hardest to make bows out of crape paper...to no avail, I could not. Cristine (Hi!!:) made them for me and they were wonderful. Well I would like to report that I have accomplished the impossiable...I made the perfect square bows out of pink crape paper for Hannah's party. I can now offically say I have grown as a person.

We went to the drive-in Saturday night and saw Hancock, (that was actually a really good movie, a little crass at times but an orginal superhero movie) Clone Wars (Retire George!!!!) and the Dark Knight (we had already seen that so we did not stay...but just so you know if you have not seen Batman, it is a great movie, not for children).

Can I have My Cart Back Ma'am

2008-08-26T08:32:00.000-07:00

I was grocery shopping on Friday and was preoccupied looking for pink candy for Hannah's party. I went and started pushing what I thought was my cart. All of a sudden I heard "I will trade you carts" and I was thinking, "Why would I want to do that?" I looked down and realized I had taken someone else's cart. I turned around and this really, really cute guy was standing there with my cart. Now this situation would not have been so embarrassing if it would have been a woman or the guy was not so cute. Why me?

- Disclaimer - Wes is much much, cuter than the guy at the grocery store!!!! Love you bunny:)

Tomato Watch 2008

2008-08-26T08:28:00.001-07:00

The tomatoes are turning red by the bushel these last few days. Happiness!!!! We have about 40 more tomatoes that still need to turn, but I am not worried anymore.
On a secret note...Wes is almost done with the roof for the dollhouse. It is amazing (that is an understatement). We will soon get to start decorating. We will be getting the internet back soon and I will be able to post many many pics for all the summer blogs. I can not wait!!!

Joe Biden???? I need to write a blog but this will do for now...I don't know if this helps me want to vote for Obama or not!!! Do you think McCain will pick Hillary...I know I have a greater chance winning the lottery (I do not play) but wouldn't that stir things up a bit?

Tag Your It!!!

2008-08-26T08:19:00.000-07:00

I have been tagged several times so I hope that I will be able to put down 6 facts that you all have not already read.

1 - For the first 3 months I lived in Korea, I did not have a toilet in my bathroom. There was only a drain in the corner of the room. I also did not have a bathtub or shower. I bathed myself in a large brown tub or went to the Base to take a shower.

2 - I can type 120 wpm.

3 -Wes and I have 3 Wedding Anniversaries. Wes and I eloped February 18, 2000 (we do not celebrate that one), then we were married in Grandma's backyard with the family on September 9, 2000 (this is the one we celebrate), and then we were sealed in the temple November 29, 2002. So, in a couple of weeks we will celebrate 8 yrs of marriage.

4 - I have seen the movie Dirty Dancing 250+ times. I can sometimes watch it 2 or 3 times in a row.

5 - After I was pregnant with Audrey (and her brother) I did not have a belly button. They stretched me out so much (not mention they broke my pelvis) that I lost it. When Hannah was born she gave me back my belly button and it is perfect.

(that is something many of you may not know....Audrey had a twin named John who died at the end of the second trimester...Audrey still talks in a weird language from time to time and we are sure that is her twin speak)

6 - 2 years in a row Wes and I gave each other the same card for Valentines.

It's a Good Thing

2008-08-21T08:47:00.000-07:00

I was in Barnes and Noble and was browsing the Godiva counter (my all-time FAVORITE chocolate) and I saw a Twilight Godiva bar. Whoever came up with the marketing was brilliant. My favorite chocolate, in my favorite bookstore, about one of my favorite books. I just love Good Things!!!!

Audrey and Hannah just received their class assignments for this up-coming year. There are seven 3rd grade teachers and Audrey got the one that she wished for...Yay!!! Mrs. Kringer's class gets to do the shcool paly and has a real emphasis on music and reading. I am so stoked that Audrey got her as a teacher.
Hannah got Ms. Buso for Pre-1st, she has taught Pre-1st through third so she will really be able to help academically while Hannah is catching up emotionally. I heard that she is very nurturing and sweet.

We went and saw Wes's sister Barb and family while they were camping in the area. I could not believe how fat baby Aiden (my nephew who was born on my b-day) has got. He was sitting up and rolling. They grow up way too fast. We celebrated my nephews' b-days and the girls' b-days, it was so peaceful and lowkey....no drama!!! Audrey got the Little Pet Shop Monopoly game, she was very happy to receive it, but not as happy as I was...we have 160 little pet shop toys and rising. Now that is what I call a Good Thing!!!!

To Cuddles Or Not To Cuddles

2008-08-21T08:40:00.000-07:00

(Cuddles is a beige bear that Wes gave to me after I had one of my surgeries and Audrey hijacked Cuddles and has slept with her ever since).

Wes and I are downstairs enjoying an evening together (very rare, because he is always at work), he is reading a book and I am talking on the phone with my sister...I know, you can just feel the togetherness.

All of a sudden I hear Audrey crying and Wes goes upstairs to see what's the matter, I follow him and then I hear both the girls crying (very rare). The whole story goes something like this -

Hannah - " I never get to sleep with Cuddles" and starts crying.
Audrey - " Don't be sad I will give you Cuddles" and gives her Cuddles.
Audrey then starts to cry because she is so sad that her sister is sad.

Hannah and Audrey sobbed for a good 5 minutes while Wes tried to make sense of the of the whole situation and make them feel better and I sat there and laughed. I don't think we are going to make it through the teenage years:P

The Secret of Zucchini....

2008-08-21T08:38:00.001-07:00

FYI...squeeze the juice out of your Zucchini before baking with it. Your cooking time will be less and your bread or whatever your making will come out of the pan easier.

Can You Con The Tooth Fairy???

2008-08-18T10:03:00.000-07:00

So, we were putting Hannah to bed and Wes was fixing her sheet. He lifted up her pillow and, low and behold, she had an empty plastic baggy (the same kind we use to put Audrey's teeth in) under her pillow. Wes and I look at her and asked what she was doing? Hannah told us she was waiting to see if the Tooth Fairy would leave her money without a tooth. We asked if she really thought she could pull one over on the Tooth Fairy. Hannah was pretty sure that she would fall for the trick. It was so hard not to break into a hysterical fit of laughter or for Wes not to start picking on me. Hannah must think she is pretty smart...but I think the Tooth Fairy is smarter, or at least wiser.

*Hannah has not lost any teeth yet.

House Elf

2008-08-18T09:58:00.000-07:00

I have officially become a House Elf. Whenever I don't want to do the laundry, dishes, clean the blinds, etc...I always ask for a House Elf, you know, like Dobby from Harry Potter. They do all the housework. By the way, I do promote ethical treatment and fair rights for all House Elves.

I got a job cleaning houses Mon-Thurs from 9-12 and the pay is way above excellent for 3 hrs of work. This job is perfect for me because I am OCD when it comes to cleaning, the hours are perfect, I get to see Wes, and I will be home to send and get the girls from school. It is everything I needed in a job. So just call me if you need a House Elf!!!

Speaking of cleaning...Have you tried Palmolive Tropical Blossom!!!???? I love this dish soap, it smells so good!!!

Wes got a VERY GOOD promotion last week. I am so proud of him and thankful he works so hard to provide for us.

The Great Gerbil Escape...

2008-08-13T08:42:00.000-07:00

The setting -

I have been watching Alias w/Jennifer Garner for the last two weeks. For those of you who have never watched the show it is all about spies, murder and intrigue. I had just watched 4 episodes, so I am already nervous (hey, you never know when Russian spies are going to infiltrate your home), it is 12:30 a.m., Wes is still at work.

Everyone remember I am rattled from watching Alias!

I go upstairs to go to bed and start my routine. I plug the cell phone into the cord by the bed and I hear something move...I tell myself that my mind is just playing tricks on me. I go and turn off the light and I hear something move under the bed...again I tell myself that some of my storage (we keep boxes and what-not under the bed) just settled. I lay down in bed and I hear something run from the head of the bed to the the foot. I was out of my bed and into the hallway faster than the speed of light. First I thought bomb (Alias...I know, irrational) than I came to my senses and thought snake. For those of you who know my fear of snakes you know I would rather have a bomb under my bed. That did not make sense either because I heard scampering...so I thought mouse. Just so you all know, I am sometimes not the sharpest knife in the drawer. The gerbils' cage is right beside me in the hallway. I look to my left and I only see Indiana Jones. I go over their cage and shake it a bit and start calling Mocha and low and behold, NO MOCHA!!!! She did it, all the exercising and plotting finally paid off...she escaped. Don't ask me how she did it or if she had an accomplice (Hannah) but she achieved her maniacal plan.

I am going to tell you a secret...you can not call a gerbil like you call a dog. For a good 5 minutes I was using my call your dog voice, and then she finally appeared (when I stopped) from underneath the bed and stared right at me as if to say HA, HA, HA...I am now going to take over the world!!! I threatened to go and get the vacuum if she did not back in her cage.
Well I guess I was being much louder than I thought I was because Audrey comes down the hall to see what I was doing (1:00 in the morning) and I tell her we need to get Mocha back where she belongs before Daddy gets home. So for the next 30+ minutes Audrey and I are trying to wrangle the gerbil from underneath the bed. I finally cornered her and trapped her in her ball, and kept her there until I could examine the cage for her escape route...who knows maybe she dug a tunnel. I sent Audrey back to bed thankful that I was not alone in my paranoia and gave Mocha Joe a stern lecture. I don't think she was listening to me because she had that glazed look in her eyes like the words were going in one ear and out the other. Lets just hope that this is the last of Mocha Joe's adventures.

(After using the interrogation skills I learned from watching Alias I finally got Mocha Joe's accomplice to crack. Steven the 8 yr old we have been babysitting for the summer, gave the gerbils something to chew on and did not make sure the door was closed, case closed. I wonder how much Mocha paid him?)

My Spectacled Girl

2008-08-13T08:35:00.001-07:00

Audrey went to the Optomertrist today and we confirmed what we knew was only the inevitable, Audrey needs glasses. She is near-sighted and has a small astigmatism. She only has to wear them when looking at the chalk board or watching T.V., it is nice that she is not going to have to wear them all the time.

Audrey is very happy to be getting glasses, she thinks it is cool that she is going to have glasses like me....I am glad she has such a great attitude. I was hoping that she was going to have Wes's perfect eyesight. At least she has really nice frames (small wired and blue, (her favorite color) she looks really good in them...they make her look really smart).

I could not help flashing back to when I was her age and Mom took me to go and get a new pair of glasses (I have been wearing glasses since I was 4). My prescription was so high tht I had to have really thick lenses and they would only fit into certain frames. To top it off, Mom did not have a lot of money to spend so I ended up with these HUGE coke bottle frames (they looked more like a six pack) that pretty much covered my entire face...they were so big that the boys in school called me 8 eyes. Thank goodness for advances in eyewear!!!

What A Puzzle?...

2008-08-13T08:27:00.000-07:00

The other night Wes thought it might be fun and relaxing if we put a puzzle together as a family. It was a 100 piece puzzle of a cute little grey cat in a pink flower bed. Just looking at the box was relaxing...good idea right? NOT!!! Honestly, I was more relaxed when I took my SATS...Audrey just could not wrap her mind around the idea of putting a puzzle together for fun. The girl was calmer at her last Dental appointment. We were about half way through the puzzle when I told her (jokingly) if she did not calm down and relax that I was going to tape her mouth shut and slap her (of course I would never do such a thing, but it was really good comic relief) Audrey laughed and she calmed down and she got a couple more pieces of the puzzle and we were all enjoying our family activity. That fuzzy mement was not meant to last because Audrey started FREAKING OUT again and all of a sudden Hannah screams "Slap her, Slap her!!!!" it was hilarious. Thank goodness we don't have gladiators anymore because I have a feeling we would be dragging Hannah out of the Coliseum by her ear.

Jennifer

2008-08-06T15:27:00.000-07:00

Everyone knows that my name is Jenny and not Jennifer. I can not stand it when I am called Jennifer...it drives me CRAZY!!!! I am surrounded by so many Jens and Jennifer's that we need to keep a chart to keep everyone straight, they are my closest and dearest friends and now I am going to get one for a sister-in-law, Hi Jen!!!!

So anywho - I come home from running errands and Hannah looks up from the kitchen table and says that she is going to name her daughter Jennifer after me...but I am not a Jennifer. Wes startes laughing and shoots me a look of HA, HA!!! Hannah has proclaimed that she loves the name and it will definitely be used. I guess I can look on the bright side, she does not want to name her baby Apple (Gwenyth Paltrow) or Cocoa (Courtney Cox).

As Time Goes By...

2008-08-06T09:10:00.000-07:00

The summer seems to be flying by. Wes and I are trying to jam as much as we can into what little free time we have as a family. When school starts (Sept 3rd) Wes will only see the girls for an hour on the weekdays (Wes works the night shift for those of you who do not know) and weekend hours vary. This is a sacrifice that we are willing to pay for the job that Wes has at Welch Allyn (amazing company) but we have put limit to this craziness...we are on the 5yr plan. We will not keep this schedule for more than 5 years and we are 2 years in. The girls need their Father just as much as they need me. Wes also needs the girls, he gets really grumpy without them...lol:P
In a couple of weeks I am off to look for a job. The girls will be in school full time and I just can't see myself staying home and only taking care of the house. I need to find a part time job a few days a week only for a few hours a day. This way I will still get to see Wes and be home in time for the girls to get home from school. I am excited that I am already to this point in my life. Time has flown by.

There has been a lot of changes these past few weeks and it seems like anything can happen (I will elaborate more when I can; don't worry it is not my health). Honestly it has knocked me off my feet a little but you just have to pick yourself back up.

One of the good changes was that our first tomato turned red. Yay...one down, 60+ to go. Everyone think RED!!!

One of the bad changes this weeks was the Mummy 3, what were they thinking!!! The Mummy movies are some of my favorites and they thought they could replace Rachel Wietz (Evie) with another actress. It did not work. Why try to fix something that is not broken? Though on the bright side we went to the drive-in and we got to see three movies for the price of one (we were $7 a piece and the girls were only $2, a really good deal). So I am happy we did not go see it in a regular theater and waste our greenbacks.

The Midas Rip Off

2008-08-06T09:05:00.000-07:00

We have been in desperate need of new front breaks. Midas quoted me $360 for pads, rotors and labor. Our neighbor's father is a diesel mechanic. He took me to the parts store, we got the pads and rotors for $86 with his discount, and he changed them. THANK YOU DAN!!!! He also rotated our tires and fixed the trunk so that it stopped hitting me on the head every time I opened it. He did a fabulous job, cleaned and lubed everything and gave me a detailed list of what we needed to do to the car so that it will be good for the winter (there I go, I said the "W" word). I would have paid 3 times as much at Midas for substandard service and no perks. Its good to have friends in high places.

So Sad...But So Happy!!!

2008-08-06T09:00:00.000-07:00

Warning: this blog contains spoilers...if you are reading Breaking Dawn or have not read the Twilight series and plan on doing so, please do not read this blog.

Good news, I will not have to picket at Barnes and Noble!!! I am sad that it is the end.

I really hope that she takes some of the foundation she built for a new series with Jacob and Nessie (I did not see that one coming until it was right in front of my face). I was little surprised that she wrapped up that story line so neatly, though she did leave room for a new series of books.

What can I say, I loved Breaking Dawn, I whipped through it. I was also pleasantly surprised by the changes in plot. There was not as much whining in this book as in the others, it was jam packed and I loved that. The ending was the only part of the book that I wish was different, I really wanted the Voltari to get their butts kicked and it was no big surprise that Alice showed up and saved the day...but that is alright; I am a happy and satisfied reader.

Money, Money, Money....

2008-07-31T08:40:00.000-07:00

Hannah had a play date today with her friend Anna.

Anna's family has a lot of money. She takes theater class, piano and dance and is being tutored over the summer (she is also going into pre-first).
Hannah gave Anna a tour of the house, the same way that Wes and I do when people come over (it was quite cute). "This is the downstairs bathroom but we have another one UPSTAIRS!!!!" (Very enthusiastically:)
Hannah gets done giving the tour and Anna asks why our house is so small (really it is not that small) Hannah shows her the backyard. Anna sees that there is a large pool and trampoline, which belong to our neighbors. Anna asks, is that your pool? Hannah says "No" and Anna says "OH!!!" and then she asks Hannah "Is that your trampoline?" Hannah says "No" and Anna says "OH!!!" Then Anna looks in the driveway and asks Hannah where the cars are? Hannah tells her that Wes is at work and that we only have one car.
People, what is going on? Have things gotten that bad that 5 yr olds are now taking score of what you have and do not have and then they decide your child's social standing? This is exactly the reason why children are such brats and are not learning manners, their parents are more obsessed with what they have than who they are. I am getting fed up with people judging us for how much money we have or what kind of car we drive. Honestly I don't care if you are rich or poor just as long as you have a good heart and try to be a good person.
Audrey and Hannah have a lot more than I ever did, I grew up poor (with my Mom) during the school year and rich (with my Dad) during the summer...talk about confusing. I hated going back to being poor so I understand the desire to want things and want the "good life" but I learned a very valuable lesson: IN-BETWEEN is better. Being poor tears your heart out and being rich turns it to stone. This is a lesson that we are trying hard to teach the girls, work hard and get an education so you can support yourself, but at the same time never take what you have for granted because it can be taken from you at any time. Getting rid of the cable and what-not is teaching them that they will not die without certain "luxuries". Life and Hannah Montana will go on without them.
I have talked about the over-the-top birthday parties that we have been to while living here in New York, and the girls parties coming up I know there is going to be a certain expectation and guess what...I don't care. Just as long as the girls are happy that is all that matters (and the food is good:)

Zucchini Coming Out Of My Ears...

2008-07-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

We are eating so much Zucchini that it has become a new food group. It might sound like I am compaining but I am not. Wes was so good at makig the garden a success that the Zucchini is extremely bountiful and twice as big as the ones in the market. I love having fresh veg almost daily that we made with our own two hands. We have cucumbers also but not as abundant as the Zucchini. The tomatoes are still green but there are a TON of them...so soon I will have tomatoes coming out my ears.

I have a bazillion Zucchini recipes but this Zucchini Spice Bread Recipe is the best and the talk of the neighbors. It is very easy to make.

Zucchini Spice Bread

Serves 12...Prep Time -15 Minutes...Cooking Time 45-70 min
9x5x3 inch loaf pan greased...

(If you plan to bake this bread in a smaller loaf pan, be sure to fill it no more than three-quarters full to prevent the batter from overflowing in the oven).

Nonstick cooking spray
1 large zucchini
1 cup packed light - brown sugar
2 tbs granulated sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil or canola oil
2 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups all -purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground cloves
3/4 tsp salt

1 - Preheat oven to 350 degress. Lightly coat a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with cooking spray, and set aside. Grate zucchini on the large holes of a box grater (to yield 1 3/4 cups); set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together sugars, oil, vanilla and eggs.

2 - In a small bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and salt. Add flour mixture to egg mixture, and stir to combine well. Stir in grated zucchini.

3 - Pour batter into prepared pan, spreading evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 45-70 min (depending on oven) comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes; invert onto a wire rack, then reinvert, top side up. Cool completely before slicing.

4 - Serve with butter

P.S. I can not wait till Friday night. I am going to get Breaking Dawn and don't plan on sleeping until I am finished. Lets just hope that Stephanie Meyer does the right thing so that I, Jenny Jordan, will not be forced to picket at my local Barnes and Noble:P

Pink Princess Party...

2008-07-30T09:06:00.000-07:00

Hannah has asked for a Pink Princess Party for her 6th birthday. I can not belive how quick time has gone by. I am going to make her an Aurora Barbie cake. If anyone has any good suggestions on activities, goodie bags or anything Pink and Princessy, please let me know:)