My Birthday, Thanksgiving, and Black Friday

My 29th Birthday!

On Monday the 24th I turned 29. My day started out at 5:30 in the morning when my Bro and his family arrived from Tennessee. It was a crazy day of trying to get things done, working at the YMCA and hanging out with my brother and his wife and kids. My awesome friends suprised me by taking me out to dinner at Olive Garden, and we had tons of fun- as always. When I arrived home my family was waiting for me with Cake and presents.

I am not a huge "cake" fan so they decided to pick up this little gem at Dairy Queen.
This may be the ugliest cake I have ever gotten, it sure beats all of the turkey cakes by far. I will be sending me submission to one of my favorite blogs- Cakewrecks.

The black frosting was not fun to try to clean off of the kids, but it was a yummy cake!

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Thanksgiving Day

Dave and my brother Ken started the day off with a Turkey Bowl football game with a bunch of guys from church. Carrie and I decided to take the kids to watch them for a while.

After the Turkey Bowl we decided to play some football with the kids.

Then the kids had a great time playing at the park, it was such a nice day!

So, Thanksgiving dinner didn't quite turn out like I had planned. The day before my heating element in my oven decided to break and catch on fire.......nice! That isn't one of those parts you can go to the store and get, apparently you have to order it. So, plans changed and we ended up having it at my moms house. Things were a little crazy with 9 kids and 8 adults in a small home, which is why I didn't get any pictures- I never really do on Thanksgiving. It turned out to be a great day with family and great food, especially dessert. My brother left that night and we were so sad to see him go but we were so grateful to have them for 4 days.


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Black Friday

I decided to get a little crazy this year and get up at 3:00 in the morning to shop with the other crazies in McKinney. I went with 4 other friends and it was an experience. We went to Walmart at 4:15 to get a head start on the 5a.m. sale and I couldn't believe how intense so many people were about getting a good deal. I thought I was going to witness a couple of brawls over electronics, good thing I wasn't trying to get any of those big ticket items. We followed Wal-mart with Target and then headed to Sam's Club for some free breakfast and then we were off to Walgreens and CVS for a little coupon shopping. We scored a lot of loot, so much that we could hardly pack everything into Yvette's Yukon.

Prego Tiarre took full advantage of the automated carts, 8 months pregnant and trying to battle her way through crazy shoppers- that was the way to go. We were only dissappointed that they didn't go faster, that could have helped us out a ton.

I have always avoided black friday because I hate crowds and I like sleep but it was a blast going with friends. I will definitely be doing it again next year.

This past weekend we braved the cold weather and set out on a camping trip with some friends. We went to one of our usual spots at Lake Ray Roberts. I thought that since we were not camping during the summer and would not need eletricity for fans, that we could camp in one of the more primitive sites. Little did I know that primitive meant you had to hike into your spot- what the *@! Luckily, they had one site left in an area that didn't require hiking so we changed our reservation and camped there. The site was awesome, it was nestled back in the trees and had tons and tons of room for the kids to play. The best part is that it fit all 4 tents and there was still room for more. I think it has been decided that there will be no more summer camping trips, it is just way too hot! Even though it was cold, it was so nice to sit by the fire and sip hot cocoa all night. Suprisingly, we slept pretty well all snuggled into tons of blankets- I think it was like 40 degrees. The kids had a great time-they love camping, and I think all of the adults had a pretty great time as well.

The kids love playing in the tent!

Cyndi and Aprille cleaning up after breakfast

This is how we kept the kids under control:)

Tigerthon

On Friday Addyson ran in the annual Tigerthon at her elementary school. Every year the students at the school run laps to raise money. Last year I didn't watch her run because I guess I didn't know that I could. This year Addyson asked me to come and watch her run so I was definitely there with Ethan and Paige in tow. As Ethan and I waited on the sides for her to make her 1st lap, I could tell that she was looking for us. When she saw us standing there, she was so happy and excited! I sadly had to leave after only 15 minutes of watching her because I had to go to a training in Dallas. I DID NOT want to go, I felt so terrible about leaving when I knew how happy she was to have us there supporting her. Although most of the work that I do does not interfere with my kids activities and time with them, this was one of those moments when I wish that I could just be strictly a stay at home mom. She did a great job and ran 8 laps! I am so proud of her, I think that is 2 miles? She was up really late the night before at a soccer party so when I got home later that night she was sooo tired!

These pictures were taken courtesy of my friend Holly, I forgot my camera in my car. Thanks Holly!!

Go Addyson!!!

Election 08'

So, since this is sort of my journal, I have felt it necessary to journal this past election because it is pretty historic. Even though I am happy that we have come to a place where an African American can be elected I am not happy that it had to be him, the most liberal politician there is. I am not going to go into my feelings on the subject because I just may go off and possibly say something that may offend someone. So, I will simply say Heaven help us all ya'll, pray, pray, pray!

Another Halloween is gone:(

I love this time of year, one holiday after another, and more and more memories created with our kids. The First celebration..... Halloween! Our Halloween festivities always include pumpking carving. This was Paige's first year of really getting in on the action and she liked it!

Mmmmm...... pumpkin guts
Of all my kids, Ethan is the one who doesn't really like to get his hands dirty. He thought pulling out the pumpkin guts was pretty gross. Isn't is supposed to be the other way around, with the girls thinking it is gross??
Ethan picked the angry face for his pumpkin. I actually wanted to try pumpkin carving this year(Dave usually does it) and this is how mine turned out. Not bad for a beginner.

Addyson picked the witch face, I let Dave carve that one since it was a little more difficult. We all think that he did a great job.

In my attempt to fill the kids belly's with some healthy food before the sugar fest began I made this spread. My efforts were wasted though, because they hardly ate a thing! Oh well, at least I tried! I will probably save myself the trouble next year!

On our way to the trunk-or-treat at the church, Paige saw my bowl full of candy, and did not waste any time pumping herself full of good stuff.

Ethan as Darth Vader

Paige as an elephant. This was Addyson's costume when she was a baby- so I saved myself some money and re-used it. Halloweens here in Texas are a bit different from Oregon. She probably cooked in this costume with our 80 degree weather. She wore this costume the other night at our YMCA fall festival and everyone kept calling her a boy. Of course this annoyed me, so I put a bow by her ear.

The traditional "sitting and eating our candy shot" that we get of them every year.

If you can't tell Addyson was a witch. However I don't think that she wore her hat all night long!

After the trunk-or-treat we went back home and did some trick-or-treating in our neighborhood. We have the best street for trick-or-treating right next to us. One lady was handing out full size candy bars and she gave each of my kids 2, including Paige. Another lady was handing out $1 store gifts. All they have to do is go down that street and their bags are pretty full, and with good stuff. Ethan was happy with what he got and wanted to go home, but Addyson was not ready to stop. Dave took Ethan and Paige home and Addy and I kept going. This is the first year that she has been so into it, I loved it. I remember the days when I used to go trick-or-treating for hours, to get as much candy as I could. We walked for quite a while, until her bag was filled to the top. The problem now is what the heck do I do with all that candy? She isn't eating all of that!! I may have to hide some away for Christmas. It was another great Halloween, it is so great remembering the holidays when you were a kids and now getting to see the joy that it creates in your own children! So fun!

Snorkeling photos

We got our pictures back from our underwater camera and I finally got them scanned in and on the blog. It was pretty difficult taking pictures under the water because we had these big ole' goggles and then the camera encasing was a little bulky so it was tough to see through that little hole but they turned out better than I thought.

That's me:)
That's Dave:)!
I don't how many people know this, I didn't, but when you are in salt water you are bouyant?! I have been in the water in California, Florida, and Oregon and I have never experienced it before but there was no need for lifejackets in this water- you couldn't drown even if you wanted to. We kept trying to swim further under the water to take pictures or get closer to the coral and it felt impossible.
Some of the awesome fish we swam amongst.

I put this picture in here to show just how close the fish were. It was amazing how quick they were, we were literally surrounded by them and I was trying my darndest to touch one and they were just too quick and nimble..... I go crazy when I hear a cymbal, oh sorry I got carried away!

Our guide took this picture, we couldn't get that deep.

I loved, loved, loved, going snorkeling- I din't want to stop. I was so in my element, outside and one with nature and then ad turquoise water and tropical weather and I am in heaven. I hope to go back someday and take a much longer tour. Or even better, get our diving certifications and do some serious underwater exploration. I will have to ad that to my "things I look forward to list" below(I think I only put 7 on there).

Dave and I on the boat heading back to the shore:( Nice snorkel face Dave!

Tagged

My friend Holly Tagged me with this lovely 8 things tag. Here are my answers- enjoy!

8 Favorite TV Shows:
Lost
Friends
ER or Grey's Anatomy(when it isn't trashy)
The Hills(although, I am beginning to get annoyed with this show lately- How many looser guys can these girls find and fall in love with)
Project Runway
Top Chef
So you think you can dance
American Idol
I like reality TV a bit too much!

8 Things I did yesterday:
Pumped some iron
Got an offer to start teaching fitness to senior citizens at the YMCA- woohoo!
ate like 10 cookies
Got free cake mixes and frozen vegetables- Couponing is the best!
almost finished maybe the best book I have ever read(The Hiding Place)
fed my kids grilled cheese sandwhiches and cucumbers for dinner- I love it when I don't have to cook!
Went to the temple with my hubby
Went to bed early- that never happens!

8 Things I look forward to:
Halloween- Candy, candy candy!
My brother and his family visiting for Thanksgiving
Christmas- the lights, the chill, the smells, baking, giving, and the spirit!
Seeing my kids every morning when they wake up
My huband someday making good on his promise to take me to Hawaii
Going back to school to get my nursing degree
Being debt free

8 Favorite Restaurants:
Red Robin
Chili's
Olive Garden
Macaroni Grill
Red Lobster
Panera Bread
PF Changs
Nick & Sam's

8Things on my wish list:
To be more patient
To stress less
To be able to enjoy the now more, and have a greater appreciation for my kids and the challenges they bring
To be able to have more "Family time" and create more memories
To have a new kitchen and new floors
To have all of my family live in the same place
To have my kids grow up happy and healthy and follow the gospel standards
That Obama does not get elected as the President!

8 people I tag
Erin
Leslie
Nissa-Lynn
Sheena
Shari
Darci
Audrie
Christine

Our Caribbean cruise

Well, I have finally gotten the chance to blog about our awesome Caribbean cruise with the cutest friends ever Justin and Nissa-Lynn. We had the best time, seriously the best! We were pretty worried that we may not be able to go because of Hurricane Ike but Carnival made it happen and we are so glad.

Our first dinner in the Windstar dining room. One of my favorite things on a cruise is the dining. Each evening we were greeted by Joel our superb and hillarious waiter from Hondurus. He pulled out our chairs, put a napkin in our lap and handed us our menu. We could choose an appetizer, entree and dessert. If we wanted more than one appetizer or dessert he would say"why not?" The service was impecable, not something we get to enjoy very often- and we got to do it 5 nights in a row, not to mention breakfast and lunch. The best part was after each meal we could just get up and leave, not worries about how much it would cost or how much to leave for a tip- just eat and go.
The weather was amazing on the sea, a bit windy at times but beautiful.

Dave loved the 24 hour pizza and ice cream!


Us on formal night all dressed up.

We pretty much spent every night doing Karaoke, so fun! Dave got his first shot at Karaoke when a girl named Kim left before her turn and Dave volunteered to sing for her, not knowing what he would be singing. Joey, the Karaoke DJ called him Kim for the rest of the trip. It is the best when you can go from dinner to a comedy show to karoake to the dance club all in one night- PAR-TAY!

Our first port of call was Cozumel, Mexico. We went snorkeling in the turquiose water with the fishes. I have never done snorkeling like that before, we were surrounded by tons of fish. I can't wait to do that again, I could have done it all day!

We enjoyed some putt putt golf on the boat while we waited to reach our port in Progresso. Do you see that huge group on Koreans? Dave whacked his ball right into the middle of that group, nice Dave, nice! It was pretty funny, he didn't hurt anybody BTW.

In Progresso we took a taxi to the Mayan ruins, Chichen Itza. The taxi drive was quite the adventure, they are crazy drivers in Mexico. I was a little scared for my life, but we made it there in record time. The ruins were interesting, although it felt like the temperature was 200 degrees. I was disappointed that we couldn't climb the stairs behind us, that would have been amazing. The best part was when a huge storm hit us in the middle of the jungle/rainforest. It was an adventure to say the least.

I booked this cruise and worked my tail off for it because Dave and I really needed some time together to reconnect because of all of the stress in our life. Mission accomplished! I had so much fun with him, I remembered all of the reasons that I fell in love with him in the first place. I love you Dave! Justin and Nissa, thanks so much for coming with- the trip wouldn't have been the same without you.

More pictures

Addyson coming through!!!

This last week has been a rough one. It is tough trying to get back into the swing of things when I got so accustomed to living a stress-free, work-free, kid-free life on our cruise. Ahh, that really was so relaxing! I really do plan on posting pictures soon, I promise.
I just wanted to blog about Addyson's soccer game today, it was awesome! This is Addy's 4th season of soccer and it has been a slow road with her progress. At the beginning of each season she starts out pretty timid and unsure of herself. When she plays she just kind runs around and follows the ball but just doesn't seem to have a desire to actually kick the ball. Well, last week after her game I had a conversation with her about getting in there and getting the ball and not waiting for it to come to you. I told her she needed to play some serious defense as well and get that ball from away from them. Well, I couldn't believe how well she took my advice- in fact she may have gone a little far. Addyson was checking girls right and left knocking them over and getting that ball, the girl was determined! I was pretty proud of her, she went from being super shy and passive to aggressive and confident. The smile on her face everytime she took the ball from one of those girls was truly priceless. After praising her for a job well done and great effort, we did have to talk to her about toning it down a bit and not going to extremes to get the ball. We just need to work on her ball handling skills and she will kick butt!

Addyson turns 7

Addyson turned 7 years old on the 20th. Since Dave and I had plans to leave for our cruise on the 20th we celebrated on the 19th. It was a fun day, and I hope it was memorable for Addyson!

First, her Grandma Lee, Ethan, Paige, and I took cupcakes up to her school at lunchtime. It was fun to actually be a part of handing out cupcakes, since last year her teacher gave them to the kids at the end of the day during their snack time. It was kind of weird though, because I only brought enough for her class and every kid that knew her from the other classes were begging for one.

I got a ton of pics of her classmates, they were begging me to take their pictures but since I still don't know any of the kids in her class I will post this one because I know them- Olivia and Sayer.

Ethan couldn't wait until I gave him the green light to eat his cupcake.

As you can see, Paige quite enjoyed hers.

Addyson has gotten a big party every year since she was born and now that I have 3 kids, I am trying to limit their parties to every other year. My thought was to have a "family" party one year and a friend party on the alternate year. It took a lot of convincing to get Addyson to go along with the idea. I told her that her cousins could come and she could pick the activity, and she agreed. So, she picked ice skating since she recently saw the movie Ice Princess. I have to say I was a little worried about how that might go since it often involves falling down, but it went great. We went to the Stonebriar mall and had dinner at Chili's first since open skate didn't start until 8:00p.m. and then we laced up our skates and headed to the ice.

Addyson was a natural right off the bat. She loves to roller skate, and yes it really isn't the same but she got the hang of it very quickly.

Ethan, pretty much held onto Dave and I most of the night, but he did get brave enough to skate without holding onto anything and I was so proud.

Addyson's cousin Jacob was not thrilled with the ice when he got out there. But his mom and dad made him go around at least once he finally decided that it was fun.

My mom is awesome! She wanted to get out there, even though her husband didn't want to. She even had some big falls but she just kept getting up and skating- you rock Grandma!

Cayden and Becca

Mike and McKenna

We found an empty party room, so we took a chance and put all of our stuff in there. It worked out great, we were able to have cake and open presents and then head back out to the rink until it closed at 10:00.

Happy Birthday Addy, I can't believe it has already been 7 years! I love watching you grow and seeing the sweet, smart, and crazy fun girl you are becoming. I hope you had a super Birthday. We love you!