Birthday Boy

We all know that Shayne knows how to party... well, he didn't let us down this year.  The theme was "white trash olympics" - I'm not sure we really kept score or decided an overall winner - but there were definitely a few stars along the way.  First we went shooting on the west side of the lake.  I brought my camera but I failed to put the battery in it... so sad... no pictures.  Here's how the rest of the day went.

Ringing in 2011

We had our "Superfriends" over for the evening.  I'm so glad that Boyd and Kandi came all the way from Hawaii just for this!!  (jk)  

the boys enjoying the train under our tree

Not picture perfect - but can you believe how big this crew is?!?

Wish Jen and Amos had been here too!  ;-(

Let me introduce the happy couple.... well, he still needs convincing.

Kandi and Danny had lots of "shoot outs"

All our friends left before 10pm.... that left Grandma and Grandpa and us to ring in the new year with lots of noise.  My boys were THRILLED to be up past midnight.  

And we also had a overnight guest, my boys said they missed Clayton for the next 3-5 nights... it just wasn't the same when he left.  So sweet.

Happy 2011!!!

Christmas!

This Christmas....

we saw a Christmas tree fall from huge amounts of tinsel

 we let the boys play unlimited video games with their cousins and daddy...

we had a little illness that took us by surprise (which explained why Cole decided to sleep in the middle of the hallway on the hard, cold floor!)

we discovered that Danny loves to be the photographer - mommy guesstimates the direction of the camera and he does all the work...

we played with bubbles, the cool way...

we lounged and ate, and ate, and played games and ate some more...

we cooked as much as we ate... but truly it was fun to cook in this fabulous kitchen!...

we had our annual Christmas program - highlights were all the musical talent, Grandpa's gift of family history and Grandma's video of Christ's life...

we had our own little nativity - a donkey...

...a king...

...a baby Jesus who couldn't figure out why had to be swaddled and held...

we saw angels and shephards...and sheep...

we stood back and wondered how all these children have grown so much!...

we had stockings

we saw happy faces...

we  played...

we cheered...

we shot guns... (nerf guns, of course)

we took pictures...

we gave gifts... (a memory book of our family reunion last summer brought tears to Grandma's eyes!)

we shot more guns...

we saw amazing views from our back porch...

we stopped by Nana's and Papa's on the way home -

we enjoyed more presents...

we found treasures that would provide HOURS and HOURS of enjoyment...

we discovered that Nana made custom pillowcases for each of the boys and they love them!

Those were just a few of the HUNDRED pictures from our amazing Christmas with all of our family!  Truly, Christmas means two things to me: the Savior's birth and being with family.   What a joyful holiday it was!

Meat Drunk and birthday fun

I turned a sweet age of "you're closer to 50 than you are 20"!  (thanks sweet husband of mine for your kind words)  Here are the highlights of my birthday!

Going out to lunch with my mom at one of our favorite spots "Mi Ranchito" - yummmmmy chili relleno!  I'm so lucky to have my mom so close to me - for so many years we'd chat by the phone and say "wouldn't it be nice if we could just go to lunch and hang out?"  Well, now we can and I'm so grateful for her. 

Cole and Danny got to come to lunch too - beans and rice are an ABSOLUTE fav.  They were happy to be with us!

We had a family Christmas party that evening, so who gets to have this many desserts at their birthday party?

I'm not a fan of chocolate, but this cake had peppermint icing and it was DELICIOUS!  Aunt Laura knows her cakes and knows to how to make a birthday girl feel at home.  The entire family sang in what I thought was a "unique" singing style that only my family could manage - but they really rocked the house with all their hollering, moaning, yelping, every tune far from the traditional Happy Birthday song!  It brought tears to my eyes.

We had decided in advance, that our family would celebrate my birthday a day late.  On Saturday morning, I noticed that my sweet husband jumped up at the first sound from Danny (he's our alarm clock on the weekends).  I quickly figured out he was going to let me sleep in.  So, I rolled over and I slept and slept and can I just say, 9:30am was the best feeling in the world!!!  Shayne was shocked, he didn't think I could physically sleep that long.  I can't remember the last time I slept that late and it was much appreciated.  When I came out to face the world, there was Danny begging his daddy for candy!  MORE CANDY!  And what does daddy do?  Yup, this little guy ate candy for breakfast. It brought Bill Cosby's "Dad is great, he makes us chocolate cake" bit come to life for me.  I had to capture Danny's smug grin.

The big event of the day was dinner out at Texas Roadhouse - one of my favorite places to eat.  It has also become a favorite for Cole - he is CONSTANTLY begging for ribs.  Unfortunately, I don't know how to cook ribs, so it's a once a year (maybe twice?) event for this favorite.  I told Shayne I still wanted a date with him, but I wanted to bring the kids to dinner with us.  We had free kid meal tokens and I knew they would love to go with us.  We had a table full of RIBS - 5 orders of RIBS!  Hunter isn't a huge fan - but Cole and Danny were living the life.  It was a great dinner-date.  After dinner, we left the kids with a sitter and the adults went and did boring stuff (shopping)!  It was a FABULOUS birthday weekend!  

This is our favorite picture of the night - he's MEAT DRUNK!

When I wear lip-gloss

In the rare moment I slip on a little lip gloss, I get mixed reactions from my family...

Shayne - "I like that a lot!  You should wear it more often."
Hunter - "Mommy, you know I hate that.  Why do wear that?  It makes your lips pink, I really don't like it at all."
Cole - "ewwww, why are wearing that stuff?"
Danny - his eyes get really big and he keeps trying to touch my lips with his finger, and really, he wants some of his own.

Me, I guess I don't wear lip gloss/lipstick enough, or ever!  I want to know if my boys change their mind when they start dating.  Is lip gloss really that gross and awful looking?  But, I'm grateful my boys love me for being "PLAIN" me - which seems to be most of the time!

What happens if....

• ...you offer Danny chocolate (3 m&m's) every time he goes pee in the potty?  He goes again, and again, and again.  And don't be fooled - I have no expectations at this point but I will celebrate the little successes.  Bribery never worked on his big brothers.
• ...you try to help Danny pick out a shirt for the day?  He will refuse just about the whole drawer full.  It takes a while, but he will choose his own shirt.
• ...put socks and shoes on Danny?  He takes them off.  In fact, he takes off his shirt too.
• ...put a coat on Danny?  he takes it off - if I even get him out the door with it on, it comes off before getting in the car.
• ...the old man gives you dirty looks at Walmart for walking into the store with a coat-less, shoe-less, and screaming child?  You start that sweet talk out loud that says "You chose to take off your shoes and now you have to ride in the cart.  Bummer!  Kids with shoes get to walk next to mommy and you didn't want shoes..."
• ...you try to help Danny do anything?  He'll scream, "I DO IT!" and then start the process all over again to make sure HE did it.
• ...you make cookies after a ho-hum Friday of cleaning house, lots of potty trips, and playing with friends?  You eat one, then another, and another.  In fact, I lost count after 7 cookies.  So, I decided to type on the computer to keep my fingers AWAY from the cookies.  YUM!

Repairman FYI's

I've been having issues with my BRAND NEW washer and although it's totally lame, I'm glad that it's still under warranty.  Well, I've had 4 different repairmen here in the past few months and I have picked their brains about how to better care for my large appliances.  I thought I'd pass along the info I have learned!

Washing Machine

• Don't use fabric softener, use vinegar instead, with every wash.  It is better than fabric softener and no, it doesn't stink.  Well, maybe I do smell like vinegar and my friends haven't mentioned it?!?!
• The vinegar not only cleans your clothes, it also will reduce static - thus no dryer sheets.  Also, this cleans your washer and it goes a long way to keep it mold free.
• personally, I haven't dried the "no dryer" sheets theory....  I think everything is SUPER static-ee in the winter.... drives me bonkers!
• Leave the door (top or front) open on your washer to air out after each washing.  
• I must mention, no vinegar if you are using bleach in that load
• Wash your heavier clothes together - ie towels and jeans.  Try to wash clothing with similar traits - loads with half towels and half regular clothes is hard on the washer. 
• Most stores suggest filling front loaders too full.  There is suppose to be 1/3 room on top of space.  If you are washing heavy clothing, ie towels or jeans, leave 1/2 of the space free.
• Use about 2 Tablespoons of soap.  Usually you don't need any more than that.  (I was using WAY MORE than that!!!)  

Dishwasher

• One technician recommended "Finish"... I still haven't finished my other supply to try this brand
• Another recommended "Lemishine" product, just 1 tsp per load (for those with hard water)
• Once a month, throw in a cup of vinegar at the basin and fill up a cup with vinegar to leave on the top rack in the upright position.  The lower vinegar will get rinsed out quickly - but with cup full on top, vinegar stays throughout the cycle.  I did this and noticed a big change in my washer immediately.
• Another technician recommended powder over gels.  He was also a fan of the little "pre-measured" packets simply because he says people use too much soap.  You should only be using 2 Tablespoons of soap.  Supposedly, too much soap will etch your glassware.

So, there you have it!!  Hopefully I won't have to bring a technician back for any repairs!