What Did I Do?

McDonalds drive through for dinner last night- what was I thinking?

I am feeling so sick this morning and didn't make it to the gym. Uggh. My stomach is in knots and I have spent way too much time staring at the Eiffel Tower (for those who have been over you know what room I have dedicated to all things French, and those who haven't I'm sure you can take a good crack at it).

Although, I am glad McD's has started putting the "nutrition information" on the sides of the packaging. Now I can have that fact that I'm consuming 20g of fat with my medium fry staring me in the face.

But I did enjoy my burger last night, I just wish this morning I could say the same.

PS- Alicia I saw a silver van in the drive through and thought it might be you, but the door wasn't open so I wasn't sure!

Nothin' to Lose

This morning was bike day at the gym, and it was hard.

I needed a little boost to get me through the last 10 mins, so I put this song on repeat. You know what? It did the trick!

SO, try it for yourself. Josh Gracin = 125 RPM's on the bike, which in turn brought me over 16 miles this morning!

The Post You Have Been Waiting For!

The Digital Camera.

What more can I say, it is the invention of all inventions. The digital era really broke down some walls for me. I used to be a stingy picture taker. I didn't want to waste film, nor the money to develop that film if the picture was lame. Therefore; only carefully posed and meaningful shots ever got snapped. And lots of fun ones got missed. Having a digital camera really eased that rigid thinking.

AND then along came a precious device called a cell phone with a built in camera. I love having a camera on my phone! I will never have a phone without a camera...never, unless something better comes around.

I'm still not fabulous at taking advantage of every photo opporunity but having the camera handy in your cell phone really has done wonders for me. I have lots chances to take pictures that I normally might not get, because I never take our camera anywhere, but my cell phone goes everywhere!

I was recently transferring photos from my phone to the computer and I had so many pictures on my phone that I thought it would be fun to share a few of them with you.

Here are some of my "spur of the moment" pictures and reasons behind taking them!



Showing Jeremy how much the kids were enjoying the Pinocchio play at Pasco High, I was hoping he was having as much fun at home with Brynnlee.


Showing Jeremy what bringing home the Sees Chocolate sucker does.


The Seahawk fan was determined to keep the hat on, even while getting his teeth cleaned. They were playing the Bears that weekend!


She's just so cute. I have to take pictures!


Remember the ONE snowfall we had that left enough snow to make a snowman? Kaden and I jumped on the bandwagon and even turned him into a green alien... the rocks just wouldn't stay in that guy's mouth though.

I just took this one for myself. He looked so cute crashed out in front of the TV at Grandma and Grandpa's. This is the result of "No nap cuz we have 2pm church".


Making banana bread. They were so excited, and looked adorable in the aprons.


I found these and thought they would be perfect for my sister's wedding. I forwarded it to her, but she didn't go with my suggestion.


Remember when they closed the highway between Richland and Kennewick? I was driving (shhh) and so the picture isn't the best. Jeremy was out of town so I wanted to show him what a mess I-82 and Queensgate were. This picture doesn't even do justice to that nightmare weekend.


We marked the quilt, now came the hard part... acutally hand quilting it all before the wedding. I was updating Jeremy on our progress.

You know when you turn your back while on the phone for just one minute? I was talking to my mom, so of course I forwarded her the picture.


The joy of winning so many tickets at Chuck E. Cheese that you get the Pez dispenser of your dreams. (2000 tickets, but the guy let us have it for 800) My sister collects Pez's so we had to show this off.



I took this picture to show Jeremy the gem at Costco. Kaden is obsessed with the gumball machine at Blockbuster- and this is a pretty close replica.


Girls are so much fun to shop for! I took this picture just to prove it to Jeremy.


Breanne at her bridal shower, little teaser I sent to the groom.

This is what I beheld as I walked into the Day after Thanksgiving Sale at Toys R Us. Jeremy was working, of course, so I showed him what he really was missing. That would be nothing.


Ever been to the Columbia Oriental Market in Pasco? I could take more pictures than this, fun to see what people shop for.


Vampire teeth won at Sausage Fest in Richland. What a handsome bloodsucker.


The excitement of a newly delievered birthday package. I sent this to my sister to show her how much Brynnlee enjoyed her gift.

Course 1 Final

1. The bad new is that this is the last cake for a few weeks.
2. The good news is we should be starting Course 2 after Easter.
3. The cake fest will continue!!!

Yes, Billy Madison & I are classmates!

WARNING: This is not the post I have been working on, BUT this moment just had to be blogged about.

So, as metioned before I went to the orthodontist today. Everything was great until I check out. The sweet lady, who in her defense is new, prints all my receipts and appointment cards and then proceeds to ask:

"Do you need a school excuse today?"

"No, I don't."

I'm sure I gave her a weird look because then this comes flying out of her mouth.

"So how old are you?"

"Uhh.. I'm 26 and I have two kids." (I'm trying really hard to be polite and not leap over the desk to strangle this sweet grandma).

"Wow. I just saw your wedding ring now. I guess that is a compliment that you look so young."

YEAH Lady, it's freakin' awesome to look like your 15!! No, I didn't say that but SERIOUSLY! I would have have liked to. The whole way home I had to laugh. Just when I think I start looking my age...

I'm sure I will love it when I'm 45 and people still think I'm a spry 34 but for now its kind of insulting.

I'm not slacking....

I have been working on a post but I have encountered a few technical difficulties. So, you will just have to wait till I can iron out my issues.

BUT today is going to be a fabulous day! Today the sun is shining, it rained all night- so you get the nice fresh air in the morning, and I'm going to the orthodontist! That might not mean a whole lot for you but to me it is another tick off my long chart of treatment.

So bring on the appointments, and the weekend!

Fabulous

Really, do I need to post anything else?

The hilarity in this picture is that Brynnlee HATES TV. I'm not even kidding. I have tried in desperation to get her to sit and zone out like Kaden just for two seconds so I can get something done- and it has yet to work.

So why she is laying there like a dead possum is beyond me, but it sure is cute!

Let them eat cake!

Here's last nights accomplishment. Kaden couldn't wait for me to come home! He knew what I was bringing back. Its so fun to see his excitement over little things...

Again the invitation is open! There's plenty of cake and more frosting in the fridge. Come on over.

Badger Mountain

Jeremy had Saturday off. We had plans to go skiing one last time. However, all the nice weather this week didn't give us very great slope conditions.

We decided to make the most of it and take the kids to hike Badger Mountain. It was so much fun and I'm proud to report that Kaden made it up and down all on his own.

He tried to get me to carry him numerous times, telling me his legs were going to fall off. Of course, being a compassionate mother I promised him that as soon as his legs did fall off I would carry him. He asked me how I could carry him and his legs. I assured him I would find room in my backpack.

He wasn't convinced. He reminded me we had all our snacks in the backpack, and didn't think it would all fit. After telling him that his legs were more important than the snacks he relented, for a few minutes at least. Here are a few pictures of our weekend hiking adventure!


Not as flat as it looks. Snack break at the top.


Mr. Cheese

Did you know...

that I have a guitar?

I do. I received this guitar for my 19th birthday. I was really inspired to learn to play (partly by this song, Kiss Me) and so my dad gave me the guitar that he learned to play on as my gift. He began learning to play while I was still in utero, so its kinda sentimental to me.

Really great story- I only wish the ending matched. I can strum a few chords and possibly fumble through Red River Valley if I practiced really hard, but I just didn't put the amount of time into it as I needed to become proficient. I guess that one semester of guitar at Ricks College just didn't cut it!

Maybe someday I'll get back on the horse, but for now the guitar just lovingly gets strummed by sweet little toddler hands.



Here it is, in all its glory.

HA HA HA!!!

Seriously, you have to check out Jess' blog. It is one of her funniest post, as of late. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I haven't laughed that hard in a while, that is until I read Karen's cop blog and Alicia's McGhetto blog.

Thanks for keeping the laughs coming!!

Sugar and Spice and More Sugar

Here it is. My latest creation. I know its not quite complete but I couldn't get a picture before Kaden was ready to devour the special treat I had created for our family.

Jessica and I are taking the Wilton Cake Decorating Classes at Michaels. It was our birthday gift from her mom. No you didn't miss my special day, but Carol-Lynn wanted Jessica and I to be able to take the classes together so she gave me my birthday gift a few months early.

Last night was our first practicing night, which meant we actually did something rather than just listening to someone tell us about frostings and tools.

So far, it has been fun. I'm just slightly worried about making a cake with tons of frosting each week. Yesterday I made 7 cups of Buttercreme frosting for the class. I don't think it will bode well for the weight loss I'm trying to accomplish.

If anyone is interested there will be cake at my house for the next few weeks. Feel free to stop by and sample some of my talent.

Saturday night I got to feel like a real sophisticated member of society. I went to my very first book signing.

Was it for the current novel I'm reading, you ask. N0. I haven't finished anything noteworthy in a while.

It was for the children's book a friend wrote and recently published.

I had high hopes of purchasing the book and having Heather write a lovely dedication to Kaden and Brynnlee on Saturday. I knew she would have some nice things to say about Kaden. After all, she was his nursery teacher.

Well, by the time I got a chance to visit with Heather all the books were gone! So I was the lucky girl who got to put her name on the waiting list for re-order, and flip through Nicole's book.

I was totally ready to have an autographed copy to bring to the sweet children awaiting my arrival home. Luckily Kaden didn't even seem phased that I came home empty-handed.

So here's the plug, if you want to check out Heather's book for yourself you can purchase it on Amazon. I'd offer you a peek at mine, but I don't have one. It is a sweet story about a mother's anticipation for her favorite moment of the day. I won't spoil it for you...

Look Alike

http://www.myheritage.com

Baby Look Alike

http://www.myheritage.com

Queer Side of a Straight Guy

Jeremy has a cousin, Tyler. Tyler is a cool guy. He is one of the funniest people I know. He is married and has three great kids. Tyler and some of his friends watch UFC.

Lets take a time out.... For those of you who aren't familiar with this term let me explain. UFC = Ultimate Fighting Challenge. There are a few things you can't do in this cage aka "The Octagon". Included are things such as eye gouging, groin attacks, and fighting with bare knuckles. This type of fighting is also know as Mixed Martial Arts.

Anyway, this is a real MANLY sport. Lots of kicking, punching, some blood. You get it. Right??

Well, Tylers friend invites him and some guys over for the fights on Pay Per View once in a while. Tyler says his friend never charges anyone to come over but he doesn't have any food while they watch. So being the thoughtful guy he is, Tyler decides he'll bring a little something this time when he goes over to watch the fight.

Some normal food options for a bunch of guys watching UFC, in my mind, would be:

a) Pizza

b) chips and dip

c) little smokies in bbq sauce

The list could go on and on, but you get the drift. These are food choices you might expect to see at any testosterone laden sporting event.

Well, Tyler choses to bring over all the ingredients for smoothies to the fight.

SERIOUSLY, I'm not joking!

And not only does Tyler bring all the stuff, but then he proceeds to make everyone smoothies for the rest of the night. So in honor of his accomplishment I would like to label him as the official "Barista Boy" of UFC. If this doesn't qualify him I don't know what else would.

My Words

A few days ago I sent out one of the dreaded forwards... I know, I'm terrible.

The challenge was to describe me in one word. It's hard I know, but it was so fun to get the responses. So here I am in a nutshell:

thoughtful
Genuine
Sincere
genuine
goodhonestcaringfunopen
Dedicated - That was hard. I could obviously come up with many more and it was hard to choose, but today that is what you get.
Caring
funny...or awesome. seriously.
Fun!!
fun
Too bad it's just one, but the first word that came to my mind is....fun.
Loving
LOYAL
Funny
supernice. I know, it's not really a word, but I didn't just want to put nice, it sounds lame, and I really do mean nice because when I first moved here, you were by far the person that made me feel the most welcome.

So, in the words of Kjo, if you are feeling "slumpy" send out a little forward and solicit a few compliments via email.

The 100th Post

Its the big one and I feel like there should be an hour long special commemorate this momentous occasion. But seriously, who would want an hour of my ramblings?

So simply stated: Here's to another 100!

Keep reading and I'll keep entertaining the world, or at least my few faithful fans in the Mid-Columbia.