Happy Halloween!!!!!!

Thanks Cuz!!!!!!!!!

I just want to say a quick "Thank You" to my cousin Carronin! I opened my mailbox to find "Good Mail". It has been a while since I have received (or sent for that matter) any good mail...... I was soooooo happy! It couldn't have come on a better day! I was having such a bad today.........MY Mailbox made me smile from ear to ear!

On top of that, she "Boo'd" Me.......

Love ya Cuz!

(not pictured; two travel bottles of lotion that I quickly popped into my purse...)

Woohoo it's Fall!!!!!

I LOVE FALL! I must admit that fall is my most favorite season. I love the smells, the food and the cool air. I love the leaves changing color and falling to the ground. I love little Halloween gatherings and parties...... it is so fun!

That said, I hate "Trick-or-treating"......... I know, I know I am a "humbug". Every year I try to buy my little ghouls off with a huge bag of candy of their very own choosing. They have never taken me up on the offer. I probably wouldn't either ( if I were them). But I figure that it is worth a yearly shot. This year it looks like I will be out "trick or treating" again. Boo Hoo.

Oh well, I still love fall, and I love seeing my little pumpkins all dressed up.

You've been "Boo'd"!

My kids and I started a neighborhood "BOO" game. Where we pick 3 families, drop some candy, a phantom picture (to hang in the window so that everyone knows that you been boo'd), and a poem with instructions to do the same thing with 3 families that have not been "Boo'd" yet.

It was so fun!!!!!!!!! We were laughing so hard! There is nothing like making good fun memories with your kids.

P.S. I actually wrote this a week ago, But I forgot to post it. It has been so fun to watch my ghost drawing appear in neighbors windows....... We left the ghost out of our window because my kids really want to be "Boo'd" also. But alas, no one has "boo'd" us....... would it be weird if my hubby or I "boo'd" ourselves just to make our kids happy?

I know its not weird.....just wondering you all would do.

I'm still here!

Hello everyone! I know that it has been too long since I have written! I am sorry. I have been sooooo busy! Home school has been quite the endeavor, on top of having 2 very busy and curious toddlers now. My princess is walking and boy has she been keeping me busy. You would think that having 5 children would make me a well seasoned toddler parent. But alas, I have never had 2 toddlers at the same time. Boy is it hard chasing them in 2 different directions every day. Though, I should be grateful, because if they are not going in 2 separate directions then they are "duking" it out.

Oh, but I do love them sooooo very much........they are so cute and lovable. I am so grateful to be there "Mommy"

I must admit that I have been suffering from writers block. I can not think of anything to write anymore...... HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OH yeah....Princesses birthday party was a blast!

My baby is 1!

I can't believe it! It seems like she was just born yesterday! This last year has been such a delight! It is so special to have a little princess among many princes! Happy Birthday Princess!

Woohoo!!!!

Wow! I have been soooo busy! I have started "cyber school" with my kids this week. It is very time consuming right now. I don't have as much free time...and alas, blogging is one of the last things on my list of daily activities. I want you all to know, that all though I probably will not be writing as much any more, I am thinking about all of you, and wishing that I could write. This is not a "good-bye" as I am still planning to post, just not as often.



I want to thank Melissa for the "good mail" that I received this week! I absolutely love it! It made my day! Thank you so much!





Also, I have so much zucchini! Do any of you have any yummy and/or creative recipes for zucchini? If you do, please don't be shy. Share, share, share!!!!!!!!!!!

My son gets good mail too!

My son has a neighborhood friend that he likes to draw pictures for. He likes to deliver the "letters" to his friends door, or put them in the mailbox. His friend will usually return the favor. Well, today his cute little friend delivered an envelope. I handed it to my son who was in the kitchen and went to the living room. I suddenly heard him yell "WOW" and laughing with joy. We ran to see what was so exciting, there he sat with his "good mail"...a tooth brush and a broken crayon. he was soooo happy! It was so cute. We love good mail!

Good Mail!

I received Good mail while I was away! I want to thank those of you who sent it!

I received a wonderful package from Sodak Angel. I loved the origami, I made the whale right away! My kitty and kids went straight for the feathers.... I was able to save a few. Love the address labels (its nice to have some with my name instead of DH). the notebook was great ( I love having a little notebook all of the time). I could go on and on...it was a great package..... a very good way to get to know you.

Chellie sent a very cute M&M card with a package of M&M's! How did you know that I LOVE chocolate. Too good to share with anyone.....sorry kids.

The Smiling Infidel sent an adorable card with a magnet....... She inducted me into the very exclusive and elite magnet society. I feel so lucky! My fridge does too. I absolutely love it!

Thanks to all of you!

I'm Back!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow it is so hard to come back....... We had so much fun on vacation! We had the chance to visit great family members and great places! We went to museums, fun parks, restaurant's, malls and parties! Great fun! I just need to get back into "the swing of things". Boy, is that hard to do.

VACATION 2007!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, we are heading out to Colorado in a couple of days. We are so excited!

I have lots to do! I won't be blogging for a couple of weeks! I will be out having fun, and taking lots of pictures!

See ya all soon!

Mamma's been busy!

Wow what a day!
First, I woke VERY early to drop my son off with his Scout leaders, so that they could head up to a week long camp. Boy was he ever excited. I could barely keep him contained. HE was excited, and I was so nervous. Its hard to be away from you child for that long. I hope that he has a blast.

Next, I made gluten free chocolate chip cookies. There was no reason for me to make them, I was just curious as to how they might taste.... they weren't bad!
After that I took my very first zucchini of the season and turned in to 2 loaves of Zucchini bread. Mmmmmmm Mmmmmmm. I must admit I believe that was the MOST beautiful Zucchini I had ever laid my eyes. I hope that it tastes as good as it looks!

Also, I received a happy post card from Sodak Angel today (thanks! I am glad that you like the Kool Aid), and I want to thank Jean Knee again for the yummy M&M's last week! You Both Rock!

Help!!!!!!!!

OK this maybe an odd request from someone with 5 kids. You would think that I might be well seasoned and experienced in child rearing. But alas, I am stumped. I have a 2 year old boy with sensory processing disorder. He is a sensory seeker, and he loves to have things done a certain (same) way all of the time. Sameness make him feel safe and secure. He likes to play with his toys in a certain same way too. His brothers are much older than him and pretty much stay out of his way and let him go on with all of his "oddities". However, now my 10 month old baby girl is getting to the point of wanting to interact and play with him. She is very curious about him and wants to be doing everything that he is doing. He does not interact very well with other kids, and does not like to be disturbed when he is in the middle of something. Now that "Princess" wants to play with him, he is extremely bothered. So there is constant fighting, crying and screaming. :( I knew that they would fight, but I never imagined it at these young ages. Neither of them seem to understand and they both cry, cry, cry. I try to tell my 2 year old to touch soft and and share and take turns....... but he really doesn't seem to understand me, nor does my baby......... Any advice would be sooooo appreciated.

Garden Picture Day!

It's that day of the week! Look at how much my garden has grown! We have had a few tomatoes and a few sugar peas! We are waiting on a tiny zucchini to get a little bigger. We sure do love our little garden!

Happy 4th of July!

I hope that you get to see lots of fireworks!

Yep! Thats my hubby!

Mom, are we there yet?

Well, in about a week and a half, my family will be going on vacation! We are traveling by car and it should take us about 10 hours. We are so excited! We will be staying at the "Princess Palace" With "Queen K".

Don't worry, my boys don't mind going to the princess palace, In fact they love it there! As do I!

So, I am trying to prepare for this trip....Finding someone to take care of our house and pets, getting snacks for the ride, etc..... I have 5 kids ranging in ages between 10 months and 12 years. The trip is always fun at the beginning, but once boredom sets in the trip usually turns into a big fight (kids against Parents). Any suggestions on how to entertain the wee ones during or trip would be sooooo appreciated.

I am very proud to announce that I was able to put a little itty bitty pony tail in my baby girls hair, for the first time today. Hurray!!!!! Party Party!!!!!!!!!!

I would also like to take a moment to thank Jean Knee for the delicious Good Mail yesterday. I LOVE CHOCOLATE!

Cheesy!!!!!!!!!!!!

Last night Grease was playing on T.V. and though I have seen that movie a million times, I was quite captivated and watched the movie again. I have to admit that I am am a sucker for cheesy romantic moments in movies.

I also need to admit that I love the end of the movie when Sandy goes "bad" and they are dancing around at the fair! Woohoo!Yeah!

I love the part in "Say Anything" when John Cusack is holding the boom box over his head and playing "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel.

Or, in "Never Been Kissed" when Poor Drew Barrymore is standing in the baseball field and she thinks that her love (Michael Vartan) isn't coming to kiss her..... she frowns and drops the microphone, and then out of nowhere her love comes running down the bleachers to her arms and they kiss For EVER!!!!!!!!!!

OK.....enough of my favorites!What some of your favorite cheesy moments?

Ain't that the truth?

Love this video! P.S. Pause the music player when you play the video :)

My boys are AWSOME!

Ok I am feeling much Better! Hurray! WE will be going to our BBQ tonight!

Exciting news! My boys all graduated from their swim lesson levels! YES!!!!!!! I am so proud! Its on to the next levels. These are my "internet friendly" pictures of them and their certificates!

Uuuuuggggggghhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!

Oh.... I am sick today! I caught some icky summer stomach thing. I just want to rest.....but not today. My kids graduate from swim lessons today, my house needs to be cleaned and I am supposed to go to a BBQ tonight (I may not go to the bbq now).

Moms don't have time to be sick, especially in the summer!

We are growing!

Wow! Look at my garden now! It's growing and I am so very proud!

Pizza Anyone?

I love this recipe! My son wrote when he was in the 1st grade. We have had a couple years of good laughs over it!

Hmmmmmm......

I want to post........ I really do, but my mind has hit a wall. I can not figure out what to write about. Sometimes I wonder if I am getting old to early. I ache, I am tired, I forget everything, and alas, I am getting grey hair (Waaaahhhh)........ and now my mind has drawn a blank, and I can not think of anything to post about.

No special thoughts, no funny story, I can not think of anything!

Wait, actually I do have a funny story. Its from my past. I hope you enjoy! .............

............My Cousin and I were regulars at the good old church dances. Since it was always a possibility that we might meet our future husbands, it was very important to make a good first impression. On the down side to this, my father drove the biggest, UGLIEST, most dreadfully large, bright yellow, ford station wagon, aka “the yellow submarine”. Oh, scary were the nights when it was his turn to drive. On one particular occasion, my cousin and I requested that he drop us off a block away from the church, and we would be more than happy to walk the rest of the way. Well, my father and his sadistic mind would not have such a thing. In fact, he enjoyed that we had asked this of him. And the rest of the trip left his mind scheming. We knew that we were in for “it” as his dreamy yellow ship docked right at the front door. He rolled down the window, stuck his head out and yelled, as loud as he could, “HEY BOYS, THE GIRLS ARE HERE”. In only the purest embarrassment, we covered our heads and ran straight for the Woman’s bathroom. After 15 minutes of hiding, we came out for an enjoyable night at the youth dance.

First Fruit of the season!

We picked our first Tomato a few days ago! We were all so excited! Everybody wanted it....so, we cut it up into 6 pieces.....that way, we could all have a piece Mmmmmmmmm!!!!!! It was the BEST! There is nothing like a tomato picked right out of the Garden!

Happy Fathers day!

To my Dad: Thank you for raising me to be the women that I am today. Maybe I grew up a little different than everyone else. I am grateful for that! Those things made me who I am today. You gave me the ability to cherish people and their differences. You taught me to prefer a little controversy, and not to do things just because "everyone else does".

I loved our Sunday hikes in the mountains when we were kids, those gave me a wonderful appreciating for nature and the beauty that God gave us to enjoy. You were the strongest man I knew..... always willing to scare the monsters, ghosts, and "Peeping Tom's" (Yes, we had real "Peeping Toms") away from my room.

Maybe at one time, I disliked the things that you would do to embarrass me when I was a teenager. Now, those make the best stories to tell my friends..... I love and cherish those memories(I hope that my kids can cherish that too).

I want you to know that I had a wonderful child hood, full of diversity, great memories and stories. I wouldn't have it any other way. I am grateful to our Heavenly Father for giving me such a smart, strong and loving Dad. I love you Dad!

To my father in law: I am grateful to you for raising my thoughtful and caring husband. He loves you so much. He looks up to you in every way, and strives to be as good of a father to these kids, as you were, and are to him. You have helped us in so many ways, I am so grateful to you for everything that you do for your family. You are very thoughtful, and understanding. I feel so lucky to have married into such a close and special family. I am eternally grateful to you for my husband.

To my husband: Words can not explain it. What an amazing person. I was a single mother of 3 children when I met and married him. He jumped right into fatherhood. He loves those 3 boys so much, and considers them his own. He has blessed me with me with 2 more beautiful children. I want to thank him for being open minded and willing to look at things from my point of view. He works so hard for our family, and though he complains about work, he never complains that he has to work. He loves providing for our family. I am thankful that it is him whose hand I will be holding tight for eternity. I want to thank him for his patience and love. I want him to know that I love him very much, and am grateful for the kind and loving man that he is. I Love you, Jay!

Am I getting old?

I took my kids shopping in the city today. On the way home, I was flipping through the radio stations, just looking for a good song. When finally my craving was met. "Men at work"--"Down Under".....Woohoo! I was getting down!!!!! Then enter the next song..... "The Doors"---"Light my fire". A good song too, but not the type of song that I was expecting. "That's odd" I thought to myself. Then I noticed......... I was listening to the "oldies" station! Am I getting old? Why is music from my generation playing on that station? I mean, The beetles, The Doors, The Beach Boys, they belong there. But not my 80's music. Geez!!!!!!!!

When I was a child my mother would listen to oldies, and I would think to myself "WOW, she is OLD!" . In fact, when my parents would tell me stories about their childhood I would imagine it in Black and white. After all, I only saw black and white photos of them. Everyone looked and dressed just like they came out of "Leave it to Beaver", and that show was in black and white. When I was a teenager "the wonder years" came out, it was then that it finally hit me that my parents might have lived in color.

So now I wonder, how do my kids imagine my childhood? My 6 year old doesn't mind telling me how old (or fat) he thinks I am. Heck, he pretty much thinks that MY Dad is Dinosaur.

Well, Here I am in my 30's, my parents in their 50's. They seem just over the horizon to me. The people who once seemed sooooooo ancient to me, don't seem very old at all, and before I know it, I will be in my 50's too. Yikes!

Well, here's to age.

Are you feeling like this?

If you have been invited to my "family" blog and cannot get in... please let me know via email, or by leaving a comment here.

I will do all that I can to help you!

Garden time!

I love my garden! I am so excited to have one this year! I have 12 tomato plants, 2 pumpkin, 4 zucchini, 2 yellow squash, 6 bell pepper, 1 hot pepper, and 5 mild peppers. 2 eggplant, lots of corn, green beans, and snap peas. Mmmmmmmmm........ I can't wait to eat!

I know that I need to weed...... it's endless I wish that they would stay out of my garden.

P.S. any advice on keeping pesky ants and weeds out of my garden would be wonderful! :)