Geez.. I guess getting geared up to go swimming wipes McKenzie right out. Uncle Joel and Aunt Carrie took the two little girl swimming today. This is Kenzie in the car on the way there.
This is Kenzie several months ago, camping at Cascade Peaks… waiting to go swimming there.
What a goof!
Well, it’s been awhile since I’ve seen my boy in a tux.
Year 2009
Ok this picture is not good. Again, it’s with my dingbat cell phone. I would have went to grab my beloved Rebel, but… we were running out the door, so the cell phone crapcam had to suffice. It almost looks like he was an angel sent straight from Heaven? Ehh, most days I’d agree 
But the lighting is kind of odd, isn’t it?
Anyway, Mr. Man is in the school band and their “uniform” for concerts is a tuxedo. Poor guy… his pants are 30’s. I think he’s MAYBE a 26… and in a pair of Tony Lama’s… He said there was only one pair smaller than what he ended up with, and they were snatched up by the other “little person” in the school band. LOL. We will have to get him a different pair.
He plays the clarinet, in case you are wondering. And he’s very good at it! He’s been playing for 4 years and just keeps getting better.
Miss Bailey had to decorate a turkey for school this week. She had crafts supplies from one end of the kitchen to the other. I watched her decorate it, but I didn’t do it for her…. she created this masterpiece ALL by herself. The only thing anyone helped her with was the hat, and that was Ashlyn’s idea. Just because little 6 year olds holding homemade turkeys are so darn cute, there are 3 pictures below all for your enjoyment 
Save $5 off on a Family Size pizza at Papa Murhpy’s.
These coupons don’t come out very often, good deal. It is 1 per visit, and good through 11/30/09.
Walgreens Deal Match Ups
**The November Savings Coupon Book can be picked up at the front of your Walgreens store, as can the weekly ad if you don’t have one.
* KLEENEX ~ $1.09 with ad coupon (buy 3)
Use .50/3 coupon
Use $1/1 coupon from the November Savings Booklet
= FREE
* OCEAN SPRAY JUICE ~ $1.99 (with ad coupon)
Use $1 off coupon from the November Savings Booklet
Look for $1 off stickers on the bottom of bottle
= .99 or Free
* GOLD MEDAL FLOUR ~ 2 for $3.00 (with ad coupon)
Use .50 off coupon
= $1.00 each or you can use two coupons and get 2 for
$2.00
* CHEEZ IT CRACKERS ~ Buy 1 Get 1 Free
= $1.50 each
Specially Marked Boxes would be eligible for the
Kellogg’s Toy Cash Rebate
* GLADE AIR FRESHENER ~ .99 each (with ad coupon)
Use $1 off 2 coupon from the November Savings Booklet
= .49 each when you buy 2
* BETTY CROCKER FROSTING ~ $1.29 (with ad coupon)
Use .50 off coupon or this .50 off coupon
= .79 each
There is a $5 off $25 coupon you can print and make these deals even sweeter.
ADDED 11/12:
* NEXXUS MOUSSE ~ 2/$5
Use $4.00 off 1 coupon from the November Savings Book
= FREE (it should take the entire cost of these off, if you are buying 2)
* GLADE SPRAY
These Glade Air Freshener Sprays are on sale this week for .99 each with Ad Coupon. The Right @ Home coupons I posted about here included .75 off 2 holiday collection Glade Sprays. The November Savings Book (found at the front of all Walgreens stores) has a coupon for $1/2. Buy 4 sprays, use 2 of the printable coupons, the Ad Coupon, and the November Savings coupon and you should get 4 cans of the Glade Sprays (holiday collection only) for .46 cents each. We have 3 bathrooms, so I’ll do this deal and put one of these in each of our bathrooms. Good deal!
Not sure what it is about the rain that I love so much… but the sound of the rain on my windows is my absolute favorite sound.
Today, we had a big rain shower, that lasted maybe 15 minutes at the most…. it happened to coincide with my break (I work from home). The house was perfectly quiet, dog asleep, and everyone gone except for me. I sat at the top of our stairs and just listened/watched the rain. Grabbed my camera and took a picture of what I was looking at/listening to. I find it very calming, and forget about light boxes…. I wish I had a little rain box to watch and listen to the rain any time I wanted….
Can someone tell me why this one tree is still green? LOL. Kind of funny….
I wonder how many times I’ve watched “It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” show. A lot.
You’d think I’d have to force my kids to sit and watch this show with me. The animation that Charlie Brown was created with is not exactly what they are used to these days. But, there must be something about it for them too, that they are always just as excited to watch it as I am. They know that it means Halloween is just a few days away, and what kid doesn’t love the holiday that offers up a buffet of two of their favorite things? Dress up and buckets of candy. 
I made chocolate chip cookies tonight, in a pumpkin shape to have for dessert. They weren’t very appealing (I’m no Martha LOL) but they were fun to make and the kids liked them, so my goal was achieved.
McKenzie started writing these cute little notes to us and leaving them in random places for us to find. Yesterday, I was sitting in my chair, and she slipped one next to me while she was giving me a hug. It was folded up and put in a sweet homemade envelope she’d folded. It just said “I love you Mommy”. So sweet. This morning, I heard her sneak in and out of my bedroom. And I found this one tucked under my pillow:
Then I spotted this one (see it there in the front?) later this evening. This one is still there as it says “To Dad” and Daddy hasn’t yet spotted it so I left it for him to find (HINT HINT David!). These are cute and fun little surprises. McKenzie is so creative and I love it when she does stuff like this!
Last week, my grandma turned 90! I haven’t met a whole lot of 90 year olds in my life, but from what I see, she is amazingly healthy! She still lives on her own, in the same house my dad was born and raised in. It has a basement with rickety old wood stairs. She still keeps her canned foods down there and her washer and dryer. Amazing!
My grandma loves all of us so much, though she’s not always the easiest person to get along with. When I was little, I had a hard time staying there for visits, because I was an only child and stayed there alone. She was very prim and proper. Sit up straight, elbows off the table, brush your teeth with baking soda, etc. Not that I didn’t enjoy visiting with her, but it was a completely different environment from my own home! A little dose of that never hurt me, now that I look back on it. My grandma loves her great grandkids… she is much easier with them than she ever was with me. My oldest has Grandma eating out of the palm of her hand! My dad still checks in with my Grandma every day and visits her every weekend, sometimes more often. I hope that my kids take care me as well as he does for her, and I suppose a lesson to me on how I need to take care of my parents as they get older! Great Grandma still sends jars of pennies home with the kids, still pays the kids $5 per A on their report card. You would never see Grandma in anything but a dress, complete with “stockings” as she calls them. I think she even wears those to bed She has her hair done every Saturday at the same salon that I remember when I was little, same style too. Once in awhile she may change the style (and when I say once in a blue moon, that would be an understatement!), and we would be in shock. She prays before every meal, and that includes us all holding hands, even if we are dining in a nice restaurant. What other people think isn’t important to her, when it comes to praying before a meal. I admire that in her, because you certainly don’t see that very often. She is very honest, brutally so sometimes. I don’t think she intends to hurt people’s feelings but it happens, pretty often. Most of us are used to that. She has taught me alot about life in general. I wish she lived closer, so I could have learned more from her. I have a feeling she’ll be with us for years to come still. Happy Birthday Grandma!
Dad rented the Portland Sternwheeler Rose for her birthday gathering. We had a great 2 hour boat ride up the Willamette River. The rain stopped just for 2 hours that day. It literally started to rain as I was carrying the leftover food back up to my van. We were blessed!
Here are some pictures. I didn’t get any of me on my camera with Grandma, I hope that someone else did. I was busy taking tons of pictures of my own. Each picture can be clicked to enlarge.
Daddy and Bailey carrying supplies onto the boat.
Bailey and Austin (my nephew) with the captain!
Great Grandma and her great grandkids!
Grandma and Dad
Just one of Grandma by herself!
Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dork… they were writing codes I think? Goofy boys.
Ah and then there is goofy mom with Katy and Bailey
My mom with all of my kids
My mother-in-law with the kids
My sister and her “dating partner”…. not sure they are boyfriend/girlfriend yet, but they were last year. Confused yet? Me too.
Katy and Kenzie
Me and Katy
Bailey and Katy
The 3 oldest, aren’t they cute? Ashlyn, Tanner, and Katy
Grandma blowing out her candles! I wonder what 90 would have looked like
And, we all enjoyed pumpkin bars for dessert that I made last night. They were delicious!
Pumpkin Bars
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9×13
pans or one jelly roll/cookie sheet with sides.
Mix all ingredients in order above until well
blended. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool completely and frost with cream cheese
frosting (which I use 2 sticks butter, softened, 1 block cream cheese, softened,
2 cups sifted powder sugar, a tad of vanilla)
DELICIOUS - I am telling you!!
Do you ever just see something and find it adorable? Like you want to freeze that moment and take a “mental” picture beause you don’t want to forget it? I was watching Bailey put her shoes on this morning and had one of those weird “mommy moments”… where I’d likely be considered goofy if I told anyone something like putting shoes on would melt my heart. Kids grow up so dang fast. I have forgotten little facial expressions they’d make, cute things they said, moments that pass… and you just forget! So I took a picture… of my sweet Bailey… putting her shoes on. Share in my mommy moment with me, won’t you?
This next one is of my nephew Lane and Bailey. They are always so bashful when it comes to taking pictures, but yet they play so cute together and aren’t shy at all. They are sweet. And yes… Lane really IS 18 months YOUNGER than Bailey!!
Plain Grandma gave Bailey this giant stuffed Zoe. She loves her. We have to set an extra place at the table for Zoe, make sure she has crayons when they are coloring, and cover her with blankets at night so she doesn’t get cold. Goofy girl!
Animal Crackers In My Soup!
Today was Bailey’s dance recital. The girls were all so cute, we had the J— the duck, R— the bear, and Bailey the mouse. It was so hot today, 101 degrees and humid… the girls looked so cute, but they were tired and hot before they even got their turn on stage. It took them a few seconds to get into (Bailey did anyway)… This day makes that 1 hour every Friday, worth it. Here are a few pictures. I didn’t put the girls’ full names in because I didn’t ask their parents
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