Digital Scrapbooking.... Just trying it out!

Another digital scrapbooking design by Smilebox

Airplane!

Sent from my iPhone

Have Yourself a Charlie Brown Christmas!

Last night I had the "luxury" of venturing off to Target by myself.  I admit, I had a really hard time leaving the house.  The baby was down for the night, the lights were down low, and everyone was in their jammies.  You see, Daddy had popped a bowl of popcorn and announced that if the kids hurried and got P.J.s on, then they could watch Charlie Brown together before bed.  I hated to miss it, but there were things that could not wait...

• Everest needed a book for his "Secret Santa" at school.
• Hagen needed something "Christmas-y" to wear when he sat on Santa's lap.
• McKinley needed a red sweater for the "Holiday" party at school.
• I wanted a festive shirt to wear too!

Target was a complete zoo, much different than the peaceful, cozy house I had just left.  I wandered around the aisles scattered with merchandise all over the floor.  Half of the shelves were bare and it looked like everyone had already beat me to the important task of making Christmas perfect for the family. 

It was 8 p.m. when I arrived at the store, and I was hoping to find, like me, that the other shoppers had left their kids at home snuggled in their beds.  NOPE!  There were tired kids all over the store, begging for toys, candy, and clothes.  They were screaming and crying and whining everywhere... you get the picture.  By 9 p.m. I just wanted to gently let the parents of these poor children know that it was afterall, a school night, and the kids had probably had a long day at school, and wouldn't they be more comfortable at home... in bed?

I had been shopping for over an hour when I ran into my former hairdresser.  My hair was a wreck and pulled back in some sort of pony/bun.  The whole time I talked to her I couldn't decide whether I was glad my hair looked bad or not. I didn't want her to notice my fresh highlights... or even worse say something about them! AWKWARD!  She was very sweet and didn't say a thing and wished me a Merry Christmas.  Whew!  Onward...

More of the same... screaming, crying, tired kids (not mine!), bare shelves, none of the sizes I needed.  Two hours later I decided to go home.  I opened the door to a quiet, warm home.  Everyone was in bed.  The Christmas tree lights were on, there was an empty popcorn bowl left on the table, a shawl draped over the couch, a few candy wrappers left behind on the floor.  It was evidence of a fun family night I had missed!

The next morning my seven year old re-enacted his favorite part from the Charlie Brown movie.  He was in stitches over something funny Snoopy had done.  I told him I wanted to watch it with him, and that I was sorry I had missed it.  Later that night, we did just that.  We snuggled in my big, warm, cozy bed in our jammies and turned on the Peanuts DVD.  Everest was right on with his rendition of Snoopy... it was hilarious! 

Moral of the story:  Stay away from Target, shop online, and enjoy more family moments this Christmas Season!

Preferred Parking in Mexico

Here is the first of many of our vacation photos.  I picked this one to show first, because it was so different from all the rest, and so different than anything I had seen before. 

We pulled up to the Walmart in our rented car, and there were several parking spots right up front with this sign!  Everest promptly pointed and called out, "Look! They have fat people parking in Mexico!"  Yes, his simple innocence made us laugh, but that wasn't the only reason I was smiling!  Anyone who has been pregnant before knows how wonderful a sign like this is.  Kudos to Mexico for recognizing the need, and for holding these precious woman in such high regard. 




I know Babies R Us has tried the same thing here in the States, but I could never seem to find an open spot when I was pregnant.  EVERYONE shopping at Babies R Us is expecting, so the signs don't really work there (in my opinion). 

Check back often, there are many more to come!
~A

Happy Thanksgiving!

My sister sent me this cute cookie idea for Thanksgiving.  I quickly whipped up a few with ingredients I had around the house.  We are bringing them as a "hostess" gift for a Thanksgiving breakfast we have been invited to.  We were so grateful for the invitation!  We have never been invited to breakfast on Thanksgiving before. 

Here is the true recipe/creation:



http://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/144663/thanksgiving-turkey-cookies/detail.aspx

And here are our Turkeys:

22 Minutes to spare!

I am failing miserably on my promise to post vacation photos.  Not only that, but on this whole blog venture.  I long to get back into some sort of schedule again.  One where I get the older kids off to school, get a few things done around the house, put the baby down for a nap, pour a fresh cup of coffee, and sit down and write. 

The problem I am having since vacation is first: having the husband home due to shoulder surgery, and second: the baby is on some sort of quest to break the world's record for the fussiest kid ever.  I can't figure out if it's an earache, teething, tiredness, or hunger.  You'd think between my ability to look in ears, and his ability to sign, that we could figure this out!  Anyhow, that's my excuse...

So here I am with 22 minutes to spare before we need to leave for Sunday evening church.  Not enough time to post my vacation photos, but just enough time to post my excuses and to let you know I will be back! 

Off to church.  Boy that time went fast! 

~Alisha

We're Back!

Today is Novemeber 16th.... I think.  That about sums up how crazy it has been around here!  We left for vacation almost 2 weeks ago and that's how long it will take me to catch up on this blog venture.  I am going to try and stretch out our amazing vacation pictures over a 10-day period, because that's how long we were gone.

We arrived home Saturday and our wheels have been spinning ever since.  Let's see, In & Out Burger first thing (check), unpack wet swimsuits from suitcases (check), capture the "Mexican" roach that stowed away in our luggage (check), complete two weeks worth of school work (check), laundry, and church.... You get the picture.  It has been nuts! 

On top of everything, Mark had shoulder surgery yesterday.  I could write an entire book about that adventure, but I will spare you.  I'll just sum it up by saying that a surgery center is no place for a one-year-old, screeching, crawling, active, hungry, baby.  Not to mention it was a nightmare getting my drugged up husband home. His doctor's office is over an hour and a half from where we live.  Here's the equation: tired baby + drugged up husband + my nightime driving ability + horrific traffic = one crazy woman!  Thankfully, Mark is feeling very little pain today, and I am able to give him a litte guilt trip while I nurse him back to good health. :)  He seems to be recovering very well so far. 

So, that's a little taste of what we've been up to around here.  Check back often for my back dated posts about our Cabo Trip!

~Alisha