Fieldtrip with Ella's 2nd Grade Class

I was SO LUCKY to be able to go on Ella's field trip two days after Jack's! We went to the Wildlife World Zoo in Goodyear, AZ. It was a lot of fun and Ella has a great class of kids. This is a picture of Ella and her sweet friend Caroline in the middle of a turtle/frog tank.
Best school buddies Ella and Caroline!
Of course Ella LOVED the petting zoo, and the goats LOVED Ella. She couldn't get away!
Here she is petting "Bambi".
The highlight of the trip for all the kids was feeding the giraffe's. You could climb up a tower, buy some food for $.50 and the giraffe's would eat right out of your hand. Ella loved every second of it. It was hilarious to see the long gray/black tongue wiggle out and wrap itself around her hand. She seriously couldn't get enough.

Ella is such a joy to me and our family. It was obvious that all her classmates loved her, and that she made people happy. I am so grateful to be her Mom. I don't know what I did to deserve her.

Fieldtrip with Jack's Kindergarten Class

After the Halloween hoopla I was able to go with Jack's kindergarten class on their field trip to a local Farm. It was so fun to see him and all of his classmates interact. I KNOW I'm biased, but he is the sweetest kid EVER! I just had to soak in the fact that he LOVED having me there and was giving me hugs and kisses the whole time. I know this won't last, so I'll take it while I can!They had races through a hay maze on these "John Deere" tricycles
Have you ever seen a cuter bunch of boys in your LIFE?! I love the shirts their teacher made for them. From L to R is Jett, Alex, Smith, Remington, Jack, Johnathan, and Kent.
You gotta love the telephoto lens for shots like this! This was on the way down the first hill of the roller coaster! Jack is the one with his arms up in the air.
I love how he wanted to wave at me every time they went by!

I was in charge of this rowdy crew. Kent, Jack, Smith, and Remington. They kept me on my toes, but I had a great time!

Jack is the best kid. I feel so lucky to have him as my son. He loves school, friends, learning, and LIFE! We have always had a special bond and I actually think he will always let me give him hugs and kisses...even when he's a man! At least that's what I'm telling him.

Become as a child...

This is a little boy who called into a religious radio show. Unbelievable!

Worst Friend Award goes to ...ME!!

Okay, so there are some things that I am really good at. Remembering birthdays is NOT one of them. So, as I read Marcie's post from a few days ago, I realized I had missed my dear friend Sally's birthday. I AM THE BIGGEST LOSER!

I have known Sally for almost 10 years now and I can honestly say she is one of my all time favorite people. Marcie touched on many of the highlights, but I may repeat them for those of you in blogger land that aren't invited to her blog!

Sally is the epitome of classy

Sally is gorgeous

Sally is "real", and will keep it real for you

Sally is very creative and has a great eye for style

Sally is so comfortable to be around

Sally makes me feel like she gets me even when I know I am sounding like a crazy person

Sally will love me even though I forgot her birthday...that's a true friend

I could go on and on, but the main point is that I feel so blessed to have her as my friend. If only she lived a little closer! I love you Sally and I am SO SORRY I missed your birthday.

Nora and Sammy Hammy

I'm trying out the video feature here on blogger. This is rag-a-muffin Nora playing with Sammy Hammy!

Pumpkins and Trick or Treating

The night before Halloween we decided that we better not be total slackers and carve some pumpkins. We went over to my brother Dave's house and made it an event with their family.
It ended up being a lot of fun and everyone got into the action.
Even Nora Jayne wanted to get messy!
Ella was determined to get a lot of seeds so we could toast them and eat them up!

This is my SIL Natalie with two of her five... Andrew, and Lauren.

Here is Dave instructing four of the five...Andrew - holding Audrey, Ashley, and Hannah.
The next night was Halloween and there was a change of costumes for the boys. Jack decided to be a sheriff/cowboy, and Max donned the Captain Jack Sparrow costume. They looked great and were geared up for the trick-or-treating.

The mustache didn't last long as you can imagine. Cute though!
Now that face beats out Johnny Depp any day!
Here they are with all their loot. If you look closely you can see that Ella's bag is literally filled to the brim. I realized this year that we had crossed the threshold of casual, around the block, trick-or-treating. Ella and Jack had the motivation to keep going and going. I was so appalled by the amount of candy that they brought home that when I saw it I blurted out (without really even thinking), "I'll give you $10 for your candy." Without hesitation Jack said, "OK" and promptly handed me his bag of candy. It took Ella a little bit while she wrestled with the dilemma. Finally we told her she could keep 10 (out of 126 - yes she counted) pieces. She was happy with that arrangement and we made the deal. I hadn't planned on doing this, but I was so glad to see that candy, and the wrappers, and the sugar high, and the turmoil it would cause, GO AWAY!!!

Quick side story. A few days later I went into Ella's room and she was eating something. I found several wrappers on her floor and I asked her where she got the candy. She claimed that she forgot that she had hid some of it in her room. I told her that she had made the deal to give us all but the 10 pieces and that she had been dishonest. I gave her the whole "I'm disappointed" speech, along with the, "now I'm not sure if I can trust you" sentiment. She was very sad and I just left her with her thoughts, no consequences...yet. About 5 minutes later she came into the kitchen with her purse and emptied it out on the counter. I asked her what she was doing and she said it was for the candy. I was so proud of her that I started crying. She was willing to give it all back to make up for what she had done. I told her that I was so proud and that now I knew she understood. I really thought that was great because I never said anything about what I thought she should do, or what I was going to do. I did take back two dollars, but let her keep the rest. I figured she had learned exactly what I would want her to learn. What an absolute sweetie. This girls heart really is made of gold.
I had to include these priceless photos of crazy man Max! A picture says a thousand words...
and these articulate this kids personality perfectly. Love him!

Ward Halloween Party

I know that from my lack of posting that it looked like we skipped Halloween this year, but we didn't. I am only just now getting to writing about it. I think we had a good Halloween. The highlight was FOR SURE the Ward Halloween Party. We live in an awesome ward and they go all out for this event. There is a family in our ward who has tons of property with horses and the works. They let the party be held there and it is so much fun. They open all their horse stalls and in each one is a different carnival game for the kids. They also have horse rides, chili contest, cake walk, face painting, eating contests, free popcorn and cotton candy. There are even Navajo tacos/scones and drinks for dinner. All of this is provided by the ward...everything is free.
Here we are in our costumes. All the girls are witches, Jack is a power ranger, Max is spider man, and Paul is a ...um...a photographer...that's what he told the kids. Party pooper!
Jack was a natural on the horse. He ended up being a cowboy for the actual Halloween trick or treating after this adventure!
The three orange and black witches!
Here is Max on the horse. He loved this.
Nora should have been a monkey. She would not stop climbing on everything! She loved the horses so much and spent the majority of her time on these gates. It's hard to tell in these pictures just how tiny she is, but it looked hilarious. She can climb ANYTHING! It was so fun to see her have such a ball at this party. I will admit that I thought she was going to make the party hard, but she made me smile the whole time. She really did have a great time.
One more shot of her peering over the gate at the horses. She wasn't afraid AT ALL!! I was a little as you can see from my outstretched hand.
She is just such a sweetheart I could eat her up!!!

Crazy Good Saturday

It all started out like a normal day, up while it's still dark, making lunches, going over spelling words, breakfast, and a rush to drop the kids off to school. I was excited for the evening because Ella and I were going to the Hannah Montana Concert featuring The Jonas Brothers. She had been working on some goals (not easy ones) and she had done SO GOOD so we rewarded her with the concert. So, back to the normal day...

It was an early release day, so the morning kindergarten got out after an hour and a half...useless!! So, once we picked them up at 10:00am my friends Lena, Erika and I decided to head to the children's museum. The kids had a great time but were starving by noon. We decided to try a not so kid friendly place because we wanted good food! We headed about a block away to one of those hole-in-the-wall places that is packed because it's good. After we made quite the scene with our combined 9 kids under the age of 5, we sat down and waited for our food.

Here is where it gets interesting. I see a lady walk into the restaurant.

First thought: "she looks really familiar."

Second thought: "she looks like Brittany Spears assistant."

Third thought: "I am so embarrassed I know what her assistant looks like."

I have to qualify this thought. Of the few talents that I posess, one of them is that I am highly observant of people... such as relationships, interactions, body language etc. I'm not so observant of things... such as how a house is decorated, what someone was wearing, etc.

Fourth thought: "it can't be her."

So, she orders and goes to sit down at a table with a HUGE DUDE! He looks exactly like all the bodyguard types you see with celebrities.

Fifth thought: "it has to be her."

With this new development I turn to my friend Erika and tell her my thoughts. She laughs and probably thinks I'm crazy for even knowing who this lady "might" be. As luck would have it the subject approaches our table and asks if she can borrow a chair. I seize the opportunity to do a little investigating and this is how the conversation went.

Me: "Is there a reason you look so familiar?"

Her: "I have a really familiar face."

Me: "Is that what you tell people?"

Her: (smiling...pausing...pursing lips...looking upward) "my name is Felicia." (then gives me a knowing smile){this is a photo I found on Google images}

Me: "I know exactly who you are. Is SHE in town?" (meaning Brittany)

Felicia: "I actually don't work with her anymore." (I'm thinking..smart) She proceeds, "I work with a group called The Jonas Brothers."

Me: "REALLY?!" "I am going to the concert tonight with my daughter. She is so excited."

Felicia: (with a huge smile and extremely friendly voice) "how many are in your group?"

Me: "We are going with my SIL and her two daughters, so a total of 5."

Felicia: "What is your name?"

Me: (I state my full legal name)

Felicia: "I am going to put 5 passes at will call for you to attend a meet and greet with the Jonas Brothers before the concert."

Me: "Are you serious? That would be SO GREAT!"

Felicia: "Try to be there by 5:00 so you can get in at 5:30pm."

Me: "NO PROBLEM!! THANK YOU SO SO MUCH!!"

Felicia: "Here is my card. Call me if you have ANY problems. My cell phone is on it and I will come up and meet you to take you down."

Me: "THANK YOU SO MUCH. Seriously you have made our day."

CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT?! I was SO glad that I said something! I was really proud of my self. I couldn't wait to call Natalie (my SIL) and tell her we were going to see these guys...

Let me just say that they are ADORABLE! I am not a celebrity watcher and don't get star struck. I didn't this time either, but I was TOTALLY impressed with how cute and gracious these guys were. It was crazy as there was a line of about 100 people and they were late and we were rushing through. Ella wasn't sure of what to make of the madness and I was trying to get a decent picture. Of course I didn't, but here are a few of the ones I did get!The girls (Ella, Ashley, and Lauren) and I waiting to meet the Jonas Brothers!! Sharpies are ready! Ashley got them each to sign her cast. Cousin Ashley knew what to do!That's Felicia in the far right of this picture. She was so incredibly nice. I'm going to have to send her something...since I have her card with all her info. Ya, were tight.

The one smiling at the camera is Kevin and even though in my opinion he is not the hottest brother, he sure was the best with the kids. He really looked at each of them in the eye, asked them their name and thanked them for coming. He seemed really sincere.
Can you see why I thought the guy to the far right was a celebrity bodyguard? He was the one at the restaurant.Thanks to Natalie for the best shot of the group. It was a little thrill that I hope the girls will always remember.
Here is adorable Ella posing in front of the Miley Van. I want to travel in one of those!
Paul was SO excited for Ella. It was so cute and he wanted a picture of the two of them before we left. What a cute Dad!!

Ella and Miley! Okay, so it's a cardboard cutout of Miley, but how cute is that?

Our sad attempt at taking a picture of ourselves!

This is how Ella stood for the majority of the concert. I think she seriously thought Miley was going to see the poster. It was very sweet.

Just a couple random concert pictures. Boy am I glad they have that big screen up there!

I was going to do a whole post about...

Sometimes I will randomly take pictures with the thought of a post in my head. I have had so many of these the last couple of months that have never made it to the blog. So, I've decided to do a quick roundup so that I feel like there is one more thing I can check off my list! Here it goes:

This is the position I found Nora in a couple of weeks ago as she was watching this...

High School Musical 2. She is OBSESSED! It cracks me up because she was never interested in the TV at all. So, I now know what to do if I need 10 minutes of time to not be watching her every second. Does that mean I am using the TV as a babysitter? I will admit YES! I promise I only get about 10-15 minutes out of it, but sometimes that is all I need to load/unload the dishwasher without her "helping", or to make a phone call etc. I'm sure you understand.
This is the table I set for Halloween morning. I was feeling bad that I didn't do all sorts of fun parties and things for my kids, but Paul and I had decided that breakfast of a holiday would always be a celebration. Thanks to Grandma Mary for the darling plates and place mats. I found the chair covers at Target, and the cute centerpiece items I moved from my holiday table pictured here...
A friend helped me put this together and I LOVE IT! Paul is not a big fan of too much decor so I thought the idea of a holiday table in the entry way was a good compromise.
What is up with this? I have seen so much of this lately. No, it's not Halloween in this picture. I actually took this while on a field trip to a farm with Jack's class of which I will post about later. I saw a boy with a similar style while with Ella on her field trip to the Wildlife World Zoo. All I can think is that kids have become more of an accessory to parents these days. I think it's more about the parents need for attention than anything. In order to not offend the masses I will qualify that I don't put the "faux-hawk" in the same category as this, as it can be actually quite adorable if not done too over the top! Okay, I better stop typing right now before some of you decide to hate me...but wait...it's my blog and I can say what I want right?
While outside in the front yard one day I looked at the tree and thought..."oh, we have a nest." So, as I sauntered over and looked up into the tree I saw that it wasn't quite the nest I expected!
Yes, this was ALL BEES!! My cousin was there and told me that if you leave them alone that they usually leave on their own within 48 hours. I called the exterminators just in case and they told me the same thing. It ended up being more like four or five days, but all of the sudden they were gone! To be honest it didn't make me very nervous, and I stood there and watched them for a few minutes each day. I am glad that they are gone though.
Sorry for those of you with a weak stomach, but yes, this is my hair on the wall of my shower. I don't know what is going on with me. I always lose a lot of hair starting about 3 months after having my babies, but then it stops after about a year. This might have to do with the fact that I had always been pregnant again at that point. So, now that Nora is almost 20 months old and the shedding has not let up at all...I am a little nervous! I paste it on the wall in an attempt to save the drains and then clean it up after the shower. Anyone have any ideas/advice?
This is a picture of all the yummy goodness that Sally brought me on her brief visit a couple of weeks ago. It was a great sampling of some of her Trader Joe's favorites! Thanks again Sally.
I should do this more. My kids LOVE to "help", and I'm not very good at relaxing and letting them. This was one of those days that I did, and I'm so happy for it.
These are the fun little goodies that Grandma Mary sent for Halloween. The kids loved it. Thanks GrandMary!!
Nora seriously LOVES shoes, and here are her new ones! Okay, so they were new two months ago, but I explained how I was behind. She was so proud of these and wanted them on all the time. She owns these and two pair of crocs. I love the mary jane crocs, but every Sunday I realize that she might need to expand her shoe wardrobe to include something more appropriate.
Last but not least, this is the scorpion we found in the house! You may think I was freaking out, but to be honest, they don't really scare me anymore. NO, our house is not full of scorpions, but I have seen a handful outside our house since we moved here last year. After finding the first two I seriously had a hard time picking up anything that had been on the ground out there, or anything that they could have crawled in. I've gotten over that, and now I just crush them and throw them away. I may actually try to get the black light out and go scorpion hunting one of these nights. It will either freak me out by how many I find, or it will make me feel better knowing that I've killed a good number of them. I'll post on it if I do.

I hope I didn't just scare off any potential visitors because I REALLY WANT YOU TO COME!!