Ode to My Family

Reunited

2010-05-02T01:17:00.001-05:00

I just love this picture of us...

after waiting days for the weather to clear up from the volcano, James finally arrived home!! We got to spend 4 days together before I had to head back to OR without him. James will come visit me and the boys at the end of May then return in July to move us back to TX.

I am looking forward to being together as a family!!

Puppies, Puppies & more Puppies!!

2010-04-30T17:08:00.001-05:00

We are having a great time with Toph's puppies. The boys have named a couple of them and want to hold them all the time.
Here they are at 3 weeks old

Ting Ting Fa

Sheila's & Becca's pup

Brownie

Melting Pot

2010-03-30T23:39:00.001-05:00

All of us Girls ;)

With Rebecca coming to visit, we decided to make it a party. We spent the day at Angie's for Mikie's birthday then off to the Melting Pot for some great food. We laughed and had a wonderful time.
I sure do love you guys... hope we can do this again soon!!

Pinewood Derby 2010

2010-03-30T23:29:00.001-05:00

Another car built..

Brennon and Uncle Byron built and painted this years car. They did a GREAT job!! Brennon had a great night with all the boys racing and came in 4th place.

Spring Break

2010-03-25T18:49:00.001-05:00

Here is a quick view of our Spring Break at the Ocean...

We had a great time ;)

Contribute 2009: Big help for Small Business

2009-08-24T14:59:00.000-05:00

Turning 9

2009-05-30T08:42:00.004-05:00

Brennon turns 9 in a couple of days, but we had his party before school was over for the year.

He is quite the chocolate lover.... in fact I think all my kids are ;)

Here he is playing the hot and cold game... looking for his presents. The thing I like about playing this is all the kids have a blast helping the birthday boy find his presents.

A silly family pic for daddy!

We miss you lots!

Maine~ first pitstop

2009-04-25T14:39:00.002-05:00

Here is a link to the airport James flew into yesterday. They took lots of pictures and posted them for the families to see. I found him on #27, 97, & 153.

Enjoy!

http://mainetroopgreeters.smugmug.com/gallery/8000656_QZg8r#520260343_fErSx

365 days to go... more or less who knows ;)

2009-04-24T22:06:00.008-05:00

I just got off the phone with James. He is in Bangor Maine, waiting for his next flight. He was telling me how there were people waiting for his airplane to land so they could shake all the soldiers hands. I knew they did things like when the war first started, but didn't realize it still happened. I am so grateful for those people! I am grateful that they went out of their way just to say "Thanks". It really does make a difference for the soldier and their families, to know how much people care.

Before James left, we took a family day at the Zoo. I let the boys take turns with the camera. We had a wonderful day together!

Aiden

Brennon

Conor

Finn

We had such a great time!

For anyone who wants to know James' address in Iraq, just let me know. I will email it to you once I get it.

Easter

2009-04-12T20:18:00.005-05:00

Easter has always been one of my least favorite holidays, only because of how commercialized it has become. It's like a mini Christmas in most homes it seems.

Anyway, this year with James leaving I wanted to make something for the boys that would keep "DAD" close to them. So I cut up old BDU's and made them into Sunday tote bags & filled them with items they can use while at church. Oh and of course they had chocolate bunnies and jelly beans as well.

Now I'm not the best seamstress but here is a picture of the bags. I used old Jeans for the lining, so they are reversible if the boys choose to turn them inside out.

Family Prayer

2009-03-24T22:21:00.006-05:00

We have family prayer every night and the boys are always wanting to say it. Our new thing is to pick whomever is the most reverent to say our prayer. Its amazing how quickly they get quiet, just because they want to say the prayer.

Well Conor was saying the prayer last night and he says some of the same things every time...

Bless me to be good
Bless our house to sell

Bless all the boxes to be gone (guess he is tired of his toys being packed away still)
Bless me to have good dreams

And then sometimes there are the things they pray about that totally catch you off guard!!

Bless mommy to get pregnant (this is where everyone started laughing)

Where the heck did that come from? And why does he want me to be pregnant?

His answer: I want a sister.

I am not sure I can let him pray again any time soon. And NO! I am not pregnant ;).

Spring Break!

2009-03-24T08:49:00.016-05:00

Our Spring Break started out a bit rocky but ended with a blast!

Our original plan was to do some fun stuff the first part of the week, while we waited for James to start his leave and then hit Sea World on Thursday and then camping with our Ward on Friday. However, I am sure you can guess that nothing goes as planned! Conor and Finn both came down with some 24 hour bug. So we canceled our Sea World trip for Thursday and moved it to the next week. It worked out pretty good that way too. James was still busy Thursday with his job at work and couldn't start his leave till the job was 100% done. Everyone was pretty healthy on Friday so we decided that the ward camp out was still on.

I have been very leery to do any camping here in TX, and only because it's not the GREAT NW. Central TX doesn't have too many trees and well that just doesn't make for good camping... so I thought. We had an absolute BLAST! With rain from the previous week, the area we were camping in was nice and green. There was a small pond that had a little creek flowing into it so of course all the kids were trying their best to not get muddy (haha yeah right).

Aiden and Conor helped James get our tent up and they did a great job. After set up and playing we cooked up some hot dogs for dinner and then joined the ward in a camp fire program. All the families had to do a skit of some kind and ours did the Star Wars Gangsta Rap. Aiden and Brennon were the main rappers since they know the song and after a verse or so they had a disagreement on what line was next. It was quite comical and I think the ward enjoyed it. One of my favorite's was the impression of a Rain Drop. After all the skits we headed back to our tents and had SMORES. Finn wanted a smore soo much that when he finally saw what it was, he decided that all he wanted was the chocolate.

With spring break over we are back to daily life. I am still staying up too late so 6:30 am is not my favorite hour of the day. The kids are counting the days down till we go to Sea World this week, so I should have some new pics and adventures later this weekend.

click to enlarge

Has it really been 3 months?

2009-02-07T10:20:00.009-06:00

From the last time I posted till now, lots of things have been happening. So we are going to play catch up today!

When James left to get set up in TX, I pretty much did what I had to do just because I knew the kids had to eat and get to school. Oh and they needed clean clothes... ha ha! James left before Thanksgiving so we made a trip to Grandmas and Granddad's in GA. It was very nice to be with family. The boys had a great time playing with their cousin Bianca. I really wish I would have taken some pictures while we were there. :(

With Christmas we were not sure if James was going to be able to get back to AL, so we headed to Mississippi to hang out with Dave and Amy. We got lucky and James made it Christmas eve morning. The boys were very excited to see him.

Finn turned 3 January 8th.

This is Finn playing the Hot and Cold game to find is Birthday presents. James was in Texas so we had him on speakerphone.

The boys got a couple of games from Aunt Angie for Christmas. One was Scene It Disney and the other was Twister. It was hilarious watching them play twister.

Well we are now in Texas with James. Nope the house hasn't sold yet but with a deployment heading our way, we decided that being together as a family was very important. James found us a house to rent. It is a 2 story so I'm sure you can imagine the boys running up and down the stairs, and claiming this room or that room. We are living pretty close to our old house here in Killeen. The kids are in a different school but seem to like it and their teachers. The school here doesn't give out as much homework, which is something I like! We are in the same ward for church, and James has already received a calling to the Young Men's program. I am sure one will be coming my way soon.

The scout program here is great as well. Aiden and James got to go on a 2 mile hike and camp out last weekend. It got pretty cold during the night but overall they had a great time. Brennon got to build his first pinewood derby car. They had only a week to get it ready for the race but they did it... of course they were installing the wheels about 10 min before we had to leave. Brennon was pretty optimistic about his car and was hoping that it would do well in the race. To all our surprise he came in 1st place.

After we got home Brennon told James : Dad this is the best day of my life as a kid.

Moments ago

2008-11-16T17:57:00.002-06:00

.... James was singing around the house and Finn tells him to stop.
This is normal for Finn, just today in church he was covering his ears and telling me to stop. Granted he probably has reason to tell me but James has a great voice so when Finn tells him to stop it's just to boss him around I think. LOL
Lately we have been telling him that he can't say that.. blah blah blah (I am sure this is what he hears)
So when James told him "No, I'll sing all I want, cause this is my house"
pause....
Finn "No it's mom's house"

Heeeheee isn't he just the cutest?

Turkey Day

2008-11-13T12:57:00.005-06:00

This year, James will not be here on Thanksgiving so we decided to have our own little celebration on Veterans day. It turned out quite nice too. I picked up a 9 lb turkey, and let me tell you I loved cooking that thing. My oven is small and doesn't fit a large turkey very well. I stuffed it with Pepperidge farm's cubed herb seasoned stuffing (red bag), which is by far the best stuffing ever! It has great seasoning already and the cubes keep it from getting too soggy. Other items on the menu were mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberry sauce, apple pie & pumpkin pie (of course).

After talking with Jen, I am including the recipe I use for my Turkey. I originally got it from Martha Stewart, but don't follow it exactly.

Turkey:

Rinse and pat dry
stuff slices of garlic and pats of butter under skin
slather butter all over turkey skin
sprinkle with salt and pepper
tie legs together if not already done
stuff with stuffing

Basting the turkey:

2 layers of cheese cloth cut to cover breast and legs (can be found in the fabric department at walmart if not in the cooking area)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 bottle white wine (if you don't want to use wine, chicken broth can be used instead)

In a pan melt butter and add wine. Soak cheese cloth and then place over the turkey.

Put turkey in preheated oven of 350. Every 30 min use baster to wet cheese cloth. Once you use all the butter and wine mixture, baste turkey with juices from the pan. My 9 lb turkey took 3 hours to cook stuffed. Here is a great site with cooking times for your Turkey.

When the turkey is done, use juices to loosen the cheese cloth. Move turkey to your serving dish and let sit while you prepare gravy and other items.

Gravy:

The wine mixture with turkey juices make a wonderful gravy. Very flavorful. I have a measuring cup that separates the fat from the juices, if you don't have one I suggest getting one ;)

In a pan pour in turkey juices and bring to a boil. Mix 2 tablespoons of flour with 2-3 tablespoons of water. Make sure it's not clumpy. With a whisk pour in mixture till it starts to thicken, you may need to make more if you want it thicker.

Well that's pretty much it. Let me know if you try this recipe :)

Enjoy!

Halloween

2008-11-05T22:42:00.003-06:00

This year I told the boys that they had to find stuff here at the house for costumes. Aiden used his old baseball uniform and went as an undead ball player. He had way too much fun! Brennon went as Darth Vader. Conor used Aiden's old army uniform and went as a soldier. Finn went as a fireman.

We started out at the YMCA, but with so many people there we went to one of the neighborhoods by our house and had a great time. Aiden and Conor were running from door to door faster than Finn and Brennon. Brennon stayed behind most of the time to help Finn knock on the door. Finn had such a great time. Just the way he said "Trick or Treat" would score him extra candy.

Hair Cut

2008-11-05T22:36:00.002-06:00

Toph had a special day at the groomers. I have tried to trim her myself but with a wiggly puppy, it has never turned out like this. I'm not sure she liked it too much. We got there as they were pulling hair out of her ears... ouch!! But now the hair is out of her eyes and she smells so nice.

I just love how Toph looks after her hair is all done ;)

Flight School Graduation

2008-11-01T08:19:00.003-05:00

October 30, 2008 is the day James graduated from flight school.

Here I am pinning on James' wings.

James is now an Army Aviator.

I'll get somemore pictures up of this day a bit later...

Princess for a night

2008-10-31T13:08:00.017-05:00

Wednesday was the graduation Ball. James and I had a wonderful night. If you have ever been to a military ball then you will already know how things went, if not.... let me tell you ;)

It started with me getting my hair done (James insisted). I had the hair lady do little curls all over the back. It turned out quite pretty. When school got out we took the boys to a friends for the evening. With time running out I had to hurry and get ready... thank goodness I didn't have to do anything with my hair ;) We had to be there at 5 pm for social hour, which was a new experience for me. I only knew a few people, but made it through one hour of chatting away with strangers. We also had our pictures taken and should get them back in a few weeks. I sure hope they turned out nice. So after social hour it was time to go through the receiving line. Now this is so we can meet and say hi to the guys in charge, their wives and guest speaker. I can only remember one of the wives names... Heather.

After the receiving line we waited and talked to people by our table. I guess the rule is to wait for the guy in charge to sit first. But before he sits, we paid our respects to the POW's. It was a very moving tribute. I can't help but get emotional when I hear taps. Then the soldiers did a few different toasts which ended with toasting the ladies, and finally we get to sit :) Before dinner is served though, the men presented all the wives with an honorary diploma for helping our guy get through flight school and a set of wings. James got me a beautiful necklace with wings. I remember seeing other wives with wings before and thought "oh how pretty". I am very excited to have my own now.

We finally get to eat dinner. The rolls were the favorite for everyone. James and I had the chicken cordon bleu, and cheese cake was served for dessert.

As dinner ended we watched a class video. It was nice to see some pictures of James doing his job. I was even able to pick out which chin and helmet were his.

We had a great guest speaker. I don't remember his name but he was a Colonel and he had a great sense of humor. He spoke to the graduates about how they need to be great examples, and to respect the soldiers they are in charge of. I really enjoyed his speech.

The rest of the evening was about awards for this or that. James took a few pictures with friends and when the coast was clear (the high ranking guys gone home) we decided to head home too.

1LT Booher & James

James, 1LT Wagnild & 1LT Booher

James & WO1 Avalos

Isn't James so handsome in his dress blues...

My little Punks!!

2008-10-28T14:31:00.003-05:00

All weeks is Drug free week and today is Crazy hair day. The boys had a great time doing their hair. I think

I have my very own Punk Rock band ;)

I know... I'm behind ;)

2008-10-26T21:06:00.003-05:00

So I am a little slow on getting things posted this month. As you can see it was Aiden's birthday on the 9th... which brings me full circle on my blog. I went ahead and uploaded all of my blogs for this last year and made it into a book which I will get next month.
Hmm so what else have I missed? James and I celebrated our 12th anniversary on the 12th ;) I'm not to far behind on this one, but Conor just got tubes put in on Friday. He was very brave. The Dr. asked if he was scared and he said No... He says he hears better but I guess we will see how things are in a couple of weeks.
I think that's about it for now. We have a big week ahead of us. James will be graduating from flight school and we will have lots of family in town to help celebrate.
Guess I'll cya on the flipside ;)

Arrow of Light!

2008-10-26T19:16:00.003-05:00

This last Wednesday our Scout troop had an Arrow of Light ceremony for two of our WEBELO boys. Aiden being one of them ;) Anyone ever in scouts as a boy or a leader will know that this award is hard work. I have been the WEBELO's leader for about 9 moths now and am so happy to see Aiden and Ben receive their Arrow of Light, which is one award they can keep on their uniform when they cross over to Boy scouts.

After the Arrow of Light ceremony, it was time to watch Aiden cross over into the Boy Scouts. James and I got to walk him to the middle of a bridge where the boy scouts were waiting for him and they walked him to the other side and welcomed him to the Boy Scouts. Unfortunately we didn't get any pictures of this part lol oh well.

Here are all our Cub scout boys reciting the oath and law of the pack

Here is Ben pinning his mother and receiving his Arrow of Light

Here is Aiden pinning me and receiving his Arrow of Light.

So 1 down and 3 more to get through cub scouts... 9 more pine wood derby cars to make LOL!!

He's home

2008-10-06T08:49:00.005-05:00

Can I say Woooo Hooo!!! The boys are just as excited. James had a long 3 weeks at SERE school but says that it's the best military training he's been to so far.
Anyway, I wanted to just let everyone know that we are almost done with our stay here in Alabama. It's been a great 2yrs and I will be excited for the time we can come back.
Right now Jame's Graduation date is October 30th. He is going in this morning to make sure he is starting his last class this week. If for some reason he isn't in this week's class I will let everyone know the new graduation date.
Oh and for those who haven't heard, we are on our way back to FT HOOD TX. It gets us a few days closer to the NW and we already have friends there. The kids are excited to see some old friends (if they are still there). We aren't sure when we will be headed that way, mostly because of our un-sold house here but thinking mid Nov. early Dec.

Oh let me know if you are coming to the Graduation so I can send out emails about times and stuff.

#8

2008-10-02T16:59:00.004-05:00

I didn't get much done today other than organizing...

Before:

After:

I really do like those space bags. I was able to get rid of the sizes my boys don't wear any more then put the rest into the bags. I just love to see them squish down as the air is sucked out.

#6&7

2008-10-01T23:17:00.008-05:00

Well today I cleaned out the shed... unfortunately the garbage won't be put out till next Tuesday. But hey I got all the spider webs all swept out.

As for this guy..... our resident banana spider

I am tooo afraid to get rid of him. He is hanging above the shed. I hope James gets home before the open house.

So I guess my count goes up by 2 today with:

#6 donating to goodwill. Finn prefers to walk anyway.

#7 we replaced almost all the light fixtures when we moved in, so these have been taking up space in the garage...

Declutter #1-5

2008-09-30T18:51:00.006-05:00

Well my friend Amy really started something.... and it was Dana who said I should blog my progress.

With moving in the near future and an open house even closer I need to get rid of some things. I started with the garage yesterday. I had some Laundry soap containers (full of soap) melt on the wire shelving and leek soap all over the garage. So after I cleaned the mess up I got rid of all the other containers (they were free and i wasn't using them). This would be my #1

#2 & 3 are an old swiffer that hasn't been used the whole 2yrs we have lived here and a car seat that Finn has grown out of.

#4 & 5 are clothes that Finn no longer wears. The box is going to my Sister in Law and one pile to goodwill and other to garbage due to stains or holes.

Tomorrow is the shed and the toys if I can bring myself to go through those LOL

Getting out

2008-09-26T16:19:00.003-05:00

James' flight buddies had a get together a couple of weeks ago. We got to go without the kids, which was a first for us in a long time.

However, before we left for out date, I was desperate for something to wear. Due to my hair all wet, I asked James to go buy me something. A little worried while he was out I finished my hair and makeup. On his way home he called and ask "will you please have an open mind?" A bit hesitant I said yes. I mean you can't beg your husband to go buy you something and get a upset after he does.... right?

OK, so instead of just one he bought me 3 new shirts. SCORE!! And they were actually very nice. The one I wore out that nigh actually made me laugh at first. It was straight out of the 80's. Maybe something Cybill Shepard would have worn in Moonlighting. After trying it on and liking how it looked, James made me pose for a picture.

So, I just wanted to let you see what my husband bought me. I think I will have him buy all my clothes from now on. LOL

KIDS

2008-09-22T17:49:00.003-05:00

...really do say the darnedest things!

So I am just sitting at my computer when I hear this conversation:

Brennon: you know George Lucas is really old. He was born in the nineteen's.

I was completely amazed at how old I felt after that. LOL

Happy Birthday

2008-09-17T09:26:00.007-05:00

I have been remembering and thinking of Billy lots lately. I am sure all who care for him are doing the same today.
Just this morning I was thinking of a time when the kids and I visited California. I didn't get to see much of Billy while I was there, but what I remember was his crazy hair.

I didn't get a chance to see all these hair styles in person, but I think Billy enjoyed standing out in a crowd.

Happy Birthday Billy
Love you lots <3

On the market

2008-09-05T08:28:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to share our excitement with the house being on the market. Haven't had any lookers yet but what do you expect in the first 12 hours. lol
Anyway take a look at our house

Count down begins ...

2008-09-02T14:39:00.007-05:00

...not that we have an end date yet but we know its coming and so this last weekend we made it official.

The house is going on the market this week (so tell all your friends that there is a great house for sale in AL), and anyone who has ever sold a house can tell you that lots of work goes into getting it ready. Our big project was repainting the living room. It was a blue (that looked almost purple) and yellow. It wasn't exactly how I imagined it and figured buyers might not see that they could paint something different... now it's a nice toast color.

One of the other projects we got done was one that the boys got to help with. When we moved in there were beige and white switch plate and face plates. Now anyone that knows James will see that it's totally unacceptable to have 2 different types of plate thingies... He replaced a few when we first moved in but then got too busy with school, so 6 weeks before we move it finally gets done ;)

The boys were very excited that daddy let them help out. I think it took twice as long to finish but making some great memories was the point! & who wants to rush a great memory ;)

A little CRAZY!!

2008-08-26T01:39:00.004-05:00

So its after 1:30am and I should be sound asleep, but can't. We have had a visitor the last few days and she has been pretty OK, until this morning. Fay has made a mess our our yard this weekend, but now that she is passing back this way, storms are all over the place. School was canceled because she decided to cause havoc and even though she is gone we are still dealing with a few storms. About 30 min ago I started hearing thunder (trying to fall asleep) then all of a sudden the sirens go off. I just hate the feeling of panic that courses through my body. James was off to check the radar to see where the storm was and I was clearing out the closet just in case I needed to get the kids up.
It seems to be a bit north of us but still causes concern. I'm sitting here watching the map change every few seconds and knowing that 6 am is going to come too soon. Anyway I'm just too awake to try and sleep so just wanted to share ;)
Well guess I'll stop rambling for now. Think I'll go find a book to read.

Happy Birthday Conor

2008-08-25T15:12:00.002-05:00

I can't believe Conor is 5 already!!

First Day 2008

2008-08-25T12:36:00.003-05:00

Im a little slow getting this up, but the boys started school Aug 7 (which I think is way too soon). Aiden is in the 5th grade, Brennon is in the 3rd grade, & Conor has started Kindergarden.

They are all loving it, especially Conor. Every morning he askes if he gets to go to school again. Finn on the other hand is having a tough time with his best buddy gone. I guess he'll get used to it in a few weeks.

Linguine with Chicken Thighs

2008-07-14T20:03:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to share this recipe with you. I found it on The Pioneer Woman Cooks and it was great! The kids really liked it. I used bow tie pasta and for the fresh basil and parsley I used 1 tsp dried for each.

If you get a chance check out her other recipes, you will like them ;)

ENJOY

Photo ShaZAM

2008-07-11T14:45:00.005-05:00

I have signed up to receive news letters from The Sprague Lab A Little Studio of Scrapbook Alchemy, which teaches different photoshop techniques. This week they are also doing a contest so hence the post here on my blog site ;)

Before

After

Before

After

So as you can see I am having a little fun with photoshop.

The contest runs this weekend if you want to check it out.

Photo ShaZAM

Swim lessons

2008-07-11T13:58:00.004-05:00

Since we couldn't take a long road trip this summer, we decided to spend lots of time at the YMCA pool. Our membership included swim lessons that the boys totally loved.

Conor is a self taught swimmer (if his brothers could do it so could he), but in his class he learned the crawl stroke and more floating techniques.Here he is getting ready to jump off the diving board. After looking at all the pictures I took of Aiden and Brennon, I liked these the best. LOL!! All the others with their faces had their eyes closed, so why not just show them swimming ;)
Aiden

Brennon

I just love how the water sparkles around them

Happy Birthday to Me!

2008-06-22T19:55:00.003-05:00

So I am 33 today, and it still feels like I'm 20 something. I had a wonderful day, with the primary kids singing to me and I got to pick a birthday pencil. Aiden & Brennon loaded the dishwasher, and did a great job. James made the beautiful birthday cake you see above.

I couldn't have asked for a better birthday!! ;)

When I am Baptized

2008-06-19T11:06:00.007-05:00

June 15th, Brennon was baptized into

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

I don't think James could have asked for a better Father's Day gift

Brennon & Bishop Spencer

Before the big day, Brennon had an interview with Bishop Spencer. He said that he was impressed with Brennon's knowledge and understanding of the gospel. Both James and I were excited to know that... yes family home evening does work ;)

Great day for a family picture

Aaron, Aiden, Brennon, Kale, Conor, & Finn

I think this was my 6th picture, and finally an ok one with them almost looking at the camera. lol

Family day @ flight school ;)

2008-06-13T23:51:00.019-05:00

20 months after moving to Alabama the kids and I were able to go and watch what daddy does best, or at least what he loves to do best ;) James' parents were able to be there too.

The boys had a great time watching the helicopter's flying in. Unfortunately the weather got bad and we didn't get to see James actually fly but I don't think that mattered to the little guys.

Checking out what the insides look like.

Aiden, Brennon and Conor had a blast climbing all over the helicoptor

Finn just loved getting up close with the helicoptor.

We can never get a serious picture done with those boys... lol ;)

Happy Birthday Brennon!

2008-06-03T20:26:00.002-05:00

Wow can't believe Brennon is 8! We had a birthday party for Brennon this last Saturday at the fun center here in town. They had a great time skating and playing with the soft play playground.

Teaching the boys to cook

2008-06-02T18:42:00.003-05:00

I have been thinking lately that I need to teach the boys how to really cook. Not just so they won't starve on their missions but because I could use a break. LOL So my idea is to let them pick what they want to cook and learn what they can this summer.
Anyway I made a new blog site just for cooking called Summer cooking.

Toph's first play date

2008-06-02T17:15:00.001-05:00

Brennon's class had a bring your pet to school day. Brennon got to talk about Toph and let everyone pet her. I know the kids had a great time, but the pets were pretty excited too.

Reflections

2008-05-21T09:43:00.003-05:00

This morning while I was cleaning up the kitchen, Toph was exploring the house. Which in it's self can be disastrous while potty training. So here I am just loading the dishwasher when I hear Toph barking away. She is usually pretty quiet unless she is in her crate or behind the baby gate in the laundry room, so I thought she must be stuck somewhere. As I followed the little bark bark, I found her in Conor and Finns room...
Now I'm sure you have seen the closets with the mirror doors, well she was just laying on the floor in the ready to pounce position barking at her self. LOL!!! I couldn't believe it. When she noticed me she just looked back at the mirror and started to bark again. I think she made her first dogie friend today :)

Think I will try to get a picture next time

Tagged lol

2008-05-14T22:32:00.010-05:00

By my friend Nicole

What I was doing 10 yrs ago?
1998... wow Aiden was 7 months old then. OOO OOO now I remember. 10 yrs ago May 23rd James, Aiden, and I were sealed in the Seattle WA Temple. It was an amazing day. What I remember most is when they brought Aiden in all dressed in white. What a little angel.

5 things on my to do list today:
well since I am doing this at the end of the day I will do my list for tomorrow
1. Get my sore body back to the gym to work out
2. Clean kitchen and front room (my dailies that never end)
3. Take a nap with the little boys
4. Get dinner done by 4:30 soo....
5. I can watch 3 base ball games (Brenns & Conor's @ 6, Aiden's @ 7:30)

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
WoW, I can't even imagine. Of course I would go crazy and buy all the things I think I need. Especially kitchen things ;)

After the shock I would make sure we were out of debt.

Put money away for the Kids mission's and school.

Help anyone who might need it.

Bad Habits:
1. I start projects and don't finish (hey mom I do have a mother's day gift for you... maybe it will be a birthday present instead).
2. I hate folding and putting away laundry so it piles up till I have about 6 loads to do ;(

that's all you get on that subject lol

Places I've lived:

1. Georgia

2. Florida

3. Washington

4. Idaho

5. Kentucky

6. Arizona

7. Texas

8. Alabama

5 Jobs I've had:

1. Baby sitting (of course)

2. KFC

3. Jack N the Box

4. Circuit City

5. Fleury Financial

Tag... your it:

1. Amie Bringhurst

2. Sarah Scott

3. Jennifer Godsey

4. Dana Stone

Puppy, Puppy, Puppy!!!

2008-05-13T12:06:00.018-05:00

Well, I was totally surprised when James came to me and said that I should call Sheila and ask her about a dog. That was almost 2 months ago. Sheila has done a great job looking for just the right puppy. We decided to go with a Shih tsu, due to the lack of skin dander and shedding.

Anyway Sheila sent out an email letting us know she found the one (last Thursday) and that she would put it on a plane so we could pick her up on Sunday. Both James and I were asking each other 'think we're ready to have a dog?' lol It was totally crazy! We decided to keep it a surprise for the boys, so Sunday we said that there was a package we needed to pick up at the airport. Of course a long drive wasn't their idea of a fun time but we promised that it would be worth it. They didn't ask too many questions till we got to the airport. In fact Brennon informed me if this was a trick to get him on a plane; "it wasn't going to work." lol

After waiting a while they finally brought out our little puppy. And she is SOOOO cute. Aiden asked who's dog it was and when I said, 'ours' I don't think he believed me. When they finally realized she was our little puppy the boys were so excited. Finn, too small to get a good look at her, wanted up to get a peek. Needless to say all four boys were surprised!

Well, to make this long story short we got her home and the boys just love her to pieces. She is so friendly and loves the attention she gets from the boys. As for her name we were thinking of characters from some of the cartoons they watch and found one in Avatar the last Air bender we liked.

So we would like you to meet Toph

Can I be jealous?

2008-05-11T23:22:00.010-05:00

So all the boys went on the father and son camp out this weekend. Yes!! I was left alone all by myself. It was very nice (and strange) to sleep in till 11am Sat. morning.

Anyway, it sounds like they had a great time. It was the whole stake that went and they roasted a pig for dinner. James said that after seeing the pig all layed out (snout and all) they wouldn't try it. lol No surprise there. From what James told me they had the best spot camped out. Lots of people came by to roast their marshmallows and just have fun. In the morning they cooked bacon and eggs and then played in the natural springs.

They got home and were totally fillthy and tired, but just so excited about all the fun they had with their DAD!!

Grandparents Day

2008-05-10T19:17:00.023-05:00

I am a little late in posting this but a few weeks ago we invited my grandparents from GA to come visit the boys at school. Their school classes did something special for the visiting grandparents then they got to have lunch with them.

After the visit to school we thought they would like to visit the flight museum at FT Rucker. Finn is totally in love with anything that flies in the sky, so imagine him running around and pointing at everything and squealing with delight.

We had a wonderful visit and can't wait to have them out again.

Wings over Meridian

2008-04-01T08:43:00.004-05:00

With the Blue Angels air show coming, Dave had a house full with Tom, our family and Rich's family. There were 8 boys under 10 and they played great together. We were all surprised at how tall Richie had grown. He is now taller than both Aiden and Aaron.
The show was as amazing as ever. We did get a nice shower at the end tho which made the long walk to the car longer, at least for the grown ups. All the boys were splashing and looking for the next puddle to run to.
The weekend went by too fast, as always but it was nice to see everyone.

60 Years in the Making

2008-03-04T08:39:00.042-06:00

Married January 21, 1948, Grandma and Grandad are celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary this year.

Dad & Sheila flew out from Utah, Jen, Byron, & Bridget flew out from Oregon, Uncle Phillip & Jill flew out from Connecticut and finally James and I (with the boys) drove from Alabama to help celebrate. Throughout the weekend we also got to visit with Grandma and Grandad (of course) Erica & Bianca, Aunt Carol, Uncle Jamie and my cousin Jeremy. We had 3.5 days of fabulous fun with family!

While James & I stayed in a hotel with Conor and Finn, Aiden and Brennon stayed at Grandma's house. They had a total blast! They got to stay up late and play their game boys and I think a movie or two. One morning they went to JR's for breakfast and Aiden ate the worlds largest pancake. I think they felt all grown up without mom and dad hanging around and want to know when can they do that again.

As for the festivities, we all went and had a wonderful dinner at Stony River steak house. It was completely amazing! Before we all enjoyed the food, Grandad said a few words that had most of us in tears. He spoke about how 60 years went by so fast, and how grateful he was for his wife and four children. The family then presented them with a HUGE digital picture frame so they can show off more and more pictures of the family. I don't believe we could have gotten anything better than that.

With the weekend full of talking, laughing, throwing the baseball around, playing games, and a late night trip to Ihop, it was very difficult for me to say goodbye. I do miss my family so much and I'm so glad that we can get together now and again to celebrate great things like a 60th wedding anniversary.

Romantic Deserts!!

2008-02-13T16:04:00.006-06:00

I have been hosting a Recipe swap for church at my house now for the last 4 months. At first I didn't really want to do it... you know having to really clean the house and then just being a hostess is a lot of work. After the first one, I decided that it was a Blast. So here we are 4 moths later and I finally remembered to take pictures this time.
Being that Valentine's day was comming we did Romantic deserts. I was totally amazed at all the YUMMY sweets.
Here is a link to the recipes... http://tresa.mccormick.googlepages.com/img049.pdf

Enjoy!!

Tribute to the Prophet

2008-02-05T18:03:00.000-06:00

I received an email from my sister the other day that challenged us to read the Book of Mormon again. The twist is to read it in 97 days, which was age of the Prophet when he died. There is a cool site to keep track of your progress and everything. So I asked the kids if they wanted to do it with me and we started it last night. They are very excited to read it and I am excited that they are so eager to do it.
Anyway here is the site if you want to check it out. http://www.hinckleychallenge.com/index.php

PineWood Derby 2008

2008-02-04T08:27:00.001-06:00

Its that time again, to build a pinewood derby car. Aiden came up with this design from one of his hot wheels. James cut it out and the the cockpit is a silly puddy egg :)

Sanding the wheels and axils so there is less friction.

The paint job is almost finished. I think they had to repaint the sillypuddy egg like 4 times... mom will get the quick dry paint next time!

Trying to ONLY superglue the two pieces of wood... not the fingers

Weighing all the pieces to see if they need to add any wieght.

Aiden names his car Firebird. The boys had a great time putting it all together.

Here are the other cars that he raced against in our Ward. #3 was the fastest and #5 acctually won overall in the stake derby this last weekend. Aiden did win the best design for the ward.

We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet

2008-01-28T11:13:00.000-06:00

Last night I heard news of Pres. Hinckley's passing and it truly was a mixture of feelings. I always looked forward to General Conference, to hear him speak and to feel the spirit testify to me. It is so hard to say goodbye to our beloved Prophet.

http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/beloved-church-president-gordon-b-hinckley-dies-at-97

Whats for dinner?

2008-01-18T14:04:00.001-06:00

I'm sure that I'm not the the only mom who gets that question asked, lets say at least 10 times in one night. And even if you do answer without the silly answer (like eyeballs, toes and fingers) they will be back in 5 min to ask the same question. Oh and when its something they don't like you always get the pouty face or yuck. Boy that puts me in a mood right there! Lately I either don't answer that question at all or just say we're having food.
Well I don't think that I will ever go a night without hearing "What's For Dinner?" however I have been trying some new recipe's and stumbled across one that the whole family LOVES. Its called Chicken Breasts in Phyllo. The boys have changed the name to MOM's chicken. To see the recipe and print it out click on the link below.

http://tresa.mccormick.googlepages.com/img037.jpg

Our very own Rock Band ~ name undecided

2008-01-17T10:39:00.000-06:00

So Aiden and Brennon got a guitar and drum set for Christmas. James made a short movie of them playing.. Thought you might enjoy seeing happy boys making music.

For Rochelle

2008-01-12T00:00:00.000-06:00

I really do like the idea of blogging its just the time it takes to sit and type it all out on the computer that I find a bit daunting. So, for the purpose of keeping far away family members (which is everyone ;) ) up to date with our comings and goings... here we go.
Quick update: The New Year is here! We ended last year on quite a nice note. I had a friend, Dana, from Texas come to visit with her little ones. Her husband Matt is in Iraq at the moment so I think it was a nice change of scenery for them. While she was here she took pictures of the family. She hasn't finished processing all of them but I will add a couple to this page so you can see how we have all changed. After Christmas we all (including Dana) went to Dave and Amy's in Mississippi. For those who don't know Dave is James' brother. Celebrating the New Year with them was GREAT!! I was having so much fun that I didn't stop to take any pictures sigh... oh well.
So now that we are back to the grind, James is busy studying for his upcoming Apache class. Aiden & Brennon both were on the A/B honor Roll, Conor is learning the sounds of his letters and Finn turned 2. Me? Well I got 2 new cook books for Christmas and can't wait to try something new.

Sooo for my cousin Rochelle... I will do better to blogg my heart out.

Pre-preteen

2007-10-11T10:29:00.000-05:00

Well my first little guy is no longer living in the single digits. Aiden is officially a decade (as he calls it) old. It seems like yesterday that James and I got married. How can we already have a 10 yr old?
I think Aiden had a nice day though. He had a couple of friends over for a party. We made homemade Pizza and played Star wars trivial pursuit. You should have seen these boys play that game. When they got an answer right they were jumping around all excited and crazy. And they were doing that a lot. I can't believe how much they knew from the movies.

Happy Birthday Aiden