BBQ

We hung out and BBQ'ed tonight and we had a lot of fun...well, maybe not my sister, who will probably never come over again because Jon (who is grounded by the way) gave her such a hard time. I took more pictures than this, but they all look like they could be mug shots on the FBI top ten list, so here are the few that did turn out well.

Uncle Kyle chilling out.

Auntie Carrie and Kelly.

Baby Kelly giving Auntie Lisa a big smile!

Punkin' is 12 today!

Happy 12th Birthday Madison, We love you very much!!

Love- Dad, Mom, Emmy, Tobie, Buddy, Isabelle, Max and Leo

The countdown to 12 begins!

We had the "in town" Grandparents and Great Grandparents over tonight to celebrate Madison's birthday and we had a great time. It is especially nice that we could all be together and enjoy the blended family we have now.

What a treat it is for me to remember that this is the same "little girl" that 12 years ago came into my life and changed it forever... to remember that because of her, in an instant, my name changed to Mom.

With Grandpa Bill, Grandma Betsy, Madison, and Great Grandpa L.

Auntie Carrie giving us a beautiful smile!

Uncle Kyle, Grandpa, Grandma, and Madison.

Grandpa Chris with Kylie, Kasey, and Emerson.

Emmy with Great Grandpa.


Emmy with Great Grandpa and Grandma C.

Cozy on the couch opening gifts.

Girl's night out!

Who would have thought a Wednesday night would have turned out to be so eventful!

***

Tammi, my B/F/F, called and asked if she could take Madison out for her birthday tonight to celebrate and spend time with her. As I was in the car talking to Tammi and figuring out the details, my car started to fade in and out and felt like it was going to shut down. I shut off the air and the radio and crossed my fingers that I would get home in time. I didn't, and ended up coasting into a nearby McDonalds parking lot just as it died. I called Jon and he left to come get me. Tammi and her lovely daughter Brianna met us at McDonalds to pick up Madison and Emerson for a girls night out in honor of Madison's birthday.

This is the super cute new sweatshirt that Tammi treated Madison to on her shopping trip with the girls! It is about 95 degrees out right now and she won't take it off. Very cute and "hip" and it's almost like being wrapped in a hug from the girls anytime she wants, wish it fit me!

These are the beauties who took our beauties out for a fun filled evening.

What fun it was for Madison and Emerson to be treated to such a special evening out, and what a treat it was for me to get to hang out with Tammi and Brianna (yes, this is the "all grown up" flower girl from our wedding, just without the pigtails)...it's been way too long since I've been able to do that, so it was a present for me too!

Blessings like these make you forget about the broken car at the McDonalds parking lot, that's for sure!

***

Also, Happy Birthday wishes to Bill and Buddy, hope you both had a great birthday!

Playing cat and mouse...

On Sunday we went grocery shopping, came home and unpacked everything, and started making dinner. Out of the corner of my eye I see our cat Buddy curiously looking at something. I look down and it's Leo, Madison's mouse. Madison was going to clean Leo's cage and had put him in a temporary holding container, which was a screened in container intended for bug catching. We are not sure how Leo got out of there, but there was a hole chewed in the upper part of the carrier, which we can only assume was because of our beloved Buddy.

Needless to say, we are lucky Buddy is a not a hunter!

Zippy, the second mouse Madison bought went back to Petco the day after she bought him, as he was a bully and wouldn't stop running on the wheel. All that remains is Leo, who is actually a very sweet mouse...(did I really just write that?) so say a little prayer that Buddy will forget Leo lives here and lose all recollection of his encounter with him, as we have caught him in Madison's room several times peeking at Leo in his cage.

Yikes!

My three most favorite gems!

And I didn't even have to go panning for them!

PS I know I am reaching for material, it's just that car trouble and a headache are way less fun! :)

Meet the newest members of the Science Museum!

As we were pulling up to the Science Museum, Emmy said "Oh maaaaan, I don't want to go the Science Museum, it's so boring". Does this look like a little girl who is bored?

It's fun to prove the kids wrong sometimes!

Our little "Anchor Women" reading from the teleprompter.

Emmy kept going back to this exhibit because she couldn't get over seeing herself on the "little screen". Maybe she will be the next Pat Miles??

I couldn't resist this picture...she looked so cute with her legs tucked under her!

Jon found an exhibit about his arch enemy...the mole!

There has been a mole, or probably more like a family of moles, in our backyard tormenting Jon for the last 12 years. He has tried everything... smoke bombs, poison pellets, traps, and even dumping gasoline down the mole hole and setting it on fire (yes, it's true)...you name it, he's done it. I even went in the back yard once to find him sitting silently in a lawn chair with a pitch fork in hand watching the dirt moving in the freshly dug hole, waiting for the perfect moment to strike!
No joke, his eyes glaze over when it comes to trying to get rid of these moles! He is almost like Mr. Miagi catching a fly with chopsticks, except Jon uses a pitchfork. Maybe he will "Paint the Fence" like Mr. Miagi too! Just kidding honey!

Jon asked that it be noted that he "got rid of" a gopher AND a mole with that pitch fork!

Reading up on the enemy.

Come on honey, it's time to go to the next exhibit...seriously, it's been 20 minutes, we have to keep moving.

Reeling in "big ones" and building those muscles for fishing with Grandpa.

Leave it to Emmy to find a giant box of bandages.

"City of cells"



Piecing together the parts that make up the cells in our body.

Wind machine experiment.

Madison with the world at her finger tips!

Madison riding a bike to generate enough energy to turn on the lights...you should have seen her go! Jon did it too, but I figured I would give him a break and leave that picture out!

Big Earth, little Emmy.

Geesh...brush much??

This was part of the outdoor exhibit where you can buy a large bag of sand and pan through it for treasures in a little old time "mining town".

We all went mining for gold and gems, it was messy, but lots of fun!

Emerson was thrilled to see that one of the stones she got was pictured on the "miners guide card".

Emmy got the exact stone she was hoping for...check out that expression!

The girls and I panning for gold and gems, and also proof that I exist and came with, as it seems I am never actually in any pictures these days.

We didn't find anything worthy of a visit to a jeweler, but we did find some pretty neat stones. This was part of the "Backyard Exhibit" that also had a Butterfly Garden, a really neat putt putt golf course, and beautifully landscaped gardens. We plan to go back soon for putt putt and more mining when we have more time before closing.

We had a great time and it sure beat staying at home and doing chores!

And the fun starts

Me: "Good Morning Emerson".
Emerson: (With her program and orange "circling" marker in hand)
"Mom, you know what...in High School Musical....".
We've heard it 42 times since we woke up and she is still telling us all about it.
Guess it made a big impression huh!

My favorite part about today was...

Jon coming back home from his business trip to Montreal...we sure did miss him!

This is the stuffed bear version of Jon and Lisa that he brought me back as a souvenir aren't "we" cute! :)

Theatre Week!

The girls went with Grandma and their cousins on Wednesday to see "The Wizard of Oz" and I thought it would be fun to show some of the pictures my mom took, it looks like it was worthy of the "best play I have ever seen in my life" title that Emmy gave it earlier this week.

Check out the costumes and the set...and this is "only" a high school production!

And tonight Madison and Emerson went with Grandma Betsy to see...

A production of "High School Musical" at the Children's Theatre.

(It's actually a really cute story, even Mom and Dad like it, well ok...mostly just Mom!)

At intermission, my mom ran into her cousin's husband, so the gang went down to where her cousin was sitting to say "hello". Turns out that my mom's cousin is the Interim Managing Director of the Children's Theatre and she arranged for the gang to go back stage after the performance for a tour.

Madison getting "Gabriella's" autograph.

And getting "Troy's" autograph...who I am told the girls were rather "smitten" with.

Here they are with their tour guide checking out lockers on the set.

Photo "op" with Grandma

Checking out where the band sits.

Visiting "Sharpay's" Locker

The costume department

There's no place like home!

The girls went with their cousins and Grandma Betsy to a local high school production of the "Wizard of Oz" tonight. My mom said to come around 9:30 to pick them up, as this is when she estimated the play would be done, so I got there early figuring they would be back any minute. It turns out I got to sit and be silly with my brother and sister for over an hour!
Adult conversation, or not so adult conversation in this case, with no interruptions, is a valuable commodity, so it was a really fun night out for me too!

The kids came back around 10:30, very excited and giddy, and of course full of animated details. Emmy said "it was the best play I have ever seen in my life!" (All 7 years of it if you can imagine that!) They had a great time! Funny how your definition of fun changes over the years...I remember thinking that "grown up's" sitting around talking was about the most boring thing on the planet...sure is different when you become one.
Anyway, in hanging out with my brother and sister I got really comfy and very sleepy, and wished more than anything that I could be like Dorothy and just click my heels and be home.
No gathering everyone and their belongings and going out into the heat, no driving, no anything... just clicking my heels three times and being home.
I sure wish it worked for real! :)

Geesh! - Part 2

So today I pick up the kids from their day camp, and it is raining pretty hard and we are in a hurry to get home because the kids, as previously mentioned, had plans with Grandma Betsy tonight. As we are pulling away, I ask the kids how their day was and what each did, as they are in different groups, doing different things. Emerson tells me a long, descriptive story (wonder where she gets that from) about their visit to the Library, what her friends did, why she didn't check out books and so on. After about 10 minutes she finishes her story so I ask Madison what their group did. She says "We went swimming". I said "But you didn't bring money with you today??" She says, we didn't have to pay. I assume this means they went to the beach...she says (with her, "keep up would ya" voice) "No, at the pool".

Confused?? Yeah, I was too. I ask how this worked, since we went through the whole "I need money to go swimming at the pool" thing yesterday, she says, like I should totally know this..."We went to a different pool MOM, gosh!".
Ugh.

Geesh!

The phone rings this morning when I am downstairs ironing my pants for work, so I run upstairs and answer the phone…It's Madison and she is calling from the day camp that the kids are attending to tell me she only has $5.00, but she needs $10.00 to go to the pool with the group. Her group has two options for swimming today, the pool, or the beach. I ask if she can go and we'll just pay for it when we pick her up, she says no, they won't let her do that. I call Jon's cell phone to ask him because I was sure he said that they were OK with that yesterday, as we didn't know it was a swimming day for Emmy...I get his voicemail and leave a message.
I finish getting ready for work and Madison calls again asking what is going on…am I coming to bring her money? At this point I am frustrated because Jon hasn't called me back, which isn't like him, and I don't want to make an unnecessary trip out the way if I don't need to. I haven't heard from him and she can't go without the money, so I tell her I will be there in a little bit and ask her to stay near her phone and that I would call when I am close. On my way out I see that Jon's cell phone is sitting on the couch...no wonder he didn't call me back.
I get there and there are about 50 cars parked and pulling up, and parents dropping off kids everywhere. I wait my turn to pull up to the 15 minute parking spaces…I call her to tell her I am there and that I will be inside in a minute to find her and give her the money. She tells me that Jon just called and talked to the staff and that a counselor walked Madison to Emmy's room because Emmy has $10.00 that she can use.She says she is sorry for the trouble and that she is all set, and I pull away and head to work.
She calls me a half an hour later at work to tell me she isn't going to the pool after all, she decided to go to the beach instead.
I got home and asked her how the beach was, she looks at me like I have two heads and says

"I didn't go to the beach, I went to the pool".
Ugh.

It's a trick I tell you!

Jon called me after work to tell that he brought with him the coupon I clipped from the Sunday paper for a local restaurant offering $10.00 off any check of $25.00 or more, and to meet them there after work. We ordered a burger, a grilled chicken wrap, a soda, and two kids meals... the bill was $25.00, plus tip, after the coupon. Jon looks at me and says, "Hey, did you know that kids eat free at TGI Friday's on Mondays?". Ugh!

Nothing much to report...

... but that's okay because it was a really good day!

We slept late, got dressed, and went to Von Maur, Target, then home to make dinner. Jon made baked potatoes and some really tasty steaks on the grill. I made a salad and the sauteed mushrooms in olive oil and garlic that Madison and I like so much. Perfect!

We had a great dinner, made a run to Starbucks for some after dinner coffee, and did a test drive to find the day camp that the girls will be in starting this week. These all sound like uneventful things as I type them, but it was such a blessing to be able to return to some of the "normal" stuff that we would usually do on weekends because Jon isn't so darn sick!

He still isn't feeling 100%, as the virus has changed from aches, fever, and exhaustion, to a stuffy head and ear aches. Still no fun, but a lot less crippling.

It's a blessing that this is something that he is recovering from and something that he has only had to fight for a week...kind of puts things in perspective when you think of all the things it could be.
Anyway, nothing to report sure is a great thing sometimes!
The picture above is the girls feeding the fish in the neighbors pond next door...don't they look cute! We are very blessed.

Saturday night fun at our house!

Tonight we babysat our niece Kelly so that the rest of the gang could go hang out and have a good time. This is me cuddling with Kelly and rubbing her hand while we watched The Disney Channel.

She was so comfy and was just about to fall asleep... until Emerson forgot the "be quiet" rule.

And we're off!

Crazy kid!

Being cute for the camera!

Being silly with her cousins.

Coming to get Auntie Lisa's camera!!


We had a really good time, and it was great practice for Madison, who will be venturing into the world of babysitting on her own before we know it!