H O M E

Days are hectic.  Someone is always getting accidentally (or not accidentally) poked in the eye.  Sometimes it's all I can do to get through the day...

There's homework, and violin practice, and backpacks full of crap I am supposed to look at, and home room mom meetings, and so much freaking laundry I'm pretty sure I need a margarita.  And it's 9:42 am.

When you're in it, it can be difficult to appreciate the every day.  Because you're wearing the same clothes you wore yesterday.  And you're out of tortillas.  

And they will only eat tortillas.

I made this little video for us.  So that Chris and I can see the good parts too.  

Because the old people tell me I will miss this...  

And now I will go forth and Carpe the Double Hockey Sticks out of this Diem.  This crazy, dirty, messy, loud, diem.  With boogers on it.

(if you can't see the above video, try this link.)

The Family Road Trip

Our little fam of six just returned from a Colorado vaca.  A road trip vaca.
Go ahead.  Let that sink in.
Six humans in a minivan.  Four of them small, loud and volatile.  And usually sticky.  And sometimes they smell funny.
Our boys actually do amazingly well on road trips.  Granted, since our return Jude bucks and cries every time I try to put him in a car seat or his high chair...  But that's probably temporary, right?  
Right??!!!
So...
Anyhoo...
Here's a little video I made on my iPhone in the car somewhere in New Mexico.  Or maybe Texas.  Southern Colorado?  It's all a blur.

Here's to 90 Good Years

Last week we were in Colorado celebrating my grandparents' 90th birthdays.  That's them.  Aren't they the cutest things ever?  Ever ever?

 They still are the cutest.  Ever.  Ever ever.

 The greatest love story...  You can read a little more about them here.

 This trip was the first they had ever met Jude.  The youngest of their 7 great grandchildren.

 Oh, my heart.  I love this guy so much.  It's always so bittersweet to see them.  I'm overjoyed to be with them, but it's so hard to leave.  I need just one more tight hug.  One more story.  Hold my hand just a little bit longer.

 The party was a great success.  I didn't get nearly the photos I wanted...  I was too busy holding a squirmy baby.  And making sure he was adequately supplied with a fun balloon.  And talking to people who hadn't seen me in 30 years.  There was another room filled with my grandmothers oil paintings, tons of family photographs, my grandfather's war medals, and a beautiful leather saddle.  I wish I had taken more pictures...  dang it.  Chris made a great speech.  I wish I had taken a picture of that...  dang it.  My cousin Lori and her husband each made a beautiful speech.  I wish I had taken pictures of those too.  Dang it, dang it.

 As it turns out...  90 candles is a lot of candles...

The first dance...

 My beautiful cousin Lori and her Ava.  Ava's my new BFF.

 These two...  Complete opposites.  Ava, quiet and sweet.  Jude.  A complete crazy, wild, busy mess.

 She looks like her big brother, no?

 There are about 20 variations on this theme.  Ava, sweet and still in every shot.  Jude is different in each one.  Sometimes standing.  Sometimes sitting.  Sometimes there is a floating hand coming out of the edge of the frame to keep him from tumbling out of his chair because he's never still for 5 consecutive seconds.

 The Queen of the day.  Happy 90th, Nonnie!  You wear it so well.

this is the video I put together for their party.  Photos of them looking young and gorgeous.  And on horses.  And with fish.  Oh, so many fish.  And me too.  In a cowboy hat.  If on a mobile device, you can watch here.

You Belong Here

Tomorrow, our sweet Jude Baby will be one year old.   Yeah. I know. The day we discovered he was coming to be part of our family was filled with mixed emotions.  Well, okay.  Not very mixed.  Just the kind of emotions that produce tears and lamentations.  There were tears.  And also, there were lamentations.   But now...  We don't even want to imagine a world without him.  He was always supposed to be here with us.  He completes our family.  He completes me.   You Belong Here by Leagues is the perfect song for Jude right now.  Full of joy, just like him.  

(try here if on an mobile device.)

Super Secret Super Baby Spy

It's happening.  

Without my consent.  

Jude.

He's turning one next week.  His party is this Saturday.  After the two elementary school Valentine's Day parties (boys don't give a poo about the fine art of special Valentine cards for your classmates, by the way.  Well, at least mine don't.  AT ALL.)  But before we head to Denver next week for my Grandparents 90th birthday extravaganza.  Yeah.  Baby's 1st birthday party is snuggled in there.  And I may, or may not, have already shed a couple of tears going through photos for his birthday movie...

But...  Did you know he's a secret baby spy?

A super secret super baby spy?

It's true.  

It Happened... Ten Months Ago.

So, I do this thing. Sort of. I like to make these little slide show video things every year for each boy around their birthday.  I like focusing on just them...  In a family of six it can be hard to give all of my attention to just one little person.  I hope that one day they can look back on these little home videos and see that their Mama really saw them as an individual, as their own little person.  That's my hope anyway...
  I'm putting Jude Baby's together right now...  Because he turns ONE in two weeks...   Oh, Lawd.  I can't handle it.
And...  as I am thinking about Jude's, and mentally putting it together in my teeny-tiny mind...  I realized that the other three boys totally got the shaft last year.  No eight year old movie for Lucas.  No three year old movie for Harry.  I've got a five year old movie for Max though.  Does that mean that Lucas and Harry will tell their therapists that Mother always loved their brother best?  hmmm...  maybe.
So...  Here's Max's Five Year Old Birthday Extravaganza Movie. Because I am an excellent mother. Be sure to tell your therapists, boys.

Snowy Day (a video short)

Today the ground is covered with a light dusting of snow.  The first day back to school after Christmas holiday is canceled because of the extreme windchill temperatures.  (what???  dang.  cold.)

It seems like a good day to share this little video I put together a couple of weeks back.  I had intended to burn it on discs and include it with grandparent Christmas gifts...  ummm....   wellll.....

Never happened.

Add it to the list.

But now they can see it through the magic of the internet!  (Except for my Dad.  Because he doesn't know how to work a computer.  I am not kidding.  The man can break horses, wire a house, survive in the wild for weeks with nothing but a book of matches and a pair of mittens.  But if Earth were being held up by alien bandits, and the fate of the human race depended on my dad doing a google search...  We would be screwed.  Die in a big ball of fire.  Toast.)

I'll have to send a copy to my dad through the mail.

Tree Trimming

Hey there, Gentle Reader.  Yeah.  We're still here.  

So...  Halloween.  Yeah.  Did it.

Thanksgiving.  Did that one too.

First teeth.  Nailed it.  Nailed two, actually.

Crawling.  Yup.  Like a boss.

And now...  knee deep in Christmas cheer.  Allow me to take this opportunity to speak freely.  Because it's my goal-darned blog.  And I'll say what I want to.  Allow me to speak freely on...

The Elf of the Shelf.

Man.  I hate that guy.

Seriously.  Who are you women who have time for that crap???

I wanted to be one of you, I really tried last year.  I was so excited to get that little guy. (Who looks alarmingly like my second born son.  creepy.)  He showed up on the tree...  Hanging superhero underwear on stocking hangers...  You know.  Typical elf stuff.    But really.  really.  This momma just can't make that brand of Christmas magic happen.  Fuzzbutton Candy-eater is sitting on the same bookshelf he was the day he came out of the big cardboard Christmas decor box.  Sorry kids.  Put it on your list of grievances and save it for your therapist in twenty years.

But...

We did decorate the Christmas tree!

So take that, Holiday To-Do List.  

Put that in your corn cob pipe and smoke it.

And I've got a video to prove it.

Just a Baby Gigolo

Not to be out done by his brothers' stunning school portraits from earlier this week...  Harry has a little something to share.  Or rather, his mother does.

If you are a thirty something minivan driving mom like myself, then chances are you grew up watching MTV.  Unless, by some horror of horrors...  Like my husband, your parents didn't have cable.  And then you grew up in some weird bubble where you had no idea what cool was.  And music was all in four part harmony singing praises unto our Lord, or childrens' voices saying no to drugs.  And you grew up doing who knows what on New Years Eve, because you certainly weren't watching the video music countdown and cheering when Peter Gabriel won the coveted MTV first place prize, the best video of the year.  Man, I love Peter Gabriel...  But I digress.  My point is, I was cool.  My husband was not. He doesn't even know who this is.

Oh, yes.  David Lee Roth.  And these guys.  You remember these guys, right?

Van Halen?  Of course you do.  And you thought guys with big hair wearing roller skates were pretty darn cool too, right?

Thankfully, Harrison is cool too.  Like me.  Not his nerdy father.  His God loving, no to drugs saying father... Yaahhh...  Not really complaining.

Harry likes a little bit of David Lee Roth now and then.  But honestly.  What two year old doesn't, I ask you?

Here's Harry. Singing, Just a Gigolo.  In the revered style of the great honored David Lee Roth.  Makes a mama proud.

The Second Year of Harry

Harry turned two in August, the same weekend as the surprise party that I threw for my father-in-law's 60th.  Then I got slammed with the worst sinus infection ever in the history of the world.  Seriously.  I should be in text books.  This week, I am finally feeling like a human again.  Hooray!  So, it's a little late, but here is sweet Harry Baby's birthday video.  He's only two.  We just wont tell him that I put it together two months after his birthday.  shhhh...

(or you can go here.)

Seven Years of Lucas

My Lucas boy turned seven on Saturday.  Unbelievable!  For the last couple of years I've put together a little video for each of the boys on their birthday.  (ummmm....  I'm a bit behind on Harry's 2nd birthday video.  I'll do it, I'll do it!  Promise!)  So, here's Lucas's seventh birthday video.  I don't mean to brag...

But... my kid is freaking beautiful.

(or go here)

Because I'm Cool

So, you've seen this.  Right?  Unless you are my Mom, you've seen this.  If you are my Mom, or if you haven't seen this for some inexplicable reason, stop what you are doing and watch it.  But, you might not want to be in a crowd.  If you are anything like me, you will sit with a stupid smile plastered to your kisser and tears streaming down your face.  And then you will watch it again.  And cry some more.  And then watch it again.  More tears.  And then you will think about it for days and days.  And maybe get a little teary when you think of it.

But here's something you may not know.  In the video, the guy with the fluffy hair in the beginning?  That's my friend Ammon from high school.  And the amazingly beautiful woman in the red dress?  That is his wife Gina.  That's right.  You know what this means.  It means that

I.  Am.  Incredibly.  Cool.  

I'm practically famous.  I've practically gone viral.  I know.  You are really impressed.  But really, you're practically famous now too!  Because, you know me.  You are, if you are reading this blog, probably related to me.  So how cool does that make you?  You've practically gone viral!  You are so.  Cool.

Okay, true.  I have only seen Ammon a hand full of times since high school.  And I have never met his wife.  But I can't take my eyes off of her when I watch this.  Over and over again.  Stupid grin.  Tears.  I can't take my eyes off of Gina.  So I feel like I know her.  We're practically best friends.  We're famous now.  Going viral together can really bring two people together.

Don't worry, Gentle Reader.  I won't let my newfound fame change me.  Much.

Max is Four!

Well...  It's official.  Max is four.  Which is great.  It means that he is now too big to wet his pants.  I'm ecstatic.

Every year for the boys's birthdays, I make a little video all about them.  I use photos and little video clips of them over the year and set them to a special song.  I try to find a song that really fits who they are right now.  Perhaps I will start using songs that are their favorites someday...  but for now Moves Like Jagger is hardly appropriate for a video of a four year old.

So...  Here's my little video of Sweet Max.  My editing isn't perfect, I get a little picky about that.  But as I put this together Saturday morning before the party, it will do.  I think the song fits Max's personality pretty well...  My little walking beam of sunshine.

Enjoy!  And make sure the sound is turned up on your computer!  (Sorry, but you may not be able to view the video on your phone, the music is licensed, or some mumbo jumbo like that.  Not my fault, Gentle Reader.  Take it up with Katrina and the Waves, friends.  Give it a try, but you might just have to go home and watch it on your laptop like we did in the dark ages.  You know, five years ago.)

The Christmas Story

It's officially Christmastime, friends.  Our tree is up, or stockings are hung on the bookshelves with care...  That's right, bookshelves.  Because Harry Baby will certainly maim himself pulling a stocking holder down on his little punkin head if they're hung by the chimney with care...  And they need to be hung somewhere with care.

I saw this little video last year at Christmastime, and fell crazy in love.  I'm still crazy in love.  Love love lovey love.

You should totally watch it.  And if you've seen it already, you should totally watch it again.  And then again.  And then maybe one more time.  It will make your heart all Christmassy happy.

The Halloween Part-ay

The Halloween Party.

Ah, yes.

Did you know, Gentle Reader.  It is very difficult to host a party and  take photograph what's going on?  It is.  It really, really is.  So...  I wouldn't say these are the best photos...  but for me they're keepers.  Because even though they aren't perfect...  Lucas will never be a six year old pirate again.  Max will never be that cute little dragon again.  Annabelle will not always feel so beautiful and glamorous wearing a synthetic yellow wig.  I will, however, more than likely be Lady Macbeth again...

I have the dress.  I have the skull.  I have the creepy Lady Macbeth face.  Why wouldn't I?

And I certainly do hope this fine family will be the Flintstones again...  because it was pretty fantastic.

What's that, Mom?  Can I have one?

After eating dinner, it was time to play!

The pirate and his little buddy Rapunzel.  I wish I could have captured her expression when she first walked into the party.  She was so, so excited about her long beautiful hair.  Her little face was just beaming.  She didn't say a word about it, but ran in with sheer joy dancing in her eyes.  I think that one brief moment made my whole night.

Then games!!!  Pumpkin Bowling was a hit.

It would have been even better if a certain little dinosaur would have stayed off of the lane...

Godzilla!

Then the pinata.  Gentle Reader.  Let me make a recommendation to you.  Do not try and do a pinata in the house.  It is terrifying.  Especially if any of the kiddos are on baseball teams.  Everyone, my house included, survived the pinata.  I didn't get any photos...  because I was in the fetal position under the table.

And tonight???

Trick or Treat, baby.

Ahhh yahhh...

Happy Halloween!

One Year Ago Today

One year ago today, my life changed forever.

One year ago today, my heart changed forever.

One year ago today, my sweet Harry came into this world.

I didn't know there was an emptiness in my heart until you came to fill it, my darling boy.

A year ago today, we were meeting you for the first time.

But it didn't feel like it.  It felt as if you had always been a part of me, only I just hadn't found you yet.  You were always part of my heart, and the day you were born it was like the last piece fitting into a puzzle.

I was not quite whole until you came.

Now I can't imagine what life was like without you.

I sing this song to you every day.  It always makes you calm if you're sad.  I'm so glad you're here, Harrison.  So glad you came and made our four a five.  So glad for your sparkling eyes.  So glad for your easy smile.  So glad that you are you.


Happy Birthday, my sweet Harry.

The Party

Brace yourself, Gentle Reader.  For the next week or so, I am going to make you sit on my sofa and watch home movies from my vacation.  If you aren't into that kind of thing, check back later.  If you like photos of Colorado and my offspring, read on.

......................................................................................................................................

The whole purpose of our Colorado trip was to surprise my mom for her 60th birthday.  My cousins and I have been planning it for months.  Deciding on the venue.  The guest list.  The food.  The cake.  I've been making the decorations for weeks.  Obviously, I couldn't write about it on my blog.  That would have ruined everything!  Keeping the secret was the hardest, and the funnest part of the whole scheme.  My mom was just out here in June, and it was no small job to keep the decorations out of her sight and the plans out of her hearing.  There were a couple of near misses, where I had to hack into her facebook account to keep her from seeing messages.  woops.  

We managed to pull it off.  She was surprised.  Really surprised.  Really, really surprised.  The months of planning, scheming, deception, intrigue...  Totally my bag, baby.

Almost my whole family was there.  We were only missing an aunt and uncle from Texas, and a cousin from Arizona.  So we were a cozy little band of fifty.  Chris and our little family from Oklahoma, my cousin Pammy and her boys from Arizona, my cousin Kaylene and her girls from Idaho, and everyone else local.  It's been about six years since we've all been together.  I can't put into words how wonderful it was to see those faces...

I don't know what it's like in your family, Gentle Reader.  But I grew up with cousins for my best friends.  Our extended family is very close.  If you've been around me for more than an hour you have probably heard the statement, "This one time...  me and my cousin..." many times.  We love each other.  Fiercely.  Deeply.  Without reservation.  My husband didn't grow up like this, in a big clan of cousins.  He finds it very odd that I sincerely think it is my business who my first cousin once removed Brandon dates.  Oh yes it is.  It is indeed.  I don't care how old he is.  I should really screen his girlfriends.  We would all be better off.

But I digress.

We all have our little quirks.  My mom cries too much.  I'm loud.  Jasmine can't watch a movie any sadder than Hello Dolly.  Naomi is loud.  My brother looks like the lost member of ZZ Top.  My Uncle Burl is loud.  My cousin Aaron has been playing in a band called Beer Death for 18 years.  (That's right.  I said Beer Death.  Let me know if you're interested in a t shirt.)  Trisha is terrified of riding in elevators with strangers.  Kaylene is nicer than most people.  Katrina is meaner than most people.  (just kidding, Katrina.  Please don't hurt me.)  Autumn gives unbelievably naughty gifts at bachelorette parties.  My cousin Pammy is loud.  Brandon is loud.  I am loud.  Burl is loud.  Naomi  is loud.  Aaron is loud...  As it turns out, a lot of us are loud.  huh.    

Quirks, strong lungs.

We love each other.

So much.

And here's the little party we put together for my Mom's 60th birthday.

the decorations  

the cake

the waiting

the big surprise

the ugly cry.  sorry, Mom.

the lovefest

Thanks for turning 60 Mom!  We love you!