June continued...

So for those who are just joining in, you will have to go back and read the previous post in order to follow this random stream of consciousness.  I was going to try and just continue to "edit" and make one big ol' long epistle of the past 7 months but putting that many photos into one post requires more patience than I have (I know, you all thought I was a saint and well, I am but just not in the "waiting on the computer" department!)

Picking up where I last left off... Boy #1 graduated from high school.  Graduation was held in the Tacoma Dome and I feared that we would be there for hours and hours. Much to my surprise (and the relief of my rear end - metal bleachers....so fun)  they were done in less than 90 minutes!

Friend "L" and Boy #1 

Boy #3 "graduated" from Middle School however, unlike kindergarten they did not make them wear white button up shirts and paper motarboards!  8th grade celebration had a "Mardi Gras" theme and Boy#3's

FAB outfit is courtesy of his Auntie (except for the shoes...tux shoes courtesy of Goodwill spray painted bright blue...)

Boy #3 and friends

After graduation was over we had a week or so of down time (If you can ever call it that) and then Boy #1 trekked North to prep for the East-West AllStar Football game.  Within 48 hours of dropping him off there was I taking the long ride back again with elbow sleeves for the turf burns and a "first aid" kit for the blisters the new cleats had given him.  I ended up having to go in Boy #1's jeep, as my car battery died that morning (while I was dropping off Boy #2 for a week long camping trip - love the 7:30 am calls to the towing company, that goodness Mom lives close and doesn't care that she had to come without her hair and makeup done!)  Boy #1 in true "cool dude" fashion had removed all the windows and doors from his ride so there I am in the garage in my "dress" clothes for work trying to zip the windows back in enough that I won't look like I flew in on the tornado from Oz when I arrive at work.  While so fun in the summer sun, little red jeep is not designed for road trips, I felt like a chicken leg in the Shake n' Bake bag!  Talk about Mr. Toad's wild ride - Yikes!  Game day was a beautiful sunny day and the East rocked the West (Boy #1 played for the East and was definitely a force to be watched out there on the field) despite having been fed hotdogs for more meals in a row than one should ever eat hotdogs!  He said he couldn't wait to get home for "real food"!

Boy #1 in the red jersey, taking' 'em down!

JULY

July was a rather amazing month because Neighbor's two little ones made their debut into the world!  Here we are anxiously awaiting their arrival (and yes I know she doesn't look big enough for their to be two in there!  

While waiting for the twins I spent a sunny afternoon hangin' out with this cute chickie

and of course, the yard was decked out in all its 4th of July finest.  Happy Birthday America!

They're here, they're here, they're here!

After a long and patient wait on the part of their mommy, Reagan Christine and John Patrick arrived on July 8th and July 9th (twins born on different days, how fun!) Watching them come into this world was an amazing experience and I feel truly blessed to have been a part of it... thanks Neighbor!

Reagan is on the left and John is on the right

Whew...ok, that takes us through mid July...just like a great weekly drama, this post is to be continued!

1000 Excuses

So I really don't have 1000 excuses for not posting for oh, a few months (ok, ok so more than a few but not long enough to have gone through a full term pregnancy people!) but I've been busy/outside/lazy/not wanting to be on the computer/done too many things to write about and well how 'bout just haven't gotten round to it?  I'll be better now that winter is here and well, being outside isn't much of an option (unless you are a duck or a fish).

So what has happened in the past several months - grab a glass of wine read on!

April- I painted the walls in the kitchen and they are well, they are definitely green...jungle vine green to be precise!  The cabinets will eventually become a creamy white but painting cabinets required way more effort than I wanted to put out in April so the kitchen now looks like this (can't find my "before" pictures" they are on a camera card that is currently MIA)

May: May brought about many things.  The first was the Meistersingers/Boy#2's trip to Victoria B.C.  I had the opportunity to chaperone and it was a great trip.  The kids sang in many venues, once of which was the rotunda at the Parliment Building - the sound was amazing.  I think we all had goosebumps when they finished.  Maybe if I'm talented enough I can figure out how to post one of the songs they recorded. 

I started tearing up the front yard as soon as the sun came out.  One of my friend's husband was nice enough to come over and roto-till most of the front yard for me in a morning...I'd planned on doing it in sections so change of plans!  Now instead of weeds and nothing I had dirt/grass clods and nothing - which lead to many hours of raking (not exactly my favorite outdoor activity).  Then the dump truck arrived with a very large pile of dirt - just in time for Boy #1 to work off his "Prom bill". 

May ended with senior prom for Boy #1.  Prom was held in the Terrace Club at Safeco field.  The kids all went to Benni Hanna's for dinner (and yes, I'm sure I spelled that wrong) and had a really good time.  The highschool state baseball championship game was also happening the same night as prom so they boys got to go out and catch some of the game.  All I can say about prom is "wow, I sure didn't look like that at 18!...not sure I look like at four.... I mean 29, which is how old I am now!

Boy #1 and Prom date "A"... apparently Prom had a James Bond theme

Handsome boys and pretty girls

June: June was totally crazy.  In fact, it was totally crazy pretty much from early May until mid August. 

Boy #1 graduated on June 14th. 

 

And his Sports Illustrated cover shot (courtesy of his Uncle Mark)

 We then had about a week's breather before he had to be at camp for the Allstate Football Game....

(post to be continued.....)

It Happened Last Month

Dear Blog fans,

I know that you've missed me terribly but I've been terribly busy...can't really say exactly what has kept me so busy but all I know is that its now the middle of March and where January and February went, I don't know but they flew somewhere! Though I keep having flashbacks to winter as twice this week we've had this!

I do have to say that the snow is much prettier than the gray rain but I fear that it will impede all my daffodils that are trying to bravely make their way into spring!

Valentine's Day involved a little creative cooking (Valentine's Day is not my fav but I try to make it fun for the other creatures that live within my circle of love). First Bo-Bo made heart shaped puppy cookies for the love of his life Libby-Libby.

And then I made a heart shaped version of "jammies" sprinkled of course with a liberal amount of powered sugar! I then played Cupid and delivered them to various "love spots" around the harbor...

After Valentine's Day came a week of vacation and skiing with the kids at White Pass. We were again blessed with the use of a friend's cabin (love that free lodging thing). Boy #1 and Boy #3 each brought a friend so needless to say the van was packed to the ceiling with boys and food. Past life thought I'd brought way too much food - he later had to eat those words when he saw how much 5 boys who've skied all day eat for dinner! Past life and daughter M joined us mid-week and we all had a great time. Good weather, good skiing, good food and hours upon hours of "The Office" on DVD each night!

Boy #1 and friend J Boy #3 and co

Boy #2, Past life and Miss M

Friend "C" at the end of the day!

For the guy in your life

Not joking, this was on a list of "10 things your guy would secretly love"... I don't know about you but I'd pay money to see the looks on guys faces around the world when they open this one up!

(Did you see the " 5 saving graces" line - LOL) and just in case you are not sure how this would be used... the directions

1. Peel off adhesive and stick Subtle Butt onto the inside of your underwear or pants, exactly where you think it goes.
2. Go for it, Let'er rip, Have at it, Cut loose, Break wind, Gas it up
3. When you're done wearing Subtle Butt, remove and discard. If any adhesive traces remain, use a damp cloth for removal.

Tips for Success:
You want all the gas to pass through Subtle Butt. So do what you need to do to ensure none sneaks around the edges. Subtle Butt can be applied to thongs by wrapping and securing it around the back.

Tis this season

So I've been a busy little Christmas elf the past few days/weeks... not sure if its been days or weeks but anyways. At some point earlier this month I got a call from "Miss Thing's" mommy. It went something like this,
Miss Thing's mommy: "Hi Mannie, we have a question... are you a sew-er?"
Me: "Umm, maybe...why?"
Miss Thing's mommy: " Well because Miss Thing apparently needs an angel costume for her school play next week and well, we saw the costume you made for Boy #1 and well..."
Me: (Laughing) " Ok, yes I can do an angel costume"
Miss Thing's mommy: " Oh thank goodness"
Miss Thing's mommy to Miss Thing: "Alyssa, Mannie's a sew-er!" to which Miss Thing promptly ran and told her daddy, "Daddy, Daddy Mannie's a sew-er!"

I think I've now sewed more costumes in the past couple of months than I have in the past 10 years! And of course, she was the cutest angel in the bunch.... especially when she was she shushing her sister and says "be quiet" during the performance!

Besides angel costumes there were Christmas boxes to pack and get sent off to Solider Man in Iraq. I even found a tree that would fit into one of the flat rate boxes....way too cute!
And then there were the annual Christmas cookies to bake which was a little more complicated due to the fact that apparently I broke my ring finger on my right hand at Boy#1's last football game... (I guess we got a bit too excited) and after of month of it hurting and bugging me, Neighbor snuck me into the OR for a quickie fluro-scan and happy day, its broken. So now I have to wear this lovely plastic splint thing on it, which falls off every time I get it wet and made it impossible to do my famous rolled gingerbread cookies, so we had to settle for other things. I did manage to do the chocolate Andes mint cookies.

Some cinnamon biscotti type cookies (Soldier man like cinnamon red hots). Off into a fancy red stocking they went, along with some Christmas lights, music and cinnamon pine cones. Happy Holidays to all the boys playing in the sandbox of Iraq!

November Wrap Up

Yes, I know, I know. It's no longer November but hey, this girl's been busy! That and the dark of winter wreaks havoc on my multiple personality disorder and I just want to hibernate! I mean really, didn't your mom make you go to bed when it was dark outside? Mine did, actually our mom made us go to bed at a specific time. I can still remember being a kid in Montana (so between the ages of 6 and 8) and sitting in my bed and listening to the other kids play outside in the summer with the sun still out. Isn't it funny how somethings you can remember/see in your mind years and years later? We lived in a single wide trailer in a trailer park with a dirt road (that was filled with families) back when living in a trailer was not considered "trashy". Sis Amy and I spent hours when we moved in digging for "carrots". Of course, there weren't any but the plants sure looked a lot like there should be carrots at the bottom. Alright enough of strolling down memory lane - onto current events!

November was a bitter sweet month, the fall leaves were gorgeous but it was the end of highschool football. The Tides season ended on a rather sad note, losing in the first round of the playoffs to a team we had been picked to beat. Some things just aren't meant to be I guess. The boys were so disappointed, Boy #1 especially as he has lived and breathed football for the past four years. The day after the season ended he said to me, "I was upset about losing but when I looked around the locker room at Lou, Jeff and Dalton and realized that we'd never play together again, that's when I really lost it". "Mom", he said, "this is the beginning of the end. Next we'll be graduating and life will never be this way again". Oh my mommy heart, do I love that kid! And yes, as adults we know there is life after high school but for them in this moment it is everything. So here's to you T - its been so fun watching you boys play!

Team Captains Voted 1st team all Narrows League and Kitsap Sun's All West Team

18 career interceptions

On to turkey day... or "no furkey day" as Sis Amy says (Sis Amy is a vegetarian and so we were teasing the kids that we were having "tofurkey" for Thanksgiving... eww, even she's says, "no tofurkey... yuck!" Instead we made.... Pumpkin cake served with whip cream and homemade carmel sauce...delish

Homemade cranberry sauce - way better than canned and smelled divine!

Sauteed garlic green beans - no nasty green bean casserole for these girls

And of course, "libations"... Aptly named the "Nofurkey-tini!" Kirsh, vodka, tart cherry juice, pear brandy, fresh squeezed oj, a dash of aguave, a splash of lime... Mmm, they were quite yummy! (Nanna and Boy #2 got virgins!)

Family photo - Happy NO FURKEY DAY everyone!

Back porch view

This is the view from my back porch and bedroom - the picture doesn't quite do the colors justice but waking up has been a rather pretty site the last few weeks... correction waking up is a pretty sight on the 2 days a week when a) I am not up while it is still dark out and b) its not pouring rain! I was quite certain the other night, as the water was streaming over the gutters (which are now filled with said lovely leaves) and onto the deck (kind of like sleeping near a waterfall) that good ol' Noah and the Mrs. might be coming on by with their flood/disaster prep materials!

I am definitely not a fan of daylight savings time as it seems to me the only thing it changes is that I now go to work in the dark and come home in the dark...Hello, the dark is for sleeping and that just makes me want to hibernate. Never fear, I've already started on masses doses of vitamin D (while I dream about a vacation to a sunny, warm, tropical beach complete with a gorgeous cabana boy who is good at two things: total silence and making sure my margarita glass is never empty!) Since one cannot sleep all the time (ok, one could but people might think there is something wrong with you if you tell them that) I've spent a bit of time here and there doing....

Hats for troops - it is now growing a bit cooler in those sandy hell holes we insist on defending, so the need for "cool ties" has declined. Now we are knitting hats - all wool for ground troops because much of the "warfare" they encounter is Incindiary (Dictionary.com=An artillery shell that burns upon impact, usually stuffed with white phosphorous and anything made from acrylic fibers would melt to the solider (shudder, stomach did a major tumble when I read that in our Ships Project newsletter). While Iraq is not too cold yet, apparently it is quite chilly in the mountains of Afghanistan (yes, we are still fighting there - defending stretches of road while the terrorists simply run in and out of Pakistan saying ne'er-ne'er). Normally we put care labels on all our items so that the troops know how to take care of things and that its from the Ships Project group. However, the things that are being helo-dropped to the special forces groups in Afghanistan (and other places) are not to contain those labels due to concern that if the drop were to fall into hands other than ours that there may be some "not so nice" care packages sent in return. So I got a little creative/festive with my labels. I wrote hand wash, cold H2O - air dry on these fall leave decorations I have around the house and tied them to the hats~

Fall continues to bring out random food cravings. Last weekend it was French onion soup, twice baked potatoes and these chocolate sandwich cookies (recipe courtesy of the girls at Bread and Honey blog). Into my pot went about 5 sliced Walla Walla sweet onions. Along with some celery and other things I can't remember now (check Cook's.com for lots of easy recipes)

While that was cooking I mixed up the twice baked potatoes (Boy #1's fav) that I'd started earlier And finished up the cookies. Now the Bread & Honey girl's cookies look better than mine. My dough was very "sandy" in appearance. This is the first cookie recipe I've made where you didn't cream the butter and sugar first... might change that around next time. Anyways as always they were gone in a few days! I topped the soup with a thick slice a "No Knead Bread" from a few days before - and melted slices of provolone cheese over the top - all the boys tried it (that's a stretch for Boy #3 who only tried it after I told him it had sweet onions in it because he loves sweet onions but he picked out the bread - no soggy bread for him! On that one I tend to agree, no soggy bread for this girl either but in french onion soup one has to make an exception!)