Our Christmas Adventures

This Christmas we took quite a road trip! A few months ago, back when the roads were good and the thought of snow was delightful, Lisa and I planned a family bonding trip to McCall, Idaho. I had been to McCall when I was a kid, but didn't really think about how far away from my home this is....really when it was all said and done we could have driven to California and back, but Idaho is cool too.

Portland really doesn't get severe weather very often....maybe snows once a year and it lasts for a day or two. But what do you know, the two days before our trip is planned, it snows - big snow! School is closed and the gorge is icey....yuck! Long story short, we were determined to go on this trip - we love family bonding! So, $1000 later and studded tires, we were off to Idaho, making our first stop at Auntie Lisa's, then to McCall at a beautiful mansion for three days with lot's of family (I wish we had a group shot), but besides my family, Mom, Albert, Grandma Glenna, Papa Frank, Aunt Debbie, Uncle Rod, Tammi, Casey, Hunter, Travis, Brandy, Corbin, Lisa, Christopher, Mike, Cali, and Denni-jo. Lot's of babies and lot's of grandmas is a perfect combination. This gave the moms and dads plenty of fun time. We played rock band, went out to eat, and even attempted snow boarding - which is a whole lot of work by the way.


the drive was long....but the kids and daddy were troopers! I was the only one with white knuckles as we crossed many snow and ice covered roads.


Grandpa and Albert had a little battle over this lovely hat in the gift exchange.

Rock band played on for many hours...

Brooklyn and Daddy showing off his new biking jersey she got him with her name on it - Brooklyn Brewery.



Grady's First Christmas!



Brooklyn and Grandma's Gingerbread house. Brooklyn had been asking to make one of these all month long. She was so proud, that we even had to transport it back home.


Travis and Corbin
Grady and his grandma

Hunter loves his great Grandma!


After McCall, the roads home didn't look good so we headed back to Lisa's for a day, then to Papa Don's and Dad's house in Moses Lake for another day. We finally made it home on Christmas....a little tired and with two sick kids, but it was all worth it. It was the perfect white Christmas! (Lisa has the good snowy pics - I'll have to get them from her).

Thankful Thursday, arriving on Friday

So I love reading my step-sister's weekly Thankful Thursday blog and have had many good intentions on doing the same over the last few weeks or months....but Thursdays just seem to keep passing me by, so here is my Thankful Friday post:
I'm Thankful for:
1. My new housekeeper, Connie!!! I'm in love! I've really had a hard time adjusting to working full time, adding baby number two to the mix, and keeping up with it all. I was feeling like any free moment I had was spent doing housework and my kids were being neglected...especially Brooklyn. So I splurged (very much against my idol, Suzy Orman's, advice) and hired a housekeeper. Today was the first day and my house has never been so clean!!! She cleaned the stuff I never get to, like the blinds, the glass in my entertainment center, every corner....it's wonderful!
2. My sweet baby boy who bless his heart, has had to cry his way through the last few nights. Never thought I could do it, but I'm trying the ol' "cry it out" sleep method. Again, having trouble keeping up with life, so a little sleep at night would definitely help and I'm afraid Grady and I have created some very bad habits of eating and waking all night long. I'm praying it works soon....hopefully we won't have to do it for too long.
3. My Hannah Montana Superstar, AKA Brooklyn. As her dad plays Rock Band, Brooklyn grabs the microphone and yells for me to watch her be Hannah Montana....I'll have to get a video of this up once I learn how because it's hilarious!
4. My husband who is really learning be quite the Mr. Mom. He does laundry, fixes dinner, and even ventures out of the house with kids now.

The Marathon Training Days are Over.....for now!

For the past six months or so, Jason has been training for The Portland Marathon with three of his best buddies. Initially, I really thought this would be a short lived hobby (as Jason tends to sample and dabble in all things), but Jason really got into it. So, the day finally arrived last Sunday and Jason proudly came in at 3 hours 45 minutes (I know he knows the exact time, but that my approximation). He trained really hard for it and I know he was proud of the accomplishment. I went down to see him cross the finish line, but sadly missed him...he was a bit earlier than I expected. It was however a fun day. Brooklyn went to her Aunt Debbie's and spent the day getting spoiled with one on one attention and Mr. Grady came with me, strapped to my front. He enjoyed the day outside and when all of the guys had finished, we all (the runners and families) went out to the Macaroni Grill - yum!

Now to my disbelief, he thinks he wants to do more in the future.....really, is this fun? I saw the people crossing the finish line and it looks like a bit of a high for the pure satisfaction of saying you did it, but it also looks extremely miserable! But I am one who really has never been a runner and doubt if I could run around the block once. But, my husband is a tank and seems to be able to do anything he sets his mind to. This time around his goal was to finish, but next time around he wants to better his time. Oh, and the latest call from the "besties" was...."hey let's get into biking"....great, another hobby : )

The Pumpkin Patch

I look forward to the pumpkin

patch outing every year! I love the beginning of fall when the weather is turning cooler, but it's still sunny sometimes and the rain hasn't set in permanently yet. My favorite pumpkin patch ever is Sauvie Island, northwest of Portland. It is the coolest farm with all the classic pumpkin patch fixins....the hayride to the patch, the corn maize, the market with fresh produce, yummy treats like candied apples, pulled pork sandwiches, and elephant ears, etc. Jason took the day off so we could go last weekend (even though I know he really wished he was with his buddies at the pre-marathon day festivities, he chose to spend the day with his fam - good choice, I think.) We had a good time, but the weather was a bit iffy. Luckily there was a break in the rain just long enough for us to get our pumpkins and have lunch. Grady enjoyed the day outdoors with the new scenery, just hanging out in the front pack and Brooklyn liked looking for the perfect pumpkin, which really wasn't hard for her to find - I had a much harder time. As for the pictures, little miss b is not very photogenic, unless the photograph is her idea of course.

full time...

So, just a quick update on my career status. I am working full time...the full time part is a one year contract, which is great cause I'm not completely sold on it yet. I feel like a bit of a whiner, but it's hard! I feel like I'm barely getting by in every area of my life, but not quite succeeded at any. The paycheck is nice, but.......??? I miss knowing what my babies' schedules are. By the time its the weekend, I feel like I don't even know how Grady goes down for a nap or at what time. It makes me sad, but I know that he is well taken care of by his "Faith" and by Daddy. Brooklyn is doing better at her "school", but its hard when she has to be there all day. She gets pretty worn out. The hardest part is keeping up with chores around the house and still finding time to be a mom during the hours I'm home. I feel like we're slowly getting into a routine. Even so, I'm happy to know that there are only 152 days of school left and then I can decide if I want to continue this crazy way of living or take it back to my preferred slower pace of life. We'll see....trying to keep my options open.

part time or full time???

I've been teaching part time since Brooklyn was born and I've loved it. I've taught AM Kindergarten for the last three years and it's great because I get my own class, I'm home by noon everyday to spend the majority of the day with my kids, and I get a chance to get out the door and have a few moments of grown up time everyday (even though most of it is with other kids, it gives me a sense of purpose and provides a little challenge). I've enjoyed having the best of both worlds - being a mom and having a career. Now that child number two has arrived I don't know what to do. All along I've been planning on continuing on with AM K despite the fact that I'll only bring home a ittie bittie paycheck after daycare and gas to/from work everyday. Besides doing the part time thing, my other obvious choices are working full time or staying home. I have to admit that staying home scares me because I think that being a mom is the hardest job in the world and sometimes I feel like my job gives me a bit of a break and a reason to get out of the house, plus my own identity. I give props to all the SAHMs out there....I think I would drive my husband crazy. Anyway, my other option is full time and could potentially be offered to me since my school ended up with more kinders than anticipated this year...very tempting financially since it is double the paycheck without really double the work and since childcare costs are basically the same. But still....my babies are young, Grady doesn't sleep through the night, my husband doesn't like housework....how do working moms do it? So with all this said, I'm a bit nervous for the school year to begin. I like to be in control, but am trying to give this one to the Lord....knowing he will provide me and my family with the choice that is best for us.

Mr. Grady

This little guy has brought such a new twist on our family. It's funny how even though he's only been around for three months, it's hard to remember what life was like without him. He's such a personality already...I love his smiles, the way he loves his sister, and even his little man voice whether he's telling me a story or politely telling me he needs a bit of attention. (By the way, this is his Jason face - they even have the same eyebrow wrinkle).