Is it snowing in AZ?

Imagine my surprise when Hailey came in from the backyard sporting "snow" all over her. Turns out she and Collin were playing in a giant box out by the trash can. They had torn apart the styrofoam blocks and the beads were clinging to everything.

We used the vaccuum to get the beads out of their hair and off of their clothes. It's times like these I wonder why we spend so much money on Christmas presents when a discarded box will provide hours of entertainment!

The Company We Keep

I saw this story on the net regarding Madonna and A-rod (I read it like one watches a car wreck on the freeway). The story was all about a new club opening in Miami and all the stars sighted at the grand event. I got a chuckle out of seeing Martha Stewart's name listed with some of the other celebs. Why is she hangin' with P-Diddy and his homies at a night club in Miami? Doesn't she have some tulip bulbs to plant or something. Go M-Stew!

"When Robin Thicke and Mariah Carey took the stage, the room was packed with celebs, including A-Rod, P. Diddy, Kim Kardashian, Paris Hilton, Terrence Howard, Chloë Sevigny and Martha Stewart.
The revelry was still going late night at Blade, where Alex and Ingrid shared a table together and Kate Hudson made an appearance. And the partying is just getting started: The actual Victoria's Secret show is tonight at the Fontainebleau." -- E On-line

I'm thankful for Red Bucket Photo

I absolutely dread family photos. I get frustrated being cooped up in a 6x6 dimly lit room with five children (who aren't that small anymore) trying to keep everyone's hair and clothing in place while waiting for the perfect pose. Makenna always squints in anticipation of the flash - you have no idea how many photos I have of her with her eyes closed. Luke has the whole "glare on the eye glasses" issue. And I usually have "perma-grin" from gritting my teeth through the whole process.

The last family portrait we had taken was in 2005 when Collin was about 15 months old. He's changed greatly since then. This year I abandoned the little studio and went with a professional photographer - Hi Liz - who took fantastic, painless shots of our family. It was actually kind of fun! Here's a sample. (I should curl my hair more often, huh?) You can see more of Liz's awesome photos at www.RedBucketPhoto.blogspot.com.

I'm thankful for painless, fun family photo shoots to preserve our memories!

No Fun

On Monday Collin was sick with the stomach flu. He had vomited three times in the first hour. This aweful state continued for most of the day. After one episode, I was attending to him and said, "I'm sorry you feel bad. It's no fun being sick huh?" He nodded his head in agreement and weakly replied "but it is fun to have the hiccups." And there you have it.

At about 2:00 I got a phone call from the elementary school that Makenna was sick and needed to be taken home. Lucky me - two sick children.

Thank goodness it ended there. By mid-morning on Tuesday all was well and we went to the Zoo for Veterans' Day.

Advice wanted

We've lived in our house for nine years, and it shows. I wanted to give my kitchen a face-lift without breaking the bank. So granite countertops are out. Actually, I like my cheap formica; it's very functional and easy to maintain. I did replace the sink and faucet (okay - Clark did most of the work), and bought knobs and drawer pulls. I plan to paint the walls...goodbye Swiss Coffee.

So my questions for you...see the two faux drawers under the sink? Should they have drawer pulls or not?

If You Feed Them, They Will Come..

I like to post my scrapbook layouts for y'all to see, but it may be a while before these photos make it to a 12x12 format. So the photos will do for now. We fed these ducks/geese at a park in Scotsdale in October 2008. You can tell these animals are used to people and their loaves of bread. The most awesome way to spend a $1 with your kids!

Here they come...they must be able to smell the Safeway bread.