It's the most wonderful time of the year!

There are several reasons why I love the Christmas Holiday season. I love the fact that it starts to get cold, and for some there's snow. I love decorating the Christmas Tree and putting up lights on the house. I love shopping for presents, and then I love to wrap them. Oh, and the number one reason why I love this time of year? I can use the phrase, "Remember: Santa is watching!"

Just yesterday I was being hasseled by William because he didn't want to put his dirty clothes in the dirty clothes bin. Instead of making him do it, I simply said, "That's fine if you don't want to, but remember: Santa is watching," and then went back to what I was doing. It's glorious how well this works! With a second to contemplate what that meant, William rushed to put his dirty clothes where they belonged. He just wasn't willing to risk Santa seeing him be disobedient.

If only this worked year-round...but it doesn't. You just can't pull this in May! "Do your chores or in seven months you might not get all the presents you want!" Nope-it's really only good for that time between Thanksgiving all the way up to Christmas Eve. The rest of the year, I actually have to use real parenting skills. So, for that month, it's the greatest "threat" there is!

So remember: Do your chores, clean your room, eat your vegetables...cause Santa's watching!

Photo Shoot!

The Children's Place (My favorite store in the whole wide world!!) starts their Thanksgiving sale early on Wednesday, so I took the kids in to pick out rugby sweaters for the cousins for Christmas. Well, we walked out with a lot more sweaters than we planned on! Ok, so it was 80 degrees outside today, not exactly sweater weather, but we just couldn't pass these up with the matching accessories! We decided it was time for a PHOTO SHOOT!!

This is obviously William doing his best impression of Derek Zoolander's "blue steel" move.

Natalie is such a ham! I have no idea where she gets that from...

Oh, yeah...did I mention that the hats in the older girl section fit my head? Well, they do. So, I got in on the rugby action. Natalie was all over that!

A Fall Blog...

As we were outside tonight taking down the Halloween decorations, Tom commented to me that it was actually starting to feel like fall here in Houma, so I decided it was finally time to sit down and create my fall blog. Fall is my favorite season, or at least it was when I lived in a state that actually had the four seasons! Here in Houma we don't get a real fall. Sure, the leaves fall off some of the trees, but you don't get that glorious burst of color that you do up north. And there just isn't that crispness in the evenings that I love. I also find it rather strange to be raking leaves when it is in the mid nineties...oh, well! This picture of Binkey (Natalie) was taken on one of the first nights that we raked leaves back in mid-September. She really liked the idea behind leaf jumping, especially being buried in them!

I had to include this picture of William because I was blown away by how high he could actually jump! Knowing that Tom can't get too high off the ground, I think I finally get to claim these genes as mine. He is my son!

There are about 20 more pictures just like this on my camera, but I'll just include this last one. He just loved jumping in the leaves and posing for the camera!

Mid-October we went to the local pumpkin patch for our Family Home Evening activity. The kids loved walking through all the pumpkin clusters until they found the perfect pumpkin. Of course they wanted to rush home and start carving the pumpkins, but we just can't do that here! I swear when we lived in Ohio we could have carved pumpkins in September and they would have lasted till Halloween because of the cool weather. Can't do that here! We ended up carving them on the Sunday night before Halloween. They barely made it...

Here are the four jack-o-lanterns in all their glowing splendor! From left to right: Christa's, Natalie's, William's, and Tom's.

The Saturday before Halloween we attended a charity event held at the New Orleans Zoo called "Boo at the Zoo." It benefits the local children's hospital. We had to buy our tickets back in August because this is such a popular event here. They open the zoo in the evening with all sorts of Halloween activities. There was a non-scary haunted house, all sorts of little activity booths, big bounce houses, a trick-or-treating alley, and a haunted train ride. The kids (and adults) had such a blast! William and Natalie have completely fallen in love with Peter Pan, so naturally our costumes reflected that. William was, of course, Peter Pan. Tom was his Captain Hook. Natalie was Tinkerbell, and I was Wendy. It was the first time in the history of our marriage that Tom didn't dress as a World War II soldier. I was very excited! It was fun for all of us to be in costume together!

Just another of us all in costume together!

On Halloween night, I stayed home and handed out candy to all the local trick-or-treaters and Tom took the kids around a few blocks. He was such a good sport, he even dressed up again! One interesting thing here in Houma; on Halloween, kids only go to houses where people sit outside in their driveways. Last year, I didn't know this. I had purchased all this candy and the kids and I waited to hand it all out in our living room. No one rang our doorbell, even though all the outside lights were on. I just couldn't figure it out! The next day, stuck with loads of candy, I asked my neighbor what I did wrong. She pointed out that I needed to be outside. Lesson learned!

Such a beautiful little fairy! What a fun "Fall!"

I've Been Tagged by Mel!!!

This is one of those silly "fill in all these random question" thingys that my friend Melanie tagged me to do...begrudgingly I'm doing it! And since I've just not had the time to do a good blog in a while, I thought I'd fill in some space with this. Most people who read this don't have a blog, so they can't be tagged. So, I guess the only ones to be "tagged" is you, Sarah Davies and you, Anna O'Brien! Good night, and good luck!

1. Best thing you cooked last week:

Well, maybe not the "best" thing, really, but the coolest thing I cooked last week was something called "mummy dogs." It's very Halloweenie. You take a Rhodes bread roll and thaw it out. Then you roll it till it's really long and stretched out, like two feet or so. Then you wrap it around a hot dog so it looks like a mummy, saving a small piece to put on his head as a cap. Cook in the oven and then add mustard dots for eyes. I pretty much became the coolest mom ever when I put those on the table for dinner!

2. If money and time were no object, where would you go and with whom?

I think this is such a weird question because it's so unrealistic so I've never given it much thought, really. Right now in my life, it would be a really long, drawn out Disney World Vacation where we could come and go as we please. This is just such an ideal thing with kids and it really is a fun place. So, I guess that's my answer for now. Ask again in 30 years!

3. When was the last time you cried?

(Really Kristin? "High School Musical 2?")

I haven't really laughed till I cried in a long time, so I guess that option is out. Oh, who knows? I should really keep better records of these things.

4. 5 things you were doing this month 10 years ago:

Like I really remember that well, but if I were a Junior in High School, that would put me...

1.) Playing in a fall basketball league in Valley View.
2.) Junior Homecoming attendant (woot woot!)
3.) Going to Berkshire's Homecoming dance with Adam Gonczy, and loving every minute of it :(.
4.) Going to West Geauga's Homecoming dance with Sam McClellan... (no comment)
5.) Writing the world's greatest paper on a book I had never read for Honor's English, and getting an "A+, great insight!"

5. 5 things on your to do list today:

We'll make this Monday's to-do list...

1.) Remember to take Michael to school in the morning with William!
2.) Grocery shopping with Binks.
3.) Laundry, laundry, laundry
4.) Pay bills
5.) Carve pumpkins for FHE

(Yep...pretty much your average, ordinary to-do list!)


6. 6 favorite snacks:

1.) Edamame
2.) Cereal, any kind.
3.) Pretzals
4.) Caramel Italian Cream Soda
5.) Anything chocolate...and I do mean anything....

7. 5 bad habits:

1.) This is definitely my worst...I can never seem to put cd's back in their right cases after I use them, so I can never find them when I want to listen to them again!
2.) (Number one should count as two since I seem to do that with dvds, too...)
3.) Sometimes I'm really bad at returning phone calls...
4.) I let Natalie color on the tile floor, even though I know she shouldn't, because I know Mr. Clean Magic eraser will get it out.
5.) I need to put so many pictures into photo albums!

8. 5 favorite foods:

1.) Lasagna, just the way I make it.
2.) Pizza!!
3.) Chicken Parmesan at Olive Garden
4.) Minestrone Soup
5.) Anything my mom makes, cause it always just tastes so good!

9. 5 places I've been:

1.) New York City
2.) Disney World
3.) Niagra Falls
4.) All over Germany
5.) Provo, Utah :) (there were other cool places, but Provo is the coolest ever.)

10. 6 favorite memories:

1.) Traveling across the country with Kirk on our way to BYU for my Freshman Year.
2.) Going to Germany and really being on my own for the first time.
3.) Tom proposing at the top of the mountain at sunset.
4.) When I found out I was pregnant for the first time.
5.) Freshman year road trip to California...
6.) Anything from Ohio.

Ok...there's all the answers to the greatest questions ever asked for your reading pleasure!

To the Ohio!!

At the end of August we made our annual pilgrimage back to Ohio. Naturally our trip coincided with Labor Day Weekend, which also coincides with The Great Geauga County Fair! Those of you not from Geauga County just won't be able to understand, but it really is the greatest county fair ever! Oh, and another bonus is that the whole family was going to be in town at once. It was going to be a party!

This is Natalie checking out our plane at the New Orleans airport. Getting through security was exciting. They made us put her beloved blankie and love-a-lot (carebear) through the x-ray machine and she really didn't like that at all. And then we had to take her shoes off and she went ballistic! But we made it through and were on our way!

This is William, Natalie, and their cousin Dane on Thursday, the first day of the fair. Tom and I took the three kids down for a little bit so that Connie could get ready for the day and get a few things done. (It should be noted that Tom really started to feel sick the night before, and this is when I knew he wasn't faking it, cause he didn't even chow down on fair food! But more about Tom to follow!)

This is William and Dane checking out the baby cow at the petting zoo. This was one of their favorite things to see while there.

Then it was snack time at the fair! We decided soft pretzals and birch beer for everyone would be a good idea. I just love this picture simply because Natalie was so dedicated to wearing her indian headband that even when it completely covered her eyes she didn't let it affect her, or stop her from eating pretzals and drinking birch beer! (Meanwhile, back to the saga of Tom: after taking the kids to the fair we headed up to the mall to meet up with Tom's sister Anna, who took the kids to Build-A-Bear for their birthdays. Afterwards, we met up with the rest of Tom's family for dinner, when Tom really began to feel sick. After dinner we decided to have Tom drop the kids and I off at my parent's house and then he would go to the ER. A ct scan revealed an enlarged appendix and fluid in the stomach. Tom was admitted to the hospital Thursday night for observation. More about Tom's story to come!)

The big activity for Friday was the Mad Hatter's Unbirthday Party. My parents threw this party to celebrate everyone's birthdays, since they don't get to be there for most of their grandchildren's birthday parties. It was great! There was lemonade that magically changed colors, all sorts of snacks and treats to try, presents to open, and, of course, everyone looked good in their hats!

Saturday morning was another gorgeous day! We southerners introduced the northerners to beignets and hot coco for breakfast. Everyone enjoyed them, especially all the hornets that were attracted to the powdered sugar!

All the cousins then went down to the fair. While there, we ran into Sheriff McClelland and Midge, the world's smallest police dog (actually in the Guiness Book of World Records!) This is William holding Midge with the Sheriff's hat on his head.

These are all the cousins infront of a llama pen. Left to right: Brock, Dane, William, Bryson, Natalie and James. Brock and Bryson are my sister Heather's boys. Dane and James are my sister Connie's boys. Yep, Natalie is the only granddaughter.

Saturday I also found out that Tom would be having his appendix removed Sunday morning! In a way, this whole opperation was good for him, because it forced him to get some much needed relaxation and rest, although he was in pain in a hospital gown! His surgery went just fine on Sunday and when the doctors studied his appendix post-op, they noticed alot of scar tissue, which explains why Tom has had alot of what we had always assumed were gastrointestinal issues. The surgery was laparoscopic, so they went in through his belly button and a few small holes were made at his belt line, but it wasn't a huge cut! We also had to extend our vacation because Tom couldn't do much for a few days.

It should also be noted that on Sunday, the boys were all playing with a Little Tykes car, taking turns driving inside the car while two would ride on the top and one would push. Yes, in retrospect this does sound very foolish, but they were all getting along so we chose to ignore the danger. Well, Dane ended up breaking his arm when the car tipped over and he stuck his arm out to stop his fall and the roof of the car snapped his radius in half. They stopped by to say "hi" to Uncle Tom in the hospital while at the hospital to get his temporary cast put on.

With an extended vacation we were able to do a few more fun things with Tom out of the hospital. We drove up to Lake Chautauqua, New York to show the kids where I spent most of my summer vacations growing up. We got to visit with family and friends. We took the kids to see an outdoor train display. We went to the beach at Mentor Headlands on Lake Erie.

All in all, it was a fun, much needed vacation for all of us! We love and miss Ohio, and as weird and difficult it is to live in Louisiana, it was nice to be able to come back to our own house at the end of trip.

PS-The only reason this picture of the kids rolling down the hill is included is because we have no hills in Southern Louisiana and so neither was really sure what to do. I ended up rolling down with Natalie cause she just couldn't seem to get it!

Harding Heroes Save the Day!!

This is the conclusion of the saga of the women who saved Harding Drive: Alonna and I!! Ok...most of you will have no idea what I'm talking about, so I'll start from the beginning. Those of you who know this story can skip right to the end to find out the conclusion. The rest of you, read on!

A few months back...well, at least I think it was a few months back, maybe it was spring time. Ok, a while ago my neighbor, Alonna, and I decided to have a picnic in my front yard. It was a gorgeous day and it wasn't too hot out yet (which is why I think it was springtime!) so we made our lunches and met in the front yard. The kids were finished eating and were playing and Alonna and I were hanging out and talking on the picnic blanket. I was sitting facing the street and Alonna's back was to the street (this is key info, people!) Well, our street isn't a very busy street at all, so you really notice when a car goes by, since it doesn't happen that often. So, this pick-up truck with a beat-up front fender drove by the house pretty slowly and the driver was staring out the passenger window at Mr. Harry's house across the street. Now, alot of people who live in the neighborhood drive by slowly because they know alot of kids live on this street, but neither Alonna or I recognized him. We both blew it off as "weird."

About 5 minutes later the same truck drove by again from the opposite direction, again going very slowly and looking at Mr. Harry's house. Again, Alonna and I noticed him and started coming up with scenarios as to why he was driving by. "He's a friend of their sons." "Maybe he knows them and wants to see if their home." Etc... About 5 minutes later he drove by again, from the opposite direction again, and we both noticed it again. This time, we knew something was up. (Alonna, afraid that her pants were too low-cut in the back, made me check to make sure that wasn't the reason he kept driving by! Hahaha...) We decided if he drove by again we would get his license number and call the police. Well, he didn't drive by again, at least while we were outside, and it was nap time for the kids so time to go in!

The next day Alonna and I took the kids for a bike ride around the neighborhood. When we were finished we were standing in my driveway talking and the same dang truck drove by real slow again! Neither of us were prepared to check the license plate this time, but we took notice! I went in and fed the kids lunch and was getting ready to head to a pool party. I got everything pulled together and let the kids play out in the front yard until it was time to leave. Well, parked infront of Mr. Harry's house were two police cars! I was intrigued, but had to get to the party. Alonna filled me in on everything that happened after I left:

She went over to the police officers and asked what had happened. Apparently, early that morning someone broke into Mr. Harry's house and stole his checkbook. They found this out because the guy who did it tried to write himself some checks but the bank tellers knew they were fraudulant. The best part is that the guy used his real name, so they knew who they were looking for. The police officers were at Mr. Harry's house to collect evidence and get a statement. Well, Alonna proceeded to tell the officers that we had noticed a guy in a truck casing the street the past two days. They knew it was him when Alonna gave a description of the truck, cause they had a description of the truck from the dmv already. They asked to see her driver's license so they could get her information to contact her later. She went and got it and came back out and the truck was driving by again!! Alonna yelled, "that's him right there!!" and the guy waves at the police officers all friendly and such! Well, the police officers jumped in their cars and the guy in the truck took them on a high-speed chase through two parishes, running every red light in his way and throwing checks (evidence against him) out his window the entire time! They finally caught him up in LaFourche Parish and booked him for breaking and entering, fraud, traffic violations of speeding and running red lights, as well as littering!

The conclusion? Mr. Harry just told me yesterday that the guy took a plea deal and was sentenced to 15 years in prison! Hooray for the Harding Heroes!! (Mostly Alonna!!)

William's First Day of Pre-School

We decided to enroll William in Pre-K for the year. It's a great little program offered Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. He gets to do gymnastics, drama, science, art, French and sign language, library...it's really great! It also gives me a little alone time with Natalie, which I think she really enjoys!

This is William with his best bud Michael after their first day of school. They aren't in the same group, but they do see each other from time to time throughout the morning and usually after school we run into each other. It looks like it's going to be a fun year!

William's 4th Birthday...Part 2!

(Ok...so this posting is a little behind the times...sorry! We've been super busy. Read on!)


So we threw William a second birthday party on August the 13th for all of his friends. We rented out a local indoor jumping playland, called "Jumping Kids." We also made it a pirate-themed party, and everyone was invited to wear pirate clothes. It was so much fun, even for the adults! Here are some pictures from the party:

This is William and Natalie before the party started. William dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow, of course! I had ordered a piratess costume for Natalie, but what I received in the mail was a bag of shredded costume...thanks US Postal service! So, we improvised and my neighbor Alonna helped me put something together for Natalie.

This is my neighbor Alonna and her daughter Chloe', all dressed up for the pirate party!

Tom got into the party by throwing balls at anyone who dared enter the ball pit!

This is William's buddy Michael about to jump from the top of the bouncing boat, and that's his Aunt Jenn saying, "Michael, be careful or you'll break your foot!" Well, I'm not sure if he broke his foot, but he ended up hurting it pretty bad!

This is me and Emily (Michael's mom), probably up to no good!

Yum! William's cake looked like the deck of the Black Pearl pirate ship. One funny part that happened here; all the kids gathered around to sing "Happy Birthday" and William's friend Michael leaned over and blew out a few of the candles. Most kids would be bothered by this, but William turned to him and was so excited he yelled, "Thank you Michael!" Phew...crisis averted!

It was a fun party!! Hooray!

William's 4th birthday: Part 1

Mr. William turned four (or as they say in Louisiana "made four") today! We had a small little family party for him. I made his favorite foods(lasagna and broccoli) and then we had our neighbors over for birthday cake (part 1). And, of course, he got to open his presents from us.

Tomorrow night is his birthday party with all of his friends. This will be Willliam's first big birthday party and we're pretty excited! It has a pirate theme (William's really big into pirates right now) so hopefully some other kids will come dressed as pirates besides William and Natalie!

Please note: Natalie and William are normally fully dressed. But again, it was just too hot today, even inside, and the kids stripped down to their comfort level!!

Balloon Launch in Baton Rouge

Some friends of ours told us about this huge hot air balloon launch that was going to take place on Saturday (yesterday). It all sounded pretty cool so we loaded up the kids and made the two hour trek to Baton Rouge. Although it all did sound good in theory, there was one big negative: the weather!

It was April 1st when we left Ohio to move to Louisiana. We were still in coats and long sleeves. Not thinking to clearly, I only packed long sleves and pants for everyone. Everything else was packed up by the movers and in storage until we closed on our house. Bad idea. When we arrived in Louisiana, I had to go out and buy summer clothes for everyone. Whenever anyone asked how I liked it here, my response usually had something to do with how hot it was compared to anywhere else I had ever lived. And every person's response was, "well, if you think this is hot, just wait till August!" I didn't know what that really meant, until I experienced my first August in southern Louisiana. It is just miserable. No winds blowing up out of the Gulf, not even regular rainstorms to cool the temperatures a bit. No, it really is miserably hot come August.

Well, ladies and gentlemen...it is August! When we decided to go to Baton Rouge for the balloon launch, Tom checked the weather and saw that it was going to be HOT!!! When we got there (at 6:30 pm) it was 104 degrees with a heat index of 115 degrees. HOT HOT HOT!!! You can bet we didn't stay till the fireworks!

A Saturday Night in New Orleans

Most of you know that the last Harry Potter book came out on Saturday at midnight. Seeing that I'm a huge Harry Potter fan, I got my book at midnight and read till about 1:30 am, woke up about 8 and started reading again. I spent the morning in Natalie's room (comfortable rocking chair!) reading while Tom was so graciously watching the kids so I could have some quite time. At 1 I had to take William to the church primary swim party while Tom took Natalie to the local war museaum to drop off his motorcycle (it's normally on display there.) By the time I got back from the party, all I wanted to do was lock myself in a room and keep reading! But, Tom had had enough of the "missing mommy" that I'd become, so we decided to take off for New Orleans for the night and have a good time. I'm glad we went, cause the family had a blast!




This picture is of Tom and the kids in front of the cathedral at Jackson's Square. This is where President Bush made his speech following Hurricane Katrina.

This is Tom and the kids waiting at Cafe' Du'Monde in the French Quarter for Beignets. The line turned out to be too long, so we decided to get the car and then get them to go in the car. Bad idea, especially since I had just cleaned my car! Powdered Sugar was EVERYWHERE! Thank heavens for leather seats-they just wipe right up!


On the way back to getting the car we stopped at a little spot where we could sit on the Mississippi River and watch the riverboats and barges go by. The kids really enjoyed the big boats!

William:Missionary/Weatherman

William has really been thinking about his future lately! There are two things he wants to be when he grows up, simultaneously that is: a missionary and a weatherman. He loves to see the missionaries at church in their suits and ties and little black tags. And he loves to watch the weatherman on tv do his forecasts, and then he tries to recreate them for us. It's really quite fun actually! He always has a way of making everyday just a little more exciting!

Natalie the dancer.

This is an old post from YouTube, but we always enjoy watching it, so feel free to check it out! I was driving somewhere and had put the soundtrack from "Lord of the Dance" on to listen to. I glanced back in my rearview mirror to see Natalie's legs flying! Either that girl is going to be a dancer or one heck of a swimmer! I caught it all on video with my cell phone, which is why the video is a little unclear.

A trip with Janice

We took a trip into New Orleans on Friday (July 13th) with our friend Janice. She had never been to the Aquarium there and since we are members we can get her in for free. I can't speak for her, but I know we had a great time! After the aquarium, we walked along the riverwalk and then got hot chocolate (in 90 degree weather-stupid, I know!) and beignets on the Mississippi. For those of you not from this area, beignets (pronounced "been-yea') are basically fried dough covered in powdered sugar. The kids love 'em! We got them from Cafe' Du Monde', which I guess is famous for their coffee and beignets. The original shop was in the French Quarter, but we prefer the shop on the Mississippi. Then we did a little shopping in the Riverwalk stores and headed home. It's always a blast with our friend Janice!