An Early Thanksgiving

Yesterday we had a wonderful early Thanksgiving.  Kelly and Dave are working on Thanksgiving day and Thomas will be with his Dad so we decided to "pretend" that it was Thanksgiving.  We had a great family day.  Thomas and I made hot chocolate in the morning and as Thomas would say it was "fantastic".  We then met Kelly, Dave and Noelle at my Dad's house for a day of Thanksgiving activities.

Thomas, Noelle and I went on a walk to collect leaves for a little art project.  Since it was pretty foggy here the leaves were wet so we let them dry a little before we did our coloring.   

Then we had a nice lunch and a very short nap before making our Thanksgiving cookies.  Saturday morning I was finally able to find some Thanksgiving cookie cutters.  Thank You to Beyond Pots and Pans!!  We had a turkey, leave, acorn and apple.  Thomas did a good job at cutting the cookies out.

Then we waited for the cookies to cool and for Noelle to wake up from her nap.  Then the fun started.  I don't think I need to write much... the pictures will tell there own story.

Noelle was signing she wanted more in this picture. 

Thomas' first creation.

Then Thomas and I went and delivered some of the cookies to Grandma. We got home just in time to eat dinner.  Dad and Kelly made a fabulous meal!!!! I am very Thankful for my wonderful family.

Now I get to look forward to a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with Mom and Aunt Paula and Scott.

A great weekend in San Diego

I had a great weekend in San Diego.

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Thanks Troy and Julie for a fantastic weekend. Happy Birthday Julie!!!!

The month of HALLOWEEN activities is over.

October was filled with Halloween activities. We did a lot of baking, decorating the house, watching Halloween videos, you name it we did (several times) we even carved pumpkins twice. As Thomas and Noelle get older it makes the holidays so much more fun. Last year Thomas was afraid the pumpkin "guts" and wouldn't go near the pumpkin until it was all cleaned up. This year he dug right in and had a great time taking the "guts" out himself. This is a huge improvement coming from the kid that doesn't like to be dirty. Overall, we had a great Halloween and we are all looking forward to a month of Thanksgiving. And this year, we all have a lot to be thankful for....

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Apple Hill 2008

Last weekend we were quite busy with Halloween activities. For years we have been going up to Apple Hill in October. I love to see the leaves changing colors and falling. The apples are fantastic and watching all the families with their children having so much fun makes the long drive well worth it. And, the apple crisp at Kids Inc. makes us come back every year!!!! Kelly and I decided to make it a whole weekend of Halloween activities because Thomas was going to be with Ryan on Halloween. So, we started the weekend making Halloween cupcakes. Thomas made is special friend, Sarah, her own personal cupcake for her birthday. It was very cute. Then that evening we watched a few Halloween videos. Then Saturday we went to Apple Hill. Thomas and I had a lot of fun getting lost in the corn maze. Noelle had her first pony ride. It took two tries to get her on the pony. The first time Kelly couldn't get Noelle to even sit on the pony so she let a few kids go before her. Then after seeing the other kids Noelle got right on and loved it. At the end of the ride Kelly could hardly get her off. We had a nice picnic at our normal stomping ground and watched the other kids fish. We went on a long hay ride per Thomas' request. He thought that was great. Then we went to another orchard and walked around to see the farm animals. They had lots of pigs, chickens, ducks, horses, and a donkey. Thomas really enjoyed the donkey until it sneezed on him. He did not find that funny at all!!! Then at the next apple orchard we saw a clown doing a show. It was VERY funny and the kids really enjoyed it. Until, the clown tried to use is dog as a cannon ball and well the trick didn't work so well. The clown picked a man from the audience to help. He had a huge net and was suppose to catch the "fake" dog in it, run to the clown so he could put the real dog in the net. Well the man didn't catch the "fake" dog and instead ran to the clown with the "fake" one still laying on the ground. It was a bust!! It was pretty funny though. Then on Sunday we went to Grandpa's house and carved pumpkins. It was a perfect weekend.

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What a perfect day!!!!

I have been waiting for months for today to come.  I had a nice quiet day at work and I accomplished a ton of stuff.  All of my paperwork for October is done!  I have seen all my clients this month, their purchases are done, their CDER's were updated and the reports are done and turned in.  What a wonderful feeling!!!  I got a few disturbing phone calls from clients today but I had more good, entertaining, positive, and easy phone calls than I did disturbing ones.  A very productive and relaxing day and that's not even what I'm excited about. 

Like I said I have been waiting for this day for months.  The anticipation has been killing me!!! Two of my favorite things returned!!!  The new MY SIMS- KINGDOM game came out on Nintendo Wii!!!!

 

Of course I preordered my copy at Toys  R Us and went and purchased it on my way home from work just in time for my next favorite thing to start.  It's the beginning of BASKETBALL SEASON!!!!  Life is good.  I had the chance to play My Sims for an hour before the Basketball game started.  I am now sitting comfortably on the couch watching the Lakers play the clippers and for the moment the Lakers are winning!!!! 

What a perfect day!

Fall is here....

I love Fall and here are 10 reasons why...

1. It's the beginning of the holiday season. Halloween is this month which means cute kids in costumes and carving pumpkins. Thanksgiving is around the corner which means family and one large meal that takes all day to make and 30 minutes to devour. Christmas will be here before we know it. Watching the kids on Christmas morning is worth waiting all year for.
2. Socks. The weather is changing and time to break out the silly, comfy, cute, and furry socks. I absolutely love socks. Socks of all colors, patterns, shapes and sizes. I think that I have close to 100 pairs of socks and I can't seem to get rid of any of them. Even the ones with holes I sew so I can keep on wearing them!!
3. Candles. It's time to breakout the candles that remind me of the holidays. Pumpkin, apple, cinnamon, harvest, baking spices, cranberry, mulberry, pine, vanilla bean and warm apple pie. There are so many more but I'm sure you get the point.
4. Leaves changing colors. This time of the year I love that I have a job that allows me to spend so much time in the car. I love the days that I get to take my time and enjoy the scenery. The leaves falling on my car as I drive. The red, orange, yellow and brown leaves.... I love them all. I recommend slowing down from your busy day and spend sometime admiring your surroundings.
5. Baking. I love to bake and I love to bake around the holidays. That's when it's time to make all of my favorite things (apple pie, apple crisp, cinnamon roles, pumpkin and banana bread). I also love that I get to do the traditional baking with Thomas and Noelle. I am really lucky that I get to spend the time that I do with Thomas and Noelle. For such a long time it was just me around the holiday time and the traditional baking wasn't all that fun and now that I get to have them with me, it's totally fun to prepare for the holidays. Last night my mom came over and we baked Halloween cookies with Thomas and Noelle. Thomas ate a couple of the cookies and rest went to day care with him this morning.
6. Our annual trip to Apple Hill. I love Apple Hill and I love to go to Kids Inc. and get the most amazing apple crisp with caramel sauce that has ever been made. I love that we get to go up as a family and spend a day going from orchard to orchard buying all kinds of apples and having a picnic by the pond. It's usually cold and we wear our warm jackets and gloves and that hot apple cider always hits the spot!!!
7. The pumpkin patch. I love the pumpkin patch. The hay rides, the corn mazes, again the hot apple cider, kids in Halloween costumes and watching kids and their parents trying to find that perfect pumpkin.
8. Hot Chocolate. I love hot chocolate and my hot chocolate maker. Some people have to have a coffee pot at home. I have to have a hot chocolate maker. I enjoy making all kinds of flavors of hot chocolate (strawberry, hazelnut, caramel, vanilla, butterscotch and mint).
9. Harvest Moon- Tree of Tranquility, My Sims- My Kingdom and Animal Crossing- City Folk all of my favorite games have new additions coming out this fall. Harvest Moon came out a couple of weeks ago. My Kingdom comes out at the end of this month and Animal Crossing comes out in November..... Yeah!!!!
10. The Presidential Election. I love this country and I love that we get the opportunity to vote. I am grateful to live in a country that allows me to think the way that I want, practice the religion of my choice, the freedom of speech and all the other rights that we have of citizens of the United States!!! I don't care how you vote.... just vote.

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Babies, Babies, and more Babies...

It seems like this year there have been so many people around me having babies.

My nephew, Tyler, started it out in April. Most of you know all about him. He is totally cute and a bundle of joy! I love him more and more each time I see his little face. I only wished he lived closer so I could spend more time with him.

Wanda had Baby William in May. William has the most amazing eyes. When he gets older the girls are going to be lining up. He is a really good baby and he is smart.

Millie Mil had Baby Dominic in July. I haven't gotten the chance to meet him yet, but he has two amazing parents, so I am sure that he is just as amazing. Here are some of his totally cute pictures. His little round face is way toooo cute. Mille.... keep sending the pictures, I love them.

Bonnie is going to have Baby Riley anytime now. Last weekend I helped with Bonnie's shower. It was everything PINK! Bonnie also has a son, Nicolas, that will be 5 years old on the same day Baby Riley is expected to arrive. November is going to be quite a busy month for them. I can't wait to meet Riley!!!

Cassandra is going to have Baby Evan in January. Baby Evan maybe Baby____ by the time he arrives. Both of his parents haven't actually agreed with Evan (but I did get permission to put it on my blog). Earlier this month I went to Cassandra's baby shower and had a wonderful time. It was a baseball theme which was perfect for Cassandra and Pat, as they both love baseball. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures to share of baby Evan. I can't wait to meet him to.

I am happy for all of them and can't wait to meet each of them.

A bunch of hodgepodge

Not a whole lot has happened around here to write about the last week or so. The kids stayed with me last week and I was able to get a couple of cute pictures of them.

Thomas spent the night with me last Friday so I could take him to go and see a movie on Saturday. Saturday morning he woke me up asking where his "pulling blanket" was. I just told him to get up with me and we would look for it later. In Thomas's normal fashion that answer didn't work for him. He insisted that I help him find it. So, we got up and found the blanket on the floor next to my bed. I asked him why he needed it and he said "I made my bed Auntie. All by myself and my "pulling blanket" goes on

top". I was pretty amazed. I didn't even know he knew how to make his bed. He was so proud of himself. He said his Mommy showed him how to make his bed yesterday.

I thought it was cute that he put Noelle's blanket over his pillow.

I just thought this was a cute picture of him.

Wednesday night Kelly brought cupcakes over for the kids. So, before bath time the kids had fun with their cupcakes.

My friend Tanya made me the best blanket ever for Christmas last year. It is the warmest and softest blanket ever! I love it. Since I enjoyed it so much I thought I would make one for Thomas and Noelle for Christmas this year. I am going to make a few more but I don't want to give anything away to those that may read this. I bought the fabric this week and was able to finish both Thomas and Noelle's.

Lastly, I went to my friend Cassandra's baby shower today. I took Noelle with me and we had a great time. She looked really cute in her pink overalls so again I had to take a picture. She has been doing really really well with her walking. She walked all the way from the car and all around the grocery store with me last night. I took a video of her walking from my living room to the bathroom tonight. The video isn't that great but you can see her walking.

Mean people suck....

A week ago today, Noelle received her "magic" shoes. A physical therapist that has been seeing her recommended AFO's (Ankle-Foot Orthotics) to help her progress with her walking. FYI...This is just another sign that she is just like her Auntie! I also had "magic" shoes when I was kid. Recently, Kelly and I were going through a bag of stuff from when we were little and there were my "magic" shoes. They weren't as cute as Noelle's but I guess they make improvements after 30 years. Go figure

Noelle looks totally cute with her little shoes on!!!

The people in this world continue to amaze me! I work with people with development disabilities and see on a daily basis how people with disabilities are treated. The majority of the time I have good experiences and don't run into many people that "make fun of" or mistreat my clients. I really thought that times of changed and people are more understanding and compassionate. But then last week I was reminded that this isn't a perfect world and there are people that find joy in making fun of others. I have never personally had a family member effected by a physical or mental disability but I have always been taught to treat people the way I would want to be treated. Since Noelle received her "magic" shoes a new chapter in my family's life has been opened. Noelle doesn't have a physical or mental disability however it has taken her a little more time to progress with her gross motor skills. Since she received her "magic" shoes a few ignorant people have found joy in making fun of her. Remarks were made like "where's the laidlaw bus" and "what is she retarded". First of all, even if she was "retarded", who cares and why would make fun of someone who was? What kind of comment is that? Second, who makes fun of a small child? Hearing that this actually happened made me sick. I got a sick feeling in my stomach and it made me even more mad that there was nothing that I could do. People are just ignorant and that isn't going to change.... If only I could change the world.

The good news is Noelle has made a lot of progress with her walking in the last couple of weeks. This weekend she walked from the back bedroom at my house to the kitchen all by herself. She definitely prefers to walk on her knees but hopefully in time she will see how much more comfortable it is walking on her feet vs. her knees. I'm so proud of her. She has picked up a couple of words..."Thank You", "Shoe", "Dog" and "That". She also picked up the sign for "eat". I was totally excited about that because I have been working with her for a long time on that one. Now, I need to find a new sign to teach her....

We had a great weekend together. I love having her here with me. I'm really lucky to have the opportunities that I do to see both her and Thomas as much as I do. Here's a little video of her walking. The second one is Noelle trying to put her sandal on over her "magic" shoe. Totally cute.

I can't believe she did it

It's been a long time coming.  We have been working and working and working some more, and up till now we haven't had much luck.  Saturday was a new, amazing, terrific, fabulous day.  Those of you that know me and have met Noelle, know that she is stubborn and she only does things when she wants to and on her own terms.  She has always been that way.  Noelle is now 15 months old and still not walking or standing up on her own.  She will stand up at the couch and take a few steps around the furniture but that's it.  When you hold her hands and try to get her to walk with you, she drops to her knees and takes off.  If you pick her up and try and stand her up she bends her legs up in the air.  She screams bloody murder when you try and help her.  Last night Kelly, Thomas and I were sitting in the family room watching TV.  Noelle was on the floor playing with her toys.  She stood up, like she always does, at the coffee table.  She turned around and WALKED ACROSS THE ROOM right to Kelly.  We could not believe it!!! She acted as if she has been doing it for months.  We started clapping and telling her how good she did and she got the biggest grin on her face and started clapping with us.  Since we weren't anywhere close (at least we didn't think we were) to having her walking on her own we didn't have the camera or video camera near by so we didn't get it on film.  We got the video camera out and she did it a couple more times (bribed by her favorite thing...food) but we didn't get anything video that was very good.  Today she did it a few more times but in typical Noelle fashion she only did it when she wanted to and spent the majority of the time on her knees. 

Regardless, it was amazing and seeing her bright smiling face when we clapped for her was priceless.  She will be with me the majority of the week this week so I hope to get something on the camera and will try to post it by the end of next weekend.  She gets her "magic shoes" tomorrow and hopefully that will also give her some support and they will work miracles. Keep your fingers crossed!!!

I finally finished it...

My Mom got me a puzzle that I really wanted for Christmas. It's been almost 4 years ago now.  I started the puzzle in March of 2007 and finished the puzzle two days after Thanksgiving.  Not to bad... for me.  I was pretty impressed that I even finished it.  After it was done I was really proud of it and wanted to hang it in my bedroom. I went to every store in Stockton that I could think of I could find a frame but no such luck, so it was placed in a garbage bag under my bed until I recently moved.  It was moved and placed under the couch.  I finally found a website that sells everything for puzzles and amazingly enough they had the right size frame and the right price tag.  The frame came in the mail this week and the puzzle was finally hung. I must say it looks perfect! Yeah ME!!!!

This one is for Auntie Wa

Saturday morning when I got Noelle dressed I thought I would try and take of picture of Noelle in her Kings' outfit for Wanda but then Noelle started doing Wanda's favorite "trick" and thought I needed to get that on video.

The real story is Wanda hates seeing the rocking chair and Thomas/Noelle in the same room. When Thomas turned 1 year old my Dad bought him a rocking chair. Wanda hated watching him stand on it and rock backwards. We didn't particularly like it either but would just tell him "no" and take him off. When Auntie Wa was over she made sure and took the rocking chair and put it in the garage. It made her way to nervous.

Noelle got a rocking chair for her 1st birthday also and has just learned how to stand on it and rock.

Noelle also learned how to throw herself on the floor and throw a fit this weekend. It wasn't one of those "tricks" that I spent a lot of time I helping her to improve....

Labor Day was productive after all....

It's been awhile since my last post for two reasons. 1. I'm still recovering from San Diego. 2. My life hasn't been all that interesting the last week or so.  Kelly and I were reading a few of our friends and families blogs this weekend and realized that we are kind of boring. I worried when I started this blog that I would have a difficult time coming up with things to write about. Well it happened and then low and behold something worth sharing happened.

When I moved into the Oakhurst house I was lucky enough to have the living room empty to use as a play room for the kids.  In the Green Ridge house the toys were in the corner of the family room and it wasn't always easy keeping them tidy when people came to visit.  So, I was pretty excited to have a room for the kids and I wouldn't have to worry about the mess the week the kids were here. 

A friend of mine told me that he was getting rid of a table and asked if I was interested in it.  I thought it would be great to have a table that the kids use, so I wouldn't have to worry about getting play dough, ink pens, crayons, glue and paint all over my kitchen table.  Of course I said I would take it.  I didn't bother to ask what the table looked like and was just grateful that I was getting it for the best price around. FREE. 

When he delivered the table to me, I was a little surprised to find out that the table was NEON GREEN.  I don't think I have seen that color since the NEON GREEN chair my great grandmother had at her house.  I quickly remembered that the table was FREE and I was grateful to have it. 

As you will remember from my earlier post, this summer, I had a list of things to accomplish after moving in (cleaning windows, pulling weeds, painting, trim the bushes).  Painting the NEON GREEN table was quickly put on the list. 

I have had the last three days off work and in my boring fashion I didn't do anything all that interesting.  The lawns got mowed, the bushes trimmed (again), the kitchen floors mopped, family room vacuumed and laundry done. Today was planned to be the most boring day of the weekend.  The plan was to sit on the couch all day and play my Nintendo Wii.  That's one of my favorite things to do.  However, when I got up this morning I decided not to be boring.  I decided to check one more thing of the list of things to get done and paint the NEON GREEN table. In accomplishing this task I was also able to complete my weekly blog goal.  WONDERFUL two things accomplished in one important task....

Here is the finished product.....