New Guitar

Yesterday Pete worked for a lady that he has known for a few years. She is really nice and just adores Pete. She always sends him home with stuff for me to ebay or whatnot. Yesterday he helped her clean out her storage shed and she gave him a really nice Gibson guitar. He is so happy with it. he put new strings on it and the kids were suddenly interested in all the other guitars around the house.

Preparations

We're getting ready for our trip to Yellowstone this week. Pete is on vacation right now and it's nice to have him home but I haven't been able to post as much (sorry Luisa). It's tough to pack because I don't know what the weather will be like. It snowed on the benches this week but it's also going to be in the 80's tommorrow. Oh well, I guess we'll just prepare for both. Anyway, this is what we will be looking back at for 6 hours on Thursday......

Grandma Night

Tonight we went up to Grandma Double R's for dessert. Olive even sat on grandmas lap for awhile.
Hans and Magnolia were the only two that had surviving pumpkins from the pumpkin fairy. Right now Hans and Landon play so nice and it is so fun to watch them. Hans wanted to play house outside and Landon wanted to play Christmas. Hans didn't want to be Santa Clause so they just ran races instead. I hope they'll always play so well together.

More deep thoughts...

"When this girl at the museum asked me whom, I liked better, Monet or

Manet, I said "" I like mayonnaise."" She just stared at me, so I said it

again,louder. Then she left. I guess she went to try to find some mayonnaise for me.

Deep Thoughts

I just bought the best Jack Handey book ever and will hope that you enjoy some deep thoughts with me over the next several days....

"If you're a cowboy and you're dragging a
guy behing your horse, I bet it would really
make you mad if you looked back and the
guy was reading a magazine."

Take Me To Your Leader

Guess who the new troop leader of Bear pack 3202 is ? Did you see the Simpsons where they join the cult and Homer finds a leader bean? That's what Oscar calls me, the leader bean. There's 5 boys in our den which is a pretty manageable number. I think Oscar rubs off on me because I am pretty excited and am becoming very nerdly about earning my den mother badges.

Little Miss Sunshine

We went to the new kids museum this last weekend for opening day. It was really nice. It's three floors and has a lot of really cool new things. It still has the store which is always a favorite.
One of the new parts is a media center. There is a news desk where the kids read the news. It has a television in front of them which cues them and then you can watch them on the television. There is also several radio booths where they can do their own show and a music recording studio. Olive enjoyed the blue screen where you do the weather. She LOVES to see herself on television. In case you were wondering what Oscars shopping basket will look like as a young bachelor someday, here is a glimpse into the future.......

HOT COCOA!!

Well, tonight we are supposed to have our first frost and snow in the mountains. Right now it is pouring down rain and we had to all change our clothes after getting out of the car into the house today. That of course had to be followed with a warm bath and then some hot cocoa with whipped cream for good measure. I am packing up some of the summer and starting to bring out the winter clothes. Overall it's been a pretty mild nice summer. Nothing to bad. Hopefully by next summer when the swimsuits come back out Hans will actually fit into these. I really like fall, I'd have to say it's my favorite time of year. I will however miss the kiddie pool and the constant smell of sunblock. Hope everyone else had as much fun as we did this summer.

Meet me at the fair

We went to the state fair yesterday and mostly had fun. Hans and Olive were champs at riding the ponies. For Hans it was extremely serious business and of about 15 pictures this is the only one were he actually looked and smiled. Olive laughed and smiled the whole time which was a real surprise.
Siobhan had a wristband and rode the rides although it wasn't enough and she sulked until she woke up this morning. Oscar chose to play the games instead of riding the rides and was able to win a stuffed animal $15. later. He also managed to choke on some gum from his bubble gum ice cream and after the heimlich manuever we decided it was best to head home.
This pig weighed 900 pounds and is three years old. Olive held her nose the entire time we looked at the animals.
Finally it was time to pack up and head on home. I'm glad the fair is only here once a year. It will take that long to recover.

Don't let Oscar see this.

This is our friend the praying mantis. He showed up on our porch one day when Grandma was here. I hadn't seen one this large around our house before. We like them because they eat all the spiders. He has been back a few times since or one that looks just like him. Unfortunately Oscar is terrified of them and cries when they are even mentioned.
This is the play tent that Grandma bought for Princess Olive while she was here. This tent is 4x6 feet! The kids are having so much fun in it. I am having to remind the boys that Olive is allowed in it as it is her toy. She is the Princess after all.

Macy*s

Today was the Macy's grand opening. I took Olive and the boys since Siobhan is having a whole weekend sleepover. Pete looked very handsome in his suit and it was nice to be there after all the hard work and hours he's put in. Oscar was an eager shopper. There was kids champagne and cake and huge chocolate stars and balloons. They are obviously marketing to a sophisticated clientele.This is where Hans thinks that Pete lives. I am glad that The grand opening is over so that Pete can move back home now.

Vote for Siobhan

Siobhan has hardly been home since Grandma left. She was really happy to have had her dad and grandparents visit but being the mean mother that I am I didn't allow her to go to her friends when they were here. So now she has been at her friends every day and as soon as it's time to come home I am awaiting the call. Please can I stay longer? She is, after all running for student council and has many posters to make.
So it's just been the babes and I and we have been having our fun as well. Oscar has been drawing awesome pictures and at the bargain price of 25 cents a drawing I have purchased several. I commissioned a piece that he has been working on called "Gnome". See my Gnome music box on the table? That is for inspiration he said. He also said he needed an apricot crayon. That is why he is the artist. I would have called it red.

Happy trails, until we meet again...

We had so much fun with Grandma and Grandpa here. We all really hated to see them leave this morning. We went up to Snowbird this weekend again for Oktoberfest. It's nice to get out of the heat. Siobhan and Oscar did the trampoline. Longest line ever!!
Mom was sad to not take Miss T home with her and so was Pete.

I felt bad that Mom and John will miss the kids but I have to admit it's really nice to not be the one leaving them for a change.
Hans just wanted this picture on here so here it is.
Today is kind of a downer since Grandma and Grandpa left. It just makes me want to move even more and be closer to my family. Thank you Mom and John for coming to visit, I had a lot of fun and miss you already. I hope you'll come back soon. Be sure and tell Dad how fun we are so maybe he and Sharon will come visit sometime!

Grandma and Grandpa

Grandma and Grandpa have made it here and we are having a lot of fun. Lots of Star Wars games and lots and lots of shopping. I am so happy to have them here and so are the kids. Even when the car battery died today it wasn't so bad with Grandma here. Grandpa was able to go fishing today and Olive is even warming up. So I hope everyone has a good weekend and I will be back next week with lots of pictures!

For Grandma Sharon (Single R)

Get well, get well soon, we want you to get well.... we love you and hope that you have a quick recovery. Big hugs and kisses to you Sharon, wish we could be there to help you. HOpe your office brings you in a cake.

Oktoberfest

You know when it's the end of August it's time for Oktoberfest! Doesn't Siobhan look like it's so fun! Doesn't Hans look so German! We met up with Ryan and Trisha and really did have a nice time. It was soo nice and and cool in the mountains. Siobhan and Lexi had fun doing the chicken dance. Speaking of dancing, I'm trying to fix the DDR video. Hopefully it will be working soon, it's worth the wait. Well, I have lots of preparation for Grandma and Grandpas visit this week. I hope to get some good DDR footage of Grandpa....

Dance Dance Revolution

Well, we are into school a couple of days and it's going pretty well. Both Siobhan and Oscar are happy with their classes and are making friends. It's been a fun week for them with their dad here. They are being spoiled rotten! They have presents waiting for them everyday after school and are loving it. All told Oscar probably has about 20 new Star Wars guys and Siobhan just got DDR today( Dance Dance Revolution for those of us over 12). Which brings me to the video.....

First day of school

Today is the day. First day at a new school in a new state. I am so glad their dad was able to be here. They were so excited to wake up and find him here with soooo many cool new things. Original first day outfits were scrapped for new ones. They looked great and were so excited. I felt bad when I left, they were so nervous and seemed so little to me but I'm sure they will do great and make some friends and fit right in.
Hans is happy because he was given permission by Oscar to play with his toys while he is at school and his dad just brought him several new star wars figures. It is so quiet here without them and Olive taking a nap. I can't wait to pick them up and hear all about the day!

Preparations

We have shaken our wiggles out. We have found size skinny jeans that are long enough.
We have straightened hair.
We have baked bread for lunches.
All that is left is a good nights sleep, tommorrow is school!!

School BBQ

Last night was the school bbq and the kids were really happy. They both met their teachers and they found out they are across the hall from each other. They were really happy about that but mostly excited that they are upstairs. We had made some friends at the park earlier in the day and met up with them at the bbq as well. They are also in their first year at Hawthorne and live just a few blocks away. It was nice to make a friend close by. Also she is from California as well and she and her husband love wine about as much as Pete and I.
Anyway, I made my first attempt at making my own jeans. Five needles later I was really happy with them except the waist is too big so I may have to do some alterations. I also made the top which I really,really like. I think I will make a couple of these in some different patterns to have for the fall.
Now, as per Sharons request I would like to post the recipe for the tofu bites previously mentioned. They are delicious.... First off I like to use the extra firm tofu and I press and drain it really well. Then you cut it into little squares and in a shallow dish marinate it with crushed garlic, grated ginger, about a Tablespoon of brown sugar, and 1/3 cup of soy sauce. Cover it and refrigerate a couple of hours. Then drain it well. In a mixing bowl mix a cup of sesame seeds, a Tblspn of corn flour and 2 Tblspns of wheat flour. Coat the tofu cubes and then fry in a frying pan. I used a mix of olive and walnut oil and it had a really good nutty flavor. You can use any kind of sauce to dip them. I hope you like them as much as we did.