Today, I packed the kids in the car and headed up to Fry Road's Northwest Park, which boasts a rough and rumble type of playground, hiking trails, and picnic shelter with ample seating for all your skeletons in the closet. This is My Mama (with my cheesy father and nephew Josiah). She just turned 54 on Wednesday. She was 20 when she gave birth to me. You do the math. Can we count that as a school day?
Annie is so good at coupons. Yesterday she bought $197 worth of groceries for $7. Joni and I tried to listen up close like and glean from her knowledge. I'm learning. I think it looks fun, but time consuming. I'll keep you posted on my new hobby and we'll see if I can be as cool as her.
"Are you really taking another picture of me, Mom?" Isn't she pretty? Hopefully this will make up for the "Dr. Calla" picture.
This is Joni's oldest son, my nephew, Sammy. He had just bit his tongue and was speechless. Looks like an up and coming GAP model if you ask me.
"Hi there, tomatoes. My name's Katie. Whadda ya say we get to know each other a little better over a ranch cocktail?"
"I prefer to do everything backwards." Teige loves climbing up the slide this way. It's much more rewarding that using the ladder and less scary.
.
No pics Molly, Becky, and Abbie. The find one another and it's a hidden gigglefest. You can hear them, but you can't see them.
.
Below is a video of my brother-in-law, Brian, telling Katie a story about a cracker and it was really cute. So, I decided to film it and he started getting more "hammy". Try not to get distracted by my laughing or my Dad's chitter chatter in the background. Press pause on the playlist at the bottom of the page and join my followers list on the sidebar =>, if you haven't already done so, before watching.
.
Happy Birthday, Mom. I love you.
.
smooch
It's autumn. Contrary to the popular Christmas song, I believe the fall is the most wonderful time of the year. And while I LOVE Christmas, Thanksgiving holds it's own in our family. My mom makes everything special. She is an advocate of the Norman Rockwell way of life. It's not only about looking good with her, though. We MUST have fun.
This was 2004, we had just bought the house and Mom and Dad where living an apartment while their house was being finished. So, I got to host. I had fun being an amateur Martha Stewart, but Mom's shoes are HARD to fill. She always makes it look so easy. (I'm sitting here crying as I type. Calla just came in and asked if I needed a hug.) I'm kind of a neurotic control freak when I'm in charge of doing stuff like this. If I remember correctly, Brian (my ex) spent the day in bed puking. I think he was probably sick of me bossing him around. I never said I was perfect. 
This is Molly at age 3. She still missed her old house at this point. I loved this outfit from Target. Once she grew hair, she was the cutest thing ever. She's probably sitting here thinking, "My mom is a control freak. I hope I don't spill anything today."
