How 'bout this snow...eh?!

This was my front porch the other morning. Our milk box was drowning in the white stuff. Well, that is until my big, strong, hunky, husband shoveled it all away. It kinda stunk when it all returned about 8 hours later.

Brody expressing my thoughts on this weather. Not a huge fan of snow. Maybe it's because I have never owned proper snow gear. I guess I had some killer moon boots when I was but a child, yet all these years later...nothing. It's totally my fault, I never take the time to buy actual, oh, say....snow boots, until my front porch looks like it does right now. And every year I'm finding that my Gap clearance rack rubber rain boots just don't insulate the footsies like say.....SNOW boots would. Maybe next week or year.

Like most of you, we've been semi- home bound for days. Church has been cancelled for the last 2 Sundays. School was delayed the first 2 days last week and CANCELLED THE LAST 3...yes, that means I have had EXTRA Christmas break time to add on to the next T-W-O weeks...hot dog! And- my stupid rubber boots are slippery !
So what have we been doing all week?

Church was cancelled again so I busted out the "Friend" magazine on Sunday to ya know, have a little spiritual time with Mr. Jack. He decided that nothing would be cooler than to write in a story for the front cover of when his prayers were answered. Things were going great, his description of said events were bringing tears to my eyes. I had high hopes. I told him to write it out in his own words and then I'd help him fix spelling etc. before we sent it in. Easy enough. I read his story..(great thoughts, a few spelling changes) and then proceeded to write it out so it would.....make a little more sense. I re-read my version to him and received major thumbs down. "That's not even what I wrote "-blah blah blah .

Cole seriously thought his pants looked fine. Yea, he strutted out of his room wearing Brody's jeans and didn't even blink an eye. This kid also habitually wears his socks completely right side up so the dirty heel part is on display up top. It drives me batty if the ankle part of my sock is at all off my actual ankle.....yea, upside down, all day, every day... if I don't twist them myself.

Just more evidence of my killer parenting skills this week. Who needs to watch their 2 year old and an open full box of CHEEZITS. The floor looked even better. FYI- new flavor of Sharp cheddar and Parmasean combo...totally delicious.

Merry Christmas!

House update

So it's completely and utterly freezing around these parts. I'm not a huge fan of being cold so this week has been a doozy. Lots of school delays and sweater wearing...not a lot of blogable stuff going on. However, here's a few semi recent photos of our house progress...it's coming along.

#1-Handsome tour guide Kyle in his front "office." We're having concrete stained floors so he's showing the tile/grid markings in his future retreat.

#2-View of part great room/eating area. The middle cutout with the window above it is where the stairs go up to the boys bedroom's. I am happy to report that in the last 2 weeks they have been added...along with the entire upstairs.

Happy children

View from the backyard.

So it's really starting to get exciting. Kyle went and priced out our windows today...wooo windows! It looks different every time I go out and visit. The inside walls are all set and now you can really tell where rooms/closets/a PANTRY (I've never had a real pantry before) will be.

In the meantime, I've got to go layer up...Jack will be waiting. I'm sure excited for him to ride a BUS next year!

Tis the season

It was that time of year again...time to make our pilgrimage to the motherland-Disneyland. Our family loves this place, we are firm believers in the fact that it is absolutely the "Happiest place on Earth!" I mean really, where else would you pay $4.50 for a giant strawberry dipped in chocolate because it's so "cute."
Brody got us ready to start the vacation after he unfortunately did a face plant on the airport floor. He bled all over Kyle's shirt and earned a grody fat lip. Just in time for pictures!




We love to meet my sister and her crew down for a week together-.It's always better with the Goffs.

Lost this kid TWICE. No kidding. Not fun. He's oblivious.

Ate a lot of this kinda stuff. Glad to be home eating lots of veggies.

Saw numerous contestants for "worst outfit of the year." One honorable mention was this GUY sporting a very female tank top. -seriously, there was no mistaking the fact....not a masculine look....at all! It was fun to get a good inside laugh to myself every time we zig zagged in line and there he was in all his girl tank glory.

Jack and Cole both got to use the force to fight Darth Vader and Darth Maul, super cool for two little Star Wars fans.




Love the haunted mansion decked out in Nightmare Before Christmas garb.

Lucky Kyle got the good seat on the way home. Two sweaty /sleepy heads wearing dirty clothes cause their mother didn't pack very well-on one side....elderly /weary traveler eating a hard boiled egg on the other.
Good Times!

So almost 2 is .........2!!!!

I have this little boy Brody...he is small...and very funny!!
Little Mr. Brody is our favorite number 3 boy. Oh I remember as if it were yesterday, checking into the hospital to wait for your arrival. Dad and I sat and watched "Superman" which seemed to go on for hours, that movie would never end. I of course was starving and feasting on delectable ice chips all afternoon. I was praying you would come before dinner time so I could call in my order before it was too late. Finally the time came and there you were! It was my smoothest and quickest delivery (20 minutes of pushing as compared to 1-2 hours with the other boys). You were so little, so beautiful...a very pretty baby.

Love your dark almond eyes!

What a fun, spunky, smart, handsome, mischievous dollhead you've turned into. You are loved and adored by all who meet you...especially your brothers. We love you sweet Brody Brod. How lucky I am to be your mom!

Happy Birthday to you!

A few little tips worth sharing

Fish sticks in general should be banned in my opinion. But for some crazy reason lately...the whole Thomas gang has been enjoying them. I- being the sole purchaser of food for all the fellas, get to decide which fish sticks will be bought . I'm a little leary of exactly what type of "fish" is actually in a "fish stick." I usually just forget it and take a bite as to always be the shining beacon of etiquette to my boys. I'm walking down the isles the other day and spotted these....the name intrigued me....."Crisp AND healthy!" Could it be? Is there such a thing? Should I try them? I decided that nothing could be better than a crisp AND healthy fish stick and purchased the box.
LITTLE TIP: Don't do it, learn from me, "Crisp" shouldn't be used anywhere in the name description, don't bother, run far far away! I have found that few things are better in the "light" or "healthy" version... thus all things in moderation for yours truly. Stick to the real deal when dealing with:
Peanut butter
butter
syrup
FISH STICKS
mayonnaise
salad dressing (at least Ranch)

TIP:
Now these little beauties will make the icky mystery fishy taste from lunch simply disappear. They are only in stores during the holidays and might I suggest you run really fast and buy numerous boxes to enjoy throughout this season. Run right past the frozen Van de Kamps and hit the blessed Keebler section.

Jack's tree decorating tip: " I love decorating in sections, so everything has its own..ya know, place on the tree."

Mom's decorating tip: " Hey honey, I can't find the tree top and the Mickey lights aren't working...grrrrr, don't waste your time setting it up, I haven't the foggiest idea as to where it could be....!!

"Wow, that looks fantastic!"

Thanksgiving thoughts..deep ones

Seeing that so many of you were just dying to comment on Twilight....I'll move on. We had a really nice Thanksgiving once again.

I peeled massive amounts of potatoes (someday my estimation skills will sharpen) and made a delish coconut cream pie. That's all I had to do...and then I got to enjoy this....



Grandpa and Grandma Thomas always are the hostesses with the mostesses. Such good food, my personal faves: perfectly seasoned gravy and stuffing, yum yum yams, and rolls the size of your head.

That's right Jack, total thumbs up!

Cute cousins Cole and Sidney.

After dinner we all assumed the position!

Then when pie is digesting and Tums have been dispersed throughout the room, we all got to open our Christmas jammies. My mom-in-law has such a fun and thoughtful tradition each Thanksgiving evening, she has new pjs for everyone...including the adults. My boys look forward to new christmas jammies every year (heck, so do I). She did especially great this year..all pjs fit the appropriate body!

Snuggly Cole with gramma.

So fun to have all these cute cousins together in their festive snuggly jams.

Oh I forgot

A few more thoughts on Twilight:

Jasper- why so incredibly small and confused all the time? The constant look on his face was pure comedy...I thought it was a scene from SNL.

Jacob-not so much. It was hard to not think "Shark Boy and Lava Girl" the whole time....he definitely wasn't the Jacob in my head.

Rosalie-eeeuw, something just wasn't quite right.

Edward/Bella-their first initial meeting at the lab desk at school was so weird to watch...why all the pained expressions....it seriously looked like they were going to vomit. I quietly laughed to myself as to not offend the masses, I just thought it was so flat out bizarre. PAINfully bizarre.

Now, what are your reviews?

Week/end review..thankful edition

I am one thankful gal. It's a gorgeous day outside and there isn't a rain cloud in sight. Everything is always better when the sun is shining.

Today has been jam packed already. First order of business: Attend Cole's Thanksgiving feast at preschool. I felt like a lame-o mom when someone's super cool mom made these festive and delicious Oreo turkey thingys. It didn't even cross my mind...oh well? At least I made the effort to find his "chicken fingers" shirt- because ..."it was going to be a feast and we'o going to eat small chickens." I did however bring a so almost 2 year old brother who screamed the entire way out of the preschool when it was time to put the cars down and leave. -It was awesome.

I had a great weekend. You know those kind of weekends where you actually get to do something fun for yourself?! Yea, I had one of those.

TWILIGHT: It kicked off Friday night with a 10:30 AT NIGHT viewing of "Twilight." Now here's the deal, I'm not a stayer upper at night person. I 'd call it a night at 8:00 if I could. So 10:30 was un heard of for me. I took into consideration the fact that Kyle would never go with me in a zillion years and I wouldn't go see it unless it was with another group so this was my one and only chance. I have read the books, Twilight being my favorite. I've NEVER been obsessed with them or the characters and have NEVER had an in depth conversation concerning the themes or whatever. I was just curious to see how close the movie would follow the book...that's all. In fact, I'm still plowing through the last one......seriously, I've already read almost 600 pages....let's end this puppy. As I stood in line at the theater along with hoards of tweens and teens I silently mocked those in Edward vs. Jacob t-shirts and avoided the ginormous Pepsi that the Vampire obsessed teen in front of me couldn't manage to hold. Now, why was I standing in line at 10:00 p.m. again? REVIEW: It kinda seemed to me like a high school tech ed. production. Waaaaay to much vampire make-up, crusty red lips, bad writing, bad acting, and ah man....Bella and all her painful angst was just about enough for me. I did enjoy the baseball scene, the tree climbing was kinda cool and the music was good. So for me, I saw and it and I'm done. Now if you were one of my beehives you've seen it twice already and are going again this week? Who pays for these trips to the theater? I already splurged a whopping $9.50 for this high school production.

TEMPLE: A beautiful family in our ward were sealed together on Saturday and Kyle and I were able to go. Such a cool experience. I thought I'd be flying solo all week and at the last minute it worked out so that Kyle came too. Always refreshing to go to the temple, especially on a sunny fall afternoon.

SUNDAY: Just a good day at church. I miss the Primary...really miss the primary. That will take some getting used to. My beehives are darling and I'm thankful I'll be working with them. Had fun friends over for hot cocoa and scones and just enjoyed my boys.

So it brings me back to today. My cute friend Angie took my boys pictures today...another "to do" checked off the list. She's good and I'm anxious to share. So now, Brody is asleep, Cole is watching "Mickey's Once upon a Christmas for the 3rd time today (is that bad?) and Jack is out riding his bike with the neighbor kid. I'm having quiet computer time and all is well in the world!

How was my night?....well... thanks for asking!

You know, it's rough being almost 2! Brody took it to a whole new level tonight and I'm pleased to announce that we all came out all right.
Some afternoon to evenings just drag on for me...especially with early release from school. When it's dark and rainy (quite blustery if you will)at 4:30, I'm ready to call it a day. Put on the pjs, brush your teeth and good night. Poor Mr. Brody didn't catch onto the nap idea today so this afternoon/evening was especially draggy and oh so pleasant. To avoid all mommy ugliness and frustration with a screaming child, I simply got out my camera to document the evening's activities. He was not amused to say the least. It did the trick for me.

To set the stage, I was baking cookies. Now tonight's baking means:Nestle mini(everything is better in a mini version) chocolate chip cookies from the fridge. Brody wanted them NOW...mini dough pieces...NOW! He wasn't thrilled with the constraints of a baking time limit. 12 minutes looked like this:

New and deliciously snuggly jammies...he totally hated them and wanted them off, sweat was forming hated them.

Avoiding the serious threat of "night night." He decided that unrolling the paper towels was a good distraction strategy.

Really wanted cookies, really didn't want soup, really was ticked that soup got on his deliciously snuggly jammies (that he hated) when he pulled the bowl off the table in a fit of so almost 2 year old rage.

Wishing the door open.

Tear stained, snotty nose, exhausted cookie joy!



As the so almost 2 year old whirlwind swirled around the kitchen, these 2 played school all night. The one on the left...that's "Tom" and meet his teacher, "Mr.Klein."

I finally put Brody to bed and came downstairs to let Tom and Mr. Klein know that school was out. The house was peacefully calm and I was done. Mr. Klein chimed up and said, "Mom, so what are we gonna talk about tonight...it's so quiet, and kinda boring!"

Week/end review...

You know, I'm actually looking forward to starting another week tomorrow. It's been quite a long 7 days around here and frankly, I'm ready to start anew! Big plans for the week include: running, the grocery store, the bank, preschool thanksgiving dinner, soup party, parent/teacher conferences, Costco, and the grocery store again.

Family rundown:
Jack is such a good kid. Lately he's been mastering the art of the "eye roll" which I, being his mother cannot stand. Therefore, a "No eye roll" policy has been implemented in this house. He's working hard at this new policy. He did in fact use his eyes for sweet reasons today during primary. As I was given lovely flowers and a giant card signed by the entire primary (because I was released) I looked at my oh so sensitive Jack as he wiped away tears...no rolling to be seen. Just sweet 6 year old tears, love this kid.

Cole is still reeling from the fact that not every meal includes dessert at the end. He's also reading like a 4 year old All star and it's so fun to hear. Today during sac. meeting he followed the words of the hymn with his cute little finger and sang along with me. It's a winning combination...can't pronounce R's and a tad bit off key!

This so almost 2 year old thinks everything is "fuh-nee" lately, especially the little things he's accomplishing around here. For instance, coloring in my dishwasher, emptying out-oh say, 173 wipes, smearing A&D ointment all over his new outfit for the day...right before we were to walk out the door. Do you realize just how stinky A&D ointment is? Prancin on over to the fridge...gettin himself a yogurt and then deciding that on the light beige rug would be a great place to open the lid. Ya know, just little things like that...Hilarious!

My 4th child-The HOUSE:

It's coming along. This is the underground radiant heating for our stained concrete floors.

This is the wonderful slab that was poured on Friday. My house will sit atop this beauty.

Saturday was a work party at our house. I cannot tell you how grateful I am that Kyle has such a supportive, capable, and helpful family. His brothers and dad are always the biggest help. All I have to do is bring lunch...good gig huh! The framer is scheduled to start a week from tomorrow....can you hardly wait for pictures?!



Smiling Thomas men in fantastic mismatched "work clothes."

And finally, it was a bittersweet day for me. I was released today from my calling, my favorite calling in the whole entire world...Primary chorister. I have had this calling off and on in all 3 wards I have been in since we got married. A total of almost 5 years and 4 programs later...I am done once again. I'm tired though and I know change is good. I'm sad because I love primary music...love love love it. To me, nothing else brings the spirit closer than through singing. I adored watching my boys in the front two rows, teaching the gospel through music, and sharing the piano bench with my favorite (and most talented-a fabulous pianist makes all the difference) pianist...Erin, who also got released. It was all or nothing! My sweet friend Carole bought us roses...how cool was that. Just thoughtful,wonderful ladies who I thoroughly loved working with. So now I'm switching gears to the Beehives. The lovely, giggly, happy/sad/happy/sad world of tweens!

So there you have it..bring on the new week!