Over the river and through the woods....

... to Grandmothers house we go.....
We leave in four hours.
I only have a one more bag to pack. And a few sleeping bags to wash. We have to sweep and vacume the house and load up the van.
I stayed up until 2 am wrapping presents.... I was surprised how little there was.... But we spent on big ticket items that are little.
The presents are packed safely and taped up for no peeking.

Did I mention I am so excited? Almost like the feeling I get when I am about to go on a roller coaster ride at Disneyland. I am anxious and excited. And I feel like I have to pee.

Christmas is gonna be great this year.
I just can't wait.
My Mom and Dad are in Florida, so we have no one to welcome us when we arrive. but it will be fine. They come home from Florida on Monday night. We have to drive their car to the airport and drop it off and then we go to the In-laws for a Christmas feast. Which just happens to be over by the airport.
My dad took his computer to work, he didn't want anyone breaking in to their house while they are gone and stealing it so I will have no computer until after Christmas. What will I do? I will post pictures as soon as I can.

So I will tell you now.... that I hope you all have a Merry Christmas.

I know I will.

Christmas Craft... thank you Martha Stewart

i was watching Martha Stewart the other day and she was making bath mitts for kids out of towels.

http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.3a0656639de62ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=67c68670de42f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&autonomy_kw=bath%20mittens&rsc=header_29

wow i thought, i don't need to make them that fancy.

so i simplified her idea a little, except i added ribbon.

i also made a "bathroom bag" for the boys to put all their personal stuff in when we travel to grandma susi's house. it was 'sew' easy and I added a fuzzy monogram letter for each person (except the girls).

For all 7 bags and 7 mitts for them it cost me $6.

I used some ribbon I had on hand and some old towels. I had to buy the fuzzy letters and the cord used for the tie.

I love it.

Then I had to get something for the boys to put thier Gameboy SP's in. I couldn't buy a case anywhere even if I wanted to. Not even online!!!! (well for what I would have paid for them anyway)

I took the idea and made bags for the Gameboys and GB games they will get from Santa.

All out of an never really used fleece blanket.

I made 7 total. 5 for my family, jeff and the boys, and 2 for my nephews who have/had birthdays this month.

All the gameboy bags cost me $6 too. I had to buy the cord and fuzzy letters.

So for all 14 bags it cost me $12... SAAAWWEET!!!!

I am so excited.

I love having a homemade gift every year.

Elf Name

Your Elf Name Is...

Spicy Tinsel Toes

What's" Your Elf Name?

My baby is 6 months old!!!

I can't believe how time has flown by.
Wasn't she just born?
My sweet baby girl who has the best smile and who was referred to as the "Gerber Baby" today, is just the best thing that has ever happened to me.
Okay, She is the 6th best thing to ever happened to me, after Jeff and the boys of course, but she has just made me so happy.
I feel kinda lonely in these parts, but only in the slightest way.
I am completely happy to stay at home with my baby and my boys and just be here.

Emma at 6 months:

• She has her 2 teeth and she loves to play.
• She doesn't like to be put down or left alone.
• She likes to be entertained constantly.
• She adores her daddy.
• She just loves her big brothers.
• She is starting to sit up.
• She won't roll over.
• She doesn't care for laying on the floor for very long at all. So crawling and getting around the house might just take a while.

She is the brightest spot in our home these days because of our sweet baby girl.
The next 6 months is going to be fun.

This Christmas....

well ... this Christmas will be very different.

this Christmas ... after much conversing with Jeff we decided to not do any Christmas baking.So no cookies for friends and neighbors...unless my oven gets fixed and I have the time... but lets be serious... it will probably not happen.

this Christmas we can't do a Christmas songs CD for friends because... our burner is not working. Snap!

this Christmas my house is not going to get perfectly clean.... i am leaving and will be at my Mom's in Sac. i will have to help her clean it but.... i like her house therefore i don't mind.

this Christmas we paid cash for everything!!!!! whoo hoo!!!

this Christmas i am not making any Christmas cards!!!!! i have made cards for 5 years!!! i just haven't had time.

this Christmas the cards we do send out will have a picture of all of us... even big fat me.....

This Christmas is really gonna be different, but it will still be a good one.

A really good one. We will be together the whole day.

That is if I can get all my shopping done.
EEEK!

OUCH!!!!

Someone, who is very, very cute I might add, and who is very little, has gotten two teeth!
And since she is still breastfeeding..... ouch!
I had to yell at her.
I am sure yelling at her hurt me more than it hurt her.
Oh... she bit me hard. Just thinking about it....(shudders)Oh man!
She is a good baby today and has not bitten me once.
She suffers so much with this teething....Poor baby!

Oh Christmas Tree...

Last year we decide on getting a fake tree. We had limited funds, so we had to get it from Wal-mart. It was a fine tree. That was the Christmas before we got our digital camera, so the pictures are still not developed.
We gave it to the boys this year to have in their room.
I guess I can take a picture of it now.
This year we thought about cutting a tree down.
A friend of mine at church cut hers down at a place in the mountains called Crater Lake.
It only takes a $10 cutting tree permit.
A very Fresh Christmas tree for $10!!!???!!! You bet we hopped on that train.
The plan was to head out the first Saturday of December. For only two reasons, one being it was just right after pay day and we could afford it and it was a tradition in my family for years.

I guess we were'nt in a hurry, because we didn't leave until around 1pm.
Car was loaded with Egg salad sandwiches,a tree cutting permit, a tree saw, 4 boys, a pretty baby girl, two stressed parents and a partridge in a pear tree.
Okay so we really didn't have a pear tree or a partridge, but it seem like five-ever just getting out of the house.
The view up to the lake was so pretty and as we drove we belted out those Christmas carols.
My favorite part of the lake was all the snow.
My least favorite part was that it was FREEZING!!!
We looked for what seemed like hours but really was only about an hour.
We picked out the prettiest tree. The boys all got a turn with the saw, Jeff strapped to to the roof of the van and we had it back home and ready for lights before we new it.
the boys all wanted to help decorate it but.... I being a weirdo, wanted to do it my way.
they have their own tree. in their room, they decorated that one.
It is a beautiful tree and a memory the boys will have forever.
Our $10 tree.

Christmas Past - Photos of me.

These are a few of the Christmas photos I have from growing up.

I am sharing them with a few friends, so i thought I should share it here too.

December 3rd - Christmas Panic Day

So if we actually count we only have 22 days until Christmas day!!!
EEEKK!
Can I get everything ready on time?
My list of stuff to buy is HUGE,
My list of stuff to DO is bigger,
My time to prepare for this event is day by day getting shorter and shorter.
How did I not see this coming?
How did I miss the fact that Christmas was coming?
I mean everywhere I shopped the day after Halloween was already decorated for Christmas!!!!
Online sites and advertisements were being sent to my email!!!!
What Happened?
Oh..... I know, I have 5 kids.
And a husband who worked 64 hours of overtime to pay for Christmas.
What a Guy!!! He is so awesome.
The boys will some day know what their dad sacrificed so they could have Christmas this year. but they will not appreciate it until they are parents and sacrificing them selves for their kids.

That is if they live long enough.....'cause... so help me Santa....they... um.... naughty...arrg......
let's just say I may go insane.
I might just get coal in my stocking.