christmas card spoiler

I really shouldn't post this picture until after all my Christmas cards are in the mail but I just couldn't resist...I LOVE this picture.

First off, I love it because it was taken by my great friend Dorothy and not from a tripod with the self-timer as in years past.

Second, I'm in love with the colors in that tree...gorgeous!

Lastly this picture is so us...

Ashley's pose perfectly displays her spunkiness (is that a word?),

Cameron is his usual happy-go-lucky smiley self...so cute,

Zach looks so grown up and handsome...you can see that he is officially taller than I am,

and John and I...well that's just us take it or leave it.

Oh how I love them...

Real U12 Gold

Fall soccer has come to an end... ...pre-knee injury Zach is finally back...
...he became a great team leader... ...up next indoor soccer...no rest for the weary.

My Missing Pants

My favorite style of pants are the now discontinued Gap welt pocket pant. I love these pants…they fit perfectly and are so very comfortable, plus they come in short which is a rare find. I have them in 2 colors black and khaki and usually wear each pair at least once a week. Three months ago the black ones went missing. I have looked everywhere for them, I tore apart my closet, unloaded every item from my dresser…I did everything short of cussing out my dry cleaner thinking that might have been the last time I saw them. No such luck and no pants…I’ve been really sad.

Last night was our annual changing of the wardrobe day, where we officially move from our fun summer clothes to our cozy winter appropriate clothing...although Zach will continue to wear shorts all through the winter.

Ashley was up first and her switch was finished fairly quickly and without much fuss. We now have 2 nice size bags of cute clothing and shoes that will be handed off to her cousin Rylee. We also now have to write up a long shopping list since her closet and dresser are nearly empty.

Cameron was next…his clothes are always the hardest to sort through…mainly because he’s so sentimental about his stuff and each piece of clothing that doesn’t fit anymore turns into a trip down memory lane. Then we sorted through all the clothing that has been passed down from Zach. It took us awhile but we successfully cut Cameron’s massive clothing stash in half…I swear this boy collects jammie pants.

Zach’s sort was going to be the easiest since we had recently done a quick pass through his clothes to determine the winter items he needed for his School Outdoor Ed trip up in the mountains. While going though his pants drawer Zach pulled out his only pair of black pants…the ones that he only wears for band concerts. He was about to throw them in the give-away pile when I reminded him that he’ll need those for the upcoming band concert next week. He said “Well why can’t I just wear these ones instead”…as he pulled a second pair of pants from the drawer…black pants…my black pants…my black pants that have been missing for the past 3 months. I probably would have strangled him right there had I not been so excited to finally have them back.

This is something that I’m going to have to start getting used to now that Zach’s and my clothing are basically the same size...well at least the length is the same...I wish my waist was that thin. I've already been having a hard time sorting between his and John’s socks, I can only image how crazy it will be when all 3 of the kids are fully grown. Maybe by then everyone will just do their own laundry…ha-ha that was a good one!

Oh and I happily wore my black pants to work today.

3 Day Weekend Wrap Up

The kids didn't have school on Friday so that meant Thursday night sleepovers. Most of the time the sleepover plans are hatch at school and John and I are mearly informed of the plans when we get home. This night Zach was going to Carter's, Ashley was staying at Bridget's and Cameron was having his friend Kai over to our house. John got home early and thankfully got all the kids where they need to be for the night. I had a big deadline at work and didn't get home until after 8:30 and then promptly hit the hay. The next morning I was up and out of the house bright and early to head back to another busy day at work. It was John's day off and he was able to sleep in until 9:00 a rare treat. Since he only had the 2 boys he decided to take them to the movies...Madagascar 2 was the pick and the boys loved it.

After the movies the boys went over to Kai's house and John found himself childless...how come this never happens to me on my days off? John took advantage of the empty house and got all our laundry caught up, finally unpacked our suitcases from our trip last week, picked up all the bedrooms, vacuumed the entire house and cleaned the kitchen...how great is that!!! By the time I got home at 5:00 it was already dark out which I hate but inside my house it was warm and perfectly clean and all my children were home and happy....what a nice surprise!! Then we headed out to grab a quick bite, but first made stops to drop Cameron off for a sleepover at his friend Justin's house and then picked up Bridget who decided to stay at our house that night. No sleepover for Zach since he had to get rested up before his soccer game early Saturday morning.

John had to work on Saturday so the girls, Jack and I went to Zach's last game of the season. The team lost this one but Zach played really well and had a super sweet shot from way outside the box that hit the crossbar...that dang crossbar has plagued him all season. After the game we went out for some yummy breakfast then headed over to Hobby Lobby to pick up some fall decorations and pay John a little visit. We had way too much fun picking out fake pumpkins and gourds, some cute signs and Zach's must have purchase...an adorable wood and metal Turkey. This kid was cracking me up the entire time...I only wish he would come shopping with us more often. We then headed home to pick up Cameron only to go right back out the door to Claire's to get Bridget's ears pierced.
Before anyone thinks I'm totally crazy...it was pre-approved by Bridget's mom Shelly after a few failed attempts on her part...we figured that Bridget would be less nervous if her mom wasn't there and guess what we were right. She was so cute and I took some pictures to document the moment for her mom. Zach's friend Tyler came over that night for...you guessed it a sleepover, we made individual pizzas which were so good, I baked a yummy pumpkin cake, which we shared with Bridget's family when I dropped the girls off at their house for yet another sleepover because the girls had to get up early to run in a 5K race downtown in the morning. John got home late that night and I was exhusted so I turned in early.

Sunday we all slept in until 9:00...I woke the boys up and found out that Zach and Tyler stayed up until 3:00 in the morning!! I made everyone blender pancakes, eggs and bacon...so good. Then John and I headed outside to tackle our out of control leaf situation. 4 hours, 20 bags and 4 sore arms later our front and back yards looked spotless and lovely.Then Cameron went to his friend Cameron's house and John, Zach and I relaxed and watched some football. By dinner time everyone was home and for the first time all weekend it was just our family...no friends. We all sat down to a delicious dinner of red fish (caught in Texas last weekend), hush puppies, asparagus and a new favorite dish that Zach helped make...baked macaroni and cheese from Martha Stewart...mmm mmm good!

It was a super weekend full of family, friends, 7 sleepovers, lots of laughs and of course way too much good food. I really need to start working out!!

Southern Hospitality

Guess what...he survived and it was so worth the plane ride (well at least the ride there...the ride home well that's another story).

Yaga at the marina.

I love this picture of John relaxing and enjoying the day...something he really needed.
My parents are the best hosts ever and took exceptional care of both of us as usual.

John caught this spiky sheepshead as well as some red fish and a flounder (it was a really cute baby one).

I caught these 2 big flounders and my dad pulled in this cool Spanish mackerel, plus a flounder and some reds. While my mom had the biggest catch of the weekend with her giant red fish.
Some of our catch.
A beautiful sunset at the marina with the moon and Venus overhead.
Our old house in Friendswood sustained quite a bit of roof damage from Hurricane Ike. There was also some downed tree limbs...but otherwise the house looked really good. John and I also made a quick stop at our friends the Pemberton's who were out repairing their fence. They also have to replace their roof as well as fix some water damage inside the house. It was great catching up with our favorite Texas family and hope they come see us in Colorado next summer.

Seeing boats on the side of the road and in the middle of the highway was a pretty common sight during our trip. There was a lot of hurricane damage every where you looked but we were really impressed that there was also tons of people out working to fix the damage as well.

Food of the South

The best part of any trip to the south is always the excellent food...this trip did not disappoint.

First stop Benno's on the Beach in Galveston, TX

Crab balls...so yummy!!

My grilled cajun seafood platter...delicious. (redfish, shrimp, oysters, crab balls, potatoes, coleslaw, hush puppies and garlic bread.)
John's crawfish etouffee...so good. Next stop Ragin Cajun in Sugarland, TX.
John's highschool nickname was...the Ragin Cajun.
My seafood platter (notice a trend, I can never decide on just one thing)...spicy but very good (sausage and chicken jambalaya, stuffed crab, catfish, oysters, shrimp, corn and garlic bread).
John's chicken and shrimp gumbo...looks weird but oh so tasty.

We all got a kick out of this seasoning...literally.
Great food...even better company.
No trip to Texas would be complete without Homemade Vanilla Bell Bell Ice Cream...the best ice cream on the planet!! Even better on top of a brownie.

Brittney & Adrian DesRosiers

Here are a few pictures from Brittney (John's niece) and Adrian's wedding on Saturday in Lafayette, Louisiana. It was fun to visit with John's three brothers and sister-in-law and play with his adorable 4 year old niece Shaylynn. We also got to met John's nephew Shawn's new little girl.