Most Original Idea Ever!

It's UEA weekend, so that means my sisters are off work...hurray! Thanks to my cousin Robin, I got the genius idea to go to Gardner Village to see the witches. She had pictures on her blog and it looked so fun, however, I wasn't the only one with that plan. I've never seen so many people crammed into one small area. We spent the first two hours getting our food and as we were eating I noticed how much fun the kids weren't having. Thanks to my sisters, we turned it around and managed to have fun despite the insane crowds. Sarah took the kids on a scavenger hunt and then they all wanted to have their faces painted.

We waited for 45 minutes for the pony ride but the kids were so patient it was amazing. Great practice for Disneyland!

Hank's horse was 1/2 the size of the other horses! I don't know why this picture makes me laugh. The best part of the day was the tractor ride--they had a witch telling stories and there was no line! Max was asleep in the stroller at this point (thanks to Sarah).

There were a few times during the day I wondered why put myself in these situations. Then I look at this precious little face and it's all worth it. The weather was beautiful and it was so fun to be with my sisters and my sweet little nieces.

Field Trip #2

I went with Hank's preschool to the Vineyard Pumpkin patch on Tuesday. Once again Hank's buddy Sawyer got to hang out with us. I'm a little skeptical of their friendship since it seems they don't know each others names very well. Hank is convinced that Sawyer's name is Louis and Sawyer kept calling Hank, Jake. So here is a picture of Jake and Louis!

We had fun going through the corn maze and playing at the park. It was freezing but the kids didn't seem to mind.

I really love having some one on one time with Hank. He is such a sweet little boy and he's so nice to the other kids in his class. Hopefully he always likes hanging out with his mom!

Two Sets of Twins

I'm a little slow posting this but it's taken me a week to recover!! Randy and I watched our good friend's kids last Sunday while they were off vacationing in Greece. Having two kids already I thought, what's two more? Max and Erica are one week apart in age, both just turned one and Jimmy and Hank are only two months apart both turning four in a few months. I didn't realize what it would be like to have two, one year old babies. They are absolutely adorable, but again they are one and I had my hands full! Randy took Hank and Jimmy to McDonald's and left the babies with me. My hat goes off to all the parents of twins. Randy would have to quit his job if that ever happened to us! Erica started warming up to me after we took a nap together but the only person who could make her laugh was Hank. She loved kissing his nose.

Jimmy and Hank had fun playing upstairs and watching movies. Jimmy doesn't look like he was having fun in this picture but he didn't want to leave when his Grandma came to get him.
Randy and James second generation

Erica and Max are going to have this picture on their wedding video!


I'm the best babysitter ever...letting babies play with knives!

My Sweet Mama

This post is dedicated to my adorable mother. I have felt so overwhelmed with love and appreciation for her today. I have the greatest mom in the entire world. It's so hard for me to express exactly what she means to me but just having her near me gives me such happiness and comfort. It's like I can breath a little easier when she's around and I know everything will be o.k. When I was really sick last year around this time, no one could take care of me like my mom. She came over when Randy left for work and stayed with me until he came home. Not to mention she cooked, cleaned, did the laundry, and cared for my children with a calmness and ease that only my mom can. She has a way of making everything look so effortless. My kids absolutely adore her and light up when she enters the room. She really looks for opportunities to make lasting memories with them, even if it's going to Walgreen's to find Halloween decorations or simply reading them stories. As you can see from this picture, Hank is completely captivated by her story telling! She has really been a life saver for Randy and I on Wednesday's when she watches our kids all day. I know it's tiring, but she truly loves that one on one time she gets with them. I know when I get home from a long day of work my kids are going to be happy, well fed, the house will be cleaner than it was when I left, laundry done and beds made. That's just my mom for you. She is such an amazing example to me. I absolutely love every moment we spend together, even if it's a quick trip to Costco or a lunch date at Bajio. I look forward to our conversations every morning ranging from politics to what happened on Project Runway. I love you so much mama! I can't imagine my life without you.

Watch out Tiger

I'm not sure if the PGA is aware that Spiderman has joined the tour...but I'm sure he'll prove to be a contender next season.

Spidey (aka Hank) loves to practice hitting out of the rough.

Eye Opener!

This book was written for me!! It's a huge eye opener so if you wonder why some people can eat one cookie and be done and why you eat the entire box, read this book. It makes perfect sense but it saddens me so much because I know with my sugar sensitivity, I really can't eat it anymore. I'm still in the early stages but I can already tell I feel so much better. The thought of never eating sugar again really saddens me but I'm taking baby steps and taking it one day at a time. I'm happy to say I haven't had any sugar for almost a week! Thank you for all your support. Oh, and I have to mention my sister Kate, who is on board with the no sugar. It's nice to know I'm not alone in this.

SUGAR!!

Since they don't have a twelve step program for sugar addicts or a sugar eaters anonymous, I'm using my blog as my sugar therapy. After watching the most disturbing Oprah show ever, on heroin addiction, I started thinking about my addiction to sugar. While it's not illegal to ingest insane amounts of sugar, it's a habit I'm not proud of and it's doing horrible things to my body. I've tried to convince myself that I can eat candy in moderation but time and time again I realize it's not possible for me to do that. I'm pretty sure I've eaten half a bag of chocolate chips today, and yesterday, and the day before...you get the picture. It's my drug of choice and I can't stay away from it. In high school I decided to stay away from sugar entirely and made it three years without it. I'm reading a book about sugar addiction and I'm convinced I have a "sugar sensitivity" which means that when I eat sugar it triggers a chemical reaction making me crave it all the time. It's like people who are predisposed to alcoholism taking that first drink. The good news is by simply not eating it at all, those cravings soon go away. The bad thing is I have to go through sugar detox which is sadly very similar to alcohol and drug detox. It's really sad that I'm to the point where not eating sugar gives me headaches, irritability and the shakes. Of course I'm doing this right before Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas! Please bare with me throughout the next few days. Once it's out of my system I know I will feel better and the sugar coma I'm in right now will be gone! I'll keep you posted on my progress.
P.S. Randy thinks I can't do it...he's laughing at me right now while he's eating a giant bowl of mint chocolate chip ice cream.