Happy Halloween!

I think that I must have been drunk when I took these pictures and I don't even drink. I will post more Halloween photos this weekend (when I'm not inebriated). Maybe I am a little off because this is the first Halloween, that we have been in Wyoming, where there has not been at least a foot of snow on the ground. Tonight will actually be pleasant for trick-or-treating.

Time clean up the leaves. Leaves in the fall is the only reason I hate big trees. We have quite a collection from all over the neighborhood. I kinda wish the wind would blow real hard and blow them all away. Oh well, that's what kids are for! Right?

Walking Pneumonia?

James has been ill on and off since he returned from London. I attribute it to the fact that the man does not slow down. If he is not traveling for work, he is doing projects around the house. He has progressively gotten worse. Saturday he put one of the new windows in the basement, even though I told him to rest. Sunday he got up and went to church with us to support the kids in their program. He came home early and went back to bed. When the rest of us got home from church he looked like death warmed over. I listened to his lungs and knew that they did not sound right so I told him that he better go see a doctor. Sure enough, she confirmed that he had diminished lung sounds in the left lower lobe and diagnosed him with walking pneumonia. Now when he tells me that I am being lazy I am going to tell him that I am not being lazy, I am being pro-active for my health.

Tyler's chorale group preformed on Saturday at one of the assisted living facilities here and then went pumpkin caroling. He had a fund raiser selling pumpkins and then we delivered them with a song. Tyler and I then went to visit a dear friend and former neighbor at hospice.

I met with a group of friends last night and we have decided to start a dinner swap. Basically you take one night a week and prepare a meal for each family and deliver it to them. They then do the same on their night. So you are only cooking one night a week. It is supposed to save time and money. We are going to start next week, so I will let you all know how it works out. I am very excited. I think that the kids and James will be glad to have home cooked meals more often and I am hoping to lose weight faster by not eating out all the time.

Somehow, in all of this, we managed to forget James' mom's birthday until about 11 o'clock last night. We are very sorry and HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you!

I need your help...Please!

James and I were invited to a murder mystery party on Halloween and we need to dress for our parts.

James' part is of Fred Majors. Fred is Marilyn Moore's most recent boy toy. He is the heir to one of the largest fortunes for miles, but he is a very shallow individual. He is out for a good time. His relationship with Marilyn is superficial at best.

My parts is of Zyra Byrne. Zyra is a mortician at a nearby funeral home. She has also been known to dabble in the dark arts of witchcraft. She is as talented as she is mysterious.

I would appreciate any suggestions for costumes and names of funeral homes that you may have. We are looking for outrageous here!!

Tyler has been raking leaves for the neighbors and has made over $60. He is so excited; he is rich now. While he was out working, he spotted this big buck in the yard next to the one he was working on and ran home to get my camera. I need to teach him how to take better pictures with my camera. He didn't realize that he could zoom in.

The funniest part of this picture is the fact that Sierra didn't realize that her face was still covered in chocolate from her ice cream.

One of my biggest challenges every day is getting my kids to brush their teeth. I am always harping on them to go brush and then threatening them with forensic testing when I think that they are fibbing. Well, Sierra has decided to be an orphan for Halloween and today she asked me if she could go without brushing her teeth that day. You know, since orphans don't have to brush their teeth.

Happy Octo'bear'!

Today was Brooklyn's Teddy Bear Picnic at school. They sang songs, went on a bear hunt, and feasted on Teddy Grams, blue'beary' muffins, root 'bear' floats, and gummie bears. It was 'beary' fun.

Brooklyn Update

Brooklyn is feeling much better. She spent the whole day, Sunday, throwing up. We got up and went to Church and about half way through Sacrament Meeting she started complaining about her tummy hurting. I brushed it off as nerves because she has been so worried about her black eye and the kids were going to practice their Primary program. She is such a trooper, we almost made it through the practice and had only 30 minutes left when she came over and said she thought that she was going to throw up. I have never run so fast out of the Chapel to the restroom. She felt much better, so we stayed to the end. I felt so awful for not believing her and making her stay at church for 3 hours. She stayed home from school yesterday with James. He decied to work from home so that I could go to class. I love that he is able and willing to do that. He, of course, spoiled her with Wendy's and Gatorade.

Tyler was given the assignment in drama to make a reflection mask. He was given the assignment 2 weeks ago and didn't say anything about it until Thursday; is was due on Monday. James told him that he would help in work on it if he reminded him. Well, he didn't remind us until Sunday afternoon. Here is what we came up with, so that we didn't have to go to the store...

Sunday Morning...before church!

James told me that have to give him the credit for the pictures of the bird. So here you go! The following three pictures were taken by, amateur photographer and all-around good guy, James Gibbons.

More Snow :D

We have about 3 inches so far and it is still coming down.

Brooklyn

My dear sweet Brooklyn, in all of her gracefulness, somehow ran into the rail on her bunk bed and bumped her eye. She came running downstairs screaming as if she had poked her eye out. When I looked at it she had a little cut and a very small bump, so I gave her a some Motrin and an icepack with the reassurance that she would be fine. Two hours later the swelling had doubled in size; we iced it again. By bedtime the swelling had gone the full length of her eyebrow and was starting to bruise.

I even got up in the night to check on her and decided to take a picture. (maybe that is why my kids hate it when I am always taking their pictures.)

This morning when she woke up her eye was swelled shut and really bruised. She asked me if I thought she was going to HAVE to be a pirate now, since she can't open her eye. She is also afraid that she looks mean and will have to wear an eye patch to school so that the kids won't tease her. Honestly, where does she come up with this stuff? A pirate? An eye patch? I think that she has watched way too much Pirates of the Caribbean.

We have iced it some more and now she can open it, but it hurts so she keeps it closed.

Snow

Updates...

I have decided to give up my Diet Coke for good (except for special occasions, of course). It has been 72 hours since I have had one. For those of you who know me, this is a BIG thing for me. I always have a Diet Coke in my hand and if I don't, then I am on my way to get one. I think that there should be some kind of support group for Diet Coke-aholics. I need a sponsor to keep me on track. I feel like the people in the quit smoking commercials, you know the ones where the people can't do ordinary tasks without a cigarette in their hands.

James made it home safely from London and he came bearing gifts of chocolate. Gloriously delicious chocolate.

These are a bunch of pictures that James took...while he was not on vacation. Hmmm, looks like a vacation to me.

Look, this guy thinks James was taking his picture...well I don't think that James was taking his picture. Although, he is kinda cute. Maybe he is my present?!?