Happy Thanksgiving!

My in-laws, Barbara & Paul are here for the Thanksgiving break. We are winding down the visit now, but it has been great to have them here. They love to play with the kids, and Paul is the Play-Doh king! The day before yesterday was Thanksgiving, so we packed up the whole house full, including Helene, and off we went to our good friends, Erik, Alyssa and baby Isabella. It was quite a large group for her to host.....there were 14 of us total with their family. Lys is a great cook and dinner was DELICIOUS! I love thanksgiving dinner...the only problem when you go somewhere, you have no yummy leftovers. Now in Lys's defense, she did offer for us to take some home. I declined..... wow am I dumb. It was a good day shared with great friends and really good food. I am thankful for Erik and Lys! Thank you!!!!

Helene, Ann, David, Barbara, Andy, Joey, Paul & Rosie

Michael, Isabella, Alyssa, Erik, Susan & Bill

Overheard at the Grocery Store

"Never Waste a Hard-On"

Perhaps the best 1 liner ever overheard! I was rounding the corner of an aisle at the grocery store last week when I passed 2 older men and a woman who apparently knew each other and had stopped to chat. As I passed them I heard this little gem and felt it was SO good, I stopped to write it down. Words to live by....... Never waste a hard-on.

This Little Piggy Went to Market

The debate over getting the swine flu shot was never one I struggled over, it was just waiting to find somewhere to get them. Our school district somehow managed to get them for students and their siblings. So, last Saturday, my best neighbor and friend EVER.....Lisa, went down to the school at 5 AM armed with coffee, a chair and books to get a place in line to ensure our kids could get them. Once she was there (along with only 1 other crazy Mom) she got the skinny on the day. There would be 1000 doses available for that location and they were going to hand out wristbands at 8 AM for the 9 AM start. She called me a little before 7 to let me know to get the kids there soon, so I got them up, dressed and into Aunt Helene's car so she could drop us off. Armed with baggies of Kix and Cheerios cereal and some juice boxes, off we went. When we got there, they had the street blocked off with sheriffs to keep the mob in order. Lisa's kids, Tyler and Lexie had been dropped off too, so it was super fun playtime for the kids. At first I felt guilty for "cutting" the line, but at least Lisa warned everyone around her she was holding a spot for 5 kids. All others there that early were doing the same thing. The line was pretty long when we got there at about 7:50. We ended up getting the nasal dose, so the kids never had to deal with shots. I didn't have any lollipops with me, so that was probably a very good thing. By the time we were all done, the line was nearly 2/3 of the way around the school. Andy likened it to getting in line super early for wristbands to buy Grateful Dead tickets. Now, we have to do it all again for the follow-up dose in another 3 weeks. Set that alarm clock Lisa....and THANK YOU!!!

Lexie, are you as super psyched to get the vaccine as I am?

I could have taken the picture when they were having fun and playing Duck Duck Goose, but no.

Seriously.....what's up with my teeth? CREST WHITE STRIPS...WHERE ARE YOU?

Lisa, my HERO!!

You can't really tell, but the line was LONG!!

David went first, then Rose, then I held Joe.....so no picture.

Thanksgiving Feast

Just a quick post of some pictures from Rose's Thanksgiving Feast at school. She was a Wampanoag Indian.

Cody, Rose, Ani and Tyler. Who knew back then the Indians knew the symbol for peace?

How!!

Stone Soup Part Deux

Today in David's class they had a Thanksgiving Feast with their 5th grade buddies. David's buddies are Kai and Tyler. When I asked about them, he said "they talk very boy-ish." So there you go, that's what I know about them. Last year I learned about Stone Soup in Rose's class. It's a story about a wandering boy who tricks people into giving him ingredients for soup so he can eat dinner that night. His secret ingredient is a stone. (Stone soup is homemade chicken noodle) Anyway, this week David's class made Stone Soup for the Thanksgiving Feast. I knew David wouldn't eat it....let alone anything else at the feast. David's teacher, Mrs. Martin, knows how picky Dave is but still makes all the kids try the things they make in class. So he tasted the soup, but didn't really eat any, and the only thing David's buddies could get him to eat was bread. Yum! They also made turkey puppets with their buddies. Last year Rose LOVED when she got to see her buddy. This year I never even know when Dave sees them....he just never talks about it. David & Emily had a great time playing turkey puppet tag after class. We used to be able to play at the playground after class last year. We played pretty much every day. Now, we aren't allowed to. So this year the kids race to the street where we cross to the dirt lot where we park and play there. Nice and safe, by the busy street. There happens to be a very interesting red ant farm right there, so they always race to the ants to see what they are doing. Happy turkeys and red ants to all! Oh, and I know.....David needs a haircut.

Look hard to see the red ants......not my best picture. You may also see David's footprints where he stomps on the ants, who must be punished for even thinking about biting him.

I am Superman, and I Can Do Anything...........

My little Sunday Morning Super Heroes.......

Make New Friends, But Keep the Old, One is Silver and the Other Gold

I love that Rose is in kindergarten and loving school, but part of me is sad she had to change schools from where she went to preschool. Rose was the only one of her class to switch to our neighborhood school, so we don't get to see her friends at all. I actually do see some of them, and their parents since David still goes to Garden Road for preschool. I actually feel more connected to Garden Road Elementary than Midland Elementary as I know all the parents of David's class and still see friends from the last 2 years that Rose went there. I couldn't even tell you 1 name of a parent in Rose's current class.

We are trying to stay in touch with her friends, but it's just so hard with busy schedules. Yesterday, Veterans Day, was a school holiday. I don't mean to discount the day....thanks to all you Vets... you truly are amazing. We had the chance to go the the secret, 'perfect' park and see Rosie's good friend Laci from preschool. Laci went with her Dad and little sister, Brooklyn. If she goes to Garden Road for preschool, she and Joey will be in the same class. Yet to be determined as they live a few towns away. We took our neighbor, Lexie, along with us. She and Laci know each other from other outings, so it was a good time for all. We saw a friend David knows from Garden Road, a boy named Jesse who comes into his class a few times a week from another class, so they had fun together before they left. Rose was VERY happy to see Laci. It was pretty mutual. I think this is a friendship that will last. It was really great for the girls to spend the afternoon together. We love LACI!!

Dear Santa,

All I want for Christmas is some teeth whitener, braces and a face lift. Love, Ann xoxo

Happy Birthday to you, Lizzy!

Today is my sis-in-law Liz's 45th birthday. Happy Birthday to you! Liz is married to my oldest brother Dave, and a better girl he could not have found. She is a great Mom to her girls; Sally, Jane, Mary & Laura....who are all great girls. They live near Seattle, so I don't get to see them as much as I would like, but I still feel like we are close. We went to visit them last Xmas and the kids and I stayed with them, in their house for 13 days....and we didn't ever yell at each other....and still like each other! She is a great cook, always has an ear to lend and is great for advice. And the girl loves to have a good time. My kind of gal!

Liz and I were roommates for a short while after she and Dave got engaged (after about 4 hours of dating) and we got on well. The only problem with having Liz as a roommate was that I got Dave too. I don't think adult siblings are really supposed to live with each other after everyone moves out of the family house. But in the end, he and I are also still close, so I guess it wasn't so bad.

Happy 45th Lizzy, I love you!

Liz and Rose at about 5 months

Um.....When Did He Learn to Speak in Long Sentences?

"Mommy, catch the basketball from me..... Mommy, it's a basketball." toss, toss, toss, "Good try Mommy." Joey just came up to me and we had an audible, logical conversation, albeit a short one, about playing catch with a ball. There was a little more to it, but..... wait...wait.... now he's back to screaming , grunts and groans, and crying.....that's my boy!