Young Man

Today Connor turned 12 years old!  We love having him around.  He's such a great kid!

 We celebrated yesterday because Chris is working out of town today.  We went to see "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 1"  It was a good movie.  We also had a yummy dinner of roast beef, mashed potatoes and gravy, his favorite.  Then we ate cheesecake.

This is a picture from when Connor was about 2 1/2.  Such a cutie!  He has changed so much! Still cute though.

12 things about Connor:

1.  Is a very willing helper.  He will do anything I ask him to do, usually the first time I ask. Except clean his room.

2. He is super smart and loves to learn, especially Science.

3. He is a good brother and takes care of all his siblings. He'a  good friend to all of them.

4. His favorite color is orange and has been since he was 3 years old.

5. Loves all kinds of candy.

6. Likes to play the wii.  His latest favorite is the Nerf game he got for his birthday.

7. Likes to cook and help in the kitchen.  He thinks I'm a good cook.

8. Likes to fix things and help his dad.  Learned how to do all kinds of handy things this summer.

9. Does not like hugs! Or the kissy parts in movies.

10. Has good taste in TV and has been watching all the seasons of Psych and The Office with me.

11. Likes scouts and is excited to be in Young Men.

12.  He is one of my very best friends and I'm so very happy he is my son.

Happy Birthday Connor Ca-choo!

I love you!

40 by 40

In 4 short years I will be 40 years old.  I've seen lists like these on other blogs and decided to follow suit.  Here is a list of the things I would like to accomplish by the time I turn 40 (in no particular order).  When I do them, I will mark it with the date.

1. Make my yard beautiful
2. get caught up on my scrapbooks
3. read a book by Jane Austen
4. figure out what is wrong with my foot and fix it!
5. learn more about square foot gardening and decide if it is right for us
6. put some color on these walls (everything is stark white.  I like it but I think I would love some color.  I'm too chicken right now to decide.)
7. go on a family vacation
8. go on a couples only  vacation with Chris
9. make a quilt  for my bed
10. take up bike riding
11. have 2 years supply of food
12. get a mammogram
13. plan and have a family reunion with all my siblings and their families
14. plan and have a family reunion with Chris's siblings and their families
15. sew myself a dress with a pattern
16. have all our credit card debt paid off
17. make friends with vegetables and eat at least 3 servings everyday consistently
18. try yoga
19. go fishing
20. help Tristan get his Eagle scout award
21. help Connor get his Eagle scout award
22. learn the basics of photo shop
23. try water skiing
24. sit in a hot tub outside while it's snowing
25. get a dutch oven and learn how to cook chicken like my dad
26. find a good picnic spot and go there often
27. plan and carry out my 20 year High School reunion
28. consistently go on a weekly date with Chris
29. host a Halloween party
30. find a signature scent
31. take the kids to the ocean
32. grow my hair out (I'm already working on this one, but if I put it on here I won't be as tempted to cut it)
33. organize my recipes
34. invite friends or family over for dinner at least once a month (has to be consistent for at least 6 months to cross off)
35. get a passport
36. go to another country
37. get my blog made into books
38. send birthday cards to all my nieces and nephews and siblings and in-laws for the whole year. (I have already failed at this this year, but I can get ready for next year!)
39. go on a monthly "date" with each of my kids.  Document on here (pass off with 6 consecutive months)
40. plant trees on our park strip. Our city has a tree planting program that I need to look into.  When our trees are planted, I want to spread the word to my neighborhood so they can plant some too.  We need more shade!  Plus we live very close to the freeway so it would help cut down noise and pollution.  Tree lined streets are the thing I miss most about our old neighborhood (besides the neighbors of course!)

I'm hoping to revisit this list monthly or at least bi monthly to see what I've accomplished and what I still need to work on.  Wish me lotsa luck!

word of the year

I was reading a blog the other day, and the writer was talking about how she picks a "word of the year" every year to think about and embrace.  It really made me think about what I would like my word of the year to be.  At first I thought, "breathe" because sometimes I get doing so many things and keep going in so many directions that I forget to just breathe.  I rejected that one when I thought about what I really want my word of the year to be.  Here it is:

ENJOY

why enjoy?  I have a new baby, I have 3 great older kids and a wonderful husband.  I just want to spend this year enjoying all the blessings I have.  I want to enjoy the babyness of Eli.  I want to enjoy the business of the older kids.  I want to enjoy being married to my best friend.  So there you have it friends, ENJOY!

Christmas is over

 And it's a good thing. I don't think our tree could have lasted even one more day.  There are needles everywhere.  Granted these were taken after I pulled ten strands of lights off, but still... that's one dry tree!

Potpourri anyone?  It still smells so good!

And this cute baby is really growing up!  Santa brought him a high chair and a sippy cup.  He loves both. He sits at the table with us for meals and "drinks" water from his cup.  Such a big boy!