CHRISTMAS 2010!!!

Awww- we had the bestest time ever down at Marmee and GG's for Christmas this year! It was so wonderful to get to see Grammy- who is the greatest Grams in the whole wide world.... The only thing I would have changed is to have Amy there :( But at least we got to talk over the phone for a while :) Here's some pics for everyone to enjoy- because Grammy got me a new camera!!! I told you she is the best! Thank you so much to my family for the great trip and all the memories we made together... miss you so much already.

As for updates real quick- I started my training on the new job today- and I love it! It's a great job and I have a really, really good feeling about this one (I think I just might keep this one) kidding Dad... and the girlies are staying down at Marmee and GG's for the rest of the week, which is also an amazing gift to get- free daycare and the peace of mind knowing they are safe and happy, and having a great time!

Wow- what a hard week for all of our family- to my mom and Grams, and my sweet aunt Pat and my cousins, and to the whole family.... I am so sad and sorry for the loss of Uncle Randy... I will always remember his huge huge hugs and his huge huge happy smiles! He was so funny and such a great person to be around- what a sad loss for the world to lose a wonderful man like Uncle Rand.

I also am grieving the loss of my very loved dog Smokey today- we had to go put him down this morning. I have had him for 13 years now, and over the past few months his health had deteriorated to the point where he couldn't even walk anymore- we have been carrying him around for the last little while and it was simply time to let him go. I have so much peace in my heart today knowing that Uncle Randy and all of our family that has passed are with my smokey bear....

Festival of Trees

Hi everybody! Look at these super adorable silly girls :) These were taken down at Calli's Festival of Trees special chorus performance just a couple of days ago..... she did soooo great! She had the biggest glowing smile on her face the whole time (mostly because I was making silly faces at her to keep her smiling). We had family and friends show up to support her, and she had a beautiful new skirt, shirt, and shoes to wear for the special day. We are so proud of our Calli bug! She will also be singing in the upcoming Hayden Days Xmas parade and lighting ceremony, and then has two more performances before Christmas Day. Megs- it made me cry to think of all those years when we played at Festival of Trees in Twin- so much fun and such good memories!

Besides that- Kara is officially home-based again! I can't believe how much easier life is when I get the chance to work at home and be here for my girls. It has been rough trying to make the right decision, but I really feel that being home is the best choice. They have both been sick and had to stay home from school lately, and it's so nice to be able to get all my household things done while I get work done also. So- wish me luck! Love you all so much and hope to hear from you soon.....

Hey everybody! You know what we don't need to stock up on in the next six months at least? CANDY!!! Holy moley- the kids raked in a good haul this year.... we went trick or treating last night with a bunch of our neighbors- it was great times :) I hope everyone else had a delicious, spooky, and sugar-filled Halloween too! Here's some pics...

(and a quick side note) you can see Smokey on the top picture- I have had this silly puppy for almost 12 years now- can you believe it? He is not doing so hot these days- can't walk on his back legs at all, so we decided to get him all cleaned up and bathed so he could come inside once in a while and stay warm. The plan is to make him a nice warm bed for the winter so he can stay out in the garage. Doesn't he look amazing! So excited!!! Love you all :)

Hi everybody! we sure have been busy, busy girls around here lately- we are getting ready for Halloween.... school and parties and costumes and candy- oh my! So Calli so politely informed me last night that I was supposed to make treats for the school party, as well as supply decorations... oh that dear child- I would get sooo bored without her! So- we made eyeball donuts and bought streamers- I might've taken the easy road on that one :)

Anyway- spoiler alert before you get the pics- Teags is a pretty kitty this year, and Calli is a pirate... you will love their costumes! I promise to find my old camera and put real-life batteries in it, and take some pictures! Besides that- not a lot- Calli is doing great with special chorus and is waaaayyy too popular for her own good this year... (holy slumber parties every weekend)... Teags had a nasty cold this week, but is feeling much better, and I have been super busy at work, but am making a big old dent in the work that was overdue :)

Love you all and hope to hear from you soon- sorry again about being such a slacker on the blog these days- send me a camera!

Hey hey everybody :) I love having these new family pics for our posterity.... they turned out pretty fantastic, if I do say so myself! As for updates on Kara and the girls- we have been crazy busy! School is going great for Calli and Teags- Calli just started special chorus, and this is an all-year thing with lots of performances (Calli is very excited about the special outfit of black pants and white shirt).... so they practice once a week before school- good for her! Teags is very social and loving kindergarten. Her teacher is "kinda mean sometimes" but she loves her the rest of the time :) As for me- going on my second week at the new job- I work for Spine Team in Spokane, which is in the valley, so only a 20 minute commute... I am liking it very much! It's a big change to be up and have the kids out with sitters for part of the day, but it's going great and I'm paying taxes again- woohoo! They already played a prank on me this week with a huge grim reaper skeleton outside my office, so I am feeling part of the team at this point :)

Besides that- we decorated the house for Halloween tonight and made brownies, and watched the Bears get beat down by the Giants- so a very good day all in all.... love you all so much and hope to see you soon!

First Day of School.....

Ah- finally my vacation has arrived.... just kidding (kinda) Today begins a very big chapter in Teagyn's life with her first day of kindergarten, and Calli is quite the old pro at school these days, as she IS in 4th grade (duh would be her response) :) We had a great morning. Chris came over and took pictures this morning, and we drove them to school together, watched Teags get on her first bus ride ever, and then took Calli in to school. There were a few tears from the parents, but none from the kids! Here's some pics... Teagyn was all fired up when she got off the bus today and threw herself at me. Calli was bursting with news by the time she got home off the bus, which isn't until after 4 p.m. now (crazy!) All in all, they had a fantastic day and already got flowers from their Dad, and calls from Marmee... thanks everybody!

Quick update: I am heading out in the morning to go camping for three amazingly quiet days in the woods- no kids! I am going to miss them like crazy, but that's the point of getting away for a few right? Wish me luck that I don't cry myself to sleep every night because Teags isn't snuggling with me! I love you all- I will try to take some pics on my cell so I have something to show y'all...

Hey long lost everyone!! I finally decided to buck up and just email my cell phone pics to myself so I could have something to blog for your viewing pleasure :) So here's some pics to enjoy... as far as the family- we are all doing great- school is about to start and I am about to start school myself! I will give you many more details soon...

Guess what? Teagyn lost her very first tooth today!!! It was quite the exciting moment for her :) She first noticed it being wiggly just a few hours before this, while eating some chicken nuggets. She said- Mom, my tooth has something stuck in it. So I dug around with a toothpick and we noticed it was super wiggly and about to fall out! Later on at the beach, she was eating a fruit snack and out it came!

Mom- this reminds me of the first one I lost in my peanut butter sandwich! Remember that? Anyway- very cool stuff and she got her first visit from the tooth fairy last night! There will be many more visits from the tooth fairy to come, I'm sure!

Well hi there everybody!! Not a whole lot going on over in these parts- sorry haven't been updating so much. I suppose a quick rundown is in order though huh? Ok- here goes.... Calli is on summer vacation officially, which means that Teags has a constant buddy to hang out with- and it gives me a little break... I remember that I wasn't too excited about summer vacation the last couple of years, but this year it has been really nice so far! Calli bug is a super helper- she loves to clean and help around the house, and she's pretty darn good with her little sister. They both spend the majority of the day outside in the culdesac, playing with all their million little friends. I tell my friends it's like living outside a Chucky Cheese! Today was really wet and rainy, so they did some of their way-cool craft books that Auntie Amy sent!

On to the Teags, which is what I always call her now. She is quite the mischevious little thing! She has finally been released into the wild because I will now let her cross the street and play in the neighbor's backyard- it's a very big moment for her! So far, so good! It's a little crazy to watch Teags running around in front of Calli on her bike- I think it's better to avoid watching these things! I have to throw in that Teagyn got all registered for the big Kindergarten! She is flying through her preparatory book.... and will not take any instructions from me- she says she is smart enough to do it on her own! She is too- amazingly smart little girl she is! The picture on top is from her very first nail painting today- I let her practice on my hand :) She was extremely proud for not getting too much on my skin.

Alyx is doing just dandy- she's working at her own pace in school and doing pretty good with that. We talk on the phone once a week, and the consensus is that she will come and live here with me and the girls, and keep the same schedule that they do with dad. Chris is looking into getting a house with a buddy of his, so we are hoping he finds a great place and the kids will be able to enjoy spending some weekends with him :)

As for moi- still doing transcription at home- two jobs going right now and really hoping to get back into the hospital soon so I can perhaps go back to school on some kind of program, maybe doing scrub tech or something. We will see what happens, but it sure is nice to work at home for the summer and save all that daycare money! I have been doing pretty good at getting out of the house alot and seeing lots of friends. It makes the week go by much faster and makes me feel more social and fun, so that's good...

Well- apparently I had more to tell than I thought! Off to get these crazy sugar fiends into bed! Love you all~

Happy 9th Birthday Calli Bug!!!

Oh what a great weekend for the Calli bug.... she turned 9!! I know- I can't believe she is 9 either!

We had a lovely weekend- first was her birthday and cookies with milk for the class at school- then on to that night with a family dinner and presents, and then the next night with a spa party and sleepover with all her bestest friends.... here are the pics!