Valentine's Day

I have these long elaborate stories that I want to blog about.  I have proven to myself that I am not going to do it.  So I would rather just put up a couple of pics and a few sentences rather than wait for the perfection which is obviously not going to make an appearance. So here goes . . . .

 This is a beautiful surprise cheesecake that my wonderful husband had made for me for Valentine's Day.  Our super sweet friend, Elektra, makes the most AMAZING cakes.  I am in awe of her talents.  The roses were edible, and the cake was most delish!  I had a hard time eating something so pretty!  By the way, I had made a nice dinner for Dan and the kids for Valentine's Day.  Funny thing is I had made a cheesecake for them too!  Dan and I must be on the same wave length ~ we haven't had a cheesecake in AGES!

 This is a picture from Macy's Valentine's party.  The kids at this party were still willing to get their pictures taken!  This is one of our precious friends and her son.  Side note here - Macy has quite a crush on this little guy.  I think she is going to have good taste.  He is pretty cute and so nice!

Lane of course wasn't going to be left out!  He joined in for a few snacks at his sister's party.  And this year, she was just nice enough to let him!  I am enjoying the camaraderie while it lasts.  The 5th grade son I have pretended not to know me at his party!!  (Hence the no pictures of that occasion!)

Just to Prove I Still Can

So I open my blog, and I see that I haven't done a thing with it since September.  Nearly 5 months since my last post, that is truly terrible.  Not only had I not even posted, but the site that was hosting my background on my blog had went away leaving my once cute blog in a jumbled mess!  So I fixed that and grabbed the first cute picture I could find and put it up.  This adorable picture is Macy and some of her sweet cousins, Lauren and Caroline, and their cute momma, Mary Margaret.  These are some precious girls here! 

Fall Means Football

Google blogger is different this time than the last time I tried to blog.  Well, maybe this version and I will get along a little bit better!  Branson has officially started football.  We have enjoyed getting to watch him play on the weekends. You can tell football is a lot of work . . . just look at that sweaty boy!

Google blogger

Well, I had some great idea to actually update my blog today.  I had to update the layout, and while I was changing that up I also updated the editor. Apparently they are going to do away with the old one.  I have made little to no progress, and I have decided to give up for the day.  I can not possibly get the pictures to be where I want them to be with the captions I want them to have.  So just know, I was thinking about updating.  It just didn't happen!

80's Party

Dan's brother turned 40 this weekend. His fun wife threw him an 80's party to celebrate. Planning out what to wear was so much fun. I was originally wearing a hot pink dress. However since the weather was SUPER hot and the dress wasn't exactly a breathable fabric, I changed my mind at the last minute. I decided to wear the so comfy but never attractive STIRRUP pants!!! Dan's braided leather belt, bandanna, and Ray-Bans made him quite a catch! Marc and Lori were wearing some awesome stuff, currently available at a store near you. This is a frightening thought!!
Dan, Katrisa, and Lori posing for a party pic!

Some of the birthday boy's friends.

Hmmmm the last time I saw this guy he didn't have any hair. Tell me how many occasions are there to sport a mullet???

The three brothers, choosing the preppy style of the 80's, celebrated the night in their brightly colored clothing, looking remarkably like rainbow sherbet.

If those guys were the preps, then would these guys be the Stoners?!?!?! Or are they members of the actual band?

My precious sister -in-law sporting some neon colors and some killer shoes!

Jason and Katrisa in her Madonnaesque style

More mullets and AC/DC! The 80's church dress is totally rad . . . or maybe just totally bad.

Dan and his sister with a giant bow in her hair. I am so glad we only torture little girls with those now!

I didn't get a picture of the baby in his throwback onsie, but I couldn't resist a quick picture of him in the morning. This is our precious nephew. Babies never go out of style!

He was watching these guys do clean up in the morning. I am so glad I wasn't on the clean-up committee! Gag me with a spoon . . . .

Thanks Krista for putting on such a good time. We had a great time hanging out with some fun people with really bad clothes. I hope Pat keeps the same zest for life during his next 40 years. Happy Birthday!

Happy 10th Birthday Branson!

To my sweet son,

The past 10 years have gone by in a flash. I can not believe that you have been around for an entire decade. I remember the day you were born as if it were literally yesterday. I am so proud of you and all that you are becoming. You are an amazing young man. I am so blessed that God allowed me to be your mother. There is truly no better job. You are a blessing to me each and every day. You have taught me lessons I couldn't have learned anywhere else. Branson, thank you so much for being you. I love you more than you will ever know.

Love,
Your Mom

Happy Mother's Day 2010

I have had a fantastic Mother's Day. I am so truly blessed. I have a great husband, 3 wonderful children and an amazing mother. She has always been there for me in every aspect of my life. I want to thank her for everything she does for me and my family. I love you. I am also blessed to have a great Mother-in-law. She is always ready to get out and play with the kids! This afternoon we had a picnic at the park. We decided to get in a quick round of miniature golf before cooking out. Branson and Samuel were propped up on the hippo watching grandma sink her shots.
Uncle Pat was there with his 3M supplies. Of course the boys put those to good use!

Our group of golfers . . . .some better than others!

Lane told me, "I am good at sports. Give me the ball and the stick, Momma!" So I did. He looks like a natural, and honestly he wasn't too bad.

Off to the next hole

His sister was a whole other story . . . . She spent a great deal of time looking for her ball. This ball went over the fence. Pretty sure it would have been easier to walk around.

Ummmmm I don't know if this hippo really appreciated where she lost this ball, but everyone watching her sure thought it was funny!!

We had a great time with our family today. We are truly blessed, and I hope all of you had an amazing day with your loved ones.