90's work party

We lasted one hour! 

Cheer up buttercup!

As Dane fueled his mind with coffee, I made sure his monkey found a nice sunny spot. With my silly and spontaneous nature, nothing brings me more happiness than seeing his blue eyes and smile light up my heart.

B-day gift from Sam cuz he knows Dad loves monkeys!

It's your birthday day all day long!

He started the day moping because he was turning 46! We spend the day celebrating with my in-laws. Hearing about Dane's childhood, everyone laughed a lot, which we all needed! 

The stories go on about his aunt losing him in the clothing rack, jealous, our nephew pouring soda onto his bed, Grandma N* falling backward off the escalator when he was a rootsy-boo, the list went on. Later, he broke out the 1950s dance moves from 8th grade and insisted I join. Dane started talking about flipping me after some crazy spin move, "Nope. I'm out!" Long story short, I made the spin move but ran away when he tried the flip. I love his blue eyes, but they look scary when he's intense or having fun.

Sam, his friend, Dane, and I walked the very cold  http://www.fantasytrail.com Negative for newts in the pond. but we did have fun chasing each other through the pirate maze.  

 

Along with good moves, Dane's a great prankster. Knowing how scary it was, he twisted me on the Tarzan swing, causing me to swing out of control. It was fun UNTIL I almost hit a tree! I ran as fast as I could to attempt a leg sweep. Safe inside (for him), I warmed up a bit. Emma then begged for a turn on the swing. Braving the cold, I got some great pics of her as well. 

We missed one member of the family. I hope next year we'll see her face cring while we all sing the endless birthday song! 

ALONE at last!!!

 That was a fun walk! Just Dane and I, no children or pets! Venting to each other about said children and life in general. THEN, we relaxed with God's beauty all around us! 

It can't rain all the time!

Today was quite eventful. I took care of some SAHM duties and helped my mom with her house cleaning. While I was at her place, Dane called me. Eeek... he stepped on a nail while working on the new addition for Emma. He needed some TLC and help finding an urgent care facility that accepted our insurance. While we waited for the doctor, M* and I treated ourselves to Starbucks! After surviving the tetanus shot, Dane continued working on the addition! Ah, the joys of parenthood—'Have kids, it'll be fun!'"

It Can't Rain All the Time

We walked the narrow path

Beneath the smoking skies

Sometimes you can barely tell the difference

Between darkness and light

Do you have faith

In what we believe?

The truest test is when we cannot

When we cannot see

I hear pounding feet in the

In the streets below, and the

And the women crying, and the

And the children know that there

There's something wrong, and

It's hard to belive that love will prevail

Oh, it won't rain all the time

The sky won't fall forever

And though the night seems long

Your tears won't fall forever

Oh, when I'm lonely

I lie awake at night

And I wish you were here

I miss you

Can you tell me

Is there something more to belive in?

Or is this all there is?

In the pounding feet, in the

In the streets below, and the

And the window breaks, and

And a woman falls, there's

There's something wrong, it's

It's so hard to belive that love will prevail

It won't rain all the time

The sky won't fall forever

And though the night seems long

Your tears won't fall

Your tears won't fall

Your tears won't fall forever

Last night I had a dream

You came into my room

You took me into your arms

Whispering and kissing me

And telling me to still belive

But then the emptiness of a burning sea

Against which we see our darkest of sadness

Until I felt safe and warm

I fell asleep in your arms

When I awoke I cried again

For you were gone

Oh, can you hear me?

It won't rain all the time

The sky won't fall forever

And though the night seems long

Your tears won't fall forever

It won't rain all the time

The sky won't fall forever

And though the night seems long

Your tears won't fall

Your tears won't fall

Your tears won't fall forever

Busy, Busy, Busy!

It's past midnight, and I'm finally relaxing after a long, stressful day. We rushed Mom to the ER this afternoon due to complications from her gallbladder tube! The ER was so backed up after several painful hours she insisted on being released with an appointment in the morning to have it fixed. Dane cooked dinner for us all, but it didn't go over well with two of our four kids. Hey, at least he cooked, which I was thankful for! I'm worried about tomorrow's hospital procedure with Mom, but I'm looking forward to spending time with her. I'll take her out for coffee and share good company on the way to her appointment. My therapist told me today that change is inevitable, and I need to set aside time for myself. So, I'm looking forward to October...I'll be attending a Christian Women's retreat in the wilderness with my fellow sisters!

It's our Anniversary day all day long!

As typical, our day was up, down, up, and down. Thankful for these fun moments I captured. 

Emma posed us..."Pretend you're the cool kid Dad, and Mom you're just chillin."

Chatty! 

Peaceful alone time waiting for the boys. Emma, I'm sure is chatting Dane's ear off! 

Back from the mile-long hike!

Thank you, Ga-Ga, for the refreshing drinks! We missed one member of the family, but hopefully, she'll join us next year

It was sweltering in the car! So we played "Freeze-Out!"

Bedtime with Dad

When it's been Dad's turn to put the kids to bed.. this is how he gets them to snooze after reading. 

Christian & M*

Sam

And now Emma

Dane my love

 

And today I will pay for it! OUCH!!! At least I'm not the blueberry this year with Sam singing "Oompa-Loompa." 

On today's adjenda..

Do stuff, do more stuff, and finish the day with everyone happy. Is it possible? We shall see. I've got an amazing husband, children, family, and friends!

 Glad I can finally have coffee again!!!

Our next family member! I hope!!

 

God's perfect plan. We met this little boy last night. The lady who met with us said that she was once assaulted while showing her puppies, so she now meets in public places. What is wrong with people these days? Back to happy thoughts...Seeing her smile again, that's what everyone's looking forward to!!!

Pinknose

 Incase anyone wonders why we dyed our MALE cat pink.....

We kept the one
Ragdoll with the soft fur. 

The last time Grandma watched our critters (beach vacay). She got confused about which cat was the outdoor cat. So she tried to push our VERY ANXIOUS Siamese out the back door!!! Since then, she has tried to build trust with our brat Sunny. 

This time around, Grandma has a cataract! So she has to close one eye to see the world, and she's not planning on getting it fixed until after her next cruise at the end of December! So, the kids are having fun deciding what to do about Pinknose when we go to Disneyland. 4 critters to take care of! One funny was to capture a skunk (we have a black cat). Another plan was to innovate a mini cow (Sam calls the dog a cow because she's black/white and sometimes stinks). Dane and I think we'll make do with a big funny poster and stick it to the front door. But with this family, who knows!! 

Boomer Gazette #7

Boomer Gazette 

When it comes to the saying “21 days to make a habit” I feel like when it comes to ME

with my purse and a cell phone, it’s gonna take several months :) Please be patient!!

Last Week's Highlights 

• Sam and Micheal hung out together and did a lot of walking. 

• Emma played her first-ever successful prank on Sam while I was driving, Sam did not find it funny.

• OMSI with Emma. M* was not happy we left without her. A mix up in communication :( 

• Emma hit her head at school on the playground equipment :( OUCH!!!

• Emma got to ride Waylon & Grandma got to go! Unfortunately, she had a headache the entire time.

• Mom took ANOTHER covid test at Walgreens. This counts as #4!

• Grandma & Grandpa went to the beach… we did not watch Carly this time. 

• Blogged some more!

• Disney on Ice!!!

• Happy 45th Bday DAD/Dane!! I love you more than my heart can ever beat. 

This Week PSA’s

• Ga-Ga is to take Emma for new shoes (she wants me to go along too so we

can pick out good walking shoes for Disneyland.

• Christian DMV

• CAIS PTO mtg at the Wild Hare @ (TIME)

• Christian lunch w/ Grandma

• Pie pick up at 3 pm (date to follow)

• Emma's music program at 3 pm (date to follow)

• Walk with K* (NEW weight loss friend)

This week’s menu    

Sat - Meatless/Sale meat - Fried chicken tenders

Mashed Potatoes w/ brown gravy 

Corn

Sun- (Usually Ga-Ga’s) - Dad/Danes' Bday day ALL DAY LONG -

“love you more than my heart could ever beat”!!

Meal for M* - We’ll bring something back and/or 

 Something nutritious / HIGH CAL

Mon - Breakfast for Dinner 

Scrambled eggs w/ cheese 

On hand - Bacon

French Toast 

On hand - Hash Browns                           

Tues - Mexican - Beef Enchiladas 

Mexican Rice

Refried Beans w/ cream cheese

Wed -  New Recipe  - To Die for Fettuccine

Thur - New Nationality - Beef Stroganoff Meatballs over Egg Noodles

(Allrecipes Five star/change sauce to my own w/ onion soup)

Corn

Fri - Fend for yourself night - Buy Friday deals at Safeway (get next night dinner)

E - Top ramen
S - Totino's Pizza

M - ? Something nutricus / HIGH CAL 

C - California pizza

Sat - Meatless/Sale meat - Mystery Dinner ;)

45!!!

 

2020 = Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Dad is great he makes chocolate pancakes. It's a song mom sings when Dad makes me this for breakfast EVERY DAY! Everyone around me wants 2021 to come fast, but 2020 for me has been a great year for Dad and me! During lockdown Dad would take us for drives to get out of the house every night, I get to do school from home, and I've got the entire kitchen table for my toy horse arena! Mom is very busy doing mom stuff, so's dad. But dad always takes breaks to help mom out and clean! It's nice having everyone home until it's not. Every night I get upset because of something my older siblings said or left me out of. But Dad always ends my night with Uno and a prayer. 2020 was not a good year for a lot of people, but for me, it was a year of Dad and chocolate chip pancakes. 

 

What's your John Wayne moment?

M* had her "John Wayne" moment this afternoon. What do I mean by John Wayne moment? Well 2020 has brought a number of tragedies into people lives... COVID-19 pandemic, shut down of schools, loss of jobs, protests, social justice, and the latest cancel culture. But some event will affect someone to the core. Dane one night came to me in a tantrum like state, "That's it they've gone too far!" Followed by an emotional "They took John Wayne down.... at the John Wayne Airport, they took down his statue and are renaming the airport!" Being a huge western movie fan this shook him to the core. Every time we traveled to Disney we would visit the statue and take pictures.

For my Grandma L*, I imagine her moment was the threat to cancel the play Hamilton. For her 90th birthday she was treated to a showing of the play with her closest friend. I listened to her play that soundtrack over and over again last time I visited her. Me, having never been to the play, I was sure to watch when it came out on Disney+ last week (better late then never)!

So what was M* John Wayne moment?  At Starbucks drive-thru this afternoon I ordered her usual Pink Drink w/o the berries. EEEk they were all out of the main ingredient (Strawberry Acia). Not only were they locally out of this ingredient, ALL Starbucks in our area were not getting any new shipments. Nope, she didn't order an alternative drink, we tried our luck to scavenge a Pink Drink from MANY locations only to hear they too did not receive everyones beloved strawberry mix. Her go to response.. "I hate 2020!" First world problems..... it's a real thing!

https://www.hungry-girl.com/go-to-guides/four-things-starbucks-pink-drink

*note find personal pictures from our trip

Lordy, Lordy, look who's 40!

Not me! Buhahaha... I got a year and a half on ya! That said...

Happy Birthday Dane!!! 

Happy 39th Birthday Dane!

As pastor K* said in his message to you this morning... One more year till middle age! I'm happy to be your friend, lover, wife, and mother to our 4 amazing kids for over half of your life! We've done great things!

As teens. Haven't changed much :D

Your my best friend

You know when you walk in the door and everything is clean, including the dust off the washer and dryer, I've been doing a lot of thinking. I want nothing more than the happily ever after that we promised each other 20 years ago. But I also know God does not work like that. There will be obstacles to learn from.. hurdles that seem too high, canyons that are too wide, teenagers and toddlers that just don't give a f* about the relationship that mom and dad strive to keep hot. But it's OUR relationship, and we are the only ones that can keep it loved!

But hey looks like we're on the upswing... You know me, I love my research!

Our little rainbow turned out to be such a blessing! Even when I'm upset with you or you with I, she reminds us both how easy it is to just love! How can I not be happy feeling our daughter's excitement when you walk in the door! "Da-Da home"! *Not to say that the other kids don't give me warm and fuzzy feelings too, just that I have to PULL it out of them. ;)

One more just for fun.. as I'm always blogging just before bed with a little one sleeping next to me. I COULD be sleeping... 

Too soon?

2 couples vacationed in paradise.... 

And all Dh got was this T-shirt