"Off the Hook" 80's Party!!!

Tonight was definitely one of the funnest nights of my life. I threw an 80's/This Is It (Michael Jackson) party and it was (in my book) a huge success! I had an absolute blast! About 10 of my friends came and we had all dressed in our 80's best and totally got a kick out of each other's outfits. I had Michael Jackson's Thriller album playing as people arrived and every time I opened the door, we all got a giggle looking at each other's outfits. After everyone arrived, we all took some group photos and got some munchies and settled in to watch the "Crystal Light National Aerobic Championship".....we laughed to tears and we want to do this for our next ward talent show....check it out below. You've got to watch the whole 7 minutes to get the whole feel of it. They really should bring aerobics back, look how happy the people are! Thank you Zane for sharing that with me, you always know how to make me laugh....I just wish you would've been here to do a routine for us!!! hee hee

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P75hd284E9Y

Next we played a good old game of MASH. I was married to Scott Baio, in a house with 3 kids and we drove a Ferrari. We all got a kick out of our 80's crushes, I was actually hoping that my husband would've been Michael J. Fox or Kirk Cameron, but the numbers didn't fall right....oh well.

We then passed around our worst 80's photos and that was hilarious. Mine of course were terrible, giant glasses, buck teeth, big eyebrows and the hair, WOW, the hair!! Not to mention the really cool outfits I wore.

I was so happy that everyone were good sports and dressed up and brought their pictures. I was glad I had enough 80's prizes to give away. Chris and I had a great time picking out my prizes for dresses up. They were, VHS movies Big (with Tom Hanks), Dirty Dancing, and Sixteen Candles. Audio tapes, Tiffany, Patrick Swayze, and DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. And a walkman. Everyone was so excited about their gifts, too funny! Jill was so happy she did the Roger Rabbit for all of us!

Then I had gotten the 80's Scene It Trivia game and we played that for quite a while and had a fun time looking back and remembering tons of fun stuff. We probably could have played it longer but it was time for the main event...."Michael Jackson's This Is It". I had seen it in the theatre last fall but I could not wait to see it again and it was so fun to have people to watch it with! I am hoping that a certain someone will buy me the movie for keeps! and maybe the soundtrack too, no? maybe for Valentine's day....I'll keep dreaming!!! hopefully this was a good enough hint...

We all loved it and could not believe the amazing things they were going to do in this concert he was preparing. I really wish that they could have done one show so we could have seen the whole production put together. It was amazing! My kids loving watching it too and ended up falling asleep on the floor.

Chris was away at a work retreat so I told everyone they could stay as late as they wanted....because I am a night person and with Chris away I knew I would probably stay up late anyway. The movie was over around 10:30 and everyone stayed until 1:30am. We took more pictures and told silly stories, it was so much fun! I should have made it a slumber party, because no one wanted to leave. Even when they were walking out the door you could tell they still wished they could hang out. It was just so fun and I'm glad we all had a blast! Can't wait to plan another party! It might be an 80's movie marathon after all the movies we were talking about! Thanks to all my girl's who made it the best party ever!!!

Below are the photos and below that is the original wording of the evite I sent out...

Make a Smilebox slideshow

So who doesn't love the 80's?!! I actually feel bad for those who never got to experience it, hee hee!

Some awesome things happened in the 80's...one of those things was...Michael Jackson (yeah,I just said that) and since I saw the movie, "This Is It" last fall, I could not wait until it came out on DVD so I could see it again. So, I'm throwing a party so you all get to see it!..and if you don't like Michael and think you'll "have a cow" and pass because you don't want to watch the movie, here are a few things to lure you in. This party will be Outrageous!!!

Requirements:
-wear an 80's outfit with the hair and makeup "to the max!" *there will be a contest!

-bring your worst "gag me with a spoon" 80's photo of yourself *there will be a contest for this too!

-there may be some showing off of "totally rad" 80's dance moves so be ready to "Get Down On It!"

-You are allowed to use as much 80's slang as you want!

-There will be a few games, so study up on your 80's trivia and be thinking of your 80's teen heartthrob choices in a good old game of MASH!!

-We'll take a stroll down memory lane and remember movies, TV shows, fashion, toys, music, etc, it'll be "fresh"!

-I am a HUGE FAN of MJ so no hating on the king of pop!


-bring a drink, appetizer, or dessert to share and put what you'll bring in your RSVP (if anyone finds TAB cola,Shasta, or any other 80's snacks that would be awesome!)

Food, Contests and Games will start between 6:30-7:00pm and we'll start the movie between 8-9:00pm....ps, you can stay as late as you want!

Don't forget to answer the poll questions!

Are you excited yet? See you there!



PS..Deseree'....I so hope you move here so I can throw another party and we can lip sinc to "Angel" by Madonna!

First Day of Disneyland!

So our first day was really fun but quite wet!! We got to the park early and it was pouring and I mean pouring! We had brought the kid's raincoats but only had sweatshirts for ourselves. So our first stop was to get some ponchos. Then we were ready...we got into the park and we were walking down mainstreet and I was an idiot and wore sandals.....it doesn't rain THAT much in LA normally to have a good drainage system so the streets were flooded and I was walking in water almost up to my ankles in some places, Crazy!

We walked into the park and the first thing we saw was Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale in their Christmas sweaters. The kids were so excited, well Brooklyn was. Beckham didn't know what to think at this point, but he got used to the characters and ended up loving them! We took pictures with all of them and Chris and I look awesome in our ponchos, they make you look so good, you know... But it was really fun to see the characters right off and then see all of Disneyland decorated for Christmas, it really was magical.

So we headed right for Buzz Lightyear indoors!! The kids LOVED it! Especially Beckham, he thought it was great getting to shoot the lazer guns. After every time he would say, "Again, Again!" So we went 4 times in a row. No one was at Disneyland on a rainy day so there were no lines, it was great! Each time we went on the ride, Chris and I would try and beat each other's scores but he always beat me by a bazillion.

From there we went to Fantasyland and went on Snow White's Scary Adventure and Pinnochio, both were pretty cute. We had some lunch and waited for our friends and then we all went on The Haunted Mansion together. I didn't know what the kids would think of it....and to my surprise, they LOVED it!!! They thought it was so great with Jack Skellington and they didn't get scared at all. It was easily a favorite.

We went over to go on Winnie the Pooh and it wasn't working so we went to the little gift shop nearby and ended up seeing Winnie the Pooh and Tigger. Then Chris and Dave went on Splash Mountain with Avery (Dave's little 4 year old) and she loved it, but Brooklyn really didn't want to even though she was tall enough and I didn't blame her, that drop scares me! Then Chris, Kiersten and I went on Splash Mountain and it was the perfect day to do it since we were already wet and had ponchos. It was really fun!

We took the train over to Toon Town and went on It's a Small World and the kids loved this one too! Beckham was just singing away, it was so fun to watch his reaction. It was all decorated for Christmas and so fun! From there we went to Minnie's house and Brooklyn got to sit on her couch with her and tour her house with Beckham. Then we went to Mickey's house and went all through it and saw Mickey at the end! Brooklyn was so cold and Mickey took her and just hugged her and warmed her up. Then Mickey teased Beckham until he got a laugh and smile out of him. It was so fun. When we left Mickey's, Donald Duck was outside waiting for us with more big hugs! It was a great way to end our day. It was only 4pm, but we were soaked and cold and thought.....we've got 3 more days to come so let's go back and get warmed up and play. We went on Buzz Lightyear one more time and then bought some Toy Story toys and went home to play.

It was a wet and wild day, but we still had a blast!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Our California Adventure

So we've had 4 and a half months with Chris home to play with us and we only have a few weeks left...but they are going to be some of the best weeks because we are finally going on our big vacation!!!

We woke up on a Sunday morning and headed to the airport. The kids were so excited and couldn't believe by that night we'd be at Disneyland. We got to the airport early and just hung out looking at the stores and had some lunch and then got on our airplane. The kids just loved every minute. Giving their tickets to the lady to get on the plane, getting their seats, looking out the window, etc. It was a good flight and then we were in LA......at LAX to be exact. Brooklyn was excited to be at LAX because Miley Cyrus sings about LAX in her song. We got our luggage and headed to get our rental car. Everything was a fun adventure for the kids, they loved the shuttle and loved getting our sweet rental car, they were so animated about everything!

We went from there to our friend's condo in Newport Beach. The Newport Coast Villas. They were amazing! Our friends, Dave and Kiersten had arrived from Utah and we were all excited to see each other. Their kids, Avery and Emma are Brooklyn and Beckham's ages and they had a blast together.

While we were getting settled in, the kids opened up a present. We had gotten the girls matching princess shirts and Beckham a Mickey shirt. They were so excited and put them on and danced around.

After getting settled, Chris, the kids and I went to my friend, Rich's house. It was huge and so "California" with an amazingly landscaped yard that the kids loved to run around in. Rich and his girlfriend and his two kids were going with us to Disneyland to help us get our annual pass (long story) but it was really fun. We had a good visit with our friends and came to find out it was a smaller world than we thought when we thought that only Rich and I knew each other, but his girlfriend knew some people from my home ward in Montana that Chris also knew so it was a really funny coincidence that we all connected in some way.

We went to downtown Disney and got our tickets and went on a ride and just took it all in. It was already late so we didn't stay long but the kids were excited to go back the next day. It had been a long and exciting day.....the rest of the week was going to be so much fun!!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Warner Christmas Party in Seattle

Two days after we got back from our Cali vacation, we had a our own little Christmas party at home. We went out to look at all the Christmas lights, which is always a blast with the kids, I love how excited they get! Then we came home and I made Creamy Garlic Chicken Pasta, one of our favorite meals and after dinner we made sugar cookies and listened to Christmas music. The kids had a blast and really got into making the cookies, they loved rolling out the dough the best.

While the cookies were baking, we opened up presents from the Warner side of the family. We got Grammy and Grandpa on the webcam so they could see the kids and us open our presents. The kids were excited and could hardly contain themselves from ripping the paper while Chris was setting up the webcam, but finally it was ready and they ripped the presents open. They were both excited to get art kits with littlest pet shops and toy story, new shoes, a monkey game, dinosaur puppets, a wii game and lots of other fun stuff! Aunt Katie and Uncle Bret had also sent some gifts. Toy Story stuff for Beckham which he was so excited about and Tinkerbell stuff and a Miley Cyrus shirt for Brooklyn. They also got some really fun books from cousins, Claire and Xander. It was a fun night of present opening and fun that we got to share it with Grammy and Grandpa on the webcam. I love that we can share experiences so easily through phone and internet, it makes you feel like they are there with you.

The rest of the night, we played with new toys, decorated our cookies and ate them with hot chocolate and then off to bed.....the drive to Montana was the next morning. We love Christmas!!

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Christmas Eve and Christmas Day!

Christmas Eve is always a great day with so much to look forward to. The anticipation is always so fun. Wrapping up the last of the presents, making food, getting the Christmas Eve program ready. I was glad to be at my parent's house for Christmas this year. It was one of the best Christmas's I've had.

We played and had fun all day, went and fed cows with my dad and then came home to make dinner. We had a ham dinner with some really yummy salads, treats and wassail. Our relatives, Jolene and Omar came up for dinner and we all had a great time. After dinner the kids put on quite a show. First, they both had Jack Skellington and Woody and they both danced and lip synced to their favorite songs, "Party in the USA" and "I gotta feelin". Everyone got a kick out of them.

Then we took it down a notch and the kids dressed up and played the parts of Joseph and Mary while my dad read the Christmas story. Now my kids are pretty good kids, but they don't sit still very long, especially during prayers...but tonight was different. They knew what they were portraying was important and they sat so still and so reverent. It was so quiet as my dad read from the Bible and it brought tears to all our eyes. The Spirit was so strong and it was really special.

After the story, we had Laini and my mom and dad open their present (the one we had already given Zane and Lindsey). We watched the fun videos we had made "Frosty Day" and "The Christmas Story". Everyone laughed and Brooklyn and Beckham were excited to show everyone again.

We then had a candy cane hunt. The kids thought it was so fun finding candy canes all over the living room and even on people! We also played a snowball throwing game. We had little bags of mini marshmallows tied up to make snowballs and they had to throw it at a snowman with holes in it (like a bean bag toss). We had some sugar cookies and got the kid's jammies on and then Papa read them "The Night Before Christmas". They were so cute and had such a fun night. Before bed, they left out their cookies for Santa and threw reindeer food out on the lawn before snuggling into their snowman bed.

Chris and I watched "Elf" and enjoyed the rest of the night with the fam before turning in and awaiting Christmas morning, it was a memorable night.

Christmas Morning!!! We got up and had the kids eat first thing....which some might say is mean but we know our kids and they need food before the excitement. So about 7:30 am we ran up the stairs and the kids ran into the living room to see what Santa had brought. Brooklyn got 3 Littlest Pet Shop playsets and about 30 little pets to go with it. She was so excited and loved it!!! Beckham got a castle with a dragon which is what he really wanted and was excited to see it and started playing right away.

So they played and showed everyone what they got and looked at each other's stuff and then started in on their stockings. They got the whole set of spongebob characters, candy, and other fun things. Then we all started opening presents and it was just so fun because the kids got into what they had gotten for Laini and GG and Papa that they were excited to watch them open them which was so fun. They also watched each other open their presents and shared their toys, it was so fun to see them be excited for each other.

One of the best presents Beckham got was Woody pajamas from my parents, they were so cute on him and my mom had gotten him a cowboy hat too, he was so cute running around being Woody. The kids also got Mickey and Minnie potato head parts for their potato heads. Brooklyn got a really cute fairy outfit from my mom and fun magnetic paper dolls. Beckham got power tools and a dump truck and tractor. Chris and I don't really get presents for each other but we did get each other a sovenier from Disneyland. I got him a Jack Skellington mug and he got me a fun disney frame to put the kids pictures in. My sis and I got 3 Rivers luggage from my dad and we loved it....we had always tried to steal his when we were home so he got us each one. He does an exercise program at work to get points and he got points so he could get us the luggage. We got my parents the Planet Earth DVD's which they loved and a few other fun things for their stockings and the kids made them some fun little things too. We just had a blast!

It took a couple of hours to open and play with all the presents. Then it was breakfast time and time to watch the Disney Christmas Parade. Breakfast was yummy as always. We always have cinnamon rolls, caramel rolls, and orange rolls along with bacon and eggs. It was so good!

Then we always take pictures of the kids with all their toys so they remember what they got every year. Then we just played all day and watched movies and had yummy Christmas treats!

Ryan and Staci called and got us on the webcam so they could open their ultrasound photo and outfit and find out if their baby was a boy or girl and it was a girl!!! It was so fun to see them open it with her family and us. Brooklyn told Ryan and Staci, "I told you it was a girl and now you have to name it Alexis". Because Brooklyn and had drawn them a picture for Staci's birthday and she drew herself holding Ryan and Staci's baby girl and her name was Alexis. Now this was kind of cool because when Staci got the drawing, she had actually been thinking about names for girls the night before and had thought of Alexis! So we all think Brooklyn is psychic :)

So it was an amazing day full of fun and surprises and we just had a great time. The next day we went to see Great Grandma and we went to The Princess and the Frog and went and saw Christmas lights. We had a great time being in Montana for Christmas and we were sad to leave but we had great memories to take with us and a kitty! ;)

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Loved

So as a woman, I go through these spurts of complete happiness and amazement in myself and what I can do and then other days I wonder if I even matter at all. I have these struggles of trying to be more spiritual, trying to be a better mom and wife, the constant struggle to lose weight, and the struggle of trying to be everything to everyone. Well, yesterday was one of those days where I just didn't think I could do any of it anymore. Nothing really went wrong, I just wasn't myself.

So this morning as I was trying to have an optimistic day, I prayed that Heavenly Father would help me find "me". I just wanted to look on today as a new day, one with the Spirit, that would help me find the good.

I had just that...I got the kids ready, put all other things on hold and went with a close friend of mine and her son with my kids to a bouncy house place. I had great conversation with my friend, who I just think is amazing. Then I just played with my kids, I didn't think about what was next, I didn't take pictures, I just played and it was great.

When we got back, I took the kids to their cousins house. I had a great visit with another amazing friend (cousin) and the kids were so good and had so much fun.

As I drove home, this is going to sound weird, but I was listening to the group, "The Killers". They have a song, "Are we human or are we dancers". The sun was shining and it was a gorgeous day for the 4th day in a row. The kids were asleep in the back and I didn't feel like going to our house. All of a sudden I had an overwhelming sense of love come over me. I just started crying and kept driving listening to the same song over and over. I drove down by Lincoln Park and proceeded to go around the Alki peninsula to the other side where the city was. It was an absolutely gorgeous afternoon.

I don't know why I listened to that particular song, because the words are a bit confusing....but to me they meant something more. I feel that I become way too "human" in this world and just caught up in all the "stuff" that I forget that I am something more in Heavenly Father's eyes. So I thought to myself, am I just human or am I Heavenly Father's little girl who can become a dancer? Now this probably sounds rediculous and I don't blame you if you think I am crazy but I just cried thinking of all the ways Heavenly Father has helped me "dance". I am so blessed and so loved and I can do it, maybe not all of it but I can do it.

As I drove, I felt like "me" for the first time in a long time. At home in Montana I used to go for drives. You could drive forever just see the beauty around you and listen to your favorite song and let everything go. I haven't gotten to drive like that in a long time, in fact the last time was about 5 1/2 years ago when I took Chris on one of my drives on the farm and we drove that drive everyday that we were there. Well, today, Seattle didn't feel like Seattle. I was in my own world driving and seeing the beauty and listening to a good song and taking it all in and of everything we have been blessed with and feeling the love Heavenly Father has for us and that he knows me personally. He knows me.....and he knows what I needed and he let me have that...I am loved...and I will dance....

A few photos of my drive...

Christmas time fun!!!

Now that we were in Montana with a fun start...it just kept getting more fun! We went to church on Sunday and it was fun to see everyone, I love going back to my home ward, there's no other ward like it....we're one big family! After church, Zane and Lindsey were riding with us and we put on "Party in the USA" (because it's Brooklyn's favorite song, but we didn't know it was Zane's too!) Our van was rockin' out, all of us were singing and dancing and laughing so hard....I really wish I could have video taped it! Zane and Brooklyn were the leads and Chris, Lindsey, Beckham and I were the backup singers/dancers, it was awesome!

The rest of the day was fun just spending time with each other, playing games, watching movies...and feeding the cows which is always fun! We played 100 pin bowling with Zane and Lindsey on the Wii and we were cracking up at Zane's signature move (you'll see in the slideshow below) it was hilarious!

At dinner on Sunday, Brooklyn was the life of the party. She was talking non-stop about Disneyland and Jack Skellington. She was so animated and we were all cracking up. She just kept going on about the Haunted Mansion and Jack. So we were asking her questions about Jack. The best one was when Zane asked, "What do you feed Jack?" Brooklyn replied with, "You don't feed Jack, he's a skeleton and food just falls through his bones!" She was so matter of fact she put Zane right in his place. She made up a funny story and loved being center of attention, it was really cute!

Monday, we went in to see my Grandma at the hospital. Our cousins Teri and Scott were in their as well as our Aunt and Uncle. We all got laughing about past Christmas Eve's and the swearing.....you had to be there! We were laughing so hard! Grandma and had done wonderfully through surgery and was on the mend but in a lot of pain. Poor thing, but she was glad we were all there to see her.

Tuesday Zane and Lindsey left and it had snowed a little bit so we took advantage and went out sledding. The kids had a blast as you'll see in the pictures and videos. Brooklyn and Beckham also got to open a present early (this always happens in our family because no one can wait until Christmas!), it was a giant Potato Head pack with lots of attachments, they had a good time putting them together. We also watched the BYU game that night while making a gingerbread house. The kids had a lot of fun and I always love watching them do things like that because they are so particular about how they place their candy, it turned out really cute. We also made sugar cookies, decorated GG's little trees, and played with the kitties a lot!

Wednesday, Laini came home!!! The kids were excited to see her and of course, she is the worst one about not waiting for Christmas when opening presents. She had my mom open hers and Brooklyn and Beckham opened theirs too! Beckham got a stuffed "Woody" doll with toy story blanket, he LOVED it! And had to sleep with it that night! Brooklyn got a really pretty ballerina pin with gemstones on it as well as art supplies that she can never have enough of, they loved their gifts. Brooklyn also opened a present from GG and Papa. It was "The Nightmare Before Christmas!!" Brooklyn was so excited, she opened it and hugged it and couldn't believe she finally had the movie! GG thought it would be fun for her since she was so into Jack Skellington and it was the perfect gift (even though, I admit that it is a little strange that she is so into a skeleton....but she's never been your average princess, so we embrace her uniqueness.) She went on and on the rest of the time about how happy she was to have the movie and that GG was the best! The cool thing was that on the DVD it has a bonus feature which takes you through the Haunted Mansion and the kids loved it and loved showing it to Papa, GG and Laini.

Oh and another thing that was really cute was that because my mom loves snowmen, she usually decorates with them January through March. But she had found some snowman sheets and decided to make a snowman room for the kids. So she put snowmen all over in their room and they slept on their snowmen sheets. They both got a kick out of it and thought it was fun!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Make a Smilebox slideshow

A Montana Christmas Surprise!!

We had just gotten back from our CA vacation on a Wednesday night and we were getting ready to leave for Montana on the next Monday....things changed. My grandma had fallen at the assisted living home she was living at. She broke her femur really bad and had to have surgery. My younger brother, Zane, wasn't even going to go to Montana for the holidays but he and his wife wanted to make a trip up to see Grandma and to help my dad feed cows while everything was going on with Grandma. He called me and wanted to know if we could leave a few days early and surprise my parents....so Chris and I being the way we are...said, "Why not?"

We left on Saturday instead of Monday all packed up for a week in Montana for Christmas. It was a really nice drive, the kids are such good travelers. We only hit a little bit of snow at the very end of our trip. Zane and Lindsey, Chris and I timed it just right to meet at Boman's Corner 20 miles from home and drive the rest of the way together. It timed out perfectly, I think Zane said he only waited 3 minutes for us to be coming from the other direction and then we drove the last 20 miles together. The kids were so excited to surprise GG and Papa and they were excited to see Lindsey and Zane too! We danced and sang to "Party in the USA" and "I gotta feeling" to get ready to finally get out of the car!

We pulled into the driveway which is almost a 1/2 mile long and we were going to turn our lights off so that my parents couldn't see us coming....Zane's went off but ours didn't....we have one of those vans that the lights come on automatically when you start the car and we didn't have any clue how to turn them off! So we hoped they didn't see us and they didn't until my dad was walking down the hall and happened to look out the window and see a car (he didn't know whose) parked in front of the garage. At that point, we hurried out of the car and up to the steps and knocked on the door. When my dad opened it we started singing "We wish you a Merry Christmas". They were so surprised and excited to have us there. They were glad we came early and they were so excited to see Zane and Lindsey since they weren't supposed to come. It was so fun!

We all walked in and hung out, the kids loved seeing GG's house all decorated for Christmas. Brooklyn had been really into Gingerbread men and my mom's whole kitchen is decorated with gingerbread houses and men. Beckham really liked my mom's candy tree. They also had to see the cats right away and they were excited (as well and my dad) that we were taking Frosting home with us.

After visiting and eating and having a good time, Chris and I could not wait to show my parents and Zane and Lindsey one of their Christmas presents. It was two stop motion videos that we made with the kids. One was called "A Frosty Day" and the other was, "The Christmas Story". Both are below. Everyone loved them and we were all cracking up. Beckham even heard the movie from the bedroom and came out and was excited to show his movie to everyone. We had so much fun making them!

Here are the videos!!

The last ten minutes to Simms!


The Big Surprise!!


"A Frosty Day"

"The Christmas Story"

DISNEYLAND 2010

Ok, so I know what you are saying.....you just went to Disneyland and you haven't posted the pics yet.....and now you are going again???

The answer....Yes!!!

First of all, I am working on my posts of Disneyland 2009 and my goal is to have all of December 2009 blogged before this next trip so stay tuned for all the fun posts.

So, when we went to Disneyland in December we had bought the So. Cal. annual pass(because it's cheaper than a 3 day hopper) and you just have to have someone from So. Cal. purchase them for you. So that's what we did and we were able to go 5 days for cheap! It was a blast!!

My in-laws wanted to go to Disneyland as well and decided to go the beginning of February in which we weren't going to go because we had just gotten back and had spent all our money! But things changed as Chris and I decided that we weren't going to rush into buying a house this spring. We've just decided to rent a nice house and save more money for a bigger down payment and pay off our debts and really have a lot more time to look for our perfect home. So, in doing that, it opened up our chances of going with all the Warner cousins in February and the airfares last week were amazingly low and we already have the annual pass!!

So we get to go again!! Chris' parents, his younger brother, my sister-in-laws- Mitzie, Emy, and Julia, and the cousins- Xander, Claire, and Mia are all going. It's going to be so fun! With all the ladies (sis-in-laws and my mother-in-law) it could probably get out of hand with all the fun, but we'll have Chris' dad and Jordan to keep us in line ;)

The kids are so excited!! They can't wait to go with their cousins and go back to all of the things they haven't stopped talking about since we got home. It's so cute any time we tell someone about our trip the kids just chime in telling them all the fun things about Disneyland that they loved. The kids and I made little memory books and just printed off pictures of the trip and put them in their own little photo books to carry around. They were so animated putting them together in trying to decide which pictures they wanted in their particular book. They looked at them all afternoon and when Chris came home they jumped all over him showing him their new photo books, it was so cute! And if you ask them, their favorite rides were The Haunted Mansion and Jack Skellington and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. They loved meeting all of the characters and everything else about the whole experience. Beckham still asks me if we are going to Disneyland everytime I put his shoes on....too cute!

We're sad Daddy can't go with us but we are glad we got to experience our fun family vacation with him last month to CA.

We made a countdown to Disneyland chart and we have 21 days left, wohooo! And Brooklyn helped me make the little Disney countdown ticker on the blog page.



After I added it up, we were gone 5 months out of the year last year....you'd think we'd stay home, but we're crazy and we like to have fun!

New Year's Eve Party at the Warner's

Ok, so I am writing my posts in reverse...we'll start with New Year's Eve and then go to Christmas and the rest of December, then November and so on....I've got a lot of stuff to catch up on and way too many pictures to share! You'll be sick of us by the time we get to July 2009 and then once I get there, we'll start working on this year...I've got my work cut out for me.

We got back into town from Montana on the 29th. We'd been traveling all month and had a great time but we were glad to be home and the kids couldn't wait to get out all of the their new toys. We spent the rest of the week relaxing, playing and unpacking. No big plans for New Year's Eve, just a fun night at home.

We got a bunch of yummy food...appetizers, pizza, ice cream, soda, you know, all the good stuff! We watched a movie, ate, played games and then at 8:00pm the kids had their New Year's countdown. We went out on the porch first and threw snap pops on the ground, then went inside to have a dance party and break open our party pops that had a fortune, hat, and toy in them. Then we were ready for the countdown. Both Beckham and Brooklyn were into the whole thing, they are so cute! We counted down and they both yelled out "Happy New Year!" while Chris broke open the champagne poppers.

I know you are jealous of our wild party, but that's just how we roll around here, life is always a party at our house!

The kids went to bed and Chris and I watched a movie and then locked our kids in the house and walked a half block down the street to watch the New Year's fireworks off the space needle from our viewpoint park. It was really fun, there was a big crowd of people having fun and we enjoyed the fireworks. After the fireworks were over and we were all done kissing!!! ;) Some guy had set up his own firework show at the park and it was pretty good! Two shows in one...nice!

So, fun night, great party, new year! 2010 bring it on! Enjoy the pics!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Introducing Frosting!!!

We have a new member of the family. He name is Frosting and he is an 8 month old kitten. We love him and he is so fun! He is Brooklyn and Beckham's new playmate. They have so much fun with him and carry him all around the house. They love to tease him with his laser toy, his fake mouse, bouncy balls and pull back cars. He is a spunky little thing. He has taken a liking to Chris who didn't really like or want a cat. It's funny because I find Chris playing with the cat more than I do and the cat always ends up on Chris' lap if he has a choice. So, we love the cat and we're glad he's a part of our family.

Here's a little more about Frosting:

I got him last summer while on a photo shoot....I couldn't resist, he was so cute! (My dad wasn't very happy that I brought him back to his house)

The kitten was named Frosting because he was all black with a patch of gray fur on his back (which has all gone away now, but we still like the name)

He wasn't ready to be weaned yet when I took him, so my parent's cat, Buddy, took him in and they became best friends and Frosting was very sad to leave Buddy behind on the farm but has adjusted very well to his new home and loves being an indoor cat.

Beckham loved him right away and wanted to carry him everywhere! The kids loved him so much that Chris gave in from hating cats because of how cute the kids were with him.

He's got some bling, a fancy "W" for Warner....since they didn't have an "F" when we were buying a collar.

He's a great traveler, we thought he would hate the 9 hour drive from Montana but we let him out of his carrier and he sat on Brooklyn's lap the whole time!

We aren't supposed to have a cat at our apartment....but we're cheating since we are moving soon....shhhhhh, don't tell!!

Oh, and you are probably wondering what happened to Tweety, our bird who became psycho....let's just say, Chris let him go on the farm in Montana, he's better off.

Enjoy these picture from Frosting's last 6 months.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Happy New Year!

Ok, so I wanted to post something sooner, but there went that new year's resolution...ha! Time....where does it go.

I'm really excited for 2010! It's just time for change in the Warner house. We had a fabulous 2009 just flying by the seat of our pants half the time....but we found out that our family needs a bit more structure....so yesterday was the big day, Chris went to the first day of the rest of his life! His new job as an attorney at Perkins Coie. I thought it was going to be a day where everyone was all out of sorts, but it actually went smoother than I thought. I think part of it is that we figured out what our priorities are and put them in place....but for me that has to be done in my mind every single day or I get way too distracted. I think I seriously have ADD, my brain is on overload all the time to the point of extreme anxiety, which then, makes me feel like I have knots in my stomach all the time! Does anyone else feel this way? Or are you all just laughing and saying....yeah, she is weird! Anyway, it's going to take some time to fix my weirdness, hence my decision to quit photography and many of the other things I think I need to do in order to feel like a normal person again. But it is really hard to keep myself on track and finish one thing before starting the next and to stop jumping into things sporatically.

SIMPLIFY--- that's the word for 2010. Cut back on the things that don't matter and concentrate on the things that do matter. First thing, concentrate on taking care of me inside and out. So of course, exercising, eating right, all the spiritual stuff and a little pampering, I know it sounds selfish, but I think I deserve a little pampering once in a while. I would really like to get a massage sometime or have reflexology done so I'm going to and I won't feel guilty about it, end of story!

Next, increase the spirituality in Chris and my relationship....this has always been good, but why can't it be better! More temple trips, scripture study, & gospel discussions (which I love getting into with him because he is so smart!) And then more us time.....real dates, surprises, silliness, all that fun stuff!

Then the kids of course! I can't believe Brooklyn will start school this year, I'm freaking out! So lots and lots of time will be spent with my cuties making our relationships a foundation of trust, openess, love and fun! So included will be one on one dates with each child separately every now and then and Chris will do that too! It's going to be so fun!

Our little family unit is already strong so we're just going to make it stronger by teaching our kids more and spending more quality time and of course, planning fun outings and vacations! It's only 5 days into the new year and I've got at least 2 big trips planned!

Our big family! We were so blessed last year to see everyone in both families a lot. So we are going to stay in better touch with all of them. As well as staying in touch with our good friends.

So besides quitting photography, I am no longer on facebook (big time waster), and I'm only doing a little bit of the vinyl lettering. So now I'll be able to blog about everything that happened last year and get caught up to the present and keep it up on a regular basis. I also have some fun projects I have wanted to get to that I will finally have the time for and we'll be looking for a nice house out in Snoqulamie/North Bend area to rent in the near future....yay! more space and a real yard and a garage, wohoooo!

So I know this was a boring post but I just wanted to write it all down.......to 2010!!! I hope all of you are off to a great start too!