Christmas 2011

Christmas 2011 was wonderful and full of fun!  We had dinner with the folks and some good friends, the food was DELICIOUS, and even though we battled colds and nasty headaches during the day, we also had a lot of fun.

Our tree all lit up.  I love LED lights...so vibrant and beautiful.

Santa left some yummy goodies in our socks this year.

He also made a mess with his cookies and soda!

Whoa...Santa sure left some cool stuff!

Christmas morning...all the kids were so excited with their gifts.

Troy was one of the kids that was sick, but that didn't stop him from enjoying the proceedings from the chair.  :)

Tyson didn't know which present to open first

A PSP for Taylor.  He was so excited!

Brian and Julie and their fam gave us Kinect Sports 2....it is so much fun.  Taylor playing football with Troy (and Taylor won).  :)

Tyson's first trip on his "ride".  He had so much fun on it.  We took him out front and he did so much better on the road (not as much to hit, I guess).

I took a video of the kids playing "Just Dance 3" but it won't load.  I'll keep trying, 'cause it is HILARIOUS to see my boys shaking their booties and trying to keep up with Annie.

Hope everyone's Christmas was as good as ours!

The Brace Face Club

Today was the big day...the day that Annie has waited for....the day she got her braces and joined the Brace Face Club at school.  Life is good (and her mouth is sore).

Before...

 After....

Just as pretty, and now with added bling!  :)

Annie's Concert

Annie's band concert was last week and she was part of a flute trio.  She did so well, and we are so proud of her.  Enjoy!   :)

Ode to Pigeons (and my handy dandy pigeon popper)

The pigeons sit upon my roof,
And poop and poop all day.
I really wish that they would stop,
It's stinkin' hard to wash away!

They fly into my window,
And scare me half to death,
They coo and bump and scratch and fight,
And leave a GIANT mess!

The ladder wasn't tall enough,
To spike their favorite spot,
So my Sweetheart in his wisdom,
A pigeon popper gun he bought.

It's filled with lovely pellets,
So easy to load and shoot,
And those stinking birds just hate it,
When I run them from their coop.

The best part of my day now,
Is when I hear them rest,
My popper and I go right outside,
To show those birds whose best.

I love my pigeon popper,
It's my favorite new toy,
'Cause poppin' those stupid pigeons,
Brings me lots and lots of joy!

My aim is getting better,
So a warning there to should be,
To any pigeon dumb enough,
To come anywhere near me.

Bwahahahahahahahahaha!  :)

Tubes....Again

Well, after 6 months of trying to get Tyson's ears to drain, Dr. Mostafavi decided that it was tubes time...again.  So, we scheduled his appointment for December 7.  To be a the hospital for our check in time, we had to leave our house at 5am.  Kevin just scooped Tyson out of bed, covered him with a blanket and put him in the car for me.  Then, we were off.

It was so cold outside and it was early, but my little guy was a trooper!  Of course, I could only get half a smile out of him at that time of day.  We just checked in and are passing time with some Scooby Doo.

The nurse came to get us and take us to his pre-op room.  This was new for me...the last time he had tubes put in, they came and got him and took him away screaming, then brought him back screaming.  This time, he got a whole room to wait in.

 I got him to smile for me...then they gave him the special jammies.  Smile gone.  :)

 He did not like his special jammies at all.  He didn't like the pants, and he didn't like the gown.  The socks were pretty cool though.  Not a happy camper.

 This face...so sad.  He wanted to go home right then and not see "be doctor".

 The nurse knew he was having a hard time and moved the TV to his level...then she gave him the remote.  He's such a kid...TV makes everything better!

Especially when you are hanging from it.  :)

About 30 minutes before his surgery, they gave him some medicine to make him relax.  Just after taking it, Dr. I.C.U. Giggles came for a visit.  I loved the back of his lab coat and couldn't resist a picture.

 While Dr. Giggles was getting ready, the nurse began to hook Tyson up.  He didn't like that at all.

 Thankfully, Dr. Giggles was ready to divert his attention and did some cool magic tricks that made Tyson laugh.  He also gave Tyson some stickers for his gown.

 Dr. Giggles and Mr. Tyson with their clown noses.....so cute!

Dr. Giggles even gave me a special gift...made me laugh and this may be making its way around as a Christmas gift this year.  :)

 Dr. Giggles left when the meds started kicking in.  Tyson was so funny...he kept making faces, kept reaching for and rubbing my face.  When he talked, he slurred his words and his movements were very slow and very exaggerated.  I asked the nurse if I could take some of that stuff home...this is good entertainment!  :)  As soon as he was relaxed and covered with his Cars blankie, they wheeled him away and sent me to the waiting room.  I don't like that part at all...I want to be in there with him!

 It didn't take long before they came to get me...about 20 minutes.  When the nurse brought me into the recovery room, I started to cry.  My poor little man.  I know he was fine, but it was hard seeing him this way.   Dr. Mostafavi came in to check on us and said that Tyson's eardrums were bulging and probably would have burst soon (one of them had burst in early November and it was very painful for him...so thankful he didn't have to go through it again.)  Now, with tubes, things should be a lot better for him...no pressure, better hearing, etc.  This surgery is definitely a blessing for my little man..even if it was hard on mom.  :)

 His nurse and I had the job of waking him up.  He did not want to open those pretty brown eyes at all...and we tried a lot of different things.  Finally when the nurse started to remove the stickers that monitor his heart he opened his eyes.  A few minutes later he was dressed and we were headed to the car in a wagon.  He was so groggy...didn't even protest when I left him with the aid to go and get the car.

 On the way home, he said he was hungry, so we stopped at Sonic for an ice cream.  It was so funny to watch him try to eat.  He had a hard time hitting his mouth with the spoon, but he wouldn't let me feed him.  He made such a mess, but having something in his tummy, even if it was junk, was good for him.  He kept trying to talk to me, but it was so hard to understand him..he was still groggy and slurring his words. A couple of times, he forgot what he was saying and stopped talking mid-sentence.  

As a reward for being good, we had promised Tyson some Legos, so we stopped at Walmart on the way home to get some.  Tyson and I had lots of fun putting his set together even though his was still pretty out of it.  Fortunately, by yesterday afternoon, all effects had worn off and my boy was running around the house like a crazy kid...getting rid of some of that energy.

He's doing pretty good today.  His ears are draining but it's clear, so no infection.  He did pick up a cold and has spent the day coughing and curled up in a blanket with a runny nose, but his surgery pretty much ruled out getting an ear infection from it (yay!) so all is good.  Thanks to all of you for prayers on his behalf. It was appreciated! 

Sad News

As we were driving home Wednesday night, we got a text from my dad that my brother in law's brother, Joe, was in a plane that had crashed into the Superstition Mountains.  No word had come of any deaths or survivors, but it wasn't looking good.  I called Stephanie to see how she and Stephen were holding up and they were really struggling.  By Thursday morning, they confirmed that all passengers on the plane had passed away.

This is Joe on a hike.  We knew him because he lived with Steve and Stephi for a while.  He was a good guy, funny, hard working, happy...it was a shock to all of us at his sudden loss.

Our thoughts and prayers have been with his family, and we have felt gratitude this week for the blessings of the plan of salvation, and the knowledge that Joe lives on and that he will be reunited with his family.  At the time of year that gratitude is in abundance, it is this simple principle that brings us peace.

Vacation Day 4....back to Disneyland!

Wednesday morning we were up and at it again...heading back to Disneyland.  My camera had died and we found out that I had forgotten the charger, so I was using the kid's camera...it was also going so there are a lot less pictures this day.  Plus, this time, we had a better plan so we weren't running back and forth all over the park, so we were moving a lot more and pictures were harder.

Before we did anything though, I wanted to get a picture of this ginormous Christmas tree.  It was so beautiful, especially all lit up.

 When we came around the tree, we ran into this happy fellow.  We waved (characters were still a no go with Tyson) and headed over to the jungle tour since we had missed that on Monday (hilarious, by the way).

During a break, we caught the Jedi show in Tomorrow Land.  Tons of fun, especially when Darth Vader and Darth Maul arrive.  After they fight the young padawans, they walk around.  Darth Maul came right up to Tyson and looked at him face to face.  Tyson just stared at him, then when Maul turned away, Tyson spit at him.  It was the funniest thing I have ever seen!

 A storm trooper also stopped by us...Troy patted him on the head and got a finger shook at him.  I would recommend this show even if you aren't a Star Wars fan (which of course, we aren't...at all...hahahahahaha!)

We were able to ride every one of our favorite rides again, plus a couple that we had missed on Monday, and had tons of fun.  Finally, around 5:00 our feet, backs, and bodies gave out on us and we decided to head home (plus Tyson announced he wasn't standing in anymore lines).  Since we hadn't gotten a picture with Mickey yet, this was our last stop.  Cutest kids in the world...pretty sure of it!

 Kevin and I.  You KNOW Kevin is tired...his eyes are shut.  ;)

We piled into the car, found a gas station for pop, potty stop, gas, and the changing of the clothes, and then headed home.  It was a long, tiring trip, but we made it home by 4:00 the next morning and slept until noon before heading to the folks house for Thanksgiving dinner.  It has taken us about a week to get the laundry done, and to recuperate from our busy trip, but we had so much fun, and we'd love to go again soon.

Vacation Day 3....California Adventures!

We started out our day on the Bear Mountain River Run.  The kids and I went first (Kevin had to make a side trip and missed the first run) and boy did we get wet!  All the work on my hair that morning went right out the window, but it was sure fun (and worth it).  We left the ride, found Dad and decided to go again.  Each time Tyson insisted on sitting next to the opening and each time he left the ride dripping wet.  Luckily we had a change of clothes for him in case of accidents and they came in handy.  I went and bought me a scary hair hiding hat to hide my scary hair and to get a bag for the wet clothes.  Within 15 minutes Tyson was dry, my hair was hidden and we were ready to go (the rest of us had to drip dry...thank goodness we did that ride first).

We got to the main street just in time for Phinneas and Ferb to sing to us.  Tyson still didn't like the characters, but he did do a little street dance to their song.  This was the first of about 8 times that we saw them.  They did a little parade about ever 45 minutes or so.  :)

 After their little show (and still wet) Troy went to get fast passes for Goofy's flying school and we got in line to ride the Zeppher (kind of a silly ride).  We got good and dizzy on that one too.  What is it with parks and circles?????  :)

 We got in line to ride the jumping jellyfish (lamest ride ever according to the kids) and Tyson had a cotton candy meltdown...meaning he saw some, he wanted some, and no way was he going without some.  So he and I left the line and found a vendor and a place to sit and eat our yummy sugar.

 Up......down.......up........down.....woohoo.  ;)

 They're on TV!!!  Cute little box that Tyson did not want to get into.  :)

 We told Annie that she had to ride every ride at least once.  If she didn't like them, she didn't have to go again.  We used our fast passes for Goofy's flying school...way fun little coaster and then got more for California Screamin'.  By this time, Tyson had figured out that people scream on these rides, so he started alternating screaming with giggling.  It was so funny to listen to.  Taylor is a regular dare devil and LOVED every single ride.  He even went on California Screamin' again with Troy...they got the front seat which Troy didn't like as much, but they came off smiling.

California Screamin' is an interesting coaster.  You climb in, put your restraint down as tight as you can get it and then you go.  It's very slow and then you stop.  Just when you think you are safe and it isn't going to be that bad, a voice comes on and says, "California Screamin'....are you ready to scream???  Five, Four, Three, Two, One!".  At that point you go from 0 to 80 in about 2 seconds.  It's like being shot out of a cannon and there is no turning back.  Annie and I were in the last car and we were holding on for dear life.  This thing does not slow down.....not for hills, not for curves.  Annie was terrified of going upside down, but she did great.  I was a little wobbly getting off and for a while I said never again, but now that it's been a few days, I'm ready to go back and ride it some more.

While Dad and the boys did their turn on California Screamin', Annie, Tyson and I rode King Triton's Carousel.  Again with the circles.  I should know better by now.  At least we took a full bottle of Dramamine in with us.  It came in handy.   :)

Finally we headed off to redeem our fast passes to Tower of Terror.  Annie was so scared, and I remember thinking...it's just a ride...we can do it.  We didn't have to wait at all and got right in.  Somehow Troy, Tyson and I ended up on the first row and Taylor, Annie and Kevin right behind us.  The whole thing was kind of goofy with the story and not scary at all.  I looked back at Annie and she was holding Kevin's arm, and Tyson was having the time of his life just in this little ride.  They took us partway up and opened the blinds and we saw the ghosts of the past "accident" beckoning at us...no big deal.  There was a little bump that brought a scream out of Annie and made everyone laugh...no big deal.  They we went to the top.  No big deal. They opened the blinds and showed us California.  Being in front I could not only look out, but down. Nice view.  No big deal.  Then they dropped us.  BIG STINKIN' DEAL....VERY BIG STINKIN' DEAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Tyson was with me on every ride and I always kept one hand on him to make sure he was doing ok.  This ride, the poor kid was left to his own devices.  All I could do was scream and hope my flimsy little seat belt didn't break.  We stopped and I landed back in my seat (yes, my big butt was hovering....HOVERING!) and I thought, ok...that's done.  Nope.  The turds sent us up again.  They opened the blinds AGAIN, and they dropped us AGAIN!  One would think that being near death once would prepare you for a second time.  One would be wrong.  I could hear Annie screaming behind me and I knew she was terrified, I could hear Kevin, Taylor and Troy hollering but it wasn't a scary thing...they were having fun.  I could hear Tyson giggling (what is wrong with that child?) and I could hear my own voice.  We got to the bottom, and they sent us up a third time...only halfway, but UP is UP!  After being dropped again, they opened the doors and let us out.  My hands were shaking so badly that I couldn't undo my seat belt.  My knees were shaking so badly that I could hardly walk.  Annie was hanging onto Kevin for dear life and in tears and the rest of our party was grinning from ear to ear.  This is one picture I didn't buy...but I can describe it to you.  Dad and all the boys are grinning and having the time of their lives.  Annie has a look of pure terror on her face, is screaming wildly and has a death grip on Kevin's arm.  I'm not doing much better...hanging onto my seat with white knuckles and mouth open wide.  I did get the aftermath of poor Annie, and she and I have decided that the boys are freaks and that we aren't doing that ride again. Ever.

 Taylor LOVED it....all of it.

 After being terrified, and losing at least 10 years of my life, we wandered over to Monster's Inc.  On the way we passed Mater and McQueen.  Tyson thought this was pretty cool (probably because they didn't move or talk) and let us get a picture with them.  He was more interested in seeing what Mater had for lunch than posing, but a picture is a picture.

After Monster's Inc., we decided to ride the Ferris Wheel.  Because we hadn't had enough action that day, we got into the swinging gondola line.  That line is not for wimps, especially wimps coming from Tower of Terror.  That darn thing moved, swung wildly, and there were no seat belts.  A couple of times I had Tyson's jacket to keep him from flying across to the other seat.  Of course, he loved it.  Annie and I...not so much.

By then, it was about 8:00, so we decided to leave the park and find some dinner.  McDonald's was over near our shuttle bus pickup so it was french fries and nuggets for dinner.  A short ride back to the hotel and a hot shower went far to sooth nerves and relax everyone.  No one had any trouble getting to sleep that night...we wore ourselves out completely!  Coming up...day 4, back to Disneyland and the ride home.

Vacation Day 2....Disneyland!

Monday morning came bright and early (and a little chilly from Sunday's storm), and after a wonderful breakfast at our hotel, we were off.  Tyson had insisted that he was just going to sit in the car and "watch" mom have fun.  That changed as soon as we walked into the park.  We hopped the first ride that came into view...the rockets in Tomorrow Land.  After watching the ride, Tyson was more than ready to try it out.

 Love that cute little face...he was so ready to fly!

 Everyone was excited for this first ride....even Troy and Annie.

 Almost there!!!!!

 We finally made it.  Troy and Taylor had one rocket, Annie and Dad the other, and Tyson and I shared ours.  As soon as it started, Tyson did whatever it is you do to make it go up high and we didn't come down until they made us.  Boy was I dizzy after this one.  :)

 Next we went to the Matterhorn.  Annie posing in line...gorgeous!

 One ride down, and Tyson was already hungry.  It turns out that you burn LOTS of calories at Disneyland and we couldn't keep our kids full.  Thankfully, everyone brought snacks, so we didn't go completely broke.

 You know Troy is excited...patience is not one of his virtues, yet's he's smiling and happy to wait his turn.

 We found out that Disneyland brings the goofy out in dad...at least he isn't scowling at the camera.  :)

 After the Matterhorn, we walked all over the place trying to figure out where things were, and what we wanted to do.  We secured some fast passes, and took the time to ride the boat (Tyson LOVED it) and pretend we were pirates.  The best part was firing the cannon off the bow.

 I guess my camera lense was a little dirty, so the picture isn't clear, but this was a good sized ship.  Below deck was a museum that Troy took Tyson to see.

 After the boat ride, we decided Splash Mountain was next. While we were waiting in line, Brer Bear came for a visit and scared the crap out of Tyson.  He didn't appreciate the characters wandering around Disneyland like everyone else.  Annie got a hug and Kevin got a head rub.

 One of Annie's biggest fears were the bigger rides.  She did not think she'd like them.  Here is the sign for Splash Mountain...50 foot PLUNGE?!?!?!?!?!  Bwahahahahahahahaha!

Here is before................                                                            

Here is during................

 I didn't get a picture after, but I can promise that it was a big smile.  In fact, Annie announced that Splash Mountain was a favorite ride.

On the way out, I stopped to buy our picture and we found Eeyore.  He was so cute and I would have loved to get a picture, but again, full size characters freaked Tyson out and we stayed away....FAR AWAY.  Kind of a bummer, we saw Pooh and Tigger as well, but no dice.

 We had fast passes to the Thunder Mountain Railroad (my personal favorite) and we went through so quickly that I didn't get any pictures, but everyone had a blast on that one.  Even miss Annie.  I think after Splash Mountain she decided that Disneyland wasn't so bad after all.

No trip is complete without a ride on Buzz Lightyear.  Tyson LOVED it and I let him "dribe".  He's a scary driver and I got a little dizzy, but I think that helped my score.  Level 3 (is that good???).

 Annie was looking for a way to keep her ears warm and found this adorable hat.  You can't see it, but there is a Mickey pin on the other side.  She looked good in it.

 The boys also got cold once the sun went down.  Tyson found this at the Star Wars store after Star Tours (my no so favorite...I got motion sick big time).

 Troy got Darth Mickey (or Darth Vader).

 Taylor picked Yoda.  Knowing Taylor, there was really no other hat to choose, and he loves it.  He's worn it to school all week.

 After riding all of the bigger rides, we took the chance during the fireworks to split up.  Dad, Troy and Taylor went to Indiana Jones while Tyson, Annie and I went to Winnie the Pooh.  It wasn't busy at all...not one person in line and it was so nice to sit, and Tyson just loved it, so they let us go around several time.  5 times to be exact, then Annie couldn't take it anymore and we went looking for the boys.  We met up at the Haunted Mansion (sorry, but this was a really dumb ride) as our last hoorah of the night.

 One the way out we stopped for some candy (we just didn't have enough sugar in our systems from the cotton candy and pop we'd had all day, and needed more), and a picture at the Christmas tree.  Here is one of the kids....

 And someone was nice enough to get one of our family.  I was wearing Tyson's stormtrooper hat because he was tired of wearing it and didn't want to "wose" it.  I got a lot of weird looks, but hey...keeping my 4 year old happy is much more important that people thinking I was a dork (or maybe I was sexy...hmmmm). :)

We got back to our hotel at 11:30, got showers and put our sore, tired feet and bodies into bed.  Favorites:  Splash Mountain, Matterhorn, Thunder Mountain RR, Space Mountain, Star Tours (for the kids), and Buzz Lightlear.  Not so favorite:  Haunted Mansion, and Nemo's sub (Tyson kind of freaked out during that one and hid under my jacket the entire time).  Rides we did once and that were fun, but once was enough:  Autopia (Tyson drove on that one too...we bounced from side to side the whole trip), the rockets and the boat.  Day 3....California Adventures!