O Christmas Tree . . .

I know it's a little early still, but we decorated the tree tonight for FHE. The Holidays are always a little tricky around here with Tom's schedule, so we try to do things like this when he's actually in the country.

The finished product--now I just need to get Sammie to haul the presents downstairs for me.

This is the first year Tommy has been really interested in the tree. I just need to convince him that the ornaments are not toys--which should be interesting, considering I just found four ornaments under the tree!

It's That Time of Year Again ...

So the Christmas shopping is 90% done and Sammie has wrapped most of the gifts. The Christmas tree will be put up on Monday for FHE.

Today was the day to put up the Christmas lights. I don't mind it because I like decorating for the Holidays. However, to Tom, it's just another chore on the "honey-do" list. And have I ever mentioned what a bad mood he gets in when it's time for a project?! Yikes!

Anyhow, today proved no different, other than the fact that we didn't start until nearly 9:00 p.m. (Um, honey, next time it might be easier if we actually do it while it's daylight, and a little warmer. ) Although I won't get much sympathy from the folks in Utah, I was chilly in jeans and flip-flops at 60 degrees!

So, that part is out of the way, and I've been informed that my snowman (a little ironic in Phoenix?) and light-up candy canes won't be dug out until his next trip home. Oh goody, another project for him, meaning another jolly mood! (Glad I'm never in a bad mood-he he he)

Daddy's little helper

Bubba's Got a Boo-Boo!

So here is Tommy's latest battle wound--something like a flashlight to the head on the trampoline! Truth be told, it probably could have used a stitch, but I'm not too keen on the idea of getting on a "first name basis" with the folks at Gilbert Emergency Hospital!

So, thanks to the trusty hands of Grandma, Papa, Aunt Shari, Daddy and Mommy (yes, it takes a village to raise this kid!), his cut was sealed shut with a butterfly bandage and steri strips. Of course he pulled them off the next morning, but I think he'll survive. We'll see just how well Mederma actually works now.

I think Sam still has him beat though--split down the nose, tooth through the lip, broken arm, and knocked out front tooth. Don't worry though, Tommy still has time to catch up!

And if you'd like to see more bumps and bruises, check out cousin Granti-grew!

He's Baacckk!

When we picked Daddy up at the airport on Wednesday night, Tommy was sound asleep in the back. So when he woke up on Thursday morning with Daddy standing in his room, he couldn't believe his good fortune! He just stared for a few seconds and then raced over to Daddy's arms. Too cute.

(Sorry Grandma, I know his hair isn't combed, but he just got out of bed!)

Feeding the Ducks

A few weeks ago Shari and I took the boys to Freestone Park to feed the ducks.

They started out wanting to ride the little train, but it wasn't open.

Then we moved on to feeding the ducks leftover hot dog buns.

Still feeding the ducks (Aunt Shari, Ty-Ty and Tommy) . . .

Still feeding the ducks . . . (Shari and Ty-Ty)

And this is how it ended . . . running back to see the train!

Text Messages

I love getting texts like this:

Hi Sweetie. I just had a beautiful landing here in Dubai. I am in the hotel van and will call you after I check in. Luv You.

Thanks to modern technology, we can still communicate every day, even when he's a bazillion miles away.

*Even though I complain he's a grumpy old man sometimes, he's usually a teddy bear at heart :)

Election Day

So, to put it mildly, we're not exactly happy with the way the election turned out. Not surprised, but not happy. Good thing Tom is in Australia and has something besides Rush Limbaugh to occupy his time.

This is all I have to say about the next four years--(in the words of Samuel L. Jackson in Jurassic Park) "Hold on to your butts!"

*On a brighter note, no more campaign calls and commercials!

My Monsters (and other random pics)

So here is my family. Faces only a mommy could love, right? Sam is adorned by the Scream mask, which Tom has used to scare the nieces and nephews for the past ten years. Today he picked up this new little beauty for a few dollars in the Halloween clearance aisle.

Then, can you guess what happened next? That's right, Tom slipped quietly up the stairs and scared the kids to death while they were in the bathtub. Sorry Toots, he's all yours and he'll never grow up . . .

We tried to get Tommy to play along, but he was NOT in a picture-taking mood. (He actually wasn't afraid of the masks--they had a blast chasing each other around playing "monster." He just didn't want to sit still for a picture!)

He soon went into meltdown mode (a common occurrence at our house) and I had to give up.


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Tommy Tinker on the tiger at the mall

Daddy and Tommy watching Star Wars . . . Tom is sooo excited he'll finally sit still long enough to cuddle up for a few minutes of Star Wars . . . Sammie used to love watching them with Tom, but now she's moved on to more girly shows with me.

Fall Fun (If You Can Call it Fall in the low 90's!)

So we did the corn maze again this year. Last year we didn't have a flashlight with us, and we had the grand idea we'd pull Bubba in a wagon (of course he jumped out after five minutes and we pulled an empty wagon through the bumpy paths).

So, this year be brought along our trusty Maglite and let Bubba walk. It turned out to be a fun evening, other than that elusive #4 post we never found!

Sammie and Tommy at the entrance to the maze

Great photography on my part, right?!

Tommy pointing the way to our next post--probably the one we never found

Sam the glam

Another great shot, I know, but it was hilarious. They had a little maze set up for the little kiddos with bales of hay. Tom plopped Tommy right in the middle to see if he could find his way out. Obviously he wasn't thrilled with the idea, so he took matters into his own hands and climbed over a few bales and was out in no time. All his naughtiness has made him very resourceful!

Tommy ridin' in the cow

Happy November!

Trunk-or-Treat

Sam, the Punk Pirate and Cousin Kalia, our (modest) Vegas dancer

Brown, who was not very happy to be pulled out of bed

Sam and her friend Ali

What can Brown do for you?

So here's our little UPS man the night of our ward Trunk-or-Treat.

By the looks of the last picture, I think this delivery man will be dropping off more than packages!