Gingerbread house

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Welcome Jingle

Grandma Debbie was put up to the test of her shopping and shipping abilities. I read about this dog that interacts with the story, sold at Hallmark. Our store in Cody is, of course, sold out and the owner said the stores in Billings are sold out as well and that it is/was super cute. That's when you call in the G-ma Debbie. She is really good at locating and sending the said items of affection our way. She hunted down Jingle and his story "Jingle all the Way". The kids love it! Jingle is now a favorite in our home and loved by all.

Busy, busy, busy

Let's see....not sure where I left off. I believe I was busy. ;) I hosted my 3rd annual cookie exchange this year, which was really fun and I'm gonna make a few changes for next year. NO MORE GINGERBREAD HOUSES!! I still have frosting in the cracks of my wood floors. The end product looks like a gift box, not a house-still cute, but too much work for us moms that are supposed to be enjoying the morning. The cookies were great and we were all exhausted when it was all said and done. Then came the Holly Trolley. This was a MOPS-ish event and about 30 moms boarded a trolley(after tailgating, I must add!) and it took us around to see the lights of Cody. Afterward, we were treated to a lasagna dinner at the Terrace. It was nice, but Brandi and I, plus Amy decided to take off and go out on the town. We went and had a few cocktails at a bar downtown called TJ's and then dropped Brandi off. Amy asked about one more beer at the bar next to her house...like I'm gonna say no?! Anyway, I was home around midnight. Then came Monday night, which was Wine Club night. So much fun, but way to much wine. Lucky me that the kids decided to sleep in the next morning. EXCEPT that we had to be at mom's new house at 8am to let the movers in. Luke had to drive over to the house while I got Emmett ready for school, dressed Jolene for the day and maybe change my clothes if I had time. I was able to drop Emmett off with Dawn, whose boy Jaren goes to school with Emmett, and she took the boys to school. This way I could relieve Luke who still needed to go home and shower for work. Then, I got to try and direct the movers where to put mom's things. She did a very good job of writing out a list of things, but I had to call her several times(while she was driving up to Cody) to find out which item was a hutch and hoosier and china cabinet. It made for a long day, but was worth it to see mom drive up in her motorhome. We unpacked a few items and attempted a glass of wine(none for me thanks!) That's when the flu hit. Emmett was up most of the night getting sick, while Luke was feeling nauseous on the couch. Emmett was a bit better by morning but Luke was worse for the wear. I, in the meantime, had a sour stomach the day before(too much wine?) and still had one all day. I had previously been baking like crazy for the MOPS Christmas party on weds morning. I dropped off my goodies and hightailed it out of there, back to the house of sickness. All that work and I didn't get to enjoy any of it. The girls said it was a great time. There is always next year. Mom flew home this Sunday morning and is driving the last of her things with Chrissy on Tuesday. Should be fun having Aunt Chrissy in town. The kids are pretty excited...only 2(maybe three-depending on if they get here before bedtime!) sleeps til she gets here!

Cute Pics

Jolene is really into her shoes and what she wants and doesn't want to wear. Usually, she'd rather not wear anything, but it's cold. I just loved the one boot and one slipper sock that she had Luke put on.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

Things sure have been busy around these parts. The snow keeps falling about on a weekly basis..one good storm per week. Keep your fingers crossed that moving day for mom next week is nice and clear! I have been filling orders for painted Christmas gifts and more light boxes which keeps me busy on the side of our already busy lives. The house looks like my Christmas boxes exploded. I'm not even really happy with the way I've decorated, but it will have to do for this year. Luke and I got to go out to the CRC art event at the golf course last night. It was nice to see familiar faces outside of kids groups and playdates! Today, we got to visit Santa at the museum. Emmett asked him for the Joker Castle to go with his Batman Castle(Good thing cause Jolene bought him one for Christmas a few weeks ago). Jolene, actually both kids, were in need of naps and crying about everything-except the free cookies! It was a long, tiring visit with Santa this year. And I think the pictures prove it! This Friday is my 3rd Annual Cookie Exchange, then Holly Trolley, then wine party, then Mom arrives, then b-day party, then Christmas......we have a long list of activities keeping us busy this holiday season! Whew!

A lot to be thankful for...

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving, even though we didn't make it to Salt Lake City to see Trish and her family. The weather and an burst eardrum(Emmett) kept us from going. Looks like we'll be BBQ'ing a turkey in May-see you then! We had a quiet day around the house with a small turkey and mashed potatoes. That morning, received a call from my mom that my great uncle Bob had passed away that morning. You may recall him from our wedding as one of the "trio of uncle Bobs". Now we are down to just a pair. It sure makes you think about the important things in life. We discussed what we were thankful for at the dinner table. Luke and I of course said "our kids and family", leaving out the fact that the wine we drink certainly helps with both of those. Emmett decided that he was thankful for his friends and that he could play. We guessed with the way Jolene dove into her mashed potatoes, she was thankful for her food! We moved the furniture around and blew up the aerobed to watch a movie together after dinner. It was a nice family day that we haven't had in awhile.

On Friday, we went to Billings to do a bit of shopping-not the early kind. We were able to make a few returns and do most of our Christmas shopping and be home by dinner. Saturday here in town, they have a very short lighted parade. We have never been because we are always out of town! It was cold and the kids were freezing but it was a fun experience. We ran into our friends, Jessica and Jeff and their families, and our neighbors, Chris and her son Donald and his new girlfriend. Only in Cody, do they have "floats" that consist of ATV's and a small dog with antlers (like on the grinch)that sits on the back....pretty cute. Santa rode in on the same fire engine that Emmett got to ride on. He was pretty excited to have shared that fire truck with Santa. Emmett exclaimed that he didn't realize that Shane(our fireman friend) knew Santa! The parade was short and sweet and cold, but a fun time.

Surgeon General Warnings

The Surgeon General should really put out a new warning.

DO NOT HAVE CHILDREN!
They will cause excessive drinking, yelling, laundry, and headaches.

DACF

The "Day After Craft Fair" has been really nice. I have begun to clean up the dining room which has been craft central, along with the storage room and computer area! It will be nice to get the house back to normal before we Christmas-ize it! I wound up doing well at the craft fair...just under $400 in profit and a few orders to still deliver. AND the best part is that I won 2nd in the Rotary drawing and won 30 bottles of wine!!! Couldn't have been a more perfect prize and a way to end the craft fair. The man who drew my name called the house and Luke answered. He asked Luke if I could come pick up the wine and Luke told him I was in the upper club room and that I could bring it home myself. I think Jessica and I yelled with excitement when the man came and asked if I was Karen(actually, I know we did cause Luke was still on the phone with the man and he heard us scream in the background!). The other vendors all cheered and we didn't even know what it was that I won at that point. When I returned with my enormous basket filled with wine and other "drink" things, I told them about the prize of 30 bottles of wine-it was like a party! Everyone stopped cleaning up their booths and came over to check it out. What a fun day. A profit and lots of free wine! The few inches of snow that fell in the last hour sure didn't help when loading up the car at the end. BUT- I really do think that the 13 degree weather helped out the craft fair because everyone wanted to be inside at the fair instead of outside at the turkey festival. Jessica and I thought ahead and she brought the thermos of coffee and I brought the homemade Irish Cream! Not our first rodeo! I will most likely try this out again next year, but with different crafts. My mind is already filled with ideas!

come and gone, here and there

When I left the blog last, we were headed to Scottsdale. It turned out, a couple here in town were able to fly down to Scottsdale last minute and play for the weekend. We were sad to not get to spend time with Kate and Mike, but we had a great time with the Nelson's. The villa we stayed in "eventually" wound up being nice. We started off in a so-so condo with three bedrooms and three baths. Not very updated but had a great view of the golf course. It turned out that is not all it had! Luke and I had gone to lunch and to get me a pedicure. When we returned, it was pool time. We got ready and I wanted to make one last pitstop to the restroom before we left. Luke was lounging in the family room. I flushed the toilet and the ceiling broke open a bit and leaked on the floor next to the couch. Pool plans on hold, we called the front desk to request someone to hurry out and look at the leak. We were told to pack our stuff and someone would be over to load up our stuff--we were moving to another condo. Luke and I re-packed and set our stuff outside, thinking we would be at the pool in no time. About an hour later(after I had sent Luke up a lime tree to pick some fresh limes for my upcoming pool drink) they finally came and moved us to the new villa. What an upgrade! This place was outstanding. We had plenty of glasses of wine on the patio and a few morning drinks in the very nice kitchen. While in Scottsdale, we even got to have dinner with Luke's old boss Brent and his wife, Heather. Great food and wonderful weather. A very nice getaway.

In the meantime, mom calls me and tells me she has sold her house. I was a few glasses into the wine and thought she was pulling my leg, but it turns out....she's moving to Cody!!! Mom came out this past weekend to start her home search and a week later is a new home owner and an unofficial resident of Cody. Things should be finalized around the 7th of December and she'll be moved up here around the 15th. So excited to have her around and it's great house and neighborhood that she has picked to live in. While mom was here, the Capitol Christmas tree made a stop in Cody. This year's tree at the nation's capitol came from the Teton National forest. It was a huge deal to stop in Cody for the night and we made a very good attempt to stop and see it. BUT, it was so darn cold that mom and I did not last long. Plus, they unrolled a section of the tree so you could peek in and see it. Very well guarded and protected from all us hellions in Cody....

ALSO, I am set to sell at the craft bazaar tomorrow. I think that I am ready. I sure hope that the work I(and mom-who came at the perfect time to help ;) have put in will pay off. Otherwise, lots of you will be getting "FRAGILE" packages on your doorsteps for Christmas!!!

First snow in Cody for 2010

We had our first snow in Cody about November 10th this year. Much later than the past few years when we got snow in September!

Happy Halloween!

This Halloween was a blast. We had Mark and Deb come to town just in time to celebrate the holiday. Emmett also had a guest for the weekend. Fireman the seahorse, his preschool stuffed pet. They choose someone from class to send her home for the weekend and we take pictures and write a letter about what we did for the weekend. It certainly was a fun weekend. Emmett dressed up as Batman for Halloween and Jolene was a Bronco's cheerleader. Fireman got into the spirit and wore Mr. Potato Head's glasses for it's costume. We went downtown on Friday for the trick or treat street event here in town and let the kids walk down one side of the street and end up at Luke's booth where they were handing out candy. It was fun until Jolene decided she'd had enough. Boy, when she's done, she lets you know. The next day, Mark and Deb arrived mid afternoon and they took Emmett and Fireman to the Quake hockey game. Our team was playing Billings and Debbie was able to get some tickets threw her work. Jolene and I stayed home and I got to enjoy the silence while the rest of the crew apparently froze their behinds off at the hockey arena. Sunday rolled around and for some football/Halloween fun, we went over to Brandi and Ty's home for some chili and beverages. Then the older kids, aka minus Jolene and Zac, went with the men trick or treating in their neighborhood. Emmett had a blast running from house to house. Deb, Brandi, the youngins and I stayed at their home and handed out candy and drank another bottle of wine. Deb and I sure felt that last bottle of wine this morning. Deb is napping as we speak and I think I could use the same. We are trying to get ready to leave for Scottsdale, but I'm draggin butt today. I need to get packed and get everything ready finalized with our Hotel. It turns out Kate and Mike aren't able to make the trip with us and I need to figure out the details with the hotel. I'm sure it'll work out....either way, I am headed to the sunshine and yummy pool drinks!