Hill Family

Kiana's Valentine Portraits 2010

2010-02-05T17:35:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we had Kiana's pictures taken for fun and Valentines Day. We have to pics so much of Kiana over the last year. We used to have a ton of Cameron - and now it is Kiana everywhere.

The pics were taken at a portrait event at Belly Buttons Boutique at the AR/MO state line in the Macadoodles shopping center area. Belly Buttons has SUPER cute stuff - you need to go check them out if you live in Northwest Arkansas or Southwest Missouri. You can also check out their facebook page.

The photographer was Calotype Photography. Julie does such an amazing, beautiful job. Here are the pics that she took. I love them all. Daddy is not too hip on these - because he is not a fan of the toothless smile. However, I cherish this stage - it only happens once - and I love the way she looks without those teeth!!!!

Cassidie helped me with the outfit, hair and make-up. I wanted to go for a vintage/glamour look. I bought the dress on my own. You can buy the same cute dress here: BUY THIS DRESS It absolutely has a vintage feel to it!!

We accessorized with a silver belt from Target - couldn't find this online to link to. She also had on some gray boots - but I don't think you can see them in the pics.

The necklace and bracelet are Cassidie's. We just made the necklace a little bit shorter so it hung where we wanted.

To top off the accessoried, I made a cute bow for her hair - thanks to some instruction from Cassidie's sister-in-law, Jacqueline.

For her hair Cassidie curled and hair sprayed. Unfortunately - we had to wait over an hour past our appt, and Kiana's hair doesn't hold curl too well - so it was not quite the same as what we started with - but I think she still looks fabulous!!

Thanks so much to Cassidie for her help (and spending 5 hours with me on your weekend to get her ready) and thanks Calotype for your amazing work!!!

Christmas Eve, Eve and Christmas Eve

2009-12-24T20:02:00.000-08:00

Twas the night before the night before Christmas - and sweet little Kiana was wanting to go pet Santa's Reindeer. So, mommy heard about the reindeer in Fayetteville - and loaded the family up in the car to go fulfill the sweet little girl's dreams!!!

When we got there - the first thing we saw was the Cinderally style carriage - and of course our little princess needed to go for a ride. Daddy tooks pics - while I took the kids on the ride.

Mommy then snapped a picture of dad with the kids on the Fayetteville Square. Bentonville has a pretty square - but the Fayetteville square has A LOT of lights - definitely worth the drive to see.

Next - it was time to go see Santa's Reindeer - Santa was out sick for the night - but three reinder were there. First we saw Comet and Cupid!!!

Then we moved to the next stall - to see the beautiful Prancer. Prancer has a 34 point rack - he was so beautiful!!

It was a great family night - we then stopped at Mojitos for a quick bite to eat before heading home.

That brings us to Christmas Eve. First - we invited the In-laws and Grandparents in-law over for Chili. We have a nice visit - and some Jeff Dunham watching.

After that we decided to let the kids open a few presents. The initial plans was to wait until tomorrow when my dad would be home - but since he may not make it due to the weather - we let them open a few things. Actually our plans for tomorrow may go completely down the drain due to the weather - because Eric's mom side of the family was supposed to come over, along with my dad for Christmas dinner - however, the roads are more than likely going to be too slick. BUT on the bright side - Kiana really wants to make a snowman and Cameron really wants to go sledding - so it could be a beautiful White Christmas for them.

On to the presents the kids opened - here is Kiana ripping into her first gift:

Love the toothless smile we have been enjoying for a few weeks. She is so excited about presents and Santa this year. She asked for some makeup so I got her some last minute. Here she is trying to put her cream eye shadow on for the first time - not too bad:

Then - it was off to the garage to see Cameron's big present we had been hiding. It is so much harder to buy for your kids when they get older - and they have pretty much everything they want. Cameron didn't really even ask for anything other than clothes. However, about a year ago he had asked for this present - and I wouldn't get it for him. He was SO excited when he seen it - dad and I both got a big hug. It is called a flip sofa - kinda like a futon - it can be a couch or bed. It also locks into a couple of positions like a recliner.

It is a microsuede so it looks funny in the pic.

Here is kiana showing off her new PJs:

Eric and Cameron carried his new sofa up to his room while Kiana wasn't looking. So - she didn't think he really opened much. I told her that she needed to go up to his room to see what he got - and this is what I walk in to:

She is LOVING his new sofa too. He basically told her she wasn't allowed on it - but then I showed him this picture - LOL. Anyway - he is letting her lay on it bed style by him right now so that she will go to sleep - what a good big brother. I have promised him that when she falls asleep I will move her to her bed.

Tomorrow morning they will wake to their Santa presents - and a pile of other presents. We are going to open a few every hour or so - that way they can open them, play with them, and then open some more.

I am so blessed to have 2 beautiful, healthy and happy children. I hope that they enjoy all tomorrow has in store for them!!

Hope everyone is having a blessed Christmas!!

All Kiana Wants for Christmas is her . . .

2009-12-06T10:37:00.001-08:00

guess what Kiana wants for Christmas???

BUSY DAY - in New York City

2009-11-07T19:17:00.000-08:00

My feet are so TIRED but we had a packed day today.

We started off the morning with a cab ride to the Metropolitan Museum of Art - or The Met. We got there around 9:15 and they opened at 9:30 - this was just by luck. It was awesome because it wasn't too packed then compared to when we were leaving later.

Anyway this place is amazing. You could spend weeks in there reading about all of the exhibits - from artifacts, to carvings, to mummies - it was all there.

Here is the outside of the building:

I went and sat in the sun in the Gossip Girls - mean girls - spot!! It was COLD at this time - 37 degrees! So the sun was nice.

To get in was a "recommended" $20 per person. Not sure if you really have to pay this - but it is definitely worth it.

We started off in the Greek/Roman Empire area. There were a LOT of carvings and sculptures (I could be calling them the wrong thing, so please don't get too hung up on that).

For example, this carved stone was a stele, or grave marker. I told Eric I want something this awesome. The carvings on the front are a brother and sister.This one was like 13 feet tall! Amazing.

These are also steles - depicting those buried under them where they actually were brought from (I know my grammar sucks too).

This picture just gives an idea of the size of one room of sculptures. Just for this area of the museum there were probably 20 rooms!

Here is a picture of one of the Monet paintings.I tried to find this exact painting on the link at Monet's name - but I couldn't.

Then - here is a painting by Renoir - this link takes you to a gallery of all of Renoir's paintings. Renoir and Monet were friends.

http://www.renoirgallery.com/gallery.asp?id=80 this links to this painting of the image I snapped.

Here is a pic snapped for Cameron. Here is a set of armor.

After leaving the Met we were in a failry nice part of town. We took the following pics here and in some other spots of some architecture that we liked.

We then headed to Times Square. It was SUPER busy on the streets. It is so funny how people literally stop traffic by crossing the street - even when they shouldn't be. Cabs are always honking at pedestrians or cars for cutting them off or not turning when they should. Oh the city life - not for me but fun to visit.

Here are some of the main shots we got of Times Square:

Target had HUGE ads all over 2 sides of one building - this is just the view from one side:

We went into Toys R Us at Times Square. I think it was 3 stories - we didn't look through the entire store. But - the really cool thing is that inside there is a 3 story ferris wheel. The kids would have loved that - especilly Kiana.

Next up - we headed to Rockafeller Center to go to the Observation deck on top of the building. On the way we passed Radio City Music Hall:

NBC is part of Rockafeller Center - so we got this shot by the door that we entered to get our tickets to go to the top of the building:

It costs $21 per person to go to the top - but it is definitely worth it. We went during the day - but we plan to go to the top of the Empire State Building tomorrow night to get night shots. Anyway here are the day shots.

Here is Central Park. If you didn't know - Central Park is HUGE - 250 acres. You can see most of it in this image. Keep in mind we are at the top of a 70 story building. You can see it in the mid left of this picture:

Here is the Empire State Building:

Here is a picture of the Statue of Liberty. It is a LONG way from the top of this building - and we didn't bring our DSLR camera - so the picture isn't that good - but we are heading there tomorrow.

Another neat thing about going to the top of the building - is that the ceiling to the elevator is clear - and their are lights all the way up - so you can see you quickly getting to the top of the 70 stories.

After leaving there we headed back over to Times Square to hang out at Dave and Busters. We had a few drinks - including some Yeager Bombs - and played some games. Usually when we go to D & B we are there with the kids and worried about keeping our eye on them. But today - we just had ourselves to worry about - which was a nice change - although we do miss the kids.

We saw Hello Kitty on our way to D & B:

By this time our feet were about to give out. We were going to go see Paranormal Activity - even though I didn't want to do it here - I heard it is really spooky! But luckily for me the line was SO LONG to get in the movie theater we didn't go.

Instead Eric made out with this old man:

Just kidding - that was a fake thing in front of Ripley's.

We then headed to Chevy's Mexican Restaurant - for some CRAPPY food and service. One thing I have noticed in NYC - even though you think things would be fast paced - these servers would NOT survive in NWA. They SUCK. You never get a drink refill - you barely even see them!!

We had Planet Hollywood for lunch and it was HORRIBLE as well - including the service.

We are hoping for better luck tomorrow eating lunch from the stands on the corner - Eric is dying for a pretzel.

Then tomorrow night we are going to Peter Luger. We saw this on the Food Network a few monts ago on a special "Best Steaks in the US". This restaurant was #1 - so we are hoping for a good experience there!! Check it out at the links. I believe it is a 3rd generation business - and they pick their own beef out daily (full cows or whatever you call it, maybe sides of beef) and then they dry age it themselves. Again - look for my comments on that tomorrow or Monday night.

Until tomorrow!

DIY Craft Table - Inspiration Pottery Barn Beford Project Table

2009-10-28T16:30:00.000-07:00

In our house we have an office downstairs - but we have an office/craft room that is attached to our bedroom. For a while I have been wanting a craft table for Kiana and I to do projects on - but the only one I found is this one at Pottery Barn - and it is $1157 - now $949 on sale.

Here are a couple of pics of the inspiration table from Pottery Barn:

The dimensions of the PB table is 55" wide x 38" deep x 37" high - my table is the same depth and height - but I wanted it to be longer - so mine is 72 inches wide.

So, after some time thinking about this - I decided the best thing to do would be to buy closet organizers that are similar to the ends of the PB table. So - I bought two of these closetmaid white 9 cube organizers from lowes:

These were $54.88 each plus tax - so approximately $120.

The next thing I bought at Lowes was a 5/8 inch thick piece of plywood - and 3 8 ft pieces of molding. You could use whatever base or chair molding that you like.

Luckily for me - my father-in-law has a workshop, and he put the pieces together for the top and sanded them down - and helped (mostly did) the paint job - thanks Mark!!!!

Between the molding, the plywood and the gallon of black paint I spent about another $70.

Total project $190 - saving me $1000 over the Pottery Barn version!!!

Here is my version of the table in our craft room:

Here are a couple of closer looks to see the detail of the molding:

Kiana and I each have one of these seats on order so we can work at our table:

The finishing touches on this room are still to come - so stay tuned for the final output - but that could take a month or so.

Tonight at target they had the sames shelves that I used from Lowes in multiple colors: pink, lt green, dark brown and some others I don't remember - and they were only $49.99.

Photography fun

2009-10-26T17:01:00.000-07:00

Today we went out with the Peschel's and took pics of all the kids. Here are some of my favorites!!!

First - I LOVE how blue their eyes look in this pic!!!

Kiana tossing some leaves.

The thinker. . .

Here are the Peschels:

I love this pic of Kelsie. I love pics where the subject isn't looking at the camera.

Then, here is one of all 4. This was hard to get as the sky was very bright and they were all having a hard time keeping their eyes open. The cutest group of kids in the world if you ask me!!!!

Hopefully we can get back out for some more pics next weekend. The trees at my favorite picture spot had not turned yet this weekend.

Barn Dance Cotillion

2009-10-25T17:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday night Cameron's cotillion theme was Barn Dance. So, he wore a western shirt - but that is as country as this boy gets!!

The lighting in this pic is horrible - but here he is:

After cotillion, the kids got together for a bon fire (in a fire pit). They roasted marshmallows and ate chili dogs. I made some food for him to take.

First I made a pumpkin cheese ball - this didn't get much action so it must not have been very good. I don't know - I had never made it before. Here is a pic:

Then I made a caramel popcorn crunch with cashews and pecans - then drizzled with white and milk chocolate. It was so good - I made a double batch so we had some at the house. I found the recipe here.

Here it is cooling on the counter:

I am pretty sure Cameron had a good time that evening. Only 2 more times for cotillion this year.

YAY - Hubby finished up the laundry room!!!!

2009-10-18T18:44:00.000-07:00

It took him less than 48 hours - he started at like 6 PM Friday night and was done today at 1PM!!!! WOW!!!! It does help that he used to lay tile - but way to go E!!

So here is how the rest of the process went. Here is the backsplash getting ready to be put up.

In this one Eric has the floored prepped and ready to go. If you have ever done tile - you can especially appreciate what it takes to remove tile - and thinset mortar from the floor to get it ready for new tile.

Ah - the few last finishing touches before bringing the washer and dryer back in.

Now - let's not forget the Before:

And now, drumroll, here is the after pic.

Bad news is this has left me wanting stainless stell front load washer and dryer!!! But it looks great. Thanks Eric for dedicating your whole weekend to getting this project done - love ya!!!

Turning a pile of floral stems into something

2009-10-18T08:32:00.000-07:00

So, Friday night while Eric was being productive painting the laundry room - I didn't want to be sitting around not accomplishing anything. So I remember the flowers I had bought at Hobby Lobby a couple of months ago to repurpose my plain ivy plants from my dining room.

So here is what I started with:

While I was making these, Eric was painting in the laundry room right by me and the kids were upstairs. So we were listening to the 90s station on TV. That was awesome hearing all the songs (and singing along) that were popular around the time we started dating, got married and had Cameron - more nostalgia.

Anyway - here is how these turned out:

And how they completed the dining room look. So yippee - one productive night down!!

I have another project that I am working on that I will share soon!!

Fall - My Favorite time to Decorate the House!!

2009-10-17T23:59:00.000-07:00

Well aside from Christmas and my multiple Christmas trees - Fall is my favorite time to decorate. I really don't recall decorating much for Fall when we lived in Pineville - but once we moved to our house in Bentonville we have always decorated.

It started the first year we lived here. My mom came and helped me pick stuff and decorate. So now I get very nostalgic when I pull out the decorations - and remember the first 2 years of living here and mom helping me.

I almost opted out this year (laziness) and then thought of my mom and decided to go ahead!!!!!

Here are the pics from this year (for you mom, wish you could be here to see it!!!) Mom also made the quilted table runner in this first pic on our hall table.

These last 2 are with the lights off to show the scarecrow and candles.

Lucky for Lucy she has 9 Lives!!!!!

2009-10-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

Poor Lucy!! When we got her she was Cameron's cat, because Kiana wanted a black cat, thus Allie became hers. Over time she found out that Allie did NOT like being picked up, but Lucy would tolerate it.

Now - poor Lucy gets picked up anytime Kiana spots her. As soon as she puts her down she literally RUNS and HIDES. I feel so bad for Lucy - but Kiana will not stop picking her up.

Here is the pic of them from tonight:

Laundry Room Facelift Phase 1

2009-10-16T20:08:00.000-07:00

Over a year ago we bought tile to redo our powder bath and our laundry room. As honey do's go, Eric got the bathroom completed - which was a lot of work - but he never quite made it into the laundry room. So the tiles have been sitting and waiting.

Suddenly he is full of energy - and has taken on this project - so that is AWESOME. Tonight he pulled out the washer and dryer and painted - with the assistance of Kiana.

Here is Kiana helping dad out:

She has been begging for the last couple of days - basically since we bought the paint and she heard the word "paint"!!! She is our little artist and helper.

Cameron was nowhere to be seen (meaning in his room playing XBOX).

Here are a coupe of Before Pics:

And here are some photos of the room almost completely painted:

Next up - ripping up the tile on the floor and the strip above the counter - and replacing with new!! Hoping for completion this weekend!!!

Stay tuned.

Please go vote for Kiana every day in the Gap Casting Call.

2009-10-12T10:28:00.001-07:00

Kiana NEEDS your votes. Please go register and vote for her every day!!

Thankshttp://family.go.com/gapcastingcall/entries/andrea221975/584245246/

Fast Fun Fall Weekend!

2009-10-11T17:14:00.000-07:00

This weekend started off with relaxing Friday night. Kiana spent the night with the Peschels. Saturday morning it was up at the crack of dawn. First, to get Cameron to school to meet the bus to go to his track meet in Van Buren. Then - we got ready to go get Kiana - and go to Ashton's flag football game.

It was freezing out!! Kiana huddled under a blanket on the ground the entire game. We didn't understand the rules - so we were confused on why they kept going back and forth - when we thought they got a first down. We found out that the reason is that you only get a first down if you make it past the half (not 10 yards). Anyway - that was cute - but I was glad to get in the car and warm up when it was over. We got to meet Cassidie's grandma for the first time for a little bit - so that was nice.

After the game I went and looked at carpet - and then I went and got a facial at the spa - so that was relaxing. Then Eric, Kiana and I had a late lunch - waiting for Cameron to get home. After Cameron came home - dad and Missy came by to visit - and watch the vetriloquist - Terry Fator on DVD - sitting in our new home theater seating. We had a nice but short visit after that. Then - more relaxing!!

Since we had done so much relaxing - I wanted to have a productive day today. So, I put together some shelves I am using to build Kiana and I a craft table for our craft room. She is dying to get it done and do crafts. As we are building it, she is telling me all about how she is going to do crafts with her daughter when she has one - so cute.

Then - tonight we used our new Little Giant ladder to hand pictures I took last year at this time and have been waiting to hang. The problem was that we were hanging them in our upstairs hall - above the stairs which is really high. I am SO happy that they are up now - I love how they look. Here is what that process looked like:

Eric can now check one chore off of his list. But - I love to have a million projects going - so I probably added 2 in its place.

Have a great week!

Kiana's Birthday - Take 2!

2009-10-05T22:00:00.000-07:00

Kiana's actual Birthday party was at Jump Zone on 10/3. Thank you to her friends that were able to come and make her day special!!!

Here are a bunch of pics!

She would NOT blow out that one candle. Literally 3 kids had to blow from where they were to get this candle to blow out!!! She does not like attention on her - and since we were all looking - she just froze up!!!

Ashton had to help open presents - or we would have been there forever. She again freezes a little with everyone watching her!!!

Here she is with the youngest party goer - George. This was his first birthday party to attend. Thanks for coming George!!!

Again - thanks to everyone that was able to come out and spend this time with Kiana. She had a great time!! This year I let her pick where she wanted her party - so this was her choice!! She was immediately playing with all of her new things as soon as we got home!!!

Elvis was in the house!

2009-10-05T06:00:00.000-07:00

This week Cotillion had a theme - which was the 50s. So the kids needed to dress the part. I was going to try and find Cameron a leather jacket and dress him like a greaser - but I didn't have any luck. So, I got him an Elvis costume.

Surprisingly (well not like he has a choice), he goes along with these things!! They also had a contest - he took third place and got a prize of candy and $10 in malco movie tickets.

After cotillion they had an ice cream social. I think he has fun at cotillion. I am sure he is going to appreciate what he is learning when he is an adult!!

Enjoy this picture of the King!!!

Track

2009-10-04T22:00:00.001-07:00

Cameron continues to go to track pretty much all day every Saturday. This Saturday they went to Holiday Island. He continues to improve his time - but he is nowhere near the fastest kid on the team. But - he loves running and participating - and right now that is really all that matters.

We weren't able to go watch him because it conflicted with Kiana's Birthday Party. He literally leaves between 7:45 and 8 in the morning - and doesn't get back until 2:30-3:30!! It is like another day of school.

I did snap this cute pic of him in his track shirt!

Guess who lost a tooth????

2009-10-04T22:00:00.000-07:00

More than likely someone at our house is going to be wanting their two front teeth for Christmas!!! Kiana lost her first top tooth on Thursday night. It had been loose for a while - but she wouldn't let us pull it.

Last week we got her to eat an apple - and it REALLY loosened it up - but still it was a no go with her. Finally - it was so loose - that even I was able to pull it out (I hate pulling the kids teeth - but this was so loose!!!)

So - she is going to be looking a little funny for a while - and talking a little different! So Cute!!!

Kiana's Birthday - Take 1!

2009-10-04T09:22:00.000-07:00

Kiana's turned 6 on September 30th. Her party with friends was scheduled for Saturday - but we couldn't let her actual birthday go by without celebration. So, when she came from school - she came home to presents, balloons and cupcakes in the kitchen. Here she is wearing the hat she got a school for it being her birthday.

She ripped into her presents - loving every minute. She got paint by numbers, magnetic wooden doll etc - a lot of fun girly stuff!!!

I stopped and got her some cupcakes with a K on them. She loved them.

Of course the night couldn't end there. We loaded up and headed to the mall food court - to pick up a bite before going to see Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs in 3D. The movie was really cute. By the time we got home it was time for the birthday girl to go to bed!! What a fun day!!!

It's Cotillion time again!

2009-09-13T19:00:00.000-07:00

So to continue the theme of our super busy Saturday, Cameron had his first cotillion dance of the season. We had to get a new suit, because last years was WAY too small. I wish I would have got a picture of him in it - it was SO funny.

So after some last minute shopping - we got a new one. He looks good in it and knows is - LOL!!!

He didn't go out with the group tonight - but maybe he can work that out for next time.

Although he did not want to join this last year - he really does enjoy it now. Tonight they learned the Rumba - and revised the Fox Trot which they learned last year. They have a couple of fun nights planned for the year - a 50s night and a barn dance - so dressing up those nights should be fun.

Cameron is becoming such a social bug - when Eric went to pick him up he was chatting it up with friends - and left him sitting there waiting for awhile!

Cameron makes me so proud!! (and Kiana too!!)

Meeting the Suite Life Zach & Cody - well trying anyway!!!

2009-09-13T07:00:00.001-07:00

Today the actors that play Zach & Cody from the Suite Life were at Sam's Club. So we took the kids to see them. Unfortunately, a million other people also went to do this - and we got nowhere near having the kids actually meet them.

Here is just a small section of the HUGE crowd gathered:

Here is when they were first pulling up - in the limo - and their tour bus:

Someone from Sam's came out the back door, expecting to let them in thru it - however, people were lined up about 6 deep across the front of the store, then around the side, and even had that door blocked - so they went in somewhere else!!!

We stood in line for quite a while. Here is a pic of Kiana and Ashton. Ashton isn't really mad - he is just making a funny face for the camera!!

The kids were getting really restless, so the guys took the kids in the store. After Cassidie and I stood there a while longer, Eric called to let us know that they were in the store, and they had seen them, and even though they couldn't go get their picture with them, the kids were happy with that. About that time, Cassidie and I got out of line to go in too, and then a manager basically said that those of us as far back as we were had NO chance of getting to meet them anyway.

Here is a pic I snapped inside - but it is so blurry you can't even see them. Cassidie got a really good one - but I don't know when it will be posted.

Cameron's First Cross Country Track Meet

2009-09-12T19:26:00.000-07:00

Today was the first Cross Country meet. We didn't totally know what to expect. There was a huge crowd of boys in the race, ranging from 7th - 9th grade. I have no idea how many kids, but I think around 250 in this age bracket. Here they are taking off - this is only some of them.

Cameron was by no means first!! But I think he really enjoyed racing. When the girls ran - about 1 in 10 was throwing up when they came through the finish line.

Here he is coming across the finish line! His time for 2 miles was around 16 min 50 seconds. It was really humid. We are very proud of him!! Every day after school they practice for an hour and 15 min, which involves exercising and working out.

Well - that was just part of a super busy day!! More to come on what else we did today.

Kiana's Modeling Shots from Calotype!!

2009-09-01T18:03:00.000-07:00

Remember in my last post that I talked about Kiana having a modeling shoot for Heather Hill Clothing?? Well, here are some of the super cute pics!! There were many more but these are the ones I purchased. These were taken by Calotype Photography in Anderson, MO. Julie at Calotype is so good with kids! If you want some really nice wall portraits, you need to try them out.

I LOVE these pics and can't wait to get them. Kiana was so good during these shoots, and by that I mean that she listened to direction and posed. Now, in between her turn, she ran around all crazy - but listening was awesome!!

Fast and Fun Weekend!!!

2009-08-23T19:05:00.000-07:00

As usual, the weekend has FLOWN by. We had a busy weekend.

Friday, after work, I picked Kiana up for school and got her ready for a photo shoot. She got to be a model for a local clothing line - Heather Hill Clothing. This line is hand made locally - and all of the pieces are SUPER cute. I cannot wait to see the pictures - and show a couple on here!! The photos were taken by Calotype - so I have no doubt the shots will be AWESOME!!

Then - we went to Mike and Tabitha's house, to try and help them get it ready to move in. I cleaned the carpet - Mike and Eric worked on the back yard - Tabitha got dinner - and the kids all wrestled around like a bunch of monkeys! We got home late - and I went straight to bed!!

Saturday we went and had lunch - and did a little car shopping - but have still decided NOT to get a new car yet. You should see the Toyota lot - they have a TON of clunkers and hardly any new vehicles!! I guess the Clunkers program really worked for the foreign car companies. It was not quite the same scene at GMC or Chevrolet.

Saturday night we went to Christy and David's to celebrate David's 36th birthday. I didn't know most of their friends - but their families were there - as well as Brian and Jana. We had a LOT of laughs after everyone had a lot of drinks in them - LOL (I was DD for my family - so no drinks - but I was still LMAO!!!). Cameron begged to spend the night - so we let him. There were like 6 boys staying in total - he loves to hang with a group!

That meant another late night - and then I had to go pick him up today. Then this afternoon we went out for a little photo shoot of our own. We LOVE to take pics ourselves - and do it often for friends. Kiana is really getting into getting her pictures done and posing. Here is a compilation that I am going to have printed on canvas by our photo lab. Can't wait to get it back!!! The blue around the edge will be wrapped.
Then we just came home and vegged. Tomorrow starts a busy week - with the kids being in school for the first full week. I am sure Cameron is going to have a LOT of homework!!! He has all AP classes.

Have a great week!!!

3rd day of school - Kiana

2009-08-21T18:42:00.000-07:00

Today was Kiana's 3rd day of school. I have told her it is the last day I am walking her in. I had her guide me through the building - and I think she will be able to find her class on Monday!!

Wanted to post these super cute pics. I love this outfit she has on today. The undershirt has cotton candy on it - with a little sparkle - it is so cute!! The pants are white denim capris. She has tennis shoes on (you can't see) b/c today is PE. She doesn't know what that means - so it was hard to get tennis shoes on her - she loves her flip flops.
Here she is doing a pose.

Over the last few months she has changed so much. She has gone from really shy and timid - to more outgoing and open to learn. I think she is going to continue to mature so much over these first few months of Kindergarten!!!

First day of school!

2009-08-21T06:09:00.000-07:00

Wednesday was the first day of school for both kids - Kiana in Kindergarten and Cameron in Jr. High (7th). We all got up and ready together. Cameron wanted to ride the bus - but of course Eric and I took Kiana to school and walked her to her classroom.

Here they are together before school. I LOVE this picture of them.
Here is Kiana in the truck on the way to school. She was SO ready to start Kindergarten. She was so excited and ready to get there.

We had to park a ways from the school - and then walk. Here she is talking with daddy about where the building is.

Almost there - walking down the hall. If she looks scared in this pic - it is only b/c she was walking - and I said her name and when she turned I snapped this pic.

Finally in her room - here she is at her spot. She was so happy to be there and just sat down to play with this puzzle. However, first we had to put her stuff just so in her cubby. Her teacher had taken her crayons and put them in her pencil bag, and then put them above the cubby - which she was not liking. She wanted them in the cubby!!

Then - that night she brought the pencil bag home in her back pack and did not want to take it back to school the next day. She was so scared someone was going to take it. So this weekend we are buying another pencil bag so she can have a duplicate at home!! She is very possessive.

There was no drama. She just wanted us to drop her off and leave! What a big girl! And she loves it!!!

After we dropped Kiana off - we went back to the house to get my car. On the way we see Cameron - still at the bus stop - it was 8:08 and the bus was supposed to be there at 7:54. We decided if he was still there when we drove back by - we would pick him up. So, when I went by at 8:16, still no bus. I took him and a friend to school.

The crazy thing is - they didn't even have schedules yet - and you were supposed to pick them up between 8:15 and when school starts at 8:45. This is a new school to them - and they would have never made it if they had waited on the bus.

Cameron had a good day. Jr. High is very different from middle school. It is more like a college schedule. They have 4 classes on Mon/Wed - a different 4 classes on Tues/Thur and all 8 classes - just much shorter periods on Friday. That will probably take some getting used to.

He has all AP (advanced placement) classes - and then French and Men's Choir (he did not pick this class, but I am secretly excited b/c I love to hear him sing!!). He is also taking Cross Country Track - so he has practive after school M-Thur.

So - it was a great start to a new school year for Cameron - and the first school year for Kiana. We were not sad at all - we are happy for our kids to move forward and learn. But we also realized that from this point forward - they will either have school or work - so the easy times are already over for them!!

Missing my Mom - 3 Years Later!

2009-08-19T10:56:00.001-07:00

Today is important - because the kids started school. Kiana in Kindergarten - Cameron in 7th grade. But today is also a day to remember my mom - who I miss so much every day!!

3 years ago today was the worst day of my life. It was a Saturday - and we were in Tulsa getting ready for school to start. I talked to my mom 2 or 3 times that day. You see, my mom was my best friend and we talked at LEAST once per day, if not more.

I remember calling her that day when I was out shopping - to tell her that this restaurant in Tulsa we used to go to -Casa Bonita - was open again - I think it was under a new name. Who knows what we talked about the other times. I would literally call just to tell any and every little thing - because she was always there to listen - and advise, or laugh, or be disgruntled with me (not at me, but with me at someone else LOL).

That afternoon we went to get Glamour Shots for Kiana - and while I was looking at the proofs - Cameron came to get me to tell me something was wrong - and to get to the car. Little would I have imagined that it was going to be the worst news of my life.

We SPED to Joplin to the hospital - but she didn't make it to the hospital - she was already gone before they ever left her house. She was taken from us in a short time. Eric talked to her a little after 6 - while Kiana was having her pictures taken - and she was gone around 6:45!

My perfect, wonderful mom, was only 47!! It is strange how life can change so quickly! One minute here and the next gone. That is why we should all live like there may not be a tomorrow - because literally, there may not be.

She has missed so much in these last 3 years. The kids have grown and matured so much - that is what I really hate for her to miss. She was the best grandma they could ever ask for - and now they have to finish growing up without her - so it is a loss for them as well, one Kiana is really too young to even understand. The kids and I talk about her from time to time, because I want them to remember her.

If you knew my mom, please take just a second to think of her today - and count our blessings that we are here today.

Here is me and my mom on my wedding day - 13 years ago. Mom - I love and miss you so much!!

Kiana's Classroom

2009-08-18T16:36:00.000-07:00

Monday was the day Kiana got to go meet her Kindergarten Teacher. As well as find her cubby, take her supplies, meet other kids etc. Here she is in front of the board!

She is so excited about starting school. Her personality has changed so much in the last couple of months - she is finally coming out of her shell.
In here room there is a reading loft. Here she has crawled up there to look at the books. I think the kids are really going to enjoy this!

We had to leave her in the room to go to the Library for orientation. She was across the room saying "go" and shooshing us out with her hand. Notice behind her in this pic there is an old clawfoot bathtub. Looks like it is filled with pillows for the kids to pull out and get comfy.

Stay tuned for pics tomorrow - when I take her to school for her first day of Kindergarten!!!

Some last minute shopping

2009-08-16T17:41:00.000-07:00

Sunday - Kiana and I headed to the mall for some last minute school shopping. We already had supplies and more clothes than we needed - but we need some accessories.

We started off at Claire's, getting more necklaces and bracelets!! Now we really need to get a big jewelry armoire for her room!!

Then it was off to Stride Rite to look at shoes. We only got one pair. She wanted some hot pink Converse - but they were out of stock in her size. They were really cute.

Then we went to Gymboree. She is really almost too old for the clothes in this store now - but of course I was able to find somethings we couldn't live without. We got one long sleeved dress with some cute striped tights. And a ton of accessories - mostly for her hair. We also got two super cute new PJs!!

She insisting on carrying all the bags - as she is such a big girl now heading to Kindergarten! She was really ready to go home too - until we were passing Build a Bear. We went in - and she was so excited to add yet another animal to her collection.

Today she picked out a rainbow bear. She spelled her name out for the stuffing lady - which is such a good step in the right direction (usually she is to shy to attempt any such act). She also went through the little ritual with the bear's heart - following all of the stuffing lady's directions!

Then - when the stuffing lady asked what her bears name was, she quickly replied "Chloee". Never is she at a loss for a name for something. She already has kids names picked out. After that, it was off to pick out an outfit and shoes for Chloee.

Here she is picking out which stuffed animal she wants - decisions, decisions.
And here she is, at home, and striking a pose with her newest Build a Bear, Cholee. Sorry about the glare off of the mirror on our entertainment center.

On another note, we decided today that Kiana is going to be 6 ft tall by the time she is 12 years old. Since October, both Kiana and Cameron have grown about 4 inches. The crazy part is that she should not be growing at the same rate he is - he is practically hitting puberty!

If she continues at the same rate, she is going to be 6 ft tall in 6th grade!!!! Not that unusual for someone with Leach genes though!!!

Out on the Lake!

2009-08-16T17:33:00.000-07:00

Saturday we went to the lake. Kiana HATES the water. She dreads going to the lake - asking about every 5 minutes for 3 days leading up to the lake trip "are you gonna make me swim?" It gets so annoying - but she is just petrified of the water.

However - she does like to ride in the boat. I don't have any idea why she is so scared of the water. I wish I knew why, and could ease her fear, but no go.

On the other hand - Cameron loves to swim and tube etc. He has been a thrill seeker his entire life. He is cautious - but loves to have fun.

Here is cute little miss in her sunglasses. Oh - to be young and carefree!! I don't know what she is pointing to, but we were just stopped and chilling at this point.
Here we are clearly under way - hair blowing in the wind. Again, even though she is so scared of the water - she sometimes falls asleep while the boat is running as it soothes her or something.

Here is Eric, our driver for the day. He claims he is calling it quits for water sports for the rest of this summer. After his fall a few weeks ago, he still can't turn his neck completely, and he wants that to have plenty of time to heal.

Here is Cameron, and a friends niece that went with us. They rode together - and had alot of fun. We had so much fun, that over 2 hours flew by in no time. Then we packed it up and went home for the day. It was really windy, so the water was pretty choppy! More than anything they were catching air on the tube from all the waves.

Sad that the weekend is coming to another END!! Oh the dreaded work week - and still I did not win the POWERBALL!!

Our Cats - Lucy and Allie!

2009-08-13T17:00:00.000-07:00

For those of you that don't know - we used to have 2 pets - a dog (Toby) and a cat (Callie). Callie met an untimely death (she got caught under the garage door!). It was very sad! And we found out that we are not a good family for taking care of dogs.

So early this year - we found Toby a new home. He lives with an older lady - who adores him. She also works at the nursing home - and takes him with her sometimes as a therapy dog for the elderly. He loved to just be a lap dog - so I am sure he enjoys the attention.

So - in early April - we got 2 kittens. Lucy, a calico, and Allie, black and white. They were only 6 weeks old and SO tiny. Now - here we are months later with a post!! They are almost 5 pounds each now. They are really sweet.

A few weeks ago they got spayed and declawed. They hated each other for more than a week - hissing and growling at each other - but now they love each other again (by the way they are sisters).

Here is a pic of Allie. She is the stalky, chubbier one. She loves attention - being petted, etc - but she does not like being picked up. She is Kiana's cat. She has the shineist black fur.
This is Lucy. She doesn't mind Kiana picking her up and toting her around. She is Cameron's cat - but Kiana is trying to negotiate a switch, since Lcuy will let her pick her up! Lucy is very tall and thin. Her back legs seem to be longer than the front - which is strange. At the bottom of her back left leg - a patch of her fur is tiger striped. I really wanted an orange tiger striped cat - but they were both boys (that is how we ended up with Allie instead).

Both cats have a favorite blanket - we call there mommy. The reason is, it is furry, and they will suck on it like they are nursing on their mommy for hours. Eric has hidden that blanket, because it drives him crazy -LOL.

Kindergarten is coming!!!

2009-08-03T17:13:00.000-07:00

It is fast approaching! My second - and more than likely last child - is heading off to kindergarten in 16 days!!!

This weekend we went shopping for school supplies. Just daddy and I took Kiana to the store - no brother on this trip. She got to pick out anything there was a choice on.

A couple of weeks ago I ordered her the cutest backpack and matching lunchbox from Pottery Barn Kids. Click here to see - it is the pink with white polka dots and green accents.

A few weeks ago - we went to Tulsa to go shopping (mostly so Cameron could go to Abercrombie Kids) - but we ended up buying Kiana a bunch of outfits - even though she already has a LOT.

The last item we needed was a nap mat. I didn't want her to have the same one as everyone else - so awhile back I bought some cute chocolate brown and blue fabrics to make her one. As usually goes with any project I start, I got started by cutting out the fabric - but that was as far as I got.

So yesterday, I finally got out the sewing machine, and finished up her adorable new nap mat - again I say, Finally!

Here it is - you just unroll, sleep, then roll back up. It even has carrying handles. the pillow is attached! It is so cute.

Here are some up close pics of the fabric. Here is the paisley.

And here is the polka dot pillow and handle fabric.

Last but not least, my little sleeping beauty (well pretending anyway!!). Excuse the mess in the background! That is the laptop cord, and some practice books for Kiana to write on. That is my bedskirt in the background, also brown and blue. Notice it is even big enough for a 4 ft tall child to lay on with a little room at the bottom!

Hawaii Trip Photo Book

2009-07-15T11:21:00.001-07:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

The Boys Surfing Lesson

2009-07-06T19:05:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from the surfing lessons. They had to put shirts on to protect them from the sun and so the teacher could easily know who was in his surf class. It is also better than wearing sunscreen so that it doesn't get in the water and mess with the marine life. Glasses - just to make him look like Mr. Cool.
Here they were being instructed on how to lay on the surf board.

Heading to the beach. Cameron is with another co-workers daughter in the background. They are doing the buddy system, where they have 2 boards but they are each carrying part of the other. I guess that is how you are supposed to do it - but of course all the men wanted to carry them on their heads!

Here is Cameron up on his board - and about to wipe out!

And here is Eric making it look easy!

From the rest of the pics that I am not posting - it looks like got up on the boards multiple times. As much as they loved going out to surf - they didn't want to do it again - because they were so sore and worn out from paddling themselves back out into the waves. Now you know why surfers are so thin - it is a LOT of exercise to keep paddling out and getting up on your board.

Cameron decided after this surf lesson - that he is going to move to Hawaii and go to college - however, I disagree!!

Out & About in Kauai

2009-06-30T16:41:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the time in between blog posts. When we got to this new hotel - only the wireless is free - and it is SUPER slow!!

Our first full day here (Monday) - we drove the entire island. There is basicall a road that goes ALMOST all the way around. So we went as far as we could one way - and then we turned around and went as far as we could the other way.

First stop was Waimea Canyon. You pretty much have to see this in person to appreciate the true beauty - but here are a couple of pics.

This one has a waterfall - it is in the far background - but I am sure it is huge.

This waterfall is called Wailua Falls. It is said to be between 80-173 ft. And then at the bottom it goes into a 33 ft pool. You can't get down there unless you want to risk your life - or maybe you can be dropped off by helicopter.

This lighthouse is on the island - and it is also in a park that is a bird sancutuary. There were mountains just covered with birds - but they were hard to make out in pics so I didn't post those pics.

This is one of the birds.

Here is the jeep we rented for this trip. We originally were going to have a convertible - but it wasn't going to be big enough to get all of our luggage to the hotel. Here is Cameron at one of the scenic overlooks. Eric had him set up on the bannister which freaked me out. To the right is a mountain - and down to the left is the ocean - a beautiful pic.

Hrer are the kids out at the pool the first night. There are 5 of thise statues - and during the day the spout out water.

Here are the kids at another lookout. Mountains, ocean and blue sky - it was VERY pretty up in the mountains.

This is what the kids looked like after the drive up to Waimea Canyon. On the way down they couldn't stay awake.

Crazily enough this trip tires everyone out. After a day on the beach - we are all ready for a good nights sleep!!!

Final Night in Maui - Polynesian Revue

2009-06-28T00:39:00.003-07:00

So, tonight was our final dinner here at the Grand Wailea. This first picture shows you part of the dinner set up - although you can't even see the tables. There were probably around 300+ people at tonight's dinner - as kids were allowed to go.

They had a separate buffet for the kids with more appropriate food choices (IE french fries, mac n cheese etc). They even had some low tables with pillows on the ground for the kids to sit on. Here are the kids at one of the low tables. Nice face Cameron. Kiana didn't eat one bite of any food - only DESSERT!!

Here is a family picture of us - pretty much the only decent one we have. We were hoping to have the sunset in the background - but the sky was too cloudy tonight to see the sunset.

Here are the kids! Kiana went wearing a grass skirt that I bought as part of a swim suit. When we got there they were handing out grass skirts (of course Cameron did not want to wear his). The funny thing is neither did Kiana - she said everyone would laugh at her. So that was good reinforcement when we got there - and other kids were putting them on!!! They also handed out necklaces for the kids - and the cute coconut like coverings you see on Kiana in the next picture. SO CUTE!!!

The main event of the evening was the Polynesian Revue. It lasted around an hour. They went over all similar cultures - think Tahiti, Somoa, New Zealand. It was a good performance. The last dance of the evening was to get all the kids on stage and teach them the hula. I didn't post a picture - but I think Kiana was the ONLY child over 3 years old to not go up on stage - but that is how she is!!!! Here is a pic of the kids with the dancers from the Revue.

Last - but not least - a sample of what we saw. This is part of the first dance of the night. This video is not great quality because we took it using our digital camera - not our video camera. ENJOY!!!!

Spa, Surf & Pool Time

2009-06-27T18:31:00.000-07:00

First off - I wanted to start this blog off with a couple of pictures of us from the day we arrived. This is us at the Maui airport. These leis are made from real flowers. They are very pretty - but they are not comfortable at all. And Eric's caused him to feel like he was breaking out - so he didn't keep it on long!
Here is Kiana flashing a small smile in hers! She was excited to finally get to Hawaii after months of talking about it.

Today the boys went and took surf lessons, so Kiana and I spent the morning together.

Surf lessons were fun but really wore them out. And of course they couldn't go without a mishap. Cameron was following closely behind Eric -and Eric's board came out from under him and cracked Cameron upside the head. So now he has a swollen head to go with his gashed up face!!!!

They didn't take pictures - however there was a professional photographer there - so we hope to get those pictures back when we get home - and I will post then. I can't wait to see them - they say they did pretty good for first timers!!!

This picture is of Kiana in a rest area at the bottom of our building. She wanted to sit and pose for a picture on our way to breakfast.

Then further down the path on the way - is a pretty waterfall - yet another great spot for a pic!

Here she is at breakfast. Yesterday morning we had to leave so early we got a boxed breakfast - which was not filling. I was happy this morning to be here for the buffet - so Kiana could start the day off with a full belly. When she doesn't get enough to eat she is SUPER crabby. This morning she had 2 waffles, oatmeal and a little bit of scrambled eggs!

The restaurant we are eating at is outside - with thatched roofs like the seating area in Kiana's picture. Then it is on piers over water - with salt water - and filled with beautiful fish. A very scenic breakfast!!

Then we were off to the spa. This spa, the Spa Grande, is the largest spa on the island of Maui. The foyer where you sign alone is a 3 story room. Here you can see the chandelier in the middle. All of the decor on the ceiling appeared to be handpainted. It is a gorgeous room!!

Here is the front desk in that room - where you stop to check in!

Here Kiana is sitting on the couch in the main lobby waiting to be called back for her appointment. Her treatments consisted of a chocolate/coconut massage, pedicure and manicure. First was the massage. We went to the back and she got a robe and a locker. We took all but her panties off - and put her robe on. Then it was up to the second floor to wait for her massage. I took her in the room - and then left her. I am so mad that I forgot to get a pic of her in the robe or the room! nothing from the massage!!!!

This is the lanai on the second floor where I waited for Kiana to finish her massage. We took a picture of the kids down below yesterday. It was so nice sitting up there. It was open - so you could hear the waves crashing below. A nice warm breeze was blowing. It isn't hot here - just the perfect temp as long as you stay out of the sun (even then as long as you aren't walking it is greats!)

Once her massage was over - it was off to get her manicure. Her hair is such a mess b/c she has lotion in it from her massage. Of course she got her nails painted pink ( and now a few hours later, the polish is already coming off from going in the pool).

Then pedicure time. She picked blue for her toe nails. Pink and blue are her favorite colors! Her legs are also shining from all the lotion that was put on her during her massage. She looks like she is about 9 years old in this picture to me!!

After her appt we met Eric and Cameron back in the room. It was my turn to head to the Spa for a facial - and they all headed out to the pool. We have some pics from then - but I will save those for another post.

Right now we are resting up for the big Polynesian Revue (luau I think) that we are having tonight! And then tomorrow afternoon we are off to the Kauai!!!

Our time here has been packed tight with activities. We can't wait to get to Kauai and relax - and take a more leisurely pace.

Next post will be from the Polynesian revue - stay tuned . . .

Friday afternoon in Maui

2009-06-27T10:12:00.001-07:00

So - how did the Hill's spend Friday afternoon?? Relaxing and playing at the beach!! Here I am taking a pic of my feet - with the ocean as my scenery. Kiana and I found a spot to sit under an umbrella so we didn't get any more sun. She actually plopped down in a shady spot first.

On our way down to the beach we stopped at a pretty spot on the resort property to snap a pic of the kids!
Here is the shady spot Kiana plopped down in to start playing with her sand toys. She had fun for a little while. But the wind picked up so much - that sand was blowing in her eyes. So - she decided to get in a chair and lounge with me. So Cute.

Here she decided to venture into the water with daddy. This did not last long. Eric took her out just a little way - but a wave crashed into her face. And one taste of salt water had her running back to her chair. She needed a drink - and kept saying she was going to puke!!

Cameron and Eric went and bought snorkel masks. Then Cameron was body surfing in the waves, and a big wave crashed him into the ground - and off came the goggles - leaving him with this gash in his cheek - and goggles off to sea!!!

We then took the kids to camp at the hotel so we could head out for the nights festivities. First on the agenda was a "surprise wedding" for Stanley. I work with him on the category team. He and Susan have been together for like 8 years. He has asked her to marry him a lot - and she has said yes- but the time had never been right for a wedding to take place. She cooked up a scheme to surprise him while the were here with a wedding and we all got to be a part of it. It was a quaint little ceremony on the beach! So fun!!!
Well - Eric and Cameron just left to go to surfing lessons. I don't know how many pictures they will be able to take. Kiana and I are headed down for breakfast - and then off to the Spa. She is getting a chocolate/coconut massage, manicure and pedicure. And then when the boys get back I am getting an anti-aging facial. Can't wait.

This afternoon we are probably going to go to the pool or beach. And then this evening we are having a Polynesian themed dinner - and this one the kids are also invited to, so it should be a fun evening!

I'll post again ASAP.

Day 1 - Maui Raft & Snorkel

2009-06-26T14:56:00.001-07:00

Here is the boat we went on today (not us in the first pic). You literally sit on the edge - and hold on for dear life. We took this boat on the ocean - going probably 40 mph - no life vests (they were in hte top of the boat in case of emergency. There were a few seats in the middle - that is where Kiana sat. First the captain went kind of slow - level one. It was still bumpy. There were rough waters out on the ocean. Then he stepped it up to level 2. After a little while of that I asked to stop so I could move to the middle - I felt like I was going to fall of the boat at any moment!! Once I moved to the middle - it was much better - you didn't have to hold on as much there.

Today - every muscle in my body is sore from holding on. Especially my butt!!!

When this think hit a wave - we would literally get some air - and then crash down into the water!!! Don't get me wrong - it was fun - definitely an adventure!!

We stopped at three different spots to snorkel - but Kiana and I stayed in the boat. In this picture you can't even see how awesome this water is. This water the deepest, darkest blue water I have ever seen - it was beautiful and clear. We were able to look over the edge of the boat and see the huge salt water fish.

Here is Cameron in one of the snorkeling spots. We bought an Olympus underwater camera at Sam's for $158 before we left (we have 3 cameras and one video camera with us - LOL). It was a great investment. We love the pictures we are getting. It also has video - but the video Eric took is so large - and I don't know how to reduce the resolution so it doesn't take up all of the space on my blog!!!

Here is a shot Eric took of some of the fish he saw underwater. We also stopped at a spot with sea turtles - but the water was darker and they are too hard to see.

And here is a pretty shot of an anenome. So bright red!!

This last picture is from where we went way north of the island to where lava flowed and formed these black formations of lava rock more than 600 years ago. These huge waves (which our boat was riding) would crash into the rock and sometimes splash up higher than the rocks. There was this little cave than the waves would crash into - so much that water would hit the ceiling. Our captain backed us in there when the water calmed down for a second - we stopped in there for a split second and then got out - so our we didn't crash to our deaths into the ceiling.

Hope you enjoy our first day adventure story as much as we did!!

Blogging from Washington DC

2009-05-19T15:04:00.000-07:00

I am at my National Sales meeting this week - and we are at the Gaylord National. It is a beautiful hotel. This is the view from my balcony down into the atrium - it is really pretty.
This is another shot from the balcony - over into the Potomac River - and into DC.

This is the same shot - only zoomed in and an attempt to draw an arrow to point to the Washington Monument. Right now I am headed down to go to dinner at the Smithsonian - Air & Space Museum and then on a bus tour of the monuments at night. My camera is dead - so all I have is my Iphone - so we will see how it does at night - but not holding out too much hope.

New Kittens!

2009-05-05T17:46:00.000-07:00

So - I haven't posted about this yet - but Toby has a new home. Dogs NEED a lot of attention, and we didn't have the time to give him the life he deserved. I will post more about that later.

So we know now that we are cat only people. So - after Toby left - we got new kittens. They are 2 sisters - Lucy and Allie. Lucy is the calico - and Allie is black and white. They have doubled in size since we got them. They are arnery - but sweet!!

This picture is from Kiana's first sleepover!

Show us where you live Friday - Kitchen Edition

2009-05-03T18:03:00.001-07:00

Kelly had the idea for this fun concept - and even though I am late getting mine posted, due to a busy weekend - here are the photos of my kitchen.
We bought our house almost 5 years ago. Everything in our house was plain - the walls were all white, the countertops laminate, and the fixutres all brass. So we immediately changed it all before we moved in! So now it may be getting a little dated again - but I still like it.

I am not a huge fan of oak - but as you can see the trim around all of our doors is also stained oak - so changing that would have been a huge undertaking.

Here is the view into the kitchen from the eat-in breakfast area. (sorry about the smudgy refrigerator). We also got new stainless appliances when we moved in. Our countertops our tiled - in reflection I wish I would have went ahead and got granite - but my husband used to do tile work - and it was more economical at the time.

This is a close up of the backsplash tile - even if we would have gotten granite - I still would have went with this tile. I love that it is not something I see everyday in other homes.

The cabinets here are our main food pantry - as you will see in the next pic. I have a lot of fruit decor in the kitchen. One reason I love to keep it this way - is that my mom was very instrumental in helping me decorate - and just knowing that makes me think of her everday when I am in here.

This is our pantry underneath our stairs. We bought some stainless steel racks to keep all of our extra bakeware/entertainment dishes etc.

Here is the eat-in area of the kitchen. This is where we eat together as a family when we aren't eating in the family room. The table expands out into a big square - so we have room for 8 in here for bigger gatherings.

This idea - of using ivy/grapes for a swag instead of a curtain was my mom's idea - and I have always loved it - this is the window above the sink looking out into the backyard.

Here are our everyday dishes. My mom and dad bought us these on our 5 year anniversary (this year will be our 13th).

These were a gift from our wedding. We rarely use this set - this group is on display in my china cabinet.

Here is a set that we bought - more of a plain pattern. We don't use this too often either.

We also have a beautiful set of Christmas dishes that were my moms. When she passed away my dad let me have them - as we do the holiday gatherings at our house now. Maybe when we get closer to Christmas Kelly will do a Christmas tour of homes - and I can post them then.

I hope you enjoyed the tour. I am going to try and get ahead for next week's post - Living Rooms!!

Kiana lost her 1st tooth!

2009-04-13T09:02:00.000-07:00

Last night I was on Eric's computer after the kids were in bed - and Kiana came in saying her tooth hurt. Eric was already asleep too. I checked it - and it was super loose. I was like "hold on" - because I had to run down and get the camera to take pics before/while it was coming out. How exciting her 1st tooth - before she even goes to Kindergarten!
Here is daddy wiggling it. There was a lot of screaming not being depicted here. Not the same way as Cameron - as he would say "hold on, I have to tell you something first" but just screaming.

And then - tada - here she is missing her first tooth.

We left a note for the tooth fairy to please leave our tooth so we could shw it off - since it was the first one and all. I think what loosened it up was a really hard chocoloate Easter Bunny. I bet it won't be too long until the one next to it comes out. But she is not looking forward to that!!

My beautiful baby girl!

2009-04-10T13:30:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we had Kiana's pictures taken again by Calotype Photography! They do such a good job.

I wanted this shot - of her full length. I think the look on her face it a bit mischievous!
This pic looks so much like every day happiness.

Soon my baby will be headed off to Kindergarten - time flies!!
We went and took some pictures after these at Bogle Park in Bentonville - but I have been busy and haven't even had a chance to look at them.

I am in Phoenix right now at the airport - can't wait to get home to my family tonight!!

Missing my mom on what would have been her 50th birthday!

2009-03-31T02:00:00.000-07:00

Today would have been my mom's 50th birthday!! Unfortunately, that is not the case, since she passed away 2 1/2 years ago. I remember on my last major birthday (30) that she orchestrated a surprise party - and worked her rear off preparing a mexican fiesta for an army. She had a way of making everything BIG.

For a couple of years we had 4th of July parties at my mom and dad's house. My parents had a restaurant that had caught on fire 10 days after they opened, and we had brought the oven, mixer, hot and cold bars out to the shop. So, mom insisted on cooking all the food for this party. We had about 100 people one year, and we spent a lot of time cooking. We had fried fresh fish, brisket, homemade salads (potato etc) and homemade cookies (about 6 inches in diameter) among many other things. All of the work was exhausting, but there was NO talking her out of it. I just wanted to cater some food.

At night we had awesome fireworks - and if any of you had been there you know what I mean. My mom also liked to have a lot of fun. One year after this party, about 30 of us got in an above ground pool and were playing with a huge beach ball! There was also some drinking mixed in with this - some even had drinks in the pool. We had such a great time.

A couple of months before she died, we had a big birthday party for my husband. He had a lot of scotch and got sick (literally). We had a lot of people over - and we made jello shots. My mom and Eric's brother pretty much downed them all - and my mom ended up being sick when they got home! But she definately knew how to have fun!!

Last weekend at our friend's wedding reception, it reminded me of my wedding. My wedding was supposed to be at the Eureka Springs Botanical Garden - but it rained and we had to move it to the lovely sight of our reception, the Ramade Inn. Not what I had in mind or had planned for. My mom and I spent the day rearranging everything - so by the time the wedding was over we were thrilled. We had our dinner, reception - and then it was time for the dancing. Now, I was only 21, which means my mom was only 37 (only 3 years older than I am now!). On the dance floor - my mom and dad got down! - really. I swear my mom did a John Travolta slide on her knees move in her dress!! It was stress relief after our crazy day!!!

Like us, my parents didn't have many close friends. For me she truly was my best friend. We could talk about anything, tell each other our problems as well as good things. She would give me advice. We never got mad at each other. No matter how many good friends you have - there is truly no one like your mother. I hope as Kiana grows up we are able to have the same type of relationship. My mom was in the room when both of my kids were born - knowing she couldn't be there for another child is one reason I don't want to have any more kids.

Every day without my mom is a little less full. Still after all this time I sit typing this with tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat. To anyone reading this that still has your mom with them, tell her you love her and give her a big hug - because you never know when tomorrow may not come. The day my mom died I had talked to her 3 times. I had no idea what was about to happen. I am thankful for every day I had with my mom. Her guidance helped shape the person I have become today.

You can see the scrapblog I made at the very bottom of my page. I am going to have Cameron at the least guest blog this week and talk about his grandma - as well as try to find some pics and video that I don't already have on my sight!

Mom - I miss you so much!

Hannibal Lecter goes to the dentist!!

2009-03-28T12:17:00.000-07:00

Monday Kiana had to go to the dentist for 2 fillings in her back top teeth. A few months ago we got the same thing done on the bottom, only that time she had 2 kinds of drugs, plus the nitrous and the novacaine.

We have known about the deterioration on these teeth for about 2 years, but they wanted to do the procedures in the hospital and put her under anesthesia. Since going under anesthesia has a very small risk of death - there was NO WAY I was letting her do that. So we waited until she was older. So, that first procedure went pretty smoothly. Daddy was in the room with her - and she only cried a little bit.

This time, I asked her if she wanted to get these teeth fixed, and she said yes. I told the dentist that we would do it without the extra drugs (and $350 worth of additional bills!!). I took her, and called daddy to come in case we needed him.

Here she is when they first hooked her up to the nitrous. She picked bubble gum as the scent in the "piggy nose". And she just settled in and watched Madagascar! Isn't she sweet (the headphones go along with the TV.)
Next, the Dr. came in and gave her a LOT of novacaine shots. Like I have said in previous posts, big brother would always freak at this point, asking "what is that?", "what are you going to do with that?", etc - anything to stall the progress of the appt.

Little sister is not like that. We had to sit there for a while waiting on the novacaine to take effect. There was a little boy in the next room screaming - but sweet little Kiana was oblivious!

When the hygenist had to put the raincoat (rubber thing that keeps the junk from going down your throat) in - I was worried. This is really the only thing that bothered her the first time. But this time Kiana didn't utter one complaint. It was amazing!!

The Dr. came in, drilled out her cavities (still not one word) filled them - and here is the light that hardens the materials! Not one complaint!! She was an ANGEL!!!!

Here is what I mean by Hannibal Lecter - here she looks like he did with his face mask on - LOL!!! The ONLY time she was fussy at all was when daddy came in the room - she was ready to get up. But she still needed to breath the oxygen, to get the nitrous out of her system. She didn't understand why she couldn't get up.

She got some heart stickers with her points that she had earned - and when we got to the car found out they were so old that they didn't have any sticky!! So I am still trying to find her some heart stickers to make up for those!!!

Moral of this blog entry - you NEVER know what to expect from a five year old!!

Davy's Wedding

2009-03-26T17:52:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we traveled to Round Rock (Austin), TX for a friend's wedding. The kids were awesome on the drive - and at the wedding.

The setting was beautiful, as was the ceremony, dinner and reception!! Enjoy the scrapblog of the pictures we got. I really wish we would have brought our good camera - we would have even better pics!

Warm weather and baseball season!!!

2009-03-17T18:09:00.001-07:00

I am so happy that Spring may finally be here! It was 83 degrees at 5:30!!!

Cameron had baseball tryouts Saturday - and he did really well!! We were so proud to call him son (well we always are!). He really knocked 2 hits - better than anyone else we saw. Now we are just waiting on the call to see what team we got on - and whether he made black or gold division!!

This weekend we are going to Davy's wedding in Austin, TX - so a little weekend getaway! i will post some pics when we get home!!

So - enjoy the weather if you live here!

Day at the Park!

2009-03-08T20:07:00.000-07:00

Today and yesterday we took a trip to our neighborhood park. It is a little of 1/2 mile walk each way - up some major hills. But the kids made it both times - I should say Cameron jogged most of the way both times - but for Kiana making it was a big deal.

Tonight when we got home she said "next time we go to the park, let's take the car".LOL

She has conquered everything on the playground at the park. This equipment is for 5-12 year olds - so some of it was scary to her - but afte the screaming, crying fit to get her to try each thing - she always decides that she likes it. Her arms aren't quite strong enough for her to go across the monkey bars on her own, but I think by the end of the summer she may be able to!!!

Cameron and Eric took their baseball gloves, to get Cameron's arm ready for tryouts next Saturday. So, just as basketball ends, baseball begins. Hopefully next weekend we can get Kiana a playmate to go to the park. She is always wanting someone to play with her - but there is never anyone there.

I hope everyone has a great week. We have a busy week ahead as usual!!!

We are the Champions!!

2009-03-08T07:48:00.001-07:00

Our basketball team, the Falcons, pulled it off last night and won the 6th/7th grade championship game. It was a really good game. The team we played was undeafeted - but we almost beat them in regular season too. We only lost by 2 points.

I think the final score was 28-22.

Cameron played the first quarter - and did OK. He played much better Thursday night during the first quarter. We had some really good boys on the team, and last night they did an awesome job. So - an end to a really good season. (we only lost 2 games).

Congratulations Falcons!!

Random post

2009-03-06T20:33:00.000-08:00

I am in the JBU Advance program working on my bachelor's - and tomorrow I have a final. So tonight, I invited the class over to study. Hopefully this will help me ace the test tomorrow - as well as help my fellow classmates.

While I was home studything the boys went to Buffalo Wild Wings - and Kiana stayed with Mark & Glenda.

Tomorrow night we have the big basketball championship. And we found out one of the other team's better players is out at church camp and will miss the game. So keep your fingers crossed for a win!!

Last night my boss, Marti, gave birth to her first child, a son, George Thomas, 8 lbs 8 oz and 20 inches long. We took a "field trip" this morning and went to meet him. He was sleeping like a "baby". So sweet.

Let's see, do I have any more randomness!! Oh yeah. In 2 weeks we are going to Austin, TX for a friends wedding! That should be a fun little weekend away.

I promise to post some pictures on my next post!!

Basketball Update!!!!

2009-03-05T19:51:00.000-08:00

Tonight at 8:30 was Cameron's semi-final game against the Irish. During our first meeting the Irish was missing a key player - but they beat us. Tonight that player was there - but our boys were on fire - and ended up winning by quite a margin. Pathetically I am not sure of the exact score - but I think it was 18-30.

Sat. night we go on to face the undefeated Hawkeyes at 5:45 PM. During our first meeting with them we were winning most of the game and they came back at the end. Hopefully our coach has a plan for us to defeat them in the championship.

This is the first time we have ever been on basketball team that went this far - so this is awesome.

As I said before, Basketball is not Cameron's best sport. But tonight he played the first quarter, and he did an awesome job guarding. I think after the first quarter the score was 2-13.

So - be thinking of us Saturday night as we go into the championship game!!!! Go Falcons!!!

Blushing Buttercream Pettiskirt GIVEAWAY!!!!

2009-03-02T14:28:00.000-08:00

Blushing Buttercream Pettiskirt GIVEAWAY!!!!

Kindergarten Physical

2009-02-27T08:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I took Kiana to the Dr for her physical before Kindergarten. We talked about the appt. before hand. We told her the Dr was going to listen to her heart, check her ears etc. Stupid me - I forgot this appt. included her 5 year shots.

Cassidie called me right as we were about to leave my office - and told me that little tidbit. I was so worried at that point on how this appt would go. I decided NOT to tell her until the time came.

So we got to the Dr, and amazingly as soon as I had filled in her paperwork, we were called back. First she got measured and weighed, 47 inches tall and 58 pounds. Only 1 inch shy of 4 feet tall at 5 years old!! Cameron wasn't that tall until he was 8! She is perfectly proportioned weight to height - and at the very top of the scale.

Next we went to our room - and the nurse took her blood pressure - don't remember what it was, but it was good. Then she told me about the s-h-o-t-s - we spelled it out so Kiana wouldn't know. The nurese gave us a cup, and had us go to bathroom, so Kiana could give a urine sample. That was one of her favorite things to talk about later, how she had to pee in a cup!LOL

Next the Dr came in. He checked her ears, eyes, nose, mouth, heart, spine - and she is healthy as a horse. He then mentioned that he would be back for the vaccines. When he left, I told Kiana about the vaccines (didn't call them shots) - and how they would help keep her from getting chickenpox, measles, mumps etc. She was in a great mood.

Then, the nurse came in with the tray of needles. I asked where Kiana should be, on the table or my lap, and the nurse said my lap. So, I put her between my legs, with the nurse in front of us on a chair. Kiana was QUIET. We puller her pants down to expose her upper thighs - still not one word. The nurse began to rub alcohol on her thigs - still nothing - she stuck the first of 4 needles in her right thigh - still nothing. As she started the second one she started to cry, a little.

It was amazing!! She was so good!!! After she had gotten 2 shots in each thigh and the bandaids were one, she was doing a low, throaty whine, and saying it hurts, and I want daddy. But it was really nothing. As we got ready to go check out, she was still low crying, I told her we could go get some M&Ms because she was so good, and we would stop by daddy's work so she could see him, and tell him about it. She still cried a little - but really - after getting 4 shots - it was nothing.

We stopped and got Reese's instead of M&Ms (her choice), and then we stopped to see daddy. She cried a little telling him about it - but she was happy by the time she told him how she got to pee in a cup-LOL. I dropped her off at preschool - her teacher suggested we give her some tylenol. When I got home last night she was fine.

Last night I was talking to my dad, and she wanted to tell him about it. When he asked "did it hurt?", she said "just a little".

The funny thing is that Cameron was total opposite - you had to hold him down for that kind of thing. And 15 minutes before it even happened - he would be asking a million questions liek "What is that", "What are you going to do with that needle", "Let me tell you something first".

It is really awesome to watch 2 totally different personalities emerge from my beautiful children.

Next up - actual Kindergarten registration in March!!! She is getting excited.

Have a great weekend!!!

Go check out Kiana's Sneek Peak Valentine Pic!

2009-02-08T09:34:00.001-08:00

Friday Jan 30th - we went to Belly Buttons Boutique to get Kiana's picture taken by Calotype Photography.

If you follow this link you can go see the sneek peak. I can't wait to go pick these pictures up this week.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_HJE1_GDb8-I/SYzQ0rjHsQI/AAAAAAAACq4/wo2S3TXqGoc/s1600-h/Kiana.jpg

Baby shower gifts!!

2009-02-05T18:33:00.000-08:00

I LOVE baby showers! It is so much fun to make an awesome gift. I am giving these out at a baby shower at work - so I am posting this after the shower - but I hope the recipients love these gifts as much as I do.

This first diaper cake is for Marti, my director at work. She is having her first baby in Early March - George. You can barely see it, but there is a ceramic letter "G" to hang in his room.
Theme of his nursery is boats - so the blankets that wrap the layers of the cake match that theme. But I bought so many toys and other stuff that you can barely even see the blankets!

My theme for this one then went to a bright color toy theme - and I matched all the ribbons and the trim around the bottom!! This looks so much more cute in person. It has stuff on all sides!! It is a 4 layer diaper cake.
This second diaper cake is a 3 layer - and I bought this stuff from the mommy's registry at Target. Then I picked out coordinating ribbon and trim for the base. It also has a ceramic letter "C" - but again it is hard to see in the picture. These letters are so cute. I picked them up at Babies and Beyond in Fayetteville.

I am making a similar outfit for Kiana for some Valentine pictures, so I already had Tulle, Ribbon and the fabrics for this outfit. This is my favorite gift for the second mom, over the cake. I think it turned out so cute!!! This should fit the little girl when she is about 6 months old. I hope her mommy loves it.

Kiana's Valentine Outfit

2009-01-29T18:54:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow I am getting Kiana's picture taken - and I decided to make her an outfit to wear. The jury is still out on whether the pics will turn out or not - because sometimes she does no cooperate - but hopefully she will tomorrow!!!

This was just a plain pink t-shirt from Target - that I embellished. And I made the tutu - it has some valentine ribbons - really cute. Just ignore the hideous background of my craft room storage!!

Making Cupcakes!

2009-01-28T18:29:00.001-08:00

Continuing along with all the cooking we have been doing lately - Kiana and I decided to bake some cupcakes when we came home early on Monday because of the weather. She loves decorating cupcakes with "sparkles".
She was more than proud to show off her work.

And willing to share with her brother!! She is such a sweet little sister.

I am getting stir crazy at home - and not getting enough work done. So tomorrow, Glenda is going to watch the kids so we can both go to work - yippee. We have had some fun - but I think we are all getting indoor fever!!

Kiana's favorite new past time!

2009-01-24T17:30:00.000-08:00

What girl doesn't love a bubble bath?? Kiana basically refuses to take baths in her bathroom anymore. This is her favorite bath spot! Only one lonely duck is with her! She doesn't even need toys - just the bubbles and the jets!!

She is so responsible about brushing her teeth too. Every day I have to FORCE Cameron to brush his teeth (he is really good with showers and hygene - just doesn't remember to brush his teeth). Kiana has brushed her teeth 3 times today. Each child is so different!!
That reminds me, tonight at dinner Kiana got down to get a paper towel, and there was a dirty one on the floor by the trash. She stopped, picked it up, threw it in the trash, and then went on to get her one. Cameron and I both would have been 1) too oblivious or 2) too lazy to pick it up. Again proving how different 2 kids can be - even with the same parents!

Kiana LOVES to cook!

2009-01-23T17:23:00.000-08:00

Kiana really enjoys helping out in the kitchen. Here we are making spaghetti. She was really into the stirring. And she really loved how it tasted when we were done.

I also realized when we were done and she was eating everything in it, that this could be a really good way to get her to try new things. IE she cooked it, she will eat it. I said "Kiana, if we cook something with carrots, and you help make it, will you eat them" and without hesitation "yes".

So, I am going to try and incorporate her help in as much meal preparation as possible. Lately we have been trying to eat at home (we usually eat out like 70-80% of the time) - so this is really a good step in the right direction for all of us.

Not so perfect week . . .

2009-01-22T17:04:00.001-08:00

This week started off great! Cameron didn't have school on Monday, so I took the day off and we went to the movies together. Just a little mom and son time. We saw Paul Blart Mall Cop, which was pretty funny.

We came home and I made a big pot of chicken noodle soup. Not too many people know this, but the day my mom passed away, she had just finished making a big pot of her chicken noodle soup - and I hadn't had any like it since. Around the day of the funeral (when we still barely had appetites we were in so much shock) we ate some. That was a sacred pot of soup. So I followed her recipe - and we had some good soup that night.

However, the next morning I woke up really sick. I wasn't sure if it was stomach flu or the soup was bad. But since my family didn't get sick right off - it had to be the flu. However, I was saying that the soup must be cursed. Anyway - Tuesday was a really bad day - I was more sick than I have been in a long time!! Then Wed I was so weak that I still couldn't go to work! But today is much better - now I am just a lot behind on my work stuff. Good news - I lost 5 pounds. Way to kick of my diet, that's for sure!!

Tonight Cameron wanted to play mercy - he thinks he can beat me! Maybe in a couple more years - but not yet. Here is his face of defeat!! Enjoy!

Kiana and her cousins!

2009-01-18T17:33:00.000-08:00

We were also lucky to have Paul and Sharon in town during the holidays, along with their sons Colin and Jacob. They were staying at Jim and Treonne's, but we were able to see them on a few occasions.

Kiana still asks about them all the time. It is hard for her to understand where they went. They are close to her age, and she isn't used to having anyone her age besides Ashton to play with.
I am glad we were able to spend some quality time with her "cousins". (this is what she says instead of saying their names)

Start a band!!

2009-01-17T17:26:00.000-08:00

We have been playing Guitar Hero for a very long time - thanks to Cassidie turning us on to it since she works for the company that produces it.

It was only fitting that when they came out with the Guitar Hero Band that we bought it (we never went to the dark side and bought Rock Band).

We had a great opportunity to see some friends from out of town, David and Gail's son from Texas, Davy, along with his fiance Whitney. And they have been playing Rock Band - so we convinced them to play with us. Unlike me and my shy ways, Whitney had not problem playing the part of singer for the band. Cameron has become a huge fan of the drums - so that is what he played. And here, Madison and Davy are on guitar.

There is nothing like the fun of playing Guitar Hero with friends.
We also played a game of Cranium before this - which I don't really like to talk about because my team lost. If you no me at all, you know I am VERY competitive and really don't like to lose. But oh well - it does happen sometimes.

It was great to see you guys - thanks for taking the time to stop over for a visit - and congratulations on your upcoming wedding.

Basketball

2009-01-16T18:44:00.000-08:00

So far Cameron's team, the Falcons, has played 3 games, and won them all. Hopefully, this will be the first winning season we have had in basketball.

They have learned so many plays. Cameron is not a shooter, but he loves defending. It also does not bother him one bit to run up and down the court. In the second game he got to shoot to foul shots, and luckily made one - yeah one point.

I will keep you up to date as the season progresses!!

Kiana Learning

2009-01-15T18:51:00.000-08:00

Kiana got the new fun to learn cool school toy. It hooks up to her computer (yes, she has her own, we have more computers than people in our house, along with ipods and any other tech item). She is playing it all the time. It is supposed to help her learn to write her letters along with many other basic learnings. She loves to play on it. She has learned all the lead in words when you go to each section, and repeats them with it. If you don't know, our daughter is what you may term a stubborn learner. She knows things, but she likes to pretend that she doesn't. I haven't figured this out - but I wish someone could explain it to me. Hopefully this new toy inspires her to want to learns. She also got an art studio for the computer that we haven't hooked up yet. I am sure she will love that too!!

A couple of VERY late Christmas Pics!

2009-01-14T17:19:00.000-08:00

Here are couple of pictures from Christmas morning. I didn't get any pictures from when we were opening presents later that afternoon with dad.

If you can see in the pic below - Santa brought Cameron only clothes, shoes and new bedding. Not that he didn't get other great stuff to play with (they mostly revolved around video games).

A couple of days after Christmas we went through his closet and virtually got rid of all of this toys. He is really growing up fast!!!

Kiana really enjoyed Christmas. We had to open this cupcake maker/froster and make her a cupcake. She loves to help cook.

Of course Santa didn't leave Toby out - he got a lot of toys and treats - now if he could only figure out how to get the kids to play with him he would be set.

Hope everyone had a great holiday - we absolutely did!!

Long time, no post!!

2009-01-12T18:38:00.000-08:00

Well - life has been busy at our house. Between the holidays and my work and school work - combined with basketball practices and games - I haven't had time for this blog in awhile.

Pathetically I didn't take any pictures at Christmas!! We had a lot of fun. We had a Christmas Eve gathering at our house with the Hill's. Paul was in with his 2 sons, Jacob and Collin, who are 5 and 7 and Kiana is still asking about them.

Christmas day we spent with dad. Since the Bushta's didn't make it over that day - we decided to go UNtraditional on Christmas dinner, so we had fried chicken and mashed potatoes. It was SO good.

Of course the kids got everything they wanted and more for Christmas. Hopefully one day they will appreciate how lucky they truly are. This year Cassidie and I took the kids shopping for needy kids instead of buying each other's kids presents. However, I don't even think Cameron understood the true meaning of that. He thinks everyone is well off!!! We are going to break him of that somehow.

Dad and Melissa came over along with the Peschel's for a New Years Night party. We played games and ate! It was fun.

All the time off work was great - however - it was hard getting back into the swing of things. Especially when work is so busy right now.

Well - I hope to post more often - but school is keeping me busy. I have a final tomorrow night - but then another class immediately starts up!!! The joy of higher education!!

Early Christmas at the Hill's (Thanks Dad)!!!

2008-12-05T18:37:00.001-08:00

For Christmas this year I asked my dad to buy us new phones - because ours were shot.

Then I came up with a new present - a pretty expensive surround sound! And somehow, I managed to talk him into buying that for us instead. I told him how much it was - he thought about it - and told us to buy it now if we want.

Well - then I found out it was a little less than I thought - and sorta against his will I talked him into getting BOTH since they were virtually the same as I told him for the surround sound. Plus I bought Speed Racer on Blu Ray - because our new surround sound also comes with a Blu Ray player!!!

Thanks dad - it is going to be AWESOME!!Below is the family with our EARLY Christmas! Eric is excited to try and get it hooked up before his favorite team - OU - plays tomorrow night.

"Sleeping Beauty"

2008-12-03T20:02:00.001-08:00

Last night when I got home from class (UGH I have class from 6-10PM Tues for the next 20 months!!) I found my whole family asleep in my bed.

I woke them up and took them to their beds - well except for Eric of course. Kiana fell back to sleep immediately - and was out HARD. Here is my little "Sleeping Beauty".

Kiana's Pink Christmas Tree

2008-12-03T19:57:00.000-08:00

The other night Eric went to Wal-Mart - and when he saw this tree - he knew he had to buy it for Kiana. She loves the color pink. So, even though people looked at him funny at Wal-Mart, he proceeded to the checkout. When the cashier mentioned something about it to him - he said "I know it looks funny that I am buying this, but I am going to be the BEST daddy when I get home". And boy was he right!

She wanted to put it up, and get a picture of her with it so she could take it to school. Unfortunately - we didn't have any decorations on it yet - so we went and bought some, and tonight I got this picture. Now I have it printed so she can show her friends at school tomorrow.
As soon as she sees it when she gets home from school, she wants to plug it in! So cute!

Jim & Treonne's Outdoor Tree

2008-12-03T19:56:00.001-08:00

Over the weekend Eric and the kids went to help decorate this tree in Jim & Treonne's yard. It was cold and this tree is HUGE - but it looks great. Now they just need to add the lights.

Good work guys!!

"Domestic Diva"

2008-12-03T19:52:00.001-08:00

Learning at an early age how to be a "Domestic Diva".

Makin' & Eatin' Sugar Cookies!!

2008-12-03T19:46:00.000-08:00

To end our long holiday weekend - the kids wanted to make sugar cookies. So we got out the ingredients and whipped up a batch. After baking they each decorated half of the baked goods. They were in a really big hurry - because all they could do was think about eating them.

Here is Cameron concentrating on his decorating.
Kiana getting out some sprinkles for her cookeies!And then - enjoying the fruits of their labor.

Then - they decided they needed milk with the cookies. Kiana was so cute dipping her cookie in the milk. I don't think I have ever seen anyone dip a sugar cookie in milk - but she was lovin' it!!!

And thus came the end of our holiday weekend. I cannot wait until Dec 23rd - so I can have more time off of work to spend at home!!! I love the holidays!!

Thanksgiving Dinner on Friday

2008-12-03T19:41:00.001-08:00

Since we had dinner with the Hill's on Thanksgiving Day - we held Thanksgiving with my dad on Friday. This year we had an additional guest, Missy, with us. She sent a beautiful centerpiece! This picture does not do it justice!!! Thank you so much Missy.

We had a really good dinner (well in my opinion anyway, I was the cook). Then we watched a movie - coupled by and followed by eating a lot of pie. I made the pumpkin pies - with homemade crust. Eric bought a bunch of other kinds from someone at his work - and they were good too.

This was a good start to the holiday season.
No people pictures to post - because last time I took pics of certain guests and posted they weren't too thrilled - but I will get them next time - LOL.

Thanksgiving

2008-12-03T19:36:00.001-08:00

For Thanksgiving this year we went over to Monty's house in OK. It was a house filled with Hill's. We couldn't get the timer to work on our camera - so I don't have a picture with everyone in it (too bad I am not in the first one - I am so sad! - NOT).

Thanks for inviting us over - maybe next year we can host the Hill Thanksgiving dinner at our house.
Hill Boys, err men . . .

Hill Girls - All by marriage, except for Kiana

Cameron's Holly Ball Cotillion

2008-11-24T14:50:00.000-08:00

For the ending of the Cotillion season they hold a Holly Ball, where your parents are invited to chaperone - and basically see what you have learned. This is me pinning Cameron with his boutonniere.

This in itself is a funny story. One of the parents of the boys Cameron has been going to after Cotillion events with offered to do one large order for all the kids boutonnieres and corsages. Since I took a floral design class - and enjoy doing this sort of thing, I opted not to get one - and instead planned on making him one. And what do you know - I ALMOST forgot. So, this is the last minute purchase/throw together I could manage!!!

Father and son!
Me and Cam. My sweet little baby is growing up so quick.

Me and Eric. You know I HATE being in pictures - but Eric and Glenda both insisted.

And here we all are. Too bad we had already dropped Kiana off with the Peschels - it would have been nice to get us all.

It was hard to get pictures in the gym - as the lighting was not very good. Every week 2 sets of couples lead the march at the beginning to get your partner. It is hard to see - but this week Cameron was one of the leaders - he is in the back - you can make out his blond head - but mostly just see his dancing partner.

Here he is dancing with his first partner of the night. I think they were doing the Foxtrot right here.

What I learned from attending is that they don't learn entire dances when they are in the 6th grade. They learn some of the key steps - which they must build upon over the next 3 years. Most of the kids did an awesome job. There are over 80 kids in his 6th grade group! And luckily he does want to sign up again next year. The further he progresses, not only will he learn more of the dances, but additional social etiquette as well.

Around the middle of the dance - they had some of the helpers perform a routine - which was awesome.

We had a great night.

Thanks to Robert and Cassidie for watching Kiana while we were out.

Thanks to Glenda for dropping us off/picking us up from the dance.

Kiana's New Haircut

2008-11-24T05:39:00.001-08:00

Last week at daycare Kiana decided to cut her hair. Even though I couldn't tell she had cut it - she decided that she wanted to get her hair cut short again.

If you don't know the story, here goes. I always intended to let her hair grow until at least Kindergarten. Her hair was about an inch long when she was born - which was shocking because Cameron was practically bald - and what little hair he did have you could barely see because it was so blond. Kiana's was a light brown when she was born.

Well her hair continued to grown - and the hair she was born with turned blond - it never fell out. So when she was 3 1/2 it was halfway down her back.

That day at daycare - 1 1/2 years ago - I got a call that a girl in class had cut Kiana's hair. I was furious. Why were the kids using scissors and not being supervised closely enough? I had a heated discussion with the daycare owner - and she basically could have cared less about my concerns. My hands were tied. We did look for other daycares at the time - but no one had openings!!!! So - we had to go get her hair cut in a similar bob to the new cut now - but the cut was better the first time.

As if that weren't bad enough - about a month later I got a phone call from daycare AGAIN. The same child that had cut Kiana's hair the first time - had snuck a pair of scissors from her house - and when they went out on the playground - she cut Kiana's hair AGAIN. This time there was no fixing the damage. She cut on the right side about to inches from the part - a huge chunk out.

Mind you - that hair has just now grown out well enough to blend in and not be noticed - when Kiana decides she wants it cut now!!! So much for pretty long blond hair in Kindergarten!! It is still cute - but I 100% prefer it longer.

More pictures of the kids

2008-11-20T20:02:00.001-08:00

Why do I always have so many pictures of my kids to post you ask? Because we like to dabble in some amateur photography. This started out as a hobby for Eric a few years ago - and since then we have taken pictures for people we know. Some have turned out great - others just OK. I absolutely love all of these pictures, and just got a lot of them printed last week to fill up a bunch of empty frames we have.

Obviously, since you don't see me in this picture - I took it. It didn't turn out perfectly -but not too bad either.I am quite proud of the next 2 pics. Cam and I got to the photo spot before Eric and Kiana, and since the sun was going down quickly, I started snapping pictures of Cameron myself. I LOVE these 2 pics of him. They really show his personality and his beautiful eyes.

The happy brother and sister together. For the last couple of years we have had a really hard time getting pics of Cam, because the sun makes him squint like crazy. So this time of day was perfect, and we really got good shots. Hope you have enjoyed our blue eyed beauties!!

Jungle Jack Hanna at the Walton Art Center

2008-11-20T19:50:00.000-08:00

November 1st we went to see Jack Hanna - you have probably seen him on the late night talk shows - he is on David Letterman a lot. The pictures are fuzzy because I was taking these from the balcony - with no flash - and just our little camera. But there are few that are alright. Most of the animals they brought out were rare. I don't remember the names or stories - but enjoy.
He told a story about this little armadillo's conception. I guess a while back on the David Letterman show he brought 2 armadillos - one for Dave to race against his armadillo. And as they were racing - they started mating right on Dave's desk. Supposedly, this little rare breed of armadillo is the love child of the racing armadillos.

This fox has ears that look like bat wings. Again some rare species of fox.

This lady came from the audience. And they put these huge bugs on her. As if that weren't bad enough they brought out this huge python while she wasn't looking. If that would have been me - I am sure that snake would have struck out to kill me, because if I would have turned around and saw that huge snake that close to me I would have FREAKED OUT. That is my biggest fear! I don't have a problem looking at them through the glass at the zoo - but no way am I being even around an earth worm size snake otherwise!!

Halloween Pics

2008-11-20T19:28:00.000-08:00

Finally - at long last pics of the kids in one of their multiple Halloween costumes. Here we are at the mall - even though it was pretty lame. Kiana ran into a girl from her gymanstics class - so they talked for a couple of minutes, which was quite cute. And we stopped and got Cameron a new phone (which he had to pay for since we are now on our third phone!!!!)

Kiana at home posing in her Tinkerbell costume. She was ready to go out Trick or Treating this year for the first time - however, by the time we got back from the mall she had changed her mind and just wanted to stay home.
The weekend before Halloween we carved pumpkins with the Peschels. The first one is Cameron's and I have no idea what it is. The second one is Kiana's, it is a winking bear head.

Here is Toby in his super cute Pig costume. He was a pretty good sport for about an hour in this costume, and then we freed him!!

Niagara Falls Pics

2008-11-20T19:27:00.000-08:00

These Pics are not very good - because we were at the Falls on a horribly cold day. It was freezing rain/snowing, and it is at least 1/4 mile walk. Normally that wouldn't be a problem, but in major freezing wind gusts it wasn't so great.

More Pictures from last weekend at the pumpkin patch

2008-11-02T08:40:00.000-08:00

I think these turned out pretty well. We are going out today to take more pictures of the kids.
Enjoy!

Last Weekend Halloween Fun!

2008-11-02T08:35:00.000-08:00

So - I am late at posting as usual. Last Thursday night (10/23) - we watched the Peschel kids while the parents went out on a short date night.

To keep everyone occupied we created these haunted houses. We had a really good time - and everyone was happy the entire time - with four kids that isn't always easy to do!!

Boo'd!

2008-10-30T20:52:00.001-07:00

I have been boo'd by Cassidie
The SPOOKtacular Rules:Go to as many of your blog buddies as you want and tell them they have been BOO'd.Have them pick up this picture, add it to their blog and link back to who BOO'd them.Put the picture in your sidebar, so others will know that you have already been BOO'd!

Pumpkin Patch - Picture Preview!

2008-10-30T20:42:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went to Ranalli Farm Pumpkin Patch in Tontitown and took pictures of the kids. There weren't too many that I liked - but the picture below is one that I LOVED. Kiana is not so cooperative when it comes to taking pictures - so having at least one good picture is saying something!!

My Straight A Son!!

2008-10-27T14:26:00.000-07:00

Well - I am happy to announce that Cameron got straight A's for the first quarter of 6th grade!! He is setting the bar HIGH for Kiana - as he has only had A's so far in his academic career.

This year he is also taking AP(Advanced Placement) Social Studies and Math.

Way to go Cameron!!!

Kiana & Ashton - the Sportscasters!

2008-10-24T13:09:00.000-07:00

Click on this link to see a video of Ashton and Kiana as Razorback Sportscasters. Well - Ashton anyway - Kiana mostly hid in the back!!

http://nwahomepage.com/media_player.php?media_id=97841#

Family Fun Day!!

2008-10-19T18:21:00.000-07:00

I am going out of town for a couple of day's on a work trip - so today we spent a day together having family time! This is getting harder and harder to do - because Cameron is getting to where he would rather spend all his time with anyone other than mom and dad!!

We went to Fast Lane and went bowling. Cameron rode go-karts while Kiana played games.

There was some football fun in the afternoon. We went over to the grandparents and tossed the football. While I was gone with Kiana visiting the Great-Grandparents - Cameron & Grandma Glenda were playing - and Cameron tackled her - full force. She had to take some Aleve - she really didn't think he would tackle her like that! But he is a rough boy!!

When I get home look for a post of Niagara Falls - and maybe "How it is made" - I am going to the Milkbone plant!

Saturday Night Dance Fever!

2008-10-19T18:10:00.001-07:00

Saturday Night's Cotillion was "Back to the 70s" - so after a week of stressing over what Cameron was going to wear (times like these I really think of how if my mom was still here - she would have whipped something FABULOUS out) I finally - per my usual last minute style - was at Gail's house having her alter an adult costume Saturday morning. He looked great as a hippie.
Thank you SO MUCH for helping me out GAIL!!!!

They also had a costume contest - and wouldn't you know it, one of Cassidie's suggestions (Richard Nixon) won!!

He is not one bit happy about me taking these pictures - or posting them on this blog. He thinks if anyone sees these - his reputation will be ruined!!

Last week when he got home - it was the first time his friends had seen him come home (usually they come home after dark - but last week the boys didn't go out afterwards). And when his friends saw him come home in his suit, they were like "Hello, Mr. Fancy Pants"! It was hiliarious.

Friday Night WII Fit Fun - Hula Hoopin'

2008-10-17T20:21:00.001-07:00

Here is Eric Hula-Hooping - LISTEN closely for all sound effects!!!!

Kiana's turns 5 - three times

2008-10-05T18:00:00.000-07:00

For the last few years Kiana's birthdays have consisted of family and close friends - but this year we decided to have a bigger party for her 5th birthday. We also had a party at her daycare - and one on the night of her birhtday at Chuck E. Cheese. Not to mention that the thursday night before her birthday Grandpa Leach came and took her shopping and out to dinner - so she has basically been celebrating for a week and a half.

This first group of pictures is at her daycare. We took happy meals for all the kids, as well as cake and ice cream/cones. We didn't stay for the cake, so we don't have pics.

One tradition they have at daycare is that the birthday child gets # of spankings as their age by each child in class (light spankings). This helps with counting - so you will see this below. The final picture is Kiana and her teacher Nancy (Kiana said that Nancy was giving her 3 kisses).

That night we went to Chuck E. Cheese with the Peschels and Grandpa Mark/Grandma Glenda. The kids had a fun time. We weren't having an "official" party there, but they brought her out an ice cream bar and a candle - so we sang happy birthday.

Thanks Peschel's/Grandparents for coming and making her actual birthday evening special.

When we got home from Chuck E. Cheese Kiana had to try on her new Ariel costume I got while in Dallas the previous weekend. For the story on that visit http://specialpeschel.blogspot.com/2008/09/cancel-picture-on-milk-carton-im-back.html,

she has a better story there than I could come up with!!

Anyway - she put on her Ariel costume, which she will wear for Halloween. Then Grandpa Jim and Grandma Treonne came over to visit Kiana on her birthday. Grandpa spent a lot of time helping her put together the puzzle they had bought her. They also got her dominoes because her and Cameron love to play with the dominoes they have at their house.

Last but not least, today we had her main party, at the Little Gym in Rogers - where she goes to gymanstics. The shy little Kiana from regular class did not show up today -instead the outgoing Kiana we sometimes get to see shown thru. I know she had a great time. I am so happy so many kids from daycare were able to come - that made it extra fun.

Of course we also enjoyed having the Peschels, Grandma Glenda, Granny V, Grandma Shirley and Ashley there!!!
With best buddy Ashton.
Playing with the parachute. She loves this!!
She got to get in the middle, and they would wrap them up, and then pull so they would come out.

Blowing out her candles!!
A gift of cash. She thought it was a wallet with money.
Cameron getting stuck in a toddler tube!!
Sitting on the inflatable run, before it got inflated. She also loves this.

Princess daddy.

The cupcakes made by mommy. We all know that I don't really like to cook - but since I didn't call the bakery soon enough I had to get up early this morning to make cupcakes. I personally think they turned out really good - but I guess I am a little bias.
All and all this was a GREAT birthday for Kiana. Thanks to everyone who came to share these special moments with Kiana.

Cassidie - thanks so much for ALL of your help with ideas/driving around looking for stuff etc!!! I know I never do the same for you (just ask because I don't even think of it!!! - I told you I am no good at that!!).

Glenda - thanks for being the ride home for Kiana's goodies!!

Future Gymnast - or not

2008-10-05T17:52:00.000-07:00

When I first wanted to put Kiana into gymnastics - I had her watch some prerecorded Olympics. While watching she saw Shawn Johnson wearing this exact outfit (although it had long sleeves) at the Olympics - and she said "mom I really like that suit". It was at that point I decided to find and order this for her.

So last Wednesday night I took her to gymanstics class by myself in this "suit". This is the first time I have taken her alone, and if you know how she acts just around me - you know she never minds me. So we get there and she refuses to go into the gym - instead she would rather sit in the corner by the shoe cubbies. This goes on for 20 minutes before I finally coax her into the room!!

So - she may not be a future gymnast - but she certainly looks good in her suit!!

My baby and her barbies.

2008-10-05T17:18:00.001-07:00

Kiana is the kinda girl that always strips her barbies clothes off. Here is a pic Eric snapped one night after she fell asleep - that is too cute not to post. Notice how she has the boy barbie closest to her!!!

How quickly our kids grow . . . .

2008-09-22T19:37:00.001-07:00

As I was looking for pictures of my sweet cat, I found a couple of pictures of the Hill/Peschel children - and wonder - where has the time gone!!!

A VERY SAD night at our house . .

2008-09-22T19:24:00.001-07:00

Tonight there was a horrible accident at our home. We came home at 8 O'clock, and came in through the garage. About 30 minutes later Eric went out to get something for Kiana from the car - and found that our sweet cat, Callie, had got caught under the garage door and died. I do not know how this happened - she was right by the sensor that should have sent it back open, but I guess it was her time!!! Of course we are all upset, I am crying as I type, but we all know how quickly things can happen.

For those of you that knew Callie, I think you would agree that she was the sweetest cat ever. She never caused any problem and she was so gentle. She has even been putting up with the dog fairly well over the last 9 months.

We have had her for a long time. I think we got her around Christmastime when Cameron was in Kindergarten, and he is now in the sixth grade. She was just a sweet little calico kitten. At the time she was 100% of the time a house cat. When she was 6 months old, before we had a chance to get her fixed - she slipped out the front door. By the time we got her back in that evening, we would soon find out that she was sowing her wild oats, as she had her first and only kittens.

Because she was so little, she only had 2 babies and they were so cute. I think because of this, her growth was stunted, because she was always so tiny and still looked like a fairly young cat herself (about 2 pounds). Below is a picture of her cute kitties.

Kiana, who has always been an animal lover, and Callie became fast friends. As Kiana has grown up she has been very gentle with Callie, but Callie would always let Kiana pick her up and tote her around (Kiana didn't start this until the last year or so).

The dog was quite an adjustment for her because he was so young and spunky, and as he outgrew her, he really started chasing her all over the house. She had a hard time staying away from him. I don't think I got any pictures of them together.

Below is just the sweet peaceful look she would get when she was happy. She really was the best cat I have ever had. Just sweet and loving - never really into any mischief. Once we moved to Bentonville, and she had been fixed, she would always run out the front door. So we let her become an inside/outside cat, coming and going as she pleased. I was just telling Eric's grandma tonight, that it was so amazing that she never gets hurt. She runs all over and never gets ran over - or hurt by another animal. And then something this stupid happens.

A note to everyone - PLEASE always watch your garage door close. It is obvious now that those sensors do not always work.

We will miss you Callie!!!

Happy Birthday to Grandpa!

2008-09-20T06:26:00.000-07:00

Friday was my dad's birthday - so we took him out to PF Changs for lunch - and then had cake at my house. My dad doesn't like "store bought" cake - so I made him a cake Friday morning.

This is a funny subject, because Eric is jealous every time because I won't make him a cake!!

For those of you that don't know, dad has started dating someone. Her name is Melissa "Missy". She is very sweet and the kids got to meet her for the first time yesterday. I have known her for a long time. She is from Iowa, but has a daughter my age (as well as 2 other daughters, and 7 granchildren with one on the way). She also went to high school with my dad. I am so glad that they have found each other, because I can tell she really makes him happy - and I hope the same is true for her.

Hurrican Ike - and Waltz into Fall Cotilltion

2008-09-14T11:26:00.001-07:00

Not too much going on this weekend. Cameron had another dance tonight. He learned the Waltz - which I need him to teach me - because the last dance of the season your parents go with you, and the boys dance the Waltz with their moms.

After the dance, the boys went out to Buffalo Wild Wings - but I didn't talk to the parents that dropped him off - so no juicy details of how he acted this week.

We woke up this morning - and Hurrican Ike had played some havoc on Kiana's swing set. When she finally looked out the window and say she said, "Oh no, it's broken, I can't swing anymore". Hopefully we can buy a new bar for across the top, because that is all that got broke.

There are several limbs - and our fence is torn up a little.

Other than that we have been pretty lazy this weekend. The weather ruined our planned day at the lake yesterday - so we just stayed at home.

SILLY FACE

2008-09-10T18:18:00.000-07:00

Isn't she cute!LOL

Gymnastics Class #2 (After we Paid) - not so successful!!

2008-09-10T18:03:00.000-07:00

Wouldn't you know it - after we paid for a semester - Kiana decides to do very little participation. As you can see from the first picture, she was happy and ready to go before class. She had even done an AMAZING flip at home - even Cameron thought it was awesome. but put her in front of a group of kids and parents - and she clams UP!!!

Here is one of those moments - where she just sat there - like no one is making me do anything!!!

She did have some good moments . She was probably active with the class 1/2 of the time. She is so tempermental. At the end, they were hiding balls while the kids weren't looking - and if she didn't have a chance of getting a pink ball - she would just quit - and stand there.

We will continue on this journey. I really hope she will participate. The things she does do she does a really good job at.

Cameron - First Junior Cotillion Dance

2008-09-07T19:32:00.001-07:00

Cameron had to leave Ashton's birthday party early - because he is growing up. Last night he went to his first Junior Cotillion Dance. Junior Cotillion teaches ballroom dance, line dance and social etiquette.

Luckily, before the dance, a parent of one of the other boys going from Cameron's school called to arrange a car pool for the boys. This way - 6 boys rode to the dance together, and then went out to dinner afterwards.

At the dance last night, Cameron learned the Fox Trot, the Freeze and the Bunny Hop. He will continue with this over the next 4 years (thru 9th grade) - at which point he may be able to join Dancing with the Stars (just kidding). However, he will be able to dance with his bride on his wedding day - and know how to eat with manners. As well as things like opening doors for women, pulling out chairs, introductions, etc. Even though he was very leary to begin with, I think he already realizes that it isn't so bad. Especially since they went to dinner afterward!! This is so funny - they went to Shogun - which if you don't know what that is, it is a Japanese Hibachi restaurant - where they cook in front of you. Cameron loves this place. However - he normally orders Salmon. Last night, when he was with the group, he took $40 with him.

The parent that was with him told me he ordered steak and lobster, and said "If you wanna live big, you gotta spend BIG". By the time he paid the tip, he was out of money.

When he came in, he said "if my mom wants to make me fancy, it is going to cost her", as I provided the $40!!

Oh well - I am so glad that he had a good time, I don't care if he spends $40 every dance night!!

Here he is in his suit. Hopefully I will have some additional pictures for this post later this week!!