Deckin' the Halls

I love shortcuts.  I take them whenever I can- because they make my life a little easier.  Not that my life is particularly hard (my husband always likes to point that out), but I love anything that saves me a few minutes.  

That said- I have always bought the little gingerbread house kit at the grocery store or Costco each December, and brought it home for my little gremlins to decorate.  My issue this year was pretty obvious.  The store-bought gingerbread house was a veritable wheat-y, gluten-eous mess that wasn't going to cross the threshold of my door.  Which left me with the following choice:  no gingerbread house/ no funny pictures/ no goofy centerpiece for December or I make one myself.  I shuddered at the thought.  Real gingerbread?  Do I look like Martha Stewart?  

I fired up Google one night and downloaded a PDF for a house design.  And got a gluten free gingerbread recipe from a girlfriend.  I went to the store and bought all the GFree candies I could- then set to work the next morning.  

Things did NOT go to plan.  The roof ended up being WAY too big for the house, and the pitch was WAY too steep.  Two things that did not bode well for our little house.  In fact- maybe we should have taken this as a forewarning of things to come.  I "glued" the house together with royal icing- Shaun didn't think Gorilla Glue was the way to go (though I thought the idea had merit), and improvised the roof issue.  The house now looked as though it had a large hole... but it looked decorate-able.  

I readied the candy...

And we set to work!

Kate soon got bored with the decorating and started chugging candy...

The finished product was gorgeous.  Hansel and Gretel couldn't have asked for a more beautiful piece of candy-front property.  We left the house to dry and I sent the kids downstairs for a shower and to put their pj's on.  By the time they made it back upstairs however... disaster had struck.  

Better luck next year.  :)

Silent Night

Holiday Heartburn

I'm slowly working on getting a few pictures up on the blog of our holiday decorations and family traditions- Someday when we look back at these we'll have to smile right?  Even though now- it kind of gives me heartburn and a headache.  But I figure if that's all I've got this far into December, I'm doing pretty well.  Shaun starts twitching in November when the stores start playing Christmas music and he goes downhill from there.  :)

This year is the first year since we've had kids that I dared pull out my Grandma Newren's Dicken's Village.  She and my grandpa used to make ceramics and sell them at local craft fairs.  The kiln has been long gone, but she saved a few pieces to pass onto the grandkids.  I was one of a lucky few to inherit a Dicken's Village.  I can remember going to my grandma's house and laying on the floor for HOURS just looking at her village.  I would make up little scenarios in my head about the people in the village... which was really easy.  My grandma and grandpa used to have three Christmas trees in their living room and they had a massive village to go underneath all of them- there was snow and skating ponds and even a little mural my grandpa painted to go on the wall behind the village- it depicted a little local ski hill.  It was awesome and in short- one of my very favorite things about Christmas.

But as it is made of glass and I have three rambunctious little kids... I have been terrified to pull it out.  My oldest begs each year for me to get it out- he's only seen it in boxes... and this year I succumbed.  It's gorgeous and every time I look at it I smile.  But it still gives me heartburn.

   

Haircuts

What do you guys do to get ready for the holidays?  One of the first things on my list (and it's a long one) is to get into the salon for haircuts.  Does this sound silly to you?  Maybe... but I HATE it when you go to take pictures at Christmas parties and Christmas morning and the kids look reminiscent of Chewy on Star Wars.  So now I make sure that at the very least- the boys get a quick hair cut the first week of December.

They LOVE the girl we go to- her name is Jamie and I'm pretty sure that both of the boys have a slight crush on her.  Ryan brings her flowers from the yard during spring and summer.  I'm actually pretty impressed with both boys when we go- they just sit in the little chair and do their thing.  Love those two!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Soo... I know I'm a little behind.  I've been debating.  I officially ran out of space on my blog about two weeks ago and I have been trying to decide if it was worth it to buy some additional space for a couple bucks a month OR do I start over.  It was a hard decision.  I hate the idea of spending money that has no foreseeable end... I just have to pay $2 every month for the rest of forever?!  It sounds daunting.  Not that two bucks is a lot of money... but just pay it FOREVER?  But the alternative... Start over on something that i have been working on for the last five years?  No.  So I paid my $2.  And you get Thanksgiving pictures!

We went to my in-laws house in Idaho to celebrate this year.  Unfortunately Shaun had to work the day after Thanksgiving this year so we didn't get to stay the entire weekend like we would have liked- but it was still really nice to see everyone for a couple of days.  

Because we were not at home, my mother in law had the unfortunate task of trying to not only feed a zillion people, but she also had to figure out a few gluten free options too.  Thankfully- she seemed up to the task... at least for some of the dinner options.  I offered to make our own stuffing, potatoes and pie.  It was a good trade.

See, here's the thing- in our day to day lives here in Salt Lake, I don't think a whole lot about being a Celiac anymore.  Well- really- I guess I think about it every day since I have to make the meals in our house- but to really sit and think about it- we really don't.  It has gone the way of laundry and homework- it's just part of our daily routine.  But then something special comes along- like a holiday (Thanksgiving in this case) and I feel a little guilty.  Because I passed this stupid disease along to my cute little boy.  And it makes his life a little bit harder and a lot different than that of his grandma's and grandpa's and cousins, etc.  Luckily for me- he seems up to the task.  But I still feel bad- so I am grateful for my mother in law allowing me into her very busy kitchen on a very busy day to cook and bake for my little boy.  To allow me to give him some semblance of "normal."  Because of my efforts and her graciousness, Ty was able to have gluten free/ dairy free stuffing (which was phenomenal by the way) and gluten/diary free pumpkin pie.  (Pause to listen to the round of applause sounding now)

While Jacki and I were at work in the kitchen- my cute sister in law put the kids to work making decorations for our holiday feast.  The kids loved it!  There were pictures to color and letters to cut out.  There were word searches and mazes and tic tac toe games...  It was so fun to see them all hard at work and then to see the fruits of their labors hung up all around the dining room.

This is our cousin, Deja...  She is just 6 months older than Kate and I love getting her together with my kids- she gets along so well with all three!  I just wish we lived closer so they could play together more often!

And baby Krew... though he ate more crayons than he colored with...

After our fantastic feast- we headed outside to clear our heads and to play.  Ty got a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas last year (anyone seeing Ralphie right now?), but we only let him pull it out when we are safely out of city limits and out in the country.  So every time we head to Grandma's house- it's one of the first things he asks for when we get out of the car.  His dad is quite the marksman and is pretty happy to oblige most of the time.  Ty is actually getting pretty good too- he hits the box (target) most of the time now!  Of course- Ryan is never one to be outdone by Ty for long and he asked his dad to help him shoot the target too.  I think he missed the box every time he pulled the trigger- but the smile on his face was priceless...  Actually... his face throughout the entire process was pretty funny.  Case in point- check out his "concentration" look here as he tries to hold the gun, aim and pull the trigger...

Keep at it bud- you are only four!

And lastly- my sweet sister in law asked me to snap a few family pictures while we were there- and of course I said yes!  When you see these pictures you'll know why- they are SOO cute!  Who wouldn't want to take pictures of them!?

Anyway- I'm back and should probably blog more often now that I am paying for the stupid thing... So hopefully you'll see more of me!

I hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving and let's bring on Christmas!!

It's that time of year again...

So... every year for the last six years, we have sat for pictures with Santa.  The lady that takes them does them early in November so that you have enough time to send out cards or prints or whatever.  I love them.  Her Santa is the REAL SANTA.  Look at his guy!  It has to be!!  

That said... I have a picture of each of my children SCREAMING with this sweet Santa.  The last couple of years, my kids have all been small enough to fit in Santa's chair, and he smiled calmly behind them.  This year though...  We unleashed Kate on the poor man.  As you can see from the picture... she's literally turning purple.  I'm pretty sure she didn't draw a breath for a good two minutes.  

That said... Merry Early Christmas everyone!  And a Happy Thanksgiving too!

First Snowstorm

Anyone who knows me knows that winter is my LEAST favorite season.  I hate the cold.  I hate the wet.  I'd just as soon move to a beach in Mexico so I never have to see the stupid white stuff either.  BUT...  I do make an exception... The first snow of the year really is beautiful.  And Christmas really isn't Christmas without snow.  I guess I can handle the snow/ winter thing for about two months out of the year.  There.  Done.  We are officially within the two month time frame, so let's get this party started. 

Enough babble though.  It snowed a good foot this weekend and my kids were sooo excited.  Actually- Ty was excited... and the others just fed off of his excitement.  So I hunted down the snowclothes and out they went.  

I was actually a little shocked.  Kate stayed outside for about an hour and a half- she was totally content to follow her brothers around and throw snowballs.  She's kind of an in and out kind of girl- at least she was this summer.  Maybe winter is her thing... I got my whole house cleaned while they were outside though... so I'm thinking it's a GOOD THING.

Ty kept coming in and asking if there was enough snow to go skiing yet (he came in about 5 times in two hours)... He was disappointed every time when I told him no.  I'm excited to take him again this year- he's actually getting pretty good.  He doesn't need anyone to hang onto him any more and he makes turns all by himself too!  Most of the credit must go to my dad- it was always his dream to ski with his grandkids- I'm just glad Ty is happy to make that dream come to fruition!

We actually took Ryan last year too- I think he went two times.  He did pretty well- skiing is hard enough on my legs- I can't imagine how hard it was on 3 year old legs.  Nonetheless- Ryan is pretty excited to go skiing this year too.

And what giant snowstorm would be complete without a snowman?  None.  I put my boots and gloves on and joined the kiddos... They couldn't lift their snowman pieces by themselves.  I think it was a pretty good effort!  Although... the kids were pretty disappointed in their snowman for smoking...  I guess I'll hide the pipe next time- apparently all those talks about smoking are paying off!!

Wednesday

Sometimes I guess monotony is okay.  It gets a bad rap... but this morning- even though it was the same as any other morning- I wouldn't have changed it for anything.  Kate and I had taken the boys to school and Kate had just gotten out of the tub.  I put her on my bed to watch Mickey Mouse while I jumped in the shower and when I got out- she just looked so stinkin' sweet, I had to take a few pictures.  She looks deceptively sweet in all of them.  

Here's the thing- I know how incredibly blessed I am to be able to stay home each day with my little ones.  Not every mom that wants to stay home, gets to.  My husband works really hard and we make a lot of sacrifices so that we can make it work.  Today- I guess I'm just stopping to be thankful.  

That's not to say that every day is like this.  In fact- more often than not- I probably complain about my kids and how much they drive me crazy (short drive, I know).  But the truth is, I love them.  And I even miss the boys when they are at school.  Because the truth is- mornings like today are numbered.  Kate is getting older too and next year she goes off to preschool two mornings a week.  She is so animated and fire-y... I'll miss her.

Until that day comes though- I'll just have to keep reminding myself how good THESE mornings are when I'm having the really crappy ones.  Here's to you baby girl- love you more than you know!

Halloween

So... I don't know about you- but I have weird kids.  Yeah I said it.  They are weird.  It came time to get into their costumes so we could go to dinner up at Grandma Janet's house.  No big deal- they were happy to put them on.  But when it came time to accessorize ..  They went nuts!  Ryan's costume came with a little mask that he wanted to wear OVER his glasses- obviously impending his ability to view anything other than what was exactly in front of him.  So I pulled out some liquid eyeliner and offered to "paint" a mask on underneath his glasses so that he could still be in full costume AND be able to see.  Win/Win right?  Pfffhhtt! No!  I had to bribe him with all kinds of crap to get him to sit on the counter.  Then he started to cry!  What in the world!!??  Please tell me your kids are crazy too!!  I had to let him feel the tip of the eyeliner before he believed me that it wouldn't hurt him.  When he finally held still long enough for me to draw a quick outline on his eyes, I gave him a hand-held mirror so he could see what it was going to look like.  It took two seconds for him to decide it was... wait for it... AWESOME!!!  I just shook my head and finished filling in the mask.  

Then I had to do the same thing for Kate- she was "CatWoman" but didn't really understand what that was- so we kind of made her a kitty instead.  It took a whole package of smarties to get her to hold still long enough for me to give her a nose and whiskers.  (*as a side note here... as I was putting her in bed that night, I tried to wash OFF the kitty whiskers and SHE WOULDN'T LET ME!  She said she liked them*)

I was already exhausted and the evening hadn't even begun yet.  Yeeesh.

But here they are in all their Gotham Glory.  Batman.  Robin.  and CatWoman.

Despite being stinkers they are pretty cute.

We had dinner at my mom's and then trick or treated around their neighborhood for a little bit before we came home and hit our neighbors houses.  Because Halloween was on a Wednesday this year- my little trick or treaters were sugared up, showered and in bed by 8:00... and it was pretty great!  I'm kind of digging the middle of the week thing!  Happy Halloween!

Now onto the Holidays...

Ryan's Halloween Program

You know what irritates me?   Okay- really- a lot of things irritate me.  But this time it's something specific!  Ty and Ryan's Halloween parades/programs were about an hour apart from each other.  How can someone be in two places at once!?  Whatever.  

We RACED over to Ryan's school right after Ty came through the auditorium and slid into the seats with a few minutes to spare.  In fact- we even snagged a picture of Ryan with Miss Tammy.  What we would have done without this woman- I don't ever want to know.  She really has been sooo sweet with our shy little guy.  Seriously.  It's like she's a miracle worker- you wouldn't recognize him from last year.  And again... sorry for the yellow picture- but I do have some good news...

I played with the camera settings while we were sitting there waiting for Ryan and LOOK!  Pictures that are NOT yellow!!  Woohoo!

Ryan was very attentive during the program and sang "The Monster Mash" very loudly!  We are so proud of him!  Love you little bear!

Ty's Halloween Parade

As a preface... these pictures are awful!!  I haven't figured out how to take not orange pictures INSIDE a giant gym...  I hate that.  I'm pretty sure I could make them better if I played around in photoshop, but I don't have the time this morning.

Stupid pictures aside... Ty had his Halloween parade in school last Friday.  So dad took the morning off work and helped me get the other two up to the school in plenty of time.  

Kate sat down on the floor and waited- she was totally absorbed in a tootsie roll that a neighbor gave her when we got there.  I don't think she cared about much else. But please... pause a moment to check out her skirt... I totally made that!!  I know I know- I'll take my bow.  I'm sure Project Runway will be calling in the morning to book my appearance.  It's all so exciting.  

But I digress... here comes Ty's class!

After a long wait... the Dark Knight finally appeared at the door!

And seriously... check out those GORGEOUS brown eyes peeking out from behind his mask.  Heartbreakers one day.

Ty's class had a party after the parade.  I had called the room mom earlier in the week to see if they were having snacks and what they might be... the answer:  Doughnuts.  Really?  Really?  Or is it donuts?  Either way... she offered up the idea of him having a sucker instead.  I felt like reaching through the phone and giving her a good shake.  Granted, I'm glad she had another option for the allergen-challenged... but seriously?   A Sucker?  No.  So we set to work the night before to figure out gluten free donuts.  They turned out pretty good- good enough to pass a 7 year old's inspection and make him feel like he was a part of the class... but I still think it needs some work.  Still though- I have to thank Nicole Hunn at Gluten Free on a Shoestring for the original recipe.  It was better than a sucker.  We'll get it though Ty... hang in there with me!

Night with the Runnin' Utes

Anybody that knows us knows that my boys are Utah fanatics.  I don't know if there are two "bigger" Utah fans anywhere- what they lack in size- they make up for in heart!  That said- my dad is a close second behind the boys... he has season tickets to Utah Men's Basketball and he is so sweet to let my boys go with him when the game isn't on a school night.  Thanks grandpa.  That said- college basketball season is getting ready to start and the Utes hosted a "Night with the Runnin' Utes" where season ticket holders could come and get some Ute gear and a tour of their new locker rooms.  

My boys were stoked to sit in the same chairs as their idols...  

They loved the LONG walk down "the Tunnel"- okay- actually they ran the whole way pretending to hear the crowd cheering for them at the other end.  Their cute cousin, Cam, ran right along side!

The basketball team was also doing a mini clinic for the kids in their practice gym, and were giving out basketballs to the kids that participated.  Okay- I use the term "kids" loosely... because to be honest- my dad walked away with a couple balls and so did Shaun and my brother.  We have Utah basketballs coming out of our ears now.

Posing for a couple pictures on the big U...

The aforementioned crazy Utah fans...

And my brother Dave with Cam...

It was really a fun night- I'm glad we had the chance to hang out with the Utes!