Royal Watching

Friday morning, me and Amanda got up very early and shared some fun girl time watching the Royal Wedding.

 Jaxon wanted to watch it with us but the 2am alarm proved to be too early for his tired little eyes.
I'm one of those crazy people who woke up at similar times in the past to watch Charles and Diana's wedding, and Diana's funeral. It was fun to finally have someone to royal watch with me... Something about the fantasy of the royal family intrigues me even if they are the world's most famous (and wealthy) welfare recipients. 
Now, in case you have been in a cave for the last week or so, and completely missed all the pomp and circumstance, Amanda re-created the processional for you.


Here we are, the full processional...

The upright red licorice are the altar's at which the betrothed couple knelt, the golden gummy bear is the Archbishop of Canterbury who officiated for the service.  The gummy bears off to the side are the wedding guests.

Here are the riders on their licorice horses who accompanied the processional from the church back to Buckingham Palace.  The gummy bears off to the side are the crowds lining the streets.



And, from the front...If you look closely, you'll see the Prince and Princess in a carriage made of cashews in the middle of the photo. They are just behind the four horses, two of which do not have riders.  Yes, she caught all the details!

Amanda is definitely creative!!  Gosh, I love that child, she makes me laugh!



And speaking of laughing...  Two billion people watching and THESE are the hats Prince Andrew's girls wear?  Amanda actually loved them...BUT she's 8.  I'm sure that bow hat reminds her of little Cindy Lou-Who ;o)



Well, it was all great fun, but I hope there isn't another for a while.  I need to catch up on my sleep now!

Time Marches On

Earthquakes,  tsunamis, nuclear disaster,  floods, the overthrowing of governments, two wars, political unrest in the Middle East,  soaring oil prices, record number of homes in foreclosure.  There isn't much good news lately and it seems the events that have been prophesied are unfolding right in front of us.  It's incredible, yet somewhat scary.

Meanwhile, I live my little blessed life.  I thank God for the gift of  my husband and kids.  We have shelter, food, transportation and a few dollars to buy extras.  Despite all the tragedies in the world, time marches on.  Our world just keeps spinning and my priorities changing.  I find so much joy in the little things...

Little things like Mason's first lost tooth

Or Jaxon giving me a thumbs up after having a tooth knocked out on the trampoline.

                                                                                      

Or the feeling of pride when the boys got their Bobcat in Scouts.

Despite all that is going on in the world, there are miracles that unfold all around us every day.   I realize that life as we know it can change in a split second.  I remind myself daily that God is in charge and He knows all.  What a wonderful time to be alive.  What an incredible life unfolds every day. 

Jax in a Box

Once again, I'm reminded that the best toys for kids are free...

Jax in a Box!

(Before you ask...Yes, he eats...)

Amanda and Carson (I DO dress them, but they never stay that way long...)

I guess even at their age the box is more fun than the toy inside!

And playing Wii games while standing in a box?  Well, that's just kiddie crack!

Amanda finally got the box to herself!  (For about 2 seconds.)

Gotta love a happy kid!

Friday Flashback!

One of my favorite pictures EVER!!

Mason, Carson, Jaxon and Amanda, 15 months old.

Nothing quite as cute as a baby tushies!!

I Miss My Six-Pack

And I'm NOT talking about beer.
Once Upon a Time, I had abs like this...

OK, so I was twenty-something at the time, but my tummy looked pretty dang good!

Then, something happened that gave those muscles a good stretch... 

I'm not complaining, because I'd take my four pack of kids over six-pack abs ANY DAY!!

But, I've decided that 8+ years later, I can no longer blame my flabby tummy on pregnancy and childbirth.  It's time to get back into shape.

So I ordered a couple of workout videos... 

Notice the Pringle's can holding up the video on the right.  Yeah, I'm all about eating healthy!

Jennifer, (my niece) saw me Hip-Hoppin' along to the videos when she came to visit the other day.  She said I was "cute."  (Kinda like when elderly people exercise?)  I have a feeling she wanted to bust a gut laughing at me,  which would have been a great ab workout for her.

A couple of days ago, I went to Costco.  I found these little numbers for a really great price and thought I'd give 'em a whirl.  After all, if they do what they claim, they might be a great addition to my "get ripped" repertoire. 

They might be ugly but, the box says that they are designed to help:

burn more calories

improve posture

improve circulation

strengthen the back

tighten abdominal muscles

firm buttocks

tone and firm thighs

firm calves

reduce joint stress

vacuum

wash dishes

Well, maybe I made up the part about vacuuming and washing dishes, but a girl can dream, can't she?

If all goes well, I'll post before and after pictures.  If not, I'll delete the "before" pictures and no one will ever be subjected to seeing my uncovered pooch and love handles.

Hmmm, on second thought, maybe I'll skip that post altogether.

I hear you breathing that sigh of relief!

The Hoarders

The kids put most of their Webkinz in the family room for a Webkin birthday party...

The little plush toys were EVERYWHERE!

And I do mean...

EVERYWHERE!!

Then I started looking around and I realized that the number of Webkinz they own isn't even close...

To the number of Legos they own

And Santa brought MORE of BOTH this year!

Perhaps a 12 step program is in order.

Or, maybe you'll find me on some reality show someday lamenting about how I have no idea how it all got so very out of control!

For which I'll want payment.

The kids will ask me to buy more Webkinz and Legos with the money.

And, of course, I will.

Birthdays

Yesterday was my birthday.  I've had 46 of them to be exact!  I read this post by a wonderful blogger and thought how appropriate it was for me to be reading it on my birthday.  Thank you Amelia for writing such a wonderful post!
And yeah, ditto to what SHE said!