Thanksgiving

Our family has many things to be thankful for this year. Here are few this past week while celebrating Thanksgiving at Grandma Scholz's house.

A fun hike to Lady Bug Campground with the cousins thanks to Grandpa Scholz. It was cold and the higher we got the more snow we saw but so worth it. Can you see Andrew way in the back?

A Canoe in the pool. Who needs a lake, when Grandpa will just put it in the pool. Couldn't believe it, but no one fell in. A few jumped, but none fell.

Grandmas that play Wii Bowling. This was great-grandma's first time and she caught on quickly.

A happy boy for at least the first part of the parade. He went home early to go to sleep.

A Christmas parade where we are the parade, not just watching it.

Thanks to Uncle Jeremy, AKA, Teacher of the Year.

A few quiet moments while kids are busy exploring and Grandma is baby sitting Sean.

There was also a great feast that I neglected to photograph because I was too busy stuffing my face. The food was great and the table was beautiful. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa it was a great time.

A Tribute to Max

Today we put Max, Tom's cat, to sleep. Tom has had Max in his life for the last 18 years and it was hard to see those years come to an end.
I know I have always proclaimed my dislike for cats, but the truth is, I loved this cat because my family loved this cat. When Tom and I were dating I remember my complete shock that I had fallen in love with a man that owned a cat (something I never saw coming). I worried about how I was going to live in a house with a cat and I have to admit that I was not looking forward to the idea. While I never came to love living with a cat, I did come to love watching my children and Tom love this cat.

We will miss Max. I wont miss the cat box or the cat hair, or the cat puke but a small piece of our family puzzle will always be missing.

Goodbye Max.

No kids, we are not getting a dog.

Kira's Life List

While pulling Sean out of Kira's room yet another time (She doesn't really have a door, poor girl) I noticed a list on her dresser. This is what is said:
MY LIFE LIST
Go to Australia
Go to Greece
Go to France
Go to Vienna
Go to New Orleans
Go to Farallon Islands
Go to Rome
Go to Spain
Laugh in the Face of Death

While I can make the trip to the Farallon Islands happen pretty easily, I have concluded that she will have to grow up and work for an Airlines. Not sure what to say about the Laugh in the Face of Death part. I love her mind.

A Decade of Difference

It is not often that I notice the 10 year difference between Tom and I. Tonight I had one of those moments. Tom started playing "I Think Were Alone Now" on his iPhone and I jumped in to sing along. I quickly noticed that I was singing the Tiffany version from the 80's and he was playing the punk version from the 70's by Lene Lovich. I still prefer Tiffany's version better although Tom strongly disagrees.

Kira's in Yosemite

She has been gone since Sunday and won't be back until Friday. She went with a group from school and we are getting updates via Facebook. From what I can tell she is having a blast, but boy do we miss her.

Oh How Quickly They Learn.

This is how I found Sean in the living room the other day.

Must have picked this up from Tom.

From My Experience...

Whenever I get a ticket for a traffic violation, there is always a second right around the corner, sometimes a third. For someone who pretty much drives a total of 10 miles a day right here in a little town, how I managed to get 2 tickets this past week is leaving me speechless.

For the first one, just call me Maria Shriver. Yes I got caught talking on my phone while dropping the kids off at school. When the police officer asked me if it was a life or death phone call I considered lying but then remembered Kira was in the car listening to every word.

The second came from making a left turn out of the parking lot at Kira's school. Apparently there is a very small sign that says no left turn during one hour in the morning. Please? This cop took it easy on me and only gave me a citation for not having my drivers license, but still something I have to deal with. At least I happened to get dressed both mornings and didn't get caught in my PJ's.

I am seriously considering making the kids walk to school just to avoid the looming third ticket.