smiling is my favorite

I have to accept that I will not reach my blogging goal of at least one more than last year. What can I say, life has been too busy. Which is a shame really, because the blog is my only journal. And I still can't for the life of me remember Ava's first words. We just tell her it was Da. But we don't know. Awful, right?

Tomorrow I'm throwing my annual festivus with girlfriends. This year for feats of strength, I'm making them compete in a variety of Silent Library challenges (one of my favorite things of 2010). If they refuse to participate, I have a cone of shame to put on them and then will give them a teddy bear beat down. I'm giving out sweet prizes for the winners and socks for the losers. (Because it socks to lose--I know, crazy Senior Dich pun. Pithy is the best way to describe it.)

I'm officially done with everything Christmas, including teacher gifts. Boo Yeah. Except Christmas cards. I gotta suck it up and do them. I have no excuse this year.

A couple of weeks ago, Aaron totaled his truck (blowout on the tollway. He destroyed the median.) and now he has to decide if he wants another company car or buy something else. Something else = Toyota F150 or Jeep Wrangler 4 door. I'm leaning the obvious jeeply way but this is his choice.

3 days till winter break. No snow...we haven't been able to sled yet. It keeps melting before the kids get home from school. Next week is suppose to be beautiful. We went to the park today and the kids were too hot to wear their coats. Crazy.

definitely on business...monkey business

Aaron had a work party...in Texas. Spouses were invited. So we booked a babysitter and hopped on a plane to Texas yesterday morning (up at 5a for anyone who is counting). We got into Dallas early because Aaron had meetings all day. What did I do while he sat in long meetings? I grabbed a cab and went shopping, got a manicure and pedicure, worked out, and relaxed. I felt like I was living the dream of Tina Fey from Date Night. And it was everything I knew it would be. Did I call and check on the kids? Nope.

The Red Bull party started at 6:45 at the House of Blues and didn't end till 1am. (That's 6 hours in 4 inch heels. My feet were toast by the end of the night.) They had some up-and-coming country rock band and all the trimmings. We were a long way away from OGIO. Aaron works with a lot of great people and it was fun to attach faces to the names and stories.

And now were home.

yeah, that's right.

"Steven Seagal is the new Woody Allen."

And now we're back from outerspace

We just returned from a fabulous California Thanksgive-a-thon vacation. But I'm too exhausted to talk about it right now. I put Morgan in Airport Baby Jail (patent pending). Yeah. Baby jail (a tall barricade of suitcases). That awesome. More later. smooches.

weird

The other day, I took the kids to the park. Then the tornado siren started to wail. The sky was blue. But then a few hours later: 3 inches of snow.

Mosses sidebar: Sending lots of prayers to the Mosses this week. I'm sick to my stomach.

Just cinch it

My friend and I carpool to school. She does the morning and I pick up. Today, Lauren was particularly chatty and my friend called to share the conversation:

"Yeah, everyone in my family wants to go to BYU. Well, except for Bryn. She doesn't want to go to BYU."

"What do you want to do after college?"

"Oh, I don't know. Work at the Gap or something."

Really?!!

"Ewwww. Mom, my bucket smells like meat."

[Her halloween bucket. Really? Really. Morgan's nose is double O C. out of control.]

Sunflower seed sidebar: Coming home from Garden of the Gods, Aaron was munching on sunflower seeds. Morgan, who was sitting right behind him, kept saying, "Eeeewww, Dad, I can smell your nuts." Aaron and I couldn't stop laughing. Yeah we need to grow up.