We Had a Flipp'n Good Time!



HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GIOVONNIE!



Giovonnie's birthday was yesterday (Feb. 28th), and we had a great time. I think it was  extra special for him because they are also doing a fun week at school to celebrate Dr. Seuss, and it was inside out/ backwards day (just to explain the clothing). When he came home from school he said he had a great day, and he even had extra treats to bring home. He watched as I created little penguins with premade fondant that I rolled and shaped into the little guys then piped on white frosting. ( The fondant was a small premade package by Wilton that I picked up at our local Wal-Mart.) Once I was finished I asked Giovonnie if he'd like to put his penguins in there habitat; so he placed them all where he thought they should go. Then laughed at them swimming and diving into the water.

Giovonnie's Birthday Cake, with fondant penguins!
Thanks for the fun idea from Fowl Single File.



After we finished decorating the cake, Giovonnie and I started preparing his birthday dinner of Chili, and cinnamon rolls. I love that he enjoys cooking and baking because it gives us some one-on-one time. Once dad came home from work it was dinner time (supper time, to some of you). When we all finished eating we said we were to full for cake, so Giovonnie wanted to go play computer games with Dad (Joe) and Royce, but the rest of us chanted, "Presents, Presents, Presents...until Giovonnie said, "Ok, I'll open my presents."



Giovonnie opened his gifts and got a couple of  How to Train You Dragon toys,



so he had to try one out. (Neat little science experiment).



I also had to give him that Dragon Puppet that I got from Swag Bucks and Amazon.Com.
I meant to give it to him at Christmas, but with the abundance of other gifts
 I decided to hold it for his Birthday.





I'm glad I did because he loved it.

 After Presents Giovonnie, Royce and Joe went off to play a computer game.

 (Joe has a  mini-network set up.) Then before bed time it was cake and ice cream time.



Singing Happy Birthday





....and relight again,



blowing out the candle for the 4th time, or 5th, or 8th. ; )

Ice Cream and Cake.



A little penguin birthday dance.





Happy Birthday, Giovonnie. I hope all your
birthday wishes come true.



Ooohh, Christmas Tree!

Like many of you we to have been getting ready for Christmas. At the beginning of this month we started our celebrations by going to two different Christmas Programs one for Giovonnie, the K-4th grade program, and one for Royce, the 5th & 6th grade program. We also decorate the house some, but I found with children that are 2 years old keeping them away from all “the pretties” is not worth the work, so our decorations extend to a wreath on the outside front door, the children’s stockings and the tree.

Giovonnie did so well at his program; he was very animated with the actions through each song. You could see that he knew the words and actions, and that he was proud that we were all there to watch him. We were proud of him too!



Giovonnie is there, between the two girls wearing the blue shirt.



 



The girl looking at Giovonnie; her name is Cloe.



Royce’s was the following week, and unfortunately, Gannon wasn’t feeling well. That whole day Gannon was whinny and clinging to me, he also had a bit of a fever. Once Royce came home, he was so excited about his program that night, and really wanted his Dad to meet his friend Cameron. However, once Joe came home we discussed that Gannon was really too sick to go and someone would have to stay home with him. Joe said that he didn’t mind staying home with him because I had been home with him all day, and I didn’t mind the break. Although Royce, said he understood it really devastated him that Daddy and Gannon wouldn’t be going to the program. I was proud that he held himself together up on stage, but you could see that he was very bummed out about the situation.

Royce is standing in the green and blue stripped shirt,
between the boy who looks like he's the kid from the movie
A Christmas Story, and the girl with the cowboy hat on.

Wait... do you see it? There's a smile on Royce's face.

Here we are home and the boys are having marshmallows dipped in
peanut butter, and M&M's.

Later that week, I remembered that after Christmas I had tossed our fake tree because the stand broke on it, and after super gluing it, hot gluing it, and then duct taping it I was done with it and tossed it. I worked on finding a used tree, and was able to purchase one. It was a nice fake 6’ tree for $7.00! I brought it home and we set it up that evening and started decorating it. With all the boys doing all the decorating of the tree most of the ornaments were placed to the front side of the tree, which made it bend forward a bit. Joe, decided that he was done with the stands breaking on the tree too, (Yep the one we had two years before the plastic stand on it too, so we are on tree number 3.) so he tied a string around the middle and attached it to the wall with a couple of Hercules Hooks for support, but then the top was still tilling forward a bit. Joe playing Hercules himself was going to bend it back and straighten it out a little, only this didn’t go as planned, and the tree snapped right in two (lol)! We patched this tree up with some duct tape and moving the string up this tree will serve its purpose this year.

 



SNAP! goes the tree.

 

All fixed.



Winner of the CSN Giveaway is....

Comment # 75 = Smash Bravo Team !

 

Smash Bravo Team posted this:

Congratulations!

Thanks to all of you who participated in my giveaway. I will notify the winner via email.

To My Husband ~ on Veterans Day

It almost seems like ages ago, when we first started dating and you went off to basic training, and then AIT. I remember the first time  I went to visit you at some church Christmas service after you went to basic, and I thought I'd never find you in that sea of green. Later, when you were in AIT, I'd come to see you on weekends, and you'd sneak off base. Or how 'bout when you had to do Iron Mikes all the way to the mess hall with one of your buddies when we got back to late from one of your leave times. After we were married, I can easily recall you getting up at the butt crack of dawn to shave and dress in your BDUs for drills on weekends, and you'd go for you two weeks in the summers. And even with all that I never really expected you to go off to war. I didn't truly believe it when you were on the phone with your unit as we were in the delivery room, me giving birth to Giovonnie. Holding a two week old baby while you said good bye set in a reality that you were going; I was thankful when you only served state side, and then came home. I think it prepared us for that time when you would serve over seas. I was sad to see you leave, yet proud you were willing to follow your heart to willing serve your country.  



We (Royce, Giovonnie, and I) missed you dearly, and when Christmas came around I was proud that Royce Lee thought of you and asked to hang you ID tags you gave him on our Christmas tree.



Dec. 2005





Joe and some battle buddies.



When you came home we were glad!



Home Coming Dec. 2006



Our lives were changed, and we found that we had to make some adjustments (and find in some ways  we still are).

It seems strange to think of you and some of our friends as veterans; it's almost as if you are all too young. When I hear the term veteran I often think of men who are our parents ages, or grandparents, and I have to remind myself that you are a veteran as well.

"Thank You for serving."

Halloween Havoc



Lt. to Rt.: Andrew is Jet, Giovonnie is Sokka (wolf warrior), Lexi is Katara,
 Royce is Aang (The Avatar and Last Air bender), and Spencer is  Prince Zuko.





The hood Pattern for
Giovonnie's helmet.


 The past few weeks have been a bit crazy in my house! Somehow, I was roped into making Halloween costumes for my two older boys, and my niece and nephews who live near us. (I was supposed to make costumes for my husband, brother-in-law, and youngest son too, but I ran out of time and had to nix them.) It maybe would have been a bit easier if I hadn't had to create my own pattern for each costume, but I couldn't find any that were already made. Joe did end up lending a hand in the last costumes for our niece and nephew cutting out material, and pinning it together, along with some good advice. Anyhow, the big idea was that they would all dress like the characters from the cartoon Avatar, The Last Air bender (Here is a site about the cartoon and some of the characters: http://www.nick.com/shows/avatar/characters/iroh.html). Over all the costumes turned out pretty good; however only, one guy admitted to knowing who they were supposed to be.


Giovonnie, Lexi, Andrew, Gannon, Royce, and Spencer.





Jet (Andrew), Sokka (Giovonnie), Katara (Lexie), Aang (Royce), and Zuko (Spencer)





The Gang Trick-or-Treating



Gannon ended up being the lion, which was a costume I had bought for Royce when he about one yrs old (that would make the costume about 10 yrs old now), Giovonnie wore it too at one point. Almost every door that opened complemented him on how cute of a lion he was and would give him extra candy in his Halloween bucket.



Gannon and Daddy (Joe), Trick-or-Treating.



Riding in the back of the pick-up, looking up at the stars.



Halloween Pizza Party at Uncle Scott and Aunt Melissa's house.

 After Trick-or Treating we finished out the night with a pizza party. The kids had so much fun, and I'm glad that they had a good night together.