Wii Fit to be tied

I made the kids do some Yoga on Wii Fit before bed time the other night. This is hilarious to see them do this.....

I think this is the "where the sun don't shine" pose.

And here is the "tree" pose.

And some Video just to complete the action.

Post Christmas Post

We had a wonderful Christmas in Texas. Santa visited us in many forms this year and we are truly blessed with such a wonderful and caring ward family and friends. It has been a struggle this year to keep up with the electric bills, the new air conditioner, the new car, the fixing of the cars, the student loans, and the like.

We had planned on a small, quiet Christmas this year, but it turned out to be one of the better Christmas's we've had just because of the generosity of others.

Here are some pics from Christmas morning:

All the kids got new Razor scooters. The ones they got last year were all rusted up.
Uncle Freddy even got in the action.

We got lots of games this year. We enjoy spending time together playing games. We, Santa, saved up and got us a Wii too!

And my thoughtful wife got me my long lost E.T. t-shirt. (for the story you'll have to look at my prior E.T. post) Thanks babe!

Santa also gave us some cash and a Wii Fit, which the kids are really enjoying. That post to come later on. Thank you to all who made our Christmas so special and meaningful. We love you and hope to be able to repay what you have given us.

Christmas Party w/ Friends

So we went to our friend's house last night, who also is my boss. Long story made short.....Samantha dated their son, has remained close to the family and that is how I got my job here in Houston.

So we had dinner, played Wii and exchanged gifts. They are very generous and we appreciate what they do for us. They're almost like a 3rd set of Grandparents.

Thanks Barbara and Jerry and Deanna too.

Emma got some Banana Republic....not from us I might add, but very cute.

Here is Alex with a game he got and dresssed in clothes that are too small. (I dressed him.)

Dylan with his new sweatshirt. Can't tell if he knows what Hockey is.

The kids had a great time. Especially with the Wii. Santa needs to be notified of this.

Finally, this is my latest hat. I made 2 of them for a couple of people at work. They've been a hit! (what a cute model)

Cancer or Prancer?

We were sitting around the dinner table tonight when we started talking about our guests on Christmas Eve. We told the kids that Samantha's brother, Freddy, and her Aunt Sissy were coming to dinner, but that Sissy's husband Bob would not be coming because he recently died. Alex asked why he died and I said that he was very sick and had cancer. Then out of nowhere Alex finished my thought by saying, "Like Prancer and Dancer and Donner and Blitzen?" It was very funny, but sad at the same time.

Christmas Lights

Here is our sorry attempt at Christmas lights this year. Th lights on our oak tree were supposed to go up the branches because that's what people do here. I overloaded the circuit though and dont have another extention cord so it is what it is.

Even then, I still keep burning fuses on the "candy cane" part. It is still pretty though and still nothing compared to the other houses that are decorated. I guess since we don't have snow, Texans make up for it in lights and electric bills.

The kids "helped", which makes them feel appreciated or involved, but lost interest after going around the tree a few times and getting dizzy.

If I can find another cord, I may put up more lights on the tree, but we'll see. Anyway, thought we'd share.

Emma's Choir Concert

Emma had her 5th grade Christmas choir concert the other night. Here are a couple of quick clips to share.

Its Been a Christmas-like Week

It's been a Christmas-like week..............it started with snow earlier in the week, which lasted less than 24 hours and then promptly warmed back up to 70. As you can tell the boys are in shorts. I'm questioning why my mouth is always open and why my head is so fat.
We went to Lowe's this year to get our Christmas tree. Last year it was Home Depot. We got a great deal on this noble fir.......$32 for the tree AND stand! We had a miserable tree experience last year. I actually returned the tree because it was too pokey.

I miss my childhood days of caravanning with 3 or 4 families into the rugged mountains of Wyoming, sledding and building snow caves while the adults hiked through the snow to cut Christmas trees. Maybe people still do that, but this is what you get when you live in a big city.

Samantha made these super cute ornaments for us this year. She actually just made the lettering. She got the glass pieces from Hobby Lobby. But they are super cute and I told her that she needs to sell them at her craft shows next year.


Here is the near-complete decorated tree. I have spent up to 6 or 7 hours wrapping each branch with lights and this year it only took 3. My wife let me cheat. Don't ask why I have to do this, but I suspect it's because my lovely, beautiful wife doesn't want to. We're talking 12 to 15 strands of lights on this bad boy!

In all, it has been a pleasant week and it ended last night with our church Christmas Concert. We combine with the Epiphany Catholic Church, which is just across the street from ours, to sing songs. This is the 15th year of doing this between the 2 churches. We don't have any pictures, but one of our church friends actually has video......Marci Freeman. You can find her link on our blog list under "Day by Day". A big shout out to you Marci and Mike! Thanks!

As we approach the last week before Christmas break and Christmas.....we wish all of our friends and family a very Merry Christmas! Since we didn't do Christmas cards again this year I really want to send out a mass email with a picture and update on our lives for 2008.

If you'd like to be included, please send quick reply to thehayes05@yahoo.com and I'll get you on our list. Love you all, no matter where you are!

Justin and Samantha

Names

I just thought this was funny and thought I would pass it on...Alex has a kid in his class named...Jack Lantern. I wonder what is middle name is?

What Time Is It???

On school days my kids wake up at 7am and half the time I have to wake them up. So why is it when there is nowhere to be that they wake up at 6am...and turn on the TV loud and dump all the toys out and go to town. Sundays are the only days I can or do try to sleep in. I do have to say though that they usually leave us alone and let us sleep but this morning I had to ask them several times to keep it down. Then I resorted to the bathroom fan for a little more peace and quiet. Thanks kids for letting me get a few more hours! I also can't wait for the new year and a new church schedule...we move to 9am, yeah!!! I am a morning person and am looking forward to getting up and getting going and coming home and napping!

Snow In Houston?!

It is snowing right now. It is 4:43pm and it is snowing in Houston Texas. In my prior post, I mentioned that we just celebrated our 12th anniversary. We were married in Seattle and we took a trip down here to visit her family and friends. I went water skiing on December 17, 1996 here. What a trip.

People are freaking out around here...how are we going to get home? I thought Texans were tough. What a bunch of pansies! The only thing I can say though is that as soon as a car goes into the ditch, there will be at least 6 or 7 tow trucks there within 1 minute. What a bunch of rats they are!

Grrrrr....its cold!

Happy Anniversary!

This is a little late as far as posting goes, but Samantha and I celebrated our 12th year anniversary on Saturday. She spent it at the craft show making some $$$ and I spent it with the Christmas Choir and kids.

We left Emma, 10, at home with the boys and a movie while we went to a Mexican dinner. I wanted to make out in the car, but she wouldn't go for it.

Here is our engagement picture. We look nothing like that anymore. She is much more beautiful and I much thicker in the neck. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful wife. She is such a good mother and wife. It amazes me how much we have become in tune with one another and how we really are one.

I love you honey.

30 Degrees and MISC Thoughts

Well it finally broke into the 30's this last weekend. We actually lit the gas fireplace and threw in some logs. Its disconcerting though to go back and forth between heat and a/c. It was back up in the 70s today.

I'm missing our family and friends and the snow...BAD! It has been such a joy to find friends blogs and kind of catch up on whats happening in their lives.

Samantha had a great craft show this weekend and sold lots of signs while I kept the kids from fighting and struggled to get Christmas lights up......I'll have to get some pics up.

Alex has been so cute this weekend....Samantha asked him to unload the dishwasher and he threw a fit. She said that he was 6 and 1/2 and was old enough to do it himself. He was quick to point out that he doesn't go by 1/2s any more and that he is just 6 therefore not making him old enough to unload the dishwasher.

Then today he asked us what cumbersome meant.....we gave him a puzzled look and he again quickly responded with "big? heavy? hard to handle?" Go Word Girl....we dont have cable so PBS after school is the kids TV time.

Oh and I filled up my car today for $14.....1.22/gal

99 Cent Store

I have mentioned before about deals and couponing but did you know that you can get an early morning Sunday edition paper on Saturday at the dollar stores? I didn't know this until I went to the couponing class at church. Anyway we have a great 99 Cent Store I have discovered. I have never been a dollar store shopper but this store has everything. OK some of it is junk but today I bought Emma 3 pairs of good socks for a buck. They also have produce...I got a large bunch of petite asparagus that I cooked tonight and I was great! So you know how much that stuff is at the grocery store? Last week I got baby carrots for a buck and the bag was a pound and a half. They had bags of oranges and limes, lettuce, potatoes and more! They have cheese and milk (the only thing that is more than a dollar) I decided since we are trying to have a light Christmas this year that the dollars stores are the way to go. They have great stocking stuffers! Anyway, just trying to pass on good information.

First "Official" Hat Sale

I finished a hat for my first paying customer. I even did the embroidering...yuck! I still think it is fun to give my hats away. I get greater pleasure seeing the little kids in my hats. This particular one is for the wife of a guy I work with. Her name is Tiffany. I thought the pom poms were a little over the top, but it works. I have more orders for another lady and a guy at work.

Thanksgiving and Stuff

We had a great Thanksgiving. Even though I complained about being so far away from family and friends it turned out pretty good.

The kids and I got up and went to the ward Turkey Bowl. We had enough people there to have 2 adult games and 1 kids game, so I didnt have to worry about my kids breaking something. It was a ton of fun had by all eventhough it was 70 degrees and stupid humid! At this very moment, nearly a week later I'm still feeling the pain of playing my heart out. My knee is killing me the most....someday we'll get it fixed. I'm sure if I was 100 pounds lighter and buff that it wouldnt be so bad, but sitting at a desk all day doesnt allow for too much exercise.

We had Samantha's brother over for dinner and we had a good time playing Snorta. We highly recommend this game! It is fun for kids and adults. It was a very laid back, chilled day. Sorry this is late, but I have so much to say and this was the first thing on my mind because everytime I move, I discover a new muscle I didn't think I was capable of having.

Alex

Today Alex went with me on a few errands and while we were driving home this is what he said...

"I could never be happy without you, momma."

That brought tears to my eyes. When I told Justin about it later, it brought tears a second time. I just love Alex!!!

Gas Prices...

Over the summer it was costing us close to $100 to fill up our van. We were even thinking about trying to sell it and go to something a little more economical. Well, I am so happy that gas prices have dropped so much. On Saturday I filled up my van for $36. I was so excited! I also heard on the news that Houston has some of the lowest prices on gas in the country. I guess that is one perk about living in Houston.

WE HAVE A BAT!

There is a bat in our chimney. I don't have a ladder to get on my roof to fix the problem. I'd smoke it out, but it will likely come back plus we don't like smoked bat.

If I open the flue the girls are afraid it will come in the house and bite us all. Typical.

I'm perplexed.

E.T. Memories

Way back in 1982 this was my favorite film. This post comes about because we recently rented the movie and showed it to our kids for the first time. They loved it. And as I watched it I was reminded of one of the most vivid memories of my life.

Now to my story, at least this is how I remember it...........

I was in Utah visiting family for Christmas and at that time I suffered the first of many detached retinas. I was in the hospital either just before or just after Christmas.

My aunt's mother-in-law, Grandma Kariya, was going to take all of us to the theater to see E.T. I was devastated that I wasn't able to go, but she was so kind and went out of her way to bring me an E.T. t-shirt in the hospital shortly before or after my surgery. I was very grateful and very proud of my t-shirt.

Back home in Wyoming a few months later my family had decided to go to "visit" a family on Sunday that we were friends with. I had decided to wear my favorite t-shirt, E.T. and I think I remember my mom telling me that it would get dirty if I wore it to their house.

When we arrived at my friend's house, my best friend, Boyd, and I and his cousin went out back to play "Army". I was the lookout as they navigated their way through the garden (jungle) to base. I was stationed on top of a work shed with a baseball bat as my sniper rifle.

Suddenly I saw some action in the garden and knew my comrades were in trouble. I jumped up and started to fire my weapon. In doing so and exposing myself to the enemy I was hit by enemy fire and fell off the top of the shed. (I was actually too close to the edge, slipped and fell off)

I remember falling to the ground head first and landing on a board with a nail, which went up through the bridge of my nose. (I still have the scar) I remember laying there in pain unable to scream or cry. Everything around me was vibrating violently. I was able to make out the faint cries of my friend calling inside for help.

Everything was moving so fast and so slow at the same time. There was a discussion between parents as to whether they should call an ambulance or not. They chose not, which after the following description I'm sure they regret. I was loaded into the back of their light blue 1970s Ford stationwagon, one where the seats folded down. As we were driving I began throwing up and throwing up blood as my dad held me in his arms and tried to keep me still and calm.

From that point....I dont remember much until we got to the hospital. I was placed on a table and nurses seemed to swarm me asking me what hurt, where it hurt, how many fingers, lights, probes.......then I saw scissors......to cut my E.T. shirt off. My favorite shirt. I cried and pleaded for them to let me take it off myself instead of them cutting it off. I lost that battle and I lost my E.T. shirt......forever.

In the end, I suffered a fractured skull, concussion, broken wrist....and apparently I have carried with me the emotional pain of losing something so special and sentimental.

Dylan's Baptism

What a day for Dylan! He was so excited to be baptized. Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Freddy were able to be there. It was a very intimate and special ceremony for us all.

Literally jumping for Joy!

Halloween 2008

We had a very productive Halloween. The kids got all dressed up in their costumes, which were really easy to put together and they all looked so cute.

Emma was a not so scary scarecrow.

Dylan was a "Nike" basketball player.

Alex was Harry Potter....."eat slugs".

Staying Little

I promised a promotion to the owner of "Staying Little" because she has helped me out with some of my crochet hats and she has asked me to help her as she starts her little hat adventure. She specializes in making hats...crochet, sewn or otherwise. She is really super nice and does great work.

Much like when my wife started her vinyl sticker, sign making adventure she too had help from some friends to help spread the word. I'm glad that we all have these fantastic talents we can share with one another to help enrich the lives of those around us.....(okay that was cheesy).

In any case, take a look at her site. I've made some hats, which people have commented they like and want, but she's doing a giveaway, plus she's a pro, so her hats are going to be much better than mine!

(these are actually easter bags I made....but the kids like them as hats)

Coupon Game

I have been trying to use coupons since we had a class at church about couponing. It has been about a month now and I have used them when I can. My goal was to not buy things that I wouldn't normally buy even if it was a great deal. You can get great deals on a lot things but reality is that I don't need some of those things. So I have been sticking to that goal. Today I went to Randalls with the ad in hand and my coupons. I purchased only things that were already on sale and then had coupons for a lot of those things as well. At the end of the reciept was the savings of...$58.10. I was so excited. The thing I hate though is chasing around to several stores. I would never shop at Randalls normally, their prices are crazy high but when the items are on sale it makes the savings higher. The other thing that I like is that you can accumulate discounts on gasoline. So that saves even more. The more money I save the more exciting it is.

Sometimes one voice can make a difference...

I must confess that I am a TV watcher. I love it when the kids are in bed and I can just sit and watch. A while ago there was a Jack in the Box commercial that really made me mad, frustrated and disappointed. My kids happened to be watching with us one night and this commercial came on...the commercial goes something like this. A guy is in a fast food restaurant and another guy comes in wearing Richard Simmons type work our shorts and top and starts stretching inappropriately in front on the other guys face and it is gross. I won't go any further but you get the picture. I was thinking how gross it was and that my kids were watching and what did they think about it. I try to teach my kids about what is and isn't appropriate behavior with their bodies and then this comes on TV and shows them something different. Well, I had seen that commercial before that a few times but that time really did it for me so I went straight for the computer and got onto the Jack in the Box website and made a complaint. I told them how ridiculous that commercial was and what were there advertising people thinking and a few other things and you know what? I haven't seen that commercial since. I kept thinking as soon as I blogged about it it would come back on but it has been over a month and still haven't seen it. Just watch, tonight I will see it. But it goes to show you that maybe one voice can make a difference.

FINISHED!

I finally finished the Twilight series. I really enjoyed the first book and the last the best with the second being my least favorite. I was discouraged after that one but I am glad I got through them all. It took me longer than I had hoped to finish them...life gets in the way sometimes. Anyway, I can't wait to see the movie, I only wish that it encompassed all the books! I guess I will just have to wait.

Whats for sale?

A couple of weeks ago, I came home from work and found the kids and a couple of their friends set up to sell.

They set up a little card table and bring out all of these toys and whatever else they can find.

Its kind of cute to see them get excited about selling something, but I think they need a lesson in targeting their audience.

I see 2 naked dolls....one of which is Raggedy Ann. I'm glad no Barbies were present and I'm glad Raggedy Andy wasn't naked either.

Then there are all of these truck toys that have probably been buried in a backyard, wheels don't turn, etc..

Then there is the mystery candy that is older than dirt and looks like it was pulled out from underneath a dresser or couch.

Then there is everything else and they try to flag down cars that are turning into the cul-de-sac and pestering adults to come look to see if there is something they want.

The funny thing is that in the end they come and ask us for money to buy stuff from their own sale. This is truly one of the only times as a parent that you'll pay for something, just to turn around and throw it away when the kids aren't looking.

More Hats

So while I was on my trip, I spent my evenings in my hotel room crocheting. I found a cute hat on another blog (Franco Fab Five) and she was nice enough to share the pattern with me. I had made a couple of hats with the pattern, but we tried them on some babies and they didnt fit too well, so I made some more.

I altered the pattern a little bit as well to accomodate what I was trying to do. I think these look pretty good and I'm sure I'll have more to "show off" because the kids are buggin me to make them one.

My sister wanted one with ear flaps, so I took the design from another pattern and applied it to the basic frame of the hat.

The first "worms in the grass" hat I made was too small and was a finger weight yarn. This one I made with the soft cotton yarn. I made a little design, crease, all the way around where I was slip stitching into the end. Lessoned learned to follow the directions, but its cool...I think.

I followed the original pattern, but just didnt add the "brim" on this. Plus I added a little "charlie brown" stripe. Hooray for me!

Cincinnatti/Louisville Trip

I was able and fortunate to go on a business trip last week to Cincinnati and Louisville to do some training and visit a couple of factories.

The group I was with was able to go to a Toyota facility where they build the Toyota Avalon, Camry, Solara and the new Venzo. That was really cool to see cars being built from scratch. It takes about 20 hours for one car to be built, but once the assembly line is full, cars are coming off every minute. They wouldn't let us take pictures, so I don't have any, but it was cool.

The other place we went was the UPS World Port facility outside Louisville. We are a customer of UPS and we reviewed our contractual agreements, goals and trends. We were able to tour their massive operation. The coolest part was going to the "airport" facility where 90% of all UPS packages go and get sorted. There is over 127 miles of conveyor belt and it takes a package 13 minutes to be processed from the time it gets unloaded to the time it is ready for its final destination. The packages only get touched twice! Once when they come off the plane and once when they go back on.

The coolest thing though was being able to fly a Boeing 757 aircraft simulator. The simulator is $12million and worth every penny! It was so much fun! It is really like flying a commercial airliner. We didn't do anything too fancy, but we got to take off and land. My landing wasn't too great the first time....I over corrected at 130knots upon landing and I'm sure I died. I landed good the 2nd time though. That is something I will brag about. I'll have to attach a copy to prove it.

No Pes For You!

Phone or no phone?

In our family we seem to resist technology, not because we don't like it but because other things usually come first. Take for example our computer...it is 7 years old and in the computer world that is past retirement age. Also we don't have cable or anything like TVO. We also still watch a lot of VHS movies...it was funny because Emma had a friend over a few weeks ago and they watched a movie and the girl had never seen a VHS tape. We also didn't have a cell phone until we moved here. I was left to sell our home and Justin was here working so we thought it would be a good idea. Justin and I usually share the one phone with me having it most of the time but there have been a few times that having two would have been nice.



So on Saturday we drove over to the wireless store and got Justin a phone. It was fun. We walked in and started talking to the guy and he offered us a new cheap phone and then a credit for me to put toward an upgrade. I know that Justin was thinking that he wanted a nicer phone. Then the guy asked us who we worked for because some companies have accounts or something and you can get a discount. So he looked and our company was on the list. So instead he offered us two nicer phones for free and then 8% off our monthly service...8% is better than nothing. We were excited because we thought that was a good deal. I know that phone companies give phones away all the time but this was fun for us.

Justin...welcome to the world of wireless technology!!!

Twilight...should I go on?

So my sister-in-law gave me the whole series of Twilight books over the summer and Saturday I picked up the first one...it took me a hundred pages or so to really get into it (I had tried once before a few weeks ago and gave up). So I ended up really liking it, but then I finished New Moon yesterday and I didn't like it as well so the question now is...should I go on? I thought New Moon dragged a little and the werewolf thing threw me. Will Eclipse be better? I hope so.

New Crochet

Here are some pics of my latest crochet..... Here is sister's baby Roman's blanket. Its big enough he can take it to college with him.
This is a frilly girls hat for my niece, Cora.
And a purple one for Cora...
and a "worm in the grass" hat for Roman...
and here is a wool brimmed cap for Roman...not very good though.

"priceless"

My wife is priceless. She does everything she can to make sure there is dinner on the table every night. The nights she doesn't "cook" she feels guilty, so I am grateful for cooked meals. Last night was no exception either.......

I'm sure, or so my brain says, that most of the families we know or associate with take the time to sit as a family to eat meals....especially dinner. Last night my wife "made" Wal-mart lasagna with french bread. Our boys are typical hot dog and potato chip kinda eaters, so when we have something to eat with lots of colors in it we get nervous and prepare for emotional breakdowns.

As my boys studied the lasagna to see what was in it, I took a piece of bread and told them that I liked to put some of the sauce on my bread and eat it. I made the "oh so good" face and the boys tried it as well. Dylan said mmmm, its so good. Alex then said mmmmm this is priceless. With nearly every bite Alex commented on how priceless it tasted. It was very funny and I'm sure my wife appreciated the sincere attempt he made in commenting on the dinner....very funny though and I just had to share.

That was priceless.

School is in!!!

The kids were so happy to return to school today after being off for a week due to Hurricane Ike. It was quiet in the house today but I got a lot done. I did laundry, some sewing, ran a few errands and ended with some vinyl work. I was glad for the uninterrupted time. When the kids got home from school Dylan made the comment that his shoe was hurting so I told him to take it off and he did and here is a picture of what he found. His response was, "No wonder that shoe has been hurting me for a while." He had those rocks in his shoe since recess...which is around 1pm...so that is 3 hours with the rocks. You would have thought that he would have investigated sooner but I guess that is a kid for you. They are funny creatures as my mother would say. Dylan, you make my day!

The Things Kids Say

So let me preface this by saying that I am a little under the weather and wasn't planning on waking up before 9am but at 6:51am Dylan came in my room...and this is how the conversation went:

Dylan: Mom do you have $39.99?

Mom: Huh?

Dylan: Because there is this oven thing on the TV and it is only$39.99

Mom: What?

Dylan: This oven thing cooks your food for you.

Mom: Dylan, I don't have $39.99.

Dylan: But you can lower your cholesterol when you use it to cook your food!

Mom: Dylan my cholesterol isn't high so I don't need to buy that.

Dylan: Oh, OK.

Dylan is a sucker for anything you can order off of the TV, which is funny because I have never ordered anything from the TV before. So needless to say I am now awake on a Saturday morning at 7am with a stuffy nose.

IKE: We are so lucky!!!

Here is an update on our family and IKE. It appears that this storm has caused a lot of devastation in the Galveston/Houston area. We, however, have been so lucky were we live. We were out of power for a few hours last night and then right before we went to bed around 10 the power came back on and we caught the news before getting to sleep. It was a rough night. I didn't sleep much because of the noise. I was also worried that the kids would wake up at be scared. I put them downstairs thinking it would be quieter but I was wrong. I was better upstairs so I played musical beds between upstairs and the couch downstairs. The kids slept straight through the storm. They awoke around 7:30 and by 8 we went outside to feel the temp and wind. The winds was howling all night long and I must admit it was a little frightening. The lights flicked on and off during the night but have been on consistently since around 5am. We got out and drove around about 10am and we didn't see any severe damage with the exception of trees down everywhere. We had part of our fence come apart but I think that was to be expected, our fence seems to be in bad shape as it is. Our neighborhood had trees and shingles around. We had no flooding or any water in our house. Overall we feel very blessed and are grateful for our outcome. We are very sad for those whose lives have been met with such devastation. Here are few photos...the sunset last night was incredible...a mixture of beauty and eeriness.