Friday, November 30, 2007

What do I want...

Why is this such a hard thing for me? For the girl who's always drooling over something I can't really think of much. Every year my mother in law asks everyone for a wish-list. She is very practical and always wants to give us gifts that we actually want and will use. She's cool like that. =) Every year I dread this little ritual. I hate creating a wish-list. For some reason it's acceptable to have my little list of wants floating around in my head...but putting them on paper is nearly impossible. Ugh.

So here are some of my rather ridiculous, not to mention odd, wants. Are ya ready for this?

My first two are easy-a cure for Pediatric Brain Tumors and my husband HOME for Xmas. ~Ok, so now we'll move on to reality...



~A Gym Membership and Gym-babysitting Cards

~The Magic Bullet
What can I say? I'm a sucker for a convinving infomercial. I have been wanting this little gem for a while. Now that I'm consuming a lot of protein shakes this would be a really handy alternative to my full size blender.









~A Volvo XC70 with Integrated Child Boosters, and a moon roof. I wouldn't turn down the rear DVD system and would accept a gently used, low mileage version (as long as it has the aforementioned options). *drool*









~A babysitter a few hours a week during the next two patrols.

~ORDERS...I'd like to know where we're moving this summer. 'nuff said.

~A few fun attachments for my Kitchenaid. Namely the ice cream maker and the slicer/shredder/grater.

~a new printer that's compatible with my Mac

~a new camera (I haven't even researched them yet, though)

~A calendar with all of my friends and family's important dates (birthdays, anniversaries etc). It is such work tracking down all that info. LOL!

~An easy to use scanner so I can get our 'film' photos scanned and organized before we move.

~a jump drive or two to save and store picture files on (one for backup).

~A cute apron. Jaime reminded me I need one, maybe two. =)

~A massage would be SUPERB too. *grin*



Hmmm...I think I may have finally run out of ideas, for now. Funny how when I get going I have so many things I am longing for. LOL!

I'm off to bed. Have a great weekend ya'll!

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

The death of the short bus joke.

As my sweet girl and I stood at the window this morning, waiting for her school bus, she said to me: "Mom, my school bus is VERY little." Now, Brandon and I are both huge fans of good 'ol short bus jokes. It started out as insensitive humor...and then after Hadley started riding the 'short bus' it developed into a coping mechanism (at least for me). Despite the simple fact that we all know parents of short bus riders and those who have ridden the short bus themselves are automatically entitled to unlimited and free use of any and all short bus jokes I will have to refrain. Now that Hadley is aware that her bus is different, I'm afraid I'll be very uncomfortable cracking jokes in her presence, or at all really. It's a sad day. Please take a moment of silence for our old friend The Short Bus Joke. *snort*


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting




Also, Jaime, I'm not sure if you'll be able to see it in the resized image...but Hadley has the single eye glare in this picture. Her right (your left) optic nerves were the most damaged...you can see how the light reflects differently on the right eye than the left. Freak-y. =)

Have a day ya'll! =)

Monday, November 26, 2007

We are what we wish for..?

I realized today how different the holidays are once your kids can really start asking for exactly what they want. A few years ago I killed myself trying to shop for all of the kids. Get them just the right gifts (without going too overboard). It was a daunting task amidst the trials and tribulations of chemo, neutropenia, hospital visits and stays...and then just the simple fact that I had three kids 4 yrs old and under. None of them had really fallen prey to the marketing frenzy, that IS America these days, yet...so I had to figure out on what would make their eyes light up on Christmas morning. A task not to be taken lightly. =)

Well, less than a week before Christmas we go to see "santa"...Keegan tells me as we're walking home (it was in base housing, just down the street) that the only thing he asked Santa for was the remote control dinosaur at "The cool store" (aka Pottery Barn Kids). Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket So, what do I do? I drive my little Eurovan over to the busiest shopping center in the East Bay and drive around for forever to find a spot to park (that I'm PAYING for no less-this is Cali after all), trudge down to PBK, elbow my way around the store, elbow my way to the cash register...and finally pay for this remote control dinosaur that Santa HAS to deliver to our house! It was the first time any of my three children had actually wished for something from Santa. I was elated...and HAD to grant that wish. As time goes on it's funny to watch the kids different stages through their wishes. I thought I'd share a few with ya'll.

Keegan and Liam have both been begging for Mammoth Crocs. They think mine are the coolest thing since sliced bread and can't wait to own their own. Hadley has asked for them as well...mostly because I think she couldn't stand to see her brothers get something that she doesn't have. LOL!
Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket


Liam is dying for this:

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Yeah. I won't even try and justify it. Stop snickering or I won't let you come and play. =)


Keegan is pretty practical. He goes through a notebook a day, I swear, with all of his lists and drawings and stories. He also wants a new battery charger for his leapster batteries because his mom seems to have misplaced the old one. *oops* Keegan would be just as happy with a new (more challenging than the last) 'workbook' as he would be with the newest 'must have' toy.

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting




Hadley...well, she wants it all. Seriously. She's not bashful about it either. Her only saving grace is that she is always very grateful and if you're looking for a big reaction she's your girl. =) Here is a VERY short version of her top wishes:


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Sunday, November 25, 2007

Our Surprise Blessing.

Hold your horses folks. No, we're not pregnant. =) I'm talking about our 'baby' Liam. He is 4. FOUR. It seems like just yesterday I was staring at the positive pregnancy test and trying not to pass out. Our littlest guy was not planned...not even a little bit. Thankfully, sometimes God knows what's best and takes the reigns. He gave us a gift we didn't even know we wanted or needed. Liam has been such a wonderful part of our family in so many ways. I love him so much and am so thankful that God knows what he's doing even when I don't understand it. =)

Liam's First Four Years:





I'll add a few pics of our little guy's birthday party (11/19) as soon as I get the camera to cooperate. =/

ENJOY!

Friday, November 23, 2007

Finding our Niche.

So, for the past several years most of our life happenings have been posted on Hadley's Caringbridge page www.HadleyFox.com but, I feel like we've sort of outgrown that for now. I need somewhere 'normal' to come and post. So, I'm trying to keep brain tumor stuff there and the rest of our family life here. I'm sure every now and again stuff will bleed through. And that's ok...it's my blog after all. =)

Did I just write an informal mission statement for my blog? I need a life. *snort*