The Mother of Geese

Last night, Bradfo turned this movie on for our date night. I hated it. It was too garsh durned loud! (It shook one of the pictures off the walls. True.) Instead of turning it down, I left him to watch his stupid loud movie alone. (I lasted until Tony left the stupid loud cave thing with the angry little men.) And I went upstairs with some tea and watched this. and the saddest part? I watched it on Friday night too. Did I mention I have zero favorite movies for 2008. That is huge for me. Suggestions please.

crazed, mad, nervous picture taken moments before "the visit" ....because I am working on my Sharing Time for church tomorrow. Want to know something scary? Last time I had Sharing Time, someone from the GENERAL PRIMARY BOARD came to observe. Yeah. I know. Tomorrow should be no big deal.

I want to make it less awkward for everyone who has seen me lately. Doing so will make it less awkward for me so WIN WIN. Let's have a pretend conversation, shall we? You start. You: Have you lost weight? MoG: Yes, I have lost weight. :) Y: How much? MoG: Let's just say...over forty....Pounds. Yes, I'm awesome. Now its my turn. Why haven't you noticed?! More importantly to my tender ego...Why haven't you said anything?! I get the difference between fat and less fat but come on !! forty pounds. Doesn't that feel better? Incidentally, I did it by not eating this. (oh, and if you have noticed and said something I love you forever. This is not for you. humph.) I know I need before and after pictures. But I have all month to post them.

Amelia only has one little girl friend and the rest of her buddies are little boys. In fact, I thought that one of her friends that she talks about at preschool was a girl. Turns out the name Camden is a boys name too. So this is her friend that she calls Fatchor (not his real name) He is a very shy, tender, sweet (read not naughty) boy. I'm sure if they stick together--that may change....

......He keeps him within a 30 foot radius. ......by using kite string.... ....and attaching the other end to the parked car. Whatever works, gentleman. (I could absolutely kiss those cheeks all day.)

In an effort to help my children understand the voting process we decided to have a chilli cookoff with some friends. We had 6 different kinds of chilli ( Red Barn , Quantum of Spices , Kids Love, Texas Chilli , Business Time, and Everything Chilli .) It was a yummy fun night. (I was having such a great time I didn't get to take as many pictures as I should have, but trust me, it was a blast!) Business Time won (but was later disqualified because she hosted the party. Ha-Ha. Yay!!) Business Time chilli is actually my friend Jean's recipe and it can be made on any night--and not only when wearing your "Team Building Exercise 1999" shirt. It can be eaten in 2 minutes. Is that it? Oh yeah, that's it! WHITE CHILI WITH TOMATO GARNISH Soup: 3 cans (1 lb dry) white navy beans, drained and rinsed 1 onion, chopped 8 c chicken broth 2-3 large chicken breasts, cooked and diced 1 large (7 oz) can diced green chiles 2 tsp dried oregano leaves 4 tsp cumin 1 ½ tsp cayenne pepper...

About a month ago I told Amelia she was going to be a dog for Halloween. She was cool with that. Then she wanted to be a cow. then she came home wanting to be a "mean old witch with a hat" So I went about securing a "mean old witch with a hat" costume. Then she had a talk with Anne. And Anne accidentally suggested that she be a princess. and Anne was in big trouble with me. so I found another "mean old witch with a hat" costume. And a princess costume that could also be a thumbelina costume. (Max could be a frog) and I gave her choice. 2 witch costumes, dog costume, or thumbelina. she wanted to be the frog. I made her be the witch. A good witch should be able to balance on one leg. Oh, the sugar. Awesome. And she's off!! I love the shadow. I'm glad the "mean old witch with a hat" stuck.

I thought that having a child who is unable to talk (read-give me any lip) would work to my advantage when it comes to choosing the Halloween costumes. Afterall, you would think that what's good enough for Abbie.... Abbie-7 months. The beginning of her "Monsters, Inc. phase" should be good enough for Max. Yeah. Not so much. So instead he was a "frog who pulled his hat off all night". ribbit.

10 years ago today I got engaged to Bradfo. We like to tell people it happened on Halloween, (then he inserts a used joke about how it was fitting, being the scariest day of the year--then we laugh, roll eyes, and repeat everytime it's mentioned.) but actually he didn't get around to popping the question until 2 o'clock in the morning. On November 1. But whatev. One of the things I LOVE about Bradfo is his handiness. I found some amazing brand new shoes for Amelia at Kid to Kid and was dismayed that they were too tight and hurt her feet. No problem. He made a faux-shoe, then grabbed a clamp (insert comment from Brad here about how you can never have too many clamps), and wah-la. Shoes fit.

Settle in. I'm gonna do it. Yo.

But you would probably never know it the way I go on and on about my last born. Need more proof? Go see his delicious mug here . Then come back and comment. Seriously, doesn't that smile bring a little sunshine?

I can't believe I am going to say this. So, I'll type it small. I sort of hate Gardner's Village. Okay, mostly I hate the crowd of Gardner's Village during the weekend of UEA. So I have exactly zero pictures of witches from our 2 trips to the Village this weekend. But I do have these pictures. .. I have 9 or so pictures of Amelia running away from me like this... I have several pictures of my more compliant picture takers here: This would have been perfect if they were all looking at me. I suppose 1 out of 3 ain't bad. I love the crack and the ducks. But I have no witchy pictures.

Brad lost his job a few months ago. Most tragic was losing our awesome insurance. We are taking preventative measures to keep our kids teeth as healthy as they are. (YAY genetics!) Its a family affair with Max and Amelia as chair-side assistants. Brad is gently flossing her teeth. Amelia is holding the flashlight and Max is pinning her down. For Pete's sake. The Drama of flossing. I love the tiger light being shined directly in her mouth. Max was seriously fascinated by the terror. Later that night, (and because she was so dramatic/ridiculous with the flossing), Brad brushed her teeth.

Abbie, 2003 Amelia, this morning

Remember when you were my favorite weatherman? Can you please do something about the nonsense that is 84 degrees September 29? You are seriously killing my buzz for autumn. Please come out of "weatherman retirement" or whatever and give me a decent fall forecast. Seriously, the inside of my house is 78 degrees but I refuse to put the air on principle. Sheesh. Anywhoo, I took the kids on a fall adventure hoping to evoke a little fall weather. It did not work. It was very hot. We went here. First stop, ice cream Max chose Apple Pie ice cream. It had actual chunks of crust in it. He likey. Abbie was hot/ornery and wanted to eat her ice cream in the shade. I told her to go stand in the shade of the fence. That irritated her even more. Amelia chose cookie dough. Yes it was really hot but I made them wear their Holiday shirts. Next activity: Hay ride to the pumpkin patch to pick out pumpkins. The ride was very bumpy. The perfect pumpkin. The perfect pumpkin-head. He kept picking t...