Happy Birthday Dad!

Today is my dad's birthday.  I'm thankful that for today we live right down the street and could spend the day with him.  He is pretty much the coolest guy ever.  Really.  If you don't believe me just ask Spencer.  I feel so lucky that I have such a wonderful man to call Dad in this life, and so lucky that my kids have such a wonderful Grandpa too.
I had in mind a few photos of my dad in the 40's and 50's for this post, and a particular one from recently but the external hard drive wasn't cooperating so here is this one.  New Years 2010, its a pretty great picture too, I think.
Happy 66th birthday dad!

Belated Party Pictures

While I did post Tia's birthday list and all that jazz, she's still wondering why her party pictures never made it here.  She's pretty sure all parties need to make it onto this blog (they don't, by a long shot) but, for her, here are her party pictures.  Looking at these pictures makes it look like it was just John and I and a herd of kids (which isn't odd at our house) but 4 grandparents and a couple of uncles were here as well.  I had lots of helpers for decorating cupcakes, and yes...all of those are cupcakes.  Meaning there were more than enough for Grandpa Clinger and a bunch of the kids to have a cupcake eating contest toward the end of the party (see last picture, Cannon was almost the champion cupcake eater!)

Happy 14th Birthday Tia!

So post 200!  Wowza!  What better to use it for than this girl's birthday?  How can it be that she is 14?  I swear she was just a sweet little girl a minute ago!
"Tooters" was a nickname that at 12 she insisted she was too old for, for a day, then she told her dad that he could keep calling her that for a while but only until she was 14.  ~(I'm sure at 12 the age 14 seemed Forever away).  Wonder how she'll really feel about that, my guess is that she'll let her dad get away with calling her silly nicknames for at least a year or two more!:)
Tia just turned 14 and here is her list of 14 very favorites right now, in her words, her order:

TIA'S FAVORITE THINGS:

1)  Natasha Bedingfield
2) Nachos
3) Pepsi
4) Dena and Dad
5) Drawing
6) Friends
7) Facebook
8) Hanging out with my family
9) Pictures
10) Dancing
11) Singing
12) Making bracelets
13) New Moon
14) Summer

A few other things I can think of off the top of my head that she loves: phones~any phone anyone will let her play with, and on that note-texting-texting everyone she knows, going to movies,  laughing, makeup, crazy color highlights in our hair, her mp3 player, girl time with lots of girl talk about boys, the color green, vampire stories, scary movies and scary books.  And this beautiful girl is such a caregiver.  She tries hard to take care of her siblings and keep peace between them.  She's also a super babysitter and takes such good care of all the babies in the family.  It has been fun (and sometimes crazy and frustrating:) to watch her grow from a little girl into this teenage creature she's becoming.

Happy Birthday Tia!  We love you so much!  We're so proud of the smart, funny caring person you are.

Happy Birthday Mother-In-Law of mine!

More about last weekend, we had a party!  It was John's mom's birthday so after we got back into town on Sunday we made some bright cupcakes and went over to celebrate with her.

I love this picture of Cannon enjoying a cupcake.  He was so excited about the cupcakes!  He was also so excited about the candles, he couldn't control himself (you could tell he was trying so hard) he blew out the candles twice as John lit them before we could even make it into the next room where Grandma was! 

The gift list was impressive too, kid art, a Monkees album, hand lotion.......and cupcakes!  (I have another great picture of my goofy mother-in-law showing off her cd but I don't have permission to post it, you'll just have to trust me that it is as hilarious as she is......wonder where her sons get their goofiness from :)

Happy Birthday to my mom!

We had a birthday party for my mom tonight.  It was a lot of fun!  Can't tell you how old she turned.  Because I'm not sure.  She's a little unsure about the year she was born! :)

I made Chicken Marsala for dinner and a little cupcake cake for her.  We gave her flowers and books for her birthday.  After dinner and singing and cake we played a bit of Blackjack.  Because Grandma wanted to, and it was her birthday!  So, we taught the 9 year old how to gamble.  Funny.  It was such a good time!  I found that I am much like my dad, an eternal optimist.  Always so sure I'm going to win.  "I have a nineteen, do I want another card....sure~!!! The next card MUST be a 2!!"  And tonight, I found that my dad plays the same way! 
We did hear a funny story tonight about my parent's honeymoon to Jackpot years ago that pertains to gambling.  I'll get around to sharing that story soon.  Its a funny one!  But for tonight I just want to say Happy Birthday to my Mom!  We love you!

Happy (early) birthday David!

We celebrated David's birthday a couple of weeks early because chances are, we won't see him again before then. 

I love that we had to relight candles a few times for Cannon and Karissa to blow out.  I love the excitement little ones bring to every occasion!

I love the laughing and calm chaos that a houseful of friends and family creates.

David's 12 favorites for the year he's turning 12 (his list, his words, his order):

1. his mp3 player (from us, happy birthday!)

2. books, especially about Greek mythology right now

3. playing board games with family

4. video games

5. hanging out with his dad

6. eating things that make his sisters want to gag

7. football

8. guns and shooting

9. a girl at school whose name he won't share

10. bookstores

11. Nickelback

12. Just being cool

We do think you are pretty cool David, we love you!  Happy birthday!

Happy Birthday Makalooo! We love you!

I'm lucky enough to be this wonderful girl's aunt!  She just turned 8!  My mother-in-law threw a great party for her.  You know those goodie bags full of junk and candy that usually go home with kids after a party?  My mother-in-law did something so much more amazing than that!  Each of the kids went home with an actual gift, wrapped and all.  A good gift, as good as the birthday girl got!  How exciting would that be as a kid?  

Mak and her siblings have really been a blessing in my life, I love that they are 'mine'!  

Makaylyn is such a sweet girl, she is always helping and so often laughing and making everyone around her laugh.  She is such an artist (our walls are covered in her work!)  She's always creating and making things for people.  We want to say Happy happy birthday Makaylyn!  We love you Shousands!

Birthday parties, not just for kids anymore.

Happy Birthday Frannie!  I'm so glad she had a blast at her party since I secretly suspect it was really just a way for her parents to have another excuse to hang out with us, their wonderful friends!
Kellee is thinking she just won't wear underwear when she wears this dress because you might be able to see it:)  So nice of Frannie to let her borrow it!
I'm not sure if John would have made the effort to attend the party if Frannie didn't always call him "other daddy" (I'm "other mommie").  Glad he did though because one of the funniest parts of the evening to my silly brain was that Ozzie and John compared "owies":
J: I have this weird growth on my back
O: I have some weird growths
J: Want to feel mine?
O: Yes, want to feel mine?  Right here, weird tissue mass right?
J: Oh, very much like my weird tissue mass.  Amaaaazing.
and so on.   Not sure why but it really hit my FUNNY appreciation bone.

Happy Birthday Natalie!

Happy Birthday to Natalie!  We celebrated her birthday Saturday.  She is turning 8!  We had a fun day, she got to take Makaylyn, and 2 new friends Gracie and Sophi with her to the movie then eat pizza and have a couple of hours to play before her grandparents and cousins came over to share the silly caterpillar cake that the four girls decorated with very little help.  I had to excersice such self control to not just decorate it myself but to let them do it.  It turned out oh so charming!  I'm glad I let them have free creativity over the project!
I so wish I had had better luck with my camera!  The decorating would have been a good time to get on film!
After cake we headed into town for the parade of Lights.  It wasn't snowing or raining this year so it was actually enjoyable!
It has been so fun to watch Natalie change and grow the past couple of years into this stlylin' little girl that she is now.  I asked her a few questions to 'capture' her personality now.

Here is Natalie's Birthday Interview:

1. favorite color:  Green

2. best friend: Makaylyn

3. favorite food: cheese

4. favorite thing to do with friends: put makeup on and do hair

5. favorite thing to do with family: put makeup on and do hair and watch movies and ride horses

6. favorite movie: "twy ieght" ( I know we should tell her it is pronounced Twilight but maybe we'll wait a few months, it is too cute.)

7. If you could do anything you wanted all day what would you do?  Eat candy and do hair and makeup with Mak and my other best friend cousin.  (Her other best friend cousin is Sydney, Nat is just not great with names:)  And make crafts and cut out pictures.

8. What do you want to be when you grow up?  A grown up.

9. What boy do you have a crush on?  NONE!! NOT ANY!!! I only like my dad thats a boy to hang out with.  And Spencer.  And sometimes David.

10. What music do you like best? The Angel songs.  (Angel of the Morning, we have a bunch of different versions!  She loves loves loves them!)

11.  What is your birthday wish?  um, um, um, Not the candle one because it won't come true but the other one is to have a sleepover with Mak at Christmas.  And see my dad more.  And get a Webskins.

Happy Birthday Natlaie!  We so love you!

Happy Birthday kid beans!

And because it is his birthday, here's looking back at another birthday this boy celebrated. Wowza I love love love that kiddo!
Time seems to be speeding on by much too fast. My husband is trying to figure out a way to stop time so we have more time to hang out. I hope he gets that "to do" project finished this weekend!

I know its late but finally, here is Spencer's 8th birthday party

One thing about not having the internet at home (which is still our status) that is oh so sad is not being able to keep up on my blog or on my blog reading. Tonight on an outing with my computer I get to do a little of both!

Homemade Ice Cream and plenty of laughter and a park to run around in with people you love, what could be better?

Here finally are the pictures from Spencer's party. What a fun day! I think this is the first time that we have had a party on the actual day of his birthday, it being a Saturday this year made that easy, and the first year for at least a couple that Spencer got to have so many of his grandparents and both (well actually 3!) of his parents there with him. That was his wish this year -- a party where everyone would be there and with even a great aunt and uncle and some cousins and 3rd cousins as well as good friends we did a fairly good job of letting him have it.

I love the picture of Emily swinging Cannon to kick the ice cream ball. Such a nice big sister!
Spencer and I made his cake this year, it is a "hunting hill" Spencer says. The hunters left their truck at the bottom of the hill near the river and climbed up to the top to hunt deer and turkey. Such fun decorating but of course it was all for the guests to eat, not the birthday boy who DOES NOT like cake!

And a month ago was John's birthday

Finally I get around to important things like John's birthday. His birthday was June 9. We had a party that weekend at Aunt Charlotte's house. She, by the way, is a super duper cake creator.

So about a week before his birthday Spencer asks 'what kind' of birthday John will have. Kids birthdays are so often themed events that Spencer couldn't imagine why we'd have a birthday party without knowing "what kind" we were having. So I asked Spencer what kind of birthday we should have for John. Spencer gave it some thought and finally said "well, Momma, you are pretty much his favorite thing ever so we should have a party of you for him". Such a sweet sentiment!

And here you will see the pictures of the "Dena cake" for John's birthday. You will also see the flower cake that Destrie made for him in case he was too embarrassed by the "Dena cake".