5th Annual Monster Mash!

Here we go! Pictures from our annual family Halloween party. Thanks everyone for the frighteningly fun night! We enjoyed Italian sodas (the Ginger Spice, Vanilla Bean & Peach were most popular). We had fun playing Halloween pictionary going from a timer of 1 minute down to 5 seconds. The kids played a candycorn toss and we all enjoyed looking at the costumes and eating awesome finger foods. The chocolate covered bacon was a first for me, but was surprisingly tasty.
Here you go, enjoy the pictures!!!


Your are invited...


Sarah Palin & John McCain made it to our party!!! (Mom & Dad Anglesey)

Eileen & Steve...Wow, what a hot devil!

Jeff, Kelli & Alex
Master Chief, the beautiful wench & giraffe

Shelli, Monkey D, B, C, A, & Trev.
Velma, the witch, the skater dude, the evil empress, the biker chick & the scotsman. MMMM, I love the kilt, but I really think it should have been a bit shorter to show off those hot legs.)

Darren...or is that Fred Flinstone?

Kiersten, Ezra, Ty & Josh
The farmer girl, pumpkin, Wolverine & the hippie

Mike, Mikey, Jenn, Avery & Alexis
The pirate AAARGH, Piglet, hippie chick, Daisy Duck & the pretty princess

Amy as Lady Guinevere...the pregnant Lady Guinevere

Marsha, Deanne, Maggie, Chloe & Patrick
The cavewoman, witch, Ariel, cute octopus & Dude

Mom & Dad Larson going fishing with the toilet paper

MB's loving Jeff's costume.

And the winners of the Best Overall Costume Contest are...3rd place - Fred Flinstone. It was a tie for 1st & 2nd place - Master Chief & Palin/McCain. GREAT costumes!!!

Okay, and for those of you who left earlier, you might have missed the hit of the party. His name is Ezra, and he came as a cute little pumpkin. But as the party began to wind down, and wigs started coming off, this little guy was a GREAT sport. First someone put the "James Brown" wig on him. With Darren in the background imitating James Brown & Ezra smiling for all to see, we all laughed till we cried.

His smile continued as we continued with the wigs. He didn't even try to pull them off and we got some great pictures. Oh did we laugh. Thanks for being such a great sport Ezie!!!
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Our Googly Girl

Two nights ago we had popcorn. I think because my husband finds popcorn disgusting, we really don't have it very often. But, he was gone, and the little girls wanted some, so I set them up with a movie and a large bowl of it.
As they were finishing the bowl, I looked up from my laundry-folding to see Monkey D carefully picking at the kernels in the bottom of the bowl. She was very focused on what she was doing.
I went back to folding, but a couple of minutes later, she came up to me gently cupping a handful of unpopped kernels. She said, "Mom, I think you might want to put these somewhere special". I took them from her and thanked her with a big smile. She gave me a look of satisfaction and walked away.
What was she thinking? Did she think we could use them again? Did she think maybe I could plant popcorn? I'm not sure, I didn't ask her, but I thought it was such a sweet little gesture. I have them in a baggie on my dresser right now.

Yesterday, I decided the floor needed mopping. My poor husband bought me one of those awesome scrubber/suction/squeegie machines to clean wood floors, yet I still find myself doing it the old fashioned way. So with bowl of vinegar/water and cloth, I got to work on hands and knees and went to work. I'm so glad I was on my hands and knees, because I found something precious way down there at floor-level.
About a year or so ago, MD starting drawing. She learned the first initial of her name, "G", and would point to it wherever she saw it. She also loved to draw it. Once as I was walking in the hallway to my bedroom, I noticed about 15 handwritten G's penciled on the walls and baseboard. There were also about 15 tiny smiley faces. I thought it was cute that she had done that, but gave her the little lecture on not drawing on the walls, and scrubbed them all off.
But guess what I found as I was scrubbing my floors! I had missed a little G and a little smiley face from way back then. I was so happy! A year ago, I cared too much about my "newer" home and wanted those walls and baseboards clean, clean, clean. But after finding those precious little drawings on the baseboard yesterday, I was happy to leave them, and know that they will stay there as long as we are in this house.

Yesterday I looked over and saw this. I grabbed my camera and thought about how only a child would be perfectly confident and happy eating a bowl of ice cream with reindeer antlers on.

Hot talent

Wow! I decided to post this, because I love it! I love that he is 10 years old. I love that he has numerous boxes of yo-yo's in his room. I love the look of concentration on his face. Yo-Yo's! This reminds of me my childhood, and how at one time my brothers and sister and I would try to do stuff like this with our yo-yo's. We didn't even come close. But this is just hot, don't you think?
(The song "Stronger" automatically plays with this video. If you don't want to hear it, just click on the sound icon at the bottom of the video screen, and turn it down or off. I watched this video while listening to one of my playlist songs, and I thought it was a better fit. Click on Jeepers Creepers by Frank Sinatra :).

It's not like Archie

My daughter is an artist.
She picked up a crayon as a toddler and has never put it down!! She went through the usual phases of drawing. Starting with pictures of herself, sketching the big circle head, and long stick legs. She always filled in the empty spaces around herself with clouds, sunshine, birds, trees, etc. Her style is fearless, confident and bold with uninhibited strokes that always make for an eye-popping picture.
She went through her "horse phase" of drawing nothing but those powerful, beautiful creatures. She loves horses, and occasionally she will revert to her earlier subjects. Occasionally.
But right now, in this stage of her 13 year old life, her subject matter has turned to something else. Something that annoyed her parents at first. Something that made me wonder if she was wasting her talents. BUT...she has become VERY good at it, and we are proud of her creativity and talent in trying to perfect this style of art. What is it? Manga. Yep, manga.

The picture on the left is an example of some Manga books.
Here is a definition I found online:

Manga are Japanese comic books. Manga is often made into Japanese cartoons, or Anime. The art in Manga has a very definite look to it and is often referred to as “Manga Style.” Recently, Manga has become popular in America. It has been a very successful new medium that has become very popular with young people. Manga, and the Anime that it has inspired, has been seen on T.V., in movies, and has even influenced the art styles of certain American artists like Ed McGuinness, Brian Wood, and Frank Miller.

My kids actually like Archie comics, Peanuts, Calvin & Hobbes, and the Far Side. Manga is not what I think of when I think "comics", but I guess I need to keep up with the times.

Anyway, here is her latest drawing. She is going to enter it in a contest at her school for the Anime club. Pretty good, don't you think?

It is a picture of the characters from a series called "DN Angel". Dark is the name of the black haired "phantom thief". Satoshi is the bespectacled teen devoted to capturing Dark. Daisuke is the boy with "Wiz" the bunny-like creature on his shoulder. Wiz becomes Dark's wings when he needs them. Okay...sound a little confusing? My older kids love to read Manga, and they know all these stories and characters, and it is a whole other world for them. Just thought I would share some of it with you too.

I'll let you know how her drawing does in the contest. Oh, and she does not trace, or copy pictures, she just familiarizes herself from reading, and knows what they look like, and transfers that to her pictures. I'm proud. Good luck Jo Bugs!

Body and Mind

Last week I played a lot of tennis. I think I played too much tennis. I know...how can I play TOO much tennis, there is really no such thing. But 3 hours on Monday, 2 hours on Tuesday, 4 hours on Thursday, and 3 on Friday really made me exhausted by Friday night. I decided to switch gears. No, I NEEDED to switch gears.

My sister and I had just had a conversation, and she mentioned the movie, The Lake House. Oh yeah, despite my love of Keanu Reeves, I had never seen it, and from what I knew of it thought it was some spooky, heartbreak of a movie. But because all I wanted to do was chill out and rest my tired body, I decided to put in the movie that my mom lent me about 5 months ago, and watch it.

Needless to say, this seemed to start some sort of mental marathon to see how many thought-provoking and love-filled stories I could fit into my weekend. I didn't mean for it to happen, it was just kind of like a snowball effect, and I found myself enjoying the switch from physical stimulation to mental. Just so you know, I'm not a big movie person andI don't like crying. I do love books though, and I always want happy endings.

I started with The Lake House. Loved it. Loved it. Did I say that I loved it? I don't know why. I was so irritated by the end that I cried and clapped and shouted with joy at the final scene. Then watched the dancing scene once more the following morning. I admit it, I really did.

Because of The Lake House, I went on to the lovely writings of Jane Austen. Now I have to admit something, and many of you will shake your heads with shame. I have never read Jane Austen. WHAT? True, cross my heart. I have seen Sense & Sensibility, Emma, and Pride & Prejudice, but...never read J.A. My dear sweet romantic of a sister gave me the complete works of Jane Austen as a gift a few years ago, and I have meant so many times to start, but never did (sorry, Kris). SO...I opened up to page 931 of my book, and read Persuasion.
I have not much to say, but FEEL...well... how about this. The letter from Captain Wentworth?...It rocks.
"I can listen no longer in silence, I must speak to you by such means as are within my reach. You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone for ever. I offer myself to you again with a heart even more your own than when you almost broke it, eight years and a half ago. Dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death. I have loved none but you..."
Oh, but you must read Persuasion to get the rest. I do not fancy myself a romantic, but alas....I melted when I read that letter.


Then as a family we watched October Sky. This movie is from 1999, but worth seeing if you have not. It's a true story about a boy and his friends that live in a small mining town, but aspire to be more... rocket scientists. It's a keeper. AND, the bonus is that watching Jake Gyllenhall as a young boy reminded us so much of our son, we got a kick out of it. The soulful eyes, and full mouth, and his expressions were so similar. He could do worse than being compared to Jake. Anyhoo, a great feel-good movie!

Then, while putting away Jane Austen, I noticed a small book my sister-in-law loaned me about 2 years ago. (I'm so on it, aren't I? TWO YEARS!) The Notebook. Okay, time for another...WHAT? You haven't read OR seen The Notebook? Nope. For some weird reason I cannot explain, I don't always want to love what everyone else is loving. So I don't. Until it is old and past, and I can enjoy it without the hype. I know, I told you...weird. Also, romance with crying scares me, so I will avoid it if I can, and I heard that people cried when reading this book. So, anyhow, I gave in, picked up this little gem of a novel and read.
Well, I cried but I smiled and I thought it very sweet without mush. That was one darn good story about love, and it made me kiss the heck out of my man and vow to appreciate him that much more every day.

I ended this little mental fest with one of my favorite movies. One of our home movies, this one a video from 2003 when my kids looked like this picture you see here. Five years ago. They were all little and cute with sweet voices and loving arms. Trev and I looked at each other a few times with that "this won't last much longer, will it?" look and again I vowed to myself to appreciate.
I didn't want to cry, but almost did. After all the other stimulus this weekend, I was done with crying. I don't like crying, it gives me a headache. And I think by Sunday night, I was mentally done.

So I welcomed Monday morning with dry eyes and a rejuvenated body and spirit. It felt great to hit those fuzzy green balls and think of nothing but the game.
However, I am anxious to read more Austen. I am wondering if the movie version of Notebook is worth watching. I am wanting to watch more Keanu - A Walk in the Clouds maybe - I like that one.
It's easy to become too focused on one thing sometimes. After last week and weekend, I think I'm going to work on mixing it up a little more. More good stuff for body AND mind.
Just hold off on the tear-jerkers for a while though. I can only handle a little of that at a time.

A+ for Funny

I was looking over my daughter's 3rd grade homework last night. The instructions had her use a list of vocabulary words to complete sentences.

Here is the vocabulary list: certain, chores, culture, resources, tutor, uniforms

She filled in all the sentences quite nicely. At the bottom of the page was this prompt:

Write a joke using one of the vocabulary words.

Her joke: Why do some teachers stink?

Answer: Because they're a tutor.

Loved it. Loved it. Loved it.

The "I" Tag...

TAG from Kimi

i am- an optimist, mother, wife, daughter, sister, friend, gardener, tennis-player, homemaker, cook, reader, thinker, blogger, easy-going, thankful, hopeful, happy.

i think- that doubles tennis is underrated, that the presidential election will be close, that there should be harsher punishments for crimes against women and children, and that I shouldn't take too long filling this out, because I have a lot to do today.

i know- I am loved. I am a child of God. I am blessed. I have been given a chance here during my lifetime to love, laugh, grow, serve, and do my best.

i want-to teach my kids to enjoy life, to be good and to do their best. To make my husband know I appreciate and adore him. To better my tennis game. To have someone else make dinner tonight.

i have- a cowlick, short fingernails, a pink shirt on, a great family, a wicked forehand at times, amazing friends, and a goal to eat better.

i dislike- gossip, when my kids are hurting, strawberry shortcake & child abuse

i fear- losing family, the world my children live in, & snakes

i feel- content, too full from cookies, lazy, & thankful for life, health & loved ones

i hear- Alison Krauss' beautiful singing and Gracie telling me about a toy she wants at Toys R Us.

i smell- chocolate chip cookies that my dear visiting teacher & friend brought me today.

i crave- time with my husband, my chores to be finished, & to see my sister and brother...they live too far away!

i cry- when I read the newspaper, when I say hurtful things to my husband, when innocent people are victims of evil people, when my friends and family hurt, and when I chop onions.

i usually- am thankful and happy.

i search- for things my husband and kids lose. Why is it I am usually the only one who can find things?

i wonder- what heaven is like, what people are thinking when they don't outwardly show it, and why most people love strawberry shortcake?

i regret- not making more of an effort to show my love to my sweet Grandpa the last time I saw him. I also regret the few times I had a prime opportunity to share my beliefs about the gospel, and remained silent.

i love- my husband, my husband, my husband. My dear children. My parents. Kris, Mike, Craig. Their families. My friends. My home, my flowers, kind-hearted and sincere people, laughing, sunshine, the gospel, my Heavenly Father & Jesus, babies, the smell of pine, grapefruit & mint, taking pictures....too much to list.

i care- exactly, I care.

i always- need to have a clean home, tuck my kids in at night, sing to songs I hear, am working on bettering my tennis game.

i worry- about my children and the world surrounding them, I am not doing all the things I should be doing, and about my friends & family when they are going through hard times.

i am not- a whiner, a shopper, tall

i remember- faces (not so good with names), the first time my heart broke

i believe- every child deserves love, direction and discipline from their parents & in a Heavenly Father that knows and loves me. Oh, and I think I believe in UFO's!

i sing- a lot. I have always wanted a better voice, but I still love to sing. Almost every night at bedtime, I sing "The Sandman" to my son, "Do Re Mi" to Monkey D, "A Child's Prayer" for Monkey C, and sadly Monkey A has grown out of lullabies, but it used to be "My Favorite Things" for her.

i don't always- floss like I should, sorry T.

i argue- as little as possible. I do not like contention and my whole family will tell you I like PEACE. I probably argue most with my 13 yr old, only because she is a TEEN.

i write- on my blog, in my head, in my journal, notes to myself, lists for my day, cards to friends, and little notes for my kids.

i win- at tennis during league play and in Boggle against Trev.

i lose- at Blurt with Trev, at Scrabble with Trev, and golfing with anyone.

i wish- I could be less shy, more selfless, & that the world was a kinder place in general. I also wish I could live closer to my siblings, and that I could talk to my Grandpa again, and sometimes I wish I could have one more child.

i can usually be found- on the tennis court, at home doing household stuff, running kids around in the car, in my garden.

i am scared- of snakes, and of not planting all those seeds of goodness in my kids that I so want them to have.

i need- to get off the computer, finish laundry, make cookies for the kids' lunches, and go get hay from my friend for hayrides this weekend.

i forget- dates of all the activities that go on in my family! That's why I have to have my Palm, and 3 calendars!!!

i am happy- as often as I let myself be. When my husband laughs, when my kids hug me, when I'm with friends, when I feel healthy, when I am serving and thinking of others more than myself.

How do you feel today?
Play along if you would like. I tag all of you!

Green Smoothies!

What do you eat for breakfast? I am not a breakfast person. I will eat pancakes or waffles, but honestly those are such a "meal" to me that I would rather have them for dinner. I don't even like cereal, and I find it hard to finish a bowl of oatmeal. Basically I have always struggled to find something to get me started in the morning.

I try to stick to mostly whole foods, and we try to stay away from anything processed. I cook from scratch. Just ask my poor new neighbor who was turned away when she came over asking to borrow a can of soup. It's okay, I was able to give her some sugar and eggs!!

Well, I have this awesome friend who eats way healthier than I do. And now she is on a raw diet and has been for a couple of months. I am not lying when I tell you that my friend GLOWS. Every time I see her I am amazed at how healthy she looks, and there is no other way to describe it...she GLOWS. I am not about to go raw. I love brownies. I love chicken soup. I love spaghetti sauce. But in researching a raw diet to see what I might be able to incorporate into my own, I found these wonderful, amazing little boosts of energy...Green Smoothies! I FOUND MY BREAKFAST!
I'm so excited about them, because now I look forward to eating breakfast each morning. They are yummy AND filled with antioxidents and nutrients. I am getting my greens, and I honestly feel so much better throughout my day. I was dragging about noon, but after having one every morning for a few weeks now, I am hooked.

Okay, here's how it goes. They are about 60% fruit and 40% greens. You add water, and if you need a sweetener, I add a bit of agave nectar, but it doesn't really need a lot.

Want to try them?

Fruits you can use:
kiwis, bananas, pears, mangoes, strawberries, raspberries, pineapple, peaches, nectarines, blueberries, apples, lemons, limes, melon, grapes...whatever you like!!

Greens you can use:
spinach, mixed spring greens, romaine, parsley, kale, celery, mint, chard...whatever you like!!
(I have found spinach to be the least bitter - trust me, you can't taste it in there!)

Optional things to add: agave (sweetener), honey, ginger root, peanut butter, almond butter, oatmeal, flax seed, vanilla, yogurt

I usually make up about 16 oz, and that seems to fill me up very well until lunchtime. You don't have to add this, but I always put about 1/4-1/2 cup of oatmeal (not cooked) in there, and that helps fills me up. When I am playing tennis that morning, I usually will add the peanut or almond butter for that energy boost. I love the nutty flavor in there, but my kids prefer the green smoothies without the nuts.
I always put at least 1 banana in all my smoothies, because it makes for a nice, smooth textured smoothie. Add a couple dashes of salt too, that always enhances the taste of the fruit. Blend for a good minute so you can get it all blended and smooooth.
Oh and you can freeze all this fruit and have it ready to put in your blender in the morning! I just buy a box of baby organic spinach at Costco, and that lasts me a while.

A sample for you:
Peanut butter banana smoothie
1/2 c. oatmeal
3 dashes salt
tsp. ground flax seed
2 bananas (frozen if want)
2 tsp. peanut or almond butter
2 tbsp. plain yogurt
a squeeze of agave
2 handfuls of spinach
water
ice if needed
vanilla (opt)
I have also added a fresh peach to this
Blend for one minute and drink up

Nectarine Smoothie
1/4-1/2 c. oatmeal
2 dashes salt
2 fresh juicy nectarines (can us froz.)
1 c. berries (I like rasp, blue & straw)
1 banana
fresh ginger
2 handfuls spinach
squeeze of agave
water
ice if needed
vanilla

The more you make these, the more you will see how you can experiment and see what you like. My friend loves a pineapple, strawberry, mint, lime, spinach blend. Doesn't that sound good?
Experiment! Have fun! And go make a green smoothie! Right now!
Oh, and don't forget to let your hubby and kids try it!

Oh yea, and for more info, just type in green smoothie and do a search on it. You will find all kinds of recipes on the internet. Yum Yum.

My Haiku

To get into the school spirit, I wrote this Haiku!


First Day

The school bus is near

New shoes, sharp pencils and nerves

Grins on ALL faces

Toolicious!

Here is my sweet sister, Krista. (Kris to me).

She has started a new blog featuring her wicked good recipes. You gotta check out her new site and yummy goodness right away!
Way to go Kris!

Here is a description from her site...

Taste Of Blue Sky
Additive Avoidance Cooking Made Easy: Shopping, cooking, eating, and snacking using the most whole forms of available food products, in simple, delicious ways. It is about avoiding additives, versus complete elimination. Preparing quick meals on a busy schedule calls for convenience. I attempt to combine the health of whole foods cooking with simple preparation. Browse the Additive Avoidance Tips, Pantry Suggestions, Serving Ideas, and over 150 satisfying recipes! Eat and feel better!

This is the breakfast she made Trev for Father's Day while we were visiting. Those sausages are homemade as are the "toolicious' pancakes and cocoa. Yes, "toolicious" is a word in our house. All the kids said it when they were little, I think you can figure out which words they combined.
And I'll use it now, because it's the perfect word for such a spread!

Have fun visitng:
Taste of Blue Sky

My Boy.

He was born on a hot summer afternoon. He came fast with only 3 hours of labor and no medication. We have a special connection that started the day he was born.

My heart actually aches a little looking back through these pictures. Maybe it's because he is my only boy, and that cute little cheeky face is now long and lean.

Happy 12th Birthday my sweet boy.
I am SO glad I get to be your mom!!!!

One last get-away.

Every summer we like to fit in a little trip to Leavenworth.
It is a small Bavarian village nestled in the Cascade mountains. Only 3 hours away, we travel to get delicious german sausages and tube the river. This time we fit in some mini-golf too, and of course had a great time! Our last little get-away before school starts next week.
Einfach fantastisch, or simply fantastic!

Monkey D's turn.
Mini-golfing in the heat.
That's my smart-alec girl.
My 3 beautiful monkeys.
The hat shop - always a fun stop.
My water-lovin' hubs in the waterfall.
REFRESHING!!
A few rapids made for some excitement.
Who's this? This dog loved Monkey A & Trev and wanted to be with them on their tubes instead of swimming the river with it's owner.






MB's little rest by the rocks.



Check out the view behind us!
It's a gorgeous place to take a float for the day.

"Plants Sing Soft Songs"

"The kiss of the sun for pardon,
The song of the birds for mirth,
One is nearer God's heart in a garden
Than anywhere else on earth."
~Dorothy Frances Gurney, "Garden Thoughts"


I was out enjoying my garden and snapped a few pictures of the color and produce. Such green, green, green beauty!!!

"There can be no other occupation like gardening in which, if you were to creep up behind someone at their work, you would find them smiling." ~Mirabel Osler
"In my garden there is a large place for sentiment. My garden of flowers is also my garden of thoughts and dreams. The thoughts grow as freely as the flowers, and the dreams are as beautiful." ~Abram L. Urban
I love these zinnias. Pink after pink after pink until...sweet nonconformist orange showed up. Isn't orange just beautiful?

"God made rainy days so gardeners could get the housework done." ~Author Unknown

We planted grapes along the split rail surrounding our patio. We have 4 different seedless varieties, and here are the first to show! They are gorgeous, and oh-so-sweet!!






"Don't wear perfume in the garden - unless you want to be pollinated by bees." ~Anne Raver

I love red geraniums, especially with the creeping jenny and white bacopa. Our builder made this planter box in front of our house for me, instead of the usual slats to guard falling off the porch. We love to sit on that porch.

"Gardening is about enjoying the smell of things growing in the soil, getting dirty without feeling guilty, and generally taking the time to soak up a little peace and serenity." ~Lindley Karstens

I also love the contrast of dusty miller against my black pots in front of the stairs. I found a fat ruffly leaf this year instead of the lacy kind. I hope to find it again next spring!

"I think that if ever a mortal heard the voice of God it would be in a garden at the cool of the day." ~F. Frankfort Moore


I grew watermelons! Isn't this melon the most amazing thing you've ever seen? I think they are absolutely beautiful!


This next quote is from one of my favorite people. I believe one day she will have a most glorious garden...




"Plants sing soft songs" -Monkey D
age 8, lover of foxgloves & hollyhocks

Lovin' Loon Lake!

Summer is time for fun and vacation, so of course that is what we have been up to. Lots of water this year and so many smiles.
Another slideshow for you! This vacation was so, so fun and we enjoyed ourselves so much. We will definitely visit this place again! Enjoy!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Dworshak...That's where it's at!

We are back from some back-to-back camping trips. We made such GREAT memories!
Here's a taste of the first trip. Enjoy!!
Stay tuned for more pictures from our Montana lake camping trip.

Make a Smilebox slideshow