25 Years!

This amazing man is, Brent Swanson.  He works with Troy.  This Halloween was his 25th year of sobriety.  He helps hundreds and hundreds of other people that struggle with alcohol and addiction.

I was honored to hear him speak about his experiences.  He has an amazing story of how alcohol became a part of his life and the effects it had on him and those around him.  His story touches everyone that hears it and gives them hope for their own lives and futures.  Thank you, Brent, for allowing us to learn from you and the experiences that you are willing to share.  You have taught us so much and we truly treasure your friendship.

Halloween 2013

How time flies! Halloween has come and gone several weeks ago and I am just now catching up. Maybe I should just post these pics with those from Christmas!!!

We always start the festivities with some pumpkin guts.

Then its off to school.

We have Maddie who has been promoted as THE Tooth Fairy.

Rock Star, Grace.

Witchy, Witch Aeva.

And Witchy, Witch Rett to match.

Class parties in the afternoon.

Even the hamster, Giselle, got to play on Halloween.

The lighting of the jack-o-lanters.  This is Gracie's.

Aeva's...coincidental that her teeth look like this right now?

Maddie's Halloween owl.  

They had an awesome time trick or treating on this huge bus.  They loaded it up with everyone they know and had a blast.  Thanks, Hogge's, for driving around the entire valley with a million crazy kids!

I had to take this picture of Aeva to show her teacher that her skin color was back to normal.  She called from school the day after Halloween and told me that Aeva was YELLOW and she didn't know why.  I had to tell her that we had painted her face green for Halloween and then it had been too late to bath so I had just washed her face with a wet wipe.  She definitely had a yellow tint to her skin.  What an awesome teacher to call and tell me that my 6 year old had jaundice!

Houston, we have a problem.

One snowy morning Troy decided to trade me cars (Honda Civics aren't known for their 4 wheel drive performance). So, later that day, I took his car to run a few errands. I was driving happily along when I kept hearing a bunch of sloshing around and rolling in the back seat. I turned around to discover this on the floor of the car.

Perhaps this is his version of a 72 hour kit.  I think it's the sign of an addict.  I may have to admit him for immediate rehabilitation.  Then again, if it keeps him smiling...maybe he'll just have to start hiding them in the trunk.

Crazy Day

Today is the first day of Drug Free week at school. Each day they have a theme to celebrate being drug free. My kids LOVE this week. To kick the week off, we start with Crazy Day. Anything goes...crazy hair, crazy clothes...

Crazy Grace

I love this girl...not too shy...just a little bit.  Like her mom :).

Followed by the much more timid...Troy like? - Crazy Maddie.

Check out those shoes!

And finally, Crazy Aeva.  She is on the Gracie/mom side. 

Bring all the attention you can muster.

My three crazy girls.

Someone can't seem to get out of the car on this very crazy day.

AND their friends!  

Proud to be Drug Free!!!

Pet Peeve #1

So...I have a car that tells me how many miles I can go before I need to get gas. Troy HATES that my car tells me this little bit of information because I have a tendency to push it a little too far.  If you notice, it says 0 and I was still driving.  I only went ONE mile over...no biggie, right?  I made it to the gas station (as planned) and all was well.

Troy threatens not to come and help me when I call him because I ran out of gas.  I know better.  He would come.  He might not be smiling BUT he would come.

Love you, honey.

Halloween Dinner

Anyone else have an awesome Halloween dinner?

We did!

This may not work out...

Troy HATES it when I let my gas tank get too low. The good thing is, my newest car tells me when I am truly out of gas. The little meter goes ALL the way down to ZERO. See...

I tried it out...you know, seeing if it would truly take me all the way to zero.  Yup, sure did.  The problem with my experiment was that Troy was with me as it came to a close.  He saw that itty bitty zero and said me, "This may not work out."  What?  "This may not work out????"  In other words, he was threatening to leave his loving wife over an itty bitty zero.  I was forced to remind him that he had committed to me...for better or for worse.  (By the way, if this is his worst...he is not allowed to complain!).  At least I did my experiment when it was 67 degrees outside (my car told me that too).  A nice day for a walk should I have been forced to take one.

Another excuse...

We have decided that Zeppes is pretty yummy...but also a bit pricey. We look for "special" occasions to go there. Sometimes the special occasion is just deciding to drive by and pull in. Today we had a real reason to go...Garret is 14!

Happy Birthday, Garrett!

Garrett's 14!

My nephew, Garrett, turned 14! Getting kind of biggish.  Still small enough that his favorite Aunt Tiffie can tackle him and smother him in kisses.

We decided to go to Zeppe's to celebrate (we always look for an excuse to spend way too much money on a dessert).  Happy Birthday, Garrett.  You still have a few more kisses coming your way!

The reason why he can't wear white...

Troy LOVES all things "dipable." He will buy salsas, spreads, creams...you name it. That is the exact same reason why he isn't allowed to wear white.

Exhibit A - point proven.  

Park City 2013

We missed our trip to Park City last year because we had to make a trip to Disneyland...not a bad substitute. However, this year Park City was back on the calendar!   

We LOVE to go and spend the weekend with family.

The pool is the main attraction.

Crafts are a close second...always imagined up and provided by the fabulous, Grandma Carole.

Field trips around the resort are pretty popular too.

The pool is so warm that night swimming is a must.

More early morning crafting.

And then...back to the pool.

Even managed to do a little bit of shopping.  My new hair-do consists of putting on a hat.  I had to get a variety of colors.  I had an awesome little helper that seems to like hats too.

Card games and snacks!  A few of my personal favorites.

Random activities thought up by anyone with an imagination are also fair game.

After a fabulous weekend, Maddie attempted to drive us home...no go.

Thanks, Haun family, for a fantastic weekend!  See you next Fall for another round of swimming!