More Critical Thinking

This is what I heard while in the other room:
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"Frank, hold my stool so I don't fall & break my head."
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Needless to say, Mommy had to investigate right away.
At least she had some sort of safety in place, right?

Virtual Valentine

Because I can't send you ALL a valentine today, here's some virtual valentine cookies to let you know that I love you & hope that your V-day is awesome.

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(The polka-dot one was made special just for you, Shannon!)

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Happy Valentine's Day!

Deep Dish Delight!

In my never-ending quest to not feel like a culinary loser when compared to my husband, I've been trying new recipes again. And boy howdy, is this one a winner!!!
I found it over on Pennies on a Platter- one of my favorite new websites.
The best thing about this pizza is the sauce- I'm drooling just thinking about it. We'll be making this recipe again this week for sure. Yum! .
I can't wait to try the Buffalo Chicken Bites and the Ham and Cheese Pretzel Bites.
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Too bad I didn't get them done in time for the Super Bowl today!

Critical Thinking Skills

What do you do if your last bullet from your dart gun is stuck to a light 10 feet from the ground & you're only 3 1/2 feet tall?

"Snow Day"

Apparently us Southern Arizonans are not prepared to handle 10-15 degree weather.

Shocker.

Emma's school & 2 others in the district were completely out of water yesterday & were using a 5-gallon bucket brigade to refill essential potties & such. Numerous other schools are completely without heat & were unable to get it back on in time for classes today. All in weather where the high was in the low 30s yesterday.

What is this all about? This is Arizona! It was 80 degrees here last week!

So because we are such weenies with an infastructure that absolutely can't handle cold, Emma's school is out today. Emma yelled "Snow Day!" when she found out last night. So here we are, trying to entertain the kids when it's too cold to go outside & having already been housebound for almost 2 weeks.

Every form of entertainment in our house has been yanked from the game cabinet today. I think it's hilarious that we literally scoff at temps of 110 or higher, but our whole world falls apart if it hits 20.

Arizona- gotta love it!

What RSV Looks Like

Oh, yes. After a very prolonged ER visit, we found out that James has been infected with RSV. Poor baby is a mess, but getting better every day.

It really is a blessing that we have kids with asthma & know which signs spell breathing trouble. The ER staff was glad that we brought him in when we did. Also, since we have all the equipment & a 6 month supply of medication, there was no need to get new prescriptions filled at 8:30 on a Sunday night. Yay for preparation, right?This video was taken a couple of days after the ER visit, so he was WAY worse.

Luckily he seems to be doing a lot better this week, & supposedly isn't contagious anymore. Somehow I don't think I'll be testing out that theory anytime soon. We won't be passing this on to anyone else if we can help it!

The pediatrician says that since James had it, all of the kids did. Awesome. But it is true that it's worst for the very young. Jack has been pretty sick, but nothing like the baby. And the older 2 have no symptoms at all, thank goodness.

So I can check yet another crazy illness off the "yeah, we had that" list

I'm feeling like quite the veteran parent these days!

Christmas Nativity

My sister Dana recently took some pics of my beautiful kiddos for our family Christmas card.
I just had to have a repeat of the 2008 masterpiece that currently graces the left sidebar of my blog.
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It's not every Mommy that can have a real, live baby Jesus for the nativity scene, much less a Mary, Joseph, & shepherd.
It was Christmas perfection!
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Well, I haven't actually ordered any cards 'cuz I'm a slacker, so I'll just post the pictures instead.
I LOVE THEM!!!!! I'll have to find the 2008 editions so I can compare.
But I do know that I have one like this with Emma & Jack from that shoot.
Emma & James make a pretty cute pair too. This one is really sweet- the Mickey Mouse tattoo on the shepherd's forearm is a nice touch. The fun thing about kid photo shoots is that sometimes the "mess-ups" are just as great as the "winners."

Geez, Jack- are you having fun?In this one he was adamant that he would not move his legs.

He wanted everyone to see his shoes. What a goober he is!I'll just say it again- I love my kids!