Scrappin and sleddin

This weekend I was able to go on a scrapbooking weekend with some friends. I didn't stay all weekend because Darren had an out of town bowling tournament so we took turns. I stayed away Friday night and he stayed away Saturday night. So, I got away and finally got some things accomplished with my scrapbooking which I haven't been able to touch in awhile. I'm working on Becca's book between ages 1 and 2, our family vacation, and a scrapbook about dad. I felt good about what I got accomplished. Last night and today it snowed! Although it melted quicker than we expected because we had a pretty good ground cover and it snowed (lightly, sometimes heavier) until 11ish. But once the sun came out, it started melting quickly; it was almost half melted by 11:30. We still got out and did some sledding before it all went away. It was Becca's first time and she thoroughly enjoyed it. Dad pulled her down the hill and I took pictures. She had so much fun, she wanted dad to do everything for her the rest of the morning...sit with him at lunch, take her to the bathroom, etc.

My dad

Today would have been my dad's 63rd birthday. It's been 2 years since we lost him and I still think about him quite a bit. Sometimes it makes me happy to think about him and a certain memory; sometimes it makes me sad that I can no longer hear his voice or call him when I want to share some exciting news or get his advice on a problem I'm having...which I did quite often. Darren and I celebrated my birthday at the Melting Pot; they gave us a sheet of questions to get us talking and see how much we knew about each other. One of them was who do you admire most? Dad was the only person that came to mind and Darren knew instantly how to answer that question. I hear people all the time talk about tension in their family and how they're not close and I'm glad that my parents made such a wonderful home for us. My dad's mom called me on my birthday and said how much I remind her of him which made my day. I'm going on a scrapbooking weekend this weekend and hope to make a huge dent in the scrapbook I'm making about my dad, not only for my memories, but so Becca will know who her Daddy Max was.

Christmas and beyond

Wow! It was fun but I'm still catching up. December is crazy with Becca's birthday, parties, and getting things ready to go. We're never at home for Christmas since we never travel for Thanksgiving. This year, we drove to Oklahoma to spend a few days with my family. We left at 10:30 one evening and Darren and I took shifts in the driver's seat. A lot of the driving was spent in fog. Christmas Eve, we flew to Arizona and spent time with his parents and brother's family. Darren actually got to play golf every day so he was happy. Then we flew back to OK and a couple of days later drove back home. I am still having a hard time getting my routine going again but hope to soon. Becca loved spending time with her Gram, Grandma & Grandpa and all her aunts, uncles, and cousins...especially her cousin Cade. Here are a few pictures of our family gatherings.

Becca's birthday

Sigh...Becca is 3! I can't believe how fast time flies. We celebrated her birthday with her friends on Saturday. We had twelve, 2, 3, 4 and one 6-year-old. I had "stations" set up so they could make gingerbread men, foam door hangers with these cool Christmas peel off foam shapes and letters (thank you WalMart) and Christmas necklaces. We ate pizza and a backyardigans cake made by an acquaintance. She can freehand just about anything as long as you give her a picture and also puts almond flavoring in the icing which makes the cake not only smell great, but also taste great. I have a friend who doesn't like cake that well but had 2 pieces of this cake because it's so delicious. After her nap, we went downtown where there were many merchants and churches open with various activities and model trains, free horse carriage rides and train rides, as well as a reading of the Polar Express which they were then given a hardback copy of the book as well as a little silver bell. We also stayed for the lighting of the Christmas tree which was turned on by a little boy in our community who has luekemia. We had a busy but a good day. Today she got her gifts from us and we went to Toys R Us to use the grandparents money to buy an easel. Then we picked up lunch (her choice hamburgers). She just got back from a friend's Christmas party where they made crafts, played games and ate goodies. I wish my birthday would last an entire weekend! Hmmm...that's a great thought!

Halloween

This is the first year Becca really enjoyed Halloween which didn't bode well for us since we have sooo much candy now. But I have bunco at my house this week so guess what they're getting for snacks? :) Becca was invited to her friend's halloween party their parents throw every year for the kids/adults. They go all out with games, decorations, food, costumes, etc. I wish I would have gotten pictures of out hosts: Frankenstein and the bride of frankenstein but we got there late and then they were running around getting things together. Above is the spread our hostess prepared. On Halloween, we went to our church's trunk or treat where they had games, face painting, etc. She really had fun there. I think she's going to be an athlete because they didn't let her scoot up any closer than the rest of the kids; she tossed the bean bag into the first and second buckets and twice, tossed a ring to where it lipped the top of the coke bottles. We then dumped our candy and walked around the neighborhood. Becca was looking for suckers at every house. It was a great night, it to a little cool by the end but we really had perfect weather.

Revival

This last week, our church had a revival group called Life Action. You can visit their website at www.lifeaction.org. The group that came here were awesome as I'm sure are the other groups. They bring in a whole worship team as well as teams for children and teens. They break the kids into ages 4-1st grade, 2nd grade-6th grade and teenagers. There is a team for each age group that works, teaches and plays with them. The foyer and classrooms looked like vacation bible school. It really was neat. During the week, the services did go on for a couple of hours but it didn't really seem that long. It was worth it. You should check out if they'll be in your city and go listen to them.

My little artist

Becca found a pencil holder of pens and markers my dad carried with him everywhere that I now have. She used to just color on her potty chart but she decided to color on her leg, the refrigerator and the floor. Luckily it came right off the floor, mainly off the refrigerator but her leg was a lot harder. She comes by this talent honestly. Mom says I wrote on furniture and walls and books, etc all the time. As they say, you pay for your raising.