A Merry Kenzi Christmas...

Merry Christmas to everyone. We had a great Christmas. And really it was a Kenzi Christmas. Alex and JT had to watch Kenzi open a lot of presents before they got there presents from us. Really it is just pay back for all those years Carter and I had to watch them open all of their presents. And I think they got the best last. JT had to open his gift about 5 times. You know, one box inside another! :0) And Alex had to do a Christmas version of the amazing race. He first had to find a note under a light bulb and it continued onto the park, counting our lights on our house, and even getting a clue from a block of ice. Though I think the longest task was a word find which he did not get right the first time. And all of that led him to an iTunes gift card in the box he originally opened. It was great! Kenzi got a Kitchen from Santa which she loves and plays with often. She got a guitar from her Uncle Len & family and a drum from Gramma & Grampa G. She loves playing with all of her toys and I still have to find room for them in the house. Dax and Georgia were even happy with the Christmas knuckles. They spent the whole morning chewing on those. It was great to have the in-laws in town to share this time of year with. We are sorry that we cannot spend it with everyone. I think my favorite gift besides the spa weekend in Calistoga CA are the aprons that Kenzi and I got from Gram Mac. Mine says Cookie Maker and her says Cookie Taster! Oh how true! Anyway, I hope that your family and friends are doing well and have a wonderful New Year!

Baking for the Holidays!

So Kenzi I endeavor to make Christmas goodies. She was so excited to help and in the beginning was there for ever measure and pour. Then about middle of the way through she started doing her own baking by cutting an orange with measuring spoons. By the time we finished our five items she had lined up my flour, sugar, and brown sugar bins and was playing with her toys on them. It was a lot of fun and I thought Kenzi looked so cute I had to take pictures. And she insisted she dance with the dog while I did so. Don't worry I made her wash her hands again before we kept baking! Kari P.S. Yes that is marshmellow cream on her face and she was the official taster! She had quite a bit of sugar that day!

OK...

So I have been so out of touch since my Palm died. It is pathetic, I know, that I rely on a device to remind me to take my vitamin, but such is my punctilios nature! So I have some posts that I have been meaning to put on the blog and just haven't, so bear with me while I do some catch up. (I know Keri, I don't have to catch up but they are such fun video and pictures I have to share!) Like this video of Kenzi. She was so cute that day and got so much attention over her purple outfit especially the hat! Enjoy! Kari

Guess who has a webcam now?

I finally got the webcam set up that I bought several months ago. If anyone is on Live Meeting drop me a line and I'll give you my log in name. Let me know and we can talk, or if you want you can talk to the dog, she is a better listener.

3650 Days ago today...

I remember the first time I told Kari I loved her she laughed at me.

To be fair, we had not been dating long. We had gone to the Irvine Spectrum to see a movie, (It was the Wedding Singer, which was the first movie we saw in a theater.) and we were walking back to my car. Kari, being the person that she is, started to dance in the parking lot. Now, she and I had been getting to know each other pretty well at this point, but at that moment, it just seemed like I was seeing her for the first time. She seemed so happy and full of joy. And at that moment, I realized that I loved her. Now, this is not the kind of realization that allows you to “play it cool” and use your “poker face”. Its not like I was trying to decide between having a burritos and tacos for dinner, and decided on tacos. Needless to say, I must have looked kind of funny, because Kari stopped, looked and me, and the following exchange took place:

Kari – “What are you thinking?”

Me – “You don’t want to know.”

Kari – “Tell me, I want to know.”

Me – “No, you don’t.”

Kari – “Yes. I. do.” (Said in the kind of tone that lets you know that if you don’t fess up, there WILL be trouble.)

Me – “I love you.”

Upon hearing this, my future wife, the mother of my children, my best friend, my eternal companion, the flame on the candle of my soul and the person who makes my life complete, laughed.

She laughed long and hard. At me.

At my heartfelt declaration of love. .

Let’s soak that in for a moment shall we?

Once I got to know her better, I found out that Kari laughs like that when she is nervous, and that she was not mocking me, but I made her nervous by telling her what I was feeling. At the time, not really feeling good about that. Fortunately she only laughs when I tell her I love her sometimes now. (Just kidding)

Kari and I were married for time and all eternity 10 years ago today. Kind of a big deal. I am not sure how we ended up together, or why. But I am glad that we did. We’ve been through some interesting stuff over the last 10 years, but I would not change it for anything. I love Kari, and our relationship has become the best thing that I have.

Thanks for marrying me babe! I love you!

What is with the sleeping arrangements?!?!?!?!

OK, so I promise we have a very comfortable bed for our daughter. We know, we have had to sleep on it a few times ourselves, while she steals our spot in our bed. So I am not sure what it is about sleeping anywhere but her bed. But I had her go in her room for quiet time, which is time that she plays in her room. When the timer goes off she can play anywhere in the house. I checked on her and this is how I found her! I got the camera, because lets face it sometimes I am a scrapbooker first and a mom 2nd. Then I swung her legs on the bed and removed her shoes. I LOVE my girl!

Yin-Yang Dog

OK, So maybe it is "Line o' Dog", however, I was chilling on my bed watching the stuff I DVRed and catching up on some back issues of magazines. Whenever I am on my bed both of our dogs are there. Except at night when Georgia gets crated and in the morning when Georgia wants to play while I am still sleeping. But I thought this was so funny, that I had to take pictures and post. If I didn't know better, I would think that they were blood sisters. But no, we got Dax (dog on right) five years ago and Georgia (dog on left) in January! Kari

"I wanna take a rest mommy..."

So I came into Kenzi's room and she was laying on her toy box as shown in the first picture. "What are you doing Kenzi?" "I wanna take a rest mommy." "OK sweetheart." I came back about 5 to 10 minutes later and this is what I found! I actually had to wake her up when I need to go to scouts. Otherwise I think she would have taken her normal 2 hour nap on there! And she only sleeps that long when she takes a nap. We are phasing out of naps. YIPPEE! Kari

Kenzi chillin' in her house!

Kenzi LOVES her house and any chance she gets she asks to play outside and you can almost always find her in her house. Well, I only recently have started letting her take stuff items outside with her. And this is what she does with her time. I thought it was so cute I had to take pictures and post. Hope you enjoy! Kari

"Trick or Treat"

Well, Halloween without a hitch. Kenzi looked adorable in her Batgirl costume and she got a bucket and a half of candy. It is going to take us awhile to get through that! Well at least if I have anything to say about that! We went to Trunk or Treat with our 6th ward friends. Sophie was a spider, Ben - Indiana Jones (he even came with his own theme music!), and Ella was Belle. Everyone looked so adorable! And after the Trunk of Treat we drove around our neighborhood and trick or treated. Yes I said drove. I was very tired and was going to go home but Carter suggested just stopping at the house we wanted so I said I was in. We went to Kenzi's most favorite houses in the neighborhood. So she got the see the decorations up close. We had a great time! On Saturday we went to our ward Trunk or Treat. I could not find the camera so we didn't get pictures. However, Dave and Liz's kids were Snow white and a race car driver. It was a lot of fun. And Like I said, PLENTY of candy!!!!! Anyway, I hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween! Kari

Kenzi's Preschool celebrates Halloween...

So for Preschool, Kenzi's class had a party and a parade. Those that showed up to class today were Peter Pan, Minnie Mouse, Spiderman, Batgirl, and the chaperons were Carter and Mrs. Becky. The children decorate Pumpkin sugar cookies, played some Halloween games and made a Halloween page! Fun was had by all and after the parade they had a picnic at Story Park. It was so much fun and all of the children looked so adorable!!! Kari

Sneak peek at Halloween...

OK, so I am a very proud momma and had to share. I am not a sew-r. At least not like I am a scrapbooker. I do not sew very much at all but I have done a few items. Kenzi decided awhile ago that she wanted to be batgirl. We went at the beginning of this month looking for a batgirl costume. Now I don't overly love the black costume but thought hey if it will save me from having to make something maybe it is worth it. Until I couldn't find her size, the size 14 I found was $40!! I thought well if I go to Walmart and they have a pattern for cheap as well as material I can try making it. Well I found both. The material was $2/yd and the pattern was $2.44 So I gave it a try. And this is the end result! I couldn't believe that it actually turned out! And Kenzi loves it. She even wanted to show it to her babysitters on Saturday. I was also so excited too to have it done way before Halloween! So now Carter is working on the belt and we will have a batgirl ready to go! If you are wondering why she is in purple and a little different outfit, she is the Batman strikes batgirl with the 1966 bat emblem. I liked this out fit way better and thought long sleeves might be good as it seems to be getting colder. So Happy Halloween and I will post more when Halloween gets here! Kari

Boss' Day

So two weeks ago or more appropriately a week and a half ago it was Boss' Day. I had offered to make goodies for Carter's work due to upper management coming in and he asked if I would do a cake. No problem! This was a full sheet cake, the first that I have ever made! And that thing was heavy! I was able to put all the Boss' names on the cake, though it was touch and go there. I should have probably used a smaller tip! Anyway, everyone seemed to like it and I even got a thank you note! It was fun to do something different at least for me! So to all Boss', who are good to your people... I hope you had a great day! Kari

Braden turns 4!

OK, no we do not have another kid that we have not told anyone about, but being as this is Kenzi & Co... we tell of her friends too! Kenzi's preschool friend Braden, turned 4 and had a superhero party. Kenzi (and daddy) being prepared for all contingencies got dressed in the spider man baseball cap and Green lantern tshirt. She then, received a pink cape as all the children got a cape, not necessarily pink. They had a great time playing duck-duck-goose and hide and seek. Of course the cupcakes were a hit! Kenzi had a great time at Braden's party. Thank you Braden for inviting Kenzi! And once again, Happy Birthday Braden! Kari

Kenzi goes to the State Fair... and takes mom and Dad!

So it has become a tradition with our family ever since we moved here to go to the State Fair. The 1st year we went to the Fair with some friends and ended up going on the day that Sooners and Longhorns played! Huge mistake. Way too many people and way too much burnt orange. (I know nothing about the teams so no offense intended, just not a pretty color!) Well now Carter takes a day off of work and we have a great time! So we get there and first have lunch due to me being hungry. Kenzi had one the famous corn dogs and almost ate the whole thing. We then saw Big Tex and she was fascinated. We gave her a choice of going straight to the animals or the cars and she opted to go see the cars. I think she thought she was going to drive out with one! She kept picking small SUVs and really didn't notice anything else until the convertible Corvette that they were not letting anyone sit in. Then Kenzi spotted people climbing a wall over in the Jeep display. "I want to go to that play area, Mommy!" So we went and asked if she could do it, we signed a waiver, and off she went, No Fear! Until we got both feet off the ground and she realized it was a lot harder than it looked. She was soon done and got a carrabeaner and came out, saying "I did it mommy!" "Yes, you did sweetheart!" We then made our way to the animals where you can feed them by way of a "dancing dog show", (Yea, not quite sure so don't ask. Kenzi was entertained and got excited when it was over and she could pet the dogs.) So we fed the animals and stayed away from the Ostriches, 2 years ago Kenzi got bit by one a couple of times. I think this year they even had them back a little and said you can't feed them. Fine by me! Then Kenzi proceeded to have a melt down and we went home. Long day of fun hanging out with Kenzi. She walked to whole day by herself! We didn't even bring the stroller. She did great and it was soo much fun going through the fair with her. Love you sugar pie! Kari

My weekend with Kenzie

Well, I am finally getting around to posting on the blog again. I thought that I would give a counter post to what Kenzie and I did while Kari was in SoCal at Mel's wedding. Let's get started, shall we? First we dropped Kari off at the airport.

Then we went and saw an early showing of "Space Chimps" at the dollar theater. Neither of us was really impressed. In retrospect, we should have seen Kung Fu Panda for the third time.

Then we went to register my new car. Since they had to mail me the plates, the best I could do for proof that we went was the receipt that they gave us.

After that we were off to the library to get some books to read and some videos to watch. Notice the shirt. Guess who dressed her that day?

we also like to go the library to look at the fish. And the 87 on her back? Sidney Crosby's number.


We used the computer to find any Curious George books that we had not read.

For a treat Mackenzie got her first Slurpee. It was a moment for both of us.

Followed by her first "Slurpee tongue". Can you tell that it was a Cherry Slurpee?

And for a grand finale, I taught her how to make a blanket fort in the living room.

We hung out in the fort and watched cartoons and ate popcorn until it was time for bed. I think next time she will want to sleep in there. All in all we had some good quality "Daddy and Daughter" time. Kenzie is a great source of joy to me, and I love spending time with her. Hope everyone enjoyed.

Carter

Cowgirl Kenzi

So for scouts we went to the Plano Environmental Gardens in Plano. I couldn't tell Kenzi that she could not come and she would have been very upset to find out that I went without her. So she has become our packs honorary scout member. It turns out the the Gardens have the same chair that they have at the Dallas Zoo. My friend Alyson got a picture of Cowgirl Kenzi sitting on it. I love my cowgirl! Kari

Watch out mommy...

So now that Kenzi is 3 going on 15, she likes to tell me how to drive. On Thursday I was taking her and her friends Wade to Preschool when a squirrel ran out into the street.
"Watch out for the squirrel mommy!!!!"
"OK." We passed it after it had already crossed the street, of course when we saw it it was a distance away.
"Good job MOM!"
"Thank you sweetheart."

I get a vacay...

So it starts on Friday, I am to leave out of Love and my flight is delayed. It is so delayed that I would miss my connecting in Austin. I get my flight switched and eventually make it to So. Cal and meet up with my mom. I go to baggage claim and no bag. So I fill out a report. As I am processing what is going on I realize that I have no clothes for the wedding that is suppose to happened that night. So off the car rental place we went. After insisting that we pay what we were quoted we get our compact car without power windows & locks. Which threw both of us for a loop being as how we both have cars that have remote locks! Then we are off to get me an outfit. 30 minutes to get a dress, shoes, necklace, earrings, and a bracelet. (We know how to power shop!) We then get food and check into our hotel. We have about an hour and a half until we have to leave. So we eat and then start getting ready. I realize that I don't have any makeup or even deodorant! Mom starts spilling her makeup bag and offers me anything and everything. We leave and on the way out I talk to the front desk and ask which to turn on PCH. Left. So we turn left. After trying to find it for 30 minutes, I call Carter at home and have him mapquest it. We get to the parking lot at 5:56. The boat is suppose to leave at 6 pm. As we are walking to the boat my glasses break. There are ramps and stairs everywhere! I am sure I gave the kid at the bottom of the stairs a shot of my underwear going to the floor where the wedding was happening. When you do so you are in front of everybody as you try and find a seat in the back. We were the last two on the boat! Needless to say, the boat took off and the wedding went on without a hitch. It was a very nice service and everyone is very happy for them and we all though "It is about time!" I thought the wedding was very well organized because after the wedding we would go downstairs for drinks and appetizers, then back upstairs for dinner, downstairs for cake, upstairs for dancing. We got off the boat around 11 pm PST and say goodbye. Mitch asks if we are staying the same hotel and then says "Stay up we can party!" To which I was not ready for since I was so tired from being up since 6 am CST. So we went back to the room and passed out! There were moments where I thought I was not going to make it! And with all of the hectic moments, It was so much fun! I think my company had something to do with that!

Here is a picture with myself and Mel! She was absolutely stunning and beaming!

So the Next day, we had breakfast, went shopping, did some more shopping, had a nap, I think, small one, had dinner with my in-laws, and did some more shopping. We had a great visit with my in-laws and JT is just getting bigger. Alex was on a retreat with the Troubadours. My mom took all the pictures because she did not want to be in them. I told she had to be in one with me because part of my trip was spending time with her. And we never got one. The last day we were there, I got to have IN-N-OUT!!! It was so good! Me trip home was not near as eventful as my trip there. It was nice! Oh, I almost forgot, Southwest paid me $50 for reimbursement on buying the outfit since they lost me luggage. And they totally cut me a check when I went to baggage claim! I was really impressed with my flights and how they handled the lost bag. they did try and get it to me before the wedding. I had it in my room about 6 pm on Friday.

So I have baggage claim stories... Really Carter has gotten me into this habit of asking "What is the strangest, funniest thing you have seen doing your job?" I found out that Larry King broke their door because he was mad. Cory Hame (spelling?) came in and declared very loudly, "I am Cory Hame, I am an actor, and you lost my luggage!" They have also found marijuana, and a kilo of cocaine. But the winner is... A guy said he worked for American 15 years ago and a box came in. It was really light but he put where it needed to go and in two days a package has to be opened to take inventory. He puts his gloves on and opens the box. There is nothing in there! Someone points to the back of his hand "Dude!" And on the back of his hand was a Madagascar hissing cock roach!!!!!!!! Yes, he said he did flip out! Apparently it was someones pet. Now someones dead pet?!?!?! Anyway, I had a GREAT time and I am so thankful to have such wonderful family and friends!

And just to show, I am still a California girl living in Texas, I splurged on a sticker for my car. I NEVER put stickers on my car, but I thought this one was cute and had to have it! Later! Kari