Christmas 2009

We had a wonderful Christmas! So much fun watching Drew and Kayley open their gifts! In the afternoon Lisa and her boys and Aaron came for dinner. I made the traditional turkey dinner, as Mark wanted stuffing. :-) We even had Iowa sweet corn that he brought with him. I thought it was delicious...Megan and I cooked a great meal, even if I do say so myself! :-) After dinner the Swensen kids got on my computer and we
"Skyped" with Sharon and Arne in Florida. They had a great time being able to see them along with visiting with them. I am sure they wish they could have been here in person but Skype is the second best thing! Earlier in the day Sharon had skyped (I am not sure that is a proper word) and gave me a tour of their lovely and HUGE home in the Villages. That was such fun.

Well, whether anyone wants it or not...videos of our Christmas. At least a website is different than being guests in a home and forced to watch family home videos. On the computer you can choose not to click and no one is the wiser!! :-) Hope you all had as great a Christmas as we did. Matt, we missed you so much!!!! Next year....

Christmas morning:


Kayley on Christmas Day:



Father/Son tool bonding:



Misc. Christmas photos:

A very merry Christmas Eve

Just returned home from our niece Lisa's home. Great food, great company and a good time had by all. Drew and Kayley stayed up way later than usual and were troopers. Tomorrow will be a big day after Santa's stop tonight. Looking forward to that. Merry Christmas to all.

A video of a very giggly Kayley:



Random snaps of the week:

A great train ride

Last night we rode along with Megan and Andy and the kids to McCormick-Stillman Park where we hopped a train for a gorgeous light-filled ride through the park. The kids loved it. We had to wait in line for quite awhile but Drew and Kayley handled that very well. It was Drew's first time "out in public" since starting potty training and he did super. I would officially call him trained. Of course, he still wears a pull-up at bedtime. My grandkids are getting old!!!

Here's a video of the night and beautiful light display:

Christmas will soon be here

I am almost in shock to think that Christmas is less than a week away. I hope I will be ready! I am fixing "Thanksgiving" dinner for Christmas Day at the request of Mark. He is hungry for stuffing. :-) I love making that dinner but would be much happier if Matt were out here to enjoy it that day, as it is his favorite meal, too. We will have my niece Lisa and her sons here and nephew Aaron. Sharon and Arne cannot make it to AZ this Christmas so I am glad to have her children here with us that day to celebrate with family. When they still lived in AZ they always had all of us up to Terravita for the holidays so I am pleased that we can reciprocate with her children this year.

At the risk of being yelled at by my midwestern friends and family, the weather has just been superb for Mark's first week here. Lots of outdoor time with Drew and Kayley and yesterday we even golfed 18 holes. Just beautiful and so much fun!!! We were a bit rusty on the course but did not even mind that. We just enjoyed the day together. After golf we babysat for the kids so Megan and Andy could go to Megan's law firm party.

Today was designated for shopping! Kohl's has a 30% off everything deal so I cannot pass on that. :-) I also have to get my turkey today and probably everything else I need for that meal. Mark will be in heaven accompanying me on that journey. Ha ha!! Too bad there isn't a Home Depot close by...

Tonight Megan and Andy are taking the kids to McCormick-Stillman Park to see the Christmas lights so we are tagging along. They have a train ride there so you know who will be in ecstacy! Not sure if Santa will be there. We have been showing Drew the Christmas specials and he seems interested so I think he knows a little something about Santa this year. He will know a lot more come Christmas morning!

Time to get dressed for shopping! Have a great week and may there be NO snow in your forecast!



A video of Grandpa "reading" to Kayley



Outdoor playtime



Just plain NOISY!!

He's finally here!!!

Mark finally arrived in Phoenix late yesterday afternoon. It is wonderful to have him here after a long harvest season and an early midwest blizzard. He started out Thursday afternoon and drove to Matt's in Omaha. He spent the night at Matt's then began his long drive to Arizona on Friday morning. His Friday evening was spent in Tucumcari, NM. Mark said the roads were clear his entire 1500+ miles. Last year the mountain areas surrounding the valley were getting snow and he had to take a LONG southern route into Phoenix to avoid slippery mountain road conditions. This year he had much better luck and was able to come down the mountains via the shortest route. I cannot tell you how great it was when he finally walked through that door yesterday!

Megan and Andy invited us over last night for pork chops and Mark was able to finally see his grandchildren after almost 4 months. When he last saw them Kayley wasn't walking and we were still trying to get that bottle of formula down her. Now she is running all over the place and eating like a champ. He cannot get over how "old" Drew seemed and how tall he had grown. Drew didn't hesitate at all to run to Grandpa, seemed to remember him well. They talk on the phone a lot so that probably helped. Kayley took a few minutes to warm to her grandpa but then they became pals

He hopes to just have a relaxing day today...little does he know that he is going to help me put up Christmas lights on the townhouse. :-) Hope you all have a relaxing Sunday, too!




Kayley at my place on Friday and seeing Grandpa last night:

Snow, snow go away

Well, so much for Mark leaving from Omaha today for Phoenix. An "historic" blizzard (according to the news) hit Iowa today and my poor husband couldn't even get to Omaha. Thank goodness he is safe and sound at home. He would have been caught right in the middle of it. 14+ inches, horrendous winds and temps. Gosh, I do not miss that crappy weather at all. I am praying the roads will be clear enough by tomorrow afternoon for him to get to Matt's home in Omaha. He would then be able to leave Friday morning for WARM weather. Grandma and the kids are waiting for you!

The weather has been a bit on the unpleasant side here, too. High winds wreaked havoc on trees and power lines Monday night. That was probably a precursor to Iowa's weather on Tuesday and today.

Since it has been cool we have spent the majority of the time indoors. The video shows you how antsy everyone is to get back outside...


Pics of Drew talking to Grandpa Mark today...he even has grandpa's gestures! A picture of Kayley by the tree...she loves that tree!

More "Let's go bowling"

Drew decided he wanted to take Grandpa Butch bowling while he was visiting. Drew dearly loves to bowl, as does grandpa, so it was a fun evening for them. Kayley and I played in the arcade room. All the flashing lights made her think she was driving the cars and shooting the guns without spending a dime. That little trick will end soon enough!

Saturday was another very cool day here. I went with my hiking friends on a 6 mile trek and never took off my gloves which is most unusual after hiking that long. Usually I work up some heat units but the brisk breeze kept us all cool. I was also very cold last night when we went to Cave Creek. Megan had registered for the 5K night run there so Drew and I rode with to cheer for her. This was her first race and she did very well considering the route had major hills for the runners! She doesn't run on any hills so that was a different challenge for her. As she was off running and breaking a sweat, Drew and I froze our buns off. We did NOT dress appropriately for the temps. I could have used my Iowa ear muffs and winter coat. Glad this little front will be out of the valley in a few days. I don't like it! :-)

Mark should be in Phoenix this Thursday. Yay! We cannot wait to have him with us.

Below are some pics from the Thanksgiving week-end, my hike, the 5K race and a short video of the bowling night.

Baby, it's cold outside

I am scared to look out at my flowers and tomatoes this morning. It got dangerously close to freezing here overnight and I think I am going to regret not covering those plants. There are usually one to two nights per winter here that it gets close to freezing and I am afraid one of them happened last night. Darn my laziness!!

We had a good week here. Beautiful days, cool evenings. We can take a walk any time of the day now so we can be more flexible with that schedule. Kayley and Drew just love to be outdoors so if boredom sets in or they are getting antsy we simply head outside and they are content for a long time.

I was finally able to get the H1N1 vaccine yesterday. I was the only one in there to receive it so in and out in a matter of minutes. Much different than the long lines I see on TV news! Thank goodness...

Drew's mom is not going to be too happy with the following video. :-) It started out accidently and then we got carried away with the fun of "feeding" Sox.

Getting lazy (revised video)

I have a lot of videos and pics backing up on my camera. Need to get moving on those! I did find time tonight to put some photos into black and white...

Spring training....

Won't be long and the baseball teams return to the Valley. Time to practice.

Today I am thankful

My brother Larry and his family invited Mark and Matt to Thanksgiving Dinner in Rockwell City today. I am so thrilled they will not be feasting alone on the farm!! I love the farm, but it would be lonesome with just the two of them on this holiday. To make it even better, Larry is serving prime rib...why does that sound so much tastier than the turkey I am roasting?!?!!? I may have to alter my meal planning next year and pardon a turkey...

Here is some Thanksgiving week-end trivia. The Friday after Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for plumbers. hmmmm......I don't know if people are pouring drippings down the kitchen sink or if their "Uncle Buck" and his family are spending an inordinate amount of time in the bathrooms. Either way, I say keep the plunger handy! Also, I am hoping after reading this article I will not pig out today like usual! Globesity!!

Have a fantastic day!

Happy Thanksgiving

This is a short week for all you working people. I know that makes everyone very happy! I hope you have a wonderful holiday week-end with your family/friends. I had looked into flying back home over Thanksgiving but the fares were more than I wanted to pay! I figured I would save all that money since Mark will be driving out here in two weeks anyway. It would have been wonderful to see Matt, though. :-( Hopefully we can get him down to Phoenix again this year for Christmas.

I had a bunch of still pictures sitting on my camera so decided to put them to a little music:

Making a mess

All week long Drew was really in to making messes and piles. Not sure what was going on there! He piled everything he owned outdoors into a big heap...emptied his toy box and piled it all in the middle of the family room. Then Friday he went to his Thomas the train table and did the same thing! (See video below.) I will say he enjoyed doing it! Kayley just watched...and hopefully didn't learn. :-)

It has been super nice here all week long. I went hiking yesterday with four gals into a beautiful section of the McDowell mountains. Very secluded and gorgeous. We managed to get a bit lost and came out of the trail with our cars no where in sight. Seems we were about 1/2 mile south. We usually do NOT do that! The trails really meander there and it would be easy to become lost, so we did! Glad I wasn't alone!

Last night I went out to eat with Megan and family. Always nice not to cook! Well, don't know a thing so I will wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Cranky the crane

Any time Drew sees a crane from afar he calls it Cranky, from the Thomas the train stories. Yesterday I took him over to the town house where I live to show him one up close and personal. Megan and Andy decided it was time to put a new AC unit in the town house and that is what they use out here to install them...a crane! He enjoyed watching that ordeal!

Family night with Al and Peg Bundy!

Sorry for that title Megan and Andy! Every time I think of family bowling I think of "Married with Children". :-) ( Does anyone recall that sitcom???) The Thiel's were taking the kids bowling last night and I rode along. Drew had so much fun bowling and Kayley just had fun being there.

No rattlers or mt. lions on my hike today BUT

we did run into this big furry tarantula! Now, I know they are not "bad" spiders but after getting bitten twice by a brown recluse spider I do have some reservations about arachnids, especially when they are as BIG AS MY FIST! He was scurrying along in front of me on the trail and I do think I freaked a bit. The other ladies, long Arizonians, just laughed at me. Ha ha ha.... :-)
\

Harvest is a "go" in Iowa!

Mark is steadily getting his corn harvested. My Iowa friends on Facebook have been talking about the great weather, wearing shorts and enjoying the sunshine. Mark says he's just thankful to be in the fields! I am happy for everyone there but especially glad that Mark is getting the corn out. The grand kids and grandma want that grandpa to get down to Phoenix as soon as possible! The weather is nice and we need to golf! :-)

Saturday I hiked with my new friends (actually Sharon's AZ friends who have let me join them after her move to Florida.) We did Pinnacle Peak which is a very popular trail on the week-ends but a good one to start for our first hike. We will hike as a group every Saturday until these gals head to cooler temps come spring. We see some beautiful Arizona countryside on these hikes and I am absolutely in heaven doing the trails!

I cannot believe it is almost Thanksgiving. I am not sure if it is the weather here or the fact that I hardly know what day of the week it is, let alone what month. It just doesn't seem like we should be having turkey and dressing once again! It is even harder to get into the Christmas spirit here. Jingle bells in the desert doesn't have that same....jingle! I wonder if I will EVER spend another white Christmas in Iowa? Sounds sad, but it isn't...because I won't. I just can't take the cold anymore! :-)

Andy had a tree die but he knew it probably would. It was originally planted by the landscapers too close to the pool and Andy didn't like the shade that it was providing and not allowing the water to warm up fast enough in the spring and fall. He tried transplanting it but it didn't quite make it. Drew became fixated on its "carcass" the past few days:

How to stay cool

Mark finally started combining corn yesterday. It is still very wet and he is driving through water is places but it is definitely time to get it out of the field. Here is wishing Iowans many days of sunshine ahead!

Kayley found the perfect way to stay cool while playing outdoors yesterday.

Hate to say it, but it is hot today!

After some really cool (cold!) temps last week, the thermometer is on the rise again. Supposed to be in the 90's all week, above normal for November. I do prefer this to those days we were in the 60's. Too hard to get Drew to put on jeans and a long sleeved shirt! :-)

Mark said the sun is finally shining in Iowa. The corn is still terribly wet but the guys are going to have to start combining eventually or they will have the worry of snow next. Such a year...

We spent the majority of yesterday outdoors. The video shows what we do outside. Have a great week everyone!

Happy Halloween

I had two visitors last night for Trick or Treat. One was dressed as a black cat and one was dressed as a normal toddler. Drew had a cute Thomas the Tank Engine costume to wear but he thought a white t-shirt and jeans were more comfortable for the occasion! Maybe next year! Grandma still gave him treats anyway. At least for pictures dad Andy donned the Thomas outfit so it didn't go completely to waste! :-)

Andy and Megan have season tickets to the AZ Cardinals games so I am going to watch the kids while they tailgate and cheer the team to victory. It looks like a nice day so we will probably spend a good portion of it outside enjoying the temps.

Hope everyone had a Happy Halloween.

One week later

Another week passed by so quickly that I haven't had time to update! Everything is good here. The weather is cooling down nicely into the 80's and it makes outdoor time possible all day long for the kids. That is good because they dearly love to be outside getting as dirty as possible. Today a front of some sort is moving through the valley and the high is only going to be 61. Brrr!!! No shorts today! Hope it moves out quickly and gets back to the 80's. :-)

Mark has had even more rain to complicate his harvest schedule. At least the beans are out. Sister Jan told me farmers near them in MN still have beans in the field and that they are beginning to swell and rot. How horrible for those people!

Monday night we met my nephew Erik and niece Lisa and her son Taylor for dinner at Peter Piper Pizza. It was great to see them and Drew and Kayley had fun. It is much nicer than Chuck E. Cheese and the pizza was actually good! We might have to haul grandpa to this place when he arrives.

Megan and I hiked Saturday morning and then they all came to my place to watch the very thrilling Iowa Hawkeye game against Michigan State. What a game! We were so very happy and were jumping and shouting at the last touch down and scared poor Kayley!

This week-end is Halloween so need to buy some candy. Last year the only one that stopped at my place was Drew, so I don't need to buy a lot of treats! Drew is supposed to go as Thomas the tank engine but he is balking at putting on the outfit. It is so cute so I hope he puts it on that night. I may, or may NOT, have pictures of him in it next week. :-)

A beautiful day in the neighborhood

Lovely weather we are having. I just really love October in the desert. Very comfortable days, cooling down a bit in the evenings. The kids and I can take our walks later in the morning if we want but we pretty much always get going by 8:30 a.m. I almost wished I had put socks on Kayley this morning as it was breezy, but once we started walking in the sun all was well.

I am hoping Iowa is receiving great weather, too, so Mark can get back into the fields and harvest but the weather forecast talks more rain. Good grief! That poor state is having atrocious weather. :-(

A short video of the kids:

Ain't no sunshine when she's gone....

AND there ain't no sunshine when she's here! I have been back in Iowa since Wednesday night and have yet to see the sun. I had forgotten how gloomy it can be in the midwest. Oh well, I didn't come here for the weather! Mark and I have been enjoying the days. Good food, lots of laughs and just happy to be together.

I had my teeth checked, my eyes checked and lunch yesterday with Katie and Shari in Webster City. Went to a sports bra (private joke) for lunch and had a great time with two great gals.

Today we watched our Hawkeyes defeat Wisconsin with brother Kevin and that was awesome, too.

Mark and I have grilled every night and it was wonderful. We both decided that the next week will consist of a lot less meat, though! :-)

I fly back to Phoenix tomorrow afternoon. Wonder how the grand kids are doing? :-)

Since it was so gloomy here I will post a couple of pics of Drew and Kayley. Looks like Drew is in need of a little desk, don't you agree?


A

Walk, walk, walk!

This week has seen Kayley really take off walking. Not always graceful but getting better each day and she can squat and stand back up and fall down and get back up on her own. Yes, she is going everywhere...FAST! I am getting lots of exercise this week. :-)

Megan and I are going to hike this morning. I am looking forward to that. Ever since Sharon moved to FL I have been hiking alone which is okay but hiking with Megan will be much better!

When we return I am going to help Andy paint their bedroom and bathroom. I love to paint so that is not a chore to me. We will follow that job up with pizza and watching the Iowa Hawkeyes take on Michigan. Go Hawks!

I'm baaack...

I have been so busy flying around the country and babysitting that I haven't had time to post for almost a week. That is unusual for me!

Friday night I took a 7 PM flight out of Phoenix to DM. Due to the time change, didn't arrive there until almost midnight. By the time we drove to the farm it was past 1 AM and didn't get to bed until after 2. Now, that is WELL past grandpa and grandma's bedtime let me tell you! But, I was glad to be on the farm with Mark, regardless the time of arrival.

Saturday morning I got up and went for a jog....in ear muffs, gloves and a warm coat! That is the most clothes I have had on in months. :-) Actually, it felt very invigorating and the air was so clean and crisp. We made BLT's for lunch with Mark's home grown tomatoes....delicious. Then it was time for bloody mary's and a fire and the Hawkeye's playing FB. We had a great day together then grilled t-bone steaks for dinner. Delicious meal once again! Sunday we lounged around until it was time to head back to DM for my 2:50 PM flight. That departure time kept getting delayed....and delayed...and delayed. :-( Mechanical problems with the de-icer wiring on a wing. I was sitting there thinking they wouldn't need to worry about de-icing going to Phoenix! All told I sat in the airport over three hours and then we finally got the go ahead to board. It made for a very long travel day. Such is your life when flying. You just never know.

Now I am back with the grand kids and we are pushing trains and learning to walk all over the house and to take naps without pacifiers. Did I ever mention that I have pretty neat grand babies? Yes, I thought I had. :-)






I

Finally off the bottle!

No, I don't mean me. :-) Kayley was given the green light to get rid of the formula and get on whole milk out of a sippy cup. We all are in heaven about that development! As you recall, we have had a struggle from the beginning with her taking a bottle. Only through sheer strength and lots of walking through the house did we get her to take enough to thrive. Now our only concern is that she gets enough liquids throughout the day from the cup. She loves her solid food, though. Yes, life just got a lot easier here for all of us!

It was so nice last week but warmed up a little this week. I think we are through with that now, too. Before I know it I will need a long sleeved shirt in the morning and the kids will be wearing jeans outside to play. That will be different!

Mark has been harvesting beans. A breakdown here and there but sounds like he is rolling now. May the weather please cooperate for him!

I am having a blast watching Kayley go nuts with Teletubbies videos! She just goes bonkers when it comes on. Too funny...at least for grandma.

Can't believe it is almost October!

Where does the time fly? We will be carving pumpkins before we know it!

It was a nice week here. Not too hot and definitely not too cold! This week-end was a sports week-end for Andy and Megan. Had tickets to the Diamondbacks Saturday night and a Cardinals game tonight so I watched the grandkids both nights. The Cardinals had a very disappointing showing against Manning and the Colts but they seem to always be a great team with him in charge.

On a brighter note our Iowa Hawkeyes soundly defeated the 5th rated Penn State Nittany Lions so that was a great high point to our week-end! Have a great rest of the year Hawks!

I did manage to get in a great hike by myself Saturday morning. That is the one thing I dearly love to do in Arizona. So many beautiful trails! Other than that, not a whole lot to relate from this end of the U.S. Just enjoying the great weather and the grand kids.

Another video of guess who! :-)

Such a beautiful day!

It is just lovely here in Phoenix today. Cool breeze and nice temps. Maybe it has finally arrived...the weather we wait all through July and August to receive! Here's hoping anyway.

Grandpa Butch flew back to Omaha this past Monday after a week long stay. For some reason Drew thinks he is still at the airport. :-)

Kayley is getting more and more mobile even though she is not fully walking yet. This gal has NO fear which makes her tricky to watch. She is getting in to things Drew never did at her age. She will keep grandma on her toes. Drew is very good at pointing out to me (hollering, actually) if she is doing something she should not be doing. Drew is especially diligent about keeping her many feet away from his precious Thomas and Friends...

Mark was going to try beans so am anxious to hear if he actually got a field harvested. Only one field was ready and I think he thought the others might be a week or so behind them. Time to get harvest underway and over!

I took the kids on a walk yesterday and saw the aftermath of a horrific car-school bus collision right on Megan and Andy's cross streets. Two teen boys were killed when they broadsided the bus. The boys were estimated going 90 mph in a 40 mph zone and were almost completely under the bus. The accident happened at 7:20 am and at 10:00 they still hadn't lifted the bus off of the car and one boy was still trapped in the car. Five or 10 minutes either way and it could have been Megan, Andy or me. Makes you really stop and think...

A couple of videos from the week.

Live....it's Saturday night!!

and grandma is pooped! Started out the day with an early morning hike up to Shaw Butte. It is a fairly long trail that usually takes 2 hours but doing it alone today I shaved off 25 minutes from last week-end. I think I will pay for that feat. Going alone with my iPod and no one to visit with just makes you walk faster I guess! After the hike I stopped by Megan's and she and the kids were going for a walk so I went with on that, also. Like I said...I am pooped!

Dinner tonight was courtesy of Andy's dad and it was very delicious. Megan, Andy, the kids, Butch and I went to the Horny Toad for prime rib dinner. It is rather a touristy place in Cave Creek but it is fun. I remember going there the very first time years ago while visiting sister Sharon for her 40th birthday. Sorry Sharon, shouldn't have said "years ago" but my 40th was years ago, too! :-)

Tomorrow I think I will hike Pinnacle Peak. It is so nice to have cooler temps so that hiking is enjoyable again on the week-ends. I need to hike because I think we are going to Fastso's pizza tomorrow night. :-( Hope all of you are having a fatso week-end too, and not just me!

A video with a little Barry Manilow! I read where malls that are having trouble with teenage gangs hanging around are blasting Manilow's mellow tunes on them and they don't like it! Ha!

Grandpa Butch is in town!

Kayley and Drew are having a great time with their grandpa who is visiting son Andy and family for a week. It took a little while for Kayley to warm up to Butch but they are great buddies now. Drew and Butch golf a little every day and Drew has managed to get him fairly wet with the hose. Oh well, that feels pretty good out here!

We have been going for a walk every morning and with each passing day I notice I am perspiring less and less. In no time at all we will be on our way to about 9 months of gorgeous temperatures. I must admit I am looking forward to that prospect! Well worth the two months of hell one goes through here in July and August. :-)

Mark says the beans are starting to turn on the farm in Iowa so harvest will be just around the corner and he can come down here and enjoy this nice weather with his wife and grandchildren and daughter! A few short videos from the week:

Short week

It was a short week with the kids. I didn't get back to Megan and Andy's until around 10 a.m. on Tuesday. We took walks every morning...still warm but it is improving. Only 100 degrees this week-end. Trust me, that is great compared to those 115 days!

Sister Sharon is in the valley visiting from Florida. I am playing golf with her and her grandsons Nick and Taylor this morning in Mesa. Looking forward to that! The Hawks and Cyclones are playing at the same time but I don't get any coverage down here. :-( Go Hawks!!!!!

Tomorrow Sharon and I are babysitting so Andy and his father can attend the Cardinals first game of the season. Well, time to get my clubs in the car. Have a great week-end.

Fun Labor Day week-end

What a wonderful week-end back on the farm in Iowa! The weather was picture perfect. Jan came down from Osakis, MN and Matt made it home from Omaha. Friend Cyndy spent a day and night on Saturday and John and Sue Swanson came over for our Saturday night bonfire. So great to see them all. Dan and Katie have a smoker and Dan smoked all of us some of Mark's pork chops on Saturday night along with sweet corn, compliments of Cyndy. Delicious meal!

Sunday we all went in to Jan and Clayton's and had about a two hour visit. They looked great, as did their home and yard.

I had an 8 am flight out of DM on Tuesday morning so Mark and I had to get up really early yesterday so I could make that plane. I was soooo tired all day yesterday. I was afraid I would have trouble staying awake watching Drew and Kayley but they seemed really happy to see me and that perked me up. :-) Some random pics from the week-end:
\

Under 100 degrees!

I am back in Iowa and loving these nice cool temps. Everything is so lush and green here and Mark's crops look great. I flew into Des Moines about 5 PM last night. Great to see my hubby! Sister Jan came down from MN and Matt is coming today from Omaha.

Here are a couple of videos of guess who. :-)

Fatso's

Our new favorite pizza place. They had a live singing duet who were great, the pizza was loaded and Andy's personal favorite: 19 beers on tap! Drew and Kayley were so good and Drew loved the music. A fun dining experience and we will all definitely return to Fatso's. I fear if we return too many times we will begin living up to the restaurant's name, though!

Drew and Kayley enjoying our visit to Fatso's and a short video of Kayley "talking".

She will be one tough kid

We finally went for a walk today after a several month heat layoff. It felt so good to get the kids and the dog out of the house! Sox and I were sweating and panting when we returned but it was worth it. She hasn't made a peep the rest of this day so we got her good and worn out. We left around 8:45 which was a little late. It is still pretty warm by 9 a.m. here.

Kayley is rapidly aging me. She is such a go getter. I have pulled her out of the fireplace soot three times today before finally getting smart and using a bread tie to keep the gates together. We both were a mess! She leaves no stone unturned...

I brought out the bouncing Zebra that Drew got for his first Christmas from Uncle Mitch. Drew rarely rode it but Kayley loves it. So guess what? Now Drew thinks he loves it, too! Every time she goes near it he is right there to make her fight for every bounce.

Wild week-end

Andy flew to Peoria on Friday morning so Megan was a single parent for three nights. Granny helped out here and there. Saturday evening we decided to take them to Chuck E. Cheese Pizza and fun and games. Not for the faint of heart. It is naturally quite noisy and surprise, lots of kids. Everywhere. I don't think I will be taking Grandpa out to dinner there when he returns to Phoenix. We just may take the kids there for a lunch so he gets to experience it, though. Ha!

Still pretty warm in the valley. We just need to get through part of September and then the really gorgeous weather returns. That means hiking returns. Yay!

Our evening at the pizza parlor....

A bit of a milestone

Grandma, Kayley and Drew had a pretty good week. Only one more day to go until the week-end. Still a bit too warm to go for our daily walk with Sox. I think the kids and I and definitely Sox are waiting for that ritual to return.

Grandpa tells us he is eating lots of his home grown sweet corn but we don't like hearing that! We miss that great taste.

Our little preemie decided to take 5 steps yesterday! I was ecstatic. I had noticed she was standing longer by herself and just held out my arms to her and she came to me. Yes, it was a bit of the Frankenstein shuffle, but she did it! Won't be long before she is racing to tick off Drew and his trains!

Drew has had a couple of mishaps under my watch. Wednesday he slipped on the tile and bit his upper lip, giving him the proverbial fat lip. Today he went down on the sidewalk trying to push a stroller a little too fast. Ouch!

Kayley is doing great. She will eat absolutely anything you throw in front of her. She is catching up on the doctor's chart for normal babies her age. Yay!



Drew has finally started to figure out how to get his tricycle moving forward. Yay!

Sorry for the lag in my posts. Mark and I were on babysitting mode 24/7 with Drew and Kayley while Andy and Megan went to San Diego for a getaway for their 5th anniversary. We had a great time but I will have to admit that I can see why parents are young! We both were pooped after this but we did enjoy it "despite our age"! I think the kids will miss grandpa. Mark flew home to Iowa today. I think I will miss grandpa, too..

Pool time

Mark and I returned from Prescott mid-afternoon on Sunday and then went over to Megan's for a swim with the kids. For some reason it was surprisingly hot in the valley so a swim sounded just grand! Drew is feeling so "at home" in the pool.



Grandpa and Kayley

Greetings from Prescott

Mark and I arrived in Prescott yesterday afternoon around 3:30. It was noticeably COOLER up here. Almost 30 degree difference from Phoenix's temps this past week. We were loving that! We got settled into our hotel and then took off for Whiskey Row, which is the historic part of the old west town. Lots of saloons and even more shops. We dined last night at a place called The Rose Restaurant. It appeared to be a converted large house. We ate at an outside table so we could enjoy that weather. The food was superb but when we got the bill I should have skipped those two glasses of chardonnay that cost $8.50 each and contained about 1.5 inches of wine. Good grief! Our bill was $35 higher than what we spent Wednesday night taking out Megan, Andy and the kids. We at least fed five people off that bill. :-) Oh well, if I had it to do over again, I would because it was THAT good!

Today we spent from 9-2 downtown again. They have a huge flea market and it took a long time to look at all the booths. Lots of gorgeous paintings for sale. I have my eye on one of Havasupai Falls in the Grand Canyon. It is breath taking and reminds me of our hike down to the falls. I may go back and buy that tomorrow. I offered the guy $50 less than what he was asking and he just laughed at me. Laughed. He could have said "I just can't go any lower" but the guy chuckled. Maybe I won't go back...

Tonight we are going to a steakhouse that has good online reviews. Matt's saloon is offering $2 bloody marys until 6 so we better go there before dinner. :-) That beats the pants off an $8.50 glass of freaking wine!

We will probably head back to Phoenix in the early afternoon to beat the huge traffic jam coming out of the mountain on I-17 every Sunday. Hope you all are having a great week-end, too!

Some pics of Mark with his grandchildren and also Mark's new stetson to keep that AZ son off his his head.

It's a heat wave!

Mark arrived in the Valley Friday night to record setting temps in AZ! Hope he doesn't regret leaving that nice Iowa weather for a 114 degree blast furnace! It is manageable, though. We play outside with Drew late in the afternoon with the misters on and we survive! It has been just great having him here. Drew hadn't forgotten him at all and immediately took him in to "play trains". Kayley loves him and would rather be held by him than grandma. Go figure!

Friday night we are driving up north to spend the week-end in Prescott. Temps there are about 30 degrees cooler than here so that will be so nice! We are looking forward to our little getaway.

Some recent silly videos follow.

Grandpa's coming!

We are all pretty darned excited about Grandpa's visit! Drew can't wait and neither can I!

A day in the life of....

Anyone need a smile today?

I posted this video on Facebook but it was so "fun" that I wanted to post it here for my friends not on Facebook. It is the absolute greatest processional for a wedding, in my opinion. It has had a couple million hits on youtube so you know it is fun and hilarious! :-)
Click here

Quiet week

Not a lot happening out here lately. We are still in a pretty good heat wave so our activities are limited somewhat. Drew and I did spend some time yesterday outdoors with the misters spraying and the garden hose keeping he and Sox cool soaking wet. Kayley is having a good week eating so that is always a plus. She is such a happy little girl when Drew isn't dragging her frantically away from his toys! Grandma needs to work with him on sharing skills. I am not positive that is possible when it comes to Thomas...

Some recent photos. Kayley LOVES to chew on the banana from the vegetable pack!