Sisters Only Slumber Party

I am so thankful to have sisters. They have been my best friends throught my life. They are always there for me. They know me as only a sister can know me.

Last night, I had the pleasure of hosting our first and hopefully annual sisters slumber party. What a great time! Sam and Charlie spent the night at my Mom's and I got to entertain them here at my house. We went out for dinner at Fez in downtown Phoenix then headed over to a little neighborhood bar called Shady's.


After we got back to my house, we tried to figure out who was sleeping where and no one wanted to sleep alone. Finally we decided that the only way to have a slumber party would be to make Carl sleep in the guest room and all 4 of us gals would sleep in my bed! We sat up in bed, drinking wine and watched What About Bob. It was a fun time, but we all eventually got uncomfortable and one by one moved out of the big bed into other beds in the house. Turns out that Tiffany slept alone in my huge king size bed.

This morning after we all got up, we headed to Last Chance for some bargains then over to Scottsdale Fashion Square where we shopped until we dropped. Had a yummy lunch at Sauce.

What a fun time! It was so nice to spend this quality time with my sisters. Usually when they are in town, its a whirlwind of activity, and there isnt a lot of catching up. This time we got to talk and talk and talk....what sisters LOVE to do. The only regret about the whole night was that our brother Jason's wife, Kristal was not able to come.

Dude will be missed

I am sad to say that we lost a loved member of our family this week. Our crazy beloved dog, Dude. He was a character for sure. When I met Carl and started dating him, he had only had Dude for 3 months. He rescued him through Pointer Rescue. Dude was a 9 month old hunting dog that his original owner couldnt handle. He was high energy! Carl took him and gave him a loving home and good life. Dude was a bit crazy sometimes. To say that he was lively and rambunctious would be an understatement. He was extremely jealous when I came on the scene and would get up on the couch next to me and lean his whole body on me. If I called Carl on the phone and he talked to me, Dude would bark in the background. Sometimes when I was over, Dude would stand in front of me and just bark at me and Carl would have to put him outside, then he would throw himself against the windows and doors until we let him back in and he went into his kennel in the kitchen. Then he would try to dig his way out of the kennel, and the kennel would be bouncing across the room, until it was facing a wall and then he was really unhappy...barking and making a ton of noise...we had a difficult time watching a movie . I laugh when I remember that now. Dude was not going to accept me easily.

Poor Dude had Carl alone for 3 months, then Carl met me and got married and then 2 kids came along....he was never first place again. He didnt like to be left alone and was known to demolish an entire leather couch one vacation that Carl left him home. He also loved to steal food off the counters any chance he could.

With all of Dude's challenges to us, he was a really great dog. I dont think there was a mean streak in him at all. This dog took a lot of abuse from the kids and never once snapped at them and in time he also came to love and depend on me. Charlie is going to miss Dude a lot because one of his favorite things to do is to drape his blankie over him, then hang on him and suck his thumb. Im really feeling the void that his loss has left here. Every time I walk into my closet, I expect to see him there, laying on the floor like he always did. Its strange around here without him. He definitely had a place in our home and now he will be missed. RIP Dude. 2000-2008.

Colors of Christmas

Last weekend, Sam's school did a Christmas program called Colors of Christmas. It was sooooo cute! The kids all wore their matching school shirts, with little sashes with a Christmas sprig on it. They all sang and did hand motions the entire time. Sam sang all the songs and participated so well! I was really really proud watching him up there on stage with all the other kiddos in his school.

Sam

I cant believe Sam will already be 4 next month! The time is going by too fast. As much as I enjoy my kids growing and thriving and doing new things, I want them to stay little forever!

The other night when I was putting Sam to bed, I said, "I love you, your my little boy." And he replied with, "I love you too mom, your my little girl." I melted. I was trying to be serious and get him to go to sleep, but I had the biggest smile on my face. I love when he tells me he loves me.

Right now Sam is really into art projects. He begs to paint, glue, cut, glitter, make cards, make anything...all the time. He has a box of colored pencils and his favorite thing to do is sharpen them. He sat at the table for over an hour the other night sharpening his pencils! LOL. Then he accidentally threw the sharpener in the trash when he was trying to empty the shavings, and I wouldnt let him get it out cause there was lots of nasty stuff in there, so the next morning we got up and made a special trip to the store for another pencil sharpener.

Sam is my wonderful helper. He loves to help me with anything I could possibly get help with. Carrying groceries into the house from the car, emptying the trash, washing windows, sweeping, vacuuming, folding small towels and washcloths, washing the car. Its fun to have my little shadow helping me with everything around the house. Plus, he LOVES to get the door, and hold it for anyone that is passing through. What a little gentleman already.

He is my sweet, soft spoken boy. I love his gentle nature and good spirit. I love when he comes into my room at night and climbs into bed with me. He doesnt do it as often as he used to. I was worried it would become a bad habit, now I find myself missing him when he isnt there. Im so glad I had him. What a great person to be my first born!