Hey there- we're still here!

Sooo...
I realize that I have dropped the ball on posting lately. I can't say that I've been too busy. Actually, it was a really lovely break. I was able to sit for a few days and do nothing- and I mean nothing. However, in my defense, our internet access was out- who knows why. There were at least 8 days that we were without access, so no posting possible. I have needed to post about Christmas, so here is that one first.

We were asked to spend Christmas Eve with some friends of ours- Skott and Angela, at his parents' house. They are awesome people. Chris was working, so it was just me and the kids there. (There's a picture of me and Angela).

Since Chris wasn't going to get home until after 9 am, we told the boys that they could wake up whenever they wanted to, but that they could only open one present each until Daddy got home. This was almost torture for them- but I wasn't going to let Chris miss out on all of the opening. Once Dad got home, we started in. We open presents one person at a time, so sometimes it takes a little while to get through it all. This year we opted not to give a lot of toys, since our kids don't really need more toys.

The biggest hits were the Spiderman singlet (Chase), battle bots (all the boys), video game rocker chair (Gavin), and the pull-up bar (Mason). I have video of the boys (not able to post that yet) on the pull-up bar. It's pretty darn impressive- as I can't even do one- sad I know.

At the end of the evening we played some poker. I bought a poker set for Chris, complete with chips. Xavier and Chris were on a team together, and ended up with the pot. Chris thinks he's funny and has nicknamed himself "Chips McGee".

All in all, it was a fabulous Christmas, and we are so fortunate to have so many blessings!

Crazy snow days!

This week has been so snowy! For those of you here in Washington, you know what I mean. Everyone else- take a look at the crazy snow! Here are some pictures of us in it, and also of the huge snow fort/cave that the boys, Chris, and I have been working on. When it's done, I'll post a few pics. We are currently taking a break- my arms are sore, and the boys were getting really tired. The roof is posing a challenge, but we'll see!

Blame it all on Gary...

Funny story:
It all started about 5 years ago when Chris made up a person named Gary. He was the person who would pinch Xavier's butt when he wasn't looking. Sometimes he would pinch it because Xavier was being naughty, and sometimes he would stand watch just in case a naughty thing was done- poised to pinch. We actually have some video clips on our old camera (I will try to figure out how to post them) of Xavier holding his butt cheeks or sitting on the floor after Chris says, "Look, it's Gary!"

Anyway, it worked until Xavier was old enough to know that it couldn't be Gary- it was Daddy.

However, Chris thought that it would be funny to try this trick on Chase. We all know that Chase is not easily threatened- he prefers to find out what is really going to happen instead of avoiding the inevitable consequence. Anyhow, recently Chase had gotten into some granola, and had decided to eat it while watching Diego on the couch. A huge mess was made, and when Chris questioned the young man who was most likely to blame, Chase said with a completely straight face, "It wasn't me Daddy, it was Gary."
Well, would you be able to keep a straight face??

Blessings and Happiness!

First of all- Happy Thanksgiving to all family and friends out there! I have so many things to be thankful for, but here are a few that I am especially thankful for right now. (Note: these things may change from moment to moment, but they're happiness now)
1. Cookie dough
2. Mimi's blog- little Mia's heart to be specific: http://mcdonaldfam.blogspot.com/
3. Chase's cute voice- especially the way he says Xavier (Zayer)
4. Chris' video game addiction- while I don't appreciate the finer points of Call of Duty 4 or 5, I can appreciate the extra time he gets to spent vegging out and playing with friends
5. Gavin's laugh- the really belly-deep laugh that he gets when he thinks something is absolutely hilarious. It used to be the really old Bugs Bunny cartoons that would do this- love it!
6. Xavier's cute face- isn't he just the cutest little boo?
7. Mason's "I'm too cool" attitude. While it's not going to be cute in the future- specifically in the junior-high years, right now the way he tells a little girl who has a crush on him "S'up", and nonchalantly walks on- how cool can an 8-year old get? (Note: I did tell him that he should have at least talked to her a little- there's a difference between rudeness and coolness)
8. I love how God has blessed me with such a wonderful family. I truly love the moments that I get to spend with them- whether they make me nuts or not- I wouldn't want any other family.

Hope you all have a fabulous Turkey Day- I plan to eat a lot, but then go to the gym sometime this weekend, perhaps twice.

Running Update #2

Ok- so I have made some progress toward my running goal. I jogged the track at the Y today for 12 whole laps without stopping!!! That is 2 miles baby! I don't pretend to think I am amazing yet- some people I've talked to about running casually mention the fact that they "warmed up" with a 3 mile run. WHAT?
Anyway, 2 miles is great for me, and to tell you the truth.....I actually didn't loathe every minute of it this time. I just strapped on my i-pod (onto which I had downloaded some running songs which were suggested on runnersworld), and I went for it. I may get to my goal early- but who knows.

Hope you all have a great day!

Wrestling @ the Y

Here is the first pics of wrestling this year. The Korum Y had a small jamboree tournament this past weekend, and the kids all received medals. Our kids did really well, and we hope the next tournament (this Saturday) will go just as well. Enjoy, and look forward to many more of these!

Halloween '08

The kiddos had fun this year with Halloween. We only took a few photos, which is weird, but I am hoping they use similar (or same) costumes next year, as it was a little pricey, so we can take more next year. They all got a huge amount of candy just from our little neighborhood, and Spiderman was a huge hit. Mainly because he kept saying quite excitedly, "Come on guys! It's fun! Wets go! It's Ha'ween".

Once they were trick and treated out, they came back to strict instructions of 2 pieces of candy each. Chris and I were getting dishes done, laundry, and cleaning up the decorations, and were pretty sure that Spiderman, aka Chase was not following the 2 piece rule. As we walked into the family room, where the candy was spread out Chris was saying, "Are you boys only having 2 pieces each?" At that very moment, we heard the screen door open quite quickly, and caught the tail end of Chase throwing a sucker out the front door. He closed the door confidently, then turned around to see us standing there. The look on his face was a mixture of guilt and innocence, kinda like, "What? I didn't just throw that candy out there so you wouldn't see that I had taken my third or fourth piece." I busted up laughing, and Chris tried to play the strict role, but chuckled in between phrases such as, "What did you..? Why are you looking...? Are you trying to...?" But Spiderman wasn't really punished for this action- the sucker wasn't edible after that anyway, so he kinda took care of the natural punishment himself- we would have just taken it away.

Ah- Chase, the one and only!