Gingerbread

Brandon had his Gingerbread Man party yesterday at school and I was able to go and help at it. They went on a gingerbread man hunt and then decorated cookies and listened to a story about a gingerbread man cowboy. It's always fun going to the kids' classrooms and helping-even if it's only for a little while. Brandon sure gets a big grin on his face when he sees me which makes it all worth it:)

All I want for Christmas...

is my two front teeth:)

Christmas Concert

Dallas had his Christmas concert on Wednesday at Frontier Middle School. The Jazz band, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade bands all played. It was hard to get pictures but these are better than nothing. It was a fun evening that included a bake sale and raffle. Mom and dad Stone were there and also the Gerry Family. We never won anything but we went home with some yummy treats. I took a cheesecake, a spice cake and some muffins/banana bars for the auction. This bake sale raises money for the scholarships that the kids apply for during the year. These scholarships can be used for private lessons, band camp, new instruments, etc. We will keep our fingers crossed when Dallas turns in his application.

True Story

I have to relate something that gave me a really good laugh last night. Mom, dad, Elijah, Brandon and myself drove to Sumner to attend Kingstons kindergarten Christmas program. After the program we were driving home and grandma decided to treat us to an ice cream from McDonalds. So we went through the drive thru and we were talking and enjoying ourselves when dad says something to the effect of his ice cream cone being rather "chewy". He barely gets those words out and he starts laughing so hard as he realizes he's been eating the paper on the outside of the cone. WE were all dying in hysterics. It's a typical dad moment and was good for a really much needed laugh! Thanks Dad!

Happy Day!

Desi's husband Nick celebrated his 33rd birthday yesterday so Brandon and I took him over his birthday present. Desi had a nice surprise for him in the card she gave him for his birthday-it was the news that they are having a baby! It was fun to see his expression. I seriously thought he was going to faint:) If all goes well the next couple of weeks she will be going to her doctor and getting some more details but as of now they are estimating August 17th as the approximate due date.

*Nick reading the card and realizing what he just read

Northwest Trek

The boys had earned tickets to Northwest Trek during the summer for participating in the library reading program. We finally had a weekend that Mike had no gigs and decided to take the boys. It was a really good day to go as it wasn't overly crowded and we got to see most all the animals. The bears were most of our favorite I think. We didn't get any good pictures of the black bear but he was cool to watch as he was walking around the enclosure. Most of the cats were sleeping but the cougar did look up long enough to let us take a picture. On the tram we saw many animals: black tailed deer, big horned sheep, elk, moose, bison, black tipped swans, mountain goats and ducks. We saw lots of young bison calves, and even baby ewes. Super cute.

Last Game of the Season

Elijah had his last game of the season yesterday. It was super windy, cold, and rainy but it was neat because he had lots of family there to watch him play. Grandpa and grandma Stone, Uncle Rex, Aunt Lisa, Mercedes, Richie and Chanelle were all there to support him. All the boys on the team seemed to struggle with a lot of missed passes but were able to keep their heads above water the first half of the game. The second half was much better with Elijah catching and intercepting a pass meant for the other team. He ran it all the way back to score for the Tigers. Elijah also got a few flags and played some good defense. The score was 47-43! We attended a team pizza party afterwards where Elijah was given an award for Best Offensive Player. He had a couple of really great coaches and is going to miss playing football.

We also had the Hasbro House Party last night at grandpa and grandma Stones house. It was lots of fun playing Draw Something and Catch Phrase with everyone. Mercedes was making soap but was sweet and let the boys tag along and make some as well.

Halloween 2013

The boys had lots of fun trick or treating like usual. We went over to grandpa, grandma and aunt Tammy's last night so the boys could show them their costumes. The boys were surprised at the nice goodie bags that were waiting for them. We had fun putting Elijah's Michael Jackson wig on grandma and grandpa. We came home and watched part of "Haunted Mansion" before the kids had to go to bed. Mike finished up working his first 4-10 week. Only 21 more days at the Good Sam left.

Trunk or Treat/ Football Game

Last night was a busy night. Elijah had a flag football game at Art Crate Stadium the same time that our wards Trunk or Treat was going on. Mercedes and Richie were awesome and helped me out immensely by taking Brandon, Cody, and Dallas so I could make it with Elijah to his game on time. Elijah did great tonight. I think we ended up with about 12 touchdowns, I lost count. We actually had four interceptions which were run all the way from the opposing teams goal line to our goal line. Elijah was great on defense-he stayed on his guy and pulled 5 or 6 flags! One time Elijah was so slick and pulled a kids flag without the kid even realizing it, so the kid ran it in for a touchdown but then Elijah whipped up his arm with that shiny flag and the touchdown was no good! Elijah had 1 touchdown but almost had 3. The other team got his flag right at the field goal line twice. Elijah did awesome and is sure sad to only have one more football game left. His last game is Saturday, 12:30 p.m. at NACHES TRAIL (NT)15305 WALLER RD E - TACOMA, 98446. **The kids costumes: Brandon-white ninja, Dallas-gangster, Cody-Chuckie, Elijah wasn't dressed up obviously but he was Kaepernicking.

New Gloves

Elijah was pretty excited to try out his new football gloves that grandpa, grandma and aunt Tammy got him for his football games. He said he liked the cool design they make when he puts his hands together. *I forgot to take my camera to the game but Elijah did awesome like always: 1 touch down pass, pulled some flags, got an interception, and caught some long throws without dropping the ball. Way to go Elijah!

1st Break

Considering we have four boys, I think the odds were against us. It just so happened that on Wednesday afternoon, after enjoying a beautiful sunny day at the park, I took Elijah to his flag football practice at the park. We had just arrived and Brandon ran over to the large playground. I turned to check on him before walking over to the field and immediately saw him falling about 6 feet off the playground structure and landing on his back. Brandon jumped right up holding his left arm and I ran over to see if he was okay. After checking his arms he sat on my lap and fell asleep. Once we were home Mike took a look as well and then decided that he should be taken in for x rays. The nurse practictioner we saw said she thought it was broken and gave Brandon a sling but said to get into the doctor the next day for x rays. Needless to say the next day, after having to drive to Seattle for x rays, it was determined that he fractured his left clavicle (collar bone) and would need to continue to wear the sling until his next doctor appointment on November 12th with the Orthopedic Specialist. Brandon was very upset about getting x rays the night it happened but wanted to talk to his older cousin Richie, because he had gone through the same thing a few months before. Richie was so sweet and called up Brandon to tell him that it was going to be okay and I could tell that it meant a lot to Brandon to have him tell him it would be okay. My sister came and hung out with us at the doctors office the night it happened and took the first picture for me. Thanks so much for everyone and their concerns for Brandon. He is doing much better, still a little sore, but moving around better. He is wearing a lot of button up shirts for the time being:)