DADDY....... WHERE ARE YOU, YOU'RE LATE?

I thought this was funny so I had to write about it! Wednesday's are extremely busy at our house and I could not be in 2 places at one time so I enlisted Ben to come home and help with some transportation. I told Daimon Daddy would be home at 4:15 and would take him to scouts at 4:30. When Ben wasn't home at EXACTLY 4:15 Daimon started calling his phone over and over and over. Ben wasn't getting good reception so he wasn't able to pick up the call immediately. When he was finally able to pick up Daimon's first statement was "Daddy, where are you? It's 4:15 and you are supposed to be here at 4:15!" Daimon could have cared less about being home by himself but was so concerned about being to scouts on time and did not want Daddy to make him late. I love that Daimon was watching the clock to the exact minute!

POLITICS..... FROM THE MIND OF A 6 YEAR OLD!

Apparently at the age of 6, who will be elected President is a very pressing issue! I was doing Ellie's hair for school this morning and she started talking politics. She and 2 boys in her class have some political opinions of their own. The conversation went something like this......"Grant is obsessed with Obama and thinks he should be President. I don't want him to be President because he's a Democrat and he wants to charge us more money and then we wouldn't have enough to buy the things we want. I already pay a lot of money to tithing and savings and if he charges me more, I just won't have enough. Christian and I think Mccain should be president because he won't charge us more money and he can help our country and that's the most important thing. Let's tell "them" to make Mccain president, OK Mom, can you call and tell them we want Mccain?" If this is the way her mind works at 6, there is no telling what the future holds......

White Dragons - First Game (Win 6-1)

"White Dragons" won their first game and most importantly worked together as a team and had great sportsmanship! For the sake of Ben's mental state I was trying to think of a motivator for Daimon to WANT to kick the ball this year. He loved every minute of soccer last year and spent most of his time on the field shouting encouraging statements to his teammates rather than going after the ball. He was FULL of team spirit and had ZERO competitive spirit! He couldn't wait to play again this year so for a little motivation I told him he would get a quarter each time he kicked the ball during games.....all good parents bribe their children with money right???? Well wouldn't you know it, he earned $1.50 for his first game! Who said money was the root of all evil? That boy is sure motivated now.... way to go son! Ben was so inspired by his son's motivation he decided to run home from the game..... in his state of elation he misjudged the time and temperature and his speculated 1/2 hour run turned into 1 1/2 hours in over 100 degree weather! Maybe I should have promised him quarters too!

Grandma Brown's 90th B-day

90 wonderful years and she still looks amazing! Clea is a true inspiration. Her mind is still sharp as a tack and there's still spring in her step. Watching her eyes glow with complete joy at having all her family together sharing in her special day was so touching! She made sure we all knew she planned on being around for several more birthday's. We love you Grandma Brown!

Best Friends Forever!

Daimon and Ellie had a fun play day with Grandma Teri on Labor Day and they took silly pictures together. She took them to the movie "Journey To the Center Of the Earth" Which they especially loved becuase of the REAL 3D glasses. They have been wearing them constantly! They also painted pottery (pictures to come later.) They always love spending time with Grandparents and are blessed to be so loved.

Let it Rain!!!

To some this may seem like nothing out of the ordinary, but to us Arizonan’s this was a BIG event! It only took about 4.5 seconds for us to get completely drenched while getting in the car after school.  Mother nature let loose with an amazing rain storm and we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to have a little fun in the rain.  Since we were already wet from our walk to the car, once home  we decided to have a little fun in the yard and enjoy the reprieve from the heat.  It was coming down in buckets and the entire neighborhoods trash cans were having a roller derby war down the watery streets.  It is so fun to revisit your childhood memories and reenact them with your own children.  We came inside soaked, shivering, and shrieking with laughter.  Homemade cookies seemed the perfect thing to go with a rainy afternoon,  and so it was…… frosted heart shaped sugar cookies with sprinkles…..YUMMY!

Wolf Badge

AAAAHHHHHOOOOO! (That’s supposed to be a wolf howl!)  We officially have a wolf cub scout and boy is he excited!  Daimon was presented with his wolf badge and several belt loops at the last pack meeting.  Lucky mom got a pin too.  Movin’ on up……. Before we know it he’ll be flying like and eagle.

"Welcome back Wolf pack!"

Our favorite Cub Scout is quite the event coordinator.  Two weeks ago I picked Daimon up from scouts and he was completely enraptured in party plans.   According to his leaders he single handedly conceived, assigned and orchestrated a swim BBQ for his pack complete with a menu, food assignments, decorations and activities.  The theme he created for his party was "Welcome back wolf pack!"  He was so excited, he called Grandma Teri and Grandpa Jim to invite them to his big event.  The big day arrived and all the cubs including Daimon were aglow with excitement.  The boys cooked for their families and swam.  A wonderful time was had by all.  Grandma Teri and Grandpa Jim were gracious enough to drive out for the celebration and Daimon could not have been more proud as all the boys thanked him for a great party!    

Why didn't you set my Alarm.....!

Kelly is trying to teach the kids a little independence this school year.  Before school started we bought them both alarm clocks.  On the first day of school they were so excited they got up before the alarm even went off.  On the second morning Daimon's Alarm went off about 30 seconds before Ellie's did.  Being super competitive as Ellie is, she ran into his room and turned his alarm off before he was even awake, yelling at him all the while.  In the process she also turned her alarm switch to the off position before it had the chance to go off.  This started an hour long debate before school.  "Dad why didn't you turn my alarm on last night?"  "I did." "No you didn't."  "Yes I did."  This went back and forth for about 30 minutes.  Finally, I tried to reason with her "Your clocks are not set for the exact same time, his goes off 30 seconds before yours."  "No it doesn't!"  I think you are starting to get my drift.  Finally I said "Ellie, I have had an alarm for about 20 years, do you really think you know more about alarms that I do?"  Her reply...... "YES!!!"  I gave up, set here clock for one minute before Daimon's so it will always goes off before his.... and walked out of her room.

Ocean's Club

Gold dolphins...... what more can you ask for?  Well let me tell you what more you could ask for.......Maestro's Ocean Club!  This is our favorite place to go if we are planning on completely spoiling ourselves.  It has the best seafood I have ever had (remember I use to live near the ocean).  Their steaks are just as amazing and the service is impeccable, complete with bathroom attendants.  Since we just celebrated 11 blissful years in July and spent our anniversary driving home from San Diego with children in tow, we planned a special night out and enjoyed a wonderful evening with our great friends the Heuer's.  They appreciate wonderful food as much as Ben and I do and are always great company. 

Seafood tower...... it doesn't get better than this!

lobster bisque with chewy pretzel bread.... a must have!

steak and lobster mashed potatoes..... yes, I said LOBSTER mashed potatoes...... sinfully good!

flour less chocolate cake with mint creme sauce..... decadent!

blood orange sorbet.....sweet, tangy, refreshing, AMAZING!