Random Christmas-ness

Ok, I know I'm not as artsy as I like to pretend I am. I love to pretend I'm a professional photographer and take these ridiculously pointless shots, I know I'm a geek.
I love this ornament. My mother in law bought it for me last year and I think it's my favorite.
Our tree, It's not as pretty this year as it usually is, I'm usually super anal about the placement of bows and ornaments, but this year I just didn't care as much.
Frost is so beautiful I love it.
This is just about the coolest thing i've ever cooked, I was so impressed with myself.

Yippee Skippee!

We missed the train!

So the Santa train was this past Saturday, and I was going to go early and buy tickets, but I never got around to it, so we didnt get to go. I guess it's my own modern day ten virgin scenario. But we did get to ride the little train that was running in the opposite direction and the girls thought that was fun. I guess next year we will have to be better prepared. We got some cool pictures though. I especially like the one of Allen in the snow, It was very worth the four dollar donation we made.

Ok, so I was just having fun photoshopping the picture, they really do't go up to the snow, or anywhere near it actually. SO don't go and complain that they don't take you up to the snow becaus they realy are very nice there, and I would feel awful if a bunch of people made the sweet old people feel sad on my account.

This is me trying on a great fedora after the Franz Ferdinand concert. (That was Allens christmas present this year)

This was Emma lounging in the Volcom store at the outlet mall.

Thanksgiving fun

Here are some fun pictures from our Thanksgiving festivities, My family came out from tah, and we had a blast.

The Traditional "breaking of the wishbone" Should I be concerned that she is cuddling with germ infested bird bones?

There is Emma, she always takes care of her sister.

My mom and Ethnie, she such a great dancer!

My dad and the gas tank,. . . I think there must be a great joke here somewhere.

Sandie saw that pose in a magazine, I think she did great.

Losked in the stocks, and Emma is loving it.

My baby brother, sniff sniff.

Why they had a stripper pole I will never know, hey to each their own I guess.

Daddy Daughter Time

Allen decided he would help Emma make cupcakes with her new cupcake maker yesterday, and I was, as always, ready with the camera. Here is what we came up with. Hope you like them.

Family Home Evening

The Airshow

Today was the Airshow at Nellis airforce base, it was exhausting, but the kids had a blast, here are some of the pictures, they will be far more interesting than anything I could say about it I think.

Allen, doing the Daddy thing and pointing out the planes to his girls.

They're holding their breath because there is only one oxygen mask, and they are probably not supposed to touch it.

I thought this one turned out nicely.

Inside the belly of the biggest beast on the tarmac. I think this is one that was used to transport vehicles and other things that are. . . big. (duh)

Ethnie got this pose down really quick, At one point I thought her hands would be stuck that way, luckily though they came off.

We think this guy ran out of gas, funny thing, he got way more cheers than the other guys whos drove their planes down the way.

I really don't know what the outfit was for, I probably should have read the sign, but she thought it was was cool. Allen has corrected me this is actually the outfit worn by the Russian Mig Fighter Pilots. So now you know.

Ethnie loves to pretend she can drive, it is her favorite thing to do, it was SOOOO fun trying to get her out.

He said this was his Stallone face. I think he hit the nail right on the head.

Halloween 2008

This was our Halloween this year, we are a collection of misfits, because I think our days of having family themes may be over, although the girls keep talking about one for next year. I think I may have conditioned them to think about things that way (everything has to match). Here are the best pictures.

My two girls together ( here is where everyone says . . . AWWWWW!)Emma, Aroha (One of Ethnie's adorabl friends from church), and my little Ethnie-Monkey.

This is my fantasy guy, Wolverine. His costume was so awesome.

I am Phoenix

(from x-men, for those who didn't see the movies she is the one who is hot for Wolverine)

This is Emma after the big night doing a candy advertisement. Dots, you too can have hours of teeth cleaning fun with these viscous snacks. Do you think I could get kickbacks from dots for posting this online? I should ask.

I just can't resist showing off a little bit, Look what I did! Isn't that amazing! Especially when you see what my hair looks like in the photos. I am so not one of those good hair people.

Emma's fifth birthday party!

So here are pictures of Emma's big fifth birthday party. It is a big one for her because it marks the age when she can have Barbie's. Here are some of the highlights from the party. She had a princess tea party and it was just perfect, except none of the girls wanted to drink the tea, and the pinata we got from a garage sale had evidently been use and taped back together because it fell apart as soon as Allen tied to pull it up. Oh well the girls loved scrambling for treats anyway. It makes me feel a little old to think that I have a five year old daughter now.

Lena's Exceptional Friend, Part 3

. . . For a moment Lena was frozen in place, her mind vacillated between running and screaming. The giant seemed to comprehend her dilemma and took her under his arm and led her farther into the alleyway. Lena was no more able to resist his will than an infant being held by a strict parent, so struggle as she might there was no other option than to be led by the colossus. They walked for what seemed like an hour (but was actually no more than 10 minutes) when they arrived at what Lena would later describe as an alleyway cafe. It was actually an upturned garbage can with upturned vegetable crates on each side, but I suppose the reality is in what the beholder sees. The enormous man made her sit on one of the crates and he sat on the other, which she now noticed was not one crate, but several stacked on top of each other in order to accommodate his considerable size. She felt the numbness wearing off, and took this opportunity to survey her surroundings they were in a dark passageway that, unlike most, had no windows looking down on it from the buildings above. She began to panic, she had no idea where she was, she never went in the alleys before, (That was Chuck Norris's first rule of feminine defense). Furthermore she also noticed now that there was no way for her to escape, whatever way they had come in had disappeared into solid walls of brick and mortar. She looked at the monster sitting opposite and noticed that he was smirking at her fiendishly; it made Lena feel creepy crawly all over. "Hey, guy . . . could you cut that out, you make me feel creepy crawly all over." The sides of his mouth fell, but the expression in his abysmal eyes remained it was almost worse than the grin of a moment before, but Lena felt that asking him to make another expression change due to her discomfort may have been pushing the bounds of proper prisoner/guard boundaries, etiquette had never been her strong point and this was all rather new to her. "So . . . do you often kidnap innocent young women and drag them into darkly lit alleyways or are you a first-timer?" She tried to push out a giggle to make herself sound nonchalant, it didn't work. The gigantic man didn't respond, because honestly who does in these kinds of stories. "What I wouldn't do to know what Chuck would do right now," she thought to herself. The giant walked over to a lean-to that she was positive had not been there a minute earlier and ducked inside. It must have been larger on the inside than it appeared for he had no trouble fitting all of his expansive limbs inside without ruffling the pretty flowered sheet that comprised the shelter. He was gone for what seemed like an eternity, during which Lena imagined him collecting various instruments for torture. When he emerged he was carrying a medium sized man with an outdated curly mullet underneath one arm. The man was flailing and maybe even crying, "I'm going to call my agent, and we are going to sue you. . . Ok we won't sue you just let me go. I'll give you a signed t-shirt and a mug. . ." Lena thought the tush looked familiar, but the voice was all wrong. The Giant put the man down on the stool across from Lena and smiled at her in that same odd way as before, yet this time it spoke to her differently. The man across from her was none other than her all time favorite hero Chuck Norris. She was disappointed, he was not the stud-muffin that he had seemed in his instructional videos, he was a wimp. Maybe this was a ploy to unnerve the goliath, that’s right, she winked at Chuck and he looked at her bewildered, “Did he bring you here too?” Lena just nodded and winked again. “Is there any way to get out?” Lena knew this was all part of the act so she played along. “What’s wrong with you? He’s going to kill us!” yelled Chuck, becoming frantic now. Lena responded, “maybe, but only if you don’t rescue us first.” Chuck was in a full blown panic mode now. . . “Rescue you how do we get out!” He seemed to completely lose control of his senses at this point because for some inexplicable reason he catapulted himself into the nearest wall. “Lena was speechless, what should she do now.” She looked at the smiling giant and just wished that she could be back in her own house sitting on her comfortable house, not in this urban wasteland. Gigantors’ smile vanished and was replaced by something else, for a minute Lena couldn’t put her finger on what it was, anger? No. Maybe it was abdominal cramps, but it was a more mental anguish that she perceived. It was sadness, he was sad, and in a moment she knew why. He had to let her go, for some inexplicable reason he was bound b her wishes. In that moment he lifted her under his arm as he had brought Chuck Norris to her, and in a mere moment dropped her off on her doorstep. She looked at passersby in the street, hoping to see alarm in their faces, yet none of them even acknowledged the presence of the overly large man in their midst, or the fact that he had just been carrying her under his arm like a rebellious toddler. She turned to go inside and then remembered to look back, but her captor was nowhere to be seen. It seemed that her captor was not so malicious as she thought. Ther were several things that troubled her though such as Who was he, where had he come from, and just what was the purpose of this seemingly pintless adventure? What you really wanted those answers? Don't look at me I'm just the narrator. But I have a feeling that Lena hasn't seen the last of this strange giant. And maybe at that time we will get the answers we seek.

Proposition 8

In the Spirit of Halloween

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Emma's Collage

So, we have been horrible neglectful parents lately and recently Emma got ahold of the camera and went picture crazy. I started looking at the pctures and realized that some of them are fairly interesting, so I put them in a collage for everyone to enjoy, so voila. Here is Emma's artistry at work.

The Phenominal Adventures of Lena, Part 2

I have too long neglected my plucky heroine. It is once again time to delve into the convoluted web that comprises her existence. At this moment our female protagonist is in the grips of terror. Just take a look. . .

It was a bright and sunshiny morning, the birds were even singing in the treetops. The trees looked like ripe candied apples dripping with caramel. The weather was just starting to change, and people were preparing for the cold by wearing pants and longsleeves. The breeze carressed Lena's face as she stepped out of her townhome. Everything was perfect, TOO perfect in fact. There was danger afoot, Lena could feel it. She would have to be on her gaurd, after all a woman who was not prepared was a woman in peril. She began the short walk to her office. She noticed the mailman driving up the opposite side of the street. She found him highly suspicious, always thumbing through her mail, she would keep a wary eye out for him. She continued her walk, she enjoyed her walks immensely, it gave her an opportunity to hone her observation skills. She was like an eagle, her eyes caught everything. Those who saw her would never know they were being watched, this was her piece de resistance, similar to an actor in a great drama, so was she constantly in a disguise of ignorance. Only she knew how truly aware of her circumstances she was. . . . sorry she gets so focused on her special abilities that she forgets where the story is going, . . . ok she remembers. As she was walking she noticed that there were suprisingly few people about. She was about to state this observation to herself, when she noticed that her steps sounded different today than than they normally did, they were heavier, and faster than they typically were. She looked down and realized that she as walking strangely. It was as if her body had a consiousness of it's own. "I'm being silly," she thought, "I'll just slow myself down," but for some reason her limbs would not obey the command of her mind. Suddenly a maniacal laugh burst forth inside her brain. She stopped, and looked around to see if others had heard the sound, however she was alone on the street. She then noticed that she again had control of her extremities. The birds crooned endlessly, but now it seemed as if the were deriding her instead of singing the praises of the changing seasons. At the corner she spied a friend whom she could confide in, she opened her mouth to call to her, but the voice that issued forth sounded foreign to her, manly with a western twang. She clamped her hands to her mouth and ran into the nearest alley. She was out of breath and struggling to maintain control. She tested her voice again but it was her own. She knew now that she had been exerting herself far too much at work. Perhaps a sick day was in order, Lena would simply call in. "No you won't." said a voice next to her. "Yes I will, I'll just call in. . . " she didn't finish her sentence for there beside her stood the most terrifying apparition she had ever seen. He was 8 feet tall and lanky,because honestly is there any other realistic option? He looked like he had been stretched by some mideival torture device, and from the hollow look in his eyes he very well may have been. His butter colored hair was long and matted into dreadlock type knots, and there were lumps in it almost as if he had used it as a napkin at mealtimes. His clothes were actually extremely nice, considering that otherwise she might have thought him homeless, she remembered seeing a similar suit sold in Armani, it was slate black, which sadly enough could do nothing for his complexion which was the color of green kalamata olives. His shirt was unbuttoned a little to reveal his hairy chest. He leered at her as she tried to convince herself that this creature was not really there. . . .
Thats all for tonight stay tuned for the rest of this thrilling tale later.

The Real McCoy, don't even know what that means actually.

So Allen is out of town I thought I would post some embarrassing pictures of him. If the pictures dissappear on Friday just know that the Nazi enforcer has had them removed, and if you don't hear from me then start searching the desert for my mummified remains.

**Footnote** for those who don't know me or who may be affiliated with any legal agency, I really am not terrified for my life, and do not fear emminent death from anyone least of all my gentle husand. Just about everything on this blog is meant to be jovial in nature.

Welcome fall!

This is my favorite time of year. I get to pull out my cute winter clothes that are oh so much more forgiving than summer clothes; the weather turns cool and crisp. Then, of course, you have the three best holidays of the year sandwiched into a three month time span. I get a little giddy about all of it, if you couldn't tell by my seasonal blog overhaul. What about you though? Is this your favorite time of year as well, and if so what are your favorite things about this season?

Palin/ Clinton Skit

Labor Day '08

So I know this is pretty delayed in coming but I thought these were worth posting. This year for labor day we took a family day trip up to the ghost town in Eldorado Valley, and we took a tour of the, "Ghost mine" there. It was alot of fun. Hopefully, because we didn't take pictures of that part, the girls won't remember whining the entire time because they had to walk. So here are a few of the highlights from that trip.

Inside the mine! I know it's not a great picture but the only camera I had was my camera phone so you can at least get the general idea here.

I guess this was part of a plane that was used for filming a movie up there. They blew up this building and the plane with it and were supposed to haul it off, but I guess they never did. It made for a cool photo for us though so that was way neat-o.

This is Allen trying to recapture his youth by playing army with his kids.

CONVERSATION BETWEEN ALLEN AND ALYCIA THIS VERY AFTERNOON
Thump, . . . thump,

"Allen, was that your chilli talking or am I imagining things?" said Alycia. "Ha- Ha very funny. It is probably just a minor seismic tremor, we do live on a fault line you know." responded Allen

Thump. . . . thump.

"So are these tumor things usually so regular?" questioned Alycia, beginning to feel the naggings of concern in the back of her brain. "Um, that's tremor things and yes, I'm a scientist after all." stated Allen nonchalantly. "Allen, you catch animals for a living." chided Alycia

Thump. . . thump.

"Allen I think it's getting louder, what is it? wait look at your water it's rippling, just like in Jurassic park, you know right before the girl panicked and their car was ripped to shreds. You don't think it's a t-rex come to reak it's vengence on us because of your dangerous experimentation on the poor non-game birds who just happen to be his very distant cousins do you?" Alycia asked accusingly.

"What do you mean dangerous experimentaion I've explained this to you hundreds of times. All we do is clip the wings from migratory species of songbirds and implant them on. . . " Allen was going to say ferile cats, but he didn't get the chance. At that very moment, standing right above them was a terrifying sentinel of disaster. It was clear now what the thundering steps meant. As they gazed up they saw a Fiery Debacler. That's not an insult that is actually what it is called. I didn't know what it was either so I had to look it up, and there was no certain definition but the general idea I got from the various root words and such was that this was a calamity in the making.

Allen and Alycia ran but were not fast enough. The Debacler caught them with her mighty paws which were covered in what looked like peanut butter and jelly. and wrapped them up in a big bear hug. "This is how it ends Allen I just know it, I've heard that this is how she suffocates her victims. If I don't get another chance to say it,. . . .I really . . . loved you." gasped Alycia, using her dying breath to indicate her undying love. Allen gave her a funny look, "Alycia, you can breath now, she put us down." Allen was trying to wipe the sticky mess off his clothes with little success. "It looks like she's been sidetracked by some building blocks in the corner. Sheesh" Alycia looked around and likewise dusted herself off, "It's lucky I left those out this morning or we might have been toast. I will never clean the house again."
And for those of you who read this please understand that everything I do is supposed to be funny, it might not be because well, I just might not be funny, but that really is the only reason for these things.