The Luckiest McBride Family

Silhouette

2010-11-01T16:13:00.001-07:00

You all know that I love my silhouette, and this blog is doing a giveaway including some of my favorite materials and two of their new products that I'm dying to try!

The time has come...

2010-08-15T13:51:00.000-07:00

...for us to leave. We've been packed up, moved out and homeless for close to 3 weeks now. We've driven nearly 3,000 miles and visited 10 states with various family members and friends along the way. I really wanted to get it all posted on the blog before we left but that's just not going to happen. Keep us in your prayers as we fly for FOREVER over the next few days and visit us at www.mcbridesinkorea.blogspot.com for further updates!!

Umm..

2010-07-18T14:33:00.001-07:00

...the movers come a week from tomorrow. I might start freaking out now.

Fourth of July

2010-07-16T11:51:00.001-07:00

I know I'm way behind, but just wait until we move and don't have internet! Speaking of which, once we move I will stop using this blog and move everything over to mcbridesinkorea.blogspot.com. Check it out for all the crazy happenings leading up to the move and live vicariously through all of our Korean adventures.

We had a lot of family in town for the 4th of July and after some church and some AWESOME ribs, thanks Brett, we headed to Mt. Trashmore. The weather was perfect and we all had a blast. The boys loved rolling down the hill and were captivated by the fireworks. Other than a little walking after it was over, it was a great holiday. Here are my fav pictures from the night.

Sunday Best

2010-06-27T20:02:00.000-07:00

Part of Alex's birthday present was new Sunday clothes from Grandma Kathy. Cade had outgrown his too so they both got updated looks! Here are some shots of my snazzy looking kids!

Alex was kinda grumpy today

Alex playing with his new favorite toy- the Ipod

When dad has duty...

2010-06-24T10:09:00.000-07:00

...mom has to get creative. Here's our song and dance party.

Happy Birthday Alex!

2010-06-22T10:27:00.000-07:00

He can't really be two, can he? I mean, I guess he is walking, and talking, and eating and doing all of the typical toddler stuff. But still, it wasn't long ago that he looked like this

or this

And now he's just becoming such a big boy. Happy Birthday Alex!

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-20T03:46:00.000-07:00

To the wonderful father of two crazy, crazy in love with you, boys! I couldn't ask for a better husband who loves to play with his kids, does diaper duty, lets mommy get out of the house, and listens to my endless stories of what happened with the kids while he was at work. We love you and wish you a Happy Father's Day!

Publish Post

Feeling Crafty

2010-06-18T05:29:00.000-07:00

Due to a temporary lull in visitors (which will be remedied in about a week and a half), I have been feeling a bit crafty. Mostly in the form of shirts. My craft cutter can cut pretty much any image I can come up with, and recently came out with heat transfer material. So I design, cut, and iron on!

The first is a shark shirt for a friend from college, for her son :)

Next is a shirt for Cade. He was complaining that the shirt had no picture on it so I immediately thought of his new favorite show. After all, how many Tom and Jerry shirts are you going to find in the store? He LOVES it and wanted to wear it for a 'really long time'.

And last is a shirt for Father's Day. And don't worry about Dan seeing this. It turns out that Cade isn't very good at keeping secrets.

Silly Cade

2010-06-08T10:31:00.000-07:00

Oh what a wonderful May

2010-06-03T09:27:00.000-07:00

So here begins the longest blog post ever, mostly full of pictures. I really tried to edit, but most were just too cute not to include.

The first batch of pictures are from when my dad and stepmom came to visit. It was my first time meeting her and it was their first time out to this area in a long time. We made some visits to the beach, Jamestown, and these pictures below are from the Botanical Gardens. It was gorgeous and they had a kid's splash park!

Cade LOVES maps

On the tram around the gardens

The rose area was is full bloom, smelled fantastic and looked amazing.

World of Wonders- splash park and more

This was the Asian garden. Pretty soon we'll have pictures from Korea!

We also got to see the USO's presentation of Sesame Street Live!

That's Alex saying, "Elmo!"

Less than a week after their visit I was able to fly out and suprise my sister for her birthday! Her husband Marcus set it all up and we had a blast. I hadn't met her two youngest kids, Kyle and Drew, and hadn't seen Valerie in 3 1/2 years. My favorite day was the one where we shopped, ate lunch at P.F. Chang's, got massages and then went to Olive Garden for dinner-- all without kids. My whole trip was without kids, but Val got a day without them too!

Emma's dance outfit!

At the splash park in Phoenix

Tee hee...

I miss my Drew!

Kyle got cold

Then one day after I got back from Phoenix we had one of Dan's best friends visit with his wife and 4 1/2 year old son. We had visited them in Cincinnatti and so they drove out to see us. We started out partying at Chuck E. Cheese's, then had several days at the beach and had a fun watergun fight. Dave served his mission in Korea so they made us a Korean meal that was very good. It'll be fun to get to know all of that cuisine soon.

Oh, and not to forget playing Quelf, our new favorite game. Here's me doing an irish jig while singing the Wheels on the Bus.

Abby

Dan doing a zoolander face

Dave's homemade snorkel

Watergun fight = lots of pictures!

Jonah

The Korean meal

It's been fun, a bit crazy and tiring, but fun to have all of these visits. Of course these are all happening because of our move out of the country. Visit www.mcbridesinkorea.blogspot.com to follow everything that's happening in the part of our life. It's coming up so soon!!!

Sunbeam!

2010-06-01T11:27:00.000-07:00

Here's a little Alex cuteness to get you by until I finish updating the blog!

Yes, I know

2010-05-26T08:42:00.000-07:00

The blog totally needs to be updated because not only has my Dad come to visit, but I've been out to Phoenix and back. We have more company coming in tomorrow for the Memorial Day weekend so the blog may just have to wait a little longer :)

Mother's Day and more

2010-05-11T05:07:00.000-07:00

We really have been enjoying our Spring here in Virginia Beach. There has been ample time to play outside and have fun as a family.

Something that Cade thought was a lot of fun was to put as many stuffed animals on top of a sleeping Alex as he could!

I had a great Mother's Day weekend which started with these beautiful flowers. The card reads, "The boys thought these were the ones closest to being as pretty as you. We love you the mostest everestestestestestest". So when I asked Cade if he had picked these flowers on the computer for me it was like a light bulb went off in his head and he made the connection of seeing them on the computer and having them show up for mommy. He was so excited to get me pretty flowers!

We even had the chance to take some family pictures on Mother's Day morning and I think they turned out great. Enjoy!

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Korea

2010-05-07T10:29:00.001-07:00

Don't forget to check out mcbridesinkorea.blogspot.com for all the fun stuff we have happening to get ready to move!

Awww...

2010-04-29T05:40:00.000-07:00

So the other night after the kids were already asleep Dan went in to give them a kiss and he found this.

(and no, Cade doesn't still use a pacifier, he just stole Alex's when he snuck in bed with him!)

And here is our third time having salmon, this time on the grill! As much as I hate to admit it, it was pretty yummy!

Lastly I did a little weeding out in our front patch of grass and let Cade join in on the fun. He loved playing with the worms, roly polys and dirt!

What a week!

2010-04-19T18:12:00.001-07:00

My mom and brother were able to come from Denver to visit this past week and we sure made the most of our time together.

Saturday- After picking them up from the airport and grilling on our new Weber Q, we went to the park.

Sunday- Sunday was a typical one for me including the choir singing, conducting in sacrament meeting and teaching a Relief Society lesson. After all that and a nap for Alex we walked over to Chix Beach and enjoyed some sand castle building.

(Cade and Mommy's footprints)

Monday- After enjoying the Chix Beach so much the day before we decided to venture over to Sandbridge Beach. Unfortunately it was a bit windy and a little chilly, which made for some great kite flying, but a grumpy Alex.

Tuesday- We left bright and early for a 10:00 boat tour in Newport News. It was another chilly day out on the water but the tour was awesome. You got to see the harbour, Ft. Wool, and all of the ships docked at Norfolk Naval Station. The coolest part was Ft. Wool. Have you ever seen this on your way into the HRBT?

I always wondered what it was and now I've been on it! It was a civil war-era man made island meant for defense of the area, but it was poorly constructed and didn't function as well as intended.

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This is how Alex was most of the cruise.

Also, Tuesday was the day that Dan got home from his conference in Tampa. Having family in town meant that we could have a date! We ate dinner at Fire & Vine and then enjoyed the movie Date Night together.

Wednesday- After a workout in the morning-- which my mom beat me at the challenge!-- we had a mother daughter day. We truly shopped until we couldn't shop anymore. Thrift stores, antique stores, the mall and dinner together. It was great just to spend some time with her without anyone asking for wife, mom or grandma. Thanks Uncle Kevin and Dan for watching the kids that day!

Thursday- Williamsburg. Need I say more? Being only 1 hour from such a historical area, how could you not go? We started at the Yankee Candle Factory, which I highly recommend to everyone. Then we made our way into the colonial williamsburg to view some sights and see the shops. It was a long but fun day.

Santa reading Cade a story!

Alex found the Candy :)

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Alex and Cade making their own candles

Friday- And it was all leading up to this one day, at least in Cade's mind. It was birthday party day! Cleaning, cake decorating and thomas decorations adorned the house. A bunch of his guy friends from church came and filled the place with more energy than kids on Christmas morning! I told everyone it was a fast and crazy party with pizza eating, shirt making, balloon popping, prize getting, present opening, and cake eating! We had a blast.

Saturday- It was unfortunately time for Grandma and Uncle to go home so we gave them a tour of where Dan works, got lunch, and sent them on their way. We had a great time and are so lucky to have them in our lives. We love and miss you!

He's 4?!

2010-04-07T11:26:00.000-07:00

I just love it when my sister posts pictures of her kids on their birthdays past so I had to do the same. I cannot believe Cade is 4 today. That means 4 years ago I was in the hospital holding my first child and freaking out about life ahead. I'm still freaking out about our lives ahead but in a much different way. It's been AMAZING to watch Cade grow and change throughout the years. Happy Birthday Cade! We love you so much!

And of course we will post pictures later of his birthday celebrations!

Easter Weekend

2010-04-05T18:45:00.001-07:00

With the beautiful weather we've been having and the fun activites planned for the Easter holiday, a lot of picture taking moments occured. We slimmed down the nearly 250 pictures to just 49 for your viewing pleasure. I hope you all had a great weekend with family and friends!

Speaking of TIME...

2010-04-01T18:10:00.000-07:00

It was TIME for haircuts!

And here's another carb-less meal!

Time

2010-03-30T06:05:00.000-07:00

So it's been a long TIME since I've blogged. There are TIMEs when I just don't feel like writing anything, or feel like we've done anything worth blogging or taking pictures of. It's nearly April which means we have about 4 full months left in Virginia Beach. I know the TIME here will go quickly but at the same TIME I feel like it is dragging on. It's probably because the summer attractions aren't open, and the plans we have for family visits haven't commenced yet. I'm sure once all of that gets going, the TIME will start to fly. I am ready to start setting more concrete plans for our move. We did our overseas screening yesterday which means we can submit to Military Personnel that we are all healthy enough to go overseas. They will then cut us paper orders which will allow us to start booking flights and making travel plans! As much as I'd like to have a break from TIME and its many constraints, it seems as though TIME has our number and is calling it constantly.

So here's what Alex did with some of his TIME last night (yay vaseline!)

And here's what happens when you move a little too quickly (and have a big brother behind you to fall on top of you after you fall)

And the slideshow is what we did with some of our TIME last weekend at the Virginia Living Museum. We're trying to go to some of these local attractions before it's TIME to move :)

p.s. I don't know why some of the pictures in the slideshow won't work. I think if you click on the slideshow where it says view all images, you'll be able to see them all.

Spring is here!

2010-03-10T07:23:00.000-08:00

Daddy was away for a week so we (mommy) had to find some different things to do just to break up the monotony. Like... get donuts!

Eat breakfast while watching cartoons

And play with balloons! I didn't include ALL of the pictures with the balloon, but Cade wanted to pose with it. I'd take a picture and then he'd say, "Now take one like this!" and then go do something crazy.

But now Daddy is home and there is a taste of spring in the air. We've been in the 60s all week and it's been GREAT to get out of the house. Here's our neighbor's cat catching some rays on the logs. (that's all wood from that tree that fell over during the Nor'easter)

This is a picture of Cade's creation. He put it in front of our door 'to keep the people and monsters out'.

And outside time means bicycle time!

And 'fishing' time!

And let's not forget our lovely fenced in patio that they boys can go crazy in and give their mother some time to get some things done!

Cade wrote Alex's name!

And now that Dan is back we are in full swing with our Low-Carb meals. This is a meal created from a book that my Dad and wife Corrie sent called 500 low-carb recipes. The salmon is baked in foil with yogurt, mayo, orange extract, lemon juice, scallions and some parsley. The asparagus is steamed and the chilled and served with aioli (a very garlicky mayonnaise) and some parmesan! It was very good!

Salmon?!

2010-02-26T11:12:00.000-08:00

Reading on the toilet at a young age!

Looking spiffy for Sunday

Swinging at the park

And here it is. The surprisingly yummy salmon that I made! The recipe is Bell Pepper and Lemon Salmon. It was very easy, healthy and probably the meal that Dan has been the most grateful for in our entire marriage! Either is was THAT good or it's because I don't make enough seafood. Maybe both?

Korea

2010-02-26T04:31:00.000-08:00

I promise I will get another post up here soon, maybe even later today. But I wanted to make sure you all knew that I've started a separate Korea blog. Let me know if you want me to have the blog email you every time I post. Otherwise you can see when I post on the lower left-hand side of the blog where all of my friends and families blogs are listed.

www.mcbridesinkorea.blogspot.com

To Raleigh and Back

2010-02-17T11:57:00.000-08:00

When some friends of ours asked us if we'd like to do a temple trip down to Raleigh with them we were very excited to oblige. The plan was to watch eachother's kids while trading sessions. Then upon looking at the calendar we realized that Dan had the following Monday off for President's day, and since he had a nephew that lives not far from the temple, we made a trip of it. We drove down Friday night and got in town just in time for the snow to start. Our friends drove down the next morning and caught snow coming out of Virginia Beach. They ended up being a little late for our 9:00 session and so we adjusted our plans a bit.

After our trip to the temple we got to hang out with Dan's nephew and his wife, Gerrie and Sarah. Gerrie is in the Army so the guys got to talk Army talk all weekend. We enjoyed playing some Guitar Hero, Quelf, and playing with their two dogs JRiley and Trigger. The boys took some time to warm up to the dogs, but they were very good mannered puppies. We even had a surprise when we went to church on Sunday. Dan's old bishop from back in Kentucky was now living in that area and happened to come to that ward! It was great for Dan and them to reminisce.

All in all it was a smooth trip. Both car trips went without any tantrums and were full of long naps. Hooray!

Oh, and I just had to post this video of Alex. He said the dinner prayer last night (without being prompted) and has been saying prayers all day so I had to get a shot of him doing it!

More Low-Carbness

2010-02-17T11:53:00.001-08:00

Last night we did a roast with cauliflower mashed potatoes. The texture of the potatoes was after awhile a bit hard to ingest. The flavor was great and would be great to use in a recipe like a shepherd's pie, but not just as a side alone.

This chicken turned out very yummy!

Martha who?

2010-02-10T16:19:00.000-08:00

Dan has requested that we reduce the number of carbohydrates that are ingested in this house, and to be sure I heard him correctly I said, "What! Are you crazy?" We have been eating healthier for at least the last year, but everything was well balanced with some rice, potatoes, rolls... (i'm getting sad just typing this). Finding and trying new recipes is something I've always enjoyed doing, but now I'm on the hunt for good low-carb ones. We've been at it for a couple of weeks now and our meals are turning out so good that I'm gonna share with you! Breakfast usually consists of eggs in one way shape or form, yogurt, fruit, etc. Lunch for me generally has some carbs in it otherwise I might DIE. Dan has an apple, fiber bar, slimfast, or yogurt. Then dinner is meat and veggies. I've even made a fish dish once a week.

This week's fish dish was an Island Spiced Salmon. I TOTALLY bought the wrong cut and type of salmon (that's how little I know about fish), but it still turned out alright and I still ate it, which is the true miracle. This is what Cade thought of the salmon.

Tonight was the first meal we've taken a picture of. I made Swiss Turkey Tenderloin strips.

Dan and I both discovered that we don't like turkey as much as we should, that I still love spinach, that Dan still loathes spinach, that carrots are yummy, and that the cheese sauce this recipe made is divine and fondue worthy.

I'm enjoying trying all of these new things, and the carb-free meals are working great for Dan and his goals for weight and such, but I still need me some carbs. I hide snacks and get things when I'm out with friends that I couldn't have otherwise. Who knew how much a lack of carbs could affect my mood!! :)

Oh and here's a cute pic of Alex just for fun. He was loving playing peek-a-boo!

Singing fool

2010-02-03T10:46:00.000-08:00

So most of you know that Cade is completely obsessed with Thomas the Train. One of his favorite things to do is go on the Thomas website and play all sorts of games, watch videos, and much to my chagrin, listen to all of the Thomas songs. He listens to them over and over until he's learned the words. Here's a sampling:

The Perfect Snowman

2010-01-31T13:15:00.000-08:00

So after it stopped snowing it started sleeting and melting a little bit which turned the beautiful fluffy snow into hard crunchy snow. In play terms this only means a few things. Better snowballs and snowmen! Cade was so excited to put one together and when it was all done he said, "This is the perfect snowman!"

Notice someone lurking in the window?

And after playing outside for over two hours there's nothing better than curling up with Daddy under an electric blanket.

SN*OW

2010-01-30T08:32:00.000-08:00

Well, they finally got it right. After 2 false alarms of major winter storms we awoke this morning and had the snow we were predicted to get. At 6:15 there was a bit over an inch and it hasn't stopped snowing yet at 11:30am, so we're in for quite a bit more. Above is a slideshow of pictures of us all playing in the snow!

What do the McBrides do?

2010-01-26T11:34:00.001-08:00

If you've ever wondered what the McBrides do all day, here is a glimpse into the little things we do to pass time

Doing dishes

Laughing

Crying

Playing at the bouncy park

Getting cool new Thomas PJ's at Walmart for $7

Having tickle wars

Building tents

Cooking

Flipping

and failing...

and cleaning... :)

Getting stuck

Playing at the playground

Going to a free arts festival

Playing with trains

Reading stories in forts

And doing more dishes!

And our next duty station is...

2010-01-14T07:09:00.000-08:00

You heard him right! Dan will be playing with the 8th Army band in Seoul Korea. The assignment is for 2 years and we will be leaving over the summer, dates yet to be finalized. Crazy, huh?

Ring in the new

2010-01-12T11:27:00.000-08:00

The holidays are officially over and we all have a fresh new start with 2010. We finished out our year with bang and hope to have another good year ahead.

For New Year's Eve we decided to take the kids bowling and then come home and make s'mores using the s'more maker we got for Christmas from Dan's sister. Though perhaps Cade shouldn't have had that much sugar that late (night terrors), we still had a lot of fun. Dan and I stayed up until midnight, drank some sparkly stuff, kissed and headed to bed.

We woke up the next morning realizing we had two full days with nothing planned. If you know anything about our kids you know that you don't want to just sit around the house for two days with nothing to do or someone might get hurt. So at the last minute we decided to take a trip up to Washington D.C. We'd always talked about going up to the Air and Space museum and seeing some sights and this seemed like a good time to do it. At about 10 we started showering and packing and arranging a hotel and were out the door by 12:30. The kids ate lunch in the car and napped while we had a traffic-free drive up to D.C. (which is very unheard of). Our first stop was the Air and Space museum and since it was new year's day it was open until 6:30. We had a good time, but the kids let us know that it was time to get to the hotel.

We found a great deal at the Embassy Suites right smack in downtown D.C. off of Pennsylvania avenue. It was pretty swanky looking and had a pool, the number one requirement of hotels in my opinion! We ordered a pizza and took the boys down to swim. Even though the water was pretty cold we all had a good time. The boys finally conked out around 9 and we watched I am Legend on some HBO channel.

The next morning they had a continental breakfast. But this wasn't like your Best Western continental breakfast with some muffins, cereal and oatmeal packets, this was a full-on buffet of very yummy breakfast goods. The boys had waffles, pancakes, cereal and we had omelettes, breakfast potatoes and some very good hot chocolate. Then Cade got to feed the fish. All of the rooms face in to the atrium of the hotel which is beautifully decorated/landscaped and they have these giant goldfish for the kids to feed every morning.

Of course then it was time to check out of the hotel, but before we could leave Dan had to show Cade what staying in a hotel was really all about. Pillowfights and jumping on the bed! We then made the necessary stop at IKEA on the way home and the kids slept from D.C. to Williamsburg and hardly whined the rest of the way. It really was a fun trip. Cade still says, "I had fun at Cade's other home."!

So this is how we finished up 2009. What will 2010 bring?

Field Trip!

2010-01-04T10:23:00.000-08:00

So amidst all of the holiday festivities, Cade and Alex got to go to a fire station with their preschool group. We're lucky because not only do we have 2 firemen in the ward, but 1 of the families is part of the preschool. This meant they got a super cool tour. They got to do everything from play on the fire engine, ring the bell, tour an ambulance, see where they slept, and even go on a ride. In fact, I got to go on the ride too and sit up front. They asked me if I wanted to sound the siren and I was like, are you serious? Yes. So there are two foot pedals and one is the horn and the other is the siren. I felt like a little school girl so I can only imagine how Cade felt. It was so much fun. Thank you Lineberrys!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-27T11:03:00.000-08:00

Well the day has come and gone. All of the countdowns, all of the activities, all of the songs and lights come down to this one day. I think the best present of all was that our kids slept in until about 7:30 (a miracle!), and we needed it because we were up until 1:30 putting their Santa gift together. All in all it was a good day with the kids and we're very thankful for everything that came our way for Christmas.

Christmas Eve we continued our tradition of having the missionaries over for dinner (ham, potatoes, green beans and rolls with sparking apple cider) and even played some Uno. They watched as the kids opened one present and read some scriptures before bed. After the kids were 'asleep' we watched the First Presidency Christmas Devotional and had fondue for dessert. Despite some late night shananigans after the elders left, which threatened the disappearance of Santa we got the house ready for Christmas morning.

Christmas day consisted of present opening, cinnamon roll eating, present playing, present fighting, and more present playing. Thanks to family for all of the gifts. We had a great time. I'm just glad to put the season behind and start fresh with 2010. So Merry Christmas to everyone and here's to a great new year.

Tacky Light Tour

2009-12-24T11:24:00.000-08:00

Woo hoo! The kids are cooperating today so I have a little time to post another blog entry.

So... I think it was two years ago I saw this special on TLC about the tackiest christmas lights in the country. It turns out that Richmond, VA has a huge percentage of the homes that were on this show, and if you go to http://www.tackylighttour.com/ you can find houses in your area that made it onto the list. So I figured there's a good chance we won't be in this area next Christmas so we should take a trip to Richmond and see some of the houses. Now, tacky is just a fun and general term used to describe any house that has 20,000 lights or more. If you go to the website you'll see the winners of the tacky awards are split into categories such as kid friendly, classiest, most likely to be seen from space, etc.

Richmond is 2 hours away and it gets dark around 5:00. So about 3:30 we headed out the door with a map in hand and high hopes for a fun night. Well after the 2 hours into town, including some traffic on a busy street leading to the first area of houses, we found our first tacky lights. Basically one street had all of the houses decorated and it was pretty cool, but nothing special. The kids were getting restless so we went for dinner. Richmond has one of Dan's favorite restaurants from Cincinnati called Penn Station. They have really really yummy philly cheesesteaks. It was good and we were all feeling a bit more in the mood for light touring.

The first really 'wow' house that we came to was this one.

You'll see in the slideshow that they had their whole backyard and side area of their house lit as well. Cade was lovin' the lights, but lovin' the snow more than anything else. Richmond had had a winter storm over the weekend and the whole area had a good 8-10 inches of snow. Cade got to throw snowballs, make snow angels, and eat it too. He was in heaven.

Next we went to the house that was awarded the 'best overall'. The description online said it had 250,000 lights and when we were driving down the street leading up to the house you could see it in the distance. It was swarming with traffic and pedestrians so we parked the car and got out. As we got closer we could see that it wasn't just one, but two houses (a mother and son) who worked together to make this monstrosity of lights and displays. Call it tacky, feel bad for the neighbors or whatever, but this was pretty cool. All of the pictures start to look the same, but take a second and pause the slideshow and look at all of the stuff this place had. The kids loved it.

It was getting pretty late and we had spent a lot of time at that last house so we headed home, hoping to stop by the 'kid friendliest' house on the way. We got there and you could see hundreds of inflatables all dead on the ground and no lights on. :(

So next time, if there ever is a next time, it would be nice if there wasn't the 2 hour round trip travel involved, or our fussy kids, but the one spectacular house was oddly worth it all. Hope you enjoy the pictures. (the finished product of our little craft is in there too)

Merry Christmas everyone!

I think...

2009-12-23T21:12:00.000-08:00

... that our children are this cute so they have a built-in defense mechanism. How can you be mad at children who take such cute pictures? :D

In the slideshow are some shots by the Christmas tree with boys being boys and kids, beating the tree, eating the ornaments and trying to look innocent all at the same time.

Then you have some pictures at our local mall play area, followed by Cade and I doing a little Christmas craft. This was part one. Pictures of the finished product to follow later. Don't you love the shot of him sticking his tongue out? He does this whenever he's concentrating really hard.

Hopefully, if all goes as planned, I'll get another blog post up tomorrow with the shots of our Tacky Light Tour adventure. If not, Merry Christmas! Here's to hoping you have a chance to relax a little and enjoy this special time of year.

It's the most edible time of the year

2009-12-17T12:19:00.000-08:00

Just like my sister, we too have continued the family tradition of decorating Christmas cookies. We have learned that only one pouch of cookie mix makes PLENTY of cookies, and one recipe of frosting is just enough. Cade helped me make the cookies while Dan was at work and then we frosted them that night. Even though Cade had been talking all day about 'coloring cookies' he only frosted one and ate one. That left Dan and I with a whole bunch-o-cookies to frost.

Here's my spread of cookies:

And here's Dan's:

(yes those are Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)

Can you find Cade's cookie?

With that many cookies on hand I made sure they left the house quickly and went to a Relief Society Enrichment activity.

And here's Cade enjoying the one cookie he got to eat :)

Smells good!

2009-12-15T06:24:00.001-08:00

So far this Christmas season we have decorated, seen Santa and made some fun and yummy smelling ornaments!

Cade had been wanting us to put up the tree since the summer, so needless to say he was excited when we finally pulled the box out. Our tree decorating was interrupted by a trip to the ER when Alex kicked off of the table while in his highchair, sending him straight back onto the hearth of the fireplace. He got a pretty good goose-egg on the back of his head but the CT scan was clear. *phew* Here's the finished product.

For Dan's work party we were requested to bring a gift for the kids that Santa would give them. It's not often you can ask Santa for something and actually have him personally give it to you. Cade had been asking for Cranky the Crane (a Thomas the train character) so when we found a good deal on it we knew this would be the perfect time to get it from Santa.

Then for Family Home Evening one night we made these cinnamon ornmanets. They're packed with cinnamon, applesauce, glue and turned out smelling really good and looking great.

And now for a random video of the kids playing on the piano together. :)

Thanksgiving (a few weeks late)

2009-12-10T10:30:00.001-08:00

I feel like I've been playing catch up ever since our trip to Oklahoma for Thanksgiving. It has just been one thing after another and I finally find myself with a little time that doesn't need to be filled with anything else. :)

We were very lucky this Thanksgiving to be related to someone who works for Southwest and wanted us there badly enough for the big day to fly us out using some of their passes. Since there would be a bunch of family traveling into OK, they decided to have the big dinner on Friday. We flew out on Thursday and though it was a long day, there were very few hiccups in the traveling other than a 3 1/2 yr old and a 1 1/2 yr old.

We spent our holiday with Kim, Natasha, Marsi, Kristina, Nana Dee and Papa Jon and all their respective families. Including the missionaries there were 18 eating adults and who knows how many younglings. We thought it would be a fun to get all of our kids together because most were of the same age. We had a 6 week old up to a 4 year old and think there were 8 of 'em. There were times that it was really fun to see all of the kids interacting, and then there were moments like this.

Despite the tears (most of them from Cade) we had a great trip and had fun visiting family we wouldn't otherwise be able to see.

Yes, it's been awhile...

2009-11-22T10:33:00.000-08:00

Sorry! Between life and our computer going nutso and having to be sent in, I haven't blogged in awhile. But that doesn't mean there hasn't been anything blogworthy going on!

Halloween finished out nicely, but I didn't get any better pictures of the kids in their costumes than I already posted so I'll spare you the repeats.

Then we had this thing called a Nor'easter. Wikipedia defines it as a low pressure area whose center of rotation is just off the East Coast and whose leading winds in the left forward quadrant rotate onto land from the northeast. The precipitation pattern is similar to other extratropical storms. Nor'easters also can cause coastal flooding, coastal erosion, hurricane force winds, and heavy snow.

Well, we had everything BUT the snow. It started raining on Tuesday night and didn't stop for one second until late Friday evening. The winds were constant at 45-50mph with gusts up to 80mph in some areas. If you watched the weather channel during those days they were calling it the Atlantic Assault. The rain and wind were relentless and most people experienced power outages, property damage and flooding.

Dan had Veteran's day off, and it was the beginning of the Nor'easter, but we still decided to brave the storm and head out to the Virginia Air and Space Museum. Of all the searches I've done to find things to do in this area I never saw this museum. I'm so glad we found it b/c it was really cool. Both kids loved it and were able to interact with a lot of the displays. They even got to go on a commercial airplane and play with the instruments in the cockpit.

The next morning Dan headed to work (despite the storm raging outside) and seconds after stepping out the door he heard a crack and looked over to see a huge tree falling. It landed on our neighbor's shed and thankfully not their house. Throughout the rest of the storm we lost another 6-7 trees, but none did any damage.

We've all recovered from the storm and are gearing up for the holiday season to come. We are attempting to fly to Oklahoma for Thanksgiving and if we make it there it will be a great trip.

Hopefully it won't be another month before I blog again, or Christmas'll be over!

Here's a video of Alex talking. Isn't he the cutest?

Boooo!

2009-10-25T17:24:00.000-07:00

I have really been enjoying this fall season. I can't believe we've been in the same place for 2 years, and this is our 3rd holiday season. We're actually forming traditions! I know it won't last forever so we're enjoying it while we can. Cade remembered the pumpkin patch from last year and has been asking to go since August. I had to tell him the pumpkins were still growing. I think he asked at least weekly if the pumpkins were ready yet. Alas they finally were so we made our trek to Hunt Club Farm for the 3rd year in a row. Here's a progression of our family through visits to Hunt Club.

2007- This is a few days after I found out I was pregnant with Alex. Cade was 18 mos old

2008- Cade is now 2 1/2 and Alex is 4 months old (notice Cade wearing the same shirt from the year before!)

2009- 3 1/2 and 16 months old and two cutie pa-tooties! (And Alex was wearing that green shirt tonight!)

Now Cade is looking forward to the ward Trunk-or-Treat on Friday where he can wear his sweet new costume. Enjoy a crazy video and the slideshow of our Halloween adventures!

Picture Time!

2009-10-21T09:26:00.000-07:00

Here are a lot of pictures and not so many words!

G'ma Kathy and Uncle Kevin!

2009-10-16T12:01:00.001-07:00

Yes, I know I'm behind on my blog. The more behind I get, the less I want to do all the work to catch up, but then I take cute pictures and want you to see them! My goal is to get caught up before Halloween!

So while we were having this amazing vacation Grandma Kathy and Uncle Kevin were keeping the kids from thinking about us leaving them. I really thought the kids would give my mom and brother a run for their money, but it turns out they behave much better for them and had a lot of fun. See, Grandmas and Uncles are tourists to the area so they wanted to go and see as well as keep the kids occupied. Most days would start with the morning shows and a morning nap for Alex and then they'd be out of the house. Here are some of the things they did:

Storytime at the Library
Church
Beach (twice!)
Kangaroo Jac's (indoor inflatable place)
Cape Henry Light House
Virginia Aquarium

This was great b/c the kids were worn out by 6:30 or 7:00 and G'ma and Uncle Kevin could have some time to recoop and rest for the next day (usually by playing Guitar Hero!) The service they provided for Dan and I is hardly repayable. I'm so glad they had a good time and got to know their relatives a little more.

Some fun things (from their mouths) about their time with G'ma and Uncle Kevin

"Cade's not big enough for the light house." says Cade in a sad voice.
"We went to the aquarium!" A 4-syllable word came clearly out of his mouth, nothing he had said before we left
"Happy! Gama!" Alex says Grandma and not momma.....
"Grandma Kathy got mad at me." "Why Cade?" "Because I pooped in my pants."

And lastly, G'ma got the boys these cute shirts. Alex's says "My Brother Drives Me Bananas." And Cade's says "My fingers might be small but I can still wrap Grandma around them!" Too cute.

Thanks again for watching the boys!!!!!

Cozumel!

2009-10-07T07:40:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the week long break there. I think I don't want to come to the end of blogging about the cruise because it's just one more manifestation of the end of a great vacation. It's a good thing there's lots of other things going on to keep us busy and to have things to look forward to!

Friday September 18- Cozumel

This is of course the day of the swimming with the dolpins. We got off the boat around 9:00 (8:00 island time) and took a taxi down to the shopping district. Most of our days at port we hadn't had time to do any shopping. Today was our day to find the rest of our souvenirs. It was fun, but the locals are quite pushy. Most shops have a lot of the same things and they want you to buy theirs. You can talk them down a little bit, but not much. I got a cool necklace depicting a mayan calendar and a nativity set.

It was at this point that Dan came up with the crazy idea of renting a scooter to do the rest of our traveling. We knew we'd have to get at least 3 more taxis so we rented the scooter for $25 and had it for the rest of the day. However, as we were signing the papers for the scooters it started raining. We had a 20 minute drive over to Chankanaab Park where the dolphins were, and it was a good thing we were already dressed to get in the water. I hung on for dear life and had my eyes closed most of the way b/c the rain was hitting me right in the face.

Once at Chankanaab we got all signed in for our Royal Swim. See, since this is something I've been wanting to do my whole life I spent a bunch more $$ to do everything I've ever wanted to do with them. Some of the packages you can only pet them and hug them, and the more you pay, the more you get to do. I didn't want to be in the water and be envious of the other people around me doing things with the dolphins that I didn't pay to do, ya know? So after waiting, going through an orientation which included a video about the proper hand signals for the dolphins, we finally got into the water. And yes, looking at the pictures, it was storming all around us. It was a little nervewracking to be out in the middle of the water with lightning off in the distance, but this was a once in a lifetime thing. If they weren't cancelling it, neither was I.

The swim with the dolphins was very organized. There were 7 of us in the group. She'd have two people swim far out into the water. While they were swimming the people who stayed did the hug or kiss or pectoral shake. Then the dolphins would swim out and perform one of the far away tricks. While this made the whole thing go way too fast, you were never bored wishing you were doing something else. So, we got to do a hug, kiss, pectoral shake, dorsal tow, and a foot push. If you ever do this, we learned that if you do it wrong the first time, you get to do it again. So, just to get more time with the dolphins you should do it wrong on purpose! I got to kiss them twice b/c the first time I didn't hear them tell me to look at the photographer. Another guy got to do the foot push twice because he didn't get up out of the water the first time. So what was it like doing the dorsal tow? Salty! Once you grabbed onto both of their fins they dragged you through the salty salty water. You wanted to smile and shout exclamations of joy but then you'd get a mouth full of salt water and want to gag! Other than that it was pretty cool. My favorite part was the foot push. You start far out in the water laying on your stomach. You see a flash of dolphins go past you and suddenly their noses are on your feet pushing you up out of the water. I just couldn't believe how strong they were! I got the furthest out of the water of anyone, meaning my feet almost surfaced. How cool is that? This is where we also learned not to wear a two piece bathing suit. One of the girls was wearing a bikini and, well, when she did her foot push she couldn't put her hand in the air like you're supposed to.. she had to hold onto her bikini bottom. Poor thing!

After the swim they took us into a room (still wet) to watch the video they shot. It was amazing how quickly they put it together. It was fun to relive the moments. When we got downstairs our pictures were ready and we could purchase the video for $50. I knew I wanted a picture and it was $20. The were very sly and only took pictures of some things and video of the other so if you truly wanted the whole experience professionally captured you had to buy everything... for the low low price of $120! At the time I was in sticker shock and decided just to get the picture. Now I wish I had gotten the video b/c it shows our foot pushes. Oh well! They delete the video and pictures after you leave.

After that amazing experience we were hungry! We found a local mexican restaurant that was loud and crazy! They came and took your picture, made you balloon hats, did magic shows and had a dance floor, all on top of your waiter coming. Of course all of the extra people wanted tips for their service. Haha.. and there were some guys running a little store by where we parked our scooter and they washed it for us. Umm... it had been raining all day. It didn't need it! But they got their tip and us to look at their store.

So it was also my birthday that day and I woke up to Dan shuffling through stuff under the bed. He plopped some cards down on the bed. I opened up one from Jenn and then the next one was kinda thick. When I opened it up I heard Cade's voice say, "I love you mommy! Happy Birthday!" It was one of those cards that you could record onto and Dan had had Cade say that the night before we left on the cruise. I listened to that cute little voice so many times before we came home! Dan also gave me a coupon book for things like a night out to my self, a movie of my choice, folding the laundry, sleeping in, massage, etc! I've already redeemed quite a few. Thanks Dan!

That night at dinner it was a night of celebrations. Phillip proposed to Christine during dinner and the waiters sang to Dee and Jon for the anniversary and to me for my birthday. Wow, what a great day. I don't think I'll ever be able to top it!

{Oh! I forgot to mention that the dolphins sang Happy Birthday to me! After we did all the tows and foot pushes we all swam out into the water and formed a half circle. It was me and another girl's b-day so we sang and the dolphins swam by us making lots of dolphin noises as if to sing! It was cool.}

Belize

2009-09-29T08:56:00.000-07:00

Thursday-September 17- Belize

The stop in Belize is where we planned to tour the Lamanai Ruins. Everybody in the family ended up going on this tour. 25 of us had to be up and ready to go early early. There was a 20 minute tender to the shore AND you could only get off the ship early if you had proof of an excursion. We met at 7:45am and we all had everything we needed for the day, a record for the McBrides. We met up with our tour guide, Ivar, and began our jouney for the day. It was a 1 hour bus ride and 45 minute boat ride to the ruins. Thankfully the bus had A/C and the boat ride was fast so it had built-in A/C. Once we arrived at the ruins the A/C was long gone. We hiked through thick jungle and boy was it hot! Click here to see a video of the boat ride.

This is where my memory fails me and I can really only recall hiking through beautifully hot jungle and finally getting to the temples. The guide had a lot of interesting things to point out and say about the history but I can't remember much of it. The one thing that I do remember was that he had had LDS members on his tours before and researchers belive that the site of Lamanai is a good candidate for the land of Gershon. It was neat being in an area that I've only seen in pictures and imagning what their life, whoever lived there, might have been like.

There were three temples, Mask Temple, High Temple and Jaguar Temple. The Mask temple was quaint and showed examples of symmetry and a beautifully carved mask. The High temple lived up to its name and we were able to climb to the top. The climb up was physical and then climb down was mental. No one fell and all who attempted, succeeded. I'm glad I did it but it was a little trippy up at the top, plus we all had sea-legs! The Jaguar Temple was pretty big too and had jaguars carved into the sides, but at that point it was in the bright bright sun and we were all hot and tired and on our way back to the boat.

Next came what Dan argues as the best meal he had on the entire cruise. Mind you we hadn't eaten since before we even met together at 7:45 and it was now 2:00, but after the boat ride back we were fed by the 'locals' there and it was really good. Rice and Beans with a habanera sauce that was spicy but full of flavor, chicken falling off the bone, salad, fried bananas, delicious watermelon, papaya and local fruity beverages. It was really good.

Then came the bus ride and this time we weren't as near to an air conditioner as we had been the last time so it was a long ride home. We were all tired and sweaty, but some genius on the ship decided that it was going to be formal night for dinner again instead of Saturday. This time we had time to get ready but still had no nice pants for Dan. I regret not getting any pictures taken of us all dressed up and it's something we plan to do on our next cruise!

Roatan, Honduras

2009-09-27T17:08:00.000-07:00

Wednesday-September 16-Roatan, Honduras

Okay, this one won't be as lengthy, I promise!

Roatan was the one stop that we didn't have anything planned. Turns out that was the case for most of us, so we got ourselves a "16-passenger van" and smoooshed 14 of us into it. Our tour guide took us on an educational tour through Isla Roatan. He drove us to the east end and then we were going to end up at the West End for some premium snorkeling. In hindsight, even though the views were gorgeous, I think we all might have preferred a little less time driving and more time snorkeling and beaching on an truly picturesque tropical paradise.

In the pictures you'll see our first stop on the east end high above the water with some nice views of the beatiful water. You'll also see pictures of another stop to see the monkeys. We paid $2 each to get to hang with some monkeys. I'm not sure about everyone else but this isn't what I was expecting. I thought they'd be out in their natural habitat and we'd walk through and see them. Instead we were guided through what felt like someone's backyard of animal collections. They had anteaters, parrots, toucans, and monkeys. You could enter most of the cages and hold a bird and try to hold a monkey. This was one of those moments where it was fun, but there was something else even more fun we could be doing.

We were only in Roatan from 12-7 so time was running short quickly. We made our way to the beach and spent about 1 1/2-2 hours there. I wish we had had more time to just relax. It was goregous. Nice sand, nice water and beautiful snorkeling. I snorkeled for about a half an hour before I'd had enough and shared my equip with another family member.

That night on the ship we missed the dinner in the dining room so made way to the 24 hour pizza bar for some yummy calzones and games for the night!

Grand Cayman

2009-09-26T13:56:00.000-07:00

Tuesday-September 15-Grand Cayman

After sailing for a day and a half we were all ready to get off the ship and tour our first island stop. Today we were going to be at Grand Cayman from 7-4. We had an excursion planned for 9:00. We knew that we had to tender off the boat (take a boat from the ship to the shore of Grand Cayman) and that there could be lines delaying our travel to our excursion at 9:00. Being novices at this whole cruise thing we (Denice, Kristina, Dan and I) decided to get off the boat at 7:30, ensuring that we'd find everything within plenty of time. If we got there early we could just look around the shops.

Well, we got off the ship with hardly any line and made it the shore of Grand Cayman by 7:45. We walked the 4 minutes to our taxi meet-up destination and noticed that none of the shops were open. Then in dawned on us. The ship was on EST, and Grand Cayman was on CST. That meant it was only 6:45 there and we had WAY too much time on our hands. None of the shops opened until 8:00 so we found a quiet spot to sit and chat, and ended up playing 20 questions.

Finally around 8:00 we headed back towards our taxi meet-up spot and walked around a little shop called the Blue Iguana. At 8:30 we decided we better be out by our taxi area just incase he came early. We waited.... and waited... no taxi for a waverunner/stingray excursion was coming. This seemed to be a popular area to pick up taxis so we asked each one if they were ours or if they knew our company. A few did and assured us they always see him and they should be here soon. By 9:45 we still hadn't seen a single taxi that met our descriptions. I had left the contact info for the place on the ship b/c we didn't have cell phones on us to call them anyways. We went into the Hard Rock Cafe and they were very helpful by letting us use their yellow pages and their phone for free to contact them. The lady said, "What do you mean no one came. The guy came back and said no one was there. Are you at the Blue Iguana?" Grrr... of course we were there. We'd been there since 6:45! She came back on the line and said she'd send a taxi right away. He came about 20 minutes later, quite apologetic and said the taxi ride would be free.

We got all signed in and life vested and waited for our now taxi driver and tour guide to get 5 waverunners into the water. Just as he got the last one in the water his phone rang. There was a problem. See, there was a 9:00 tour and an 11:00 tour. It was now 10:45 and if we left with the 5 waverunners before the 9:00 tour came back, there wouldn't be enough waverunners for the 11:00 group and their tour guide. He came out and offered us another $20 discount each to wait and allow them to have enough waverunners. After all the waiting we'd done already, another 15 minutes or so and $20 discount each sounded great! That was snafu #2 of the cruise.

We finally got in the water, on the waverunners and got going! I personally hadn't ever been on one by myself. I was a little scared at first but had a lot of fun. Dan was having a little too much fun. He was doing flatspins and all sorts of stuff over there, not in the way of anyone, but we were supposed to be moving as a group towards stingray city. They slowed us all down and went and told him to keep up with the group. Hehe....

I didn't want to goof around on the waverunner, but I did want to stop and just admire the clear blue water instead of skimming right past it. It was super warm and just beautiful. Stingray city was all clear and shallow and warm in the middle of the ocean. They had warned us not to jump around so the stingrays didn't get nervous, but they never warned us as to how big they were! I had seen stingrays at the zoo and they were the size of a dinner plate or so, but I jumped off my waverunner and this HUGE black mass came toward me and I about lost it! These things were the size of tires and very friendly. The would just come up and rub against you, almost knocking you over. We got to hold them, kiss them, I fed one, and they gave us back rubs. It was pretty dang cool. There were tons of other tourists there that had all come on a ship, but we were the ones who came and left on waverunners!

After stingray city our guide took us to a snorkel spot and let us go as long as we wanted. The snorkeling was very pretty, but it was my first time. I tried not to hyperventilate and just stay calm, but it gave me a headache. Maybe with more practice?

Finally it was time to zoom back to shore. We made it there a little too quick and showered off and headed back to the ship with a free taxi ride. (And in the taxi that everyone had described to us in the first place that we NEVER saw by the Blue Iguana) By then it was 2:30 ship time and the last tender to the ship was at 3:15. We zoomed through a few shops and made it back on.

That night was the 1st of two shows that we went to. It was a juggler and a comedian. They were both okay. The juggler was almost funnier than the comedian and lots of lines ready for when he dropped stuff. He said it was intentional 'just to make it look harder' but he did drop quite a bit. It bugged me b/c he would do that trick over and over until he finally got it. Most jugglers i've seen when they drop something, they'll just move on. Oh well, free entertainment right?

The vacation of a lifetime!

2009-09-24T05:40:00.000-07:00

I suppose the only way to start blogging about a 7 day cruise is from the beginning. I have far too many pictures and lots of stories to share so it'll take some time to get it all up here for you to see.

Friday-September 11

Both my mom and brother arrived around 4:00pm to come and be of service to my boys that I was about to leave for 9 days. I had spent the weekly furiously cleaning and packing and making sure this trip would go as smoothly as possible. Since I was going to be away for my birthday my mom wanted to celebrate before we left early on Saturday. The only true way to celebrate is by getting a cookie cake! Yummy!

Saturday-Septmber 12

Even though the ship didn't leave until Sunday, this is when the vacation started for me. We woke up early, did the last minute packing and got ready to leave for the airport. I was prepared for this to be a difficult part of the day b/c I'd be leaving the kids home while either my mom or brother took us to the airport. Alex got up when we did b/c he was sleeping in our room and he was ready to go back to sleep before we left so his goodbye was easier than planned. We woke cade up so we could say goodbye to him and he just wanted to watch a show. No tears were shed on anyone's part and we excitedly began our vacation!

The flight to Fort Lauderdale was pretty uneventful, the way it should be. I was thinking how nice it would have been to fly that uneventfully when I was alone with both of the kids in March, but I guess that's the way it goes. We were in FL by 1:00 and family came to bring us to the resort. Let me just say that if we ever have enough money, timeshares are the way to go. The suites had a full kitchen with all the essentials, a huge living room area, washer/dryer, one master bedroom complete with jet tub and king bed, and another room with two full/queen beds and a full bathroom. The resort itself had putt-putt golf, at least one pool and hot tub that I knew of. This is where we all gathered to get ready for cruise day on Sunday!

Sunday-September 13- Cruise Day!

We left the resort around 10am to make the 45min trek to the Port of Miami. The check-in process was smoother than I expected and it wasn't long before we were aboard the Carnival Valor. We had to check our luggage and we couldn't access our rooms until 1:30 so it was a perfect time to tour the ship and find everything we could. It was also lunch time so we ate our first meal on level 9, the Lido Deck. This was Rosie's Restaurant that was buffet style. You could find everything from burgers, pizza, deli, burrito bar, ice cream, and whatever the buffet of the day was themed around. This area was open almost all day so you could always find food. We toured, we ate, we visited and finally set sail around 4pm.

Every night we had dinner at 6:00pm in the dining room. Here you could choose as many starters, salads, soups, entrees and desserts as you wanted. The group of 23 of us shared 3 round tables and rotated throughout the nights. All I have to say is the warm chocolate melting cake was divine... or was it evil.... mmm...

That first night is when we did Karaoke. Dan was the first brave one to get up. He sang Tainted Love. I followed by singing Blondie's One Way or Another. No one who heard it will tell me how horrible it was, but I've seen enough American Idol seasons to know that it was awful! Hopefully the video won't surface. Dan did another tune later and then we called it a night.

Monday-September 14- Fun Day at Sea!

We had to travel a ways to get to our first port, so Monday was a just a day on the ship. We slept in, ate breakfast, played some putt-putt and got ready for a surprise celebration for Dan's parents 50th wedding anniversary. From 1:30-3:30 we watched a slideshow of old photos, ate some really yummy chips and salsa, shared old stories and ate the delicious chocolate cake the ship prepared for them. Afterwards Dan and I decided to head to our room to relax before dinner at 6:00. That night was our first formal night so we wanted to have time to get ready. It seemed like a great time for a nap so we set an alarm and went to sleep. I woke up and looked around for Dan's watch and saw that it was 5:50! We scurried out of bed and tried to rush and get ready. The phone kept ringing and when I picked it up no one was there. I threw on a dress and some jewelry and the phone rang again. This time it was dan's neice Denice calling. She says, "Umm.. did you guys know about the family picture at 5:30?" Nope! No one had told us, and had waited 20 minutes to call and let us know we were late. Then I hear Dan say in the background, "Laura, do you know where my pants are?" Yeah... I forgot to pack Dan's dress slacks. Needless to say things were going poorly at this moment. We got up to the family picture grumpy and with Dan as formally dressed as possible in some cargo pants and a button up shirt and tie. Sorry Dan! Thankfully this was only 1 of 2 snafu's in the whole trip.

That's enough for one post. More later!

maybe i should not have started this...

2009-09-09T19:33:00.000-07:00

*** site is under construction ***

And now for video #2!

2009-09-06T14:15:00.001-07:00

Yup! He's walking! He is now mobile, with hands free. Uh oh!

Video #1

2009-08-31T17:47:00.000-07:00

So here's the first of two videos that needed to be captured. Shortly after Cade started singing We Will Rock You non-stop I would hear Alex singing along. I thought maybe I was just making it up, that he wasn't really singing We Will Rock You, just babbling. Then one time when Cade wasn't around, the music came on and he started singing along with it. This video turned out too cute!

Good things to come...

2009-08-30T11:09:00.000-07:00

The reason you haven't heard from me in awhile is because we left our camera in Washington D.C. when we went up there a few weeks ago. We got it back yesterday and it is now my task to video tape two very exciting developments in our family. Wish me luck!

2009-08-13T09:41:00.000-07:00

I just had to post this video because of how cute he was being and just to illustrate the difference between Cade and Alex. Boy can Alex eat anything! I never realized how hard it is to feed a picky eater until I had one that wasn't! In fact, the other day we had the missionaries over for dinner. I made 'chicken puffs' that were crescent rolls with some sort of chicken/cream cheese mixture inside. I gave Cade one and had some baby food out for Alex. Cade refused to eat the puff and asked if he could eat the baby's food. I looked warily at Dan and he said, go ahead. So there we were eating with the missionaries while my 3 year old at baby food and my 1 year old ate the chicken puff, and a lot of it.

When the kids are driving you crazy...

2009-08-04T04:41:00.000-07:00

It's best to remember the funny times. Here is a video of Cade's new favorite song!

We really are the luckiest!

2009-07-29T11:26:00.000-07:00

So most of you know that we're going on a cruise as part of Dan's parent's 50th wedding anniversary celebration. The cruise has been in the works for over a year and it's coming up fast. I remember sitting around the campfire at our reunion last year as we threw out ideas of when and where to go. Alaska, Europe, and all sorts of things were thrown out and we settled on the Western Caribbean. We also settled on the fact that NO KIDS were allowed, unless they were 18 and able to pay for themselves. I know this will be a major bonus for a lot of us, but I really am glad that Dan's parents will not feel obligated to watch anyone's children while we go out and have fun. This time it's their turn to take a week and do what they want to do with their time.

So here is what Dan and I have decided to do with our time in the Western Caribbean aboard the Carnival Valor.

9/12- Fly to Miami and stay at the Palm Aire resort (thanks Brandon!)

9/13- Board the Carnival Valor

9/14- Fun Day at Sea

9/15- Grand Cayman- We are doing a wave runner sting ray tour!

9/16- Roatan- We're going to snorkel, take it easy and just be tourists

9/17- Belize- We are touring the Lamanai Mayan ruins. I'm really excited about this one!

9/18- Cozumel- My birthday! What better way to celebrate than to swim with the dolphins! It has been my life long dream to do this. I'm really really excited!

9/19- Fun Day at Sea

9/20- Return to Miami and fly home that night

Some silly little things I'm looking forward to are flying with Dan and no kids. Just being with him and being able to pay attention to him. I'm looking forward to all the food I'm going to eat. We've been doing a Lose for the Cruise competition and working really hard at eating and living healthier. This week on the cruise, no points will be taken away and pounds will be added happily. I'm looking forward to sun and sand. We had a Cancun trip cancelled a few years ago so this is long overdue, and a vacation I've been wanting to do for a long long time. I'm looking forward to some silence. It gets really loud and crazy at home, and while it may get a little loud and crazy with the McBrides, it's completely welcome.

So pray for good weather and good kids for my mom. I enlisted her as soon as I could to have come watch the kids. This wouldn't be possible without her. Thanks mom!

A letter

2009-07-26T16:34:00.001-07:00

Dear blog,

Oh how I have neglected you.

Deepest regrets,
Laura

Is it families are forever, or families visits are forever?

2009-07-07T06:33:00.000-07:00

Hahaha... just kidding! We have had a long string of visits with family. Our first plans were to head down to North Carolina on the 19th of June. Instead some of the family that was already visiting down in NC headed up to Virginia Beach on the 16th. 11 McBrides in all dawned upon us. We had a beach day and a Jamestown day before we all headed down to NC together. We got in too late on the 19th to celebrate Alex's 1st birthday so we did it one day late. All in all there were 21 McBrides together for a day before some of the troops headed back to Utah. We stayed through Wednesday and then headed towards Ft. Bragg to see Dan's nephew Gerrie graduate from his advanced training.

We arrived home from the NC trip late on Thursday and my Brother came in town on Tuesday to visit for the 4th of July. We hadn't seen him since I was living in Chicago during Dan's basic training. Luckily the weather was on our side and we had some great beach and waterpark days. We also made it to the zoo and ate some great food as a part of our 4th of July celebrations. The kids loved their Uncle Kevin, even though Alex is getting 8 teeth right now. Kevin may be glad to get back to a quieter house but we're so glad he came.

Hope you enjoy the pics!

Happy Birthday Alex!

2009-06-27T13:27:00.000-07:00

I will post more later, but check out Alex's first year photo montage. It's all I've had time to do so far. Enjoy! (I also re-posted Cade's first year in case you were feeling sentimental)

Ramblings

2009-06-14T17:40:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I've blogged. Just like it's been a long time since I've written in my journal. Sometimes you just reach a point where you don't know what to say. Time passes and then you wonder how much of the gaps to fill in. So, I'll do my trusty dusty family member update.

Dan- Work has been busy. It's summer so people take leave here and there and he's been doing not only his job, but two others. In fact, he just got the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal and it actually recognizes that he was filling two billets simultaneously. I like the last sentence on the certificate because it truly sums up how awesome my husband is. "Corporal McBride's professionalism, personal initative and unswerving devotion to duty reflected great credit on him and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Army and the United States Naval Service." Not many army soldiers will have the navy and marine corps medal! Still no promotion yet, but he hit his 2 year mark this month. Wow, time flies!

Laura- I'm a mom. What more can I say? I've been sick for the past few weeks but life doesn't stop. With the summer weather I've been trying to keep the boys out of the house and out of my hair. I love my boys, but they really have a lot of energy and they drain mine quickly. I always need a little help from something else to make it through the day. Somedays it's just the park, the gym, the grocery store or even the waterpark. A group of us from church are going to go to Ocean Breeze every Tuesday and I think it will be a lot of fun for the kids and us moms!

Cade- He is starting to really enhance his vocabulary. Full sentences are coming regularly now and most times they're hilarious. Like the another night during dinner. *BURP* "Cade, what do you say?" He grins and says, "That was a big burp!" We all burst out laughing and then finally got the usual 'excuse me' out of him. He love Alex and says, "He is a cute baby." I couldn't agree more. Also Cade seems to be going through some sort of growth spurt. He is constantly hungry. "Mom, I'm sooo hungry. My tummy's rumbling." But he's not the best eater. Today he had two lunches and a weak dinner. But then he's been waking up with pains in his legs that we can only think to be growing pains. Poor thing.

Alex- What can I say about Alex? He's turning one this week and I just can't believe how fast this year has gone. He still is a difficult child to handle but there are always the fun times that make up for it. Dan and I have been thinking of the best way to describe his personality. He's strongwilled. Stubborn. Strong. Determined. Aggressive. Trusting. Momma's boy. Brave. Loving and loyal. I try to hand him off to even Dan and he clenches on tightly. He loves bonking heads, even with himself in the mirror. He loves being outdoors and in the water. I can't take him out back unless I'm holding him b/c he ingests every little leaf, stick, piece of chalk that comes his way. While I'm holding him out back so he doesn't eat anything he constantly dives out of my arms to get down to the ground, so we come inside and he cries at the door. His favorite toy is the couch. He'll crawl from one end to the other and just lay down, then twist in unimaginable ways and do it all over again. He's not walking yet and we're not even going to push it. My hope for Alex is that as he learns to communicate more and more that he'll cry less and less. We've started sign language and he is doing well so far.

Funny how if you had asked me what was going on I could not have come up with anything, but by talking about the family individually all sorts of things came out! Things in the future for us are a trip down to NC to see Charles' family, Robert's family, Jon & Dee, Kristina's family (and her new little Bensen!) and Gerrie & Sarah. It should be fun and it's practically a family reunion! My brother is coming to visit for the 4th of July and then we have our cruise in September! Hooray! Well, now you probably wish I hadn't written a blog at all since it ended up so long! :D

New pics

2009-06-08T11:46:00.000-07:00

Memories of my Aunt

2009-05-28T17:56:00.000-07:00

The role of an Aunt can vary from family to family. An aunt can be my mother's sister, my grandma's daughter, a stranger, and if you're lucky, your friend. My Aunt Carolyn was everything but a stranger. Even though our family lived most of our years away from Denver, she was still very much a part of our life. She birthed wonderful children who have become more friends than cousins. She was the one who discovered I was allergic to penicillin and nursed me back to health. She's the one who would play gin rummy with me and my mom and feed me those wonderful Mother's animal cookies. She came downtown when my percussion ensemble from BYU-Idaho was in town. She's also the one who insisted on coming to my wedding in Nauvoo and doing all she could to help. She was always someone you could talk to and count on honest advice. But she was never the one I expected to leave in this way. Her fighting spirit fought the cancer as long and as hard as it could and hopefully is at rest now. I can't wait to see her again. I love you and miss you already Aunt Carolyn!

How to get a free pizza from Papa Johns

2009-05-23T19:03:00.001-07:00

Apparently Dan and I have found the perfect topping combination that will result in enough mistakes to earn you 3 free pizzas!

"We'll have a large specialty pizza."
"Which one?"
"The Works. On one half, no sausage, add banana peppers. On the other half, no mushrooms or olives."
"So that's a Works pizza with no sausage on one half, with banana peppers instead, and the other half no mushrooms or olives?"
"That's correct."

We then went to pick up our pizza and got about one block before inspecting and finding banana peppers on the whole thing and all sorts of madness therein. Frustrated and hungry we turned around and took it back. The manager was working that night and joked with his underlings about who made the mistake and said, "I'll make it this time." After sitting in the car with two tired kids (we were on the way home from the water park) for 15 minutes I see Dan finally come out the door with pizza in tow. Suddenly he turns around and heads back inside. Could they really have gotten it wrong again? Yup. And this time it was the manager who had done it wrong. Suddenly the manager wasn't much in the mood for jokes and another pizza was promptly made. (In fact, it's amazing how much quicker that 3rd pizza came out than the other two..)

After the first pizza was wrong we were fully refunded. After the second pizza was wrong the handed us two coupons for free large 1-topping pizzas. Not bad, eh? Now you try!

Reflection

2009-05-15T19:58:00.000-07:00

One day while driving down Independence Blvd., I passed the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts and couldn't believe my eyes when the marquis read that Evelyn Glennie was coming to perform. Who is Evelyn Glennie, you ask? She is a world reknown percussionist that continues to broaden and reinvent what is possible.

But who is Evelyn Glennie to me? She was the first 'professional' percussionist I remember hearing and viewing. She was making a living at doing what I loved to do. She was a she... and that meant a lot as well. When you want to know how to play a piece, you listen to her recording. She's also mostly deaf. Her talent is undeniable and yet she lives in a world of mostly silence. Still she is the most musical and honest performer I've seen, and in her bio you will find nothing about her deafness. She speaks almost perfectly, uses no other interpretation than the reading of lips and has made her mark on the world.

While listening to Ilijas by Zivkovic, a beautiful piece on marimba, I couldn't help but fight back tears in remembrance of a life I used to know. Countless hours practicing, healing blisters, memorizing music, caring for instruments and teaching percussion. I've harldy played since I left Rexburg and find it almost painful to listen to percussion music because I miss it so much. I found myself finally really wanting to get back into the world of percussion, but how?

During intermission we overheard a gentleman speaking to a student-aged girl about a reception after the show. Dan asked him about it and he graciously invited us to attend as well. We entered a banquet room full of fancy food, wine, and servers and immediately felt out of place. We ate to look occupied and looked around to see what group of people this really was. Soon Evelyn entered the room and I tensed up. What could I possibly say that would mean anything and not sound like some rambling idiot? We were kindly ushered over towards her and I thanked her for sharing her gift and talent with us and for continuing to explore what percussion can do. She was gracious and patient with my asking for an autograph and a picture. I hope she knows that even if I mean nothing to her, she has touched and inspired me.

And as it turns out, the gentleman we overheard speaking about the reception is one of the principal percussionists for the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Rob Crosse. He seemed genuinely appreciative and interested in my background and encouraged me to get in contact with him for possible ways to get back into playing. It's an interesting world we live in, isn't it?

The game of life!

2009-05-14T09:49:00.001-07:00

On this week's episode of "The McBride Family game of Life"...

Laura rolled a 4 and got a massive hole in the roof! Thanks to torrential downpours water began dribbling into Cade's room and then eventually made its way through the light fixture and onto his floor. Cade reported, "It was raining in my room."

Dan rolled an 8 and got a car repair! A new catalytic converter, O2 sensors and $800 later...

Cade rolled a 3 and and got ANOTHER car repair! The space on the board said, "Car is still doing the same thing. Spend another $200 to try and fix it again!"

Then Alex rolled a 9 and landed on a space that said, "Oops, car still isn't fixed. What's wrong with you?"

Thanks for playing the game of life! Ack!

Yes, this really is just what life is like sometimes. I can't complain TOO much because it's been awhile since we've needed any major repairs. Thankfully we're renting so the roof cost us nothing. Turns out that the damage was purty bad. Maybe if they'd looked into it when we moved in in September and mentioned it??? And who knows on the car. It dies when i start it if it's been sitting for awhile. First they said it was the cat. converter and O2 sensors, then they said it was the coolant and throttle sensors, and it's still dying. Who knows...

Still we are chipper and enjoying the gorgeous weather and eachother!

Name that powder

2009-04-30T05:37:00.000-07:00

What PEANUTS has taught my son

2009-04-28T08:35:00.001-07:00

"I just can't do it!"

Lucy is often quite agressive. In one episode Lucy smashes Schroeder's piano while describing what it's like to suffer lost love. So I often find Cade jumping on his toys saying, "It's AWFUL! You can't eat! You can't sleep!"

In the Charlie Brown Christmas, Linus uses his blanket to whip a snowball at some cans on the wall. This quickly led to Cade pretending to put something in his or Alex's blanket and then whipping it around the room...

"You blockhead, Charlie Brown!"

Cade calls this his Linus Shirt :)

Zing! Zang! Zoom!

2009-04-27T05:14:00.000-07:00

When I heard that the Ringling Bros. were coming town I jumped at the chance to get tickets and take the kids. I only vaguely remember going to the circus when I was in elementary school and I thought it was something every kid should get a chance to go to. Here are my observations about the greatest show on earth.

1. It was loud
2. It was long (2 hour show w/intermission and 1 hour pre-show)
3. It was expensive ($12 for cotton candy? No way! $22 for the coveted light up toy! $15 for a program!)
4. And Cade still talks about how much fun the circus was.

That's what makes these 'adventures' worth the money and the noise and the fussy children. He LOVED the elephants, tigers, puppies and the jumping (which i'm sure referred to any sort of acrobatics). It was a very intriguing show with plenty to keep all ages entertained. Unfortunately poor Alex only got a short nap before we left at 9:30 and he fought sleep the entire time. He was squirmy times 100 and eventually gave up during the very last performance. Cade also said he was scared and that it was too loud, but was very upset when we left. All in all we're glad we went, but we wouldn't do it year after year. Especially since as the kids get older they'll feel like they need more toys, food and all the goodies available!

I may have mentioned that we started a garden. When Dan's dad was here for Cade's b-day he built us a garden in our 'backyard' that is raised off of the ground. We got it all set up and planted and are finally starting to see some buds! I just had to take a picture! While we were enjoying a beautiful night last night I couldn't resist some more pics of the kids by our beautiful azaleas.

Not much to say...

2009-04-20T19:09:00.000-07:00

But a lot to look at. Enjoy some cute new videos and pictures!

What a weekend!

2009-04-13T11:20:00.000-07:00

As promised we have the much anticipated pictures from Cade's birthday, Easter, and the wonderful Wall-E cake.

For the cake, I started with two 9x13 size cakes... marble swirl to be exact! We referenced another cake picture to build his body, head and improvised on his arms. The frosting is what took the longest but I think it turned out really well, don't you?

Saturday was a busy day. We had picked up Dan's parents at the airport late the night before and had an early morning as the kids woke up around 6 or so. The first item on the agenda was an Easter egg hunt. Thankfully everyone was able to go and leave me behind to decorate for the party. It seems as though everyone had a great time, got some great pictures and the weather was perfect for that activity. When Cade got home he found the dining room covered in Wall-E stuff and he was soooo excited. We were still waiting for party guests to arrive so we played with stickers, party blowers and tattoos. Once everyone got here the unveiling of the cake and the singing began. You'll see on the video that Cade had a love/hate relationship with the attention. He makes such funny faces! Cade LOVED the cake and really enjoyed licking the frosting. Next were the presents. Thanks everyone for the birthday presents for Cade! He had a wonderful day and he still talks about it.

Sunday was of course Easter and it was a pretty good one. We gave Cade an Easter basket and had a wonderful dinner with Dan's parents and Cheryl. We've been attempting to eat healthier so we had ham, green beans, salad, water and rolls. Everything was delicious! Afterwards we attempted to decorate easter eggs. I say we attempted b/c every effort we made to be creative fell flat.. as did a few eggs thanks to Cade.

Dan's parents will be here for a few more days while his Dad builds us a garden and then we'll continue with our crazy lives. On the bill is a baby shower and then the circus! :)

Years ago...

2009-04-05T10:21:00.000-07:00

One year ago

Two years ago

Three years ago

That's right! Cade turns 3 this week. Every once and awhile Cade will do something that reminds me that he's not a baby anymore. He knows his ABC's and the sounds they make, can count to 20, is potty trained, knows lots of colors and shapes, loves to sing, draw/color, read and of course watch his favorite shows and movies. We often listen to the soundtrack of CARS or Wall-E in the car and he can tell me what's happening in the movie and recently surprised me with what was being said too! He has an innate sense of direction. When visiting G'ma Kathy he quickly oriented himself and knew where her apartment was and what # building she lived in. He has a very free and challenging spirit. He feels emotions very strongly which makes him the happiest boy and the most upset boy in a matter of seconds. He's working on telling me when he's sad or frustrated instead of just crying. He has a big heart. He runs to Daddy the second he walks in the door, insists on helping me get Alex out of his crib and sweetly hugs and kisses him. Of course he loves mommy a little too much making it hard for Daddy to help out with certain things. His energy is admirable and frustrating all at the same time and keeps me on my toes. I'm anxious for the year to come and the many new things we will get to experience through him. Happy Birthday Cade! Stay tuned for birthday celebration pictures!

Post-denver stress!

2009-03-27T09:17:00.000-07:00

I feel like it has taken forever to recover from the trip to Denver and Dan's trip to WLC. I am finally feeling that we are back into the swing of things and have the kids on a semi-normal routine. Today I just have some random things to share and some cute pictures as well!

What's new with the McBrides? Dan is going to be gone April 2-7 for a NAPBIRT (instrument repair) conference and has a PT test shortly afterwards. I am prepping for Cade's birthday, for which he is extremely excited. He knows that he has about 2 weeks until he gets cake and candles and presents. Having him so excited makes me excited too! Alex has been teething and those bottom two have finally cut through leaving me with a happier baby. He still wants to cry and be held a lot, even at 9 months, but it has seemed better in the past few days. Towards the end of April we got tickets for the circus! I think it will be a lot of fun and it's something we've never done as a family.

I also started a preschool group with Cade. There are 7 women in our ward that take turns teaching from the Joy School program and two weeks into it I think it is going well. The kids seem to have a good time and you never know what little things they pick up. Maybe someday Cade will learn to sit still!

Cade drew Wall-E!

Monday and Tuesday- The end of the trip!

2009-03-16T12:15:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the break in blogs, but my husband came home and I just HAD to spend some time with him! Also, if you ever want to see older blogs just scroll down to the lowest blog post and there should be a link to click on for 'older posts'!

So since we didn't have the time to go to the Garden of the Gods on Sunday we figured Monday, my last full day in Denver, would be the perfect day to do so. After all, the weatherman at 9:30 Sunday night said it was going to be sunny and 61. However the next morning it was cloudy, windy and cold. This is not the best weather for hiking around with two younglings who are on the ill side. So what did we do instead? Went to another mall! This one had a play area for the kids and my mom found some great deals at Ann Taylor Loft. Nothing for me but ice cream :) This gave me plenty of time to get packed and prepped for the trip home.

Tuesday was the big day. I was a little worried about this flight b/c it was 3 1/2 hours long and the kids would definitely be awake for this one. The threat of snow had been looming and I wasn't ready for another trip like last time. But I blindly trusted the weatherman when he said the chance of accumulating snow was none, and the chance of flurries was about 20%, though after the previous day's predictions failed i'm not sure why. You can imagine our surprise when we awoke around 4:30 and there were already 2-3 inches of snow on the ground. It had only been 7 hours since that last forecast. Couldn't they see it coming? We hurried to get out the door b/c the commute was going to take longer (they don't plow in Denver). We scraped the car w/o a scraper, fixed a popped off windshield, finally found the rear window defroster and got on the road. Thankfully the lines were short at the ticket counter and security b/c by the time i got some breakfast (didn't eat it, just got it to go) and got the kids all diapered, pottied and bottles and sippy cups filled with water, my plane had boarded. I still had to check in the stroller and then walk through aisles of a full plane with 2 carry on bags, a dvd player, carseat w/infant in tow and Cade running ahead of me. After all that rush we sat on the runway for 1 hour or so to de-ice. I was certain I was facing another Norfolk adventure! When we finally took off we were set to land in Baltimore at 1:45. My flight OUT of Baltimore was a 2:20. I ran with a double stroller from one side of the airport to the other... no time for diapers or bathroom breaks, and boarded plane #2. Thankfully it was the shortest flight in the world. Only 40 minutes later we had landed and were home! Boy.. I am not attempting this without help ever again! All in all the kids did great and the DVD player was a lifesaver, but I was one stressed mama!

Enjoy the rest of the pictures, and I thanks for reading all about my fun trip to Denver!

Denver- part deux

2009-03-13T18:58:00.001-07:00

Saturday and Sunday

2009-03-13T18:13:00.001-07:00

The reason I'm posting these so quickly is because my memory has gone down the tubes since I had kids. I had heard of pregnancy brain, but it was once Cade left my womb that my brain cells did too!

Saturday is the day I found out why Alex had been so cranky. I knew he was congested and coughing, but after his morning nap he woke up hot and cranky x2! He had a fever and it was time to do something about it. I tried a few clinics and found one that accepted my military coverage. Sure enough my dear boy had an ear infection. After walking around Walgreens for a half an hour (still better than sitting in the military pharmacy for an hour and a half!) I had some antibiotics that would hopefully keep his eardrum from rupturing on the plane! We had originally planned on going downtown to see my mom's office and then to an antique store. After seeing what sitting home with the kids was like the day before I decided to brave it despite Alex's condition. He generally does better when we're out and about anyways. So we toured the fancy shmancy office that my mom is a receptionist for and got to see the original Coca Cola Santa painting. Her office is practically a museum for paintings and sculptures, it's pretty amazing. Cade was afraid to look out the windows at first, but then claimed he saw lightning mcqueen (any red car) and several other kinds of trucks and buses. The antique store we went to was HUGE. To Cade it was a giant toy store that housed all sorts of vintage mickey mouses and other 'toys' that he wasn't allowed to touch. We breezed through the aisles to try and keep everyone happy and left with a few metal signs for me! Hooray!

Sunday we had thought about going to the Garden of the Gods but time didn't quite allow since we had a family gathering at 6:00. Instead we opted for the Butterfly Pavillion. I am SO glad we went there! Cade enjoyed it so much more than the Children's museum. I guess he's more into living creatures than activities. The first room was full of spiders and beetles and roaches. Cade LOVED it. They even had an area where you could hold Rosie, the tarantula. I went over there with Cade expecting him to shy away. After all, at home when he sees a little black spider he won't go near it and makes mommy clean it up. But the pictures will attest that Cade held the tarantula! He seemed to think it was pretty cool. The next room had starfish, some sort of big crab and fish tanks. Then there was the outdoor area with hundreds of butterflies. It was such a neat environment and it was so fun to see the different types of butterflies. One actually landed on Alex's head, though I wasn't fast enough with the camera. After this adventure I decided I like my mom's camera better! To me, next to Estes Park this was my favorite outing since we all had such a great time.

Sunday night was a Babbel family gathering in my honor. Mostly because I hadn't seen these relatives in oh, 10 years or more. The last time most had seen me I was 16-17 and still a dorky teenager in high school. Now I was there with my two sons and was suddenly on their level. It was great catching up and I was super grateful for the picture slideshow that Jim put together that helped break the ice and reintroduce me to everyone. My only regret was that my Aunt Carolyn and Uncle Bill weren't there. She is battling cancer and was in and out of the hospital the whole time I was there. She couldn't risk being infected by anything, which is of course 100% understandable, but I still wish I could've seen her. She was happy to know that everyone got together and had an enjoyable evening. Sorry for the lack of pictures. I brought my camera but never got it out. My difficulty is when other people are taking a bunch of pictures I forget that I should to. Susan got the most pics so if they come my direction I'll post 'em.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that Saturday night was the time change. Not only did we have a two hour adjustment out to denver, but then we lost another hour due to Daylight Savings. Darn you! We are still all messed up from the myriad of time changes :)

I lied about there being just one slideshow of pictures. I guess in Photobucket you can only have 50 pics per slideshow, so here starts Denver part 2!

Thursday and Friday

2009-03-12T17:27:00.000-07:00

Thursday we decided to go to the Denver Children's Museum. I checked it out online and thought it would be great for Cade. The only thing similar to the Virginia Children's museum was a train room. I have to be honest and say that the Denver museum was lacking. I know that Cade has a short attention span, as do most toddlers, but the activities were really geared towards kids ages 4 and higher. Instead of having exhibits and stations that kids of all ages will get something out of, even if they don't know exactly what they're doing, this museum had different sections and most weren't suitable for Cade. So maybe in about 3 years I could go back with Cade and Alex. Still there were a few fun things that you'll see pictures of. The worst part were the bully kids. There was one on the fire truck who wouldn't move out of the way and let other kids have turns... though her mom was standing right there (in the way) and conversing with another mom, paying no heed to her children. Poor Cade was being so cute and polite saying "Excuse me please, excuse me, Cade's turn." Then there were some big kids who scared him in a tunnel and sent him out crying. And lastly was a boy probably 18m-2yrs old who just came up out of nowhere and clenched onto Cade's cheek and wouldn't let go. Cade left with a bruise. :(

Thankfully we had decided to go to Casa Bonita for lunch. This is one of the places that us Haring kids have to go to whenever we visit Denver for sentimental reasons, and really it is a pretty darn cool restaurant. It's a mexican place that is unlike any other. You go in and it's all adobe style and even splits into multiple levels of seating, all looking over a huge waterfall and platform where they perform skits and have professional divers. I think Cade enjoyed this more than the museum! He was entranced by the shows and loved the divers. I tried to take pictures of the inside but they all turned out really dark. It was just a lot of fun and the food was pretty good too.

Friday I decided that we should just take it easy and stay home. Maybe take Cade to the park, watch a movie, etc. After all, my Mom and I were going to get a sitter and have a girl's night out so it couldn't be that bad, right? Wrong! Boy were the kids moody! Alex cried almost all day and Cade was pretty cranky, cried all the way home from the park. By the time the sitter came we were more than ready to say goodbye! Mom and I went to Outback Steakhouse and then headed to Colorado Mills for some more shopping. I bought some camisoles and some new bras, which were sorely needed. It was wonderful to walk by a kids store and not have anyone screaming b/c we didn't go in or fussing when we left. I saw other parents with their kids and just smiled. It was nice. More to come later!

Our trip to Denver!

2009-03-11T19:29:00.001-07:00

Tuesday and Wednesday

2009-03-11T18:03:00.000-07:00

Since I had little to no sleep from the crazy trip to Denver we decided to keep it kind of low key for our activities on Tuesday. I knew I wanted to revisit some of the sights from where I grew up and it just so happens that there's now a fabulous mall close to my home in Littleton. So we drove by all the houses and relived a few memories. The kids were asleep in the back so I couldn't say 'Hey this is where mommy grew up", though it's not like they'd understand anyways. I moved from Littleton when I was 7 so there isn't much for me to remember, but some things still stick out in my memory. The elementary school was exactly the same and the house had the oddest blue trim on it. It looked like painters tape but it was actually paint! After reminiscing we went shopping! I love a good mall and this one was pretty good. It was a little on the high end of things, but I still found a great skirt. Then after some American Idol we all hit the sack.

Wednesday was much more exciting. We were blessed with excellent weather during my stay, but we wanted to take advantage of it just incase it went away. The one thing I really wanted to do was go up into the mountains. I wanted Cade to see the mountains and get some good pictures. So we decided to head up to Estes Park. It was a gorgeous drive and just a wonderful day to be with nature. The only unfortunate thing was that since it was the off season a lot of the shops were closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Still we all found what we were looking for: food, sweets (because the two are different!), toys, clothes, and cowboy outfits! We even stopped on the way down the mountains for pictures and some playtime with sticks, rocks and the creek. We stayed up a bit later this time and played cards and talked.

For pictures of my trip to Denver I will have one slideshow, but as I update the blog with more 'adventures' I will add pictures to it so keep on looking for the Denver slideshow!

My Denver trip... one of many parts!

2009-03-05T05:54:00.001-08:00

So remember when I said the weather might hinder our flights a little bit? I should have said it will make our day a complete disaster. We awoke at 4am, got ourselves to the airport and even boarded the plane. While it had been snowing lightly, planes were still taking off and I was quite excited to get going. The planes had to be de-iced before take off and the de-icing truck ran out of fluid. It took so long to get it refilled that when they were ready to de-ice us the winds had picked up enough to ground ALL of the flights in Norfolk. We'd already been sitting on the plane for an hour and a half, and then had to wait in line for two hours to figure out how and when we'd be redirected! The only thing that made it possible to get through those two hours in line was a` nother woman my age with her 2 1/2 year old. She was 8 months pregnant so we debated who had it worse, me with two kids or her pregnant with a toddler. Finally I was told that the best option was to fly out of Norfolk at 5:55pm! Thankfully Jenn could come pick us up and let us sit at home for a few hours before starting all over again. Yes, I REALLY wanted to go through security AGAIN! The mixed blessing of these late flights was that the kids slept almost the entire time. In fact, Cade was so zonked that he slept on a chair for the whole 2 hour layover in chicago. We got into Denver near midnight (2am to us) and didn't get to sleep until about 1:30. And while it was great that the kids slept, I didn't. Alex awoke just a few hours later and Cade shortly thereafter making for a very long two days. Still, we made it and were excited for the 8 days in Denver! I'll try and post frequently this week with the many pictures we took and share the exciting adventures we had! Keep checking back with me!

On the road!

2009-03-01T18:36:00.000-08:00

This is what we will look like tomorrow. Cade and I have been counting down the days to fly in the airplane and sometimes he talks about how we'll be 'too tall' and 'up in da clouds'. I just hope once that happens he won't freak out! We are packed, we are prepped, we are showered and as ready as possible. Now of course the threat of SNOW is looming on Virginia Beach and it could hinder the flights a little bit. So just pray for good weather and good kids! I'll update when I can!

And so it begins

2009-02-25T07:14:00.001-08:00

Dan left this morning for his Warrior Leadership Course. I am really glad that I'll be visiting my mom because it gives me hope that I can make it through this. I only have to make it to Monday without Dan, and then I'll be in Denver for 8 days. I get home on the 10th and Dan'll be back that weekend. I'm also glad for friends to help me pass the time!

Just another day

2009-02-19T04:33:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Valentine's weekend, though our original plans had to be changed. We were expecting the company of Brett, Kristina and Juliet Foutz (Dan's sister & family), but they were unable to make it. While we missed what could have been, we still made the best of the holiday. Since we already had a dinner reservation and a sitter for Saturday we went with just the two of us and enjoyed eating without interruption. After a nice meal we came home and had fondue! Bananas, strawberries, oreos, pretzels, marshmallows all dipped in chocolate... mmmmm. For gifts I wanted to get Dan a watch as a promotion/valentine's present. We ended up finding the perfect one at Zale's. Well what I didn't know is that while Dan was getting it adjusted and I was walking around with the kids, he found me a Valentine's present there too! You can see the picture below of my first diamond necklace! Hooray! It's beautiful, thanks Dan!

For president's day dan had the 'day off '. Unfortunately he got a call at 8:15 asking him to come in and unlock some doors. Some maintenance had been scheduled even though not everyone would be there to let them in. What we thought would be a half hour interruption turned into an all day thing. Dan didn't come home until 4:30 or so. At this point we were glad that Kristina hadn't made it in since we would've had one day less to spend with her. Grrr!

There are some events on the horizon for us. Dan leaves on Wednesday for WLC (Warrior Leadership Course) and won't be back until March 14th. This is my first taste (very small taste in comparison) of deployment. I'm not sure what the course is for, why he has to do it, and what he'll be doing! I just know that I wasn't sure I could handle that much time alone yet, so I decided to go visit my mom in Denver. I'll be gone March 2nd-March 10th. I'm not sure who'll need prayers more. Dan at WLC, or me with two kids on a plane. Any tips? We've got the DVD player and the double stroller. Potty trips will be interesting, and I'm sure I'll have lots to blog about! Until next time!

A little brecky could be good for me

2009-02-12T04:30:00.000-08:00

So after a long stint of Wall-E obsession it seems that Cade has shifted his focus back to CARS.... for now. It's no surprise that Cade's vocabulary is growing and that he is getting quicker at picking up things around him. Still some of the things that come out of his mouth are pretty darn funny. A few weeks ago he said, "Mmmmm.... delicious poptart!" And then he came to find me and said, "Mommy, what are you doing in here?". But on our last viewing of CARS when the movie was about to start Cade said, "Speed, I am Speed." then followed with a little gibberish that was to resemble the next few things "Likin' McQueen" said. Too funny!

I know, I know...

2009-02-09T08:59:00.000-08:00

Okay, I wouldn't normally do this. I am not being paid by this product and I gain nothing from telling you this except that maybe you'll find it working awesomely for you too! This is Bio-Oil. I saw a commercial for it about two years ago and thought it would be great to try. It claimed it would lessen the appearance of my 'unsightly' stretch marks so I asked for it for Christmas. Then I got pregnant again and asked for it the next Christmas too. I guess I'm the only one who cares about my stretch marks because I finally went out and bought some. I was a little disappointed when I read that you had to apply it two times a day and that it may take 3 months to have its full effect. To me that equaled a waste of money since I am not dedicated enough to do much of anything twice a day, or patient enough to go three months without results. Still I tried and after only a few days of here and there applications my stretch marks have lightened dramatically! I thought my fellow mommy friends and all those with stretch marks might find this useful as well!

Good job Dan!

2009-02-05T04:49:00.000-08:00

Dan had his promotion board yesterday. After months of studying and stressing he passed with a 145 out of 150! But I, being the naive new military wife, thought that meant he would automatically become a sergeant. I guess there's this whole point system and they only take on so many sergeants a month and each month they put out list with how many points you need. So for February you needed 798 points out of a possible 800, which basically meant they weren't taking any Sergeants! We're not sure how long the transition will take but we will certainly welcome it once it comes. So until then Dan is a Corporal promotable! Congratulations Dan!

Scrapbooking is my new best friend

2009-02-02T09:30:00.000-08:00

I hope you don't mind me sharing my hobby with you. I really want to show you the pages I've been doing. The Silhouette Digital Cutter has made so many things possible for me. I just LOVE it! On this page I was able to download the PEANUTS font and then cut out a zig zag, and a few snoopy's to make the page just perfect.

Here are some pages from Dan's basic training. I found a military looking font to do the title. I also decided to cut out all the letters for the blurbs about the pictures too. I used brads to attach the words fort jackson and south carolina. (sorry couldn't get it to rotate right!)

And here's my latest favorite. I found this image of elmo online, converted and edited it so that I could cut it out on the Silhouette and it turned out GREAT! I stole the idea of the sesame street logo and had it say what the pictures were about. I also cut out a billion stars. Cute isn't it?

February 2009

2009-02-02T09:29:00.001-08:00

Following by example

2009-01-28T04:22:00.000-08:00

It truly is amazing how much our kids are watching what we do. Whether it be repeating what we say or what we do it provides us parents with a moment of reflection. Like the other day when Cade wanted to help me pour his milk and he grabbed the handle and put the whole jug up to his mouth to drink. Or when we find Cade wearing something like this-->

But my new favorite is what happened last night. I heard Cade go into the bathroom, I heard pee pee making it into the toilet, but I wasn't prepared for what I saw. I looked in the bathroom to check on him and there he was, lid up and all, standing and peeing. How's that for learning by example?!

p.s. make sure you continually check the slideshow as I will add images as they come along!

We're here!

2009-01-27T03:12:00.000-08:00

Here is the first official post on our new blog! Welcome! Glad you could find us!

So what's the meaning of the title? Dan and I's song is The Luckiest from Ben Folds (as you hear playing now), and I just truly feel like we are a lucky and blessed family. Listen to the lyrics and you may feel the same. I'm excited to share our family with you and have enjoyed following all of your blogs as well.

Happy Tuesday!

Oh, and our old blog www.mcbridefamily33.spaces.live.com will still be up for awhile so you can go there and see older pictures and videos!

January 2009

2009-01-26T12:54:00.001-08:00

The Luckiest McBride Family

Silhouette

The time has come...

Umm..

Fourth of July

Sunday Best

When dad has duty...

Happy Birthday Alex!

Happy Father's Day

Feeling Crafty

Silly Cade

Oh what a wonderful May

Sunbeam!

Yes, I know

Mother's Day and more

Korea

Awww...

What a week!

He's 4?!

Easter Weekend

Speaking of TIME...

Time

Spring is here!

Salmon?!

Korea

To Raleigh and Back

More Low-Carbness

Martha who?

Singing fool

The Perfect Snowman

*S*N*O*W*

What do the McBrides do?

And our next duty station is...

Ring in the new

Field Trip!

Merry Christmas!

Tacky Light Tour

I think...

It's the most edible time of the year

Smells good!

Thanksgiving (a few weeks late)

Yes, it's been awhile...

Boooo!

Picture Time!

G'ma Kathy and Uncle Kevin!

Cozumel!

Belize

Roatan, Honduras

Grand Cayman

The vacation of a lifetime!

maybe i should not have started this...

And now for video #2!

Video #1

Good things to come...

When the kids are driving you crazy...

We really are the luckiest!

A letter

Is it families are forever, or families visits are forever?

Happy Birthday Alex!

Ramblings

New pics

Memories of my Aunt

How to get a free pizza from Papa Johns

Reflection

The game of life!

Name that powder

What PEANUTS has taught my son

Zing! Zang! Zoom!

Not much to say...

What a weekend!

Years ago...

Post-denver stress!

Monday and Tuesday- The end of the trip!

Denver- part deux

Saturday and Sunday

Thursday and Friday

Our trip to Denver!

Tuesday and Wednesday

My Denver trip... one of many parts!

On the road!

SN*OW