Catchup Power Blogging

My hiatus is now over & there is so much that I've wanted to journal about.  But of course it's me, & I can't remember from min. to min.  so I'm sure this will be totally random & all over the place but let the catchup begin.  

The reason behind my hiatus is a very fun project that, as always, turned out to be larger then first anticipated, "The Baird Family Favorites, A Collection of Recipes & Such".  

For probably the last six years or so my mom has been wanting to do a family cookbook.  At one point she even started collecting hand written recipes from family members.  She proceeded to try to type each one in.  She very quickly got discouraged and quit.  Over the years she has brought it up several time.  The last time I agreed that it would be really nice not to have loose papers floating around my cupboards.  That's all it took.  Once every ones recipes started coming in on email, it started to become really fun.  I would be places & wonder if by the time I got home I would have fun new recipes in my in box.   

With layout, formatting, editing, etc.  the project took on a life of it's own & hundreds of hours on the computer.  I don't regret any of it.  However every time I saw the computer my head would start to get that buzz you get when you've been looking at the screen to long.  

After everything I think the book turned out great.  I was really excited about it.  Even with all our crazy mess ups (some quite large!) it was a fun project.  It's amazing how with such a simple thing as recipes I felt closer to my extended family.  It was like a little portal into their lives.  I'm very grateful to have had this experience, but I don't think there will be a 2nd edition from this editor.

chargers vs colts

On Sunday night I watched the chargers vs colts.  It was awesome when the colt's got the ball in the beginning.  I also like it when the chargers run the ball. I love the game

Needed the world to know

Last night I was talking to my wife about a girl that had been on the tennis team at BYU.  She is finishing up her degree and has been trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life.  She was thinking about going to grad school.  Well earlier this week she told me she has decided to follow a similar career path as me and go into tennis coaching.  When telling McKenzie this she blurts out "WHAT WOULD YOU WANT TO BE A COACH FOR, what a waste of all that schooling."  Yes Mckenzie is now sleeping on the couch.  

So we went to Cali for Lauren's wedding (Lauren Jones is our assistant coach on the team at BYU) over halloween.  We made the most of the trip by spending a day at disneyland, going swimming and having a blast trick or treating around the Jones's neighborhood.  It is amazing how fun road trips can be these days.  At one point McKay was playing the Nintendo DS, Abby was listening to music on the ipod, Josie and Kimball were watching a movie, and McKenzie and I were listening to an audio book.  Needless to say the trip down and back was very easy and enjoyable.  I sure am grateful for technology.  The first day there we went to Disneyland.  We got there right as they have the music playing to open the park for the day.  Josie is dancing down the main street just being Josie (no inhibitions).  

People are looking over just smiling at her.  We went straight to the young kids area in particular the Dumbo ride.  Well Josie didn't like that to much, the other kids including Kimball loved it.

   

So then we went to the toad ride to get Josie excited about being there.  That went even worse.  So then we tried the peter pan ride, by this point Josie is in hysterics'.  She is screaming refusing to go on any other rides because they are to scary.  The rest of the day was great, the lines were not that bad and we went on whatever we wanted numerous times.  Josie of course didn't.  Kimball loved every minute of the nine hours we spent there, he is just as fearless as McKay and Abby.  After disneyland we went back to the hotel got changed quickly and headed for the Jones for trick or treating.  

Once there we started around the streets.  All our kids enjoyed this, Kimball being 2 now really enjoyed the treating part of trick or treat.  He would not let anyone hold his bag for him.  That was his candy.  The kids had fun and none of them are really shy, but Josie man alive that girl is absolutely fearless when it comes to social settings.  She was walking into peoples houses to check of their dogs, or their pretty decorations.   As it got later in the evening  a couple of families had gathered out the front of one there homes and were a little inebriated.  Well they were alot inebriated.  Josie just goes right up and starts chatting with them.  Making sure they gave her brother (Kimball) his candy.  These people loved Josie, needless to say it took a while to move onto the next house.  The rest of the trip was great a blast all the kids were fun to be with.  The drive down and back were just what I needed, some time to think.  

FHE Jack-o-lanterns

We had such a fun Family Home Evening.  McKay gave the lesson on prayer, Abby had the activity, carving pumpkins & Josie followed it up with yummy Jack-o-lantern sugar cookies.  

Everyone had a fun time carving pumpkins.  Craig & I haven't done it since we had McKay.  I'm not sure why, I guess life just get's crazy.  The kids had a blast!  And so did Craig & I!

Sigh

I bought new sheets.  Every time I get in I think of some old song that says something about a "little bit of heaven".  They're the best.  Not that I'm not grateful for our other sheets quite the contrary.  We were so blessed when we got married to receive several sets of sheets.  In fact enough to last us till now!  The last set of sheets was one we kind of forgot about until we needed new sheets a couple years ago.  They were really pretty, white, with lace trim.  In fact when we first started using them due to the very small thread count and kind of a ruffer fabric, we called them our very expensive spa sheets.  We decided that people pay a lot of money at spas for a body exfoliation.  We on the other hand got the same treatment by just sliding into bed.  They finally gave up the ghost.  No more spa treatments.  I bought for the first time the softest Egyptian cotton sheets.  So now I sing my little song as I slip in to bed, "little bit of heaven". 

Oh, the DRAMA!!

My Josie has quite a active, creative imagination.  

About a month ago I was needing just a few minutes to get some things done without my cute little shadow.  I was quickly going through my little brain trying to think of a movie or show that would keep Josie's attention for even 10 min.  By a tender mercy, Rainbow Brite jumped into my head.  I jumped onto youtube and sure enough Rainbow Brite was there!  She loved it.  Since then she has become slightly obsessed with her.  Well of course who could she possible want to be for Halloween, Rainbow Brite.  Last year I, in a moment of weakness, bought the cutest butterfly costume.  

My thought process was that she would be able to wear it next year too.  Well she would have none of that.  She wanted to be Rainbow Brite.  I got on line and couldn't find a Rainbow Brite costume for kids.  I finally found one someone made and it was totally a hoochie momma outfit.  Some of the girls on the team had caught onto what was happening, and did a fantastic job manipulating her into wanting to be a "beautiful pink butterfly".  I thought we were good.  The next day when I went to pick her up from pre-school, her teacher greeted me with, 

"Whoa, is Josie mad at you!?"  Not surprised, but not understanding what she was mad at me for this time, I responded with 

"Oh great, what did I do now?"  

"I asked her what she wanted to be for Halloween, and she told me Rainbow Brite (my eye's now roll) but that you wouldn't let her.  I told her I hadn't seen a Rainbow Brite costume for a really long time.  I didn't think they made them anymore.  She said that's what you kept telling her and that no one was listening.  She followed with you have to go to the Rainbow Brite store."  I had heard this many times from her.  I asked her teacher

"Did she tell you where the store was?"

"No"

"It's in RAINBOW LAND,  all I have to do is RIDE the RAINBOW!"

It was good to have a laugh with someone who knows my Josie Posie.

I could tell this wasn't going to go away so that night I called Katheryn & she saved me by coming over to babysit while I went to the fabric store, on the hunt.  There was NOTHING on Rainbow Brite, I tried to be creative, thinking I could use a tutu, striped socks, but I knew this wouldn't fly.  I came across the cutest Wizard of Oz costumes.  I remembered I had bought red sparkle shoes from Target for her thinking she would love them. I had hidden them away for one of those crazy days I needed her to run errands with me.  I was so excited.  I went to grab the pattern and they were sold out.  I went to 2 other store before I in all desperation I went to Walmart.  They had it!!  They also had the cape pattern I needed for McKay's costume.  

I enlisted my mom to help me sew the costumes.  She is the master sewers of sewers.  She worked on this so hard, I was glad I asked her to help me.  I never would have figured it out.  

Josie LOVES this costume.  She's so proud of it.  And that we made it for her.