3 Little Chef's!

What a riot last night was!!  Makenzie and I headed over to my sister's house to make homemade pizza with the kids while our hubs were out.  We monitored and took pictures while they made our pizza's!  (Does it get any better than this!?!?!)  And let me tell you what good little chefs they were! 

It was too funny, I first showed them what I wanted them to do... Claire gently places her pepperoni on the pizza, Joshua throws the pepperoni to the pizza and Makenzie ate it.  Sure made for a good laugh for Lisa and I!

3 Little Chef's!

 

"Cheese!!  Wait... on my head???  Really??"

Look at these serious faces!

Grandma's Sunshine

Yesterday morning, my mom went into the hospital for surgery!  I think the surgery was well over due, as she has been dealing with the problem for months now.

Makenzie and I headed to the grocery store to pick up a turkey and then we went to go visit her.  My mom was in a lot of pain but you could still see her face light up while Makenzie was just being Makenzie.  Makenzie was a bit confused as to why Grandma couldn't hold her or play with her like normal, but I think she was still happy to see Grandma!

Then today, after yet ANOTHER trip to the grocery store (mind you I had it all planned that I wouldn't have to go to the grocery store at all this week and I've been there TWICE!!) we headed back to the hospital to go visit grandma.  This time grandma didn't have as much hooked up to her and looked a LOT better than yesterday.  Her pain was better than yesterday (she's still in a lot of pain tho!) and she was able to start eating again!  She even had a picnic lunch with Miss Makenzie.  As usual, Makenzie is the hit of the party playing and talking to everyone. 


Last night my dad came over for dinner since his "chef" was out of commission :0)  And boy did Makenzie love playing with him!!

I think if Matt and I didn't stop them they could have run back and forth forever!!!!

When Matt Calls

Saturday night, Matt had left to go out deer hunting (surprised??) while Makenzie and I hung out at home.  She had kind of a late nap that day since we spent a good chunk of the day shopping and eating at a Mexican Restaurant.  In fact I let her sleep till almost 5! 

When I was getting her out of the crib I could hear that Matt was calling... and when Matt call's when he's out hunting that's usually good news!  And it was!  Matt shot his second deer for the season.  We usually go thru about 2 deer a year and we've already hit that and the season isn't over yet! 

These calls are so fun, you can hear how excited that he is and that just gets me all sorts of excited and so proud of him!  So Makenzie and I met up with Matt's brother and out we headed to go help him get the deer.  Ended up being a late night for us, poor Makenzie didn't eat until just after 7!  Then Sunday was spent processing the deer, and of course, venison steaks for dinner.  Matt marinaded them REALLY good, which reminds me I wanted to write that down so we do that again!!  He's become quite good in the kitchen I must say! 

Dancing, Arm-Swinging, Overall Wearing Makenzie!

It totally amazes me how playful Makenzie has become.  She use to be so dependent on me to entertain her... but now I can see her imagination coming out!  Makenzie LOVES to read and her room now constantly looks like a book bomb has gone off.  Ruger now gets feed about 10 times a day (now that she can open the closet door!) and tortured with Makenzie running around with his treats above her head.  Haha, most dogs would be able to snatch them from her... but not our little weenie dog!  I'm pretty impressed with how she can run around with her arms above her head... ever tried it!?!?  Haha! 

Makenzie loves to be sung to and dance!  Just this week she started saying "sing" and "daaace".  She'll point to our radio and yell "ONN!!!"  On it goes and off she goes just dancing the time away!  (This happens every night after dinner by the way!) 

Watching her reflection in the door swinging those arms!

The other night she was trying to get water our of the dispenser on our fridge for Ruger, well she missed and water ended up going all down her arm soaking her shirt.  It was C O L D!  I quick took the shirt off and didn't get to put another one on and she was off.  So here's are hillbilly Makenzie... overalls and no shirt... dancing!! 

Yesterday she snuck Noah (from Noah's Ark), and 2 of her little toy zookeepers into her crib.  When she woke up from her nap I could hear her saying... "Ready!?!?  Go!"  I go in and she was playing with the three people.  Then she showed me how they went "nigh nigh" with her. 

Before she went to bed she tried sneaking them in again, and somehow she managed to get Noah in, because this morning when I got her up she had Noah wrapped in her fingers.

Teddy Bear and Makenzie being pulled in their "Sled"!  Matt got his workout last night!

And I'm not sure where she got this from, but she says "buddy" all the time now! "Yoooo Buddy", "Hi Buddy", "C'mer Buddy"  Haha, cracks me up!! 

Has this ever happened!?!??!

So I thought I would post a few pictures today of my week!  It ended up being kind of a busy week, but uneventful.  I suppose we had errands and housework to do, but nothing super exciting.  I just pulled my camera out to hook it up to the computer and there are no pictures... zero... zip...zilch!! 

On average I take 250 pics a month.  Then put them on the computer, I delete some, some get printed, some go in the blog, some go on facebook.  I actually realized this week too that I hadn't uploaded any prints to snapfish to print off.  Not all YEAR!  It's November!  So during nap times I have been deleting and uploading... and obviously not taking any picture this week.  This may be the first week in Makenzie's life that she hasn't had her picture taken.  Seriously.  Haha.  Oh boy!

Therefore, I have nothing to show you!  I'll just tell you about my week instead :-)

Monday- Laundry... and dinner out!
Tuesday- Mark's visitation
Wednesday- Cleaned house and took the fam to Lowes!
Thursday- Groceries and library
Friday- yesterday?  Hmm.....  oh!  Mom came over for pancakes and that was it!

Mellow week!

Today we headed to Grandville.  Matt had to get a few things from Gander Mountain so we spent some time there, then at Old Navy where I hit jackpot.  New winter jacket and 2 shirts for $30!  Then we went to my favorite restaurant for some yummy Mexican food!  Also ran into a grocery store to pick up some eggs where I ran into my Aunt Kathy!!  We never ran into people at our old house.  Seems like every time I go to the grocery store I run into someone I know... it's SOOOO fun!!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

November's First Weekend

Last weekend Matt went up north hunting leaving Makenzie and I to hold the fort down!  Like I said in the last post, it was kind of a bummer that he had left, since I was still shaken up...BUT we had a lot of things planned so it would have been a bummer for him to stay home since we wouldn't be together all that much!

My mom and I were throwing my cousin a bridal shower on Saturday, so Friday night Makenzie and I ran a few errands then headed over to my Grandma and Grandpa's house with some left over's for dinner!  (I know I'm a baby... I didn't want to eat dinner by myself!!)  We visited there for awhile then came home and Miss Makenzie went to bed and I finished prepping everything I needed to for the shower.  We were having an apple themed party, so I was working on cutting burlap!

Saturday morning went really well!!  Mornings with kids can be kind of hectic when you need them to go smoothly and have some place you need to be at a certain time!  Dropped Makenzie off at my hubby's parents and off my Mom and I went to go get the shower started!

The Bride to BE!

Celeste about to hit jackpot with gifts!!

Is there anything cuter than a pony right on top??

Once we got home that night we reheated leftovers again (oh yeah! Living the life!) and then we spread blankets out in the living room, popped popcorn and stuck a movie in.  I was TOTALLY exhausted so I was really hoping for some good cuddles and R&R.... I was very surprised that she totally went for it!  (It always seems that when I'm out of it or not feeling good is when she wants the most attention.)  It was fun for us.  That was the first time she had had popcorn and the first time we sat and watched a WHOLE (1 1/2 hrs) movie. 

Too busy watching TV to even look!

Matt came home Sunday afternoon... no deer... but he did see quite a few!  Makenzie was very happy to see daddy and had a nice time sticking him with return address labels :0)  Hey, can't blame her for not wanting him lost!  Thing is... they were old address labels so he would be returned to our old house.  Hehe!

 Oh I almost forgot!  We did some potty training this weekend too.  Nope not for Makenzie... but for her teddy bear!!  Haha it cracked me up!!

Go POOP!! She'd yell at him!!  Haha. 

"C'mon, C'mon!"

Unexpected News

Last week Thursday I had just sat down on the couch with Matt to watch the CMA's and look thru a new cookbook I had just gotten in the mail.  I was drooling at really yummy looking cake when a friend I use to work with called me.  I hadn't heard from her in a long time so was really excited to talk to her, but a little reserved when I saw what time it was.  As soon as I heard her voice I knew something wasn't right.  A good friend of ours, Mark, had died earlier in the afternoon of a massive heart attack.  It took me a few minutes to grasp what she was telling me.  At first I didn't believe her (she would never joke of such thing, I just couldn't wrap my mind around it).

This is the first death of someone I've been close to that had been unexpected.  And I'm the kind of person that needs answers.  Old people die... why?  Because they are old.  I get that.  My 51 year old friend died... why?  Heart attack... I know, but why?  With the medical field where it's at now... why?  I don't get it.  Why did God chose him?  Out of everyone he picked him??  He has a wife and daughter....

Mark left behind a beautiful wife of 30 years, whom I have met a few times and in those few times I can see how great of a wife and mother she is!...And a 19 year old daughter in her first year of college.  It was just the three of them and in my eyes they were like the perfect family.  Mark absolutely loved his family and no matter what conversation you were having with him most of the time he would start talking about his family.  They were his world.  He absolutely loved his wife and adored their daughter.  It warmed my heart to see that kind of emotion that he would carry about his family. If you would ask him how he was doing he would respond Good... my daughter did this... my wife did this... There just aren't many men out there that talk a whole lot about their families or display that kind of affection.  They also have a dog that is "spoiled rotten" and Mark acts like it annoys him, when you can really tell he loves the attention that his wife and daughter give that dog and would always come in with pictures of him!

My heart breaks for his wife and daughter.  I can't imagine being in there shoes.  This past weekend I was just in a funk over this news.  Totally shocked and sad to spread the news to some other friends that use to work with Mark.  All weekend long I kept thinking of different conversations we had, or how he would always pat my back and say "How's it going, Amanda Marie??"  (He always used my middle name!)  Or the time when I had just gotten contacts for the first time and lost it in my eye.  I was freaking out, had no contact solution.  Mark handed me some of his contact solution, told me to look better in my eye, threw me in the bathroom and said "Good Luck"!  A few mins later I went back to my desk and sat.  No contact found, Mark was with a customer.  Soon I heard him walk over and say... "Good Grief Amanda Marie!"  He bent over and picked up my smashed and rolled over contact off of the floor.  "Now ya did it!"

He was such a good guy.  I am SO lucky to have known him, even if it was for a short time.  I worked with him for 5 years and knew when I left that we would be in contact forever.  I lost someone that could always make me laugh, sort thru my troubles, help me get thru a bad day of work, tell me if I was right or wrong, be brutally honest with me, and someone that was a good role model.

Matt had left that next day to go up north and go hunting, leaving me with this news so fresh. The news just put me in a bad funk that I just couldn't shake.  My husband wasn't by my side, and I couldn't help but think of all the widows out there that don't have a wife or husband anymore.  Oh my mind just spun... I was just sad. 

Now that everything is over I'm feeling better about the situation. I'm just realizing how I have some pretty incredible people in my life, he happened to be one of them, and I'm so happy to have known him.  His family still wears heavy on my heart...I have been praying non stop for these two and will do so for a long long time.