Napa Valley

 Yesterday we enjoyed a beautiful drive through Napa Valley.  It was warm with the famous California blue skies...I just loved it.  We don't drink wine but had fun taking in the beauty of all the wineries.

 All you have to do is drive around...it's amazing!!!

 All this is only an hour and a half from my house.  I think we will be going back.

UGA/UT

Steve found this picture last week...it's his favorite. We had driven up to Knoxville, TN for the Georgia game. It was October in the Smokey Mountains and hotter than Haiti. Look at Madi growling...it was HOT and heck getting a headache from all that god awful orange. I need to print this out for Steve and frame it for his desk at work.

Look at these YUMMY green grapes. I saw the recipe online...roll your grapes in lime jello powder and freeze. We ate a few pounds of grapes in one night.

Piano

Our family got a piano. I love it!!! My kids play non-stop. I enjoy having it to myself when they are at school. Today I did some cleaning and decorating for Easter but took a few minutes here and there to putter out some Christmas songs. Now we are like the Partridge Family...we have my clarinet, Ben's trumpet, Madi's guitar and now we added the piano. We are set until Madi starts middle school...she is a future drummer.

Kings/Jazz

My kids are spoiled...they have been to more NBA games than most adults. The other night Ben, Madi, their whole basketball team and all the other kids who play basketball in Northern California at the YMCA went all dressed in their Jr. Kings shirts. So we are making our way around to see some of the NBA's best. Once in Orlando Steve and Ben saw D-Wade, in Atlanta during a playoff game we saw Le Bron James and now here in California we saw Kobe Bryant. Now my family is on a Jeramy Lin hunt. Steve did go over and enjoyed a game in Oakland...Golden State/Portland too.
Oh and look at me. For not being very fashionable I did good getting fixed up for the game. I scrounged around in my scarf drawer and pulled out my Burberry scarf and then grabbed my pretty Burberry purse...IT WAS FUN!

We're In Love With The Boy

This past weekend we fell in love with my new little nephew. My sister-in-laws parents are staioned at Travis AFB, CA about 1 hour from my house so it worked out perfect. Man we couldn't get enough of this happy guy.

Only Jen and the baby and her parents came to visit us. But Danny and Bailey joined the party via video chat. Ben, Madi and Bailey played for a while over video. They were doing some funky dancing and cracking each other up.

The Lakers AND Harlem Globetrotters

We loved living in Korea but are happy to be back to the USA...the land of sports. And boy are we glad the NBA finally stopped their strike and started playing!!! We live so very close to the Kings Arena that we want to take advantage of it. We made our way into that Kings/Lakers sellout. Steve took this picture. Look at Jimmer off the ground and being guarded by Kobe. Boy was it LOUD and full of electricity in there!

Kings did beat the Lakers.

Me and the kids...the only picture of us in the arena.

A few years ago I took the kids to see the Harlem Globetrotters when we were stationed in Atlanta but Steve was in Iraq and missed it. So when they came to Sacramento the kids begged to go. Well if you have ever seen them you know how fun it is, so we went again.

We had great seats...row F. Six rows up from the court. When the did they did the water throwing act we got wet.

This is me on the day we went to see the Harlem Globetrotters. I like to wear black...most days. I am not very good at fashion but that day I had on jeans with a black sweater and a necklace that was the same color blue as my jeans and I loved it. I like this picture...I look skinny don't I? I am so not skinny. I wish. It's so hard for me. But I have started working really hard on it. My goal this year is to work very hard on myself. In 2009 I ran in that half marathon. Now I don't know if I want to do that again...that was REALLY REALLY hard. But I want to get healthier which I hope will help me loose weight and I want to become more fashionable.

Ben's Christmas Concert

Last night was Ben's first band concert. It was wonderful. They played 10 Christmas songs. It seemed extra special to me because it was December 15th...my grandpa moseley's birthday!

Christmas Pictures...2011

I LOVE them!!!! We went outside to the orchards behind my house. I took a chair, quilt, the numbers and my two little ones.

December 5, 1996

Today is my 15th Wedding Anniversary. What a 15 years it has been. We have the 2 sweetest kids in the world. Our life is never boring....in the last 15 years we have lived in 9 different states/countries. It's been crazy fun.




My kids thoroughly enjoy the Christmas Countdown I made them. Today...December 5th...


We are going out to dinner to celebrate our anniversary and then from the countdown, it is our turn to go to Starbucks for the kids favorite...white hot chocolate to drink while we drive around town looking at Christmas lights. So I better hurry, I need to fold laundry, go run and then change before my kids get out of school at 1:30. I can't wait until tonight!!!

Dinning Room & Cranberry Sauce

Finally, we hung something on the walls in our dinning room. The fact that my mother-in-law is coming for Thanksgiving was the push I needed to get things done. I love the peg rack look and it only cost $12. Now I can even change things out for holidays or seasons, fun!

For my centerpiece I have a small quilt I made with an antique dough bowl I got from a flea market in Germany. I remember the older women I bought it from said it belonged to her mother-in-law. After the Berlin Wall fell the family went over to the Dresden area to clean out the house and bring it all closer to Wiesbaden/Frankfurt. I have my German treasure filled with white pumpkins, crows and one of my stitcheries.

This is my first time ever making my own cranberry sauce. LOVE IT! Not only is it the prettiest thing I've seen jarred but it tastes so good.

Aunt Bonnie's Cranberry Sauce

Wash 3 cups fresh cranberries removing stems

Sir together 2 cups water and 2 cups sugar in deep saucepan

Heat to boiling; boil 5 minutes

Stir in cranberries

Bring to boil and boil rapidly 5 minutes.

Cool and place in jars-refrigerate 8 hours

The other day was my cousin Michelle's birthday. Bonnie sent out these fun throw backs to start the celebration that morning. Here I am with Michelle and our stunning Aunt Bonnie.

This was the same day. We were going to a wedding. This is my cousin Michelle and I with our Great Grandma. Ha I am the one with the hat and purse...oh my. Next I need to make some of my Grandma's mustard pickles!

Veteran's Day and College Game Day @ Stanford

Well my boys left, headed west over to the Bay. Tomorrow is the Stanford vs. Oregon game and I believe they are both undefeated at the end of this football season. Should be very excited. Stanford is hosting College Game Day. Steve took our tall painting pole and Georgia Flag...so everybody look for the boys holding and waving the UGA flag. They are crazy fun aren't they.





Steve ironed the flag. Our house has 20 ft. ceilings so he was able to practice 'the wave of the flag'.


I crocheted myself a hat. I must admit this is seriously addicting. Madi is playing with her girlfriends, the boys headed over to Palo Alto/Stanford, and I am enjoying this Veteran's Day. I now just started myself a black hat and I am watching the UNC/Michigan State basketball game....it's being played on an aircraft carrier...how freaking awesome is that for those young men on the teams and the navy folks assigned to that ship. I never use to think much about Veteran's Day. I was active duty Air Force for 5 years and in the Air Force Reserves for two years and never during any of that time did I realize how special it was, not just a day off work. Now that I am older and a mom I am so glad about the decisions that I made. Ben and Madi have a pride for their mom and dad....when I was young I never thought about my children and what they would think of me. Never before did I worry about setting a good example for my kids. The time I spent in the Air Force are my glory days and that is how and when I met Steve. I hope my kids make decisions to go places and live a thrilling life. Especially Madi. Girls not just boys can do extraordinary things.
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Happy Veteran's Day! And be sure to look for my boys with the UGA flag tomorrow on College Game Day. Now I am going to go work on my black hat and watch the basketball game. Check out the uniforms they are wearing in honor of Veteran's Day....camouflage in the school colors.

Season Of Thankfulness

Maybe it's because I am getting older but I enjoy everyday in November. Celebrating Thanksgiving was just on that day. Now I like having the whole month to contemplate on all the things I am thankful for. Today I had the chance to set some Thanksgiving decorations around the house. That tree on the bottom of the fireplace is our Thankful tree we made a few years ago. I love reading the ornaments: our cat, caprisuns, football, our dad being safe, soccer, food... I am thankful we made that a few years back.

I am thankful my dad was able to come spend Halloween with us.

I am thankful for good memories. Look at them, they are separating the candy. They made lines of twix, butterfinger... We had a great time trick-or-treating. All our neighbors went together so the kids were with all the friends. And holy cow our neighborhood was lite up in orange lights, so festive.

Steve had to work late Halloween, until after 8pm...he missed all the fun. But we are thakful he is here with us rather than being deployed.

The kids are thankful for their dodgeball teams, they have a lot of fun. I must say it's very entertaining to watch. There must be 50 boys and 5 girls and look at Madi, she is still in the game after that line of boys had already gotten out.

I am thankful for Madi and her new little boots too.

Papa Is Here

Papa has been here for 3 days and we still have 2 left. Like always, we have been treated to dinner at some awesome restaurants and have had lots of fun playing.






Bishop's Pumpkin Farn is the neatest and prettiest pumpkin patch I have been to.

They make their own cider. They sell cider slushies.

Steve and the kids went through the corn maze.

This was such a neat place, I am already looking for forward to next year.