Weblos means WE'll BE LOyal Scouts. . .

Well, Dallin received his Weblos badge the other night, AND he has now officially earned enough belt loops that his belt no longer fits. He has 22 belt loops in all. McCade is following in his brother's footsteps and is not too far behind with 18 belt loops. I am very proud of my Cub Scouts.

Then, as is the season, we had Basketball games today. No baskets for us today, but both boys are becoming very good defenders. We just need to convince them the rule is that the ball actually has to go IN the hoop!

We also woke yesterday to a bunch of new snow. I know that I am usually against snow, but if it is going to be cold, icy and dangerous anyway - you might as well have something pretty to look at. These are the trees on our street. Aren't they pretty? I used to get so mad in San Diego when they would 'flock' Christmas trees so they were white all over. I thought the white should only fall from the top; certainly it would be more realistic, right? I now know that I was absolutely right!

Back to the events -

Dallin then had what they called the 'Weblos WOW'. It was basically an event that allowed credentialed BSA personnel to come in and help the boys with the requirements for their Weblos Pins. Some of them are fairly easy to do at home, or in a Den Meeting, but others are more difficult. This was an opportunity to do some of the more difficult ones. Dallin earned both his Readyman and Engineer Pins today, this is in addition to his Fitness, Citizen and Traveller Pins he earned previously. These are pictures from the Readyman class; basically First Aid for Cub Scouts. I wondered about the wisdom in having the boys TRY the Heimlich maneuver on each other, but as the guy was BSA certified, I figured we could trust him.

Apparently this is the international sign for choking. Several more of his pins are almost complete; as long as we can memorize all the BSA stuff that goes with it - we should have his Arrow of Light in just a few more months. I really hope his enthusiasm continues and he becomes an Eagle Scout.

Later in the day, when it began snowing again, I sent McCade outside to shovel the driveway. Now, Shane had shoveled earlier, and there wasn't much snow, but it was coming down so fast I wanted to stay ahead of it. After a few minutes I looked outside and saw him doing this:

I guess a big pile of snow is just too tempting for an 8-year-old boy.

However, the driveway WAS clear!

Danielle

other final thoughts. . .

We had basketball again today. Last week Dallin made a basket, and he continued that tradition this week. McCade played hard and make a couple of shots, but nothing actually went in. There is some disagreement as to whether or not the team won. The final score was 22-33, but the boys think they had 33 and I am pretty sure they had 22. Whichever way it went, they had fun, so it is all good. Tacey is still refereeing and enjoys it. I think she likes the power of a whistle. Here are pictures from today. This is Dallin making a shot

This is Dallin making the shot that went in - you can see it is on it's way.This is McCade dribbling

more dribbling

This kid DID NOT want to play last week when Tacey was refereeing, and he wanted to play even less this week. They even let his sister run with him, but she finally got frustrated with him and ran stole the ball and started dribbling. That would have been fine - if she had actually been on the team.

Tacey doing her thing.

As promised, this is the picture of Haley eating the sucker. It is sour apple; she really liked it. NOW, for all of you who are FREAKING OUT right now, we only let her suck on it long enough to take this picture. SHE DID NOT GET TO EAT THE WHOLE SUCKER. I understand however, that she has become really good at stealing suckers from her parents since then. Again I say hee-hee-hee.

And, for you enjoyment, this is McCade doing his impression of a frog.

Nothing else needs to be said.

Danielle

And the story goes on. . .

The next week we visited my Dad and Grandma and took trips to the Zoo and Knotts Berry Farm AND added to our methodical analysis of all the best pizza places everywhere we visit.

I have to admit I haven't been to Knotts Berry Farm since like 8th grade, neither had Andrea, and Shane had NEVER been; so it was a true adventure for our theme park crew. We started on what we thought was going to be an 'ok' rollercoaster. As we have several trips to all the Disney Theme parks under our belts, we felt like we could handle anything we were tall enough for. Well, we were wrong. . . we started on the Ghostrider. It was an old-wooden roller coaster. We figured: 'Heck, we've done California Screamin' AND Rockin' Roller Coaster WE'LL BE FINE.'

BUT as the Ghostrider went down the first hill, I realized we had a problem. The boys may have been tall enough, but they certainly didn't weigh enough: especially McCade. The bars that came down only on our laps were not remotely close enough to keep the boys safely inside; Tacey probably had the same problem, but at least she is big enough to hold on really tight. In addition, it was a really 'jerky' roller coaster; ugh. That scared McCade pretty badly, so it took a while for him to get brave again. Frankly, I don't balme him. Anyway, there wasn't a really good time to take pictures; cameras and roller coasters don't get along. This is the kids next to a pretty fountain outside the Johnny Rockets inside the park. I didn't take this picture - credit goes to Andrea.This is waiting in line for some roller coaster; there were so many I can't remember them all.We finally got to take a picture with SOMETHING that said Knotts Berry Farm, but by then it was dark.This was the last roller coaster of the day: Shane and I opted out because we both had to drive (We'd met Shane in L.A.). This one was called the sidewinder. The cars went in circles as they went on the track. It was guaranteed motion sickness as far as I was concerned.

Andrea and McCade in the twisty carTacey and Dallin in the twisty car.

And then there was the trip to Flippi's; which I would have to say was probably Shane's favorite part of the whole vacation. Maybe that was because he spent his official 'vacation' working. Shannon went with us on this trip; Dallin stayed and played with Uncle Scott.

Flippi's was a bunch of hot, cheezy yummyness except for when Tacey spilled her water all over the table. It was funny to us, but she didn't think so.

AND there was the trip to the Zoo.

Once again it was cold out, so the animals were happy.

This is Dallin being a monkey.Yep, this is my Mom. Hmmm, I guess it is easy to see where I get it.This is McCade being a Monkey. Once again McCade took my camera, but it paid off this time. He got this amazing picture of the Hippo as it came and sat right in front of him. I wonder if the Hippo can say cheese. . .

When we got back, we got to play with Haley one night; Laura had a dentist appointment and Ben didn't think Haley would like hanging out in her car seat on the floor while her mom had her teeth cleaned. She and Dallin got along really well. AND Shane and I were NAUGHTY; feeding Haley her FIRST lollipop. hehehe.Don't they look cute?

I actually HAVE a picture of the lollipop, but it is on my phone. I will email it to myself and post it later.

January also means MORE basketball! At least they boys are on the same team this year.

Dallin is Number 5, McCade is number 22.Dallin talking with his coach.

McCade taking a short break.AND this is Tacey at her first real job - reffing (?) basketball for kindergarten through second grade. She basically makes sure everyone gets a shot, remembers to try to dribble and shoots at the right basket.

More to come

Danielle

Finally an update. . .

Okay, so I realize I haven't updated in a VERY long time! *sigh*, I used to be the self-proclaimed queen of blogging. Okay, lets see. . .

We went to California for Christmas this year. Shane had to repair a floor in Los Angeles (Compton to be exact; not the best part of town), so we had 2 choices; Christmas in California WITH Dad, and all of the family there OR Christmas in Idaho ALL ALONE IN THE SNOW. Actually, I guess there really wasn't a choice at all. . .

We left a day later than expected; snow can be a big deterrent. We drove to Las Vegas and spent the night - me, Shane, Tacey, Dallin, McCade and Koda - yes, the dog got to go get warm too. Actually, we love him and all, but we really would like to find someone willing to babysit him. He has become a much better traveler though; doogie Valium certainly helps, and it did give him the opportunity to play with one of his other favorite humans - ANDREA!

We got up VERY early the next morning; that wasn't all that hard considering we didn't sleep really well at the hotel anyway. I think it was due to the unfortunate events that transpired on our trip down last year.

(For those of you that don't know, we stayed in what will always be referred to as The-City-That-Should-Not-Be-Slept-In and awoke the next morning to find we were the victims of a great deal of theft. Lots of computers, iPods, phones, cameras, personal information - basically VERY important stuff stolen. All-in-all about $7,000.00. HOWEVER, we were grateful that they seemed to not be able to see Christmas presents, so the trip was still nice for the kids.)

Anyway, this year, EVERY small noise made us jump; not very restful. We drove Shane to L.A. and then I drove myself and the kids down to San Diego. Ahhhh, a real couch and meals that are prepared by a loving mother not some random teenager whom is working for minimum wage. Then Monday after a long, painful trip on the treadmill, Andrea and I hit the ground running and braved the Christmas shopping crowds with a pre-shopping energy stop at Cotijas - I LOVE that place! Shane was able to leave the jobsite and come down to San Diego that night. On Tuesday, Shane and I went shopping; just time together, it was nice. Then we went out to dinner as a family to Fuddruckers, YUMMY! I was so full when we left! McCade wasn't, but we WON'T go into that. . . lets just say that the Fuddruckers story will be one we will pull out and tell him and his wife when he has an uncooperative, willful child. Wednesday was Christmas Eve. It is ALWAYS a marathon from about noon on Christmas Eve until the morning of the 26th - so HERE IT GOES!

We started the day with a trip to the Wild Animal Park. We got year passes LAST Christmas, and they were some of the best gifts we have EVER received. We made a very passionate plea for the same things this year (stay tuned to see if we get our wish. . .) We hiked up to Condor Ridge, we had never done that before. We had a great time looking at all the different gardens they have up there. It air was cool, so the animals were active. No one was in the park, so we just walked and looked and had fun!Poor Shane, as always, was on call. He saw most of the Wild Animal Park like this. The best part was watching a ferret (I can't remember what kind), named Snake get fed. My PERSONAL favorite was McCade's pronounciation of Sumatran when we were looking for the tigers.

There are a lot of welcome freeloaders at the Wild Animal Park.

We were walking, enjoying the day when we came upon this herd (?) of deer. They are San Diego natives, and enjoy the safety and plentiful food within the park. We walked quietly and slowly; they let us get pretty darn close to them.

McCade then took possession of the camera; I have alot of random pictures of trees, and rocks and whatnot - this is one he took of his favorite animals; Giraffes.Yep, you've probably seen a picture similar to this in an earlier blog. We try to stop at the same places and take basically the same pictures. It is fun to see how they have all grown through the years.We always go see a movie on Christmas Eve, this year it was 'Bolt' in Disney Digital 3D. These are our cool 3D glasses. The kids are showing how cool they really are. . .

Then back to the house for tamales (more yum) and then a trip down to my Godmother's house for a Christmas Eve similar to the ones I remember from when I was a little girl. When I was a little girl Santa ALWAYS took a little side trip and brought me a little present at my house earlier in the evening. It was a really nice thing to be able to relax and enjoy Christmas and sleep because I didn't have to worry about whether or not he was going to show up! Well, now he makes the stop at my Godmother's house. He, being the all-knowing person he is, knew the kids were going to be there and brought little gifts for them.

Now, the proof that this is THE REAL Santa is that neither Shane nor I nor my sister Andrea took any presents with us when we went there. The real Santa knows you are going to be there and is prepared.Tacey gets tired of trying to convince people she is Mexican; I can identify with that problem. Granted, it is a much harder sell with big blue eyes. This is Tacey and my grandma (her great-grandma). She wanted this picture so she could prove to her friends that she is Mexican. I got to see and spend a little time with cousins I haven't seen in way too long; it was a Christmas present for my heart. . .

Then back to my Mom's house to sleep and get ready for Santa!

The next morning, the kids were ordered not to bother anyone before 7:00 am. When we finally did let them get up, we made them sit at the top of the stairs and wait while we all looked at their presents and stockings from Santa. Now that I am a parent, I get great joy in torturing my children the same way I was tortured as a child.

Heh, heh, heh

Picture at the top of the stairs; even Koda posed for the picture.

Dallin
McCade

And Tacey (who must always model her gifts)

We were all happy to have our Zoo/Wild Animal Park Memberships renewed. YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then we went to my Dad's house for MORE Christmas. I don't seem to have any pictures from there. Maybe because I was too busy eating and opening presents and pretending I was my grandpa and chasing every piece of trash to keep some semblance of order. Then back to my Mom's house for traditional turkey and all the appropriate side dishes.

The next day Shane had to leave again, and we just tried to recuperate from all the Christmas. On Saturday my cute cousin Cindy got married. I have to say it has been a long time since I saw a couple so excited at their own wedding. It was fun.

Okay, so now I need to get up early to go watch the boys play basketball and get Tacey to work - but that is information for the upcoming blog I will post tomorrow!

'Night!

Danielle