Photo Friday

For firework watching I finally made a dessert with the chocolate bowls I scored at World Market.

I filled them all with french vanilla pudding, topping half with raspberries and chocolate shavings and half with s'mores (graham cracker crumbs, marshmallows and chocolate shaving). Brian, Paul and Kate were fans, Ashton not so much.

Props to Brian for figuring out how to eat them without the cup breaking into pieces - the best approach is to just nibble around the edges.

Bonus photo - fireworks were a success, all fingers and toes intact.

Out With the Aught's and In with the Teens!

This New Year's Eve day, reading about the rising of Charlotte's uptown crown* I am sitting and thinking of reflections and resolutions and what 2010 could bring. Here's my list:

1. Health - Healthier cooking in the form of less processed foods, more fresh. Growing more in our garden for use in our kitchen. 2009 was a wonderful start, producing watermelons, peppers, carrots and more. I am going to focus on less meat centered dishes and more produce in each meal. Also, no junk food and less eating out.


2. Wealth - Less spending, more frugal. We are already on the right track, with careful thermostat monitoring we've taken the coldest winter in years in stride, reducing our gas bill from $300 last year to $103! Also, sitting back and reflecting these last few weeks during the time to buy gifts and donate items made me realize that a few good quality items are much better than a bunch of cheap throw aways. Better for our pockets and better for the environment. Credit card debt has been a big stress in our marriage and we are hoping to clear that out soon. Can't wait to learn how to sew and use my sewing machine to make things vs. buy things. Ashton's already got a great idea using a bathroom rug to make a car mat and Kate wants a nap rug. And, of course, guess who will be crayons this Halloween (Angelique and Gavin are invited to join the crayon bunch if they would like to.) Wish me luck!


3. Family - Less yelling and more loving. I hope to continue to teach the children that good manners and good listening are what Mommy and Daddy are really asking them for. Dad wants more cleaning as we go and I would like to see the kids fight less and play more. And we both want the kids to enjoy each other instead of competing with each other. I can't wait to see my first born grow in a leap and boud to start kindergarten. While my heart will be both heavy and joyful on that day, I am looking forward to more one on one time with Kate while he's there.

The Aughts brought Paul and I together and Paul down South, a mortgage, a cat, a baby boy, marriage, an A.A. & B.A. degree, two career changes, a baby girl and so much more (all of which I am so thankful for). But as I now turn my focus forward, I am hoping for a less tumultuous decade where I am able to slow down and enjoy my husband and children, this house we've worked to build and fill with love, the simple pleasures in life and each and every precious day to the fullest. Happy 2010!

* FYI - Charlotte raises something for the New Year's Eve countdown, doesn't lower it. (From Charlotte Observer Mon. Dec. 28, 2009 article) "In many cities, whether it's the Times Square ball in New York City, or the giant lighted beach ball at Carolina Beach near Wilmington, some object will be dropped to lead the countdown to 2010. Not in uptown Charlotte. Here, the Queen's lighted crown will be hoisted 25 feet just before midnight Thursday to part the curtain on the new year. "We like the symbolism of hope's rising," said Moira Quinn, spokeswoman for Charlotte Center City Partners, the organization producing the festivities. "It's the rising of a new year, and shutting the door on a year that was tough on a lot of people."

Tracking Santa - NORAD

This year we will be tracking Santa with the help of NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Comand).
NORAD is a bi-national U.S./Canadian military organization responsible for the aerospace defense of North America. NORAD provides warning of impending missile and air attacks, safeguards the air sovereignty of North America, and maintains airborne forces for defense against attack. NORAD performs this important mission 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. But on Christmas Eve each year, NORAD has one additional mission: Tracking Santa around the world! To learn more about NORAD, go to http://www.norad.mil/

Fun-O-Ween Day!

This year the kids and I decided to have our own fun day the day before Halloween, so we could really start getting into the Halloween spirit. Richard from across the street came over and the fun began!

First we at pumpkin and white chocolate chip cookies for breakfast. The fiber and Vitamin C is not a bad way to start off the day, if I do say so myself!Then we read stories (We're Off to Find the Witch's House, 5 Little Pumpkins Sitting on a Fence and Where's Baby's Pumpkin?). We then took some time to "dance it out" by watching and following our family Monster Mash webclip.

Next we had snack time with special Halloween trail mix (popcorn, crackerjack, reses' pieces, graham cracker cookies and pretzel rods) with "witches blood" (apple juice) or "goblins brain" (chocolate milk). Next we watched "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown".
Finally we ate a lunch of grilled cheese ghosts with monster pieces (mixed fruit) and ghoul's fingers (pickles).
It was so much fun and made me thankful I get to stay at home with them during these precious years. :)

Seemed Like a Good Idea!

Tried to teach the little ones to ski over the holidays. Two- and four- year olds with waxed boards strapped to the bottom of their feet pointing down a steep snow-covered slope. Yeah...seemed like a good idea at the time. The good news is noone broke ANYTHING! :) (That's Paul's ski next to Kate's ski!)

Check out Grandma Darlene's photos of the excursion: http://ronanddar.shutterfly.com/58

Here are my photos:http://the704reids.shutterfly.com/2991

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and Know That I Am

I know that I am all grown up now. You see, today I realized that I am more excited about giving gifts than I am about receiving them. Watching Asthon, Kate and Paul's excitement was something that no one can box up, buy and give to me, but I'll treasure it always and forever just the same.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

GREAT ARTICLE FROM CNN: When toys were magical without being pricey

By Christy Oglesby CNN Story Highlights: Meaningful presents for children don't require lots of cash

In her childhood, presents that required imagination and creativity were favorites.She says joy "came from playing with people who loved me," not the toy itself

(CNN) -- Athleticism goes a long way in picking a spouse when you're just a child. While playing a jumping-rope game, I missed when my friends called out "Marcus." Now I was destined to marry the snottiest boy in second grade and probably in the whole wide world.I was hellbent on not having a lousy reception. So I was leaping my little 7-year-old heart out. As my playmates chanted menu options, I focused on my footwork. I needed to guarantee that my wedding guests ate well. "TUR-key! CHICK-en! Ol' DEAD dog! TUR-key! CHICK-en! Ol' DEAD dog! Turkeychickenoldeaddog-turkeychickenoldeaddog!" They turned the rope faster, but my cadence was perfect. I would not miss on canine carcass.

Thirty-four years have passed, but I remember planning my future in the driveway of my childhood home. That unforgettable memory came from a rope that my mother might have paid $2 for at the corner T.G.&Y. More likely, it was a construction castoff from my grandpa the carpenter.

But what's certain is that meaningful presents for children don't require lots of cash. Give it in love, make sure it requires creativity or imagination, and you're golden. (Oh, and these days, you have to check it for lead.) Look, I'm the mom of a 9-year-old testosterone-drenched boy. I get the blinky-light-deafening-surround-sound-battery-powered-gotta-have-the-latest-hottest-gizmo-cuz-everyone-else-has-one craze. But for the next 450 words, you 40-somethings indulge me.

Was your childhood any less fun without a remote-controlled Dinoraptor? Was your 10th year of life horrible because you didn't stand in front of a flat screen and pretend to bowl? Stop contemplating pricey Wiis, or the hand-held electronics that feed Junior's myopia, or the cranberry-colored Nano, and go back with me. Do you remember the first time you got the 64-pack of Crayolas? You'd gotten a box of two dozen crayons before. But this one had cornflower, goldenrod and sienna! There were five shades of yellow, and what's that in the back? A sharpener! See what kids want for Christmas this year

My hefty, creaky grandmother crawled under the kitchen table to draw with me. Then she taped my masterpieces to the front of her avocado-green refrigerator.

The year my older sister got Monopoly was fabulous! My divorced mom, who always had to juggle at least three jobs, found time to sit at the Formica kitchen table and build an empire starting with Connecticut Avenue and the Pennsylvania Railroad. Did you Hula Hoop? Or did you pick up your cat's eye and take a break from "keepsies" to watch someone move the hoop from her hips to her neck to her fingertips?

Be it a board game, marbles, a jump-rope or a pack of crayons, none of them cost more than $10. But if you think about it, I bet you remember the names of the kids with whom you played. I bet you remember a particularly intense game of Scrabble. I remember that the joy wasn't from the toy. It came from playing with people who loved me, like my mom, sister and grandma.

I'm not putting down the blinking, electronic $450 gizmos. I'm not saying your child won't remember their hefty, creaky grandma playing Wii tennis with them three decades from now. But try this. Go on and get Junior that pricey thing he just has to have. Then think about a great game from your childhood that didn't cost as much as a monthly car payment. Throw in a jump-rope too, or a paddle ball. Put the BlackBerry down, refuse to let the PlayStation baby-sit the kids. And see if you can out-Hula Hoop your daughter. Show her what fun was like back in the day. She'll remember it for a long time to come, and you'll have cash to spare.

Christmas-ville USA

We took the kids to McAddenville, NC http://www.mcadenville-christmastown.com/ Tuesday and they both loved it. We've taken them there before, but this was the 1st year they were both aware and in awe. In all the times I've gone to McAddenville, I've never gotten out of my car and walked the town. We did this time and discovered the following:

1. The church in town plays old instrumental Christmas songs from it's bell tower.
2. In front of the church is a nativity scene made of statues perched high on a hill of sand.
3. Judging from all the footprints in the sand, it's ok to walk up to it.
4. There is no baby Jesus in the nativity, (I guess he appears on Christmas day), but we did find the following note: "If you want to see Jesus again, give us $1,000,000 or he will die."
5. There is a path around the lake with all the lights, but it's behind the trees.
6. The light sculpture of the old north wind blowing snow flakes is perched on a flat bed trailer.
7. When you walk along, 1 out of 3 cars will have a passenger that calls out "Merry Christmas" to you. (You get used to it)
8. You can walk the majority of the town in 30 minutes or less.
9. There is one restaurant in town, "The Village Restaurant".
10. Walking around you get the added bonus of "smelling Christmas", most of the lit trees are some kind of pine (Frasier fir maybe?) and smell amazing.
11. The kids loved picking a small branch of one of the pine trees, so they could take Christmas home.

Loved doing it and looking forward to many more visits around this time of year! MERRY CHRISTMAS!

362 More Days Until Halloween!

I L-O-V-E day after (insert random holiday) sales. Love them, love them, LOVE THEM.

I was able to get out today and grabbed tons of post-Halloween decor and clothes for next year, most of the stuff at 75% off. One of the girls working at Party City was looking at me like I was crazy with my cart full of tulle ghosts and giant bobble-head trick-or-treaters. "Throwin' a late Halloween party or sumthin'?" she asked with a slight cock to her head. "No..." I explained, telling her how, since I was packing up my Halloween decor today, it's so easy to throw the newly-acquired discounted stuff in with the stuff I already had. And, I must say, I am excited about my finds.

Also, the majority of the stuff out there is G.G.G. (That's gross, ghastly and goolish.) To GGG for my little ones and their potential dreams. Today I racked up on cute ghosts and pumpkin things to add to what we already had. Also, when it comes to decorating for Halloween, is it just me or are most things either small in scale when placed in your yard or wayyyyyyyyyyy to expensive? I mean, really, it's pretty hard to see a carved jack-o-lantern from the road. But the ghosts I got are about 3-4 feet long and I picked up quite a few of them to make a nice grouping for next year. I can't wait!

Ghosts Are Funny...

....at least to Kate. Ask her to do her "Boooooooooooooo" for you if you see her. She cracks up to hear the sound come out of her mouth. ;)

Scary Thought This Halloween

This is even creepier than

Frankenstein or a witch!

Little Miss & Mr. Liberty

Today our neighborhood hosted an early 4th of July celebration, complete with parade and festival! Getting up early, Kate and I took careful pride in decorating the ol' Radio Flyer with anything and everything RED, WHITE, and BLUE we owned. Feeling very satisfied with our results, we then dressed in our most Patriotic of outfits and drove down to the pool area where we thought the parade was to begin. After practicing our march around the pool area, where Kate pulled Ashton in our float for everyone to see, we were informed the parade actually ENDED at the pool and we'd better hurry down to the other side of the neighborhood where it was starting! So, after hastily scooping up a toddler in each arm, we drove to where the parade was in progress, pulled over to the side of the road, unloaded each little one and ended up bringing up the rear of the parade. Ashton was so excited to be in the "Horrary-de" as he called it, and marched with knees high right in front of the police car that had lights flashing. While the 90*+ weather began to wear first Ashton down, then Kate, they both ended up riding in the wagon with the previous only passenger - Baby Doll. I sweated it out pulling everyone up the gia-normous hill and coasted to the pool house. We each chose a hot dog from the vendor and Ashton helped himself to a red iced cupcake and made sure to bring Kate a blue one. With both children a mess from the icing, we hurried over to the bathrooms to wash up. Just as we were coming out of the bathrooms we were just in time to hear "Ashton & Kate Reid, winners of the parade float contest!" I was so proud of them as everyone told us how great we looked and how cute the float was. And to think, I almost didn't go since Paul was working and I rarely take the two into public alone! I am so excited that Ashton's therapy is helping with this and, while the dj was playing the music loud and it made Ashton a bit overexcited, all-in-all it was a great time!