Guess what?!?

Chris picked up a stray dog yesterday. He's really cute. And he needs a home. HINT HINT. You can name him whatever you want. You don't have to keep the names we've given him:

Charlie

Buddy

Stinky Lou Who

Nugget

Mango

Dog

Harold

Kamber likes him OK, but would rather reign supreme without a little ankle biter around. He has threatened her status as number one furry thing around here. PLEEEEEASE will you take him? He's really nice and sweet and cuddly and cute and small and lovable and soft and fun and yellow and four-legged and funny and he eats rocks. Did I mention that he's cute? Did I mention that he needs a home? Over and out.

Ode to my mom's bed

Bed, bed, sweet sweet bed
How I love you so
Your memory foam and super soft sheets
Caressed me all night long
How I was sad when the alarm went off
I didn't want to leave you...ever
No, no, it wasn't more sleep I needed
I just wanted some quality time with you
Lying awake, feeling your warmth
You are my knight in shining armor
I still think of you daily
In fact, I can't take my mind off you
Let's get married.

The best things...

For Christmas Keaton had a grand idea. He said, "You know how they say that the best things in life are free? Well, I'm gonna give you one of those kinds of gifts for Christmas." And he was pretty tickled with himself because he inherited the "frugal" gene from me and he was pretty excited about all the money he was gonna save. I was pretty excited because I think Keaton knows me pretty well and what I really needed was this:

YES! YES! YES!

My day was wonderful. I watched some shows that I had been trying to get around to watching for awhile. I took a nap. I read a WHOLE book. And when Jantzen came whining to me about this or that I said, "Go tell your mom." Keaton was wonderful. He took care of all sibling arguments, helped Chris with dinner and read stories at bedtime. It was like Mother's Day in January. Thank you Keaton! You're awesome!

In case you're wondering what the fine print at the bottom says, here it is:

This coupon is not valid in Washington, California and Maine. This offer excludes massages, being ordered around and the authority to eat downstairs.

Keaton-you're not just awesome, you're funny too.

Can we PLEASE take a normal picture?

Daniel's birthday,

Take one.

Daniel's birthday,

Take two.


Daniel's birthday,
Take three.


Okay, good enough.

Daniel UN-redeems himself at Mt. Hood Meadows

Stay tuned until the end to see how...

Oh! The suspense. It's just too much fun!

The day started out early. I'm talking about 5:00 early. But to a skier, it's worth it. The kids don't even complain. I wake them with a pat on the shoulder and a "Wanna go skiing?" and they bounce out of bed. It continued on with an exceptionally long and slippery drive to Mt. Hood. We figured it would be a quiet day at the resort because one of the roads leading there was closed due to a mudslide. But EVERYONE and their dog decided to drive around and use OUR ROAD to get there. (The nerve!) So Portland traffic was found on a beautiful and winding road between Hood River and Mt. Hood. Next we have a parking spot in a land so far, far away that they put you on buses to take you to the lodge, where you stand in line for 15 minutes so that you can happily give them hundreds of dollars for a ride on their fancy little chairs which are suspended from cables high up in the air.

But then you remember how happy everyone is when they're bundled up in several layers with long skinny things attached to their feet and a funny little square tag attached to their jackets.

And you realize that they have graciously replaced the *!#%^ rope tow with a blessed "Magic Carpet" which is ....

wait for it....

wait for it....

wait for it...

COVERED so as to keep you out of the falling snow while you ride it! Hooray! And it's so easy to ride that Jantzen could do it all by herself and she could do her ten million laps on the bunny hill whilst I stood by and took pictures.

This is inside the tunnel. Does it look Star Trek-ish to you?

Notice the hands on the hips. She is so tickled with herself and her new ability to ski without using that harness you see attached to her. This girl had a permanent smile all day. And the red snowsuit? It has survived three kids now. Don't tell her that her brothers wore it. I know I'm already living on borrowed time because it's not pink.

This video is posted purely for the enjoyment of my mom, because grandmas just don't think this stuff is boring. Here you go, mom. As per your request.

And now for the end of the story, the moment you've been waiting for.

Yes, it's broken.

And the pictures don't really do it justice. It's uglier in person. Unless you're Daniel's parents. (Hi Tina and Thomas!) Then it's fine. No bruising, swelling or pain. Don't worry! He'll be good as new in 4-6 weeks and the doctor said that he can still go snowboarding with the cast on. That way maybe he can break the other hand. Aren't you so glad you sent him to America? He's getting the full American experience, including an up close look at the health care system. I apologize in advance for your upcoming doctor bills.