A Family out on the Town

A month or so ago Tristen told me that Bakugan would have an exhibit at Comic-Con in San Diego this year and I told him we "might" be able to go. (Bakugan are actions figures tucked into spheres that pop open when rolled onto trading cards, a game my boys have come to love, see more at http://www.bakugan.com/ ) Anyway, I was totally planning on taking them because I also found out that there would be a Twilight exhibit there as well and the stars of the Twilight and New Moon movies would be there doing interviews! I REALLY would've enjoyed that! Too bad I didn't do my research well enough, apparently Comic-Con is a big deal and they sold out! I'm just glad I didn't drive all the way down to San Diego to figure it out. I'm also grateful that my boys weren't too disappointed when we had to tell them we're not going. To make it up to them, we had a wonderful improv day! First, we went to the movies and saw G-Force in 3D... it was really cute and they were excited about the glasses!
Then we went to a buffet at a new resturaunt that the boys have been wanting to check out called Wood Grill Buffet (find one near you http://www.woodgrillbuffet.com/ ). I can best describe it as a combination of the best of Sizzler and Hometown Buffet under one roof. Since those are two of our favorite places (because of the cost, variety, all-you-can-eat and something-for-everyone factors) we all really enjoyed ourselves. We weren't in any hurry so we stayed until Hayden started getting tired (about 2 hours later) just talking and sharing and joking... enjoying each other's company. We were all in such a good mood! We came home and the older boys went straight to their Nintendo DSes (they just got them replaced for free under warranty and have found them *new* again) while Hayden layed down for a nap and Brad and I got another movie in - Push.

This is not typically the style of movie I prefer but it wasn't too bad. A lot of action with a story line and a pinch of a love story too. I thouroughly enjoyed Dakota Fanning's performance!  Hayden rose from his nap with perfect timing as the credits began to roll. We continued to enjoy the rest of our Saturday by doing our own random things. Brad turned on his X-Box 360 for the first time this weekend, the boys were in and out jumping from the trampoline to T.V. to video games and I posted a blog about out Thursday and picked up the book "The Timetraveler's Wife" hoping to get through it before seeing the movie (most likely when it comes out on DVD so I have plenty of time).

Friday Night Dinner and a Movie {don't forget desert!}

As those of you who frequent my blog know, Tristen has decided he wants to be a chef and HELP me prepare family meals. Friday, however, he requested that I leave the kitchen and let him teach his brothers how to cook! (Of course I supervised and kept A.P. out of the kitchen while sneaking some pics of my boys treating me to a night off from cooking! *PROOF*)

On the menu:
Stuffed Meatballs over Garlic, Herb & Butter Fettuccini with Garlic Breadsticks

Tristen made sure everyone washed first.

Tristen mixed ground hamburger meat, 3 eggs and a package of Ranch powdered seasoning with his bare hands while Seth and Garrett took turns cutting the cheese into cubes.

They took small portions of the meat and flattened them, put a cube of cheese in, then rolled it up. Tristen was such a good teacher! With a few tbsp of olive oil in the pan, Tristen fried the meatballs.

In the meantime, Seth and Garrett read the directions on the back of the Fettuccini box and got that simmering. Garrett accidently dropped the seasoning packet into the wet mix!

I don't know how I missed photographing the breadsticks... they were frozen and the boys aligned them on a tray and put them into the oven. Here's the complete meal we were all able to enjoy while sitting down in the living room (not something we do often while eating)...

...enjoying this movie! If you have a family with young children (male or female) and you haven't seen this movie together, I recommend that you rent it for your next family movie night! it was great!

You know how at resturaunts they always give the kids a paper menu/placemat full of activities and such to keep them occupied while waiting for the food to arrive? Well, Thursday while doing just that at Carrow's one of the activities was to create your own desert. Tristen is the only one who attempted to fill in this area of his menu/placemat. After giving it some thought, I decided to let him make his creation! I can't even begin to tell you how excited he was! Here you go,

Tristen's Graham Cracker Brownie A La Mode

Mix according to the directions on the box, the brownie mix. Pour into mini pre-made graham cracker pie crusts and bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Let the pies cool and top with vanilla bean ice cream, chocolate syrup and a cherry for good measure! Enjoy!

You don't see many pictures of Brad in here because he's not one to like the camera in his face, but let me just tell you that I felt like a total princess because after the boys cooked dinner and desert, Brad cleaned the kitchen! (of course it wasn't that bad because I've taught my boys to clean as they go by modeling it and they did just that!) Another amazing night in the Logo household! God is good.

Fun in the Sun

I had made arrangements Thursday (July 23rd) to take the boys over to one of my Bible study leader's homes to swim (even though we have a pool in our backyard, hers is a "deep pool with a slide and diving board"). I really needed the break from being in the house and it was nice to be in the company of another female adult. We all enjoyed the pool tremendously (thanks Mr. & Mrs. Pearson ~from all of us)! Here are a couple of shots I snapped during our visit.

Hayden and Martha had a great time! *Hayden being thrown up and splashing down while Martha did her squats!* HAHA!

Hayden watched "his boys" enjoying the slide for a long time before finally asking if he could go down too

... uh... sure...
He got all the way up the ladder and changed his mind! LOL! The brothers were being so protective of him! Nervous that he'd slip or something, they kept yelling "be so careful A.P!"

I had a good time as well, I didn't venture down that slide but I did show the boys how a cannonball was done! (Photos compliments of Tristen)

After we swam the day away, we basked in the sun and savored some popsicles while dripping dry. Martha is a retired teacher and has an enormous library of children's books that date 5 generations back! Martha read to the boys, they really got a kick out of story-time and enjoyed telling some of their own. *Sorry no photos*

By the time we left the Pearsons' we were all famished! We spotted a Carrow's on the way home with a huge sign that said "Kids eat free Wednesdays & Thursdays after 4 PM" so we flew into the parking lot and swung open the doors! We couldn't get the food in us fast enough! Do you remember your early years? Ah! Those times we'd swim for hours and hours then get out and feel the need to eat everything in sight? Right... this was one of those time-warp moments! Amazingly enough the five of us got out of there with only a $20.00 tab! Gotta love "kids eat free!" I did manage to snap a few pics of the boys (they just looked so handsome and raw) and one video of Hayden singing. *this is my first attempt at loading a video so if i did it wrong, forgive and bear with me, please*

Update on Hayden

You have read about Hayden's dog bite incident but only a few of you know that less than 48 hours later, he fell and suffered a head trauma that landed him in the ER. He was suffering through unconscienceness and vomiting. The CAT scan showed NO internal bleeding or swelling and no lacerations or fractures - Praise God! After they got the vomiting under control and Hayden was able to eat and drink without causing an episode, stay awake and walk on his own without falling, they released us from the hospital. (This was Friday, July 17)

We had a rough week, yes, but God is good and always in control and I've seen no long term affects of the head injury and have focused my attention back to his arm where the punctures from the dog bite are healing; slowly but surely. I clean it out twice daily and keep it bandaged as to avoid infection. I've taken a photo each night around the same time as the bite occured to show his healing progress:

Not to make light of the situation, but just to lighten our spirits about it all, we've started calling Hayden "A.P." (accident prone) and he's taken to his new nickname quite nicely...

Please keep our little A.P. and the rest of our family in your prayers and thanks for all the prayers you've already sent up on our behalf. I love you all!

I was waiting to post this until after I went to Apple Valley in hopes that I could get a picture of the dog who bit Hayden, but no such luck, maybe next week!

Weighing My Options

Last November I had a health scare and it caused me to really take a look at my life and make some changes; mostly in the weight department. I got on track and stayed on track for a solid 6 months. I was eating right, and watching my caloric intake, drinking water over anything else and exercising... OH was I exercising! I lost 25 pounds! I don't recall exactly when, I'm guessing it was around the time the boys got out of school, but I got off track and have been off track ever since. My mind is fully aware of my hiatus and my body is showing signs of gain (yep, I just weighed, I've gained 5 pounds) still a maintained 20 pound loss. I really need to get back on track! I am still considered "obese" by the BMI chart and my height of 5'4" so please be in prayer for me that I can get back to (at least) exercising! It's very difficult for me to focus on me during the Summer when my focus tends to shift 100% to the boys at all times. I'm going to get off my duff RIGHT NOW and do 15 minutes on my exercise bike (maybe longer, but prolly not) baby steps, right!

September 2008 July 2009

When you're this overweight 20 pounds doesn't really show. I really need help getting refocused! Not just for the sake of being skinny but for health reasons.

Once Bitten

Last night around 9:30 PM while at a friend's home, Hayden was bit by a big dog. His injuries have been treated by his Pediatrician. He is as well as can be expected, they are only flesh wounds; he will heal completely. The dog did NOT viciously attack Hayden. Hayden tripped and landed on this 16-year-old animal who suffers from arthritus and the dog just reacted. It was still very traumatic to Hayden and me! Please be in prayer for our family, all of my sons witnessed the incident and it hasn't gone unnoticed that it has affected us all. Thanks for your prayers, love and support.

I will post pics of the above mentioned dog when possible.