Rock Solid Forts

One of the coolest parts about being a stay-home mom is that I can make building forts part of laundry day! What better than a fluffy clean comforter to make an awesome fort with? Logan had a blast setting it up with me and playing in it. Tyler didn't quite understand the ''fort" concept at first. Logan had to show him the ropes, but eventually he caught on.


So do I climb on top of it?





















This is pretty fun.


















Logan: "No, you climb
UNDER it!"

















"Ooooh, yeah this is fun!"

So, next time you're stuck in a thigh-high pile of laundry fresh out of the dryer, don't focus on how much there is to fold, or how it'll sit in baskets for the next day or two, or the dirty bodies that caused so much laundry... make a fort or two and say a quick prayer of thanks for your kiddies (dirty or clean) and the memories you're making! I sure am grateful for my little sweethearts- and especially for the cheers I get when I throw that blanket over the chair.

Strings of Bulbs, not Lights

Tyler, wanna supervise Logan and Mommy putting up the Christmas tree?

"No" (which means 'yes')

Logan and I put up the tree yesterday in preparation of tonight's magical event of decorating it, and Ty supervised. We had lots of fun, though now that I look at the tree I believe we may have mistakenly swapped two of the layers leaving a shorter row below a longer row. oops! (One more reason to buy a real tree...)


And now, The Story of the Strings of Bulbs

James and I began this evening ready to string the lights on the tree. How wrong we were to think we were putting lights on the tree- what we were really doing was stringing bulbs on our tree! After going through each and every bulb to prepare our strands of lights (which of course didn't turn on completely from the get-go), we began to place them on the tree. As the first strand went up, half the lights went out. Hmmm.

James attempted to fix the problem while I started on
another strand. Evidently it had a flasher bulb, but only on the first half. We fixed the problem by putting another flasher bulb in the other half of the strand. For some reason, the first half flashed and then went out at this point. Hmmm.

I finished the flashing lights, put up one strand that miraculously stayed on the entire time but only went 2/3 of the way up the tree, and used the lit half of the last strand to finish off the top. (The unlit bulbs were guided with care through the tree to the bottom to collect around the stand. )

So now we have the top of our hour-glass shaped tree flashing, the bottom half with one measly strand of lights, and white runner lights that we can't get to run at the same speed. It is one heck of a tree- and oh the memories! Needless to say, James and I agree that next year we will replace our seven year old lights. (And NO flashers!!)

And finally, a glimpse at our tree...

Nothing says Merry Christmas like bronze busts of your children in Santa hats. We bought these when Luke & Logan were two, and they have me laughing every time I see them.












What girl reading this didn't absolutely love Rainbow Bright and HuggaBunch? These make me smile too- oh those were the days- when my biggest concern was which earrings to 'pierce' my Huggabunch's ears with. (She must have had a name...) You can see Rhett and Scarlett down there too- I LOVE Gone with the Wind. Sometimes I make James re-enact the part where he carries her up the stairs. He loves it. ha ha ha Well, he's a good sport anyway.


So, Ty, do you like the tree?

"No"

Think he means it?

Happy Decorating Everyone!!

Thanksgiving Feast

Happy Thanksgiving!! Here's a picture of a very hungry bunch just before the feast!!



Here's James carving up a FABULOUS turkey. It was his first time, and he did AWESOME!

We are so blessed to have good friends Monica, Chad, and their sweet little girl Makayla join us for our feast. Monica is an excellent cook and taught me how to make homemade rolls! (From scratch- and they were actually edible when I was done!) We spent most of Wednesday and Thursday cooking, and the meal was just incredible! (Too bad the meal only lasted 20 minutes or so... ha ha at least there's no need to cook for the next week!)




And here's a shot of the lovely table- those beautiful flowers were picked up by James on his way home from his Turkey Bowl. He sure knows how to treat his lady! I am definitely blessed with many things to be thankful for. The only thing missing was someone to clean up the mess!

Logan Explains Thanksgiving

Mommy asked, Logan answered
1. Tomorrow is called? Chicken Day
2. Why do we have Thanksgiving? Because Jesus wants us to.
3. What do we eat for Thanksgiving? Chicken and corn and mashed potatoes
4. What is Daddy thankful for? His kids. Logan. Nothin' else.
5. Is he thankful for Mommy? Oh YEAH he is!
6. What is Mommy thankful for? For me and Nonna. (Cari's mom)
7. Is Mommy thankful for Daddy? Yeah, and Tyler and Luke. And I do too.
8. What is Tyler thankful for? Nothin.
9. Are you sure? No, he didn't say anything!
10. What are you thankful for? Tyler, Luke, and I don't know what else.
11. Who came on the Mayflower? Me.
12. Who are the Indians? Someone else I don't know. It's a mystery.
13. What'd they eat for Thanksgiving? Nothin. I don't know.
14. What is a teepee? A long long long and big teepee where people go in and dress up.


I am so glad I'm sending him to preschool to learn about Thanksgiving. Oh well, at least he enjoys it!! This is a picture of Logan at the cabin with his awesome Spiderman life vest. How cute is this boy?! :-) Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! May you all eat lots of turkey (or chicken...) and enjoy contemplating your many blessings!

A Little Bit About Us

So, everybody knows my main squeeze, James. This sexy man has been hinting (not so subtly) that our family needed a blog. I finally gave in and decided he was right- I check the blogs of my friends almost as much as I check email, therefore I figure it only fair to give each of you some insight as to what we're up to out here in Ohio. This picture is from about three years ago- our first Christmas about 9 months after we moved to Arizona. We had a new house, twin 18 month old boys (darling Luke & Logan), and no idea how many great friends and life altering experiences were coming our way. I don't know where I'd be without this man, and I thank God every day he asked (and took!) me to be his wife. He is an amazing Daddy, and he puts his wife & kiddies first. What more could a girl ask for? :-) (Back off, ladies- I've been working out and I am NOT afraid to use my moves.)

This handsome guy is Luke. 9 minutes older than his brother, he was his OWN man! :-) He loved running, Elmo, and matchbox cars- any truck, ambulance, police car, school bus, garbage truck, etc. He was loved trains as well. Whenever we hear a train whistle, we always think of Lukey. He rarely slept, loved Spaghettios and swimming, and absolutely worshiped his Daddy. He was usually first to the door to welcome him home. Most of you know that Luke passed away in February of 2006. We miss him terribly, but know he is serving our Father in Heaven, and is near us often. We know we will be a family forever, and this is the thought that allows us to survive this time we are apart. Our family has grown so much closer as we've dealt with this; I believe we've learned a lot. I think this is a testament that our trials are given to us to teach us something- we just have to learn the lessons. I hope James & I are doing that.

www.sads.org I'd not be doing my part if I didn't quickly put a plug in for Long QT- the heart condition that led to Luke's Sudden Arrhythmia Death. This is an electrical heart condition that typically shows up as fainting in boys around age 8 and girls around puberty. An EKG can show a prolonged QT wave. Oral medicine is 95% effective, but you have to know you need it! If you know anyone who has lost someone suddenly, or who is fainting for an unexplained reason, PLEASE share with them what you know about Long QT. It is hereditary- in fact, all my boys have it, as do I.

Who's this dashing young man? Why Logan (aka Superman, Spiderman, Flash, Batman) the ring-bearer of course! He did SUCH a great job- waited each time the flower girl stopped to drop petals, and then winked at her when they parted! (This was at my friend Jen's wedding- it was absolutely gorgeous, and she married a real sweetheart Kevin.)

Logan is a Superman-theme song singer, a rule-enforcer (and rule-follower, usually), who takes his job VERY seriously as big brother. He has been our family's strength this past couple of years- always bringing a smile, a joke (we understand most of them...), or a reminder that Luke is happy. What would I do without Logey-bear?! He loves to dance, loves his friends, and takes good care of Mommy and Tyler. Daddy's his buddy, and he loves doing most anything that he does (fishing, golf, soccer, and of course watching Superman are among his favorites.)


And this little cutie pie?! Tyler-Bug! :-) Always smiling, laughing, trying to jump, and as of late- singing! :-) He loves "Ring Around the Rosie" and "Wheels on the Bus" the most. He wants to be just like Logan- and tries to do everything Logan does. His favorite response is 'no', though he is beginning to figure out that that word won't bring him more juice or candy if it's offered... He loves to be outside, and has recently lost his freedom to the backyard somewhat since we took the doggie-door out when the weather got colder. (We sure miss AZ!!) It sure was cute to watch him crawl out through the doggie-door though!

Now that I have the family history info down, I suppose next time I'll have to write something interesting that we are doing. If nothing else, I guess this blog will make me DO something interesting so I have substance to write about!

One last pic of the boys at Halloween- Tyler LOVES suckers, & Spiderman is way cuter without the hood! Here's to wonderful family and friends willing to read an entire book about the Shields' fam! :-) Love you guys!