Back to Third Grade

We finished work early on Saturday night (11pm!) and didn't want to waste the night!

How would you spend your free night? Well we went straight back to 3rd grade and made friendship bracelets!

Yep Drewpy got one too! Best night ever!

Seriously??? This Has Got to be a Joke!!!

Meet my friends John and Darren! I have been spending a lot of quality time with these two!

It all started with my sweet little Kia Sephia!  One day while I was at the gym someone maliciously smashed her window, that next week her tire blew.  When we took it in our front axle was completely out, so that needed to be replaced.  

Two months later the timing belt on the Jetta blew, ruining all six pistons in the car.  Requiring an entire new engine!  

Before that happened we started driving the Pathfinder, as we were buying a Christmas Tree I rolled the window down to tell Drew something, and that's how it stayed. A week later Drew was at the bank and rolled the other window down, and you guessed it... it stuck! We went and got the windows fixed.  After we got the windows fixed later that week the Pathfinder didn't start... 

In the mean time the Kia decided to be all sassy and whenever we would turn her on the Hazard Lights would flash, and the horn would honk and wouldn't turn off for several minutes.  We would drive for blocks looking like we had just stolen a car!

As I was going to pick up the Jetta from being fixed I was driving the Kia to Horner's and the shifter that changes the gears just fell off! Luckily I was stuck in second so I just made my way to Horner's to swap cars.

Luckily we were fortunate enough to have amazing friends who let us borrow their truck!  So we took the Pathfinder in after we got the Kia back.

I got a call to pick up the Pathfinder because they had fixed the gages that register if the car can start or not (I don't know what their are called, but believe me I'm about one car fatality away from having my mechanics license... I have already forgotten more than I have ever wanted to know about cars!)  So I was happy as a clam knowing we had fixed our cars and would finally have a break from car trouble.... 

Woah... Not so fast, is what the Universe was telling me!  I drove the Pathfinder home from the shop ran in to get my purse, ran outside turned the key.... and..... SMOKE!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!! Are you serious!!?? Horner's made a house call (apparently their is a fix 7 car problems and with the 8th you get a home visit), and saw that the started had fried itself!

And that is how I have been spending my free time.... And savings.... Just in case you wanted to know!

And onto the next....

My sweet sweet Kia has been through a lot! And besides the little hiccups of having a blaring horn and lights she is a trusty stead.   And this is how Drew repays her!

Yes dumping a gallon of paint on the floor in the back seat!

Thanks Honey!

Why would the completely empty trunk not have been the best place for paint?  One of those mysteries we will never know!  Anyway you might be thinking, "oh no big deal just put the floor mat over it."  Well we can't because of the picture below!

My Handy husband had a little accident with Redd paint a few months ago!!!

AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

I give up....

Chuck-e-Cheese!

Who doesn't have the best childhood memories at Chuck-e-Cheese?! I know I do, and one of them includes my friend who is not my cousin with her other cousin... Did you follow? ha ha

Anyway I get to relive those same fantastic memories now!

Josh and Gracie just making some memories!! It is so funny to see the intensity in little kids trying to earn as many tickets as the machines will spew out!

Josh has gotten this system down... And I have figured out a little bit of the Chuck-e-Cheese magic myself... You can go up and ask for coupons... So instead of paying almost $50 for 100 tokens, you can ask for the $15 coupon, you buy 40 tokens and get 60 free.... Total score!

Josh's tickets.... The kid wastes no time in just getting to it!

Picking out the treasures! What a great place!

Our Pony Puppy!

Our puppy is the size of a pony and we have the pictures to prove it!

And we LOVE him!

Better Late Then Never!

This is way out of order but oh well! When you live without a T.V. or the Internet you do things you may not normally do, and for sure stuff you would never admit to doing! And here I am doing both!

Well our pride and joy turned 1!

We started off the day with a stroll through the park. 

Isn't he cute?

Then it was home to celebrate!

Caesar had Fenway over to celebrate! And help him eat his treats!

He loved it!

Drew and Caesar searching for hidden presents! Yep you know you're jealous!

Disneyland!

Andrew finally got to experience the Wonderful World of Disney! And he LOVED it! I was way nervous about it because Disney is a serious matter in our family! Ha ha

(thanks mom for the great picture ha ha) so my mom, Drewpy and I headed out to d-land after some awesome airfare popped up from Southwest! 

We found some ridiculously cheap park passes, and my mom got a suite at a Hilton Hotel for only $40 a night! Our first stop was at Rainforest Cafe, for Drews first VOLCANO! 

Then Drew insisted he needed giant Mickey gloves! So of course we bought him some, and he didn't take them off the rest of the trip!

We had so much fun! The weather was perfect everyday, and the company was even better! We met up with Drews mission companion his wife and two cute kids for dinner. That was so fun!

Just Drew, me and the Mickey hands!

Doesn't this just make you happy?

Just DrewBear and Kathy enjoying Alice in Wonderland!

The only teacup I will ever sit in! The stationary one outside of the ride! That ride makes me want to die! It was a fantastic trip! As always!

Pony Party!

My mom never does anything on a small scale! So what does she do for Easter for her grandkids... What else, she rents a pony!

Pony Parties were my favorite growing up! I think I had three with my friend Becca, we would have had more but they told us we were too old! Back in those days the ponies came with their handlers. Not this one, they just literally dropped it off and said "we'll me back, his names Snoopy, and he likes cake!"

The grandkids loved it!

Most of the time Snoopy just wandered around the tennis court with a kid on his back! It was too great! The horse just went about his business as power wheels raced passed him!

The best part was when it started to rain, all the kids went inside and my mom (being the true animal lover she is) stayed outside standing with the pony under an umbrella! She's too great!

Easter!

I love my job! Especially around holidays! After you leave elementary school you just don't get all the excitement you used to! Now I do again, there us always a fun activity to do with kids! 

Jane, Peter and Johnny showing their egg coloring skills!

And Claire on an early hunt for eggs! Look at the determination in that little face!

Then more festivities with the nieces and nephews!

Just when I thought my mom couldn't be anymore great she does something like this and makes me so proud to be her daughter! Yes her apron says Natasha! She came out saying "I don't even want to hear it, this apron cost me $1.50!" ha ha what a steal mom! Or as we now affectionately call her 'Tash!' (ps if you cover my mom and Indy's eyes their smiles are identical! How cute is that?!)

Bathrooms By Tiek Built Homes!

Tiek Built Homes had been improving a lot of bathrooms over the past few weeks. So I thought I would post some before and after shots of their great work. Before I start I thought I would showcase a few of Drew's footwear shots! He seems to have quite the eye for photography!

And this is why I am in charge of the camera! Who knows what we would have in a scrapbook if it were up to Drew!

Bathroom 1

I love this first picture. It looks like they were so anxious to get started that they didn't wait for the owners to take their towels down. Knowing Drew he probably was so excited he ran in and started tearing the walls down with his hands! Boy does he love this job! 

So they re tiled, put in baseboard and painted this bathroom. 

I think the most incredible feat of this bathroom was finding a paint color to work with the peach bathtub! And they did!

They made this little built in shelf, that turned out very nice I think! Good work Tiek Built Homes!

Bathroom 2

This is just after the demolition. 

Hanging the Sheetrock. 

The finished bench in the shower!

Finished shower. 

After demo. 

During the tiling.

Finished, I love how this turned out!

The owners wanted some extra storage so they built these great shelves for them. 

During. 

Finished! You can't really see the bead board on the bottom cabinet but it's there and I love it!