Christmas Came and Went

Well Christmas is over and I can't really believe it. It seems like December just flew by way too fast. With all my last minute shopping and wrapping it's already over! We had a great Christmas this year! Landon was sick and I was really bummed that for his first Christmas he wouldn't get to really enjoy it being his cheerful self. Instead he was irritable and a little grumpy. After my threats that Santa wouldn't come, he did in fact make it and the boys totally scored! Okay Bradley wasn't that bad, but don't all parents use that threat?? This was taken on the Eve of Christmas Eve. Yeah, all my shopping was done!!!

We had a delicious meal at Dustin and Leah's on Christmas Eve. Landon totally zonked out while Grandpa was holding him.

After dinner we exchanged our Secret Santa gifts.

Then it was on to Grandma and Grandpa's to open more presents!!! This picture was shot from my lap. I was completely covered in gifts!

Bradley got this hermit crab house and food bowl (along with other stuff) from my best friend Amanda. She got both of my boys (and myself) totally cute stuff. It was so sweet of her to think of them!

Once again Grandma and Grandpa Great gave the best stuff!!! This pillow was just one thing that Bradley got from them. The kids went crazy for the pillows they got!

Grandma and Grandpa got Bradley this Transformer mask. Tyler was really jealous...

Which led to him stealing it from Bradley and putting it on himself!!! You gotta love this pic! If only he had on short-shorts and socks pulled up to his knees this would really take him back to his childhood!!!

Grandma and Grandpa got Landon this super cute Retro Rocket! Despite being sick he still enjoyed poking the buttons. But he was not going to smile and be happy about it!

Dad was THRILLED to recieve a case of his 2nd favorite drink of choice Red Bull (we all know PEPSI will always be his #1) from all us kids!!! He put back 4 before running around doing cartwheels and back flips. Nah, just kidding, but wouldn't that be funny?? (Just look closely and you can see his can of PEPSI in the background. REPRESENT!!!)

After getting my mom a Dooney and Bourke that she was not so crazy about last year, my dad got her another Dooney and Bourke this year that she LOVES!!! You can tell by the ear to ear grin. Isn't it cute?

The grand finale every year is the tote that my mom puts together. I wish you could really see everything my mom puts in there. It's our favorite thing to get! She totally stocks us up on everything like ketchup, parmessan cheese, batteries, Jelly Bellies (Dustin's favorite), photo albums, brownie and cake mix, tuna, canned goods, paper plates, napkins, toilet paper (Tyler LOVES that), paper towel, flour, sugar, rice krispie treats, granola bars, scalloped potatoes, chicken helper meals (right up my alley), and even more things that I can't think of right now. We appreciate it so much!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Bradley was SO excited to get footie jammies from Dustin and Leah (because I could never find them at the store) that he had to strip down and put them on and model some brownie mix from our tote.

How does Jerolyn put it?? Psssstttttt...AAAHHHHHH!!!!!!! You know I had to partake in the Nectar of the Gods!!! Nothing like an ICE COLD PEPSI to make your Christmas even marry-er than it already is!!! Gotta REPRESENT!!!

Scotty was sportin' a cute hoodie somebody super cool must have gotten for him. So cute!

Kiersten had a very Merry 1st Christmas but was just as happy to be heading home after the festivities! So precious!

Santa's little set up!

Bradley was so stoked that Santa got him the Mongoose that he wanted and was ready to take it for a ride!

These are the ornaments that Bradley made for us and he was VERY proud of them. He put a lot of work into them. He said, "The popcicle sticks were the hardest part" with a sigh. I just LOVE that he was so excited to give us these. They are so cute!

By the time I was almost done opening one toy, Bradley would lose interest and find something else he wanted to open and play with. Finally Bradley realized if he pitched in on untwisting and unscrewing that it would make things a lot easier for us to get things put together. What a guy! But really, do they think these toys are going through a twister before they get to my house?!? They package these toys so that they are so hard to get out!!! Ugh!

Landon was checking out the Cookie Monster remote we got him. I just love how his little ankles are crossed! Five days after Christmas and we already have lost this toy! I'm sure it will turn up somewhere unexpected.

We LOVE Little People so we had to get Landon the barn to add to our collection. Remember he was sick, so that should explain the blank expression on his face. Now that he's feeling better, he loves it!

This is the Little People piggy's butt/tail that came with the barn. Isn't it cute?!?

I told you he wanted to take it for a ride. So he did- through the house! It's Christmas, I'll let it slide!

Bradley pushing Landon around on his Little People school bus.

Santa got Bradley this thing that flies around in the house (and runs into the walls). He was diggin' this!

My in-laws got Bradley this really cool drum set. He wanted it set up SO bad! So when Landon would nap, I'd work on putting it together for him. He is SO PUNK ROCK!!! He had to take off his shirt. I told him Dustin could come over and show him some skills. He looked at me VERY serious and said," Why do I need him to show me some skills? I'm already great." very matter-of -fact. We love to listen to him rock out! Soon he won't have any room left in his playroom!

Landon was enjoying one of Bradley's drum solo's!

This one, not so much.

Oh yeah! That's what I like Brad!!! Woohoo!!!

My in-laws also got him this really nice easel because he loves to draw.

These pics are from today. It is SO hard to take a picture of the boys together. Landon just wants to look at Bradley, or the rock on the ground, or ANYTHING that isn't mom with the camera!

Bradley was gettting annoyed so he tried to explain to Landon that he needs to look at me and smile so he can go ride his bike.

I guess the pep talk kind of worked. But all I got was this goofy smile with the scrunched up nose. Kinda like our Christmas card pic this year! What are ya gonna do?? He's still dang cute!

Bradley paused for a quick pic for me before taking off on his new ride.

FINALLY!!! A pic of Landon with a cute smile!!! I just LOVE THIS BABY!!!

I still can't believe it's almost 2008! In 8 weeks Landon will be 1 year old! Where'd all the time go?? Well, I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and that you have a Happy New Year!!!

Bradley, Bradley, Bradley...

Yesterday Frankie went by himself to go pick Bradley up from school. We always get there early so we can park right up front, grab him, and get out of there. I stayed home with Landon because we were going to see Santa at the mall after school and I had to feed him and pack the diaper bag and what not. Bradley gets out of school at 3:46 and when it was almost 4:00 and they weren't home I was getting annoyed because I wanted to get the show on the road. Well at 4:00 Frankie calls and this is how the conversation went:
Frankie- "Bradley never came out."
me- "What do you mean?!?"
Frankie- "All the kids are gone and he never came out!"
me- "Oh my gosh! Did you go to the office?!?"
Frankie- "I'm going there now. I just went around the corner and everyone is gone. I peeked into SafeKey. He's not there."
*Just a little note. I'm ALWAYS there to get Bradley. He never goes home with anyone else. Sometimes I get out of the truck and wait for him and chat with my mom friends, but he usually just walks to the truck that's parked not too far away. It's very routine.
me-"Oh my gosh, bleep bleep bleep...!!!"
I could hear Frankie talking to them. They page him on the loud speaker.
We hang up.
Frankie calls back.
me-"Did you find him?!!!"
Frankie (very worried)-"No!"
He runs down the hall to his classroom where he finds a substitute. "Was Bradley Farina in class today?"
substitute- "Yep. He left with the rest of the class."
At this time I'm getting Landon's infant car seat and loading him up to drive where we walk, when we walk home together.
At this point my mind is racing. It's 4:10ish and he's been out of school for almost a half an hour. WHERE IS MY BRADLEY??? He was nowhere on the walking route home so now I'm in FULL ON FREAK OUT MODE!!! I cruise around the school once to see if he's standing around. Then I call my mom crying,"We can't find Bradley!!!" So she's all freaked out now but I had to hang up because then I pull up to the school where Frankie's standing looking very pale, and one of the office workers comes and gets Landon out of the car because I'm crying at this point worried out of my mind! (I wasn't throwing myself on the ground, or making a huge scene- just VERY freaked out.)
The office lady says,"Is there any friend you think he would have gone home with?"
me- "No! I always pick him up. And what parent would take him home without talking to me??"
office lady- "Maybe he walked home with a friend."
me-"He wouldn't do that. He's never done that!"
We go into the office where the principal (Mrs. Douglass- love her!) is calling his teacher at home asking if she knew anyone that she thinks Bradley could have left with. Mrs. Marcus said,"That doesn't sound like Bradley." I know this because he's very cautious. Mrs. Douglass kept reassuring me, "Don't worry. We'll find him. This happens about once a week." My mind is hurting because everything that could have possibly happened was running through my mind. Frankie had left in the Tahoe and I didn't know where he was going and barely noticed he left. I think it was the lack of oxygen to my brain. The secretary was calling some friends from class to see if they knew anything. I don't know the lady's name (who I'm referring to as the office worker lady) but she was like a little angel entertaining Landon and calming me down reminding me to breathe because I was still crying, feeling very helpless, I wish I knew who she was. By this time it's almost 4:30 and I get a call from Frankie. "He's ringing our doorbell!!!" So I say,"WE FOUND HIM!" I was SO relieved, I can't even put it into words! Frankie said that Bradley told him that he walked home.
They were right! I didn't think Bradley would ever do that. But they were right. Of course Bradley is totally oblivious to why we're all totally freaked out. He's just wondering why I'm not answering the door. Ummm, because I'm at the school looking for you!!! About to have a heart attack!
Mrs. Douglass comes and gives me a big hug. Thank goodness for her! She was so calm about the whole thing because Lord knows if she was showing any kind of panic I would have been even more freaked out (if that's possible). And the lady who was calming me down joked,"Now when you get home don't beat the crap out of him." I said, "Don't worry. I'm too relieved to be mad that he decided today would be the day that he walked home alone... Give me a couple hours." Then we hugged. And the world seemed whole again. My Bradley was OKAY!!!
Bradley said that he didn't see the Tahoe, which I just can't imagine because we park right up in the front. But then I couldn't help but ask Frankie,"Why weren't you looking for him after the bell rang as the kids were walking out from the gate? I always do." Frankie, "I don't know. He just always walks up to the truck." Me," How did you NOT see him walk right by on the sidewalk??" Basically Frankie never thought Bradley would do that, nor did I. We still keep looking at each other saying," I can't believe he walked home by himself."
*Just another little side note. The reason I didn't see him walking where we usually would walk on our way home is because there is a registered sex offender in our neighborhood (Yeah, I'm really thrilled about that! It's not too close to our house, but it's still too close for comfort.) and I've shown him the house and told him never to go near it or talk to the man who lives there. He said,"Mom I went the long way so I wouldn't have to walk by the bad guys house." At least he did remember what I told him and was smart enough to steer clear of "the bad guys house".
Moral of the story, IT'S THE WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD NOT KNOWING WHERE YOUR CHILD IS!!! I really don't know what I'd do without my Bradley! Thank the Lord that he made it home safe and sound. I'm so thankful everyone in the office made me feel calm (as calm as I could be) in the situation.
And yes, we still got to go see Santa!

I got ELFed!

I finally got ELFed. You should try it some time! Click the link below and enjoy!

www.elfyourself.com/?id=1296013566

Cousin's Party 2007

Friday night was the long anticipated Cousin's Party at our house. I can happily say that after A LOT of stressing and worrying, that it turned out great!!! I don't throw these sorts of parties so I wasn't sure how it was going to flow. But everyone brought food and desserts and we got a Honey Baked Ham (which was the BEST Honey Baked Ham I've ever had! Haha! Anyone sitting at our table for dinner will get that one!) and it was all delicious!!! Thanks to everyone for all the yummy stuff you brought! I love these first two pictures because everyone stopped briefly to smile for this one and then...

Back to business!!! I told you the food was yummy!

Sorry this one's a bit blurry.

2/3's of my cute boys!

My Dad and Christina were definitely enjoying their dinners!!!

Getting ready for white elephant.

One half of the room.

Almost the other half.

Doug scored a Cut the Cheese shirt that we all agreed David would totally sport. I think somebody stole it later on though. I'm sure Doug (and Kristi) were so sad!

This is my dad imitating Frankie with the pink pillow (who was imitating Karsten) with his white elephant gift. See how trends get started. I love Tyler's face! I think he had put back about 2 Pepsi's by now. He's got to learn to pace himself.

Nate got some really beautiful canisters!

This is the pie dish that Dustin and Leah gave as a white elephant gift the first year we had a Cousin's Party. Can you see the excitement in his face to have it back after so many years?!? He really had to force that smile.

My mom, America's Next Top Model, shows off her super sweet golf hat that she got. What a babe!

Tyler was being naughty with Dad's white elephant gift and cracking himself up.

Naughty, naughty, but so FUNNY!

After white elephant we skipped Catch Phrase and went straight for the notorious grenade from Thanksgiving weekend. For anyone who doesn't know about it, it's a grenade that shocks you when you squeeze it. As you can see Nate LOVED it!

Sarah wanted nothing to do with it. And Tyler B. tried his hardest. Just check Tyler's page and watch the video. So they passed it on.

Darin was killing me! It took a couple minutes for him to do it...

Some tears were shed laughing so hard. And this was all BEFORE he did it!

My dad thinks he's a pro. Just look at that smirk.

Darin's going for it. Look at that concentration.

Tyler has done it before and knowing what it feels like, he was hesitant. You can almost see his thoughts..."Just do it. You're not a wimp. You're an officer of the law damn it. Come on." Darin was still wiping away the tears.

Doug must have his own grenade at home, because he took it like a champ.

Kevin's reaction rivals the reaction of Darin and Stacy (when it was in her cleavage. Again, click on Tyler's link on my page. It's a must see video!) I think I was crying at this point!

Erin makes it look painful! Kevin was lovin' it!

Aunt Beth stepped up to the plate even after Frankie pushed it into her palm as he handed it to her, shocking her. Go Aunt Beth!

Once again Darin had me in tears when he wanted another turn. This is him literally jumping out of his chair! He jumped right out of the picture! SO FUNNY!

WARNING! This is a little X-rated. Stacy was gettin' all wild and wanted to know how it would feel to put it in her cleavage. She told Nate to push her boobs together because she just couldn't do it herself. Of course Nate jumped at the opprotunity. Let's just say it was freakin' hilarious!!! Who knew Stacy was such a wild child?!? CHECK OUT THE VIDEO!

Sarah was the only one willing to try and eat 12 saltines in 1 minute. Frankie offered $200 to anyone who could do it. I think she only got two down. It's not as easy as it sounds!

Landon made his rounds at the party and just loved Jerolyn's buttons on her shirt.

Later on Bradley went around asking if he could have any white elephant gifts and he scored. I was going to take his picture with all of his treasures from the evening, but I forgot. Doug, Frankie said thanks for the dice! Although I'm starting to lose a little hair on my head. Haha! We had a great time and were glad you all could make it! We can't wait 'til next year!