First Snow of the season

Yep so it is...the first snow of the season for us up here in the beautiful pines of PV. I woke up this morning to the wonderful views of snow out my back window. It was all grand and great, until I had to drive in it. There was about a 20 car mess trying to get out of our community, cars in the ditch, stuck in the median and jack-knifed. It was so scary. It took me 3 times to get out of my community and all three times I was just about sick to my stomach at the thought of the inevidable. I love the snow...just not driving in it. I have love for all you minnesota, washington and illinois snow drivers!!! For the record; this is the WORST snow I have seen here (ice wise) since we have lived here in over 3 years.

Below you see bo in the last picture...he was acting like a crazy man out there in the snow~too bad he hurt himself so bad that this evening he can barely walk...my poor bubbers! He LOVED it though..he was racing around the back yard like a maniac at 5 am in the morning...lol.

Let the constructing begin

Ty has officially started to re-do my old schwinn bicycle that I used to ride when I was a kid. With the help of his brother, they have taken the bike completely apart. They are going to sand it, paint it and make it all brand new for Alexa for Christmas.

For those who don't know about this bike, I'll share with you the story of how it came into my life. When I was 8 years old my grandfather bought me this bike for my birthday, I remember it well...with its old blue scratched up paint, white glitter banana seat and the big white basket on the front. I thought I was lance armstrong on this bike let me tell ya, I thought I was hot stuff!

Then around the age of, um, lets say 12...I hated this bike, with a passion! It was too old school for me..I wanted a BMX, but NOPE! My tata was a man who wasted nothing, if that bike had 2 wheels and would still pedal around then it was good enough for me. According to him, that was a "perfectly good bike"!! So what did I do you ask? What a typical spoiled brat would do, I REFUSED to ride it. Instead, I took up rollersating to get around. (which I ended up breaking my arm at his house, see he should have listened to my requests in the 1st place)

The bike was then passed on to my poor little cousin. She too, hated that bike. In the same fashion, tata told her the same thing he told me : "thats a perfectly good bike!". She even recently told me she had tried abandon the bike in the wash near their house in the hopes of maybe getting a new bike...but those hopes were squashed when a local neighbor walking in the wash noticed a bike that he had seen one too many of my tata's grandkids riding on and doing the "good neighbor' thing they do...he brought the bike back to my tata's house. Needless to say, my cousin was furious that this bike had been recovered...but tata was THRILLED!

So about 5 years ago, my tata gave me my bike back so my kids could ride it. At first I was horrified to see that same old, dingy bike arrive back at my door. It has since become a family heirloom, and it has touched me that my tata has kept it for all these years and never tossed it out. It has many memories of my childhood, as I'm sure many memories for him as he remembers all his grandkids riding this bike. (and now we're all grown up) If you can beleive it, my kids LOVE this bike! So we thought it would be a great idea to take this perfectly good, solid constructed bike and fix it up since it is afterall, a classic. And a classic in my family.

My tata doesn't know our plans of fixing up the bike & this year he will be spending christmas with us...I can't wait to surprise him and alexa with a brand new shiny pink schwinn. (Shhh..don't tell mom) OH, and the funnier thing is my cousin who ditched this same bike will be here too..LOL. I'll post pictures once it's done.

Lexa's new haircut

Alexa badly wanted another 'short do' and since I know what she will do if we don't comply with her hair requests, we cut her hair today. I am not the mom who really likes my girls to cut their hair short, but she is very able to wear a short haircut and rock it! She looks so cute!!! 1 down, 3 to go before christmas.

Thanksgiving is the start...

to BLACK FRIDAY! Oh yes, you better beleive my butt was at the store at 3:45am waiting to get, well, I'm not sure exactly what I was going after this year really. I just had to go! I was able to start my christmas shopping and slowly I will finish it all by the time christmas comes. Nothing is better then the larger ticketed items kids request as they get older...joy! Atleast the 3 younger kids are easy to please still :)

BTW...walmart was still a mad house!! At one point I asked myself WHY I was even there! It's amazing to me how many adults will act like such immature children over stupid $10 toys. I mean really, I'm seriously thinking the $5 I save on that same $10 black friday toy..isn't worth practially loosing a limb or getting the back of my heels bloody. Don't get me wrong, I consider myself to be a Black Friday Pro Shopper...but I'm certainly not vicious; unless I'm forced! After last year when someone stole, YES I SAID STOLE the wii out of my cart...I'm a little bitter :)

Tylers Funnies Part 2

Our conversation last night at dinner:

Alexa: mom, tyler has a girlfriend

Me: What?

Tyler: Well mom, there is this girl at school...she has had a crush on me and I've had a crush on her...so we decided we'de just get together

Me: What do you mean "get together"

Tyler: ya' know...we're going out now mom! (almost with like a DUH mom attitude)

Paige: Well make sure you don't kiss her tyler

Tyler: Oh we can't Paige, we aren't allowed to make out at school anymore!

Me: SPEECHLESS!

Trading Tuesday

CUBAN CHICKEN~~

Chicken leg quarters (or breasts if you prefer) I made 10 pounds..

Mojo Marinade ...Goya brand

1/2cup diced white/yellow onion

1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley

2 limes, sliced in wedges

Marinate the chicken in the mojo marinade for atleast 4 hours. We did ours overnight. Chop onion & parsley and place in a bowl together and refridgerate for an hour so the flavors can mary. Place all the chicken on a baking sheet sprayed with PAM, bake for 45-55 minutes at 350; or until cooked through and has roasted color to it. The legs take much longer to cook then the breasted chicken. Once chicken is done, squeeze with 2 limes and cover with your parsley/onion mixture.

We served ours with pan roasted/carmelized veggies & couscous with parmesean & pine nuts.

CousCous: make according to directions on the box~I make 2 servings which is 2.5 cups chicken stock with 2 cups couscous. I add an assortment of seasinings, just depends on what I am making. This particular one I added garlic powder, kosher salt,pepper, toasted pinenuts. Once the couscous is cooked I added the parm cheese, fresh parsley, green onions and some olive oil until the mixture was no longer clumpy. The kids like it.

1st Place Champions!

So it is, they have won their division. She played 10 games while being completly un-defeated. Talk about something to be proud of! These girls did an amazing job and their teamwork with each other is what brought them to the 1st place trophy. I'm so proud of her & her team!!

The last game was probably the best game they have ever played. The other team played very well and made our girls really work hard. The majority of the game I was at the edge of my seat, while screaming! (I think I will be out of a voice tomarrow) Ofcourse, I was screaming nothing but goodness to my kyky...lol. :)

I have to say that Girls are the most aggressive soccer players I have yet to see, and also the most compassionate. Kyla has played in this league for several years and is friends with many of the girls on her opposing teams...
When kyla came up to me after the end of the game, I was immediately praising her and giving her many of hugs and she turned to me and said that she felt really bad for winning because the other girls were so upset & she had seen one girl crying. At that moment, I realized how much MORE then soccer kyla has learned from her years in sports. She knows what it feels like to be on both sides of the fence, she knows when to gloat and when to be compassionate. I'm so proud of her for GREAT SPORTSMANSHIP!

**but she is still excited about collecting that 1st place trophy on tuesday** By the way, kyla is trying out for the traveling soccer team on tuesday night, which would allow her to keep playing into early spring. I'll keep ya posted