Christmas with the Reeves' Family

Last Sunday, we had Christmas with my side of the family because my parents and brother Evan were going to spend the actual day of Christmas in Utah with my sister Fallon and her family and my brother Cale. My bro, Ian, didn't fly in until Christmas Eve, so we missed him there. Here is a slide show of some of the festivities. Everyone had a good time hanging out together and eating good food.

Payton's 11th Birthday!

This past week has been a whirlwind of activity. I will be posting a lot tonight and tomorrow, but not necessarily in chronological order. On Monday, it was Payton's birthday. That morning, my girlfriends, Michelle, Renee & Elizabeth, came over with their kiddos and we decorated the 300 sugar cookies I made a few weeks ago. Yes, we had 17 kids under 1 roof. CRAZY! I moved the kitchen table out of the kitchen and laid down painter's plastic so the kids could just go to town and the clean up would be easy. The cookies didn't look very pretty, but they were SOOOOOO delicious! The plan was to go deliver them to a few nursing homes and sing carols while there, but with baby sleeping schedules, etc. we never got to do that. Clint, the kids and I delivered them to some families in our ward on Tuesday night instead. Renee, Tristan, Samantha, Sydney & Kennedy

Dallen, Ben, & Nicholas Hannah & Delaney


That night, all of our family that was in town came over to celebrate Payton's day and we had dinner. Renee, Elizabeth and I made 5 pans of yummy enchiladas! Payton wanted cheesecake, so we also made 4 from-scratch cheesecakes. We had cherry, raspberry, and strawberry toppings and 1 plain cheesecake. They were delicious!

My dad & Evan My dad & Karson & Kendall Corbin, Cole & Drew
Cam, Trent & Taylor

Ashton & Laney
Payton got a lot of great loot! She asked for posters & CDs of her favorite bands and big, dangly earrings. Here she is with some of it.

I was in the kitchen from 8:45 am until 7:30 pm and I was EXHAUSTED and very tired of doing dishes! Fortunately, everyone had a great time and the food tasted wonderful!

Here is yet another wonderful, family rendition of the Happy Birthday song!

High School Musical On Ice

A few weeks ago, I took Payton, Laney & Payton's friend Jacinda down to the Denver Coliseum to watch HSM on Ice. We had a pretty good time (thank you again to the radio station for free tix!). Delaney did ok during the show and really liked seeing Troy. The girls had fun singing along to all the songs and learning one of the dances from HSM3. I was REALLY tired and didn't feel well that night, but I'm glad I sucked it up and took the girls anyway because they had a pretty good time!

We Wish You A Merry Christmas

Delaney has watched Mickey's Twice Upon A Christmas everyday for the past few weeks. She walks around singing this all the time. As you will notice, she doesn't have ALL the words down correctly yet. It's still pretty dang cute though! And yes, occasionally I actually get her dressed, brush her teeth and do her hair.

Reverse Psychology

Laney has been a bit of a booger lately...well, I guess I shouldn't say just lately, because really she always is. Anyway, she will NOT do what I ask her to. However, when I say "don't" it's pretty much guaranteed she'll run and do it immediately. Here is proof. Please excuse the mess in the background, I've been cleaning out closets and dumping everything in piles on the floor to sort and post on Freecycle.

SANTA IS REAL!!!!

Cole accidentally posts things to my blog occasionally. Here is one of them. Cole was trying to post this on his blog, not mine...

Page Pets & MySpace Layouts

The Blog Frog

I'm trying to win a $200 gift certificate to Target, so whaddya say, will you help a sista out? Click here and I'll get an entry! I also have a link down on the left side over there ---->

Merry Christmas!

Tech Savvy at Any Age

I've been trying to do some work on my desk top and Laney is pretty high maintenance and demanding. So I asked her if she wanted to watch Dora on Nickjr.com (using my laptop) and she said yes. She pulled the little computer tray onto her lap and I thought it looked so funny with her little feet sticking out. It kind of looks like the witch's feet under the house on Wizard of Oz!

PHOOSON!

I alluded in a previous post to how lucky I am at winning contests. The day before Thanksgiving, I hopped in my car to go give blood and then run to Wal-Mart. As usual, I flipped on the radio to find something to listen to. As I was seeking, I tuned the dial to 96.1 KISS FM and heard them say something about Fantasy Flight. As FF was the way I won an 8 day all inclusive trip to Cancun 2 years ago, they had my full attention. Usually with FF there are certain call times and if you are the 9th caller, you get a shot at guessing which seat on the fantasy flight airplane is the one that gives you a ticket out of Denver. For details, right click here and open in another tab. However, when I began listening, I heard someone make a guess, then another caller, and another and figured out that they were just letting people call in and take guesses. Not wanting to miss out on the fun, I grabbed my phone and started dialing. The line started ringing and I got through. I guessed seat 21F and, believe it or not, THAT WAS THE SEAT! I was excited and starting screaming and carrying on when I realized I had no idea what I had just won. Apparently, the FF contest had been going on for a few weeks and they had to give the seat away that day. They told me about some concert in Phoenix called Phooson (Phoenix + Tucson = Phooson) with the new morning show personalities, JohnJay & Rich. I didn't really care, I just wanted to go somewhere, so they took my info and I needed to find a guest to go with me.

Without going into the gory details, Payton ended up getting to go with me! She was so excited because one of the headliners was Jesse McCartney. We had a blast! It was a quick trip, we flew out of snowy Denver on Friday morning and came back Saturday afternoon. The concert was 8 hours long. We also saw Mass Appeal, Varsity Fanclub, The Academy Is, Secondhand Serenade, Tokio Hotel, Pussycat Dolls, Katy Perry (my fav of the night...she is adorable), Rhianna, & Fall Out Boy, but not in that order. Since it was an all ages show, it actually wasn't too bad (I was afraid I'd have to run out of there covering Payton's eyes and ears).

I completely forgot to take my camera, so I had to run to Wal-Mart in Phoenix to grab the cheapest digital they had...hence barely any pics to post since the camera sucked taking pics in the dark. For good pictures right click here and open in a new tab.

Here is a picture of Payton & I documenting her very first ever concert!

The venue was Cricket Wireless Pavillion, which is outdoors, kind of like Fiddler's Green. It was gorgeous weather...perfect for a concert! We had pretty good seats and could see everything really well. It did get pretty cold around 10 pm, so I'm glad I swiped the blanket off the hotel bed before leaving for the concert. Needless to say, Payton was on cloud nine (especially after seeing JM in real life). Here is a short vid of him singing "Beautiful Soul"...don't expect much, the camera really sucked!

Pie Anyone?

So for the first time in my 30 years, I made pie FROM SCRATCH! I'm pretty sure it is the most amazing pie EVER! I made a pumpkin pie, apple/cranberry, sweet cherrity, and a peach pie with delectable candied pecans. Are you salivating yet or what?

Anyhow, I've been the mad baker lately. Within the past few weeks, I have made 300 sugar cookies, a bunch of kiss cookies, magic bars, no-bakes, pumpkin rolls (a total pain to make but so yummy) & my mom's famous fudge. The kids had fun helping me with the sugar cookies and they can't wait to frost them in a few weeks. Tomorrow I will head to the grocery store to get the ingredients for homemade oreo cookies and the yummiest peppermint ice cream cake. I better take advantage of this crazy baking frenzy while I'm in the mood!

Here are pictures of the first 2 pies. YUM!

Tagged: By Two

So I've been tagged probably 17 times in the past 30 days and I've been rebelling and not replying (so not me). So, here are my answers to 2 of the tags I got.

Two names you go by:
1. AJ
2. Hunny

Two things you are wearing right now:
1. jeans
2. pink fuzzy socks (it's cold down here)

Two of your favorite things to do:
1. GNO (that's girls night out, sicko)
2. game night

Two things you want very badly at the moment:
1. A new house
2. A new job for Clint

Two favorite pets you have had/have
1. Milo the bestest westie in the world
2. Sadie when I was hallucinating and thought I liked cats

Two things you ate today:
1.Honey Nut Cheerios
2.Meatloaf (seriously)

Two people you have talked to today?
1. Ian
2. Fallon

Two things you're doing tomorrow:
1. Going to lunch with my best buddy Tony
2. Going to Wal-Mart to buy more stuff to bake (see above)

Two longest car rides:
1. Michigan by myself
2. Whenever Clint and I are fighting

Two favorite holidays:
1. Christmas
2. Halloween

Two favorite beverages:
1. Water w/ no fruit in it!
2. Diet Dr. Pepper
1. What is your occupation right now? Stay at home mommy - FINALLY!
2. What color are your socks right now? Pink/white stripes
3. What are you listening to right now? The kids playing guitar hero
4. What was the last thing that you ate? Salad
5. Can you drive a stick shift? Yes
6. Last person you spoke to on the phone? Cheryl
8. How old are you today? 30
9. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Volleyball or football
11. Have you ever dyed your hair? Yes
12. Favorite food? Chocolate
13. What is the last movie you watched? Twilight (disappointing)
14. Favorite day of the year? Christmas Eve
15. How do you vent anger? Cry and write in my online journal
16. What was your favorite toy as a child? I don't really remember...maybe my life-size Mickey Mouse
17. What is your favorite season? Spring
18. Cherries or Blueberries? Blueberries or maraschino cherries
22. Living arrangements? Let's not go there
23. When was the last time you cried? Earlier today...I'm a bit emotional lately
24. What is on the floor of your closet? Shoes, shoes, & more shoes. Also a karaoke machine & printer paper
25. Who is the friend you have had the longest that you still talk to? Besides family members, I would have to say Jess M
26. What did you do last night? Burned some CDs
27. What are you most afraid of? Losing a child
28. Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers? Bacon cheeseburger
29. Favorite dog breed? Westies for permanent, labs for puppy love
30. Favorite day of the week? Monday – everything starts anew.
31. How many states have you lived in? 5
32. Diamonds or pearls? DIAMONDS!
33. What is your favorite flower? Stargazer Lily

Cole's Birthday Party

Cole got to spread his birthday out a bit this year. This past Friday, he had his party at an indoor pool. We've done lots of parties at this pool and it is always one of the kids' favorite places. I like it because it is pretty cheap compared to most indoor parties and they do all the set up & clean up! Anyhow, he had 21 of his closest friends there. Here are some pictures and some video of the night. You can read Cole's blog to hear about all the gifts he scored!

For some reason, I wasn't thinking clearly when Cole asked me what time to put on his invitations. I told him 6-9 (pool operating hours). We've never done a 3 hour long pool party. I was pooped by the end of the night and I didn't even get in the water! I was just sure the kids would sleep in the next morning, but they were so excited about helping Cole open his presents that everyone was up in my house by 6:30 on Saturday morning! Ugh! So much for sleeping in and recuperating!

The kids were pretty wound up all night!
Payton & her girlfriends McKenna & Ember
Corbin & his best buddy, Glenn.Taylor & DelaneyCade and his buddy, Logan
Clearly enjoying their cupcakes! Victoria B, Peter, Trent, Charlie, McKenna, Payton, Hunter, Cole & Drew.Jackson & Brexton
Victoria C, Cole, & Victoria B
Cole, Charlie, Trent, Peter, & BlakeCharlie, Calvin, Cole, Trent & Cade in line for the diving board. You can kind of see Peter & Misty in the background on the 2nd board.

Here is the gang doing a fantastic rendition of "Happy Birthday"...see below for video

Here are the boys playing tackle football with a nerf football Cole got from Blake.

Harvest Farms

I win things all the time. I've won trips to Mexico & San Diego. Tickets to concerts, shows, movies, etc. The kids always ask me what I've won this week. Well, I was lucky enough to score us some tickets to a big pumpkin patch/corn maze. Unfortunately, we were so busy the week of Halloween, that we weren't able to use them until Nov. 1. However, that really worked in our favor as there were not very many people there. We started just by walking around and checking things out. The kids had a really good time getting their pictures taken in the cut-outs around the farm. Then we went to see the farm animals in the petting zoo.

Then the kids raced some cute little John Deere tractor trikes around a big racetrack. Corbin won and gloated about it for the rest of the night. After the tractor race, we watched some pig racing (we were feeling really red neck by then). The kids then jumped around on some giant bales of hay. I got some good action photos of them there. Then we went calf roping. It was funny to watch the kids whip those lassos around!

Finally after all of that, the real fun began. We bought some tokens and headed to the batting cages. There was a pitcher who pitched us real pumpkins. We all had a blast smashing the bajeebies out of the pumpkins. Clint and I both had pumpkin mush in our hair that we were picking out for the rest of the night. I got some pretty good video of the pumpkin smashing.




After that, we used our remaining tokens for the corn cannons. They were really cool. They would shove ears of corn down the barrel and then the kids could shoot them (they were supposed to aim for targets out in the field). Payton actually hit one! The rest of the kids shot their corn straight up. It was amazing to see how high those ears of corn went! Laney didn't much like the corn cannons because they were really loud.



When we were all out of tokens, we headed to the corn maze. You can get an aerial picture of this year's maze here. We entered at the top in the circle and headed through Celebrating (see picture for info). We ended coming out of Colorado (the exact opposite side of where we should have come out) about an hour later. Luckily, since it was the last day of the maze being open, there were lots of man-made short cuts through the dead corn field, which made it much easier once we finally admitted defeat and just wanted to get out!

As we were leaving, we decided to take a quick family photo. As we were posing, a woman came up to us and handed us another $30 in tokens saying she bought way too many to use and was leaving. SCORE! You can probably figure out that we immediately headed back for the pumpkin smash. After everyone getting another 6 pitches there, we spent the remaining tokens at the pumpkin blaster (like the corn cannons but bigger, scarier and way louder).

We finally decided we were hungry and needed dinner. Then Corbin saw the hay ride. They had just gotten back from one ride, so we piled in and waited for the driver to take us around. And we waited...and waited...and finally after 10 minutes of that crap, we decided the driver wasn't coming back, so we left.

What a fun day for everyone!

Holy Halloween Batman!

So, this has been an extremely long day for me! About 4 months ago, I volunteered to be in charge of the 3rd grade (Cole's class) Rome Day Festival. I was thinking that we would be in Fort Collins by now, so it wouldn't be that big a deal. However, we are still 1/2 hour away and it was a big deal! But I guess it was worth it because the kids had a really good time on our trip to Ancient Rome and everything ran pretty smoothly. We did clay reliefs, bulla lockets, mosaic pictures, Roman Baths, chariot races, and marshmallow catapults. It was a blast. However, I'm pretty sick of being at the school!

Our plane ride to Rome
The kids got split up into 4 different social classes. Patricians (wealthy upper-class), Plebians (more middle class), Soldiers and Slaves. Cole was a plebian.Here is Cole pulling in the chariot races
Corbin had his Nursery Rhyme recitation. He chose Humpty Dumpty. I was trying to see him a little better when I was recording him, so I flipped the camera so this is sideways. Proof that I don't think clearly on no sleep (we were at the school until almost 10 pm last night setting up Rome). Corbin is posing with his best buddy Glenn.


Cade had his Westward Expansion party today and he got to go to a ranch. He learned some square dancing moves, raced on stick horses, and took a hay ride. He said he LOVED it all! Here he is as a cowboy.

Of course, this evening we went out trick-or-treating. Clint took the older 4 kids and our nephews Taylor & Drew around the neighborhood. I hung back with Laney. Here are some pictures of the night and a little video of Laney all by herself!Here is "scary Hulk"