Luckiest girls in the world

Bethany got me something super awesome for my birthday. 

Tickets to a concert in Idaho.

A concert that we had already seen in Portland.

A concert we would be taking our girls to.

People gave us dirty looks when we walked into the arena...I can only imagine what they were thinking.

All I have to say is...

Take that suckas.

Bring it on

I've realized recently that there are many different ways to raise children, and some people are not afraid to tell you that you're doing it wrong. (Not that it's happened to me, I'm the perfect mom...as you will soon see).

One thing that Ben and I have always agreed on is that we want our kids to love books. We started reading to them when they were brand new and haven't stopped. So far it's worked, as all our kids love to be read to.

James has taken it to a whole new level in the past few weeks. He's an exceptional reader and has been reading chapter books like crazy since summer started. One day he saw a commercial for the new Lego Harry Potter game and just about died. He's mastered the Lego Indiana Jones 1 & 2 and has been looking for something new to play. I told him that I wasn't about to buy him a game when he didn't even know what the story was about, and if he read the first 4 books, then we could get the game. I was thinking this would buy me a couple months at least...but no.

He started with the first book and plowed through it, reading in the bathroom, in the car, in the middle of the night with a flashlight, etc. I would ask him questions after each chapter, to make sure he was actually grasping it and not just skipping through it and he could remember details that I couldn't! He finished it in a week. A week!

I had also told him that once he finished the book we would let him see the first movie. I wish I had videotaped his reactions while he watched it. He sat there, on the couch, clutching his book and yelling out things he remembered. When Harry first appeared on the screen he said in a hushed, awe-filled voice, "the boy who lived". At another point, he corrected the dialogue, saying, "that's not how it happened in the book." He would flip through the pages, finding the certain scene that was playing at the time and reread it, making sure they got it right. Ben and I felt like kids again, watching how excited he was to discover this new world.

So, I know that the subject matter may be a little intense for a boy James' age. But he knows it's not real and he doesn't get scared about things like this. People are probably going to think I'm crazy and irresponsible, but I don't care. As long as he's reading and loving it, I'm going to support it. He's already 30 pages into the second one and loving it just as much.

So that's me being an awesome mom!

If you think this is bad, wait until you see where I'm taking Avery this weekend :)

Who would have thought

If you had asked me 15 years ago what commercialized toy my own kids would be obsessed with I would never had guessed Pokemon.

I find myself now listening to James talk about characters and levels and powers, exactly how I remember my little brothers talking about it - 15 years ago.

I wish I had bought stock in it back then.

Rather than shun it, I've decided to embrace it. When James told me he wanted to start a club I said go for it. When he said he wanted to have a party I said sure.  When he told me the schedule for his party/club I had to admire his enthusiasm and planning skills (I wonder where he got it). 

I give you the club members:

James had three requests for this party. That I print out a ton of pictures for each boy to color, have time to trade cards and watch a Pokemon show. 

Here they are all watching a show, holding their cards. It was seriously the cutest thing ever.

I thought it would be a one-time deal...but no...the boys are all requesting weekly, if not bi-weekly meetings. 

Seriously, who would have thought.

My AMAZING 30th Birthday!

The kids woke me up singing and handed me this...

I opened it up to find this...

I walked out of the house to find this...

and no, Ben did NOT buy me a Boxster for my birthday...it was on loan from my Dad :)

We went to breakfast and afterwards I was handed another envelope that had this...

Which sent me here...

Where I had a HEAVENLY 50 minute massage. After I was done they handed me another envelope with this...

Which sent me here...

Where, luckily, Bethany was waiting. I didn't want to get a manicure with a stranger! We got our nails done and our eyebrows waxed. Then I got another envelope with this...

We had two hours to kill so we went over to the local mall, went shopping and got our make-up done at MAC. Then it was off for some sushi! Ben is always trying to get me to try his favorite piece of sushi - the smoked salmon sashimi - and I always refuse. There was no saying no this time! I took a bite - and that was good enough for me :)

Bethany gave me the next envelope that said this...

I went a little blonder and a little shorter! After my haircut I got the next envelope with this...

I had a Garmin GPS handheld thing in the car that I COULD NOT figure out. I was following this arrow and ended up at a park, but could not find a tree with a "throat". I finally called Ben and I was WAY off from where I was supposed to be. He gave me an address that I could plug into the car's navigation and that worked way better. I found the right park and the right tree.

I had to reach inside under some grass to find the next envelope that said this...

I drove over to the library, found a good book and just relaxed. About 45 minutes later I got a text from Ben with an ISBN number. I looked it up on the computer, found it and sure enough, there was an envelope that held this...

I got to Bethany's house and she said there was one more clue in her family room. I walked down the hall, turned and corner and SURPRISE!! My family and bestest friends were all there! It was such a great surprise. They had all been in on the whole day, watching my kids and stuff, which made it even better. We had a barbecue, watched the kids dance, I got some sweet presents and, of course, cupcakes!

Bethany and Ben spent HOURS making these...

Jacob even came to my party!

There was one more clue to finish up the night...

It was seriously the best day ever. I cannot believe how much time and effort Ben put into the planning and executing of it. I have never felt so pampered, loved or spoiled in my entire life. I'll have to start planning his 35th now, if I want a chance to come even CLOSE to this!

Thanks to all my friends and family for making me feel so special!