Gosh I love my son

Dad came home from work and glanced at Brad’s schoolwork hanging on the fridge.
With a flattered tone he said “Awe…Brad that is really nice of you to say that. What made you write that you were thankful for your Dad?”
Brads response:
“Well, we couldn’t have the same answer as anyone else. My friend next to me put Mom so I had to put your name.”

What a funny kid.

Deutchland Chapter VII

(In case you missed Chapters I-VI go HERE)

My goal is to finish writing about my Germany Trip by the end of the year. I feel bad because a lot of the details are getting fuzzy.
The kids are in bed and Randy is watching a Jazz game. Here we go…

The Zugspitze




Just to give a little background-The Zugspitze is the highest mountain range in Germany. It is also part of the Alps. It is on the Austrian and German border. We paid a LOT of money to ride a tram to the top. WORTH EVERY PENNY!!! The ride up was exhilarating. I felt like I needed to hold my breath so the cable car would not sway so much. I felt weightless in a very strange way. It was an incredible sensation. These pictures don’t do it any justice. We were so high.





Once we reached the top we could walk out on a huge platform to a viewing area. It was stomach-churning to walk out toward the edge. The scene was breathtaking. After getting our fill of thrill we rode another tram to the summit where they built a ski resort. I am not much of a skier but I could picture myself skiing on the top of the Alps. We also visited the highest Chapel in Germany, and had a real Alps snowball fight.








To get down we rode a cog train that tunneled through the mountain. It was so steep in places you had to brace yourself with your feet on the seat in front. It was really cool. I was a little relieved when we stepped off the train to lower ground.




Just a little Bavarian countryside along the way. Randy found a golf course so naturally we stopped to take pictures.





After Zugspitze we headed to Bavaria to see the famous Neuschwanstein Castle. This is the castle was the inspiration for the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Park. I had to go see it. I was blown away at all the minute detail of the castle. Every nook and cranny was intricate. This castle was a newer castle built in 1886. The construction of the castle was never finished because King Ludwig mysteriously drowned before its completion. I would have loved to see it finished.











I took this picture just for Steven to prove that even Germans have Mullets...although it was probably an American tourist.


After the tour we found a great little pub in small village to have dinner. It was seriously so delicious. This was my favorite dinner of the whole trip. It was a skillet with every meat and vegetable imaginable. My mouth waters just thinking about it. We found a great little apartment to stay in that night. After getting settled in we could hear a bunch of commotion out our window. Our curious minds needed to know what was going on so we started walking toward the noise. It was not long before we were surrounded by a swarm of PLASTERED and I mean PLASTERED Germans. They were just leaving a big soccer game. It must have been a serious game because they were all dressed in costume. Lederhosen, socks, hats, the whole get up. I was laughing my head off. It was the perfect cliché.




My amusement ended suddenly when one of them proceeded to drop trough and pee in the middle of the street. It was memorable to say the least. After the commotion settled down we could hear bells ringing in the distance. We again followed the sound. It was a herd of cattle on the hill wearing the old school cow bells around there necks. We found a bench on the side of the street to listen to the peaceful bell choir coming from the grazing cows. It sounds silly but I felt like I was in a dream. What a great way to end the night.

The Christmas tree hunt was a HUGE success!!

Thanksgiving

We went to SLC for Thanksgiving this year. In the morning some of the boys went shotgun shooting and Eric and I took the kids to 3D Christmas Carol. The effects were pretty cool. The kids reached out their hands trying to touch all the images. It was pretty funny to watch and listen.





Even the little girls sad pretty good through the movie.



After the movie I headed to mom's house to help with dinner. We were on our way to the grocery store for a last minute purchase for something we forgot and we heard blood curtailing screams from the back of the car. Brad had shoved a jelly bean up his nose. I could feel my blood start to boil. I was so mad. My mom just sat in the front of the car laughing. I couldn't believe it. With many failed attempts to retrieve the stupid little bean we gave up and headed to the ER.



All I could do was roll my eyes and fume that I was yet again in the ER. Hopefully one day when I read this again I will be able to laugh along with my mom. In the mean time I threatened Brad with his life if he ever did it again!!!

We went to dinner with all the Reimanns. There were a LOT of people. The kids ran around like I used to when I was little and we stuffed ourselves.

It was a fun day. We have a lot to be thankful for. Hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving.

Shhhhhh...don't tell Brad

Brad always gets anxiety when Claire is in his room. She likes making messes and Brad likes to keep things clean and organized. (He picked up a little OCD from his dad. I guess it is contagious. Claire and I must be immune.)



We finally had to make a rule that Claire needs to stay out of Brad's room unless he invites her in to play. It works pretty well and we have dodged some nasty fights.

After we drop Brad off at school Claire always makes a B-line to Brads room and hides herself in the corner. She loves going through all his books. I let her entertain herself for a half and hour or so then help her clean everything up before Brad gets home from school.



Lets assess what I am teaching my daughter:

1. It is okay to do something as long as no one knows.
2. If you are going to do it hide in the corner.
3. Hurry and clean up all evidence before you get caught.
4. Smile really cute and blink those big hazel eyes and mommy will say yes

Moral of the story...What Brad does not know wont hurt him... and I am creating a giant monster...a really cute giant monster.

You light up our life....

Thanks boys.




While Randy's brothers were in town I put them to work. I am glad no one fell off the roof.

My baby is 2

We celebrated Claire's Birthday today. She was showered with gifts of everything little girl...dress ups, princess books, baking supplies, a horse, tea party set...She was in heaven.



Claire has grown up so much this year. She is walking, talking and oozing with personality. We try our best to keep up with her energy. She tries so hard to be just like her brother. She mimics almost everything he does. She loves playing with dolls and dress ups. She is constantly convincing Bradley to join her. She loves being outdoors. He favorite outdoor activity is anything in the water. She loves swimming no matter what the temperature of the water . She even rode the inner tube behind the boat this year and loved it. She loves to dance and sing. She has some pretty good moves and is not afraid to show them off. Claire is a joy in our life. She has the cutest smile that can melt anyone's heart. She is a girl inside and out. We love her and can't believe she is out little girl and no longer our little baby.

His story to the nurses was "I was ZOOMING down our driveway...

We made almost 5 years without any major accidents with Brad. Only a few bumps and bruises here and there.




We bought Brad a new scooter a couple of weeks ago and with that came a trip to the hospital.

He broke his humerus right at the bottom. It is hard to tell from this X-ray but he chipped a whole piece of bone off. Luckily it is not displaced and should heal well where it is. It was too swollen to cast at the hospital so he gets a permanent cast on Monday. He was so tough even though he was in a TON of pain. Every time they would manipulate his arm he would get a quiver lip but he held himself together so well.

I asked Brad what the worst part was and he said when they bent his elbow it to splint it. Then I asked him what the best part was and he said the crackers and the juice afterward. He is so easy to please.

Mickey Mouse Poop Pancakes

If you haven't noticed yet I am a huge pancake fan. I love them. They are so easy to make, and they taste good too.

My mother-in-law gave me this recipe years ago (We just changed the name). I hope she doen't mind that I share it. I guess I will find out.

MICKEY MOUSE POOP PANCAKES

These pancakes are done in the Blender

1 Cup Mouse Poop (Whole Wheat kernals)
1 Cup Milk





Add to blender and...

1-Fold
2-Stir
3-Mix
4-Blend
5-Combine
6-Beat
7-Cream
8-Fluff
9-Frappe
10-Whip

...whatever blender setting suits you. I personally don't know the difference.






***Blend for 2 minutes***




then add :
1/2 Cup Milk

**Blend for another 2 minutes**

Add:
2 Tbs Honey
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup oil

Blend until combined

Then add 1 Tbs of Baking Powder and Blend until just combined. Don't over blend this part. It will destroy the delicate little bubbles.

Pour Mickey mouse shapes to a 325 degree griddle and enjoy.




I love this recipie because it lets me feed my kids whole wheat and Brad gets a kick out of eating mouse poop. Plus it helps me rotate my food storage.

I am feeling a bit mushy today

I woke up to a complete white out this morning. It instantly made me turn on some Christmas music and drink hot chocolate while mating my 3 week pileup of clean socks. (Does anyone else do that… wait until you have no socks in the drawer to mate the clean socks???) Anyway it made me feel all mushy and warm inside. I love this time of year. It is a great time for me to reflect on the good things that are happening in my life.



The snow has continued to fall and fall and fall. In fact Brad is outside with the neighbors sledding. I think he is feeling a little warm and fuzzy too.








I know that I am mentally ready for the mountain winter but as you can see we are not yet physically ready for it. We left out some garden tools, the BBQ is not covered and Brad’s shoes are still out on the back porch.



Randy was invited by a good friend to go bird hunting this morning. I got a TXT from him this morning with this picture that said “DUCK ON SUCKER”. He is obviously in good spirits…I would say giddy, and cheerful maybe even joyful and triumphant. It quickly made my mushy feelings vanish…what am I supposed to do with that bird??? I know duck is quite the delicacy, but I am no iron chef. I don’t know how to braise duck then render it in its fat?!?!? What in the heck do I do with it? And wont we get lead poisoning from the tiny little shotgun bullets??

I am married to a banker man with banker hours

Randy was home with us Wednessday celebrating Veterans Day. Randy's brothers always make fun of his Bank Holidays. I personally love that the Bank was closed so we could spend the day together. We didn't get much accomplished other than enjoying one of the last fall days before we transition to frigid winter. The kids only had one demand and that was to feed the horses on the way home from school. Such a simple and fun request.




People often ask me why I chose Richmond. This is it!!! I love this country living.

spreadin the LOVE

Tonight Randy received a text from our next door neighbor... this is how it went...

SO BRAD BROUGHT A RED ROSE WITH HIM WHEN HE CAME OVER. HE GAVE IT TO ASHLEE AND SAID IT WAS FROM HIS DAD. YOU BUYING MY WIFE FLOWERS??

Oops

I should have been more specific about taking the dying flowers OUT to the garbage can. I guess he wanted to spread Randy's love to all the ladies in the neighborhood. Why should his mom be selfish and keep all the love to herself???

Grow old along with me....the best is yet to be

It seems like I blink and another year goes by. I remember when I was younger I used to wish my life away. If only I could be 12 years old….I can’t wait until I am sixteen…when I graduate…I can’t wait for collage to be over.
Randy and I celebrated our 8th anniversary this week. It feels like we have been together for so much longer than that. I am convinced we have always been a part of each other. I can’t imagine life without him. Nor do I want to remember what life was like without him being a part of it.
We had a ton of accomplishments to celebrate. It has been a monumental year for us. I finally feel like I have grown up. Randy graduated, we bought a home, Randy landed an amazing job, and I am finally spending more time at home with my 2 beautiful children.

I am at a point that I don’t want to rush through life anymore. I feel a sudden urgency to slow down. I am panicked that I am missing out. I don’t know if it is waking up to a new gray hair every morning, or the awesome crow’s feet that don’t fade like sleep lines anymore, or the ache in the bottom of my feet first thing in the morning. I have made a fresh intention to savor moments. I am going to live in the day to day and stop wishing myself to a certain peak in my life. I am not really sure when life peaks but I know it is rapidly approaching and I hear it is a fast ride downhill.

Today…
I am grateful for an amazing husband who still sends me flowers. Randy always makes me feel special and important. He still strokes my hair and tells me that he loves me. He puts up with me and my estrogen too. I am grateful that my children have an awesome daddy to look up to. They adore him and he adores them as well. I am grateful that he works so hard and does so much for our family.




Thank you Randy for the flowers and the ritzy upscale dinner. I cherished looking at you across the candlelit table with a crisp linen in my lap. Your cute boyish grin melted my heart. I felt loved and wanted. You are the best and I love you dearly. I can’t wait to spend another year with you.

This year randy and I hosted not only All Hallows Eve but All Hallows Weekend

We invited all of the Fischers to come and celebrate the weekend with us. It was a riot!!!



We started the festivities on Friday night. The boys all stayed home to watch the Jazz game and the girls went and saw Michael Jackson’s “This Is It”. I loved it. I grew up listening to his music so it was really fun for me. Plus the company was wonderful. It was so hard to contain myself and not dance and sing in the aisles. I hope it comes out on video so I can watch it from the privacy of my own home.




Claire has always had a thing for her uncles. She adores them. I think they kinda adore her too.



On Saturday we wolfed down enough food to last a lifetime. I have not consumed that much food in a long time. I have a hard time saying no to party food. It is my weakness.




We spent a chunk of time in the morning carving pumpkins. This has been a HUGE tradition for Randy and I so it was fun to pass it along.

Then we had to munch on snacks some more…








In the afternoon most of the group went shotgun shooting. There is a nice little gun range just up the street from us. Look at these girls!!! Their husbands should be very afraid.








For dinner we had soup bowls with chili because we needed to wolf more food…
We were excited for it to get dark to see the pumpkins lit up. We were all like little kids.

Randy's hanging man

Kendra's evil tinkerbell


Matt's zombies

Brad's grandma gave him a HUGE pumpkin they grew in their garden. It was big enough to carve three patterns. Matt was nice enough to carve 2 for Brad. Then he picked Tiger woods.


Lance's Jesus



In memory of Michael Jackson. This was mine. I even made everyone listen to MJ music while we carved. They were all such good sports to humor me.



Tori's Alumni pumpkin

The kids were all ready energetic and hyper with all the treats and company but their vigor exploded into overdrive once their costumes were on and the jack-o-lanterns were lit.






I LOVED Lance and Kendra's costume. A pig and a donut. It was so creative.











They looked so enchanting and spooky in costume.



After taking the kids around the block to trick or treat, Randy Matt Lance and Tim hid in the dark on the porch to scare the older trick or treaters. They scared some of them pretty good. They are so mean. But I guess teenages that still feel the need to trick or treat deserve a good scare.



Sunday morning we were starving so we had a huge omelet breakfast. I would not want anyone to starve. After church all had a sugar crash. We were worn out.
I always get the blues when they all leave. I love Randy’s family and I am so glad they came.