A day out of town

Our hockey rink in town is busy this weekend, and regular practices are all cancelled, and most of our team is in Gillette for a tournament, so one of the coaches set up a "pick-up" game in Red Lodge with their little team of kids of all ages. They have an outdoor rink, and because of the really warm weather we have been having, we didn't even know if we would have ice this morning. Thanks to the hard work of a few people who really wanted this to happen, and the forgiveness of mother nature overnight, there was ice. It was bumpy, and slushy around the edges, but it was a beautiful morning to be in the gorgeous little town of Red Lodge, and outside enjoying the weather with no wind, and watching the kids enjoying every minute of being together playing hockey.

Aren't they cute? Elliott didn't like his gloves or mittens, but luckily it wasn't cold if he stayed out of the snow, which he didn't.  :)

The kids that were playing are in the learn to play program, and so many parents were impressed with Ethan's skating. I had to tell them that he started skating at 3, and assured them that their kids would be just as good very soon.

Elliott didn't really like watching, but there was a dog there that he had a blast throwing sticks and snowballs for.

The whole gang.

Elliott stood on this bench to play with the dog. Notice he doesn't have his gloves on. Brat!

After the game, the Red Lodge group treated everyone (kids and family) to a pizza buffet at the Red Lodge Pizza Co. It was so nice of them and the pizza is great there. I definitely recommend it.

Both kids fell asleep on the ride home, and were wide awake once we got home. We all went for a bike ride around the block. I got a bike yesterday and we put a seat for Elliott on the back of it. I really need a bigger seat or a smaller butt. The later would probably be best, but for now I think I will purchase a big cushy seat. Elliott did love riding, and of course Ethan loved that we all went together. Have I mentioned how great it is to have Jason home?

Well, we are now just enjoying our evening, relaxing and getting ready for tomorrow. Hope you all enjoyed your day as much as I did.

Red Lodge

Ethan playing hockey in Red Lodge.

Get your game face on.

Wednesday night, Ethan got to play goalie for his house game. He was very excited, and even practiced his moves for the couple days before. He said after the game that he did way better than he thought he would.

 He will be playing goalie for our 1/2 ice team next weekend in Sheridan as well as playing out for 2 full ice games. He is looking forward to it, but 3 games in 4 hours is a lot of playing time.

Here are a couple pictures from Wednesday's game, and here is a link to watch a video of the highlights.

Getting ready to head out. He's just so cute!

Bring it on!

After the game, I got this. He was so proud of himself.

Yesterday, Ethan got the COOLEST thing in the mail. Good thing he has no clue what it means to be called "Master", he would think he is even more cool than he already does.

First he had to get it out.

A SCRAPBOOK! Aunt Hollie made a scrapbook for him to put all of his hockey pictures in. She made a ton of awesome pages, and used the coolest hockey paper and stickers. Bet you can't guess how excited he was about this!

The ice page. He loved it.

This page was more for Hollie and myself, but he will get it later. AAAAH!! PUCK!  :)

He can't wait to get his pictures printed and fill it up. He was even telling me what pictures he would use on which pages. I can't wait to see the final product. Thanks again Aunt Hollie! We love you.

B.A.

Hi! My name is Elliott and I have a problem. I'm a Bink-aholic. Today I am one night and half a day bink free, and it is tough.

Geared up

Jason couldn't stand it any longer. We saw some size 7 hockey skates last time we went to the sports store, and I think they have been haunting Jason's dreams. Today he said, so should we go get those? Well, if you have skates, you have to have a helmet (when you're one year old anyway). So now we have this........

He is SO proud!

To say that walking in them is challenging would be an understatement. He loved having them on, but he did not love trying to walk. I'm sure he will catch on.

Here is his helmet, again, he is SO proud of it, but he does not like to actually wear it. Lucky for us, he is in the greater than 100% for head size, so the helmet isn't way too big.

They had to bonk heads and try it out.

So, that's what we did today. Ethan has a game tonight, which will make this hockey game number 4 for Ethan and I, in just 5 days. 'Tis the season.  :)

Ethan's Goal in Cody

We got the video from the tournament we went to in Cody, and Jason chopped out Ethan's goal. It's an awesome backhand shot, over the goalie! He looks PRO!

You can see it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUnsPvCaO5Y

Date Night

Not your average date night. After Ethan's hockey practice, one of our friends gave me 2 tickets to see the Billing's Bulls hockey team play last night. After trying to find a babysitter so that Jason, Ethan and I could go, we gave up, and Jason stayed home with Elliott and Ethan and I had a "Mom and Son Date Night". The game was a lot of fun, but unlike date night with Jason, I was only able to spend about 30 minutes with Ethan. The rest of the time, he was hanging out with his hockey buddies, so I watched the game with my friends. It was still great to get out for a night with my big kid.

Conner and Ethan got Starburst candy to snack on, looks like it was good and hard.

Ethan took a picture of us together during the short time that he actually sat with me.

We survived the sleep over.

I know, two food posts back to back, but really....this is a new favorite for sure! I mean it. It's really good!

Baked Stuffed French Toast

I have to post the recipe. Try it, you will not be disappointed.

8 slices of bread

whipped cream cheese

strawberry jam/preserves

2 eggs beaten

1/2 cup milk

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp vanilla

cornflake crumbs

1/4 C melted butter

1. Spread cream cheese on a slice of bread, then spread on jam. Put another slice of bread on top. Repeat for all 8 slices. (Makes 4 total)

2. Combine eggs, vanilla, milk and salt into a shallow dish.

3. Put cornflake crumbs into another shallow dish.

4. Grease a cookie sheet and preheat oven to 450 degrees.

5. Dip bread into egg mixture then into cornflakes on both sides, then place on cookie sheet and drizzle with butter.

6. Bake at 450 degrees for 10-13 min.

I put syrup on mine, but Jason didn't. It's good either way, and very, very filling. My eyes were definitely bigger than my stomach. I assumed we would all eat at least 2, but I was stuffed after one, and Ethan only finished 1/2 of one. Let me know what you think.

Last night was a success. It did come to my attention that Jason and I are the epitome of "modern parenting" considering that at 6 years old, Ethan had his first buddy sleep over. This being after several years of having girls stay over. A little backwards maybe? Josh and Ethan had a blast! I was kind of nervous to see how wild they would be and how late we would be up, but they were so good. They played so well together and even let Elliott play for a while, and at bed time, they went right to sleep. Impressive, I know.

Today, we are a little bit off schedule. Ethan doesn't have hockey until this afternoon. Not that we had plans, but it is always weird when schedules are switched around. Elliott is getting the cold or whatever that I had, so he had a really tough time sleeping last night, and woke up at 6am. I hope he gets better quick, early mornings make for really long days with him.

Happy Saturday!

I tried........

I promised Jason that I would learn to cook new and different things. I have been trying, and with most things have had success. Tonight I made Fettuccine with asparagus and shrimp. It was a lot more work, and steps than I normally put into any meal, but it looked so professional, and smelled delicious. Jason even said the house smelled like Red Lobster. I was quite impressed with myself, and Jason and I enjoyed our dinner. Elliott decided that he would eat his crescent roll, then he wanted chicken nuggets and Mandarin oranges. Ethan and his friend, Josh, preferred EasyMac. Josh did say to Ethan, "Your mom makes a MEAN mac n cheese!" At least everyone ate and everyone was happy. *sigh* Maybe I should stick to the basics from now on.

This and That

This week was kind of a blur for me. Monday afternoon, I took a nap, and woke up SICK, like really sick. Tuesday, I felt like I might die, but Jason took over, and I guess everything was fine. We bought a Chevy Suburban, but it was in Missoula (5 hrs away) so Tuesday night, Jason took one for the team, and rode the bus to Missoula to pick it up. I dropped him off at the bus station at 12:30am, and he arrived in Missoula at 8:00am. I think he slept most of the way, but it was so nice of him to do that so we didn't have to fight with the kids for 10hrs in the car, and Ethan didn't have to miss school. He was also able to drive over to Helena and get some of his VA paperwork done, this saved us yet another trip. He is the BEST! And here it is. I actually do love it. We are keeping the Monte Carlo, but we needed two vehicles, and one needed to be bigger.

Jason even let me get personalized specialty license plates, but we had to order them, so they are coming. Wednesday night, Ethan had hockey, so we took the new camcorder to try it out. Elliott brought his little hockey stick, and one of the bigger kids was helping him with his stick handling while we waited for practice to start. The little kids love acting like the big kids.

We did catch some actual hockey action. Ethan is the one with the black helmet and white mask. You might have to watch it twice, once to pick him out and the 2nd to actually watch him. :) I cannot believe the improvements he has made this season. His skating is amazing, and he is becoming much more competitive. It's so much fun to watch him grow as a player.



Tonight was "Pasta Night" at Ethan's school. It's the first school thing we have been able to go to as a family. It was a lot fun to go and see Ethan's friends, eat some good food, and be together. Even better, the Billings Bulls hockey team was there to hand out coupons for their upcoming game, and to sign pictures and meet the kids. Ethan didn't know they were going to be there, but he did wear his Jr. Bulls jacket and he was excited to see them. He felt like the coolest kid there, and helped his friends get their pictures signed too. Elliott has decided that he is grown, and refuses to nap. Today he didn't nap at all, so by the time dinner was over, we were done with him. I can't wait for him to figure out he is still little. Tomorrow, we are having Ethan's friend, Josh, over to spend the night. I'm a little nervous, but I know the kids will have a blast. Wish me luck, and have a great weekend.

"LOVE"LY WEEKEND

We didn't have a lot of plans for the weekend, but it seems to have all come together. Friday, Ethan had his Valentine's party at school. He looked forward to it all week, and had a great time opening his sack and getting all of his goodies. I miss being little. He made a special Valentine heart for Jason, Elliott and I, but he made it on black paper and wrote on it in pencil, so a picture doesn't do any justice for it. I, however, love it. Friday night and Saturday morning Ethan had hockey practice, and it snowed, a lot. Saturday afternoon, was a blast. We went to a birthday party for a teammate of Ethan's at the Reef. It's an indoor water park. Elliott didn't have much fun last time we went, but he had the best time yesterday. Jason has never been before, and was a little skeptical, but he was just as bad as the kids when it was time to go. It's the perfect way to spend a snowy Montana afternoon. Last night, we were all exhausted from the water, and so I let Taco John's make dinner, and we just relaxed and watched the Olympics. Ethan is loving the winter Olympics, even more so than the summer Olympics I think. They really need to stop them at 10pm-ish instead of 11! I lose track of time and before I know it, Ethan is up way past his bedtime, and so am I. This morning, just like every morning, Elliott was up and ready to go at 7:00am. Ewwww. Jason refused to get up with him, even though it was "his turn", so I got up, and started breakfast for everyone. Blueberry heart-shaped pancakes with bacon. Elliott ate 2 whole pancakes, and then walked around grazing from everyone's plates. I guess they were good, and they even looked like hearts! After breakfast, Jason, Ethan and Elliott gave me my gift (breakfast was my gift to them). An HD camcorder! It will fit right in my purse, and transfer right to my computer. Now I can get some hockey action to share. Ethan had to use it of course, so he recorded his dad coming back into the room.

He did do it right, but he didn't think it worked, so he had this face. Ethan and Jason were playing Duck Hunt (that's right on the original NES), and Elliott came in, cuddled up with a pillow and watched and cheered. Look at the concentration on Ethan's face. He's a "master hunter".

Now, the Olympics are on again, Elliott is napping, and I am going to go.............do nothing I guess.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Stayin Busy

Like I said before, it has been really nice to be home with Jason all day everyday, and here is the product of our time together. I have made several new pieces (you can see them at my Etsy store), and I have Jason hooked on wire working. The first ring in the picture below, I made, the rest are all Jason's doing. He is really into it, and very creative! I am impressed, the two pieces, (bottom middle) will be a pair of earrings. Isn't he GOOD? So even though he isn't working an actual job, he is keeping busy, and I have a ring for every day of the week. :) This morning, Carson came over to play for a while. Elliott used this time to pull out EVERY toy in the bin to show to Carson. Our living room floor was covered in toys, but they were both so good and had fun playing with everything. It was great having him over to keep Elliott occupied for a short time. Tomorrow Ethan has his Valentine's Day party at school, and Saturday we have a birthday party to go to at the Reef. Jason hasn't been yet, and Elliott hasn't been since before he could walk. We are going to use the party as an excuse to have a family day.

Have a good Friday and a great weekend.

In Limbo

I must admit, it's been so great being able to spend everyday at home and having Jason home all day with me. If it paid better, we would be set, however, Jason is without a job, and as of Friday, we will no longer have any income. YIKES! We have never been in this situation before. I have been in denial about it, and assumed that one of the many jobs he has put in applications for would call, we would move and all would be fine. Currently, this is not the case. No job offers have come in, and the bills haven't stopped. So now, here we are. Do we wait it out, and hope that we make if for the next few months until something does come through, or do we say, "deployment, here we come again"? If a job did come open in Helena, do we up and move right away or does Jason commute until school is over for the year? Too many "if's" and too many "but's". My brain is spinning, and actually making me dizzy. Sometimes I wish it was all decided for us, and we just had to jump on board. I do know that we have become a much stronger couple over the past year, and I know we will make it to the other side. Until the other side comes, I will put on my big girl pants, and do the best I can with what we have been given. We are so blessed in so many ways. I just need to remember that. Ethan has a hockey game tonight, and I am looking forward to a great game, and thinking about nothing. Happy Wednesday. :)

Super Bowl

Just a few words before the game starts.

Go Saints!

Catching up

The last couple days I haven't felt great, especially in the evenings, so I have fallen behind on my blogging. Here is the run down. Tuesday afternoon, we needed to get out of the house, and I wasn't feeling too bad, so we took the kids to run around at the mall. They have so much fun. Elliott has learned to use the slide right, and goes up the stairs, then down and he even waits his turn. Ethan is a little bit big for the play place, but he is entertained for a while climbing up on top of things. After the mall, we went and ate some fast food, then we went to the skating rink for Ethan's last skate night of the year for school. I was excited because now that Jason is home, I got to put on skates and roller skate with Ethan. I didn't fall, and for just having my wisdom teeth out and being on some drugs, I did ok. I did realize that I am really old though, and after about 20 minutes, I was ready to be done. Jason, being the great husband he is, decided to take this video of Ethan and I skating. You can't see me really well, so I don't mind posting it. I really do miss roller skating, and we will definitely be going back. Elliott is big enough to start too!

Wednesday morning, I was doing ok, but Jason, Elliott and I sat around and played for a long time before getting ready for the day. Have I told you how much I love having my husband home? LOTS!

Ok, I look TERRIBLE in this picture, but it was Wednesday morning, and I took a lot of drugs to help me sleep the night before. I had to post it though, just to show that I really do play with my kid sometimes. :) He was taking these little bolts from his work bench and sticking them on our fingers then laughing. It was fun watching him figure it out.

The rest of this week has been really uneventful, and I don't even have any more pictures. Sorry. Ethan had hockey this morning and helped out with the kids who are just learning before he had his game. He did score a goal today! We were supposed to go to Jackie's house for Super Bowl, but she is very sick, and uninvited us today. I bought a chocolate cake at Costco for the occasion, yes, it's INCREDIBLE and HUGE just as a Costco cake should be. It weighs 7lbs! It's so rich, a very small piece and a glass of milk is a meal (not a healthy one I know). I couldn't resist though, and now it looks like Jason, Ethan and I will have to eat it all by ourselves. I can feel my pants fitting tighter already. Hope you all have a great Super Bowl Sunday.

Lucky Me

Yesterday I had to get my wisdom teeth pulled. Erica was going to keep Elliott while Jason took me, but poor Carson is very sick. Jason was a total trooper though. He said he would just take Elliott with us, and they would wait for me. Let's just say, I was glad I didn't have to try to occupy him for that long in a waiting room. Jason said he was so good though. Jason was DAD OF THE YEAR yesterday after we got home. I was totally out of it, and went straight to bed and passed out. He took care of Elliott, fed him, napped him, etc, and even cleaned house and went to get my meds for me. After he picked up Ethan from school, they quietly played games and hung out. Erica brought over a casserole for them, which was super helpful. We had a really laid back evening, but Jason and Elliott were up sick all night. I wish this thing would leave our house already. Blah.