Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

There is a lot to be thankful for this year and I won't bore you with my details. Instead, I am going to sum it up with a traditional "good family, friends, health, and a job during a time when others are less fortunate."

I am cleaning the house before our annual Turkey Day guest arrives, Andy. This is year number two that we are invited to a friend's house rather than playing host/hostess ourselves. It's nice to mix it up. So, no time for blogging as I have an appetizer to make and some cranberry deliciousness.

Eat lots! I know I will.

Work Weekend

I did escape yesterday for lunch and a movie. New Moon was pretty good. It was the level of movie I expected from the series and was not disappointed. If you are an avid Twilight reader, I would recommend seeing the movie. The increased budget helped but there was still some corny CGI stuff.

Last evening, Ryan got the boat all cleaned up and we went for a ride; Annie, Miller, Ryan and I. Miller did pretty well but I think our maiden voyage (well, we took him when he was an itty bitty baby but he doesn't remember) was a little too long. The motor started to run out of juice, Miller was uncomfortable and I was starting to get cranky. I believe I made a loud enough "Just get us home. Quit being naughty Miller! Sit Annie!" comment because Stuart our neighbor came out to check who was out in the lake. Actually, the words I said to Ryan probably caused the stir.

He was super helpful by taking care of Miller yesterday and then giving me a couple hours of uninterrupted work time last night. Then we started to watch Food Inc. Talk about craziness. I knew the food industry was bad but no where near as bad as it is. Unless I want to start my own farm, there isn't much I can do about it. We didn't finish but will tackle the second half tonight. We both were too sleepy.

This morning I was up at 5am for production validation. I was the only one experiencing problems so we stayed on the topic for over an hour. Finally I gave the "if it's just me and you can't replicate it, let's call it good" call. I went back to bed at 6:20. Luckily, Miller slept in until 7 (I think). Ryan got up with him.

At 8 I was up for good and started working on this budget thing I have do. I am waiting for a co-worker to return my call so I can wrap up for the day. I can't wait for Thursday to come. I need a break from work like no other. This has been a really stressful year and my only wish for next year is a new position with less responsibilities.

Miller's napping so hopefully I can finish a magazine, have a glass of long deserved wine, and keep the laundry moving. The next couple days are going to be insane at work and I haven't gotten anything done at home that I need to do. Wish me luck.

Buggy Ride With Mom

Miller and I went for a bike ride this morning. Let's just say that this old lady is out of shape. My butt bones hurt from my seat, my legs are tired, and my arms are feeling weird. Oh well, hopefully it means I worked something and this pretend diet/life style change is going to work. Ryan will say that at the pace I was riding, it's going to take me years because I was pretty slow.

I am abandoning the boys this afternoon for lunch with the girls and then going to see New Moon. It should be fun but I feel bad leaving them this afternoon. Tonight/tomorrow I have to burn the midnight oil and get some work done. We had the nice Friday afternoon "you gotta get this done" speech and the timeline requires weekend work to do it. Yuck!

Buggy and Hat

Ryan has been taking Miller for bike rides everynight this week. We have a "pull behind the bike" thing for Miller and me and now Ryan has a seat on the back of his bike. At DC, they have a giant red race car thing that holds up to six kids. They use this to take the kids outside and on walks with. They call it a buggy and Miller loves it.

We are good parents and make Miller wear a helmet. He calls it a hat. So, this morning he wakes up and starts wanting to wear his hat. Ok...

All he wanted to do was wear his hat and go for a buggy ride. From that adorable muffin covered boy came a full blown meltdown when we told him he couldn't go for a buggy ride before school this morning. I can certainly see some battles ahead because he is very strong willed (hmmm...strong will = Erin, stubborn = Ryan).

Congratulations to Dr. Froyd!

Congratulations to Sean in becoming the first Dr. Froyd of the family. He did a great job and I am proud of him. Disertation defended, announced as a Dr. and I believe a bottle of Mead was opened in his honor.

Now...about 20+ years from now I may have to give him a run for his money and become the second Dr. Froyd...

Pictures

Early Presents for Miller and Me

Last night, Miller got not one, but two new play sets for outside! He has a house and a tower with a slide. We played outside for over half an hour last night and today I think he's put in close to two hours already. I will post picutes later tonight.

As for me, I got a new laptop! Ryan surprised me with a new HP for my birthday. He couldn't wait to give it to me (a month early for my birthday). What a great surprise. It's sweet but a lot of new settings for me to figure out and customize. It has Windows 7 on it. I hope W7 is much more successful than Vista. :)

With all the new things to play with in the house, who has time for chores?

Runners and Drivers Use Caution

I witnessed out of the corner of my eye a car take out a runner this morning on my way to work. I did stop and before I hit send on my 911 call, an unmarked car arrived. I think the runner was ok because s/he was laying on the road rolling around and there wasn't any blood. The driver was clearly shaken including me! I felt sick to my stomach.

So here's the dealio: Drivers, please remember to look when making a right hand turn. Runners, please pay attention to your surroundings before crossing major intersections. I am not sure who was at fault on this one because I think neither the runner nor the driver stopped for the red light.

Halloween Pictures 2009-Part 2

Here are the pictures of Miller from last night.

The Pirate-Arrrrggghhh!!!!

The Pirate showing off his stellar belly after too much dinner.

At Pete and Amy's - trick or treat!

Rylee in her fairy costume.

Miller and Rylee trying to take a picture together. You can see how that went. One point of the sword and she took off running.

Has Been Rock Star and the Pirate.

Jailhouse Flousy and the Pirate.

The family (past Miller's bedtime).

Halloween Pictures 2009-Part 1

Here are a few pictures from last night of us adults.

The Wicked Witch and Dorothy

Jailhouse Flousy and a Has Been Rock Star

Cleopatra and her Sheik

The Ladies

The Boys

Eventful Morning

Pictures of Halloween to follow. Ryan's truck was spray painted last night so he has spent the morning cleaning it up. What a fantastic way to start the morning.