Santa's Day Job

I have been thinking that I want to post more often, even if it is just a funny little thing that has happened recently. I got my first inspiration yesterday from my very funny little boy. We were getting ready to go to the mall yesterday (a huge mistake since it's so close to Christmas) and I told him that Santa was coming very soon, in just a few days. He knew we were going to the mall so he looked at me and asked "He working at mall today?" I laughed so hard, and of course I took him to see Santa at his day job.

Who Knew? I'm a Molasses-Gingerbread Cookie!

Here is the cookie quiz I took from Kara's blog: http://quiz.marthastewart.com/quiz/97 It said I was "undoubtedly Molasses-Gingerbread Cookies. You're warm, spicy, and multifaceted."

Which reminds me, I can't wait to make our annual gingerbread houses. My mom and dad make the houses from scratch and we shop all over town for the best decorations we can find (they are 99% edible, not that you'd want to, it's just kind of an unspoken law around here). I will post the pics of that when they are done!

Reading, Eating, and Rolling

Maisy LOVES her brother Duffy, and he's pretty in love with her too. The other day I looked down and saw him "reading" to her, so of course I jumped off the couch and ran for my camera. They are so cute together!

We bought Duffy's first advent calendar and he doesn't quite get it yet but what he does understand is that there is chocolate in that snowman!!! He gets pretty upset when I only let him open one per day, but some day he will appreciate them like I always did (my parents got us one every year too). Maisy is just busy rolling all over the place. She loves to be on the floor where she can explore the world. Here are some pictures of the advent calendar and Maisy rolling around in her "Baby's First Christmas" onsie.

Hubby Tag

I got this hubby tag from two blogs and didn't ever get the first one done so I thought I'd do both now that I've been tagged twice.

Jenn's:

1. Where did you meet? Junior high band class

2. How long did you date before you got married? 4 years (we got married young!)

3. How long have you been married? 6 years last May

4. What does he do to surprise you? I'm kind of hard to surprise now that I stay home but he used to clean the house while I was at work, and he ALWAYS surprises me at Christmas, he goes overboard

5. What is your favorite feature of his? That's hard: his eyes, smile, shoulders, and he has this little scar on his cheek that Ilove too!

6. What is your favorite quality? His ambition
7. Does he have a nickname for you? Beans (don't ask why, it's been like that for 10 years and I don't remember where it came from!)

8. What is his favorite food? He's a steak and potatoes guy

9. What is his favorite sport? GOLF!!!!

10. When and where did you first kiss? As I was getting out of his truck at my parents sometime in the fall of 1998! It was VERY sweet!
11. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple? Anything outside with our kids
12. Do you have children? Yes, the cutest little boy(2) and girl(5 months) ever

13. Does he have any hidden talents? He can sing pretty well, but only for me
14. How old is he? 26

15. Who said I love you first? He did, I wasn't ready to say it back yet so he had to wait, I still feel bad about that

16. What is his favorite music? He loves almost everything but probably more hip-hop than anything (we don't usually agree on what to listen to)

17. What do you admire most about him? He is the most giving person I have ever met, to a fault sometimes
18. What is his favorite color? Green

19. Which side of the bed does he sleep on? Left

20. Will he read this? Maybe, he looks at it sometimes, but not very often :)

Ashlee's:

*What is your husbands name? Joseph Gilbert O'Keefe
*How long have you been married? see above
*How long did you date? see above
*How old is he? see above
*Who eats sweets? Joey, he loves them!
*Who said I love you first? see above
*Who is taller? He is, I'm only 5'2" and he's almost 6'
*Who can sing better? He does
*Who is smarter? I'd say he is, he'd say I am
*Who does laundry? Me, he only does if I slack off and then he shrinks stuff
*Who pays the bills? He does
*Who sleeps on the right side? I do
*Who mows the lawn? We don't have to do ours right now but when we did, both of us did it
*Who cooks dinner? Me, I love to cook, but in the summer he can grill like a champ
*Who drives? Usually he does but it scares me
*Who is the first to admit they are wrong? He is, I hate to admit it but I'm kind of stubborn with that
*Who kissed who first? see above
*Who asked who out first? He asked me out for Homecoming my sophmore year (trashed my room with the help of his best friend and my brother and sister)
*Who wears the pants? We both do

Dear Friends and Family

Since tuition is due soon and I'll have to buy textbooks, we are a little broke right now. I will be making bedroom slippers for you all as gifts for Christmas. Please let me know your sizes and if you would like them made for a man or woman (which will tell me what to put on them). You'll most likely agree that it's a splendid idea, and should you wish to do the same, I've included the instructions below.

How to make bedroom slippers out of maxi pads:

You need four maxi pads to make a pair. Two of them get laid out flat, for the foot part. The other two wrap around the toe area to form the top. Tape or glue each side of the top pieces to the bottom of the foot part. Decorate the tops with whatever you desire, silk flowers (this is most aesthetically appealing), etc.

These slippers are:

* Soft and Hygienic

* Non-slip grip strips on the soles
* Built in deodorant feature keeps feet smelling fresh

* No more bending over to mop up spills

* Disposable and biodegradable

* Environmentally safe

* Three convenient sizes: (1.) Regular, (2.) Light and (3.) Get out the Sand Bags.

I've attached a photo of the first pair I made so that you can see the nifty slippers for yourself.... Awaiting your response. It's crucial that I get the right size for each one of you.

Don't worry, you can thank me later :)

Spit Happens

Maisy had her first bowl of rice cereal this Sunday, I can't believe it! At first she didn't know what to think but was loving it by the end! She moved around a lot more than Duffy did his first time, but she smiled a lot more, too-typical Maisy. She is actually getting pretty good at keeping it in her mouth, as long as she feels like it at least. Thanks aunt Aimee for the cute "I Love my Auntie" bib by the way!

What is it with Boys and Cheerleaders?

We were lucky enough to get 8th row tickets to the Jazz game Saturday night and had a blast! Duffy got to meet the Jazz Bear and, more importantly according to his dad, the Jazz Dancers. He thought he was the coolest little boy on Earth! The girls absolutely loved him, as usual. During the game he was shown on the Jumbo-tron twice, being really grumpy the first time, and the Jazz Bear even walked from pretty far away up into the bleachers to hand him a ball. I guess he is just visible because of his crazy hair and he was on the shoulders of another crazy red-haired guy (daddy). We had such a great time, too bad they didn't win! Now, even three days later he is talking about how "that bear" gave him a ball and he won't stop playing basketball in the house! He really is boy through and through.
We got a picture of us with the bear too but it turned out horrible on our camera, if I get the one off of my brother's phone that looks better I'll post it.

All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth

This is a list I got off Kara's blog, she always has the funnest things to fill out, Thanks Kara!
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper is so much more fun
2. Real tree or Artificial? I LOVE a real tree but they are so expensive now, we've had a fake one the past couple of years
3. When do you put up the tree? Depends on when I get the motivation to dig everything out
4. When do you take the tree down? Depends on when I get the motivation to put everything back away
5. Do you like eggnog? I used to love it but not so much anymore
6. Favorite gift received as a child? This is hard, Santa always brought me the best stuff! I do remember thinking I was pretty awesome when I got my first CD player
7. Hardest person to buy for? My husband, he buys everything he wants through the year or only wants stuff we can't afford
8. Easiest person(s) to buy for? My kids, it is SO much fun!
9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? I don't do either, although I got Christmas cards made with a family picture last year and never sent them out!
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? None, I love everything
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Probably Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, but I love a lot of others too! No I changed my mind it's definitely Christmas Story and Christmas Vacation!!!
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Usually a couple of weeks before Christmas, but this year started the day after Thanksgiving, I like to wait until the last minute ;)
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Not that I can think of but that's not a guarantee!
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? I love all holiday food but my mom does make a mean ham!
16. Lights on the tree? Yes, multicolored
17. Favorite Christmas song? All of them, except a few that I am sick of (ie Christmas Shoes, which I think is an ok song, I have just heard it 2 million times)
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay around home
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Of course!
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Open PJ's Christmas Eve and the rest Christmas morning around 5 am
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Traffic
23. Favorite ornament theme or color? We have a tradition of getting a new ornament every year for each member of the family so that's as close as we get to a theme and I LOVE it!!!
24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Again, my mom's ham
25. What do you want for Christmas this year? Tuition for next semester, oh and a Magic Bullet

I Could Have Been Killed

Yesterday was the first time in years that I didn't have to get up at 4 am to go to work, so what did I do? I got up at 4 am to shop! As a retail girl for so many years I came to loath Black Friday since I had to work so early and since pregnant moms try NOT to get up that early there was no real reason for us to be open before 10, yet we still had to sit there and watch the crazy crowds go past our doors. This year is my first out of retail so I decided to see Black Friday the way the other half sees it. I set my alarm and went to bed for too short of a time, when it rang I thought "What am I thinking?" but got up anyway. When I was actually out of bed I got excited, got ready, and got Maisy loaded up (yes, I took my 5 month old daughter shopping at 5 am). My parents and sister came to get us and we drove to Sam's Club. I ran like a mad woman to get my hands on a Wii Fit only to find out they were given out before the store even opened :( anyway, that's how the day started and we had so much fun for the rest of the day!!! I really didn't get a whole lot but I had so much fun seeing all of the madness! We went back home around noon and then for some reason Joey and I decided to take the kids on Frontrunner and I found myself at the Gateway until 9:00, way too much shopping for one day, I'm still trying to recover.
I am so sorry all of you Mother's Work employees had to work yesterday (again, I think it's worthless for you to open early) but hope your day went well, and hope you all make plan for Christmas :)

Happy Thanksgiving

I thought today was appropriate to express what I'm thankful for but quickly realized I couldn't list everything I am thankful for without writing for hours, so I thought I'd write about the one thing I am most thankful for: my family. I don't know where I'd be without them (obviously I wouldn't be born without some of them, ha, ha). Joey works hard to allow me to chase my dreams and stay at home with the kiddos while I do it, my parents never tell me they are sick of me or my kids even though we invade their house everyday and are the best grandparents out there, Aimee helps me get through classes that may have caused me to pull my hair out and entertains me every day, Jordan is always willing to help me (he started my car for me every day last winter when I was so sick), Marianne always calls to make sure we are all OK and would do anything for us, and most of all I am thankful for my kids who make me laugh every day. I can't imagine life without them. Seeing the world through my kids' eyes is the most blessed experience I have ever had, and I would not trade it for the world. I love you all!

41 Out of 99

Things I've Done! This was so much fun! To participate just copy and paste in your own blog, and bold all of the things you have done. Happy discoveries!
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping (sorry mom!)
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice (I will regret not doing this while I was in Venice forever)
29. Seen an eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person (the year we went the tour went to Sienna instead, grr.)
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted (as long as a characiture in Sea World counts)
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen (Doing it this Christmas, anyone with me?)
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma (I would, they won't let me)
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job (Technically, I didn't want to go back, so I didn't)
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one (we love you Joe)
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Because I'm Bored

I haven't posted for a while and I'll admit I'm a little bored right now so I thought it would be interesting to post all of the jobs I've had and places I've worked. Don't ask me where the thought came from, totally random. Anyway, here I go (in order but I won't bore you with dates, ha, ha!):
1-Lagoon lifeguard
2-Jamba Juice
3-Lagoon lifeguard (again)
4-Mail clerk for the IRS (the shortest I think I quit after like 2 weeks, I didn't feel like working anymore)
5-Convergys telemarketer (6 weeks, it was terrible)
6-Part time sales at Layton Motherhood
7-Part time floor supervisor at Layton Motherhood
8-Legal assistant
9-Part time sales Newgate Motherhood
10-Assistant manager Newgate Motherhood
11-Assistant manager Layton Motherhood
12-Manager Newgate Motherhood
13-Manager Layton Mimi Maternity (same company as Motherhood)
14-Co-Manager Bellevue, WA Mimi Maternity
15-Co-manager Newgate Motherhood
16-Manager Newgate Motherhood
17-My favorite-Being a Mommy

Now wouldn't that look great on a resume if I split them all up like that? Looks like I've job-hopped but I can justify it to myself because most of them were with the same company ;) Now that I've gotten rid of my writer's block hopefully my next post can be a bit more interesting!

What are you Watching?

I was tagged by Suzanne to list the shows on my DVR, so here it goes: (by the way a lot of these are off season but I leave them on to wait for the next season)
1-The Amazing Race 13
2-Grey's Anatomy
3-The Office
4-Desperate Housewives
5-The Secret Life of the American Teenager (terrible acting but I'm hoping it comes back)
6-The Girls Next Door
7-Deadliest Catch
8-Project Runway
9-Rock of Love Charm School
10-Reno 911
11-America's Next Top Model
12-Handy Manny
13-Jack's Big Music Show
That's my list, now I tag Aimee and Ashlee!

CHOO CHOO

Duffy decided last night to get all of the cans out of Grandma and Grandpa's lazy susan and make a huge train. He was so excited to show everyone that he made a choo choo train! By the time he was done the train was probably 10 feet long and every can had to be just so.

Haunting Good Time

We had a great time for Halloween this year, we always do. I love Halloween, it's the one day of the year you can be whatever you want to be without people thinking you've lost your mind. We all dressed up early on Halloween and went to Grandma Bennett's work where Duffy always makes out like a bandit and then went to Great-Grandma Bennett's with all the great-grandkids dressed up. Two of the moms were within 2 weeks of having babies (congrats to Erin by the way 11/1/08) so I congratulate them for being troopers, I don't think I could have made costumes being that pregnant, but they did.

In these pictures you can see me, Aimee, and the kids all dressed up, the middle picture is all the great-grandkids, there's a pic of my dad dressed up as Michael Myers, and a few pictures of Jordan's transformation from normal to zombie.

Here we are carving pumpkins, I can't believe I don't have a picture of the finished product :( Maisy wore her Jack-o-lantern onesie so she fit right in!

Election-Eve

Tomorrow is the big election. The most important for a long time, a lot of people say. Procrastinator that I am, I registered to vote on the last possible day and now the day before the election I am still not sure who I am voting for. Call me crazy but I feel like I am choosing the between the lesser of two evils this year. I think I am going to go with my mom's philosophy and vote for anyone other than incumbents. What we have going on isn't working so what would it hurt to try COMPLETELY new people? I guess I'll be spending the day online looking for all the info I can gather on candidates and issues, trying to figure out what I'll do tomorrow. Wish me luck!

A Stay at Home Problem

So, as many of you know I was a working mom until July. I worked a lot of hours, too. Weekends, holidays, everything. I was pretty well put together since I had to look like I knew what I was talking about when I was selling clothing to pregnant women. What has happened to me? Now that I stay home with the kids I am a complete mess. Some days I can't even get out of my pajamas until just before Joey gets home (I wouldn't want him to think I've been lazy all day). It's bad when you are afraid someone is going to knock at the door because you don't want anyone to see you: in your pj's, hair everywhere, glasses still on, etc. It's not like I'm not doing anything, usually, it's just that I have a million other things to do before I remember I haven't even combed my hair. Even when we are going somewhere that day I get the kids looking cute as can be and end up using up all of my time so I pull my hair back into a quick ponytail and run out the door. I usually save makeup for the VERY RARE nights out with Joey, and that tells you I actually get "fancied up" about once every two or three months. You know that Suave (I think) commercial where it talks about motherhood happening to your hair? Yep, they got that idea by seeing me!

Our Trip to the Gateway Mall

We decided to ride Frontrunner for the first time the other day and went to the Gateway Mall. Duffy had a ton of fun on the train and later with his ice cream, not so much with the shopping though! Maisy slept as usual since she was in her wrap, I LOVE MY SLEEPYWRAP! There are a couple of misc pics of Maisy and Me too.

The Grand Unveiling

Here they are, the 2008 Halloween Costumes! We have been working hard on these and finally they are done! We took our annual trip to Gardner Village today and had so much fun. We took lots of pictures and here are some of the best. Everywhere we went people were saying how cute the kids looked, and I believe them! Enjoy!

Just for Jana

In honor of Jana's list of fashion faux pas, here's a picture of my dad getting ready to go camping. We are always trying to get him to stop wearing boots with shorts, black with brown, and tucking in EVERY shirt he owns. For some reason he won't listen. This is a picture of his brown work boots with shorts and long black socks. Hope you like it!

Our Trip to the Fire Station

We had so much fun at the Syracuse fire station open house. We got to look at the cool stuff, picked up lots of goodies, dressed up like firemen, and Duffy even got to drive the new fire truck (the tire was taller than Duffy!).

Mini Golfing

The O'Keefes love to golf! We went to the mini golf course up at East Canyon and here are the pics. Duffy got the golf bag and clubs from Daddy (of course), he thinks he's Tiger Woods. Maisy just hung out in her wrap like she normally does. At first she was smiley but then she just fell asleep.

Anyone else hate cheap crap?

Ok, so I bought a swimsuit at the beginning of September specifically for my water aerobics class (I know you are all jealous). I have class, at the most, twice a week so by my calculations I have worn the suit about 10 or 11 times. I just got it out of the washer to go to class tonight and it has gone completely see-thru in certain areas. What? Alright, I am a bargain shopper and only paid $20 for it but it was regularly $78 do you know how mad I'd be then? Just wanted to vent on how bugged I am about this!

Hospital Pics

This is us at McKay-Dee and our first ride home (the carseat pics)

Our Beautiful Baby Girl

Here are some pics from our pregnancy and new baby girl Maisy. Aimee took our belly pics and we had quite an adventure that night, Duffy was supposed to get more pics with us but he stole a nickel out of grandma and grandpa's slot machine and swallowed it. I freaked out and took him into the doctor who just said to wait for it to pass. Guess I've learned my lesson on that one!

Getting ready for fall!

This is our first attempt at blogging, we'll try to keep up on it! These days we are just getting adjusted to fall. We love the summer but are glad for a little cooler temperatures, not the snow though! Joey just got back from golf trip to Phoenix and stepped out of 85 degree temps there to snow on the ground here. We're glad he even came back! He won the trip in a golf tournament here at home and got to fly out there for 4 days of golf, sun, and football. They even got to go the Arizona Cardinals game against the Dallas Cowboys and had 19th row seats. He didn't take a camera with him of course, so sorry, no pictures!
Duffy went out and played in the snow with Grandpa and Aimee the other day and made a pumpkin head snowman, it was so cute. He can't stop talking about the snow. It used to be that everytime he woke up he would say "It's nice day today?" but now it's "Snow's cold, huh?"
Maisy looks like she is getting so close to rolling over, I can't believe it. But you know how babies are, she might look like she's going to but not actually do it for months! She's getting so big already, it makes me sad.
I'm just busy with school. I took a lot of classes this semester so I feel like I am constantly doing homework or studying. It's kind of strange to be back in that routine after so long, but it's nice. I really do enjoy it. I'm also trying to get the Halloween costumes done for our annual trip to Gardner Village next Thursday, Grandma will probably have to rescue me again! I say every year that next year I'm not making homemade costumes but in the end they turn out so cute, I can't help myself. Duffy is going to be a spider and Maisy will be a bumblebee. I'll post pics later. Well, that's all today. I don't have current pics for what is going on now so I'll just post some older ones, hope you enjoy!