Mt Hood!

We're not in Cabo anymore.. but our tans look GREAT in the snow.

We went up sledding and Shonda and Tyler came with us. I think the pictures give you just a glimpse into the fun that we had!

Maybe HE wasn't having as much fun as the rest of us...

Yes.. this was a hole that we landed in that turned into a perfect snow cave!

Then.. Tyler made the men look like boys when he started cooking hot dogs on his back hitch!
They tasted so good with the hot chocolate too!

Do you see how the men use the children to protect them from each others snowball?

After our fingers were frozen, and the chocolate all gone, we went up to Timberline to have some food. We saw the beauty of the mountain when it turns pink. I've never seen the mountain so beautiful as this moment! I'm not sure our camera really captured it though.

Happy New Year!

Who's in town?

Not just Santa!!! But Lee and Sarah too!!
On Christmas day, they made it into town to open presents and spend the week with us!! It wasn't as warm here, so there first gifts were something warm to wear.

They give the BEST gifts around...look at that smile. He smiles just like that every time I give him permission to play on his Leapster.

I realized there were no pictures of me...so here is one for the record. I was present on Christmas day!

Christmas

Who doesn't love Christmas morning? The boys were excited to see that Santa ate their cookies and left them a note and presents! We had a full day of fun and were spoiled rotten!!
Here are just a few photos.

This picture was kinda precious to me because Uncle Emile/Dad is one cool cat if you ask me! He captured all of kids attention with a book when there were gifts to open, food to eat, and stories to tell!!!
What a wonderful Christmas!

These pictures don't belong on Christmas morning, but it was a highlight of my holiday! The primary children that I work with recreated the Nativity scene while singing a song. They were wonderful.. and they even had a baby to go along with it all.
(It wasn't my idea, and the credit belongs to my friend Robin who can pull these things together without even worrying about it!!!)

We made it just in time

Thank goodness we made it back in time to see the big man!!! The boys were so excited and made Santa laugh pretty hard when they started asking for guns and aircraft carriers that could "kill"!
To kill? Really... what about the sweet loving boys that want to play with shovels and trains?
At least everyone in the room was laughing and the photographer said that he hadn't seen Santa laugh that hard all year.

Feliz Navidad

We are headed home.

Our skin might look a little different and we might add a few vowels at the end our words but we are still the same gringos.

We'll see you soon!

Paradisio

We're just getting ready for the holidays.

We'll be ready for Santa soon.

To be Continued...

Thanksgiving!

Amongst other things...
I am thankful for desserts! I had so much fun making them for Thanksgiving this year!!! There was Pumpkin Bread Pudding AND Pumpkin Roll cake with the most delicious cheesy caramel filling, and even Pumpkin Flan!

I was sad that we were so stuffed from all the other delicious food that I couldn't keep eating all the sugary stuff.

And of course... I'm so thankful for these boys! They make every day an adventure.

Hope your thanksgiving was wonderful!

Halloween

So, I'm slow at posting right now, but I'll get caught up.
Here are my handsome Super Hero's for Halloween!!!

Emile and I were a little less obvious, and this picture doesn't help. If you look closely you'll see the golf club broken around his neck.
He was Tiger Woods, and I'm the blond wielding the golf club! :D

Oregon Beach video

I made a new video. This is from our family weekend at Lincoln City in September. The weather was perfect, and we had some fun games you'll see at the end.


Lincoln city 2010 from Raina on Vimeo.

Pumpkin Smash from Jamba Juice.

Pumpkins. I normally don't spend a lot of time thinking about pumpkins, but this season with our trips to all the pumpkin patches, I am left with a few thoughts.

These gourd-like squashes are kind of annoying! They are massive to wrap your arms around, heavy, not always the most attractive, and somewhat rude with prickly stems. This is just what I think of the outside of them. On the inside they are totally disgusting. They are stringy and slimy and have lots of thin seeds that slip out of my hands when trying to grab them out. I know you can roast them, or plant them, but why? My boys won't even touch the insides. They make the most awefull faces at the sight of their guts.
But around Halloween, this useless gourd-like squash starts popping up in the most exciting places. Cookies, smoothies, pies, candies, and more! So, on my errand the other day, I saw a sign that seemed like it just might interest me. "Creamy Cool"... yes please.

I hopped in line at Jamba Juice and discovered something that MUST be shared! The flavor was.. pumpkiny, the sweetness was... rich, and the spices... made my palette come alive. I will be back for more. Have YOU tasted it? Did you like it? You should go get one... and tell me if you liked it as much as I did.
Enjoy!