conner turned 7.

as of february 1st, this dude is officially seven years old. every birthday i say this, i know, but seriously...why is time going so fast! he is getting so big! this year, he asked for a star wars party. he has been way into star wars lately because of the lego star wars xbox game. so a star wars party we had...

do you love that his "smile" looks like he is in pain!  he wasn't. he had a great time!

my bro eric is a genious. i was just going to stick a ken doll in a thing of jell-o and call it han solo. he thought of putting a picture behind each square of jello. pretty cool eh!  he did one of george lucas, who is the one in the picture!

some of the little padawans, training to be jedi's!

for part of thier training they had to use the force to give yoda some ears. good thing eric is also an amazing artist. my yoda would have been terrible!

they also had to defeat darth vader. or at least a pinata of his head. unforunately the pinata was cracked in one hit! lame.

all the different star wars themed foods.

yoda cake that eric and brooke made. i ran out of time!

each guest got a name tag with their jedi name (just their name backwards) and then the training tasks on back. they got a star after completing each task, and then became full jedi's once the training was complete.

all in all it was a great party. it was the first "friend" party that we have had with friends from conner's school. so there were a ton of kids there, as well as family of course! i couldn't have done it without the help of my brother's and sister.in.laws. so thanks so much ya'll for all your help. orion's party is next. he wants an indiana jones party! so we'll see what we come up with for that!!!

Cars at the 'pot! (pronounced poe)

So the first Saturday of every month Home Depot does this free little craft for kids. This past weekend it was race cars.  Little dudes love race cars!

can't it just be griffin's birthday already.

i am so ready to have this little baby, who is not making me so little. i am huge. and i walk like a gorilla. for reals. and i am so tired. and i am not exaggerating. i am tired all the time. and not just like, ooh, i could use a nap tired. the kind of tired where i could literally sleep for a week straight.

all my clothes are too tight, but who wants to buy new maternity clothes when they only have 4ish weeks to go? like the other night i had some time to myself with nothing to do. so i went to micheals and just walked around. which is sorta sad in the first place. then i caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror and had no idea that the bottom half of my belly was hanging out. i mean really. how did i not notice that?  i looked home-lessly ridiculous in my sweatpants, pony-tailed hair, flip flops, no make up, and white shirt with my tummy sticking out the bottom! awesome.

but..lemme just say that new shoes make it all better. well...almost all better. my feet are swollen so i can't really wear them out and about. but i like to look at them in my closet. and sometimes i wear them while i am resting on the couch or watching TV. and then i get all excited to have this little baby, get back in shape, get back to myself, and wear these cute shoes for real! that's all. rant over!

some recent shoe purchases that make me smile:

 

cheddar and herb biscuits.

i know. it has been awhile since i really blogged. and now i am just posting a recipe. lame. but these biscuits are not lame. they are actually super good. and really easy. and i am all about super good easy food. try them out!

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons shortening
3 tablespoons butter, cold
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/4 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, garlic powder and salt. Cut in shortening and butter until coarse crumbs are formed. Lightly mix in grated cheese. Mix in buttermilk just until moist (dry spots here and there are ok – the biscuits will be tough if they are overmixed). Drop the biscuits onto a greased or lined baking sheet. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until browned and golden. While the biscuits are baking, in a small bowl combine three tablespoons melted butter, 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes, 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder and a pinch of salt. Right when the biscuits come out of the oven, brush the butter/herb mixture over the biscuits evenly (alternately, you can dip the top of the biscuit into the butter mixture). Serve immediately.

Read post below first!

Just a bit of silliness really...from my phone to you.

Phone died!

Okay so my phone died...lame!  I went to use it and the screen just stopped working.  Thank you Motorola...for selling a bonafide piece of junk. grrrrr.  Anyway it forced me to go through my old photos and videos on the phone and clear some of them out.  So I thought it would  be fun to post some of the pictures and videos of this last year as seen from my phone.

My boys rock!!

And Merrick is the next Mozart!

Heather stoked on Apple Beer for Eric

Puyallup valley with Rainier in the distance as seen from the Sounder train.

Merrick at the Puyallup Fair waiting for an elephant ear.

Conner, Orion, and Merrick being dudes at Kubota Gardens.

Conner and Obi watching TV...Conner had the best seat in the house.  

(they actually watched like this for a half hour)

Merrick being sweet. 

(it's rare we have to document it)

An undisclosable location at an undisclosable studio where a certain someone I know plays an undisclosable role in making video games of an ambiguous nature. Me doing my part to help.

Heather giving the Harry Potter exhibit at the Seattle Science Center 2 thumbs up!

Obi balancing.

Conner you are a go for take off at the Museum of Flight.

Fresh hair cuts.

A wild animal in the sand pit at the Point Defiance Zoo.

The most lethal Merrick of all...of course in his jammies.

Master chief at the Emerald City Comicon. Consequently he was playing Halo.

Pure genius! Thanks Jared Johnson for your help with the kennel.

Heather and Obi on Grandpa Bill and Grandma 'Chelles boat for a 

crabbing and shrimping trip in the Puget Sound.

Heather's favorite summer pass time...she'd tell you that it's hard work but she loves to drive.

Cam-bam saying howdy at a close distance.

Dudes and Hawaiian Shave ice at the Puyallup Farmers Market.

Riding the rock at Pioneer Park.

Ready for anything.

Hidden Springs Ranch in Altamont Utah...location of the MacKay family reunion.

Conner and Obi just hangin' in the back yard.

Nothing like our old friend Ronnie in downtown Puyallup.

Sunrise in Utah at Hidden Springs Ranch.

Conner netting (severely maiming) a fish that Obi reeled in.

Mt. St. Helens after hiking the Ape Caves with the Tuck family.

Dudes on bridge at Kubota Gardens waiting for mom to finish a photo shoot.

First exposure to the gravel pits in Spokane on The Brown family Common Farm.  

They were hooked just like I was at their age.

Everyone likes a good wheel barrel ride once in a while...these boys just like them all the time.

Crabbing with uncle Ryan off Johnson's Point.

Hello Seattle!  My morning commute just outside of King Street Station.

My first pumpkin of 2011 Halloween.

Second attempt was a little more simple.

Conner playing at Point Defiance Zoo.

Obi doing his thing at the zoo.

Merrick owning the upper seat at the zoo playground.

Merrick owning the slide at the zoo playground. 

(he sorta owns things in his way)

Riding the seal at the Point Defiance Aquarium.

Lake of fire and glass at the Tacoma Glass Museum after dinner at Social with Heather. 

(Social = coolest restaurant ever for having bacon on the menu as an appetizer)

Me taking a picture of Heater taking a picture of me at El Gaucho in Tacoma...compliments of Marcilyn.

A bandito named MerMer dancing to the tune of his 

Grandma Marlena at the Mann Family Christmas Talent Show

The dragon in the ceiling at the 5th Ave Theater where we saw Cinderella with the Elton Family.

Boys riding more stuff...if you haven't gathered by the end of this blog post...our boys really like to ride stuff.