this and that

1. I went to Ikea with some dear friends on Friday. Such a good time. How can a two-hour ride to Seattle go so quickly? Lea took us in her 36-passenger van so we could fit lots of stuff in the back. We did...and we got it all in all by ourselves with no help from the Ikea guy who was picking up carts and when I told him we may need some help loading our stuff he said he'd be right back and never showed his face again. I was not the big spender of the day however I did manage to find some things I simply could not live without. I got a new duvet for our bed. I sent a certain member of my family (John) to get one a couple of years ago and that was a big mistake. John likes to be warm so he ended up buying this duvet that was so thick and heavy that one literally took their life into their own hands when you climbed underneath it. We were always afraid we would never wake up in the morning - we were just never sure if the cause of death would be heatstroke or suffocation. Anyway, I got a new duvet that is still warm but not suffocating and we are both very happy. Anyone want a gently used duvet? Perhaps someone that is planning to move to Antarctica or likes the feeling of being buried alive? Anyone?
I also got this dome thing that you put over your plate of food when you put it in the microwave to prevent splattering. It just may revolutionize my life. A certain member of my family (John) has a tendency to heat things up without covering it with a paper towel which oftentimes led to splattering. No more. I love the thing. Yes, Lea and Amy, I do realize it is plastic and my family may grow a third eye but I don't care...no more splatters.
2. Yesterday was two of my most favorite guy's birthdays... This one likes to act all tough but he is a big, mushy, teddy bear. You should see him with my Katie - he is going to make the best Grandpa some day (no pressure Andrew and Cheryl).
A little story about Gary...when I was very pregnant with Katie John took Holly to Holland for two weeks to visit friends. I was fixing dinner one night and Sam was at the kitchen table messing around. He somehow managed to get his arm stuck in the chair rails. I could not get it out. I tried lubing it up with soap and butter, I was praying out loud, I was crying, Sam was crying, Sam kept yelling at me to call 911. It was not funny. Finally, I called Gary. Wouldn't you know that as soon as I hung up the phone, Sam got his arm out all by himself. I tried to call Gary back but it was too late, he had already left. He was here in like five seconds. And when he got here he didn't laugh at me. He just made sure we were okay and then left and never once teased me about it. I really liked him for that.
He is also very good at fixing up master bathrooms and putting kitchens back together...I hope.

The special guy on the left turned 10 yesterday! Wow, I can't believe he's in double digits already! Not only is he one of my favorite nephews but he is Sam's best buddy in the world. I remember the day he was born - it was one of the longest of my life. I knew Amy had gone to the hospital and I was just waiting for the phone call. FINALLY my mom called and said, "It's over and everyone's healthy and that's all I'm saying." and HUNG UP on me. I had to wait some more for Amy to call and tell me that I had a beautiful nephew named Chase.
3. These two are celebrating an anniversary today...
I am so thankful that they have done such a good job of modeling what a good marriage should look like. After 42 years (I think it's 42 years???) they not only love each other, but they still like each other and are each other's best friend. And you know what's really cool? I get to see them TOMORROW!!
4. John and I leave for warm, sunny Arizona tomorrow. I am so excited. In case you didn't know, I am a big believer in leaving your children at home occasionally and just vacationing with your honey. Yes, I miss my children but I really think I come home a better mom.

5. This blog post is becoming a lot longer than I intended it to be.
6. I got these eggs from my friend Lea. She is serious about the chicken business. Have you ever in your life seen a green egg? I hadn't. It tasted good.

7. I recently found out that you are no longer supposed to put two spaces in between sentences when you are typing. I think that's dumb. I. like. it. better. this. way.
8. John got a little crazy this weekend and decided to strip (are you starting to wonder where I am going with this?) our cabinets...

The kitchen remodel has begun. On the bright side, Kerri will find it very easy to locate things in our kitchen with all the doors removed.
9. I found these when I was cleaning out the cupboards...

The little name-plates that my mom and I made for the head table at my wedding. Why have I kept these for 18 years?
10. I have a lot to do before my plane leaves tomorrow. I need to get going.

Happy Monday!

Wordless Wednesday

Weekend Wrap-up

What a fun and exciting weekend we had!
First off - and this is very exciting - I got water in my kitchen!! Yes, I guess I had water before but now I have it by my refrigerator which means that when my new refrigerator is delivered later today that I can get water and ice (crushed or cubed) out of the door. YEAH! I've always wanted that ever since our neighbors Fred and Shirley had it and I would use any excuse to go into their house and ask for water. I remember my friend Shelly and I purposely throwing the ball over the fence and then since we were on their side of the fence and feeling rather parched, ringing their doorbell and asking for water.
Isn't it beautiful? It's always interesting to pull your fridge away from the wall and see what previous owners have painted the kitchen...and also to see just how large a dust bunny can get.
The weekend started early at the Hiemstra house since John took Friday off and the family (minus Katie Kat) went skiing up on Mount Baker. You might be saying to yourself, "Hmmm, that's interesting because I always thought Dee didn't like to ski." You would be right. I still don't.
Here are our skiing companions (and part of the reason I was talked into trying to ski again) Mark and Edie...

Despite it all, these guys make everything fun and I did have a good time. I think my favorite part of the day was celebrating Edie's birthday at an awesome Mexican restaurant after the skiing was over and the fact that no one died or lost an eye on the mountain. HAPPY BIRTHDAY EDIE...you ski real good for an old person.

Holly and Sam LOVED skiing. And after a one hour lesson, they were experts. It's amazing how quickly kids catch onto things. Maybe it's because they don't have any fear or maybe it's because they don't have as far to fall or maybe it's just that my kids are exceptional (yes, I think it's that one).

Here's John and Holly right after they got down from "the big hill"...

I think she liked it...

And here's my Sammy going up the tow rope on the "baby hill" (Sam's words)...

And coming back down...

It wasn't too long after lunch when he told me he was bored of the "baby hill" and wanted to go with his Dad. It wasn't easy watching my little boy going up that chair lift (do you realize there are no safety bars on those things??!!) Let's just say I was glad when he got to the bottom again.

Isn't he just the cutest??...

The chair lift going up to "the big hill".

The day was pretty overcast but once in while it would clear off a little and we would get a glimpse of the mountain...

We took Flat Stanley with us (we got him from the Christian School in Delavan, Wisconsin). I love this picture of Sam. Can't you just hear him in a few years saying things like, "Great snag dude!" or "Did you see that 180? That was golden!"

On Saturday, the Ball family invited us to Canada to go swimming with them. Let me just say that there are some things that our Northern Neighbors do really well. They have these incredible aquatic centers with giant hot tubs, waterslides, high dives, etc. where my whole family can swim for less than ten dollars. Let me just say that the hot tub felt very good on my ski-weary 40-year-old body. We all had a fun time. On the way home, we stopped by Edaleen for a pre-dinner appetizer (yes, ice cream is an appetizer) and then ordered pizza and played Sequence (the girls won) and Blokus (John didn't win).

Birthday Surprise #3

Remember that Friday that I was suppose to scrapbook but instead my hubby and friends lied to me and I was treated to a day of snowshoeing and a surprise party? Well, scrapbooking was postponed until Monday....or so I thought.
I was deceived and lied to again. Who would have thought that turning 40 makes one so naive and gullible? Instead of scrapbooking, two very special friends picked me up and treated me to a "D Day". While I was changing out of my scrapbooking attire (old jeans and a t-shirt), they dressed Katie for me and we dropped her off at my dear sister-in-law's house who had graciously switched around her work hours just to babysit (thanks Aunt Sally!)
We first went for out for breakfast. I had french toast; it was delish and full of carbs and I didn't care. When I asked for a clue about where we were headed next, they told me, "I hope you shaved your legs!" They are very good friends but they obviously don't know me all that well. I realize this is bordering on too much information but I really don't shave my legs in the winter unless it's John's birthday, Valentine's Day, we are on a cruise, or if the Packers make it to the Superbowl. Oh well. I'm sure those nice spa ladies have seen worse. Maybe.
The pedicure was wonderful. I have decided that I would rather hire someone to rub my feet than have a housekeeper, cook or nanny. I am totally serious.
Here I am soaking...yes, those are a plate of cookies next to me.

The very best part was the wax they put on. Oh my goodness. I loved that part! Whoever thought of dipping feet in hot wax is a genius! Here is Amy getting dipped...

Here is Julie's feet wrapped in warm booties after the dipping...

And here are our toes after we were all done...

Mine are the ones in the pink flip flops. Julie and Amy didn't like wearing the flip flops out in the cold and wind but being a former Minnesotan, I didn't mind one bit. Who would want to cover up such beautiful toes? Julie did have a little "incident" with her flip flops when we were shopping, let's just say they aren't real high quality footware.

Oops, I meant to take a picture of the cute little sign I bought when we were shopping. I'll have to include that in a later post.

The final surprise for D Day was a Mexican lunch with a bunch of my girlfriends...

I am so blessed to have each and every one of these gals in my life. God has provided me with such good friends here in Washington and I am so grateful. I only have one teeny complaint...couldn't just one of them be older than me???

Hat day

Guess who had hat day at school today? Yep. Mr. Crabby pants. He definitely inherited my love of mornings.

Thanks Gramma for letting us borrow your cool hat! Do you need it in Arizona? We could deliver it in TEN days!

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

She is mastering the art of the cheesy grin.

Birthday Surprise #2

On Sunday morning, John and the kids let me open my birthday gift from my parents. I had no idea what it was, I never even suspected a scrapbook...even when Sam accidentally dropped it on my toes! Let's just say that I loved it so much that I spent pretty much all of Sunday curled up in a chair reading and crying.

My mom made it for me but I guess my Dad went through all of her old pictures and picked out which ones to include.

From what I have concluded, my mom started working on this months ago and asked a lot of different special people in my life to send her a page about me. It is so neat! There are pages from family members, college roommates, old friends (meaning I've known them for a long time not that they are old), new friends, neighbors, my hubby, and my kids. They are all as different as the people who wrote them. Some included memories, some wrote poems, some had non-so-flattering pictures of me, and some just said how much they loved me. I LOVE each and every one of them - a HUGE thank you to everyone who submitted a page!

My birthday scrapbook also had lots of fun pictures from my childhood, some I had never even seen before...

It was a wonderful birthday surprise and I will treasure it forever. Thanks Mom and Dad!

Oh yeah, and speaking of my Dad...he put this picture in there with a note that said that this was taken when I was 13 and he was almost 40. He wanted me to take a picture like it with Holly (who is 13) so we could compare "who's the best at 40".

Here you go Dad...

I'm not sure why she has that look on her face. I think she's making fun of me. I couldn't help it that I had big teeth and hair that no matter how hard I tried it just wouldn't feather like Farah Fawcett. And I'm not sure who won the "best at 40" thing. I think I have more wrinkles but my hair is not receding (yet). Let's call it a draw.

Birthday Surprise #1

Last Friday I was supposed to scrapbook. I was tricked...deceived...lied to by my husband and friends. Instead, my husband took me snowshoeing up on Mount Baker. It was a hoot. Not to brag or anything but I think I was rather good at it too...especially for an old woman. Yes, it was snowing A LOT. Yes, I am still smiling. Just to clarify...I don't mind snow in the mountains, I think that's where God intended it to snow. It was just after the fall that it started snowing where normal people actually want to live.

John wasn't quite as graceful as me. Don't be too hard on him. Keep in mind folks, I was a Minnesota girl and I was on the cross country ski team in high school (it was the only team that didn't have cuts but never mind that).

We don't look too bad for a couple of forty-year-olds huh?
After our snowshoeing adventures he took me to a quaint little Italian restaurant at the bottom of the mountain. It was wonderful...even though my hair had gotten all wet and I looked kind of like a drowned rat.

Dinner lasted over two hours. Mostly because we ate a whole platter of these...

They are mussels and I am not sure they were ever meant to be consumed by humans. I managed to get down a couple of them by drowning them in that creamy sauce, piling on the onions and pretending I was on Survivor trying to win a million dollars.

This guy, on the other hand, really enjoyed the mussels. I think he ate about twenty of them (I am not kidding you). Actually, I don't know if he enjoyed them or if he just refused to see them go to waste. Thinking about it now, we should have taken a couple home and made our kids eat them. That would have been fun.

On the way home, I began to get a little suspicious that I wasn't done being surprised. John was driving really slow (sometimes I think it is John's goal to see me wet myself when he is driving on windy, mountain roads) and when I called home to check on the kiddos Holly seemed just a little too chipper. I said, "There isn't a whole bunch of people at my house is there?" I hate surprises parties and I had made it very clear to him that I did not want one. He said, "No, you hate surprise parties." He had a little smirk on his face and that's when I was sure there was a bunch of people at my house.

Actually, it was lots of fun. It was just a small party with mostly family so I forgave him. Besides, he had ordered a cake and went shopping for party food all by himself. He must really love me. I stole the above picture off my friend Amy's blog.
And this one off my friend Julie's blog...

I know, the glasses are really cool. And here are a few interesting facts from my 1971 book...

* In 1971, cigarette advertisements were banned from t.v., the last Ed Sullivan show aired, and Walt Disney World opened.
* In 1971, "All in the Family" and "Sanford and Son" were television favorites.

* In 1971, the average life expectancy was 71 years.

* In 1971, the average house was $25,200.00, the average income was $10,622.00 and gas was 40 cents per gallon.

Saturday we had a quiet day at home and then went out for pizza with the kiddos at night for my birthday supper. I thought this was pretty cool...

Our pizza number was "9"...the same day I was born. Coincidence...I don't think so.

Stay tuned for Birthday surprise #2.

40

I am so loved. I have absolutely the best family and friends. Turning 40 has never been so much fun. Details (and pictures) coming soon...

Catching up

Okay folks, I'm going to get all caught up here.
Sometime during Christmas break (all the days have blended together now) John and Holly went up to Mount Baker to go sledding with some of his family. We thought about all going but last time we were up there I lost Sam and I haven't quite recovered from that yet. Besides, we are still in potty boot camp (in case you're wondering, it's going really well but we are not quite at the you're-either-going-to-have-to-hold-it-or-go-in-the-snow phase yet).
They had an absolutely beautiful day - clear skies and no wind. I heard a good time was had by all...even Rachel who ended up with a broken arm. John took these pictures to make me jealous. It worked. Next time he's staying home!

We had four other families over for New Years. The adults played games, ate, and laughed a lot. The kids danced to Holly's new Just Dance 2 Wii game all night. Can you believe this is the only picture I took all night? Julie, you CANNOT miss a New Year's party again, look at how pitiful I am! Yes, all these kids stayed up until midnight.

And lastly, Sam got ahold of my camera again. He took 43 pictures. I told them I would only put two of them on my blog. He had a hard time choosing. Enjoy.

Wow, he has a long tongue. I wonder if I could bring him on the Letterman show or something??