Happy 15th Rossi!

It's our first of six - 15th birthdays. I know - confusing sentence. I have to tell you what a fun birthday party this was! We surprised Rossi! Yep.

Let me tell you the story -

My oldest is SO responsible - I think my friends get sick of me bragging on what a great kid he is! He gets himself up every morning - and makes his own breakfast - and jumps on his bike every morning at 5:30 to go to school (2 miles away). He's been getting himself up and making his own breakfast for about 10 years now. Not only that, he comes to my bedroom door and quietly shuts it so his breakfast noises don't wake us! I KNOW! WOW!

Just before Christmas this year - I took a ride on Ross' bike. His seat is not a steady seat. It is quite like a loose tooth, actually. When I got in from riding the bike & told him how terrible it was - he laughed and said "I know." Never complained about it.

So for Christmas, he got a new bicycle seat! He was so excited - really - kind of fun that he didn't have to stand while riding his bike to school in the morning.

A few weeks later, Kiersten and I were out on a bike ride, I was on her bike, she was on Ross'. The chain came off - WHAT? She said he told her it happens a lot. What a piece of crap, right? Not only that, he uses the Fred Flintstone breaks - they're as good as your shoes! So a friend of mine told me that she saw him riding his bike to school, and he really needs a light on that bike. Yah - I guess it's dark in the winter at 5:30 in the morning (summer is a whole different story -it's bright sunny at 5!)

THE BIRTHDAY STORY.

I got home from the store today after Rossi got home from school. He was on the computer and was watching a video that his friend uploaded on youtube. I kicked him off & told him he needed to do his homework - blah blah - you know - "every day" stuff!

Then he told me I needed to see an e-mail he sent me, I pulled up my e-mail and saw an e-mail from his aunt w/ a birthday e-card on it! So here's some of our conversation:

Me: OH!! It's your BIRTHDAY TODAY!? (acting like I forgot - which I DIDN'T!!)

Ross: (not upset, but razzing me) I can't believe my own mother forgot my birthday!!!

Me: Wow, that's terrible, I can't believe it! If I would have known that I would have made breakfast for you this morning!! I'm SOOO SORRY!! (not the case, I would NOT have gotten up at 5 to make him breakfast, I love him, but there's a reason why he's morning independent!!!)

Ross: MY own MOTHER forgot my BIRTHDAY!

Me: I feel bad - what do you want for dinner? What kind of cake can I make you? Ice cream cake?!

So we went to the store...got the ingredients for his favorite dinner & ice cream cake.

The whole time I kept asking him what I could get him for his birthday. I kept telling him I didn't have any money - and asked him if I could get him his favorite box of cereal. (This is funny in my head because this was actual birthday presents in my family growing up! LOL! - so it's just an inside joke w/ me to get my kids cereal on their birthday - they don't get it - but it always cracks me up)

Anyway - he kept saying "I'd like something that lasts, not food" and I'd retort by telling him, "But a BIG bag of cereal would REALLY last!"

We get home & he grabbed the mail - to find a birthday card in there from the bishop! "Look mom, even the bishop remembered my birthday - and he wasn't even THERE that day!" (he was really just teasing me, he wasn't bummed, he thought it was funny.)

So I made the ice cream cake - Kiersten got home from school shortly after & made his favorite dinner! His daddy came home from work - and we opened presents.

His first present was what he found while we were at Walmart getting stuff for his ice cream cake. This is what he bought himself w/ the money that his Grandma & Grandpa Luekenga gave him! (Also money from Aunt & Uncle J&J). I told him I was going to wrap it up and he should act surprised...Good job, right? LOL!

THEN - He opened bike headlight & tail light. "Look - this way you won't get run over on your way to school in the morning!!!" He didn't seem so excited! But he acted like he was happy because - well, he knew his mommy forgot his birthday - and didn't want to make her feel bad about it.

"Ross, lets go put it on your bike quick before it gets dark!!!" So he ran out - I followed him - and went to the side of the house - where he dutifully parked his bike (that he got the Christmas before he turned 11) when he got home this afternoon!

He got to the side of the house - and the bike was gone. The side gate was opened. "It's GONE?! What? The gate is opened?!" I almost felt bad, the look on his face was SICKENING.

I played along. "You left the gate opened?!"

"NO! I swear I closed it!" Then he walked around the front of the house hoping that one of his siblings perhaps rode it somewhere and didn't put it back. Nope, not there!

By now, Kali & Howie are running around "what, the bike's gone?"

I told them to run back in & tell their dad.

Ross (the dad) came around the side of the house - MAD because - well, someone didn't take care of something - the bike was GONE! His answer, "Well, lets get in the car & see if we can drive around & catch someone on the bike riding away - I'll go one way - mom, you go the other, whose coming with me?"

We opened the garage door to get the car - and well, there was a bike there. Ross' knees buckled under him! He slid down the front of the car as relief & excitement set in!

Ross was SO relieved, and excited - I tried to catch the glistening in his eye! When he realized all at once, he would have breaks & shocks, at the same time realizing that the missing bike was part of the excitement toward the unveiling of the new bike!

He ran upstairs to get his shoes to take the new bike out for a spin! It went super-fast - like new shoes do when you're 5!

Then we had ice-cream cake. Couldn't find the candles - so we went with tea-lights.

He got them all.

And then played guitar hero...not to be left out - Brynn got her guitar and joined in!

Busy weekend

When it rains it pours! And it rained! It fell hard for a solid - what? 4-5 minutes? Which happened to be the 4-5 minutes we arrived at Rossi's 8th grade promotion (yes, our fine school system has found new ways to celebrate mediocrity) I guess I can't complain --- with statistics the way they are in Arizona, this will be the only "graduation" type event 50% of these children will ever see. Which is probably why the majority of 8th graders really go overboard with their formal dresses & such.

So here are some pictures of the blessed occasion...also - it should be noted that I had to go from the car to the gymnasium under a torrential downpour of rain - which is why my hair looks like THAT!




Also Ross & I went to Maggiano's for dinner tonight on the invitation of our friends - who were celebrating their 9th wedding anniversary. We really had a lot of fun! The food was great - a little spendy for the ravioli's not being laced with gold or anything - and the service was - well, probably provided by those who only saw one "graduation" - or maybe two if you counted the Kindergarten gradutation.

As I was saying - we went with our friends, Mike - and his wife, Larri...and another couple, Nate & Mandy! Mandy made the reservations on line and mentioned that it was Mike & Larri's anniversary. The names were spelled wrong, so apparently as we were being seated - with a special print-out menu which included on the bottom "Happy Anniversary Mike & Larry" (spelled wrong!) The faculty at Maggiano's were trying to figure out of the three men who were there, which two were Mike & Larry, we were all sitting couples on a round table, but Ross & Nate were sitting next to each other so they just assumed it was THEM celebrating an anniversary of sorts. We had a nice little laugh about it - and thought we explained to the high school drop out of a server who the happy couple was.

Nate, Mandy, Larri & Mike left quickly at the end of the meal to catch the latest Indiana Jones flick (which we saw just prior to the 8th grade promotion and torential downpour) so we stayed behind to make sure all the ice cream and cheese cake was consumed. I couldn't finish the cheesecake, so our HS dropout boxed it up and brought it back to Ross and told him that he could share it with Mike later tonight...or tomorrow...uh? She still thought (even though the other two couples had gone - and Ross and I were left with the baby) that Nate & Ross were actually "Larry and Mike" celebrating some kind of anniversary.

Yes, we got a kick out of that...I must have been the surrogate mother and gifted them this cute little child for their anniversary? Who ever knows what goes through the heads of little girls who only make it to their 8th grade promotional ceremony?
(insert pictures here - LARRI - e-mail them to me! can't wait to see them!)

Also earlier today the kids went to do baptisms at the temple! This was Kiersten's first time! She really enjoyed it! I'm thrilled! It seems like she's finally starting to make friends in this ward. It's been difficult for her!

Okay - that's the weekend! I was supposed to go hot tubbing with another girlfriend tonight - but I forgot about it - and well, it was a toss up - pricey food and having my husband mistaken for a gay anniversary couple - or - hanging out in a hot tub wearing my only fitting swim suit which happens to be maternity? Yah - hmmm, Guess I'll go eat so I can fit into that maternity swim suit again?

Death grip

how cute, right? Coby's been kind of clingy lately - she just likes to be held - and I think she may have a bit of a tummy ache - last night - well, it may have something to do with me forgetting to eat - or getting to busy to eat - but she's been kind of colicky lately - my food? who knows! I had to get dinner started so Rossi held her - he came to me and was a little worried that he might have killed her - looks like she broke her neck and said she must be dead because she had the death grip on his shirt. I tried to peel her away from him, and it just didn't work!