Thanks Lindsi and Jamie for being so good to Madison this weekend! She wishes you guys were her big sisters!

Thanksgiving 2008

We drove up to Seattle to spend Thanksgiving with some of my siblings and their families. Included in our gathering was Scott & Keri (their 5 kids), Kelly & Bruce (their 6 kids), Jason & I (our 3 kids) and a family friend of Scott's. It was great to spend the holiday surrounded by family!

We kicked off the day with the boys going to play mud football. Tough looking bunch, I wouldn't mess with them, would you?? All the nice white shorts came back a few shades darker!

Next up was a trip to downtown Seattle. We found a park outside a homeless shelter and handed out warm clothing, hand warmers, food & snacks and some bus passes. It was great to put a few smiles back on faces and help make their day a bit brighter.
Madison and Halli had a great time handing out the clothes and snacks.

Look how happy they look all bundled up in their new coats!

It was fun preparing the meal all together...although, Keri and Kelly get the majority of the credit! Kacie and I helped Scott carve the turkey. Scott is the oldest in my family and I am the youngest. Scott coaches the s varsity basketball team at Woodinville High School. He is awesome! Go Falcons!

Jamie, Lindsi and Kelly(my hot nieces & smokin' hot sister) making rolls. They were delicious!

Kelly made all 4 pies. Berry, apple and 2 pumpkin. My dad would have been so proud! The crust was made to Plush Pippin perfection!

Madison and Halli ready to dive into the Thanksgiving feast!

The whole gang

Little Warren is ready to bounce on all the sleeping boys! We found the boys in similar states of slumber all over the house the entire weekend!

Madison and Halli had so much fun together that she wanted to stay a few extra days to play with Halli. I love how cousins connect.

Cousin bonding over youtube.

Bath-time for the boys. They were bouncing all over the tub. Jumping off the sides and sliding down the the slanted side.

Aren't these boys the cutest?

My first Black Friday experience is one I will NEVER forget! We stayed up until midnight to hit the Nike outlet in Seattle. I have never seen so many people in my life in one store! We waited for hours in the check-out line...hours. We didn't get home until after 4 am. Was it worth it? I haven't decided yet! There were some incredible deals, but I'd say the best part was watching the crazy shoppers go at it.

Later on that day we took the kids to see Santa. Poor Santa must have had one too many visitors because he looked so tired! But, the kids were excited to see him and tell him what they they wanted for Christmas...and they loved the candy cane and cotton candy that Santa gave them. Here is a great photo of Brody's new haircut. Didn't he do a great job? HAHA!

Happy Holidays everyone! Thanks to Scott and Keri for hosting a great Thanksgiving! Dave & Suzi, John & Amelia, Lori & Derek, Mark & Emily and Mom & Dad...we missed you all! It was great to see all the Bushnells for a quick visit (we missed you Tasha & Carlos).

Does this make me a bad parent?

Is it worse that he is too close to the TV OR that he is actually sound asleep on the kitchen counter??

He looks so sweet. You would never guess that the night before he sat in this very spot and chopped his own hair off. Yep, you heard me right. He cut his bangs off. I almost buzzed it all off, but the thought of that almost made me cry. He wouldn't be Brody anymore! Hair grows fast, right?? In the meantime, I guess he has a look that only a mother can love!

Madison's 7th Birthday

Madison turned 7 on November 8th. She was so sick on her birthday, it was sad. It seems like that always happens! We opened presents and had cake, but didn't have any sort of celebration with her friends. At the end of the day, I asked her if she had a good birthday and she said, "Well, I guess so, but it only lasted like 2 minutes!" I laughed at that and reminded her that she was lucky because she got to have 2 birthdays this year. Her "real" birthday and the day of her party.

Here are 2 pictures on her "2 minute" birthday, November 8th

Today we had her party with her friends. We had a big Hawaiian Party. 9 little s + 4 little boys = LOUD CHAOS! The kids had a blast eating pizza and fruit, playing games (musical lays(sp?), pass the parcel, the limbo and going on a scavenger hunt), opening presents and eating cupcakes! Madison loved every minute of it!