Pickles

Someone in this family likes them... a lot.

For some, this could be a year supply of pickles.
For us, it's about 2-3 weeks because of this little girl...




We carry an assortment of pickles around here;
we have your large whole pickles,
your baby whole pickles,
and your sliced and ready to go pickles.
All are of the dill & extra crunchy variety.

Unfortunately, in this assortment you will not find the mammoth size movie theatre pickles.
Those scare me and make me feel uncomfortable in ways I can't explain.

Anyone up for a pickle? We have plenty to share.

The birth of the one we call NATE

It's true, we celebrated yet another year that Nate has graced us with his presence here on earth. In return, my very special gift to him was the gift of life- not to be confused with the gift of creating new life...
no, that task was accomplished about 7 & 1/2 months ago.

The best possible gift I could think of was carrying his spawn for 40 long weeks and gaining enough poundage to way that of a small baby elephant. I think that's a pretty good gift.

The other gift I gave was paying homage to THE VEST and sharing his/my blog vestimonial with the scottEvest community. THIS made his day... possibly even his year... and maybe behind closed doors, he even shed a tear or two of joy. One will never know.

All in all I think it was a decent birthday. How could it not be with waking up to a pile of hand made cards and I love you's, a fresh box of donuts, a cold crisp bottle of Dr. Pepper, and your 3 favorite kids waiting to scream "Happy Birthday Dad!"?

Where Nate and His Vest Become ONE

There it was just as Bert explains Mary Poppins, “practically perfect in every way”. Not too bulky, yet not too small. Everything about it screamed MUST HAVE and all he had to do was hit the BUY IT NOW button.

Nate’s twin brother, Dustin, introduced Nate to the Scotte Vest, because that’s what guys do- they share cool guy stuff with each other. Sometimes it’s sharing guns or things that blow up. Sometimes it’s sharing death defying blue dart experiences or comparing who has the longest rogue hair on their backs. This time it was THE VEST.

The day the UPS man made his special delivery was the day Nate, a grown man, was overwhelmed with giddiness and excitement. He carefully pulled out the knife from his back pocket (because that’s another thing men do- keep knifes easily accessible at all times), he gently slid the sharp blade cautiously across the top of the brown cardboard box cutting the tape perfectly from end to end. Then, trying to control his enthusiasm, he slowly pulled out the contents of the box revealing a size medium, desert sand color, lightweight, breathable Teflon-treated Cotton/Nylon blend, wrinkle-resistant, water-resistant and stain-resistant Travel Vest for Men.

Nate quickly disappeared into the bedroom returning just a few minutes later to model his new addition,

“Ginnie, guess how many pockets this vest has!”
“Ummm, I don’t know…5?”
“No. Guess again!”
“Hun, I don’t know”
“Come on. Just guess.”
“Okay, like 8 or 10.”
“No. twenty two! It has 22 pockets!”
“Wow, 22 pockets, huh? That’s pretty cool.”
“No Ginnie, you don’t understand. It has TWEN.TY.TWO hidden pockets and compartments. Can you imagine the kind of things I can hide in here?!”

Me, trying to show more excitement this time,

“Oh YES hun, I’m imaging it right now. Forget travel vest, that’s more like a secret agent/ninja vest!”

Nate proceeded to open up his vest and show me all of the hidden pockets. Each pocket was designed for a specific purpose and function. “Look at this one. This one is designed to hold boarding passes and passports… look! And this one is for my sunglasses… and right next to it, this is for a water bottle. And if I need to carry a map? See this pocket on the very back? It can hold it." I interject, "Ya, that pocket is big enough it could hold a small child or even one of the members of the Lollipop Guild. Really, the possibilities are endless!”

True story:
A few days after receiving the vest in the mail Nate and I (and of course the vest) went to the craft store. I was searching out the perfect picture frame for a project I was working on. I turn to Nate and say, “Man, I wish I had a tape measure right now.” Within seconds I feel a soft tap on the shoulder, “Here you go.” I respond in shock, “Where did you get this?” Nate proudly points to his vest and says, “My vest. Pocket #16 I think.”

For the following few weeks Nate and his vest were inseparable. The minute he would come home, his work clothes would come off and the vest would go on.

Nate and his vest had become one.

“Nate, do you take this vest to have and to wear in the city close at home or on your travels far and abroad? Do you promise to always cherish this vest in good times and in bad, to machine wash on cold in the gentle cycle, tumble dry on low ‘til death do you part?”...

It finally came time for Nate to christen his vest, to fulfill its true purpose in life- not just to wear for leisure, but for travel use as well. He took the vest wearing business very serious, after all; concealing items in 22 secret pockets is no laughing matter. Wherever Nate went the vest would be found also. He wore it everyday for 16 days straight while we were touring the Middle East. It can be seen in every picture taken of Nate while we were away. It now has a very special place in my heart- the place in my heart where I’m thankful he’s not wearing it any more.

base of Mount Tabor, Israel

the Sphinx and the Step Pyramid, Egypt

Dome of the Rock, Israel & Temple of Luxor, Egypt

top of Mount Tabor, Israel & Petra, Jordan

Cesarea, Israel

In all honesty the vest was actually quite nice to have. It was meant to hold everything and hold everything it certainly did.

I call this one...

I have the feeling I could possibly be boring you to death. If so, I'm sorry. I'll try to make this quick and painless.

For over a year now my family and I had been planning this trip to go to the middle east together. It was such a great experience to be able to spend 16 days with all of my siblings and their spouses touring some of the most amazing sights...

I call them FAMILY
(4 sisters, 3 brothers, 1 mom, 1 dad, & me )

I call them MOM & DAD

I call this one,
We don't look like tourist
or
Where I get my stunning sense of fashion

I call this one,
The original step pyramid
or
Crazy Americans
or
Our tour guide made us do it

I call this one,
Where's Waldo Nate?

I call this one,
Does this hat make my head look fat?
or
NOT one size fits all
or
Isn't he the cutest?!

I call this one,
One of these people are not like the other
or
Mis Hermanas (and one brother)

I call this one,
Wor.kin.it!
or
Guess how many hidden pockets are in my secret agent/travel vest
or
Guess how many items are hidden in my secret agent/travel vest

I call this one,
Awkward
or
"Hey, pretty laday! I take my picta wish yu for free."

I call this one,
They're more righteous than I am
or
but that's okay, because that makes me righteous just by association

I call this one,
The only picture I have of Nate without his secret agent/travel vest on
or
If you loved me you'd go get your hair cut by some Arab barber
or
A husbands act of defiance
or
My husband might not sleep with me tonight because I'm posting this picture

I call this one,
Eating for two
or
Got Falafel?
or
Maybe if I post an embarrassing picture of me too my husband might sleep with me tonight
or
Just.Plain.HOT!

Distance Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Almost every chance we got Nate and I would send emails back and forth to the kids. We would send them pictures updating them on all the fun things we were up to and in return the kids would send us some quick little notes as well (thanks to the help of Grandma).

Some of these emails were too cute not to share.
One thing is for sure, I'm know I'm loved... especially by Macie.

Giza, Egypt- The great pyramids and the sphinx

Macie: I love you super, super, super. I should go with you guys because I love you so bye!

Kaleb: I love you Mom & Dad. I wish you had a fun time with us because we had a fun time. I saw your pictures. You look good. We saw a new movie tonight. The Chipmunks, the Squeakel. I wish you could hold the baby. Is the baby safe as a watermelon? Is the baby still in your tummy? It is bigger.

Abrie: We went to Kangaroo Zoo yesterday after we talked to you on Skype. Did Ethan and Brooklyn get free stuff? At Israel, did they touch their hair and body? We worked on my scrapbook and it was fun. I love you. Abrie

............

Giza, Egypt- after the camel rides

Macie: I love you super much and we went to Funfinity and I love Dad too. Because I love everything and I love Grandma even much better. Love, Macie

Kaleb: I love you mom. I hope you had fun today. Was the baby having fun riding the camel. How long till you come here. I bet it will be 25 years. I think Mom & Dad love me and I think the baby loves me. Today I played the Wii. Love, Kaleb

Abrie: Today at school we practiced our program and we learned a new song for the program. IT is a song that is the last one. Me and Grandma worked on my scrapbook and printed the pictures. It was awesome. I took a picture of the kitten and some dogs and a bird. We had a squid for dinner. Try to guess what that is. Love you. Abrie

............

felucca ride on the Nile river

Macie: I love you Mommy because it is the favorite because I love Dad and you. Did you bring me a prize? Yes, you did.

Kaleb: Hi Mom & Dad. I just wonder if you are at Egypt right now. I wish you would bring us a snack? How big is your tummy now? Was the belly dance fun? Did you have lots of fun Mom & Dad. Do they have any places to eat there? Are you going to send pictures to us or words? Or are you going to come home? Are you going to come here Mom & Dad? I wish you had a lots of fun. Love you hope you had a good day and had a rock and roll time. Love you , Kaleb

Abrie: Guess what? You know the A B C song? I am the letter F. I miss you guys. Mom, you look like a really good mummy. Will you take a picture of the river Nile for me? Did you jump on the bed yet? Did you see any crocodiles in the river Nile? I was looking at some pictures that I took and Kaleb threw a pillow at me and I got a fat lip. It is purple now. My legs are really really sore and they hurt on my muscle. I can barely walk. Grandma will give me some Tylenol tonight. Love you, Abrie

.............

Petra, Jordan- The holy grail was no where to be found

Macie: Hey Mom & Dad. We got a green ice cream and I love you because Dad loves me even more. And Daddy said to me to not fight and to not be mean. My Daddy said to be nice. The end

Kaleb: Hi Mom & Dad. I love you. I was wondering how big the baby tummy is? Is she as a big as a hot potato? I have been playing the Wii and I love you Mom & Dad. I hope you had a great Mom & Dad. How fun are you doing at Egypt? Now we had some fun with Grandma & Grandpa. What are you doing? Are you having lots of tacos at Pizza Hut? Huh? I am really hoping that you come home and I love you.

Abrie: Have you taken a picture of the river Nile yet? Is there any crocodiles in the river Nile? Today at night before our bedtime, Grandma and Adam took us to get an ice cream cone. The flavor was Lime. It was good. Sooooo Good! SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOD!! We played outside twice today. I rode my roller blades of course you already knew that. Has your tummy gotten bigger? On the camel it looked bigger. I love you. Abrie

Mount Sinai, Egypt- we woke up at 1:00 am to take a 3 hour hike up to the top of Mount Sinai to watch the sun rise. The thing about a 3 hour hike up is you eventually have to make the 3 hour hike down. I'm glad I did it, but I would never do it again.

And one more from Macie because that girl cracks me up...

Macie: Hey Mom & Dad. We got a green ice cream and I love you because Dad loves me even more. And Daddy said to me to not fight and to not be mean. My Daddy said to be nice. The end

It's good to be missed.

Back to life, back to reality

I believe I've developed a severe case of Posttriptum.

The symptoms include, and are not limited to;
• a wakeful state of comatosis
• lack of motivation
• denial of any motherly/wifely duties
• refusal to believe you are not on vacation anymore
• suddenly knocking on the door then quickly saying, "House keepeen" in your best Hebrew voice isn't as funny as it use to be
• you leave the house only to return disappointed to find no one has made your bed for you or left you minty chocolates on your pillow or hung up fresh clean towels for you
• mistakenly calling your neighbors or local drive-thru employee Muhammad
• while at the drive-thru trying to negotiate the price of a Big Mac and a large fry
• thinking a Falafel sounds good right about now

I'm slowly starting to get back into the groove of things and I'm anxious to share one of my upcoming posts with you. It shall be titled, "Where Nate and his vest become one". Get excited. Very excited.

Heaven help this man.
Taken on the sea of Galilee while riding on the "Jesus Boat"

Egypt and Israel or Bust

After a whole day of travel we finally made it to our destination. We braved the 4 hour flight to New York with a 4 hour layover. Then hopped on an 11 hour plane ride to Egypt. Somewhere in between those 11 hours my ankles swelled up to the size of tree trunks and the meaning of cankles became very real to me.

So far we have seen the pyramids, taken a boat ride on the Nile river, been harrassed by Egyptian men (apparently I'm a ten camel wife and with the bun in the oven I'm worth even more, but having braces knocks off a camel or two), walked through the Valley of the kings, walked like an Egyption, done some belly dancing, and YES, ridden a camel... it was not a pretty site.

We have lots more to see and do here and I'm just trying to soak it all in... well, that and the sun. Perhaps you should remind me to wear sun screen tomorrow....

My baby turned 4 today

Last year at this time we were playing at the park.

This year for her birthday we shoveled snow.

Something is seriously wrong with this picture.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Birthday spankings- we don't consider this child abuse in our home.

Mustard = best.present.EVER!

Happy Birthday Macie girl!!!

Show 'N Tell

Why let all the kindergartners have all the fun?

I recently purchased Lindsey's book the other day and I must admit it was pretty stinkin' cool to see my name in print. Most people won't even give it a second thought, but Abrie saw it and now thinks I have reached rock star status somewhere between Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus...

I'll just let her keep thinking that. I'm not about to burst her little rock-star-mom bubble.

Hello!

I finally got around to posting some pictures of Macie on my photo-blog.
Better late than never, right? :)