Castagnetto World

Dear Brent...

2010-01-21T08:42:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvMVCHhwTPs

I love you.
Megan

2009-12-31T10:11:00.000-08:00

When it's Christmastime you're supposed to take pictures of your kids in front of the Christmas tree, right?

Christmas Eve Castagnetto Style

2009-12-30T13:56:00.000-08:00

Castagnettos comin' atcha from the alley

Mace and K-dawg

I think Marcus beat me. He's good.

Mom, Macie & Kaiden

Charlie rocked it.

Five!

2009-12-29T18:27:00.000-08:00

Charlie turned 5! Hip hop hooray!

Cincinnati Bengals cake. What else?

The party goers: Charlie, Norah, Benny, Millie, Lucy, Marc & Gwen

He loved the gifts, hanging out with cousins, cinnamon rolls, a trip to the Dollar Store and his dinosaur puzzle.

Dude,

2009-12-26T14:06:00.000-08:00

I'm glad that's over with.

I hope I post pictures soon.

2009-12-23T08:10:00.001-08:00

So, our house is decked out in lights. Clark is at it again. Thankfully, we both agree on nice clean white lines. But this year our little tree out front has lots to say like, check me out, I look like a flippin' firecracker!

Today I am Excited for This...

2009-12-04T14:33:00.000-08:00

Crafty Girls Christmas Preparation Fiesta!!!

Ann Dee and Holly gettin' crafty

Ann Dee, Kathy, Holly, Jen and Mill

Millie's hat was hot!

Kathy teaching us how to make flowers

'Til next year, ladies!

Today I am Thankful for This...

2009-12-03T13:12:00.001-08:00

...An awesome review at Patina Marke t. Check it!

Guess what just happened?

2009-12-02T13:15:00.000-08:00

I posted on my blog again!
(Are you kidding me?)
Nope.

I recently started missing my blog. Weird.
Today felt like a good day to start it up again.
I'm not going to worry about all the bajillion things that have happened in the last 7 months and I'm just gonna start up right here, right now on Dec. 2, 2009.

And this is how it starts. With this very post.

Dear Blog...

2009-05-14T13:08:00.000-07:00

I'm over you.
Maybe for time, maybe for eternity.
We'll have to see...
Love,
Megan

The Race...

2009-03-26T14:23:00.000-07:00

I just registered for the race. It's pretty painless. Except for the part where you have to pay. But for only $30 I am now registered AND I'm having my shirt shipped to my house so that I don't have to stand in line.
I'm considering getting a hotel room in SLC the night before. Just for fun. And to make it a big, fancy deal. More info to come. On second thought, maybe I want to sleep in my own bed. hhhmm...
I've been training. If you call running a few miles a week training. I'm trying to get my booty ready. And to maybe get in shape a bit.
FYI- During the race I will not be competing with anyone. I'm just out for fun. If you're planning on competing with me or anyone else, enjoy yourself! I'm just going at my own speed, listening to my own music and I'm not going to stress about a competition. There you have it.
So.......are you in?
I'm also doing a fake triathlon. Should be fun except for the swimming part. But since it's fake I don't think anyone will mind. Do you want to do it too?

Super Busy...

2009-03-26T08:31:00.000-07:00

Spring...

2009-03-20T21:15:00.000-07:00

Turns out maybe I don't like Spring as much as I thought.
Bugs are everywhere. Bees are out. Spiders are in.
There is a mouse in my car. I'm not even kidding.
My face was sweating today and I hate that.

On Green...

2009-03-17T11:34:00.000-07:00

A Leprechaun made a trail of green M&M's across our living room floor last night.

What? You don't have a Leprechaun that visits your house on March 17th? Weird. Well don't be mad and don't think Ah, man, I shoulda done that.
I'm never too mad when you have elves visit your house for the 12 days of Christmas. Although, things get crazy when I try to explain to the kids why elves don't come to our house.

Leprechauns are crazy little magical guys. Some years they come and some years they don't. This year... this was one of the good years.

Now if we could just figure out how they get in. Sneaky little guys, I tell ya.

2009-03-08T19:53:00.000-07:00

Something we definitely have in common:
A love for FLASHY shoes

His:

Hers:

Channeling Spring...

2009-03-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

I want Spring to come SO BAD!
And in preparation I've done the following:

*Hung this candy colored wreath on my door
*Painted my toenails a REALLY hot pink
*Cleaned and organized the pantry

2 weeks people, 2 weeks!

What went down in the month of Jan.

2009-02-10T07:53:00.001-08:00

An excessive amount of this:

What did you expect?

Happy February.

2009-02-01T21:32:00.000-08:00

I'm like a Cow...

2009-01-29T07:00:00.000-08:00

Charlie: "Are you like a cow?"
Me: "Uuuuuuhhhh... what do you mean?"
Charlie: "Cows give us milk and you give the baby milk so you're like a cow."
Me: ".............................Yep. I guess I'm like a cow."

Swagger...

2009-01-27T10:47:00.000-08:00

This is my favorite commercial. It's hysterical.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrSNzSkvi70

I bought some Swagger for Brent. Not that he needs any help at all but we'll see how it goes (not with 'the ladies' but with HIS lady, you silly.)

Dissed By The Blog Gods...

2009-01-23T12:29:00.000-08:00

Lately my lack of posts is due to the fact that I was dissed by the Blog Gods.
It seems everywhere I turn there is someone telling me that I shouldn't be blogging because I'm not good enough to blog.
I've heard everything from "I've been blogging since '91 and that makes me better than you" to "Mommy Bloggers suck because their lives revolve around their kids"... blah, blah, blah.
Let me tell you, I was shaken for a moment.
I thought maybe this blogging thing wasn't right for me. Maybe I'm not cut out to be a blogger.
But then, I was like "Hold the phone!"
Why do I care what the Blog Gods think? And if they hate the Mommy Bloggers so bad then WHY are they reading their blogs? They don't have to, you know.
And the main reason I am keeping this blog is for ME! I want to remember these days and my brain can't do it alone.
It's not (for) you, it's (for) me.

More info for the race...

2009-01-18T21:42:00.000-08:00

Here's a link for more information on the race:
http://www.komenslc.org/RaceForTheCure/Registration/tabid/81/Default.aspx

So far it looks like we might have a fun little team to run the race. I'm totally so excited.

Race For The Cure...

2009-01-09T11:59:00.000-08:00

I'm running the good race again this year and I'm going to run it with grace and ease. (I pray.)

I try to run this race every year but let's just say I've missed a few years due to babies. I'm not blaming them, I'm just saying.

I will be back in full force on May 9th (exactly 4 months away.) It's a 5K. Nothing too difficult. The hardest part is the people that turn out. The last year I ran it ('07) there were 16,000 people there. That's a lot of people. But it's my favorite race because of the people. People fighting and running for the same thing: to find a cure for breast cancer. So I'm on the look out for my new pink tenni-runners for this year (and if I have no luck finding any, I'll wear my old ones from 2 years ago.)

So, wanna join me? We could have a team or something. Maybe make t-shirts.

All I'm asking is that you want to do it and you're willing to wear pink and run beside me (I might wear an ipod.)

What do ya say?

Before there was Christmas and 2009...

2009-01-01T08:40:00.000-08:00

Charlie had a birthday and turned 4!

Can I just start by saying "Thank Heaven for 4!"
The Terrible Twos and the Horrible Threes are gone. And for that I am deeply grateful.
I love my Charlie.
We threw him a birthday party with cake, ice cream, balloons, streamers, pin the tail on the donkey, presents, 6 friends (no girls), a green dinosaur pinata, Batman, Transformers, Darth Vader and Spiderman. It was a wild good time!
Here's the documentation:

his Batman birthday cake

with his gifts

The line-up for Pin the Tail on the Donkey

blowing out the candle on his birthday breakfast of oatmeal

New Year's Resolution...

2009-01-01T08:33:00.001-08:00

I'm not usually one for resolutions.
This year may be my first year.
These are my resolutions:
Simplify
and
Minimalize
everything.

Festivities At a Glance...

2008-12-27T06:35:00.000-08:00

Tuesday December 23rd-
All things are finalized.
Brent and I make one more run to make sure we've got the best gifts Santa could give. And while we're out we eat at Five Guys Burgers and Fries. My review: ah, it was ok. Maybe we'll try the Cajun fries next time.

Wednesday December 24th-
I send Brent to Smith's for any necessary food we might need. I have major anxiety knowing I will not be able to go to the store on Christmas day. I most likely won't need anything but what if I do?!... the anxiety!
Marcus and Brent going sledding in the backyard (they built an awesome hill down to the pond.)

We have our second annual Christmas Eve Swim at the pool in AF and then we get pizza. (who wants to do dishes on Christmas Eve? Not me.)
Marcus goes to bed pretty early so Santa can come but since Charlie had a nap he's up til 10.
Santa comes to deliver the toys while Brent naps in Charlie's bed. Santa even sets up the HotWheels loop de loop (unofficial name.) Because Santa is the bomb.
Santa addresses all the gifts in lowercase cursive. (that'll throw 'em off.) Interesting.
I go to bed without having major anxiety for the 1st time in 30 years. Peaceful. And very tired.

Thursday December 25th-
Marcus wakes up at 5:50 a.m. I make him wait until the rest of us wake up, close to 7 a.m. We all come downstairs to check the loot. Everyone is pleased. They may not have gotten everything on their list but the good thing is that they totally forget their lists at this point.
I make breakfast.
Then you know what I did? Took a nap for 2 hours.
We headed down to Noni's to open more gifts.
We came home to make our contribution to Grandma's Christmas dinner: rolls.
After dinner we had a live nativity with 12 of the 13 grandkids. What? You think Charlie would participate in something like that?
Then it was the gift exchange. And Brent got the Nerf Vulcan EBF 25. HOLY MACKEREL!
When we got home I tried to clean my house but the kitchen was all I could do before I crashed.

Friday December 26th-
The things I did:
-made breakfast for Charlie and Gwen
-took a nap
-tried to clean
-organized the boy's room. Out with the old, in with new. (why didn't I do this BEFORE Christmas?)
-made lunch
-watched Elf
-attempted to make doughnuts
-sent Brent to Smith's for doughnuts (I'll leave that up to the professionals.)

The things I definitely did not do:
-shower
-brush my teeth
-change out of my PJs
-clean my house
-leave my house

Friday could possibly be the best day I've ever had. Bubba, please don't EVER go back to work.
And then, you know how it all ended?
As I was unplugging the Christmas tree I glanced outside to see if it was snowing and I watched 11 deer walk down my driveway and then down the street. Cute little things (except not too little.) They made it all perfect.
Pictures to come soon. Very soon.

Not Enough...

2008-12-21T21:13:00.001-08:00

TIME!

On Dreaming...

2008-12-14T21:42:00.000-08:00

Sometimes my dreams get too big and out of control. Like the time I dreamed of having a Christmas Showcase. I really wanted to write about people who love Christmas. And I especially wanted to tell you all about the house in my neighborhood that is decked out with an entire Nemo theme. I'm serious. This house has wooden Nemo characters all over the front lawn and the yard is even outlined in blue lights, as if the characters are actually in the ocean. I wanted to post pictures. Because it is totally wackadoodle. BUT guess what I forgot? That it's Christmas time. (Hello!) Which means life is a little crazy. I haven't even started my shopping yet. Seriously, I haven't purchased anything. And Chooch turns 4 this week. And I wanted to make neighbor gifts. And I definitely want to make some Christmas candies. And, most importantly, I love to procrastinate.
So, here's to next year... Cheers!

Christmas Lists...

2008-12-12T08:27:00.000-08:00

I found the boy's Christmas lists. It looks like they worked together on this project and here's what they've come up with:

Marcus:
-new church socks (his church socks now bug him so bad.)
-dirt bike (uh, no.)
-whole basketball court (yes, and where would we put it?)
-new blanket (great idea)
-Madagascar 2 video game (we'll see.)
-Beast Quest books (like this one. Reading material.)
-nerf gun (don't we have a dozen of these already?)
-trampoline (maybe we'll put this next to the whole basketball court.)
-Wall E toy (do-able. But will never be played with.)
-ipod (maybe a shuffle)
-mini skateboards (more?)
-Star Wars the Clone Wars movie (I'll think about this one.)

Charlie:
-Power Ranger suit and mask (we already have this.)
-toy motorcycle (already have dozens of these.)
-new pants (as opposed to the hand-me-downs he gets from Marcus.???)
-Power Wheels Jeep (ummm...)
-tool box (I like this one. A little handy man.)
-Moon Sand (definitely do-able.)

And I'm thinking we'll get Gwen some batteries for all of the hand-me-down baby toys that don't work anymore. She's going to love it.

Introducing...

2008-12-09T14:05:00.000-08:00

Christmas Showcase

This year for Christmas I thought it would be fun to showcase some people that go the extra mile this time of year. So I will be posting pictures and telling stories about people I know and others I'd like to know. And in the process maybe poking fun (with love, of course) at their crazy Christmas habits.

Let me introduce you to the first Christmas Kook on my list. Have you ever had the pleasure of meeting this wonderful woman? If not, I feel sorry for you.

This is Mary Ann.

And this is how she does Christmas:

This is her 9 foot tall tree hanging from the ceiling. It boasts thousands of clear lights, hundreds of ornaments in green, red, purple and gold, ribbon, and hangy things.

(This picture really doesn't do it justice. It's enormous.)

This is her Grinch Tree. It's decorated with thousands of lights and lime green and red ornaments with the perfect little crooked top. This tree would make any Christmas Grinch grin with delight.

A cute little angel girl on the Grinch tree.

Mary Ann really outdoes herself every year. She just can't get enough of Christmas! This year she will have 3 trees, a house decked out in icicle lights and possibly even (get this!) a tree on top of the house! (that is if her little apprentice can figure out how to do it. And have it sustain the wicked lake effect winds.)

You think this year she's gone crazy? I wish I would've documented the year we had 11 trees!

2008-12-03T12:09:00.000-08:00

I'm cookin' up something really special for the Holiday Season. So come back soon cuz you're not going to want to miss this!

Fancy That...

2008-11-28T09:31:00.000-08:00

Gwen's new trick

Maybe we'll just skip the crawling altogether.

And yes, we had an awesome Thanksgiving. We all enjoyed great food and great family... what more could you ask for?

Going...Going...Gone...

2008-11-26T06:45:00.000-08:00

I'm considering having Clark admitted to an insane asylum. Seriously. It's getting bad. Here's what he's been up to:

This may look like nothing to you. But let me explain. And maybe you should sit down.

Remember how Clark wanted to set the tree on fire with red lights? Well that mission was accomplished...and so much more.

He really didn't like the look of the extension cord running across the front lawn so he went ahead and buried it underground!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This picture is of him slicing the ground with his knife and tucking the cord safely away.

No one will be tripping on any cords in our yard!

A burning tree receiving mysterious electricity...Now this is Christmas magic!

This Kid Cracks Me Up...

2008-11-24T20:27:00.000-08:00

Silly Charlie is at it again...

Here are 3 wonderful quotes from my special little friend:

The Threat:

"My left arm is going to break off if you don't get me cereal NOW!!!"

The Drama:

"I need some medicine because my throat is not being so well."

The Sweetness:

"Mom, does the man on the moon get Christmas presents too?"

And all of this happened in one day. Today.

Can you even imagine how much laughter happens around here on a daily basis?

Sleeping Beauty...

2008-11-20T06:00:00.000-08:00

Sorry boys (are there any boys that read my blog? Ha!), this Sleeping Beauty is off the market. She's gettin' hitched tomorrow afternoon. Her big day is finally here and I'm so happy for her!

ps- Why do you think she ALWAYS falls asleep at my house?

A. She's just SUPER tired

B. My house is SUPER boring

C. My brown velvety couches are SUPER comfy

D. Other

2008-11-17T20:12:00.000-08:00

Brent aspires to be Clark W. Griswold. He has already started decking our halls. He wanted to be the first one on our street with Christmas lights up. And he dreams of more lights. The beautiful, clean, perfectly spaced white lights trimming our house aren't enough. He'd like to outline the garage and light the tree in green...or maybe red.
He went up on our rooftop when I wasn't home. But luckily the boys were here with him in case of an emergency. He told them to call 911 if he fell off the roof. I mean seriously, can a 6 year old handle that kind of pressure? Thank the heavens above for the gutter that saved his life that day. The ladder slipped while he was coming down from the tip top and onto the roof of our porch. Luckily the ladder stuck safely into the gutter.
Clark, let's take it easy this year, eh?

Obsession...

2008-11-12T21:25:00.000-08:00

Lately I find myself obsessed with these things:

-My new jeans

-My sore tooth (Dentist appointment next week. Can hardly wait.)

-Baby's sore teeth

-Bloggity blog blogs

-Baking

-Weezer with a hint of Feist

Smarty Boots...

2008-11-12T11:52:00.001-08:00

It's official.

Marcus is smarter than me.

I knew this time was coming but I didn't expect it so soon.

He's a whiz, this kid.

He's great at math and even asks for math problems during Sacrament Meeting to keep his mind busy.

He's decent at spelling. Always willing to give any word a try.

He's an excellent reader and getting better everyday.

The other night while I was lying in bed with him reading books he said "Mom, did you know Columbus brought disease to South America?" And I was all like "Um, yeah, I totally knew that." And then I asked him if he knew what "disease" was and he said "Yeah, like sickness."

And I said "Alright already. Go to sleep."

This kid's going places.

On The Brain...

2008-11-10T21:12:00.000-08:00

December

(his BIG day)

and

Rudolph

It's all Charlie can think about these days.

It's always something with these two...

2008-11-04T14:01:00.001-08:00

So I went out to the garage fridge to grab another gallon of milk and came across this:

hhhmmm... a green bucket in the fridge... Wait a minute... Wwwwhat? A green bucket in the fridge?
So I pulled the green bucket out of the fridge and found this:

2 dead shriveled up worms.

And then I see this on the top shelf:

1 alive very plump worm in dirt.

I bet you can guess who I had questions for.

Turns out the 2 dead worms are Charlie's and their names are Jon and Shawn.

And Marc's is the one livin' the high life in the jar with the dirt. His name is Max.

So, we'd like you to meet our pets:

Jon, Shawn and Max.

(Jon and Shawn have definitely seen better days. Yikes! Who's gonna be the one to break the news to Charlie? Not me.)

2008-11-03T18:08:00.000-08:00

Dear Daylight Saving Time,
There's nothing I like about you. Never have, never will.
From,
Megan

Halloween...

2008-10-31T21:00:00.000-07:00

The Loot

Of course Brent took the boys Trick or Treating on the golf cart. I could hear the tires screeching from way down the street. And it only took them 10 minutes to do our entire block.

Gwen even got a piece of the action.

2008-10-31T20:38:00.001-07:00

The Costumes

Gwen as the Little Black Cat

Charlie as the Army Guy

Marcus as the Motorcycle Guy/ Anakin/ BYU fan

2008-10-31T20:18:00.001-07:00

Pumpkin Carving

The Haws' joined us for Pumpkin Carving.

The Punkins with their pumpkins

(Go Cougs! (apparently))

Bonafide Rarity...

2008-10-29T21:02:00.000-07:00

Tiny Miracles happen around here on a daily basis. Sometimes I just forget to look at them in that way.

For example:

The boys slept in their very own beds all night long. That's huge around here. So I paid them each a quarter.

You may think: a quarter? What a cheapskate.

But my boys know the value of a hard earned quarter. And besides, I'd love someone to pay me a quarter every time I slept a night in my bed.

Sneaker Season

2008-10-29T06:19:00.000-07:00

Charles and I got our sneakers out of retirement. And boy, does it feel good.

The NEW way of catching bugs: INDOORS

2008-10-22T20:14:00.000-07:00

First of all: Lose your pants. You will not need them for this bug catching expedition, you're indoors.
Second: Find yourself an empty container in the cupboard.
Third: Declare to your family (or anyone who might be listening): "I'm going to catch bugs!"
Lastly: Put the open container on the table and say "Mom, call me if a bug goes in here and I'll catch it."

Kids these days! Sheesh! They're sure getting lazy!

Projects...

2008-10-21T08:35:00.000-07:00

Week Four: We were thinking cinnamon rolls. But at the last second switched things up. Ann Dee and I had pears that needed to be used. So we made a pear tart and a pear custard pie.
I totally screwed up the pear tart (what's new?) by adding a whole cup of water to the crust instead of 3 T. Seriously. Ding dong. I tried to fix it but nope.
Dee made a delicious pear custard pie. It was really nice. I will make it again sometime.
Mill was there too. She made us lunch. You'll never guess what we had. Yep. Pasta with the most amazing roasted tomato with basil sauce! I'm serious, that sauce was awesome. My favorite lunch so far. Mill, you've got mad skills.
We watched 2 episodes of Project Runway. Trying to get Dee and Mill caught up. Can you even believe that they don't know who won yet? Crazy, I know.
Week five is rapidly approaching. Oh! And it's gonna be good!

6 Months

2008-10-19T12:07:00.000-07:00

Little Miss Gwen

Likes:

*Eating real food

* Her brothers

*Being naked

*When her Mom sings "You are my Sunshine"

*Kicking and wiggling

*Being outside

*Going places

*Napping in her car seat

*Baths

*Sitting up

*Playing with anything other than her own toys

She's a real beauty!

Movin' On Up...

2008-10-17T06:20:00.001-07:00

We traded the motorcycle in on a golf cart. I say we've upgraded because now we can comfortably take our family of five on a little spin. Brent says we've made a lateral move because both the motorcycle and the golf cart are pieces of junk.

Last night Brent let Marcus take the wheel. He plowed right through the garbage cans, missing the house by inches! I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. In fact, I'm still laughing about it.

The Grossest Thing I've Ever Blogged About...

2008-10-15T11:05:00.000-07:00

Well...I guess you could say Brent Got 'er Done!

Brent, Bryce and Co. went huntin' last night and came home with this:

(Please don't throw up on your computer.)

You don't even want to know what it looks like now. If you're daring and you want a little Halloween fright come peek into my garage. But I warn you: you'll need a barf bag.

Oh Poop!...

2008-10-14T18:45:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention that my friend Ann Dee is famous. Go here to check her out! And then go buy her book. And then go buy one for a friend. I'm serious.

Projects with Ann Dee

2008-10-10T07:19:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Dee and I decided we would get together to work on projects. These projects would consist of almost anything. From baking bread to learning how to do the splits (Millie's request.)

Week One: My house for Halloween decoration making. We had ideas of origami bats and paper ghosts. Instead we ate Tomato Soup with bread to dip.

Week Two: Dee's house for a crash course on Artisan Bread. Turned out mine tasted like bug spray. But I figured out why. And now I know I can make it so it tastes just right. For lunch, it was pasta with amazing tomato cream sauce that the famous Colton made.

Week Three: Back to Dee's for......we weren't certain. But it was a good time. And I took her some spiders to hang in her windows. Kathy was there and taught us about her diet/exercise plan. Sounds very interesting. I may need another session with her to fully understand it. But yes, we ate. BLT's (Charlie's request.) I'm seeing a trend here. With the tomatoes. Dee LOVES tomatoes and she grows plenty of them in her garden. So we eat. Tomatoes.

Week Four is shaping up to be something like a huge Cinnamon Roll party. Hopefully it really happens. With the four (sometimes more) kids it gets a little wild. Either that or we get lazy and chatty.
Personally, I'm looking forward to the week we meet at Millie's to learn how to do the splits. That's an interesting talent to have. And I'm in the market for interesting talents.

All In One Day...

2008-10-02T15:47:00.000-07:00

This chick got a hair cut, ate pizza crust and sat up all by herself.

You go, girl!

Update...

2008-09-29T20:39:00.000-07:00

Bats in the Belfry = Starling in the Attic

My man, taking care of business.

Please ignore our closet. It has nothing to do with this story. Besides, that's Brent's side anyway.

So, Brent went up there. He's so daring. It was just seconds 'til he saw it. A dead Starling. Poor thing got stuck up there. We can't figure out how he even got in. But it was all he could do to try to get out.

Birds: Please don't go in people's houses. It never ends well.

This thing was like 6" long! HUGE!

Thanks for all of your concern and prayers (you were praying, right?)

Bats in the Belfry...In more ways than one...

2008-09-28T11:42:00.000-07:00

(the following story is not an old Halloween tale. It is a true story that happened to ME this very day.)
Early this morning, before the sun came out, I was awakened by a little boy saying "Mom, what's that noise?"
Me: "What noise?"
Charlie: "That click, click, clack noise."
(waiting in silence... WE hear it again...)
Me: (shaking Brent) "Bubba, what's that noise?"... (louder) "Bubba, what's that noise?"
(waiting...)
(listening to the noise coming from above our closet...)
Marcus: "Did you hear that?"
Me and Brent: SSSHHHHHHH!!!!
(here it goes again...)
Me: "Honey, what is it?"
Brent: "It's too inconsistent to be an animal."
Megan: "So it's a human?"
(silence...me, freaking out inside...I CANNOT live in a house with other creatures...)

So, Brent hops up and heads to the shower to get to early morning meetings for church. He could care less about the creature we have living among us.
I jump up, TRYING to play it cool in front of the kids. First thing... shoes... I need shoes... can't go in the closet. Luckily, I left my flip flops by the door. I slip them on quick and tell the kids to meet me downstairs for breakfast.
I'm trying to ignore the whole thing. Really I am. But it's impossible. I'm thinking of mice, rats with long tails, birds and mostly bats. It is that time of year. When the bats fly. And I've heard they're known to get stuck in belfry's. Our attic is kinda like a belfry. And we haven't heard it during the day. He's probably asleep up there. And you know what he'll be doing all night long. Yep, flying. I'm freaking out!
Brent wants to go up there. But what if he opens the attic door and rats fall out everywhere!
Seriously, what should we do? What should I do?
I will keep you posted on what this creature is and what we do about it.
If you think you have an idea of what it could be or maybe some advice, please comment.

First Day of Fall...

2008-09-22T09:23:00.000-07:00

Summer is O-V-E-R. Say goodbye to the triple slip-n-slide and the long days. It's all over. We'll have to wait 'til next year for more summer fun.

But for today... you know what we'll be doing? After Charlie finishes with his 10am Ramen Noodle fix, we'll be going through the storage closet in search of all things fall. And that includes Halloween stuff too. A little too early, you say? And I say, "yeah, maybe. But oh well." We need fall colors, we need a wreath and holy moly we need pumpkins! And you better believe I'll take pictures of it all (that is, if I remember.)

Who dey?

2008-09-16T21:42:00.000-07:00

Every weekend we are reminded that Brent's Bengals really are a terrible team. With Ocho Cinco and all. I've tried giving Brent other options like The Browns (they're orange too), or The Steelers (my brother's favorite team.) But no! Brent is not a fair weather fan. He stays true to his Bengals no matter what. It can get a little embarrassing when Brent insists on wearing his bright orange Bengals shirt every Saturday and most Sundays. But Brent wears it proudly.

One year when the Bengals actually win some games, what are you gonna do? Will you come to the orange side? Will you leave your team? Are you a fair weather fan?

Who dey?

Who dey think gonna beat them Bengals?

I'll tell you who...just about ANYBODY!

(Did you seriously just waste your time watching that video?)

What a Weekend...

2008-09-08T15:00:00.001-07:00

The day started at Del Taco like it usually does. Brent's days always start or end at Del Taco. I begged Brent to let me pack a picnic lunch. Maybe some turkey sandwiches, fruit, cheese and crackers, maybe chips, I don't know. It could've been good. Really good. But no. Brent insisted on Del Taco. Just like he does every other day of the week. 2 Macho Tacos with no lettuce, a chicken soft taco with no lettuce and a medium Cherry Coke. Always the same. Every day. (FYI: the kids and I don't eat there every day.) So, we hit up Del Taco and then headed to Bridal Veil Falls. The kids were crazy climbing up the mountain. I was nervous. But we made it up and back with no problem.

Brent hiked with baby

(Please disregard Brent's Bengals shirt. Come on, Brent. It's embarrassing!)

Marcus in the mist

Gwen and me

Charlie playing in the pond at the bottom of the falls.

2008-09-08T14:00:00.000-07:00

After Bridal Veil we went fishing. We met up with Bryce, Isaac and Lucas.

Marcus nervously holding his fish

We found some nasty duck eggs. The boys begged to cut one open to check it out.

Isaac the "knife guy" did the cutting. Turns out it was just like a regular egg. hhmph.

Fish on for Charlie

Marcus and Isaac with their fish.

We had an awesome day full of family time, mountains, rivers and Del Taco.

Brent...

2008-09-06T18:30:00.000-07:00

So, I recently realized that I very rarely talk about my husband on this little blog of mine. I'm not exactly sure why that is. Because this guy is my life. Maybe it's cuz I don't wantcha all gettin' jealous n' stuff.

Like, just today, he got up super early and cleaned the entire house including the bathrooms. And then he went to the grocery store and came home with some of my favorite items: produce, magazines and 6 tubes of Blistex. Seriously, this guy must really know me. And then guess what he did? Spent over an hour washing and detailing my car.

And you know why he did all of this stuff? Because he Loves to. Weird huh?

Seriously though...

2008-09-02T22:12:00.000-07:00

Six...

2008-08-27T06:54:00.000-07:00

On August 27th Marcus turned 6!

And this is how he spent his day:

He was up bright and early for birthday pancakes and the opening of gifts. Then he was off to his 8th day of first grade (1st day without crying!) Charlie, Gwen and I took doughnuts to his class for a treat. Marcus was King for the day! And they did treat him like royalty.
After school he got to open a few more things. His favorite gift: the skateboard.
For the afternoon party we headed to Jump-On-It. This was the crew: Charlie, Marcus, Sumner, Isaac and Porter.

And then we came home for cake and ice cream.

Thanks to all who made Marcus's birthday great!

And I had the time of my life...

2008-08-20T08:29:00.000-07:00

We spent all of last week in Island Park, Idaho. We stayed at my uncle's extremely sweet cabin. We played in the water all day every day. I didn't want to come home. Here are a few pics from the trip!

2008-08-20T08:13:00.000-07:00

2008-08-20T07:55:00.000-07:00

Only regret: We didn't wash the sheets.

First Day of First Grade...

2008-08-19T13:18:00.000-07:00

Heaven help me.

A Day in the Life of Charles...

2008-08-08T21:53:00.001-07:00

7:30 a.m.- 1st Breakfast

8 a.m.- tells Marcus his breath stinks

9:30 a.m.- plays in the rain

10 a.m.- 2nd Breakfast

11:30 a.m.- mini ice cream cone

11:35 a.m.- tells Marcus to 'drink his ice cream up like a man!'

noon- handful of chips

12:15 p.m.- 1st bowl of Ramen Noodles

12:19 p.m.- 2nd bowl of Ramen Noodles

12:30 p.m.- finishes off Grandpa's fries with fry sauce

1:30-3 p.m.- off to play with cousins (no notes on exactly what happened there.)

3:30 p.m.- finds an old bag of popcorn on the counter. Munches for a bit.

3:33 p.m.-begs for a snack pack of chocolate pudding. We're all out. Settles for chocolate chips.

4:30 p.m.- slice of left over pizza

6:00 p.m.- chicken nuggets with ranch

8:15 p.m.- large red otter pop

9:20 p.m.- chocolate milk

9:35 p.m.- fast asleep

Charlie was lucky today. He never gets to eat this 'good'. We usually have to throw some fruits 'n' vegis in there some where. Sheeeeesh!

Here's the deal...

2008-08-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

If you're in Utah County this Saturday you MUST go here:

You got it...

2008-07-31T10:49:00.000-07:00

Gwen's favorite things to do:

*Wiggle

*Talk

*Sit up (almost on her own)

*Stand up (with help)

*Sleep

*Eat

*Be on the move

This girl is a case for the record books!

She is so wiry and active. She's not a snuggler. And she doesn't like being held like a baby. She needs to be in the middle of it all. Always watching, always going. She's SO busy! Her personality is already showing and frankly, I'm a little scared.

And I don't think I've learned my lesson

2008-07-24T09:22:00.000-07:00

So, I've told you about Marcus's friend Jordan before.

He's a saint of a child and only charges $5 to mow our third of an acre.

He really is a good kid.

And Marcus and Charles just love playing with him.

Sometimes Jordan forgets that he's 12, Marcus is almost 6 and Charles a mere 3.

We've encountered several occasions where the little boys have been hurt (trampoline, treadmill etc... )

But this one...this one takes the cake.

Marcus and Jordan were playing Wii. Marcus's turn to bowl. Jordan didn't want Marc to get a strike. Jordan throws a pillow at Marc. Marc's controller hits him in the tooth.

TOOTH. KNOCKED. OUT.

If only I would have known it was the last time I'd see that beautiful gap of his. Believe me. I would have taken lots of pictures of it.

A Kook Of A Mook

2008-07-18T21:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a fit of a day!

Marcus left us to find a "new Mom that was nicer to him."

He spent over an hour in 'time out' for the usual fighting and being annoying. I told him that I was trying to teach him a lesson, to be a better boy. But, no! He would have none of that. He yelled and screamed and tried telling me that I haven't ever taught him anything. I reminded him of a few things that (I know for sure) I have taught him. It wasn't good enough.

He stormed out of the house with 3 pairs of shorts on (for armor) and no shoes.

He made it 3 houses down only to return because he'd forgotten something. And then headed out again. He made it to the 3rd house down again and then turned around. By this point Charlie thought for sure he'd lost his big brother forever! Marcus came back inside to proclaim that he's NEVER learned anything from me! I tried to apologize for that saying I was sorry that he hadn't learned anything from me, but that wasn't MY problem. So off he went again (this time with shoes.) He decided to head in the other direction (maybe he could get farther.) He got next door only to turn around again! He stormed inside and said "OK, I'll stay!" To which I replied "No, really you don't have to. There are plenty of nice Moms in the neighborhood that would be glad to have you!" We argued some more and then again he was gone (this time with his scooter.) Charlie and I watched out the window. Me, quietly laughing my guts out and Charlie with big tears in his eyes. Would we ever see Marcus again? Oh yes! He had to tell SOMEONE about riding around the loop all by himself.

Gwenie Penny Pie

2008-07-14T11:08:00.001-07:00

Gwen is 3 months old now. And it seems like we're really getting to know each other. We've come to an agreement: if I give her everything she needs exactly when she needs it then she'll give me everything I need too (like sleep and the occasional alone time.)
This girl is a true blessing to us all. Not only am I totally in love but Brent and the boys are too. It's just what we were missing... Sweetness.

Preparations

2008-07-03T22:34:00.000-07:00

Each year for the 4th of July the boys get mohawks.

And luckily this year Gwen came with one too.

We even talked our best buds from the neighborhood into getting a mohawk too.

Porter, Jordan and Marcus

Marcus Thinks He's A Baller... (A T-Baller)...

2008-06-27T09:39:00.001-07:00

...and he pretty much is!

Brent Thinks He's a Baller...

2008-06-17T03:00:00.000-07:00

...and he pretty much is.

What Would You Do?

2008-06-09T08:37:00.000-07:00

What would you do if you had a baby chick that grew hair straight up?

Will I Survive?

2008-06-03T15:06:00.000-07:00

It's the second day of summer break and there's all sorts of shenanigans happening at our place.

The list begins here:

Clean boys go outside and are instantly covered in mud.

Charlie climbs to the top of Brent's Jeep.

The boys befriend a stray cat after being told time and time again to leave the cat alone. The cat spends the morning thinking it lives at our house. I have to use the broom to shoo it away. I hate cats.

Marcus and friends find a lighter and experiment.

Both boys are sent to 'time out' for various reasons.

Charlie sneaks and eats all of the homemade chocolate covered pretzels (with cat germ covered hands. YUCK!)

I call Brent to let him know what's going on at home and he laughs.

And this is just the beginning. I'm VERY sure there will be more to add to this list as the summer continues. I'm scared.

A Blessed Day

2008-06-03T08:32:00.000-07:00

We blessed Gwen on Sunday. It was a perfectly beautiful day. All of our family came to celebrate this little angel baby. We had brunch and enjoyed eachother's company. And she slept through it all.

Kindergarten Graduation

2008-06-02T08:16:00.001-07:00

It's true, Marcus graduated from Kindergarten.
Marcus and his teacher, Mrs. Ellsworth.

...School's Out for Summer!!!...

Mr. Pouty Pants

2008-05-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

Turns out Charlie HATES bowling!!! Except for when he likes it. Are we surprised? Not at all.

Bowling

2008-05-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

Here we are bowling with cousins in Las Vegas...

Las Vegas Baby

2008-05-19T12:12:00.001-07:00

Trampoline Face

2008-05-13T11:16:00.000-07:00

Marcus and his 12 year old friend Jordan thought it would be a good idea if Marcus got on Jordan's back and then Jordan would jump on a trampoline. And this is what happened:

More from Gwen

2008-04-30T17:49:00.001-07:00

Oh girl...

2008-04-21T14:49:00.001-07:00

She's Here!

2008-04-14T18:52:00.000-07:00

Gwen Simone Castagnetto

born Sunday April 13th 4:24am

7lbs. 6 oz. 18.5" long

We're so excited to have her here!

P.S.

2008-04-10T12:13:00.000-07:00

I'm still pregnant. I'm due tomorrow but that doesn't mean much.

Chapters

2008-04-01T10:31:00.000-07:00

This Chapter is coming to a close and I'm feeling way too sentimental.

This Chapter has involved so many good times.

We've been so many places and seen so many things.

My 2 boys have brought so much love, excitement and fun.

But it is time to move on. There is no turning back now.

Now, now we look forward to the great times ahead with a little sister in-tow.

Easter

2008-03-25T21:21:00.000-07:00

WOW!

2008-03-24T09:43:00.000-07:00

Look what happened... I posted again.

So much has happened in the last 2 1/2 months.

Here's what's been going down-

*Brent turned 30.

*Marcus lost 2 teeth.

*We've played a lot of Rock Band (is it bad that a 5 year old knows Nirvana and Blink 182 songs? You ask yourself that.)

*Charlie went to Sunbeams twice, all on his own!

*I've counted down the weeks until our new arrival (only 2 weeks and 4 days left.)

*We flooded our crawl space.

*Brent has thoroughly enjoyed cleaning out our garage time and time again!

*Spring Cleaning.

* I quit my bow-making job and now I feel free as a bird.

*Lots of playing outside- in the snow and now in the sunshine.

*Brent and I spent the night in SLC enjoying some RandR.

And too many more things to mention.

Now I must start my list of "to dos" before this baby comes and rocks our world.

p.s. I LOVE spring and I can't get enough of my tulips!

"Almost Yet For a Fillion Minutes!"

2008-01-06T14:40:00.000-08:00

The title of today's blog says it all! If you don't understand it then you need to learn "Charlie Talk".

First- "Almost yet" is "almost" and "not yet" put together. Like if you were to say "Charlie, are you ready to go to the store?" He would reply "Almost yet!" Or "Charlie, should we brush your teeth?" "Almost yet!" he would say. You should try using it sometime. It's kinda fun.

Second- "For a fillion minutes!" is an easy one to figure out. And I hear it probably a fillion times a day from my Charlie the barely 3 year old! So if you're taking too long to do anything at all you're probably taking a fillion minutes and Charlie doesn't have time for that!

The kid has got major SASS! And if you'd like a taste of it, you're more than welcome to spend a day with him.

Best Pictures from 2007

2007-12-29T09:37:00.000-08:00

When browsing through pictures from 2007 I found some that just might be the very best! These pics are dating back from summer '07. These young fella's are "motorcycle guys". Since they don't have a real motorcycle, they just pretend. At least Charlie has real motorcycle pants on (and maybe "motorcycle guys" wear ski goggles---who knows.)

it almost looks like he's actually on a bike!

I'm dreaming of a pink Christmas

2007-11-29T08:08:00.000-08:00

So there are still no signs of the camera. Who do these people think they are? It's the freakin' Holidays! Don't they know that I need to take pictures?! If Brent wasn't sicker than a dog today, I'd make him get on the horn with somebody--anybody!
So this means another picture-less post. But with an exciting surprise...
The surprise is that I'm pregnant with a GIRL due April 11th!

The Long and Short of it...

2007-11-21T06:09:00.000-08:00

The long story is that my camera died. And it was only 2 months old. So you can believe what I did about that! Yep, I made Brent return it. But to our surprise and major frustration the store said "NO!" So Brent yelled at a few people and stuff like that. They told him to send it back to the manufacturer. So now we're waiting. Waiting for the camera (Brent says it'll be here before Thanksgiving but that's tomorrow!) and waiting for the run around to stop. Will it ever stop?

The short story is that we got family pictures taken. So guess what? I might just have a picture to post. Family pictures was an event of epic proportion. It was an extra chilly day, Charlie was MAD as usual and Marcus fell in the stream and had to be carried to the car in his underoos!

Hhhhhmmmm...

2007-11-10T07:25:00.000-08:00

I wonder when I'll ever post again.
My camera is on the fritz which means I haven't got any pictures to post.
And what's a post without pictures?...Boring.

California: I Love You!

2007-10-04T12:48:00.001-07:00

The Beach!

DisneyLand and California Adventures!

2007-10-04T12:17:00.001-07:00

2007-09-02T09:11:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday Marcus started Kindergarten! Our little boy is growing up. He even gets to ride the bus to school!

A Busy Week for Mr. Marc

2007-09-02T08:40:00.000-07:00

On monday Marcus turned 5! We spent the day with a birthday celebration. He invited all of his friends over for a party which consisted of a talent show, pin the tail on the donkey, a pinata, and an enormous chocolate cake! Later that evening we 'did it up right 'at Classic Skating! Way too much fun was had by all!