Napoleon Meets Nerf

I looked upstairs tonight, and saw Darren doing the Napoleon Dynamite dove with nerf darts on his glasses.

Random, but funny, very funny.

CANstruction @ South Coast Plaza

Can-struction is an event where organizations build artwork out of canned goods, then donate the food to charity.

We were excited that Darren's company asked him to engineer & design their structure.

Darren and his team worked through the night and finished around 4 a.m. Saturday.

Ta da!

Their theme was "Step up to the plate and strike out hunger," so they recreated Angels Stadium.

You can vote for the people's choice award here.

The kids and I came to check it out. It is amazing!

People were stopping, gawking, and taking pictures.

Pictures just don't do it justice.

They used over 6,000 cans to build it. That's a lot of donated food!

The walls of the stadium say STRIKE OUT HUNGER.
{The skylight above makes the lighting a little wonky}

Here are some of the other entries.
Seriously cool event, right?!?

While walking around the mall, we came upon this. I thought, It's the Happy Hands Club!

We stopped to watch and by the time it ended, I was in tears.
These people with hearing impairments were signing to I'm Proud to Be an American with such enthusiasm, it was truly moving.

Later in the day, we saw performers from the Maple Conservatory of Ballet {Courtney's new dance school}. So impressive!

K, this could be a post of its own.

I had no idea we were so close to the largest shopping mall in OC.

Completely blown away. It has the traditional stores, plus lots of high end, fabulous stores.

A shopaholic's dream!

I have fallen in love with Paper-Source and H&M!

The Three Wolf Moon

Some of our heartiest laughs last year were induced by the Three Wolf Moon shirt reviews on Amazon.

You can find them here.

and check out the sweet videos here and here

Darren couldn't believe it when he received this in the mail from his sister Cami. His own Three Wolf Moon shirt!

{He even had to strike a redneck pose for this pic}

Sweet.

Father's Day--Take 2

For some reason, I thought Father's Day was last Sunday. I didn't have a calendar or a clear head {going for days without sleep because of the move}.

I even called my dad to wish him a Happy Father's Day a week early.

I'm glad we got to celebrate it right this week! We love you tons, hon! Happy Father's Day!
A few Sunday night ball games in the backyard--the boys stomped the girls.Brownie artwork by the kiddos. XOXO's!

Boy Scout

New uniform...new adventures!

Happy, Happy Birthday!

This is the nicest 11 year old boy you'll ever meet.We love you so much, Xander Man! You have such a warm spirit and kind heart. We love your laughter, your many talents, and the quiet, thoughtful acts you do for others daily. You're the best!
We have a standing lunch date-- Panda Express delivered to school by Momma!

We offered to have his party at a Diamondbacks game, or bowling, or to see a movie with friends. He insisted he just wanted to play kickball & catch with some friends, close to home. Simple & fun.

He requested Star Wars cupcakes from Fry's. When I went to pick them up, the icing was pink and purple!

What in the world?!?

Who has pink Star Wars cupcakes?

Alexander was a good sport about it didn't mind.

We love you, son!

Opening Day

It's the beginning of a new Little League season--its busy, but we love it!

Alexander is on the White Sox... #5
Their uniforms this year look so sharp. Alexander plays shortstop, and his nickname is "The Vacuum" since he scoops everything up.

Why are my pictures posting vertical? Beats me!

Pinewood Derby-- Year 3

Our last year of Pinewood Derby {sniff, sniff}--I can't believe it. Alexander's awesome design idea this year was to make his car look like a Wii remote. We thought it was a fantastic idea. The boys didn't have much time to work on it this year, but we thought it turned out great! Darren made a painting booth, complete with string to suspend the car from. That's my engineer!

Alexander's car is on the far right. That darn graphite always messes up the best paint jobs!
We combined with another ward, and it was fun to see so many families from our previous wards {before we all split}. These are Alexander's three cars from the past years. Home Depot, Twins & the Wii.

Zoom! Off in a flash. I think Xander's car was 6th overall.

{It didn't help that during a test run on the tabletop, Mom missed catching his car & it got beat up and bent just before the race} Sorry, bud! We're proud of you!

Laser Tag, Roos Style

After a few wild games of laser tag around the house, the boys decided the best location for their sensors was on their heads. Cute, huh? Seriously sounds like a herd of elephants running around the house when they play. Ugh! This Nikon is not what I expected. My pictures are consistently grainy {especially indoors}. Any tips before I take it back?
This might be the best $20 I've ever spent at Target.

'Tis the Season...

...for basketball! Alexander started practice this week. So excited to see him play again. He & Big Daddy were trying out some sweet moves!

Sun/Rain Devils

The boys went to an ASU game & the weather was crazy! First off, it was hot and they all got sunburns-- the next half it rained and they were freezing! They couldn't believe all the tailgate parties.

Father & Son Campout

Six pack of soda, $2.49. Bag of Doritos, $1.99. Can of Pringles, $1.00. Bag of Gummy Lifesavers, $1.50. Hot Dog, 25 cents. Marshmallows, 50 cents. Two helpings of Dutch oven peach cobbler, $2. Having your son throw up all over the tent at 1:00 in the morning: Priceless.

The road was winding, and with that kind of food consumption, what else did you expect? Darren got a few snapshots before the dramatic conclusion to the Father & Son Campout.
Impressive fort built by the boys on beautiful Mt. Lemon.

Saturday at Firebird Raceway

It has become a yearly spring tradition for the boys to attend the drag races and Monster Truck Nationals at Firebird Raceway with the Chapples.Spencer, Xander, and McKay (2008)

Spencer and Xander (2009)


For the Dads, it is all about horsepower and speed.......
Ferrari : 1/4 mile @ 120 miles per hour.
Top fuel boat: 1/4 mile @ 244 miles per hour.
Jet car: 1/4 mile @ 301 miles per hour.


For the kids the biggest thrill was the 3 minute ride on the "Boogie Monster"....top speed: 15 miles per hour.

Happy Birthday, Xander Man!

The last 10 years have flown by--I wish time would slow down a little. Alexander, we are lucky to have you as a part of our family. You have such a kind heart and happy disposition, you make the world a much brighter place for us.Good morning! We woke up extra early so Dad could see the opening of the gifts. We trade off every other year doing a friend/family party, so this year was just family. Kind of a bummer having to go to school and do homework on your special day:(

Darren & I were downright giddy about this gift. It has been so difficult to keep it a secret. Darren was able to get Manny Ramirez's autograph on this picture! We were so excited to see his reaction, that we videotaped it. Here's how the big moment went:

{Upon opening present}

Xander: Hey, I know this guy... who is it, number 55...

Darren: That's not a 55.

Xander: Huh. It looks like a 55.

Darren: Nope. It's a 99.

Xander: Manny Ramirez?

Darren: Yep. He signed it!

Xander: Oh. Well, it looks like a 55.

That was the BIG reaction we'd been waiting for.

He requested that I make a baseball cake. Let me tell you, I've gotten my money's worth out of this cake pan. It's been a basketball twice already.
Our big 10-year-old had a baseball game {again} this year on his birthday. He was thrilled to finally get his own batting helmet. Darren made it look wicked cool with the Dodgers, Red Sox & Twins logos on it.
He's safe at home! Cherish all the time you can with your kiddos. They grow up too quickly. It's hard to believe we have a son in double-digits that wears the same size shoe as his Momma!

Pinewood Derby--Year 2

Alexander loves a theme. {Must be genetic!} This year Alexander is playing on the Twins baseball team, so he wanted his car to have the Twins logo on it.Priming and paintingSmoothing out the axles
The cars! We combined with another ward, so there were quite a few participants. Alexander's car is the dark blue one with the Twins logo on it. I thought it was ingenious that he painted the wheels white with red threads to look like baseballs.
He and another scout tied for 2nd place. Xander was fine with taking 3rd. What a great sport. All smiles and genuinely happy for everyone who participated. Way to go, Twins!

Tour de Cure

Darren {after swearing he'd never ride a bike again after El Tour de Phoenix last year} succumbed to peer pressure and did the Tour de Cure for Diabetes.

Getting on his game face before the race
This time he was actually smiling when he crossed the finish line:) We're so proud of you!