I'm Thankful For...

I can't believe the year has gone by so fast! I swear just yesterday we were lighting sparklers for the 4th, or dying Easter eggs! I had to take a minute to list all the things I'm thankful for because this has been a wonderful year, and what better day to do it! :)

And like all the best Top 10 lists...here you go!

10. Pepsi
Hmm...this really seems like it should be farther up on my list! I don't love Pepsi for the caffeine, but for the taste. It can't be Diet though! That just doesn't taste near as good! Nothing tastes better than the cool, thick, rich, syrupy liquid sliding down your throat and the bubbles stinging as they go down....Oh Pepsi...how I love you.

9. Post It Notes

Sure this seems funny, but its true! I love Post It Notes. Even this list was written on a post it! I write To Do Lists, sketch card designs, write grocery lists, and any random thoughts I put on post its. I even stack them on top of each other and check things off or toss them as I finish. I'm thankful for post its because of their size and the small sticky strip on the back...oh and without then we wouldn't have Romy and Michelle's movie!

8. Chocolate
And another that should be farther up on here! What words can describe how thankful I am for chocolate? Instead, I'll leave you with a visual and you can come up with your own words...that is, unless you're not drooling!

7. Sunsets

What's more beautiful than watching a sunset with your loved ones? I love them because each sunset you know you have finished a wonderful day, and even if tomorrow never comes...you know you have lived each of your days to the fullest and loved as hard as you could.

6. Stamping and Scrapbooking
I'm so thankful for this hobby because it's such an outlet for me. Although I'm sure Jake isn't because of how much I spend on it (hehe), but I know he loves that I have such a fun hobby. I love watching my kids look through their scrapbooks, and I love sending handmade cards to friends and family.

5. Authors and Books

How could this be a complete list of things I'm thankful for without books being on here?! I love diving into a great book and spending time in a little fantasy. So, I'm thankful for those authors that pour their heart and souls into their work so that we can enjoy them.

4. Love

Love makes the world go round and is something rare to be treasured like it's a priceless gift. I'm so thankful that I can love and be loved.

This is Jake and I shortly after we were dating. We somehow started a cake fight...I got him bad! August 2000

3. My Kids

So these next three really are tied for my #1!

Gwynie and Brady are the best kids ever. They always make us laugh, and make us so happy. There is an emptiness in the house when they aren't there, and I miss them like crazy. I love those moments when I can watch them sleep, where they are so innocent and I remember when they were babies. So many more things I could say about them!

Yellowstone July 2008

2. My Husband

I don't know what I would do without Jake. He is such an amazing husband, and he's my best friend. A few weeks ago I defined the term "husband" as:

Husbands - Love you no matter what, tell you what you need/want to hear. Tuck the kids in bed, take care of you when you are drunk, laugh at your not so funny jokes, buy your feminine products, whisper sweet nothings in your ear, cook dinner and breakfast, surprise you with treats, rubs your feet, lets you be the "right" one almost all of the time even if you are dead wrong.

And that's pretty much Jake! I couldn't ask for a better husband or father for my kids.

Lagoon Frightmares October 2008

1. My Family

Obviously, this is my number one! No words needed right...

Thanksgiving 2008

And two pics from Thanksgiving!

Gwynie with her newest cousin Sidney

Brady with the marshmallow house he built! Yep, he's rockin that faux-hawk!

You know you're old when....

Tonight I was telling Gwynie that I was surprised she didn't read that often, only the 15 minutes a day for homework. Coming from the women in my family it's tantamount to a travesty, a betrayal of gigantic proportions, a traitor in our midst. Chalk it up to her being 9 Jake tells me. Well I wasn't satisfied with his answer and stated I've always been a reader. My previous post must have been weighing on my mind. Here is how our convo went:

Me: *venting and ranting about how I always read, blah, blah*
Jake: Right, but when you were a kid you didn't have computer games, a DS, or legos to keep you busy.
Gwynie: Yeah, or TV.
Me: We had TV when we were kids Gwynie.
Gwynie: Oh, really? Cause that's like out of the 80s.
Jake & Kandi: *explode into a fit of laughter*
Jake: Gwynie, we were born in the 80s, how old do you think we are?!!!
Kandi: *makes mental note that Gwynie is as blonde as her* *oh, and to remember/find out when tvs were made*

I have to say, we always have these kind of conversations at our house. Something unexpected or just funny questions from the kids prompt hilarious conversations.

Books

For those of you that know me fairly well, you know what a book fiend I am. I love reading, and I know that obsession started at an early age. I remember being in 1st grade, and getting in trouble for sloppy handwriting because I was trying to finish my work early so I could read. That thirst for knowledge, or the thrill of a good book has never released its grip on me. It's always so fun to find friends that I can share books with, or get good recommendations from. It's awesome too, when you recommend a good book and then it gets recommended to someone else. My sisters (Shae and Laci) and Mom will now what I'm talking about...The Black Dagger Brotherhood, anyone? :)

However, the only thing I hate about reading...is waiting for sequels to come out! The anticipation almost stops my heart from beating, and the agony of the months of waiting is torture.

So, I have a lot of books (well series I guess would be the correct term) that are now in the "Waiting" stage. I'm waiting for the next book that will either finish the series, or give you a little niblet to tide you over until another book comes out. Although I'm not a very patient person, at least it gives me something to look forward to! I decided (since I'm home with a sick kid and have nothing better to do) that I'm going to list all the books I'm waiting for here. Mom and Shae, if you see any I missed let me know!!

• Lover Avenged (#7) - Black Dagger Brotherhood Series - 5/5/09
• At Grave's End (#3) - Night Huntress Series - 12/30/08 (yay, its getting closer!)
• Bone Crossed (#4) - Mercy Thompson Series - 2/3/09
• City of Glass - (#3) - Mortal Instruments Series - 3/24/09
• An Echo in the Bone - (#7) - Outlander Series - 3/1/10 (GAH! That is forever away!!)
• Fade (#2) - Wake Series - 2/10/09
• Gone (#3) - Wake Series - 2/?/10 (Another forever away!)

Ok, I guess its not all that bad, a few months right? Plus, I have a zillion that I still need to read... I have a link on the side of our blog that has my "Good Reads" list from goodreads.com. It has all the books I've read (from what I can remember!) and a "to read section" which currently has 88 books in there. So, if you're ever wondering about a good book...you know where to look now!

Also, has anyone ever heard of book trailers on youtube? I head about them from a friend last year, but never really checked them out. It's actually pretty hilarious and kinda cool...trying to describe a book in video in 2 minutes. Some are good, some are not so good...so I leave you with a good one, from a book called Wake. Thanks to Shae for recommending this to me!

It's Almost That Time!

I can't believe Christmas is right around the corner! Thanksgiving is next week and before you know it, BAM! It's Christmas! So I decided I would post here to see who wants a Christmas Card! I've never been great about mailing anything (thanks Mom for those wonderful genetics, hehe!), but I decided that if I made it into a big deal then I might actually get Christmas cards mailed out to people that want em.

So, here is your chance to get a fantabulous handmade Christmas card from me! You can either leave a comment here with your address, or for privacy's sake, you can email me at:

kandipants21@gmail.com

All requests welcome! Even if you know of someone that doesn't read our blog, but you know they would like a Christmas card, let me know as well!

School Pics and Halloween...

You know I'm either really busy, or really tired when I get home from work, when I don't update for awhile. I'm sure everyone else is the same way. Real Life rears its ugly head and things like a blog (and dishes) fall to the side. Ok well, the blog does anyways! So...it's been what...over 2 weeks? I don't have much to share (blame it on being busy), but I do still have some Halloween pics and (gasp!) the kids school pics (from September...) to post.



For Halloween, we went over to a friends house, ate pizza, and then went trick or treating. We took some pics at her house before we went out.

The Cowboy and the Ghostly Witch...so serious!

A little smile now!

Brady loved his costume!

Election Day!!

OBAMA FTW!!!

I can't tell you how excited I am that this day has arrived, that the Democrats took the Senate and Obama was elected President. Sure some of you out there may disagree, but don't spoil this with any negative comments. I am so happy to live in a country where we do have the choices and freedoms we have, and that we can express that! Although there is a long road ahead of us, I truly believe Obama is the man that can help lead us there. He may not be perfect, and I might not agree with everything he does, but I know that he is (based on tonight's speech), a very loving, humble, and confident man. It really gives me hope that we did vote for change and that our voices were heard. I am devastated about Prop 8 and 2 (FL) however. I won't go into anymore detail because its a FAMILY blog (not my personal one) and I reserve the right to only post happy family stuff on here. Besides, I'd probably just get people mad at me...

Ok, I'll get off my political soapbox now and just share a couple pics. I still have to post Halloween, but in the spirit of election....

After we voted we got stickers for the kids, too!! Brady was like "oh cool a sticker", but Gwynie really understood everything that was going on, and watched most of the coverage with me tonight. She thought it was cool she could wear her "I Voted" sticker and say that she would have voted for Obama.

There was a part in his speech that really made me pause. He said:

"What we've already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow."




And for those that know how bad I hate Palin....I seriously can't believe she wants to run in 2012...