Thanksgiving 2010:

Snowy

Cold

Cozy

Fun

Delicious

Filled with good eats

Family

Laughter

Memories

Hugs

Babies

Full bellies

Wafting aroma's

Cousins

Turkey

Banana/Pineapple Slush

Mom's pumpkin pie with fresh whipped cream

Football

Playing in the snow

Black Friday Ads

Contentment

and......

unfortunately a nasty flu bug.

I wish every Thanksgiving could be as perfect as this one. (minus the sickness of course.)

I was so thankful to have every one of my siblings home for the holiday. They are all special people to me. I'm glad to say we still act like a bunch of ten year old's when we're together. They are some of my favorite people to spend time with and I hope my kids will feel the same way about each other when they are older.

**P.S. I have some exciting news to share in the next day or two.

Good Buys

With this freeeeeeezing cold, snowy weather we have had the last few days, I am so glad I made a few recent purchases that have come in handy to keep things toasty and warm around here.


These performance fleece lounge pants I bought a few weeks ago from Old Navy are seriously like wearing an electric blanket around.

They are THAT warm. Every time I put them on I think - man, these are the comfiest pants I've ever owned and I wish I had about ten pairs of them and that they were totally socially acceptable to wear everywhere. I'm going to watch for some after Christmas sales and see if I can snatch up another pair or two. Since I have a little longer legs, I opted to buy these in the tall size and am so glad I did. Nothing is worse than short legged pajama pants. I like when I can curl my feet up inside them if my feet get cold. Is that weird? My feet are like ice this time of year. Anything to help keep them warm is good by me.


My other favorite thing is this Back to Basics Cocoa-Latte Hot Drink Maker.

It is awesome. For the last few years I've tried finding these in stores with no luck, and then a few weeks ago I found one on Amazon for a great deal. {I just looked this morning and they still have them marked way down with free shipping.} These are great because it automatically shuts off when it reaches the perfect temperature and then automatically reheats when needed. So if you want to keep it plugged in all day for convenience to have a warm drink when the need hits you, it's always ready and waiting. It also has a frothing button which really takes it from plain hot cocoa to sooooo much better. Our family has absolutely loved it so far and we've used it non-stop the last few days. The little recipe book that came with it has some delicious recipes we've been trying out and one of our favorites so far just uses milk, brown sugar, butter, and a little vanilla. It tastes like a hot milkshake. YUM!

Anywho, just thought these were some good ideas if you didn't already have some of things you could sneak onto your wish list for Santa.

*Post Edit - I forgot to include links for these items so here they are:

Hot Drink Maker

Fleece Lounge Pants

State Tournament Recap

With the end in sight, and some school history to be made for the girls soccer team, the last week of soccer season finally came and went. Julie and I rode up together to watch the team play in Lakewood. I left the boys with my parents so it was a total girls trip. We left Thursday afternoon and arrived at our hotel around 7:30 or so. The hotel we stayed at was in Sumner, about a 20-25 minute drive from Lakewood and was pretty nice and had a pool and hot tub so of course Kendle was in heaven. We arrived to cold, cold wet weather and it pretty much stayed that way the whole weekend. It seemed like we could never quite get warm.

With some time to kill on Friday before the game, we decided to get some lunch and do a little shopping. We ate at Panera Bread which was totally delicious then we did some shopping at Marshall's and Target and stocked up on some treats for the games (and scored some cute clothes). When we pulled into the stadium parking lot it started to pour down rain. Just great we thought - here we go. Heavy coats, umbrella's out, and then we waited in line a good ten minutes to get our tickets before we could head inside. Luckily the stadium seats had a cover so we could stay out of the rain a bit. Look at us all bundled up and trying to stay warm:

The girls faced some challenges during their first game with a wet field and some not very good officiating and we came away with a 2-0 loss to Seattle Prep. You know the officiating is bad when even the winning coach complains they had no business reffing the game. That should have been the championship match up, but good old computer bracket systems can be thanked for that. Anyways, everyone was kind of bummed but ready to come back out on Saturday and end on a good note. Friday night Julie, her girls, Kendle and I all jumped on the charter bus with the team and went out for some pizza. That was fun. It was a good opportunity to get to visit with the other coaches and get to know them better. Riley is sure lucky to have such great people helping him. It really makes all the difference. On the way back to the hotel we couldn't pass up stopping at Krispy Kreme and loading up on some donuts. I think by that point everyone was stuffed to the gills, totally exhausted, and ready for a good nights sleep. Well, everyone that is except for Kendle. I took her swimming before we went to dinner and she was still raring to go and get some more swim time in before bed. Riley took her down for the last half hour before it closed. Needless to say, she slept like a rock.

Saturday morning the team had to leave bright and early to get to the field for their 10:00 game. Luckily the weather although bitter cold, at least cooperated enough to stay dry for their game. The sun even began to peek out a bit towards the end. The game against Prairie was pretty slow for the most part. We were definitely a way better team and it was kind of slow paced until the end. One of our little freshman stud's scored the only goal of the game so that was pretty cool. I wasn't even stressed out at all during the game because you could just tell that we were going to win. After the game was finished the girls all came out and took a big bow in front of their fans which was cute and then they presented Riley with their trophy and game ball. I had a hard time getting some good pictures with all of the chaos and people in the way but here are a few:

It is a really bittersweet feeling to see it all come to a close. Even though it has been a sacrifice to have Riley away so much, I'm glad he has been spending that time doing something positive and rewarding that has made a difference. To hear all of the positive feedback from the players, the parents, and the school has been really great. To take your team to state and earn third place your first year coaching is no small feat. The athletic director wants him to come back next year, but because of circumstances out of our control we don't know if that can happen or not. Either way, I'm glad they all had a fun and memorable season.

And can I just give one big huge YAY!!!!! We're DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*And a big thanks to Julie for being such a fun side-kick for these games. She has put up with many long hours of Johnny being gone helping coach as well and it is not easy when you have little ones at home. It makes it so much more bearable to have someone great like her around and made the weekend a heck of a lot more fun!

My Babies are 1!

Happy Birthday Cooper and Kale. Today you are officially 1 year old!

{How could your day not be a little brighter with happy little faces like this following you around everywhere?}

 

Kale Kruise Dodson

Cooper Channing Dodson

What a special year this has been for our family. It has very hard to put into words all of the emotions I have felt from the time we found out we were having twins, their birth and meeting them for the first time, and now watching them grow into charming boys. I worried that I wouldn't be up to the challenge. I worried I wouldn't have enough patience and love to go around. I worried that I would utterly fail at providing them with enough care and attention.

I am so relieved to say, that no matter what, even on the days that were not so easy, there was always enough love and attention to go around. These boys absolutely melt my heart and are just little sweethearts. Mischievous, curious, and busy - but sweethearts just the same. Every day they make us laugh and smile and I will be eternally grateful for the opportunity to be their mother.

Here are a few fun facts about their personalities and what they are each doing:

Cooper:

Likes to pick on his brother

Pulls hair

Usually the first one to get into something

Cutest smile ever

Walking

saying words like "uh oh" and "no, no" (the ones he hears most often)

Loves to eat Cheetos, yogurt, corn, potatoes, toast, and anything I'm eating

Favorite past time is pulling out all the chords from my computer drawer

Does not give up easily

Laughs like he gets your jokes

Loves to pull stuff out of the garbage

Kale

The teddy bear

Loves to walk up and lay his head on your leg and give hugs

Mr. Sensitive

Loves to get into big brother and sister's room and pull out toys and books

Likes to pull back the curtain by his bed in the morning and look outside

Walking/running

Saying words like "no, no" "ma, ma" "dad"

Likes to eat bananas, Cheetos, graham crackers, cheese, yogurt and whatever I'm eating

Is always hitting his head

Loves music

Has the cutest laugh

Cooper and Kale, we absolutely adore you!

You are the icing on our cake!

Quick Monday Note

So glad it's Monday again and we can get back to the normal routine. What an exhausting weekend we had. I am T-I-R-E-D. Stayed up till 2 in the morning Friday and Saturday night, babies not sleeping, Morgan keeping me awake with his barking seal cough laying on the floor next to my bed, and just trying to get caught up on everything that was pushed aside the last few days. I am feeling pretty run down, but as my dad would say - I'm keeping the fluids going and drinking plenty of OJ.

Riley's team heads to the final four this weekend in Lakewood and we will make one last busy week out of it. They play Friday afternoon and then if they win they play in the championship on Saturday and if they lose they play for third or fourth place. This week will be full of making arrangements and preparations and packing. Hopefully, we can make it an enjoyable weekend for everyone involved. It is exciting! What a great way to end the season.

I can't believe Thanksgiving is next week. I have so many projects and things to get done before then. I need just a few more hours in the day to get everything done. I'm looking forward to the good food and visiting with my family. I'm already craving my mom's delicious stuffing and pies.  Next week will be our first soccer free week and I couldn't think of a better way to top it off than Thanksgiving and enjoying a wonderfully relaxing weekend. It is crazy to think that last year during Thanksgiving we were struggling to tote two babies around and trying to survive with zero sleep. This year we will be chasing two walkers around who will be trying to get into everything. :)

Break Day

It's Friday. What to say? The kids had yesterday off for Veteran's Day and today off for a "break day",  yes a four day weekend around here. Wish we had some exciting plans or a weekend away, but we are sticking close to home. Riley's team will be traveling to Federal Way tomorrow morning for their quarterfinals game against Decatur. The kids and I will be staying at home for this one, but my best thoughts will be going out strong all day long for them. It will be a nerve wracking day since their game doesn't start until 6:00. That is a long time to be nervous!

Our kids were up and at em super early this morning. I wish just for once that on a day off from school there could be some sort of quiet spell that falls over our little house and I can stay curled up in my warm bed for a while longer. Riley was up at 4:30 so he could leave by five o'clock to drive to Cle Elum for work this morning, so I guess I had kind of been dozing off and on since then. We woke up to a white and frosty front yard, but now the sun is shining bright and melting the frost away.

I'm trying to think of what I can do to keep the kids busy and occupied today so that I can get some work done. I literally have 101 projects and things that need to be started and/or finished. I had Kendle and Morgan bundle up and walk down to get the mail this morning since I hadn't checked it in a few days, and Kendle was excited to see the new Children's Friend arrive, so at least that is keeping her busy for now. The babies enjoyed a nice warm bath this morning and I think more water ends up out of the bath tub than in it. Now they are mosying around the house in their matching Batman outifts. Morgan is already asking if it's lunch time yet. It's not even 9:30. Could be a long day.

Well, time to turn some holiday music on and clean up the house.

Wednesday, my least favorite day of the week (and other ramblings)

Ok, so basically, the title of this post should say it all. I kind of loathe early release days and how it throws my usual schedule off kilter. Kendle comes home from school early and is very loud. She usually rings the doorbell 10 or 12 times even though I've told her repeatedly NOT to do it. This usually wakes up the babies from their naps earlier than  I would like and you know nothing gets us mom's ticked off more than having what little quiet time we get during the day cut short. Then it all just snowballs from there. It is always a weird day and feels EXTRA EXTRA long. Like right now it is only 3:30 and it feels like it should be at least 5:30.

Today has been one of those days where I was committed to being lazy and taking it easy. My shins have been hurting so I took a day off of running. {I might be pushing myself a little too hard, but I've shaved off another ten seconds on my timed mile and now I'm only 35 seconds away from my goal. That is crazy for me to believe that in the last two and a half months I have improved a 1:25 on my time. I know distance runners look at the over all time not just the short distance, but I guess I just wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. I want to try and reach my goal by Christmas. I think that will be a good present for myself.} I stayed in my pj's all morning and did Christmas shopping online. But I think having lazy days are overrated because my floor that desperately needs to be swept for the sixth time is driving me crazy and I just can't seem to relax with dishes needing to be done and sitting in the sink. So there you have it. I guess my need for order trumps my need to relax.

On another note though, I will mention that my baby gate I bought is the best ten bucks I've spent in a long time. I don't even mind throwing my leg over the side and climbing over it to get inside the kitchen because it has made my life so much easier. Now I'm not constantly picking up all the mixing bowls, sippy cups and kids plates and bowls that the twins would pull out fifty times a day.  Who knew such an otherwise boring purchase could make me so happy. The twins on the other hand hate it! They stand and shake it and cry when I am in there doing dishes or cooking. They look like little jail birds and it is quite the hilarious sight. Poor babies, but at least we won't have any more dish soap episodes any time soon.

It is crazy to see Cooper and Kale walking around the house. Kale has actually almost ran a few times. He really gets going and then has a hard time stopping. I love it though. They look so cute shuffling along with their little arms out for balance. They get more and more brave every day. I can't believe their birthday is fast approaching and then I will have 1 year old twins! I remember other parents of twins telling us that if we could just make it through that first year things would get so much better. I think that's pretty much true. I'm loving the stage they are in right now.  Never in my life have I felt like a year has past more quickly however. I feel cheated of not having better memories of when they were newborns. It makes me sad that those times have come and gone and the last of the Dodson babies are growing up. I haven't even thought of what to do for their birthday. I guess I need to start cracking on that!

December Surprise

Today along with some new makeup and the new Pottery Barn catalog with all the beautiful Christmas ideas inside, I received one more piece of happy mail. Our family tickets came for the Harry Potter Exhibition at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle.

When I saw this was coming to Seattle as it's final stop in the tour, I knew this would be just the type of thing that my family would love to go experience. Riley and I thought it would be a fun surprise for the kids and sort of a reward to all of us for getting through soccer season. It will be so neat to look at many of the authentic costumes and props that will be featured, and do some of the interactive hands on activities as well.

We are huge HP fans in this family. We can't wait to see the new movie coming out and then go to the exhibit a few weeks later to top it off. I'm so excited to take the kids for a little family day trip and have a fun time. I hope we can keep it a secret until then. They really put up with a lot and are really just troopers with all the long hours their dad is away. They deserve it! Can't wait! (ok, really I think Riley and I will be more excited than anyone) Is it bad for a 30 year old woman to wish she lived at Hogwarts?

Just one more reason December can't come fast enough.

Morgan's Prayers

Morgan is such a cool little boy. He can go from being a little turkey to a sweetheart in two seconds flat. Tonight while we tucked the kids in and helped them say their prayers, I got kind of choked up to hear the words coming out of his little mouth that were so clear, humble, and sincere.

"Bless us that we won't be snarky to each other." (one of the words I use for being cranky, had to stifle a laugh on that one.)

"Help us that we can be good and kind to each other and do the right thing."

"Help me to be a good boy."

"I'm thankful for our home."

"I'm so thankful for my family."


I think I'd like him to stay a three year old for a long time. I love this age. Moments like this help me to forget how mad and "snarky" during sacrament meeting I was when he wouldn't sit still and kept talking really loudly. It makes me remember that he no longer has a lap to sit on during church or a free pair of hands to look at a picture book with him. It makes me feel so sad for all of the moments I lose my patience or don't take the opportunities to stop and play and pay attention to him.

I needed to hear that little prayer tonight to remind me of what is most important. 

Weekend Lineup:

Today:

The house is clean, babies are napping, laundry is in full swing, workout is done and there's still more to do and get ready for the busy, busy weekend we've got ahead of us. Bake some bread for tomorrow's Super Saturday at the church, make sure everyone's stuff is rounded up for the soccer game tomorrow, clean out the car, and put myself together for a mini-date with the hubster. 

Tomorrow:

-Super Saturday
-Southridge Regional Championship Game vs. Mt. Spokane
-Mindy Gledhill concert
-Get ready for Sunday

Go - Go - Go!!!

Always Learning

I have so many thoughts swirling around in my head but can't quite seem to be able to put them into words. I've had lots of promptings and strong impressions lately to be thankful for what I have. I think I take things for granted a lot of the time. The things that sometimes frustrate me when looked at more closely are actually blessings. I'm learning to take the bad with good. Sometimes life sends unexpected surprises when we need it the most. 

For example, back before Riley and I met he had received a nice sum of money from his grandfather that passed away. Being a typical 20 year old guy he would have loved to have spent it on a new car, or vacations or some other cool thing but instead he tried to do something responsible and decided to invest it in a program that offered substantial returns. He was planning for his future. Months later he and many others in the Tri-Cities and beyond received the gut wrenching news that it had been a ponzi scheme and all their money they had invested was lost. They were told a trial would ensue that could take years, and not to expect to get much if any of their money back.

Fast forward to about a year ago, we heard from a representative of the case and they wanted to verify our address and information to ensure that Riley could get his settlement money when the trial ended and everything was finalized. They wanted to prepare us that becuase of the large amount of plaintiffs in the case,  the percentage of the inital investment money they would be getting reimbursed with would be pretty small. They gave us a rough figure and we thought it sounded pretty good actually. Not the full amount, but still only a few thousand off and we could definitely use the money. We waited and waited and never got anything in the mail. We kind of just gave up on it.

A few weeks ago after checking the mail, I saw an interesting looking envelope and knew right away what it was. I called Riley and excitedly opened the envelope so I could tell him the amount and read the attached letter.  Wouldn't you know it, it was waaayyyy less than even the rough estimate they had given us. We're talking, way way way less. It was pretty discouraging, heartbreaking really. But, we both decided it was lucky that any money came at all and it came at a time when we needed it and could put it to good use.

It's hard when life can be disappointing sometimes and I want things right at this very instant. It's hard playing the waiting game and being patient. I'm trying to be more grateful for what I have and what my life is like at this point in time.

What's New

*In the last week or so the twins have started to do some walking. Kale is a little more motivated, but Cooper doesn't want to be left on the sidelines so yesterday he was trying his hand at it as well. I'd randomly catch them letting go of furniture and take those funny prancing steps until they finally lost their balance. Exciting stuff! I'm thrilled. One more milestone that will help life be a little easier for this mom. (We'll see if I'm regretting that statement in a month or so.) They are at such a fun stage right now and are getting really silly and playful. They love to make us laugh. They are just too cute and every time I see their happy little faces staring over the crib rail in the morning I just want to give them the biggest squeeze.

*Kendle is done with soccer season. Their team had some really awesome games, and also some not so good ones but they always kept a good attitude and had fun together and acted as good sports to the other teams. I think she finished the season with about 9 or 10 goals, lots of assists and only gave up two goals as goalie. She is an awesome defensive player when she gets going and is starting to see how to make plays happen. I was really proud of her. We want to work on speed for next season. I don't think she'll know what to do with herself without practices and things after school, but yesterday she told me she wanted to start running on the treadmill to get ready for basketball. I looked at her like, "who are you and what have you done with my daughter?" Ha. I guess she's still young enough that the treadmill is a fun thing. Then she told me about a program her school is participating in to track how many minutes of physical activity the students get a day. They are ideally supposed to get at least 60 minutes. They can log onto the program online and input their stats. There are supposed to be some kind of small rewards for meeting their goals. So I wasn't surprised that had something to do with it. She is an incentive driven type of girl. Got to keep holding that carrot out there for her. HA.

*Morgan is loving preschool and I can already see some changes in him and his desire to learn new things. We've been working on spelling his name and he is so proud he can spell his first and last name now. I can also get him to sit down and color and do some busy work. He is so excited when I pick him up from preschool to tell me all about the fun things they did that day. He told me the other day that he thinks "Miss Molly is the nicest lady ever." He adores her. He is a typical busy three year old and loves to build things or look at things taken apart and put them back together. He loves everything to do with farming and tractors and being outside. Every time we drive past a corn field or empty potato field he tells me all about it. I'd love to make him his own little garden someday.

*Riley's team is done with league now and moving on to the regional tournament. We're excited to see what happens from here on out. He is still as busy as ever with his day job and sometimes I never know where he will be at from one day to the next. Yakima? Wenatchee? Moses Lake? One never knows. He is always on the go and usually pretty exhausted by the days end. I'm looking forward to some of the honey do's that have been on hold finally getting done after soccer is over and I know the kids are looking forward to having their dad back for a while.

*Not much is new with me. Just trying to stay on top of the day to day tasks that come about. I've been loving the cooler fall days that are still giving some sunshine. It's like the best of both worlds. I've been trying to stay ahead of the game a bit and get some stuff done for Christmas while I have the time. I've been trying to cross off one person every week and hopefully that will keep the stressful shopping to a minimum this year. It seems the nights have been quieter and bed times earlier around our house as of late, which has been nice for me and my large stack of new books waiting to be read. This is a great time of year and I'm glad for the reminder to be thankful for all that I have. Today is also election day. Another good reminder of how blessed I am to live in a country where everyone is entitled to cast their vote according to the dictates of their own conscience. How very lucky are we.

Trick-or-Treat

Well, I had a few better pictures than this one, but for some reason it's only uploading them side ways and all weird today so this is the only one that loaded properly. Sorry for the blinding flash. This was right before heading out to our ward Trunk-or-Treat on Saturday.

The kids had a great time. Morgan enjoyed it so much more this year, so that made it easier. He loved being Spiderman and the costume was a great investment since he's been playing in it and wearing it around all the time. I couldn't find any costumes I liked for Cooper and Kale and I knew they'd get really annoyed wearing something fussy for a long time, so I just went the super easy route and dressed them like little football players. I thought the jersey's would be fun to have and wear again anyways. They only had two jerseys left when I bought them and they were a size 3T and 4T. Although I had them layered over a sweatshirt, I don't think they were a smidge too big. My 11 month old babies look like 2 year olds! Kendle cracks me up. I love that girl. All of her friends wanted to be cute and pretty things, but not Kendle. She wanted to be a scary vampire with fake blood dripping out her mouth. Got to love it!

Halloween 2010 was a success.