Video of Wookie and Rose

Here is a video of Wookie and E running around- Wookie is the perfect "rough and tumble" puppy! After that clip is the CUTEST video EVER! (Bias opinion, I know) Lils was jumping rope in front of Rose and Rosie was laughing hysterically! She was cracking up!

Wookie!

Here are some more pictures of our sweet little Wookie!

Christmas Puppy!

Ever since I can remember, I've always wanted a Christmas puppy. To go downstairs on Christmas morning to see a bright red box and open it to find a beautiful little puppy with a big red bow! Well, we weren't able to get the puppy on Christmas Eve (the puppy was 6 hrs away and over two snowy mountain passes) but they were delivering their puppies to our area yesterday. We thought about having my bro-in-law hold him for 5 days, but he works full time and it would be traumatic for the puppy... So, we had a Christmas scavenger hunt yesterday! We went all around the house following clues that show the true meaning of Christmas symbols. Then the door bell rang and there was a bright red box at the doorstep!

I am the WORST! As I was uploading the video I realized that I recorded accidentally right before and right after we surprised the kids on the doorstep and MISSED IT!!!!! They were so cute and so surprised! Oh man! Ebay just started laughing and saying, "puppy!". Lils said, "Oh, a puppy!"... then pause and asked, "is this our puppy?" We said yes and then she just started to scream! Ebay named him "Wookie"! Fits him perfectly! He's a puggle, a combo of C's and my favorite dogs, a pug and a beagle!

Snowboarding!

We went snowboarding with Jeff and Clarks' Dad yesterday! They skiied, I snowboarded. It was the best ever! We went to Sugar Bowl because the tickets were 1/2 off and the snow was great! We just had a blast all day! Clark and Jeff were skiing down trying to find jumps and powder, Keith (Dad) was cruising along having a good 'ol time and I was just trying to make it down without whiping out big-time! Though the second run down, I was feeling pretty good again. I was knocking everybody out on the way off of the lift every time, though! :) Clark would be holding my arm, but I can't turn my board with one foot off the board and so I rammed straight into the snow bank EVERY TIME! Keith and I would ski down to certain points and stop and watch C and Jeff do some fun jump. Both C and Jeff flipped upside-down one or two times, skiis flying in the air. And we all (except Keith, I think) white-washed in the powder, FREEZING! But the sun was out, the sky was clear and beautiful blue, and we just laughed and had a good time! I had my kids at 3 different houses, so I'll be owing babysitting for the rest of my life! And I was told that Rose was screaming half the day... nice.

Peanut Butter Fudge

This is what our friends and neighbors are getting this weekend from us for Christmas (recipe folowing)! It's my Aunt Brenda's peanut butter fudge! It was always a favorite of ours as kids and now as adults, it tastes like Christmas. mmmm. We'd go up to New Hampshire, where my Aunt Brenda lives, at least once a year to see my Mom's Mom, siblings, and our cousins up there. We'd usually go near Christmastime, so there would be 3 or 4 feet of snow! A few of my Mom's 8 siblings lived on the same two streets in Stratford Hollow. Every other house seems like it belongs to an aunt, uncle, or cousin. This is the place where my Mom was born and raised. She LITERALLY walked in the snow uphill both ways with bread bags on her feet to keep the wet snow out of her shoes when she was a kid!


Imagine a small country lane lined with 100 year old farm houses, mountains on either side, tall beautiful green trees everywhere you look. Imagine cows, pigs, chickens, and goats in their barns lined with hay and smelling like warm manure :). Imagine stepping out of your car and the snow being as tall as you are! Coming from suburban Virginia, New Hampshire was like a snow-covered, freezing, and breathtaking farm wonderland! I learned so much about real life up there among my family there in New Hampshire. And there were always peanut butter fudge, blueberry pancakes, whole milk, and whoopie pie cakes in abundance.


I remember walking from my Aunt's house to my Uncle's with my hair wet (what was I thinking in 20 to 30 below temperatures!). I had frozen ringlets of hair by the time I got to the other house. I loved going up there and being with family. Sitting around the wood stove and making the best toast you ever had on it! Oh, and the whoopie pies my Grammy makes, that'll be another post!

We'd go sledding up the road (they live at the foot of some big moutains). My uncles had snowmobiles and they'd attach ropes to the back and pull us up the hill on our sleds! Then we'd sled back down. I still think of those amazing winters often, especially when I smell propane gas! :) Riding behind a snowmobile is really fun, but very stinky! Thank goodness none of us passed out from the fumes!

You might think this all sounds a bit redneck! Well it was, and it was the best! One winter when I was 12 or 13 my uncle got me and my sister's out of bed at 5:30 AM. He told us "city girls" to put on our coats and come on outside, he wanted to show us something. He got a chicken out and placed it on one of his anvils, then took a little knife in the other hand (you can see where this is going right?)! He basically pinched the head off of the chicken with his large hands and that little knife! We all SCREAMED! I had never seen ANYTHING like that! But that's the way it is, gotta have something for dinner, right? The chicken then ran around the yard without a head. Wow, I will never forget that. That night my sisters and I didn't touch our chicken dumplings out of principle... at least until we got really hungry.

Now, who's hungry for some of my Aunt's Peanut Butter Fudge??!

4 cups white sugar
1 cup milk
1 stick butter

mix together:
1 container marshmallow fluff
36 oz. of peanut butter
3/4 cup flour

Boil first 3 ingredients to full rolling boil for 5 minutes (cannot be stirred down). In a large bowl stir first three into the last three ingredients. Stir quickly since the fudge sets quickly. Pour into large greased pan. makes an 11 x 15 pan. To smooth top if fudge set too quickly, place waxed paper over top and press. Cut when cool. Enjoy!

6 1/2 Months Old

Rose is 6 1/2 months old now! Weighing in a whopping 20 lbs at 6 months! She is a biggie, but Ebay was 23 lbs at 6 months! She is roly-poly, happy, fat, and sweet. We love you, Rosie-poo!

Death K

Yes, I underestimated the sweet little "Turkey Trot" 5K. I've been "training" for it, but with potty training Ebay, having a 5-6 month old, etc., my training wasn't entirely consistent. Plus, I thought, 3.2 miles? No biggie! I ran, at most, 2 1/2 miles to train for this and thought with the adrenaline of race day, that I could get the rest out and it wouldn't be so hard! Oh man was I wrong! I got my rear kicked! We were in Chico (near Clark's parent's) for the 5K. We were about a third back in a crowd of 2600 people. The weather was a little crisp, perfect for running. I was there with Clark, Clark's brother (who is training for a half marathon) and my bro-in-law (who had ankle surgery a year ago and hasn't really run much since). We were excited, feeling good... and as soon as the count-down started, I got nervous! Then we were off! I was feeling pretty good in the beginning, and overheard a father tell his son, "that's one mile down!" I was thinking, "Wow! this is great, this will be easy!" Then it got tougher and harder, but I kept up my pace. I heard someone else yell something about half-way. "All right! This will be great! This ain't NOTHIN'!" I saw a big group of people ahead yelling words of encouragement and some flags up ahead... could it be? The finish line already! "Wow, I am in INCREDIBLE shape!" I thought to myself :). (not really.. I was getting pretty tired and was glad to be done). As I got closer and closer I heard the people yelling, "You're half-way there!! Great job! Keep going!" WHAT?! HALF-WAY????? Oh man, I was so tired because I was putting it all out there by then. That's what I get for listening to a Dad tell his kid an evil, evil lie!!

Well, I made it, only stopping a few times to catch my breath for literally a second. But I was really going s-l-o-w. Sweet Clark stayed with me the whole time b/c we wanted to do this together. He was so encouraging and patient with me, though towards the end I was saying, "just leave me! Go on, leave me here to die" Ha ha. Good times. I will never underestimate a 5K again! But I did it!

New Address!

Welcome to our new blog address... www.chundermonkeys.blogspot.com. Hope you found us OK! I know it all looks the same! :) It just doesn't have our last name as the title anymore. Thanks!

Twilight- the movie!

So, what did you think of the movie? I went last night at 9:45 with an amazing group of girls who ALL LOVE EDWARD (except one Jacob fan). We were in line with mostly 12 years-olds, but there were a few groups of old mamas like us there too! I went into the movie knowing that it wouldn't be nearly as good as the book, not expecting much, and just for fun... and it was a lot of fun! I thought they did great. Sure there were a few little cheesy parts and awkward tension. But it was great! I wasn't sure about the cast for Edward, but I am sold now. He was really great and "smoldering", right?! But I did wish he would smile a little more, that made me happy when he did the few times... but I guess he was a pretty tortured character and all. And I felt so bad for Charlie when Bella yelled at him before she left Forks! Bella was a perfect cast. James was scarey/sexy/evil and the effects weren't too bad! Jacob's nose was a little too big for me, but hopefully he'll grow on me. Tell me what you think! I want to hear from my Carolina "Twilight" fans! I miss you guys!

Potty trained!

Dare I say it? Dare I use the word in past tense as if it was DONE? Well, after 2 1/2 weeks and no accidents, I think I can safely say Ebay did it! I was just telling Clark that the two happiest moments in a parent's life are when your baby is born and then when they're potty trained!.. I'm sure there are other cool times like missions, marriage,... blah blah blah- potty training is DEFINITELY top ten, right?! :) So, three weeks ago I was just sick and tired of changing his big ol' bootie and said, "it's time". I was really worried about him because he is a very particular boy and likes things done a certain way. He also really loves cartoons and soda (both of which are kept to a minimum). That was the key with E. I bought him a little potty and sat him there in front of the TV ALL DAY LONG with soda and treats. Yes, I was a bad Mom for two days, but it was only two days of pure cartoon enjoyment and sugar! By then he got it. He understood when I about had a heart-attack of joy when he went in the potty for the first time!! We made a "potty cake" that day to celebrate and he even got a phone call from Lightning McQueen (my brother) and Chick the "naughty car" as he calls it. Since then it's been done. It was so easy. About a million times easier than Lils who took 6 months. I guess there's something to say for experience, cartoons, and soda! Thank you "Yo Gabba Gabba" and "Diego" for seeing me through, I owe you one!

Am I 5??!

So.. I feel like a five year old. Let me start by a little story from Clark's life. He was around 5 or 6 and thought "Slugger" was a really cool nickname and wanted everyone to call him "slugger"! So he would tell everybody to call him Slugger and his sisters and friends just made fun of him! And rightly so! :) I remember wanting everyone to call me "Sam". I think it was the girl's name from "Charles in Charge". I thought it was so cool that a girl could have a boy's name. I tried to drop hints throughout a few weeks, and it never caught on. Point is, while we are trying to use nicknames on our blog, I feel like a 5 year old trying to come up with my own nickname! Nicknames are given by others and are from special moments or a funny story! You can't give yourself your own!

Clark calls me "Cakes" all the time, more often than he uses my own name. Actually when he calls me by my real name, I get nervous b/c it's usually something serious! I got the name "Cakes" on our first date when we went bowling and he put "baby cakes" as my bowling name. It just stuck! He even engraved it on my wedding ring. He's the best. Anyways- Clark got his name from our first year of marriage, it's really a lame story with a movie I think only my siblings have seen with a dancing musical mouse (Lorel knows)... blah blah blah... so that's where Clark's name originated.

But Cakes is a special name only Dave calls me. Lola was a nickname some guys in college called me. So I had to make up my own! I am using my middle name, Catharine (I'm named after my Grammy), and shortening it. She was always "Aunt Cat". So I'll just be Cat. I hope that sticks! But then again, you can't give yourself your own nickname! :)

The Joy of Pressure Washers!

This weekend I learned a valuable lesson. OCD people should NEVER use a pressure washer! I'm not usually OCD about everything, but certain things make me really thorough. And now I've learned that a pressure washer is one of them! For a job that would take some (*clear throat*, Clark) maybe an hour, took me 3+! It was WAY too much fun! 1/2 of our yard is concrete anyway, and some of it was growing moss! Well, not anymore. Our concrete is the cleanest, spiffiest on the block. There was crud all up in the cracks that was growing weeds. I took care of that! Plus the house looks like it just got a fresh coat of paint. I was very happy this weekend. Some may say it's dumb to clean outside concrete, but the kids and I are outside in bare feet half the day! At least now there's no nasty mossy, moldy stuff sticking to our feet! Yay! Pressure washers are the best!Speaking of amazing gizmos... Clark is a woot.com nerd and is always checking for deals on electronic stuff, plus he thinks the writers on the site are hilarious. So he ended up buying us a Dyson vacuum for HALF the price of retail. (It is also refurb) But it looks brand new and works amazing! I never thought I'd be so excited about a vacuum, but this thing is a miracle of science! We vacuumed our first room and filled up the collection/container thingy TWICE! We're not dirty people, it's just our lame previous vacuum was, well... lame. That Dyson got everything out of the carpet, from Daisy's cat hair to the spek of cheese that's been there since the carpet guy layed down said carpet in 2005 while chowing on his Big Mac. Everytime we use it we just marvel and say, "it's a miracle of science"! We can never say it enough. Good times, as always, here.

The Death of Special Moments - By Capt. Chunder

I decided it was my turn to get back into the blog - it has become uncontrollably frilly and filled with flowers, laces, and sacred nicknames. Can it be saved with a manly story? Not quite - here is a sad tale of one Father trying to enjoy a special moment with his son.

Sometimes Ebay is a Bear. Imagine one that just woke up from hibernation with its face on fire and dementor-like breath (heck yes that was a Harry-Potter reference). Imagine the "I-haven't-eaten-in-46-months-and-I-am-ridiculously-constipated" type of Bear. I think you get what I am saying. Otherwise, he is a good kid. :)

I try to enjoy the special moments - ones that appear suddenly like an unexpected compliment. The other day I decided I hadn't had enough "moments" with my son - so I sought out to create one. It was 9:00 PM, and the kids had been out for for a while. I peered into E-bombs room, and laughed at his pretzel-like sleeping position. I stood there for a minute, allowing myself to forgive him for the lightning bolts of carnage and destruction he ZEUSED upon our home that day. Suddenly a book came into my mind..."I'll love you forever". For those unfamiliar with this book - a Mother sneaks into her son's room throughout his life and rocks him in her arms, singing a little song of uber-lovey tenderness. I thought to myself - "maybe I could create this same tradition - how fantastic would that be! I could capture him in his comma of peace and quietly bond..." It felt and appeared so perfect.

I snuck over to his bed, my innards giggling with fatherly joy. I scooped him up ever so gently and began to rock him in my arms. I wasn't going to sing...I was just going to enjoy this momen...SMACK! He began to writhe and twist and I caught a right-handed hook to the temple (the only semi spirtual part of this story). He cried out..."SLEEP IN BED!!!!" and I did my best to get the greased pig back into his sleeping Mecca.

I'll take this time to say that this story is slightly embellshed and exagerrated - not the part about the botched bonding momment (that is rediculously true) but that Big E is mostly a Bear. He really is a sweet kid...if and only if you are watching him sleep from the doorway.

Hot Tub!

Lils and E's favorite thing to do EVER is play in the hot tub. They play in the hot tub almost everyday after school. Rose is such a great baby. She just wants to be where the action is! So I'll just put her in the bouncer seat wherever the other two are and she'll just sit and bounce around, drool, and giggle at her brother and sister! She just loves watching them!

Wild Turkeys!

Yes, wild turkeys are EVERYWHERE here! Growing up, whenever we'd drive by a wild turkey, my Dad would yell "LOOK, WILD TURKEYS!" out in excitement and point out the window! My Dad is no hunter, but for a split second I would see him dressed in camo with a huge barrell gun crouching down behind a trench... just waiting...... Clark told me that his Dad would do the same thing! What's with Dad's and wild turkeys? So, we now live in a wild turkey crossing area! Whoohoo! It's always a good time here at our house, right? (but turkeys are WAY better than Canadian Geese, which Clark has a vendetta against) I had my niece and nephew over and so we crept outside and got as close as we could. This is our front yard. We also have a game every Sunday as we drive up to church to see who can spot the turkeys first! There are always turkeys up there on the grounds! Never a dull moment, right?

New pictures from Lils' school Fall Festival

This year for Halloween Lils is a unicorn, E is Spiderman, and baby Rose is a little cute spider! They got to wear their costumes early for a Harvest Festival at school and then we had our ward's trunk-or-treat. We're using all of that candy (except the Reeses cups and Butterfingers that are long gone) to pass out this next friday on Halloween! I love this season and the weather here is so amazing!

I told Lils to turn around so we could see her tail, so Ebay did too!

Ch- ch- ch- Changes!

So... we're becoming a little more ambiguous with our blog so it's not so "hey, here's our names and phone numbers and address!" We're also switching out our blogspot address by December 1st to www.chundermonkeys.blogspot.com (Clark came up with that one)! So be sure to change your link to that for me too, when the time comes... I'm not really sure how to do that the best way. But I want to be public and private at the same time! :) We used our family nicknames and I'm sorry if you hate them, but that's what we've been calling each other for years, so it just makes it easier to write that way! I hope you enjoy the new background! I finally figured it all out! Yay! So we're cute now, at least our blog is!

In case you're wondering how Ebay got his name, well, it's from my Dad. If you know my Dad, he's just plain funny and weird and crazy! He also came up with "E-male", get it, m-a-l-e??? Yeh, that's the weird that I'm talking about! That never really caught on for some weird reason... I love my Dad!

Cute pict of Rose!

Oh man, don't you just love those sweet little rolls! :)

Crushes on boys already???!!!

Yes, my friends, I am sad to say that Lils has her first crush... sorry Parker! :) First, I will start out with this story that is somewhat heartening- Lils was playing with a friend under a tree at recess when he says to her, "you're pretty, I want to kiss you on the lips!" to which Lils replied with an adamant, "NO! You only kiss on the lips when you're married!" and she ran away!

Chalk one up for Lils. The next day she says to me, "I love Aram (another boy in her class), he's just so cute! I want to make him a card!" NOOOOO!!!!!! I said, "you don't LOVE him, Lils, he is just your friend". She said, "I don't know if he likes me because he's on the blue team and I'm on the yellow team." and that was it. I picked her up from school and she showed me who this elusive Aram is. He's a really cute, sweet boy, and she got this goofy grin on her face and giggled and said, "Hi."

Oh man, I'm gonna get it! She's still a Noggin, Playhouse Disney girl- no Hannah Montana or High School Musical?? I don't know where she gets it! I wasn't boy crazy until at LEAST 5th grade, right??! Though my Mom would then bring up how I would sit on the missionary's laps, grab them by the ears, and kiss them all over their faces when I was 3 or was I 5? Oh, the memories!! It's the only time you can get away with that kind of stunt!

Here's a picture of Lils, I walked in on her reading like this and got my camera! She's so silly! She said it was more fun to read upside down AND practice her gymnastics. Makes sense, I just thought she was just a weirdo like Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter!

Our New House!!

Yes, we've lived here since June, but here of some pictures of it now that we're getting settled in and decorating!

the kitchen

guest room

front room/art room

Ebay's room

master bedroom

Lils and Rose's room

We LOVE our home!!!! I have a big project that I'm working on now for the front room, it should be really nice, I'll be sure to upload pictures.

A few new pictures-

Here's just a few new pictures of Rose- she's almost 3 months old now- and Lils and Ebay! Lils started her first day of Kindergarten last Monday *sniff*.


Here also, is the koi pond that we converted into a wading pool for the kids, complete with waterfall and chlorene. Clark's Dad was amazing and built the fence around it and then Clark created the beautiful stone work all around the outside edge. It was rough, sharp rock before, not very kid friendly. So the kids played in the pond and then jumped into the hot tub and then back into the pond for hours today! Horray for backyards!