We are HOME!

After a crazy and fun trip to California with my family over the past 10 days, WE ARE HOME! More than 2,000 car miles, 5 sets of mouse ears and approximately 243,000 goldfish snacks later, we are back home! 

We had a fantastic week (albeit with a few kinks in the road that always seem to come with traveling this far and long with toddlers!), and we were able to see SO MANY great family and friends. We've got lots of pictures to share, but if you want a sneak peak at our trip, you can check out my parents' blog here. My dad is such an awesome blogger that he kept up with blogging the trip while we were on the road.

Spring is on the way!

On Friday, we had a great day with our friends Brooke and Ruthanne. We played together, walked up to campus (Brooke's husband Ben teaches with Lucas at NNU), visited Lucas' classes, and then stopped by to feed the ducks on the way home. What a fun day!

Max with the Ducks. Isn't he cute in his little Letter Jacket from his Abuelita?

Hugs.

Sweet little Ruthanne in the most adorable baby cap ever.

Brooke and Maggie checking out the ducks.

Hanging with Daddy for a little while at work.

Conversations with Maximus

[Maximus launched into this conversation today when he put a Lego in the china cabinet.]

Maximus: I will just put this Lego in here to keep it safe from Maggie. Hey, Mom, when you put these dishes in here, you do it very soft, so they don't break.

Me: That's true. Who taught you that?

Maximus: Gramma Cheryl.

Me: Gramma Cheryl is smart. She can teach you lots of good information like that. Did you know that Gramma is really, really good at art?

Maximus: [gasp!] Is she good at Legos, too?

Me: Yes (thinking to myself: yes, after raising six boys, I'm confident she is quite adept at Legos!)

Maximus: Is Gramma Cheryl good at building big blocks?

Me: Yep.

Maximus: Is she good at Star Wars games?

Me: Yep.

Maximus: Is she good at playing space ships, like Axioms?

Me: Yep.

Maximus: Is she good at playing soldiers? And Clone Troopers?

Me: Yep.

Maximus: Is she good at computer games?

Me: Well, she's not quite as good at computer games as your daddy, but definitely better than your mommy.

Maximus: Hmmmm.

[Maximus was quite excited to learn that his Gramma Cheryl is quite skilled at all the most important and essential life-tasks for a 3-year-old boy!]

Coyote County Loser Premiere

Wow- I didn't realize how far behind I am on this blog until I saw that I hadn't even posted any pics from the big Coyote County Loser movie premiere in Southern California a couple weeks ago!

For those of you who don't know, Lucas' twin brother Jacob has been producing an independent full length feature film for the last year. Lucas helped write the screenplay, and has been involved in other various ways throughout the process as well. This has been such a huge and ambitious endeavor for Jacob and his wife, Laura, and we are so proud of all they have accomplished!

So a couple weeks ago, Lucas was able to fly down to California for the official premiere. From all the details I heard about the night, it was smashing success. The next step in the process is to sell the film, and we are all praying for a big success in this area, too. Jacob and Laura have worked so hard, and they certainly deserve any and all success that comes their way! In the meantime, here are a few pics that Lucas took at the World Premiere of Coyote County Loser:

Jake and Laura on the Red Carpet!

          Jacob and Lucas with some of the cast and crew.

Three guys who have worked really, really hard to make this movie a reality!

(Jacob, Brian, and Lucas)

The Coyote County Loser cast signing movie posters at the premiere.

Jacob signing movie posters.

Jacob with his grandma and two aunts who were able to come

to the premiere. How special!

     Jacob and Lucas' mom flew down from Oregon

     to be there for the premiere. They were so glad

                             she got to come!

        Jacob and his dad.

The lovely Laura and her dad.

Dad and Mari help out behind the scenes.

Poor, Neglected Blog

Yes, this is a poor, neglected blog this week. So sorry, everyone! Laura called tonight and said something like, "Yeah, yeah.... The Frugal Muse is great and everything... but what about pictures of my niece and nephew?" Okay, Laura. I'll take the hint and get something new up here for everyone.

 [I just love my sister-in-law. Tonight we decided that 5 years of living apart is enough. We are finished with it. We didn't really get into specifics– you know, like where we would move and how we would find jobs, and whether our husbands thought it was a good idea and those types of minor, petty details. But we did decide firmly that we will no longer be living 1,000 miles apart. We'll keep you posted on how our plans shape up. :-) ]

ANYWAY... a couple of days ago, I was working in the kitchen when Max suddenly climbed up and stood up on a dining room chair, spread his arms high and wide and declared in a slow and decisive voice, 

"I – AM – GOD!" 

My back had been to him, and when I whipped around with a stern look on my face, preparing to correct his error, he had already humbled his body posture and sheepishly and quickly began to say, "Uh, I am not God. Mommy, I am not God." To which I had to smile and say, "That's right, you are not God. You are a human."

"Yes, Mommy. I am not God. I am a human."

And he went back to playing Legos, and has refrained from declaring himself deity since. :-)

The cutest thing I heard today

"Is God the green bean?"

- Max, after watching Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie

Introducing: The Frugal Muse

Hey, everyone. Let me invite you to my new corner of the blogosphere: The Frugal Muse. 

Many of you know that over the course of the past year, I have become a pretty hard-core coupon user and bargain shopper. I've decided that I can no longer in good conscience keep all of these great deals to myself. I must share the love.

If you're like our family and looking to stretch your dollars a bit further, come check out the new blog. Hope you enjoy!