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Our Awbrey Park park adventure

2010-05-05T23:08:00.001-07:00

I babysat the kids on Saturday night and took them to Awbrey Park park. It was super fun tramping through the woods with them! We were having a great time until I noticed bumps all over Sydney's hands and face. I thought that Sydney had poison oak and so I called Laura and David and they met us at Urgent Care. This is proof that nothing good ever happens when I try to be outdoorsy! It turned out that Sydney had hives from a virus. She had been sick earlier in the week, but seemed to be fine on Saturday. I was very relieved that she didn't have poison oak.

What a cute little family! I bet Laura would love if they always got along this well.
I love Sydney's little cocked hip! She is so...Fancy Nancy! I love it!
Sydney is fearless! She ran across the log over and over.

Audrey loved going across the log! She is such a little angel!
Katie struggled with her fear of heights while Charlie and Sydney ran back and forth across the log.
You can't see Audrey, but I am holding her in my other arm. Good thing we didn't fall because I don't which I would have saved, Audrey or my favorite handbag. We could probably clean Audrey up, but I don't think my handbag would be quite so resilient.
Katie may not be brave when it comes to running across logs, but she sure is darn cute!
All the kids love underdogs. I got quite the workout.

Cutest Soccer Players and Fans EVER!

2010-04-21T21:30:00.000-07:00

Obsessions of the week

2010-04-10T21:09:00.001-07:00

I am completely obsessed with pears lately. They are natures euphoria chocolates.
On my drive home from work, I find my myself fantasizing about the pear waiting for me at home.
I LOVE SOS pads! There is something so satisfying about scrubbing "hard to clean" surfaces, until they look brand new. I scrubbed our stove today and I don't even think it was this clean when we moved in.

This weeks obsession

2010-03-31T09:17:00.000-07:00

My new rain boots from Target are my latest obsession. As my coworkers can attest, I am a little anal and quite frankly eccentric, when it comes to the weather ruining my pants and shoes. Most days, I wear my ugly fake Uggs with my pants tucked inside them into work. Once I am safely inside I change into high heels or cute flats. Well, my ugly fake Uggs are about as rain resistant as flip flops, so I broke down and bought some rain boots. Who knew something so functional could be so freakin cute? SOOO worth waiting outside Target at 8am so that I could buy boots before work!

Saturday night with my favorite foursome!

2010-03-30T21:40:00.000-07:00

Sydney is a girl after my own heart. She is a natural trend setter. She put on every necklace I own and she looks fantastic!
I think Katie is a future facebook addict. She is already taking stunning self portraits.
America's Next Top Model 2021
Sydney...aka...Fancy Nancy...
Katie not only has a future in modeling, but also in photography. I thought this picture of my earring was very Soho.
If her modeling and artsy photography don't work out she may have future at the Picture People. I think she might need to work on keeping the kids entertained though.
Sydney took this picture. Not bad for a five year old, huh? Looks like Katie might have a future business partner.
Can you tell my house is a little more entertaining for the girls than Charlie? He's not a big fan of fashion shows, trying on my jewelery, or painting his nails. I am dying to paint his nails black and put eye liner on him though...but SHHH!!! Don't tell David.
I LOVE when Sydney wears my sunglasses. She can totally pull them off.

My little angel!!!!
Since it was Saturday night I introduced the kids to my two boyfriends, Ben and Jerry. They even got to take a picture with them.
So freakin cute!
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough has never looked so good!!!!!

My birthday

2010-03-25T21:22:00.000-07:00

The Slaughter women minus Amanda
Nothing makes me happier than ice cream and a coffee maker crown.
Isn't Rory delicious!!!
She is better than ice cream!
My dad and Rory had both had enough birthday fun!

Carnivale Parade in Greece

2010-03-08T18:43:00.000-08:00

I am not sure who that float was supposed to be of, but I am assuming it was a character from Greek mythology.
I love kids, but I wanted to kill that little boy. He kept shooting his fake gun and it was worse than fireworks and balloons popping.
Color...makeup...hair...craziness...
I fell in love with this little greek girl. I love her curly hair and glasses!
I think this might have to do with soccer??? I took a picture for Jed because it said Brazil.
Can you guess what the boxes represent? Apparently, Greeks feel over taxed even worse than Americans.
More taxes protesting...
And more...They really aren't fans of taxes!
Got to love men in tights, leotards and tutus!
I was a little jealous of that little girl :-)
Impressive splits!
I don't think this is the type of bar these men are usually at.
Gotta love this guy!

Nice!!!!!He was my favorite! I love his ponytail!

Water in Greece

2010-03-07T11:59:00.001-08:00

I am a pisces and so I LOVE the water. Greece has amazing water! Hope you enjoy...

My fabulous accommodations in Greece

2010-03-02T19:39:00.000-08:00

As most of you know...I stayed with my friend Jebin while I was in Greece. His house was amazing! He had a beautiful view, an awesome backyard, and his house was immaculate. I was super lucky to have such a great place to stay.

This is the view from the front porch.Yes...you can see the water. GORGEOUS!

The backyard was amazing. Pictures don't do it justice!

Super nice bathroom, huh...Greeks don't flush their toilet paper, but since I was staying with an American I was aloud to. Thank goodness!
This is the living room. Pete was playing play station and Isabella was using the internet. They love coming over and playing with all of Jebin's toys.

The orange and lemon trees in the yard make decorating the table easy. If it looks like there are a few missing it is because I got hungry that night.

Beautiful Old Sh**

2010-02-21T11:25:00.000-08:00

My favorite part of Greece was the old houses, barns, alleys, and staircases. Everywhere I turned there was historic beauty. As Jebin said, "Greece has a lot of old sh**." My whole trip consisted of pointing out and taking pictures of more old sh** and I loved every minute of it.

All of the Old Sh** below were in Jebin's neighborhood. How cool to live in a neighborhood with all of these beautiful old buildings, doors and staircases...

My day in Athens

2010-02-18T09:01:00.001-08:00

BEAUTIFUL Greek man. Hello!!!
Yes...I am a stalker. LOL!
True...True...
There were demonstrations (protests) today in Athens, so the streets were FULL of police.
My hotel is overlooking the Temple of Olympian Zeus. So beautiful!

Greek Feelos (friends)

2010-02-17T06:28:00.000-08:00

We have been spending a lot of time with Jebin's friend Satiris and his kids. Isabella is 15, Georgia is 12 and Pantagones/Pete is 11. They are great and we have had a lot of fun!

We had a huge Sunday dinner earlier in the day and we went out for a late night snack around 9pm. Well, Satiris ended up ordering a gigantic table full of food. I told him, "It's a good thing I am only here for two weeks or I would be 500 lbs in no time."

Isabella, Pete and I enjoying a late night "snack".
Jebin and Sayid...Sayid is the NICEST guy! He is Moroccan and an expert Thai boxer.
Satiris and Georgia. So cute!!!!

The next day we went an flew kites. It was a Greek holiday and so the kids were out of school and the beaches and parks were full of kite flyers.

Jebin with his coffee and "small" sandwhich. Kite flying fuel...
Isabella and I braving the wind and cold together.
Jebin and Satiris constructed a kite from plastic bags and sticks. It was pretty impressive!
Isabella trying to fly the kite they just constructed.
Sayid pushes Georgia around the parking lot on his moped.

Fresh Meat

2010-02-16T12:30:00.000-08:00

The food in Greece has been amazing. I haven't tried anything that I have not liked. As you can tell from the pictures below...everything is SUPER fresh!

More Greece Pictures

2010-02-15T23:35:00.001-08:00

I've learned in Greece that I have a love of old doors.This castle was worth braving the weather for.
This was the stormy day that we drove through the mountains and the roads were difficult.
Stormy...Stormy...Stormy...

2010-02-15T12:40:00.000-08:00

This is an alley in Chania. Chania is the nearest big city. I absolutely fell in love with all of the alleys and stairways in Chania.
Another street in Chania... It was so fun to explore all the little knooks in the city.
Greece is full of little doors. They are everywhere. I made Jebin pose in front of this little church door to show how short it really is.
On one of the first days that I was in Greece we drove through the mountains looking a small villages. It was pouring and the roads were super dangerous, but we survived and saw a lot of cool stuff.
We stopped at a small coastal village and had lunch. This was my first bite ever of Octupus. It wasn't too bad.

2010-02-01T20:36:00.000-08:00

I wrote my schedule on the white board at work. It was so exciting that I had to take a picture.

ONE SUITCASE!!! That is right! ONE SUITCASE!!! It is a miracle! Two weeks in a foreign country and I packed with one check-in under 50lbs. and a carry-on. I think this might be my greatest accomplishment ever! I weighed myself a million times holding my suitcase. As I would eliminate things, I would get on the scale holding what I had just eliminated and hope for a super high number. Definitely the first time I have ever gotten on a scale hoping for a high number.

Thank goodness for weekends!!!

2010-01-31T15:20:00.000-08:00

Kim, Carissa and I had a little girls night out. We laughed a ton and I think they enjoyed their night without the kids.
Can't beat Chilis! Well, except the milkshakes, which are not up to Kim's standards.
I started pre-packing for Greece. Talk about crazy! I think I might be paying the extra $100 to check a second bag.
Kati and I hiked Spencer's Butte this weekend. It was a gorgeous day and it was super fun!
Kati and I made it to the top and we made sure to take a picture for evidence.
This is our type of hiking. We kept answering our phones. The people calling us were always surprised that we were hiking. I wonder why?

My first Rory Feeding

2010-01-30T19:27:00.001-08:00

My first experience watching Rory eat real food. Well...excluding those little bites of ice cream and whip cream her naughty Auntie Em sneaks her.

What happens when bald mullets get out of control...

2010-01-20T11:13:00.001-08:00

WARNING...This is what can happen if bald mullets are not taken care of early on.

New Years in D.C.

2010-01-12T22:03:00.001-08:00

We spent a lot of time at Borders on my trip. Mindy had to do lesson plans and I caught up on my emails, blogging & reading Chelsea Handler's book.
Mindy worked hard during our Border trips. I was very proud of her.
In case you don't know the story of the life size John Cena cutout...John Cena is Mindy's ideal man, so I gave her the cutout for her birthday two years ago. He has been a welcome addition to her condo in D.C.

Don't Mindy and John look great together. I think I need to let him know what he is missing.

Although John Cena isn't really my type, I still didn't mind groping him a little each night before going to bed. LOL!
There were a lot of late night desserts and girly movies! I loved it!
On New Years Eve we went to this adorable little cafe called, "Waiters and Poets" for dinner. The food was delicious!
Mindy and I getting ready to head to China Town for a big New Years celebration!

Mindy was gearing up for a big midnight kiss. Little did she know that after being slightly assaulted by two cute young Brazilians, we would end up just kissing each other at midnight.

Christmas Leon/Mason/Slaughter Style

2010-01-01T15:01:00.000-08:00

My friends' daughters, Jacy and Lanie, were the most delightful little mice in the Nutcracker in Cottage Grove.
My old roommate, Naomi, had an "Office" themed Christmas party. I came as Meredith and she was Phyllis. I found a flask at World Market and the outfit at St. Vincent's. Don't worry though, I didn't flash anyone at the party.

My dad at 8pm on Christmas Eve. A word of advice...don't plan anything for my dad after 5pm.
Katie and Sydney were a little hyper on Christmas Eve, so I captured some of their moves on film.
Audrey sure looks sad for a little girl on Christmas Eve.

Whenever I have my camera, I have Katie do her "big eyes" for me. This was a picture of her Christmas Eve "big eyes".
Charlie was reading to little Rory on Christmas morning. He is such a good cousin!
Sydney and Grandpa having fun!
After much convincing, Amanda agreed to join Rory and Audrey for a little binky break.
Amanda and Jed made Katie, Sydney and Audrey the most BEAUTIFUL treasure boxes. They put so many hours into them and they turned out adorable. The girls loved them!

Chrismakkuh 2009

2009-12-09T17:17:00.000-08:00

Kati and I had a so much fun preparing for the party. We are the perfect team!
Christmakkuh was the perfect excuse for a "Slaughter Ladies" picture.
My friend Erin brought her little girl, Reece. She is one of the happiest and most adorable babies around. She was the perfect Christmakkuh guest.
We were so excited that Ashley and Chelsey, our little interns, could make it to the party. We miss them dearly since they went to college.

My nieces and nephew loved balancing the tree decorations on their heads. Audrey, the two year old, was the best at it. We already knew Audrey had a natural grace due to her perfect imitation of the Dancing with the Stars contestants, but we were still impressed with her balancing ability.
John, Angela and I had on our "mean" work faces.
Kati and Audrey bonded over food and secrets.
Kati and Rory bonded over their cute outfits.

Black Friday

2009-11-28T07:02:00.000-08:00

Amanda and I braved Black Friday this year, yet again. Amanda was a great sport, even though she was mostly there for me.

Amanda was still her perky self even in the hour long line at Old Navy at 4:30 am.

Me with all my loot. I am blaming my "crazy eyes" on the fact that I had been in line for about 45 minutes at the time and it was only 5:15 am.

Amanda was wishing for a chair throughout our whole hour and 30 minute wait in line at Target. We were about 10 minutes away from the front when she found a little shelf to rest on.

I learned something about myself this morning. Apparently, when I am exhausted I become shameless. I was in line at Old Navy and there was this girl that had a "69" tattoo on her neck. I thought it was so bold that I had to take a picture. I took a picture with my cell phone and didn't realize that my camera on my phone made such a loud noise. The girl's friend looked right at me and said, "she just took a picture of your neck." I got totally flustered and said, "sorry, I was trying to take a picture of myself." The friend glared at me and then turned away. When I told Amanda and Kori, Kori was like, "Who says that? That girl just took a picture of your neck". Then she laughed and said, "then again...who takes a picture of someone's neck." I said, "I know right!"

John's snuggie

2009-11-24T18:50:00.000-08:00

Angela and I got John a snuggie for his birthday. I know he secretly loved it.

We tricked him into putting a belt on the snuggie and posing him like a girl. I am pretty sure he regrets it.

The Christmas Carol

2009-11-21T22:35:00.001-08:00

Charlie, Katie and I went to "The Christmas Carol" in 3D tonight. I had to capture the moment on film because they looked so darn cute in their 3D glasses.

ALL HALLOWS EVE

2009-10-31T22:01:00.000-07:00

I always love Halloween and this year was no exception.

Amanda and Jed had a costume party that was super fun. Jed, Amanda and Rory were a slammin rock band. My dad was America, if you couldn't tell. I was Frenchie from Grease and my mom was "The Lady in Purple". Laura was a fairy and David was a super hero.

Sydney was the perfect Velma from Scooby Doo.

Heck! I guess I make a pretty good Velma, too. I was just in my pajamas when they came to trick or treat. I didn't notice how much I resembled Sydney until I was looking at the pics.

I loved having my nieces and nephew over to trick or treat! This was the first "all cousins" picture.

Due to Rory's extensive wardrobe, she had the luxury of having two different Halloween costumes. When Rory came to my house to trick or treat she was an adorable little kitten.

I frequently have the urge to steal Rory and her little kitty costume did not help that craving.

It is so important for ballerinas to refuel and so Audrey took this opportunity to snack on some popcorn.

Katie is a terrific hippie and a great cousin. She adores Rory and Rory adores her.

Aloha!

2009-09-28T20:45:00.001-07:00

My roommate Naomi and I went to Hawaii last week. It was one of the best vacations I have been on. We ate, swam, relaxed and even went on a few adventures. It was VERY hard to come home.

We are in line at the PDX Starbucks waiting to board our plane to Hawaii. Can you see the excitement on our faces?

Naomi and I spent a lot of time at the International Market shopping. I got my bargain on...that is for sure.

There is nothing better than laying on the beach reading a good girly novel.
P.S. I would like to think there was something wrong with the lighting and the camera on this picture, and that I am not giving Edward Cullen a run for his money when it comes to coloring.

Laie Point was a blast from the past. I miss my BYUH days so much!

This is the Hukilau Cafe in Laie. It was one of our best meals and it was definitely our cheapest. I had an authentic Hawaiian Plate Lunch and it was delish!

We went on a jungle expedition at Kualoa Ranch on the North Shore. It was sooo much fun! We off roaded through the beautiful jungle where "Lost" is filmed. Our guide picked wild fruit for us and it was devine! We thought this was adventurous, we had no idea what was in store for us...

Do these mountains look familiar? They are the mountains that are in the background on "Lost".

On our Jungle Expedition we saw some of the most exquisite scenes mother nature has to offer.

One of the most exciting things we did was go skydiving on the North West Shore. It was gorgeous and at moments terrifying! The scariest part was the 15 min. plane climb and then scooting to the edge of it knowing that I was about to plummet to the ground at 120 mph. I am so glad that I did it.

The van ride to the skydiving site was just enough time for us to get a little nervous.

We eventually came to terms with the fact that we were going through with it and got on our game faces.

This is Naomi and her jumping partner. He was super nice! I heard him tell her, "I really like myself and so you do not have to worry about dying. I can't promise anything for your friend though." She told him, "That's okay because I think I owe her money." Don't worry... I got her back. I jumped first and she said watching me go was the most terrifying part of the experience for her.

Behind me is the picture of the field we landed in. The Danger sign was not just for decoration. When we were about to land I started to feel a little woozy. The last thing I remember thinking was "I do not want to vomit on my instructor". Then I woke up face down on the ground. The first thing that occured to me when I woke up was "how did I get her?" Rick, my instructor, asked me if I was okay and wiped the grass off my face. Apparently, the straps on my legs were too tight and they were near a major artery, so I was not getting enough blood to my brain. This was the first time I had ever passed out, so it was pretty surreal.

I did not realize that I had hurt my knee until I got back to the building and was paying. It didn't look so bad right then because it was covered with dirt.

Once I finally got the wound clean I could see how truly yucky it was. The first couple of peroxide sessions almost caused me to pass out again. I couldn't go in the salt water the rest of the week without shreaking in pain, which was a major bummer.

This was my instructor, Rick. I have to admit I fell in love with him a little. I guess jumping out of a plane, passing out in a man's arms, and being cared for by him, will endear him to you. I think the reason I look almost irridescent in this picture is that it was only about 10 minutes after I passed out.

We got dressed up went to Duke's to celebrate surviving skydiving.The food was so delectable that I barely noticed how much my knee was stinging.

We had an Ihop at the bottom of our hotel and were very excited to have banana pancakes. We decided to wait until the morning we were leaving, as kind of a fairwell to Hawaii. We were a little disapointed when our pancakes arrived and they were just normal pancakes with banana slices on top.

Sydney, Katie and Charlie posed begrudgingly with the necklaces I bought for them at the International Market. Audrey refused to pose for the pic.

At first Charlie look disapointed when I pulled out a necklace as his present. As soon as I told him it was a faux shark's tooth, he was totally into it. He even went to change into a "better" shirt for the picture. How cute is that?

Sydney is a girl after my own heart. She has style, flare, and grace. She had no qualms about posing for me to show off her necklace.

I snuck this picture of Audrey in her necklace. I don't understand her! If I was as beautiful as her I would be posing for pics all day long. :-)

Rory's dainty little wrist looks divine in her pink flower and turtle bracelet. I have good baby jewelery taste if I do say so myself.

Amanda and Rory bonding

2009-09-04T22:07:00.000-07:00

This is my newest niece, Rory. She is just delicious!

Audrey and I on our hike

2009-09-04T22:04:00.000-07:00

Audrey was giving me a pep talk on our hike. She should be a motivational speaker.

2009-09-04T21:57:00.000-07:00

I broke down and have started a blog. I have always called blogs, "The Christmas card that never ends". So prepare for lots of bragging about my nieces and nephews, since I have no other life.