OK - I know I've been a bit "delayed" in getting info on the blog.
It's been crazy! So, I thought I'd update on the Larson family Christmas. This year was fantastic! We were able to spend time with each family and not have to rush all over the place.
tractors. I've just uploaded a bunch of pics for you to enjoy, including one of the four generations. 
Hopefully the new post won't take so long!
Seattle vs. San Francisco football game. He wasn't really interested 
in going, so I took his cousin's wife (and my good friend) Cheri. We left Skagit County around 11:30, even though the game didn't start until 5:30. We stopped in Alderwood to get some gloves at Old Navy, since we both forgot ours! We shopped for a bit and then had lunch at the Old Spaghetti Factory. We then made our way to Qwest field. We wandered around a bit and hooked up with a couple of her friends who were tailgating it. KOMO 4 interviewed a bunch of people there about tailgating so that we pretty cool to see. We finally made it inside the stadium and headed for the exhibition center. They have a bunch of booth set up with 
freebies and giveaways. We visited the Seahawk's team booth for some souvenirs and grabbed a beer. We wandered a bit and ran into Drew Carey coming off the stage! He signed my poster and I got a pretty good picture. We also say Warren Moon, Brock Huard, and Steve Raibel doing a broadcast. Finally we made it toward
our seats. We were in season ticket holder club seats so we had to enter through a special door. The club part was awesome! They had good restaurants and bars - even serving
hard alcohol (not just beer)! We ended up about 25 rows from the field just in front of the ESPN crew! They were doing their pre and post game shows and half time report right in front of us! I got to see Emmit Smith and Steve Young but from our seats. I tried to get a good picture, but it was tricky. Overall, Cheri and I had a blast - I'd definitely go to another game again!
pumpkins were big and orange before we could go - knowing it wouldn't be until October 2oth that we could finally make it. The day finally came and Ethan was so excited. He had on his 
orange Jack-o-lantern shirt from Great Grandma and was rearing to go. We went and picked up Jamie and Jaisha and were on our way to meet up with Alex, Matthew, Jana , and Aaron. We started out with the animals. Ethan used his hard earned quarters (Thanks, Grandma Berta!) to buy grain for the birds. Once we made it through the animals
the tractor and trailer came to pick us up to go down to the patch. I think Ethan was going to burst he was so excited to ride on the trailer! We went down to the patch and picked apples, gourds, and ghost pumpkins. We then picked out one pumpkin each - Ethan 
picked a 30 pounder! Not to be shown up, Jamie picked a 33 pounder. Jaisha also got a large one, but I think it was less than 30. Finally, Aaron took the kids through the muddy corn maze while we waited for the tractor 
to come and take us back up to the farm. Our day was completed with 5 hours (no joke) of pumpkin carving and seed roasting. There were 10 carved pumpkins when it was all said and done (Thanks Weezer for the extra pumpkins!) including funny faces, initials, and a haunted house. It was a good time had by all - we'll see if we can top it next year!
very busy "working" on everything he can get his hands on. Basically, hammering everything in sight! Our latest adventure started when we realized we needed to redo the chimney. The siding on the house is in progress, but the chimney was not flush with the side of the house. Dan started
taking the chimney down and before you know it, we are pushing the built-in fireplace and brick mantle out the side of the house. For a week or so we had a hole in the side of the house. Luckily, Bear came by last weekend and helped to frame in the hole - making it much warmer in the house. This weekend, 
Bear and his buddy Chris came over and built me a platform. We are going to add a free standing wood stove and needed a safe and stable place to 
put it. With the platform done, Jaisha and I set about laying the Hardibacker and slate tile. Yes, as you see, we did it all on our own. The grout will be laid this week and we should be able to install the wood stove. The tile looks great, but let me tell you - it's no easy! 
We laid 20 tiles and it took us about 4 hours total (including installing Hardibacker and mixing two sets of morter). We still have to determine what to do with the wall and side of the platform. We'll probably go with some more stone, but it still remains to be determined. I can't wait to see the finished product!
posted. Well, your wait is over! Here's the big picture - Jaisha put together a "surprise" birthday party for me at our hangout - The Doghouse. Several weeks before the party, she confiscated my address 
book and sent everyone in it an invitation and a scrapbook page to complete. I have received some of the best pages - thank you!! There was such a great mix of people that attended. My grandparents, parents, in-laws, friends, and neighbors. I couldn't believe 
the turnout! She coordinated my favorite food (Mexican) and had Richard the Chef prepare
fajitas on the grill - awesome! When I got to the party, I had a birt
hday crown and sash (complete with mini-alcohol bottles attached) waiting for me. Of course, there were great presents, friends and good times. There was even a purple star pinata! 
I didn't think it could get much better, then a star 
shaped chocolate cake appeared! The girl thought of it all. The best part was that she convinced my husband to stick around, even though it was opening hunting weekend! Overall, this was the best birthday I could
have had.
I appreciate everyone that came and contributed. Imagine, if it was this great at 30, what 40 will be like!
.
So, with trepidation and anticipation, we shuffled over to the ice. Jaisha had Ethan's right hand and I had his left and onto the ice we went. Well, Ethan thought it would be great to slide his feet back and forth over the ice while Jaisha and I held him up. He scooted and wiggled all around giggling all the way. After about 30 feet of laughing and trying to keep our 
balance as well as his, Jaisha and I turned back. Again, giggling all the way, we made our way back to the entrance of the rink. At that point, we grabbed a cookie (with M&M's - of course!) and some hot chocolate and decided to sit for a break. Ethan sat causually swinging his feet, eating his cookie, and repeating "Fun, Mama. Fun!". Overall, it was a fun experience and nobody got hurt or even fell (including me!). Looks like we'll have to go again!
started snowing on Friday evening and 
tapered off on Saturday. Sunday, on the other hand, it really blasted! We took Ethan outside and let him play. His favorite activity was to fill up his Tonka dump trucks with snow and them dump them out again. We tried sledding on Sunday, but he really wasn't into it - I think the snow was coming down in his face. We did try again on Tuesday and he liked riding around the yard on the sled - courtesy of Mommy! So, enjoy the pictures and I hope you are all keeping warm!
his birthday party and then we'll go back for mine. I know many of you are wanting to see pictures from my surprise birthday party - hopefully soon!
So - here goes the story of Ethan's enormous birthday party. Since we have a bigger house, I thought we would do one big party. Well, good news is that most people showed up! We feasted on lasagne, Caesar salad, and garlic bread. Of course there was a cake. We did Costco for the cake
and I decorated it with tractors and farm animals - Ethan's favorites!
MANY MANY presents! Thank you to everyone who gave to the 'worthy cause'! We opened books, motorcycles, new dishes, trucks, blocks, clothes, and about 100 tractors! Well, maybe not 100, but it felt like it. He also got 
an awesome Harley Davidson coat, a playdoh set, and a basketball hoop that he has recently enjoyed.
Overall, this was a great day. We got to see family and friends and we all watched the Apple Cup together (we had both Husky and Cougar fans in the house...). 
Everyone had a great time - especially the big boys! Steve and Tyson had some fierce balloon competition going - you'll have to ask Ty who won that battle! Thanks again to everyone for spoiling the child - can't wait for Christmas!
pumpkin patch! Jaisha, Jana, Alex, Ethan and I went to the pumpkin patch in Everson on the 14th. There were goats, horses, ducks, turkeys, and even a donkey! Alex enjoyed a ride on the train, but Ethan wanted nothing to do with it. It's probably because he saw the tractor with the hayride! 
That was really all he wanted once he saw there was a tractor. After the train ride, we all piled onto the trailer for the hayride to the pumpkin patch. We got to the pumpkin patch, grabbed out wheelbarrow and went on the quest for the perfect pumpkin. There were many to choose from, b
ut we ended up with a tall, skinny pumpkin and a couple of weird-o's to take home with us. We also got to pick apples from the orchard. The boys were starting to get hungry and tired, so we skipped the corn maze and rode the tractor back to the main drag. Overall, we had a great 
day with lots of fun memories. Both boys continue to talk about the pumpkin patch and tractor ride. Hope you enjoy the pictures!
