Christmas Trip 2008

Leaving Washington.........

More snow.......

Yay!!! I finally met Andee Sue :)

Lunch with my fam...... always a highlight

3 of my favorite peeps :)

Devin is happy to be with family too

Neil wouldn't let me in the pic :( see my eye wrinkles in the corner)

What a sweet pic of Everett & Beki, Cael wouldn't pose for any pics and he's fast :(

Caught Beki & Adam makin out though..... ewwww (yes, thats her tongue)

and here is a pic of Pops and his girlfriend Sue. It was nice to see them even if it was only for about an hour.

More to come..............
Love you all, Leis

School Pics

Here they are 2008 school pics. Ryanne is 11 and in the 6th grade. Devin is 8 and in the 3rd grade. Man, they sure grow up fast. We love you all !!

Halloween Costumes

Ryanne, the rapper (I know, I just didn't wanna fight this time)

Devin, the soldier...... the prostetic makeup on his neck is woochie (so cool)

So, sadly I didn't get into Halloween that good this year...... Party City took all of the Halloween out of me. It makes me sad, cause I love love love Halloween, I just couldn't get into it :(

Devin will be a Doctor instead of the soldier tomorrow night. He went to a party on the 11th and split his pants (I couldn't sew them, I tried). Hopefully if I keep this job past November 10, I'll be into Halloween next year. Wish me luck. Happy Halloween!

Love You Forever...........

Where do I start Mama. Happy Happy Birthday!!! I can't believe you are 52..... ((hee hee)). I wish with all my heart that we lived closer to one another. My life just isn't the same without my family in it on a more day to day basis. Thank you for everything you've ever done to/for/with me in my life. I couldn't ask for a better Mom or Nana for my kiddos. I love you forever, I like you for always, As long as I'm living, My Mama you'll be.

Challenge

Devin started "challange" on Thursday. His first and second grade teachers nominated him to attend a once a week special class for him to keep busy and keep his interest. Since he's started school he has gotten straight 4's (except for once, and the teacher didn't give anyone all 4's that trimester). He was so so nervous. When I picked him up from school he had this huge grin on his face and he ran up to me and said it was "fantastic!". Way to go Devin, I am so PROUD of you!
Y Mommy

Happy Back 2 School

I took Letti's idea when taking first day of school pics (thank you)but this is actually their 2nd day (my batteries were dead on the first day :( Anyways, Ryanne's 11 starting 6th Grade, holy cow.
and Devin is 8 starting 3rd Grade. It's amazing how time flies. Have the best year ever kiddos. I sure do love you, muah Y Mom

My new old table

So for a new project I decided to refinish this "hot chocolate table". It was this honey varnish finish with loads of polyurethane to top it off. I never have liked the color, so I was ready to try something new.
At first, I was thinking about painting it and then doing like a cracke finish. But, when I saw how pretty the grain was underneath, I decided to try a colored stain. My first thought was RED, I love love love RED, but I already have quite a bit of red accenting my house. So, I decided on
Botanical. What do you think? I love it! It brings out the green in my rug and carpet.
I love the way it shows the wood grain. I am so happy with the way it turned out, now I want to refinish everything. Stay tuned :)

Happy Birthday Papa <3 <3

Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday dear Dad, Mike, Dude, and last but not least Papa. Happy Birthday to you. We love you :)

Do You Remember?

Do you remember this poster? I used to love these posters. Some just cause you loved the pro, others for their athletic inspiration. There is a certain young lady in my life & she loves sports. She wants a new theme in her room and all she can think about is SPORTS. So I have come up with a few ideas, but I need some help. I remember this poster of a woman sitting on the bench with a towel around her neck, and the poster said "There is no finish line". I need some help finding these posters guys. Please. I've googled everything I can think of.

Somethings you should know about DEVIN

Devin had a great year in 2 nd grade. He made a lot of friends, and tried out a few new sports. This was his first year in Soccer. He played a defender and did well with his strong kicks. On his last game it was snowing and before half time the coach moved him up to forward and he scored his first GOAL!!!! He said, "Mom, it was so easy, all I had to do was kick it where the goalie wasn't." He has it all figured out now. Tradition with my family (thanks Dad) when a goal is scored, we get pizza :) a few of his buddies joined us too.

Devin has been a very good student. He has recieved strait 4's (A's) except for one trimester this year. I am very proud of him, and the effort he puts into his academics. He was also nominated by his teacher Mrs. Rickey for the challange program. The challange program accepted him gladly. Devin is looking forward to this new adventure.

My little man also won the 2nd grade spelling bee :) I wasn't told about it until the morning of, and he said it wasn't a big deal we're just doing it in our classroom. Well, turns out it was in the computer lab and all of the classrooms were involved. Ugggh. I felt so bad when he came home with his goody bag and told me he'd won. The final word was GLAMOROUS. The other 2nd grader misspelled it and Devin spelled it right and won......Whoo Hoo!

He was also involved in Swimming Lessons and Gymnastics at the YMCA. If you are around Devin long enough you'll see him stretching, doing the splits, or posing in a cobra (yoga pose). He's moved up in swimming from polliwog to guppy :) he loves it except for he claims he's not very good at back floating. I remember as a kid fearing being in the water on my back, but I love it now. Instead of Gymnastics this session he's decided on Family Tae Kwon Do. Yep, I said Family so Devin & I are doing this class together, and let me tell you something, by the time it's over, I'm beat. We've only had one class (7:45-8:45 every Friday) and it's tough, but it's fun for Devin & I :)

Oh, and remember what I said about his first goal on his last soccer game? He did the same thing in baseball.......very last game....... very first home run. Way to go Debo. I am so proud of you :)

Love, Mommy

Ryanne is gone for the summer :(

Ryanne is on her way to California as I type this. It is not an easy thing to put my baby girl on a plane all by herself. She is really looking forward to being back in California and going to be visiting her Dad and all her family. I can't believe that she is going to be 11 soon after she returns home. Wow, time sure does fly. She has become such a beautiful young lady. I am very proud to be her Mom :)
I love love love this picture of my kiddos. See, I now how proof that my kids actually like eachother, and have fun together.
I wanted them to just play while I shot random pictures. I love pictures that are not posed. They are so much more fun and original.
Had to change out of the skirt. Thanks for being a good sport Ryanne and letting me take some pics of you in a dress, and a skirt. With them doing the wheelbarrow race, I thought it was time to get more comfy and change :)

Ryanne, check the blog whenever you can, I'll try to post more often. I love you ~ Mom

Happy Birthday Grampa Mark & Cael

Happy Birthday to you, you live in a zoo. You look like a monkey, and you act like one too. Hee hee. Feliz Cumpleanos, Love you guys!

What Princess are You?

You Are Mulan!

Strong and spirited. You're no one's girly girl; actually you are very determined person with a strong sense of self. Never let go of that! The only thing that equals your sense of self is your family, but the traditions of society can always be bent to protect something or someone you love.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

Meet Andee Sue

Here is my new baby Niece. Andee Sue Galyan. Isn't she sweet. She looks a lot like her Dad the older she gets. She was born May 5, 2008 at 1:37 p.m. She weighed 8lbs 8 oz and measured in at 20 in long :) She was supposed to be born on my birthday, but Jill can't have natural so she was born a little early.......atleast her middle name is my middle name :) I can't wait to see you Andee. I love you already, Auntie Leisa

Devin's Birthday Presents

Here are some of the GREAT things Devin got for his birthday. Gramma Jaye & Grampa Mark got him a gift card, 2 swimming suits, some shorts and shirts. Pops, Grandpa Doc, and Grandpa Scott gave him money :) Papa and Tutu (and Rocky, Rosy & Ruby), gave gift cards, did I mention he loves gift cards? Mom & Dad got him an ipod shuffle and an itunes card (so he can listen to High School Musical all to himself).
Aunt Jill & Uncle Neil got Debo this State Quarter

Map. He's halfway there at filling it.....Papa and Tutu are going to help him finish filling it :)
Aunt Beki, Uncle Adam and the boys got him this Mario Party DS game for his DS. It is his favorite game.
Nana made Devin this pirate quilt and matching pillow. It is soooo cool. I love the colors, and the back has a trasure map on it. Great job Mom.
Even Bowser likes to search for the treasure every now and then :)

Thanks everyone for the great presents!

Beki & Everett

For my big "30" Beki flew in for the weekend. I finally got to meet Everett. He is such a sweet baby. I wish I could hold him all the time, even though he did like his mama a lot more than me :) I wish I could spend a month with him like I did with Cael...... Cael, Auntie Leisa sure did miss you this trip.
Beki made my day. She is such a fun girl to be around. I wish I lived closer to my family (all of them) but atleast we can visit :)
Another one with Bek, I don't see why everyone says we look alike, I just don't see it. She is a beauty though, so it's a good compliment. Thanks Beki (and the boys) I appreciate your trip to come see me. Sure do Love you.