Chinese Food...

I'm so proud of myself!!! The kids are always wanting me to take them to Panda Express for their orange chicken. Well... needless to say that gets quite pricey when you're feeding 6. I decided to try out a recipe I found online for the orange chicken, made some fried rice and even tried my hand at some homemade fortune cookies. It turned out so yummy!!! Ayodele even said, "Mom, this tastes just like you got it at the store!" Yeah... Success! We could have this every night if it didn't take so darn long to cook the chicken. Very time consuming, but well worth it!

My baby turned 5 today...

I can't believe my baby turned 5 today!

This is Kayode on his 1st Birthday...before his special cupcake!

You should have seen him after! :)

Gone are the days where a cupcake is good enough!

This year, not to be outdone by his older brother, he decided he wanted a Lion cake!

Not just a lion-shaped cake, either... Nooooo...

a lion sitting on grass...

with claws!

(This is as good as it gets!

The lion is actually rice-crispy treats

covered in marshmallow fondant

sitting on chocolate cake with green grass frosting!)

Kayode is very loved!!!

This is his little "stash" of gifts that he had to look at

all day until everyone was home to watch him open them!

He finally got his very own DS from Daddy & Mommy!

He's dying to go buy a new game with his gift card!

Thank you, Grandma & Poppa Dick!

... and the game he was hoping for!
Thank you Papa & Grandma Annie!

Isn't this cute? This was part of the card Great Grandma Staniford sent Kayode!

He was upset that I wouldn't take him out tonight to spend what was inside the card!

Thank you Great Grandma!!!

Kayode ordered homemade pepperoni pizza for dinner!

Mmmmm!

Kayode is being funny before we light the candles!

"Make a Wish!!!"

I'm sure all of his "wishes" will come true!

He is very lucky to have so many wonderful people in his life!

Thank you for making his birthday special!

Happy Birthday, Kayode!!!

Proud to be an American!

On February 6, 2009 Dele became a United States Citizen. He's been living in the US for about 20 years now and finally decided to give up his Nigerian citizenship. We took the kids out of school so we could all go and support him in his decision! It was a very nice ceremony in which each of the Nevada Senators had sent someone to read a letter written to those being Naturalized, three people spoke about what this day meant to them and 81 people from 13 nations were sworn in as US citizens. The kids did really well, actually, for as long as we had to wait for the ceremony to begin. Congratulations, Dele! :) We love you...now you're "One of US!" (no pun intended!)

Dele and the judge that swore the new citizens in!

Reminiscing...

I was going through some old pics today and thought I'd share a few pics of the kids over the past 15 years!Derek was so cute!! Here he is at about 3 mos old.Derek loved his little sister so much!

Here, Derek is 2 and Sade is about 3 mos old.

Derek (7), Sade (5) and Ayodele (2 mos).
Derek used to love reading to Ayodele and Sade would help me feed him!

Derek (9), Sade (7), Ayodele (3) and Kayode (6 mos)

Cousin Ella is in the middle!

We used to take a group kid-photo every summer

in front of Great Grandma and Peapapa's windmill!

This was just too cute not to share!

Derek (9), Sade (7), Ayodele (3) and Kayode (6 mos)

All cozied up on Uncle Jeff's bed watching cartoons!

I just can't get over how fast they grow up! I'm just glad I have pictures to reminisce with!

A fun day... for who?

Saturday morning I woke up with a fever and horribly sore throat! UGH! Dele cancelled all of his appointments for the day and stayed home to help take care of me and spend some time with the kids. The night before, Ayodele had told Dele that he "didn't spend any time with them anymore!" Oh, so sad! :( So while I was taking a nap, he surprised the kids by taking them to the Las Vegas Grand Prix for some fun rides! Then he watched Space Chimps with the kids at least 2 or 3 times ~ poor guy!Here Sade, Ayodele and Kayode are getting ready to spin, spin, and spin some more!

and here they are sliding down the "Fun Slide!"

Derek spent the day at Breeze Skateboarding with his friends, so he missed out on the ride fun... I think somehow he probably had more fun skating with friends than he would have on these few rides they went on! :)

Dele made me a special breakfast, brought me hot cranberry juice (which I love when my throat hurts) and even bought me a special dinner! What a great guy! Thank you, Dele, I love you!

Ayodele was so cute, he'd come in and check to see if I needed more water, and then re-fill my water bottle whenever it was low! Even came and checked on me after he was already out the door for their surprise, just to make sure I had enough water while they were gone! What a great family I have! I am so thankful!

Happy 8th Birthday, Ayodele!

It's hard to believe that 8 years ago yesterday, we were in the hospital waiting for Ayodele to arrive! He sure shocked the Dr. when he came in the middle of the night and interrupted his "beauty" sleep. We've been blessed with 8 wonderful years and can't wait to see what the next 8 bring!

Ayodele loved his Shark Cake that I made for him! I'm so glad...it's hard to make a shark coming out of the water! :)

Thank you Great Grandma, for the $20!
Thank you Grandma & Poppa Dick for the Wii controllers and the Target gift card!

Thank you Papa & Grandma Annie for the Bakugan, books, Indiana Jones game for Wii and the clothes!

Thank you, Daddy for the Ipod... now I don't have to borrow anyone's to listen to music or watch movies.

Time for a Change!

Today we have a new leader...

I pray that President Obama and Vice-President Biden can together with the House & Congress create change that turns our nation around. We are in God's hands and I hope we will continue to pray for their leadership.

It is moments like this, that my children can see that they can become anything they want to become! Our country has a very deep history and it was truly amazing to watch as the 44th President of the United States was sworn in to protect and serve our country. I will continue to pray for his safety, our patience and his perseverance in the upcoming term.

God Bless the USA!

Another Hike...

Monday morning we woke up and the kids had decided we needed to go back to Oak Creek Canyon and hike again! This time Dele came with us while Derek spent the day at the skate park. We probably hiked close to 6 miles this time! We definitely got much closer to the mountain and much higher... the views were amazing! The kids did great! Dele only had to give Kayode a piggy-back ride part way up the trail. What a great way to spend Martin Luther King, Jr. Day... hiking up a mountain with the family!

Dele and Kayode at the beginning of the trail...Dele, Sade & Kayode takin' a break...

Bringing up the rear... Dele and Kayode...Mom and Kayode at our ending point!

Dele and the kids getting a "rest" in before we head back down!

Hike to Oak Creek Canyon... Almost!

So today we decided to take a Hike to Oak Creek Canyon! We almost made it! We were about 1/2 mile from the canyon before we decided to turn around. Derek, bless his heart, who didn't want to go anyway, was ready to turn around (besides... I told him it was only a one mile hike...oops!) Plus, Kayode was really tired, and we had to turn around and walk back and I had no intentions of carrying him back! It was a beautiful day and we had nothing better to do, so we ate lunch after church and the loaded up the car and headed for beautiful Red Rock. We found the first parking spot available for hiking and off we went!

The kids, and yes, even Derek... started off with a smile!

Derek brought his Ipod to listen to.

He and Kayode brought up the end of our group most of the time...while Sade & Ayodele lead us up the Mountain and towards the Canyon!Sade only stopped a few times to complain that her stomach hurt...

then she decided that this was so great we should do it every weekend!

The kids were even smiling at the 2 mile marker!
I'm so glad we went on this hike! The sky was so blue and beautiful...
(and yes, I still want to move back to WA!!!)

Derek was so glad he still had a signal on our hike!

Gee... what did we do without cell phones on hikes?

Hmmmm.... maybe enjoy the beauty of the outdoors?

The views were breathtaking!

We ended the hike with smiles too!

What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

I can't wait until next week!

My 99

I saw this on a friend's blog and thought it might be kind of fun! So here goes...

Things I have done are listed in BOLD

1. Started your own blog - I think you knew that since you are reading my blog...
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band - Played the flute for about 6 years, plus we play "Rock Band" frequently (does that count???)
4. Visited Hawaii - 3 times actually... once with the Anthony's, Jenny Dickson & I got to go along as "babysitters"; once with a great HS friend & the best time was on my honeymoon!
5. Watched a meteor shower - in Las Vegas, in the backyard laying on or trampoline with the kids
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain - if a small mountain counts
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort - does tried count?
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run - does Wii baseball count???
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight - Sade and I actually did this last year in LA, it sure was beautiful!
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling - in Hawaii!
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater - We went twice this last year!
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business - I helped Dele start one!
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies - Camp Fire mints!!!
62. Gone whale watching
63. Gotten flowers for no reason - Kayode likes to give me flowers "just because"
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check - oops!
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy - I still have my Mrs. Beasley!
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby - or four!
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

I hope someday I have the opportunity to do some of the things on the list that aren't in bold print! :)