Greer 2011 - Part 2....Sunrise

For the past 3 years we have gone to Greer from Saturday to Saturday, which is all well and good, it just makes it impossible for us to enjoy a fun and beautiful little thing known as Sunrise ski resort (they foolishly are ONLY open on Sat. and Sun. afternoons).  We love to ride the lift to the top and take in the ridiculous beauty of the landscape.  Plus, the ride up and back is just so beautiful, and peaceful and serene and fun.  And.....we always get rained on.  Oh wait, that is NOT my favorite part of it.

Anywho, this year we got to go up on Friday, therefore making a trip to Sunrise possible.  It did NOT disappoint.  Max and Maggie loved "the swing ride" and we enjoyed it too.

Max LOVED the "ride".  Can't you just tell by that little face?

Heading up the slope.  It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to get up.

From the top.

It was about 50 degrees up there.

In ARIZONA, in AUGUST!

Le Sigh!

Heading down.

She was enjoying it, I promise.  Though in this pic she may look a little like a rabid animal...I'm not sure. hahaha

Dana, Hayden and Adam decided to hike down.

Silly mistake, as the heavens opened and poured forth upon them.  Dana may have looked like she stepped out of the shower when all was said and done.  However, Adam was able to take some REALLY cool shots of us in the lift, from down below.

Shane and Owen

Harrison and Bryson

Oh hey, there we are.  Look at Maggies face, it cracks me up.  Acting like she was scared or something.

I end with this cute pic of my parents, cause it cracks me up.  My Moms comment on this one was..."there is me and Brooklyn and some random Frenchman I picked up." hehehehe  Oh Mom, you slay me.  But really, my Dad is a hoot with his beret and his ginormous blu blocker sunglasses!  LOVE him!

All in all it was a fabulous afternoon, so worth the rain.  It makes me so happy to see the beauty that Arizona has to offer.  Oh, and plus, my family is fun too!

Swing rides and rain drops,

Allyson

Maggies 1st Day...

We interrupt this regularly scheduled Greer blogpost to give you Maggies first day of school.  No worries, it'll be brief.

We "qualified" for a state funded preschool this year.  While I will GREATLY miss Miss Ranelle (because let's face it, there is NO better preschool EVER), she decided to teach 1st grade full time, and we couldn't afford to send Maggie this year anyway.  So, thankfully, there is a wonderful preschool program here in AZ, and many of my friends/neighbors got their kids in too.  Carpools, and good kids sharing her class. YAY!

The class Maggie got into is at 8 A.M.  Seriously?  8 in the morning?  That is a stretch for this Mom.  I could barely get her to 9 a.m. preschool last year.  BUT, we can't be late this year, they're a bit stricter, so we'll ahve to make it work.

Of course, it was her first day of school and she slept until 7:35.  HELLO.  This girl is ALWAYS awake by 7 at the VERY latest.  I had to wake her up and rush her into her clothes.  BUT, she was so excited for school that she happily put her clothes on, AND let me do her hair.  I repeat, she LET ME DO HER HAIR with nary a fight at all.  It was so delightful I coulda cried.

We got into the car and awayyyyyy we went.  We made it with just a few minutes to spare.

Lookin goood!

Never mind that the "rules" stated no open toed shoes.  Maggie was having none of THAT.

The teacher requires hand washing for everyone as soon as they walk in the door.

The 2nd day she realized that was gonna be a nightmare, so she switched it up to just some good ol' hand sanitizer.

Max however is none to sure about this whole Sissy going to school thing. He cries all the way home saying "I don'tWaaaaaaant sissy to go to school."  It's kinda sad.  Hopefully this won't last too long.

This picture?

Well, he and I were perusing the merchandise at our local Wal-mart when this shirt caught his eye.  He said, "Can you buy me that GUY shirt?"  I told him he had to choose between the guy shirt and the silly putty in his hand.  He looked at them both, pondered a moment and then handed me the silly putty to put away.  He reallllllly wanted the "guy shirt."  He figured that since Maggie got some new clothes, he should too.

He was just beside himself to wear it the next day and sooooo proud of it.  When I told him that we were going to Gramma and Grandpas he said.

"I will show them my guy shirt?  Will they say Oh My Gosh when they see it?"

It was so cute.  And he did proudly show it to WHOEVER he came in contact with that day.

Maggies first day also scored me some KILLER deals at the thrift store, so it was just winners all the way around.

Maggie came home happy as a clam, pleased with her teacher and her class.

Here's hoping for a GREAT year!

School daze and guy shirts,

Allyson

Greer 2011 Post 1

Well folks, it was yet another fabulous year in Greer.  One we were especially grateful to have, as in June we weren't sure Greer would even exist anymore.  There was a brief moment in time where we falsely believed it had burned down.  There were massive wild fires this summer and much of the area up and around Greer burned.  And frankly, the fire came RIGHT down to the edge of town and nearly did it in.  In all 22 structures were lost, one of them literally IN town. So, it was scarey.  BUT, Greer survived, and it's still beautiful, in spite of the burn lines running all around it.

We are sooooooo grateful for this week long respite each year in our lives.  It really is the most beautiful spot in all of AZ, and it does much to fill our "wells" and get us through another year.

So, first I offer some pictures of "the burn".

Wish I'd gotten a better picture of areas with burned trees, and this neon/electric green grass growing all around it.  When we were there it had  been raining for weeks, and the combo of rain and all the ash on the ground made for the most stunning green grasses.  The juxtoposition of burn and green was fascinating, and beautiful.

It literally burned down the mountain to the edge of "town".

This is sooo sad.  A gorgeous house, just gone.

More insulting....the houses on either side of it, not touched.  You could see where the fire burned UP to the house next door, and yet it's still standing.  My heart breaks for the family that lost that home (well all the families really).  This development is as "in town" as you can get.  And right next door is a big resort.  The fire burned right to the edge of the resort.  Sooo many blessings that more wasn't burned.

Anywho...you know I'm long winded, and there are like 4 million things I want to show you and talk about.  But, for THIS post, I'm just gonna show you family pic day.  It was without a doubt our quickest and smoothest to date.  Hooray!

I look at all these pics and they make me happy.  I really do love this big crazy family of mine!  They're the BEST!

As usual, click on pics to see them larger, if you so desire.

The entire Shumway clan in all our glory.  This is first time in at least 3 years that literally ALL of us were there for the pictures.  Hooray!

Danas family

Erics family

Me family

Jere insisted on ASU pride.

I told you, he's crazy about his school pride.

Max asks to wear that shirt every.single.day!

Jennys family

Porters family

Dixies family

The couples

we took individual shots as well.  Some inappropriate and some "straight."

The Siblings

The "outlaws"

It's so sad that they never have any fun.

The "men" of Greer

I'm not kidding when I say this may be my all time favorite picture EVER!

They were making fun of us women.

The ladies of Greer

My Mom is so cute

These are all the grandaughters.

Poor Breckyn, she was born only 15 years too early for the rest of them.

Well...this was ON picture day.  I just happen to think it's a particularly good picture of Miss Sass and I.

Alright....that's done.  Tomorrow I shall bring you Sunrise ski lift.  Holy Beautifulness!

Smiles and squints,

Allyson

Baseball Babies

We have a friend....her name is Amy (Hi Amy) and she has a suh-weet hookup with the Diamondbacks.  As in, she gets FATTY seats for free and parking passes, and strangely enough, she often takes us.  I've sat in some pretty awesome seats with her.

Anywhodle.....last night we got to take BOTH kids to the game.  This was Max's FIRST game and he was so excited allllll day to go to the baseball game.  This was Maggies second game and she was really feeling quite superior to Max and his virgin ball gameness.

Right, so.....a few pics.

For real.  I couldn't love a picture more.  They were so excited to see the game.

Walking over the bridge from the garage into the swanky section of the stadium.  Apparently all the cars in the lot below us were player cars. 

This was in the suite section.  We weren't sitting there.  But I liked the shot of the field.  Really, Chase Field is an absolutely beautiful place.

Maggie was asking for popcorn and cotton candy before we even got there.

That's our friend Amy.

Thanks again girl.

No really, he loved the popcorn, I swear!

Just showing off the ELEVEN DOLLARS worth of drinks we had.

SERIOUSLY.

Eleven Dollars.

OBSCENE!

Got that cotton candy.

I might love this picture a WHOLE lot too.

They were celebrating ANOTHER homerun.

It was a crazy lot of runs in that game.

We ended up winning 11 to 9.

FUN!

Max and Baxter became BEST friends.

No really.....they high fived, they hung out and then Max literally watched him make his way around the entire stadium and yelled out at the top of his lungs "BAXTERRR" (except it may have sounded a little bit like bastard) and waved at him until he couldn't see him anymore.

It was really cute.

Ummm, that's Lesley.

She's a DBACK girl.

She asked Maggie to sing Take me out to the Ballgame on the jumbo tron.  Maggie completely denied her.

Her response..."I already sang that with her LAST time." hahahaha

We were sitting directly above the visitor dugout....sweet seats.

When the game was over Maggie kept asking if she could go down and stand on the "porch", or better known as the top of the dugout. hehehe

ANYWAY.....Lesley.

Max had a MAD crush on her.

After maggie turned her down, I had to take Max to the bathroom.  He literally asked me...

"Why did Maggie said no to that pretty girl with the pony tail and black pants?"

May i remind you...he's two.  Why is he noticing such detail?  WIERD!

After our potty trip, pretty Lesley happened to be sitting directly behind us and "workin" the crowd.  As you can tell by the pic....the kids became her new best friend.  Max sat on her lap most of the time, and they helped her stand and cheer.  They would jump and wave their arms and scream.  It was freaking adorable!

Yeah, he's definitely in love.

I wonder if his other girlfriend "Princess and the Frog" will be ok with that.

All in all, a fun night for the MVP's.  If not a bit exhausting.  My kids weren't in bed until 11:00.  And OF COURSE, they were up by 6.  Seriously.....why are they incapable of sleeping in?

Thanks again Amy for allowing us this fun family night.

Tomorrow.....Maggies first day of school.

Wish us luck.  Max is gonna melt down without his sissy.

Homeruns and wallet drains,

Allyson

Fugitive NO MO!

Now, I know I'm pretty open around here.  I tend to talk about the poops and the problems and the flaws I have.  We all know depression sucks.  We are VERY clear on my stance on all things jeggings.  But....BUT, I may, I JUST may have a secret or two left.

Like.......

I'm fairly sure you did NOT know that you have been reading the rantings writings of a fugitive of the law.  That's right my friends, moi, me, Als, MVP, I am really and secretly (though not so much anymore, since I'm coming out to you on the internets) a FIRST CLASS, Mother truckin BAD ASS!

Yes, it's true.  I'm legit ya'll.  A FUGITIVE.  As in, suspended license, had to pay bail to "the man" kind of fugitive.

So ridiculous really.

Let me explain.

And obvi, I can only talk about this now because, well, I paid my freaking bail, waited the required billion hours at the DMV and got my license reinstated today.

To quote some famous quote....."I'm free at last, I'm free at last, thank God almighty, I'm free at last."

Because trust me, these past few months of being a fugitive and running from the law have been stressful.  I may have grown a few more grey hairs in the process.  And my KIDS may or may not have a healthy fear of the po po.

Anyway.......

Remember that time, wayyyyy back in April when I drove up to Utah for a lovely opportunity to sing in the world famous tabernacle.  The spend my time, giving of my talents to spread the word of the Lord?  Yeah...THAT time.

Sabes, Wenda and I were truckin along I-whatever it is that leads up Utah when it went down.  I had my cruise control set to 85.  For the record, the roads up there are 75 MOST of the way, with some intermittent 85's sprinkled in for good measure.  So, I'm about 2 hours outside Salt Lake (or 3, of a 10 hour drive) and all is going well.  Just outside of Fillmore (I hate your gutts) Utah is when it went down.  I was on my side of the freeway with a gap the size of the Grand Canyon between me and the other side.  I saw the stupid state trooper driving on the OTHER side.  I saw his lights go on, and I thought....BUMMER for whoever is getting that ticket.  I continued to drive.  Completely smug in the knowledge that I was on the OTHER side, AND, I wasn't really speeding THAT much.  But lows and beholds....a minute or two later I look up and what do I see?  Hint:  It was NOT popcorn popping on the apricot tree.  It was the freaking blinking lights and such of that "trooper."  So, I safely pull over, RIGHT under an 85 MPH sign.  Officer douche canoe saunters up and asks if I know why I'm being pulled over. 

My thought:  Honestly?  NO.  Because you were on the OTHER side.  What can you possibly get that is accurate if you're flying down the highway and I'm flying down the highway on OPPOSITE sides? 

Then he tried to get sassy and tell me he'd been chasing me for 5 minutes.  WHATEVER.  Like I had any reason to be watching my rearview mirror.  Anywhodle, he then tells me that I was going 95 in a 65.  HOLD THE PHONE....65?  Where in the hell was it EVER 65?  Apparently, according to Barney Fife there, it's briefly 65 in the "canyon."  So, he asks for my license and registration and proof of insurance.  Would you believe I totally couldn't find 2 out of the 3.  Good thing they can look that crap up on their computers.  An HOUR later he returned and handed me a FAT ticket for $360.00.  THREE.HUNDRED.AND.SIXTY.DOLLARS!!!  Are you kidding me?  HATE!

I will say, this is the first time I have recieved a ticket for speeding in over 15 years.  Also, the first time I've ever had any encounter with a cop and not cried.  And by that I mean...the 2 times I've recieved tickets in my stellar 22 years of driving, I totally bawled.  I clearly didn't want Sabrea to think I wasn't as cool as she thinks.

You KNOW I totally had to document it.  There was a blog post comin.  I just didn't know it would turn into fugitive status blogpost.  Shoulda taken a picture of Officer sucks a lot, but I didn't have it in me.

Right.  So, he stated that I had 14 days to contest said ticket.  IN UTAH!

News flash.  Don't live in Utah. 

Slight damper on my mood, but on we went to our destination.

Had a smashing good 4 days up there.  Sang, visited, played, etc.

On the way home I literally watched EVERY.SINGLE.SPEED LIMIT SIGN like a hawk.  And you know what?  It WAS 65 for all of 5 seconds.  But, more importantly, it turned to 75 literally half a millimeter out of that canyon.  SO, even if I was going 85, there is NO WAY on Gods green earth that he caught me in the 65 zone.  Because he was AFTER the canyon.  So, very least, I shoulda got a ticket for 85 in a 75.  Which would have reduced the amount significently.

I had a good argument.

And then....I sucked.

Let the excuses begin.

I DID happen to come home to the shit storm of '11.  Jere was in the middle of, well, you know.  the WORST depression time of his life.  Which led into MY worst depression of my life.  Literally, I have never suffered like that, and it was AWFUL.  You wonder why there are almost no entries for several months.  Life was complete and utter POOP around here.  I stopped functioning.  I layed in bed.  I cried.  I had panick attacks.  And none of it had to do with the freaking ticket, I'll tell you that much. 

So, there is a pretty good excuse.

Plus, here is another insight into me.  I'm TOTALLY a bury your head in the sand kind of girl.  I just want to believe that if I ignore it long enough or hard enough, it'll go away.

When the letter came that said, you missed your court date, call us, or write us or you're in big trouble.  I didn't even read it.  Jere did.  He told me I was in big trouble. 

I ignored.

Then when THE letter arrived that said....in words sorta like this I'm sure

"You are an OUTLAW!  You have ignored us, now you have to pay $527.00 in BAIL, and there is a warrant out for your arrest, and we are suspending your license and driving privelages.  If caught, you do NOT collect 200 dollars, you do NOT pass go.  You DO go directly to jail.  Cuff her Barney."

So, now my $360.00 went to $527.00.  Awesome.  'Cause I have THAT just laying around.  Oh,a nd did I mention we were MOVING in the midst of all these letters appearing.  UGH!

I will not lie.  The month of June was quite terrifying to drive.  I'm pretty sure I drove like a Gramma on downers.  I have NEVER followed speed limits to such a T.  Or used my blinker so much.  Or feared the sight of a police car so much in my life.  I also wore my seatbelt like it was my uniform.  When I had to take my nephews home, it was stressful.  They live a LONG car ride down the freeway away.  I literally would cruise control 1 UNDER the speed limit and watch my rearview mirror the entire time.  It was terrifying.  I would yell at my kids to get their seatbelts on, or sit down, 'cause if the police caught Mommy, she was goin to JAIL. They didn't like that.  I really tried to avoid driving anywhere but around my immediate area.  NOT FUN!

Then.....my parents caught wind of my status.

They were relentless.

Every.single.day......

"have you taken care of that yet?"

Finally, just before we left for Greer, I sold my first born child and got enough money to pay the bail.  Certified it and mailed it off to the bastard people of the Millard County Justice Court.

While in Greer, the letter came.

Thanks for you money....SUCKAH!  Now, take this letter to your DMV and have them lift the suspension.

JERKS!

I headed to the most awful place on earth and put in my time.  Waiting for EVER until they called my number.

I felt so dirty.  The woman totally thought I was a loser.  I could tell.  She smugly typed around on her computer screen.  And then, THEN she says to me.  "Are you prepared to pay the reinstatement fee?"

WHAT?  I have to pay MORE money just to have the "privelage" to drive.  I was NOT happy.  I said, NO, i wasn't aware of a fee.  She said, "yes, there is a fee, are you PREPARED to pay it today."  FINE, I'll pay your freaking ransom.  Just get me out of here.  So, she tinkered around for another year and FINALLY told me I was done.  EXCEPT, now I had to stand in line for a new license.  BALLS!

Thankfully, that didn't take long at all.  For the first time in 6 years I have a new license picture, which is good, since I was about 200 lbs. heavier in the last one.

I'm current.

Fugitive status lifted.  License reinstated.  Free to drive like the rockstar that I am.

Moral of this story:  NEVER drive near Fillmore Utah without a police scanner.  Just sayin.  Oh, and also, don't ignore letters from the court.  They mean business.

Not gonna lie, a weight has been lifted.  It'll be nice to drive without fear once again.

With that said.....I'm off to meet the teacher and a baseball game.  Wish us luck.

Cops and Robbers,

Allyson

Moments with Maggie and Max

What can I say....Greer was....AWESOME!  And I will TOTALLy share pics and stories later.  But today, today I must share a couple of "precious" moments brought to you by Maggarella and Maximus Prime.  I mean, I'm completely aware that you're all in withdrawells of toddler stories.  So, because i care, and because I like you....I will share.

Let us begin with THIS girl:

She has become, how shall I say this....umm, painfully aware of certain aspects of body.  Picture with me if you will.....

We are leaving Greer, it's our final stop in the bathroom of the cabin.  Gotta relieve the bladder before hitting the road.  First Maggie does her duty, then it's my turn.  As I sit down on the he hem..."throne"  little Miss Muffet says to me:
"Mommy, why is your bum SO big?"

I pondered my answer possibilites and finally came up with the ever so "clever"...

"Well, because I weigh to much?"
Right, like a 4 year old is getting THAT concept.  What the hell is weight anyway?

"But WHY is it SO big?"

......case in point.......

And REALLY, who the hell thought this was a good idea for a picture.

SICK!

"Because I'm overweight."
Oh, there you go again Einstein.  SUCH brilliant speak to a 4 year old.

"Well, sometimes, when you wear your pajamas, it doesn't look as big.

I am now standing and zipping my shorts.

"Hmmm, well what about these shorts.  Does it look a little smaller in them?"

A VERY brief pause.

"NO."  And then she turned and walked out.

Awesome.

After searching the intrawebs, I found this:

An almost frighteningly accurate depiction of my backside.  You can see why maggie is concerned.

Moral of THIS story......

ALWAYS wear my pajama pants.  Clearly, they make my butt look better.

Now, let's discuss THIS guy:

Man he's cute!

Thursday morning we headed into Eager to grab some last minute supplies before the "kidlympics."  We cruelly tore Max away from his "best" friend Olivia and he was unconsolable!  He cried non stop (which I would later learn was because, he was getting sicky poo) most of the way there.  We finally got him to stop (well, i think exhaustion did that for us) by convincing him that he could pick any treat out he wanted at the dollar store.  Upon arriving he of course went straight for the balloons.  Ultimately, it was a handheld balloon on a stick AND a bag of gummy worms.

Once in the car, he couldn't get his gummy worms fast enough.  We started down the road, I handed him his bag of worms, he pulled one out, and almost instantly, there was bawling and wailing from the back seat.  I turned to see what had happened, and there he was with giant crocodile tears, so, SO sad.  He had bit his cheek.  I felt so bad.  He was really in pain, and there was nothing I could do.  I just kept reassuring him that I knew how much it hurt, and that biting your cheek totally sucks and that he would be ok. 

FINALLY...he stopped crying.  We got down the road a little further and I could hear him mumbling/talking in his seat.  He had the gummy worm in his hands and when I turned and asked what he was saying he replied:

"I not talking to you Mommy.  I'm talking to my worm."  "He has a mouth."

I said, "No he doesn't have a mouth."

"yes he does."

Then I left it alone and turned back around.  And listened to him mumble to the worm things like, "your mouth.  mouth. not nice."

I turned back around and said, honey, the worm doesn't have a mouth.

"Yes he does.....he bit me."

"No honey, HE didn't bite you."

"I hurt myself?"

"Yes, you bit yourself."

"Not uh."

And that was that.  He handed back the bag and declared he didn't want no stinkin gummy worm.

The next day we were heading out of town toward home.  Maggie caught site of the worms and asked for one.  I handed her a worm and then asked Max if he'd like one.

With great disgust and concern, he scrunched his adorable face up and said:

"NO, it BITES."

Not gonna lie, I giggled about that for the next 2 days.  He sincerely believes that gummy worms have mouths, and they BITE you if you try to eat them.

Yep...if you look real close, you can totes see that wicked little mouth.

BEWARE the gummy worms!!

In other Max updates.  I must document that he has become obsessed with hula hoops.  Though....he calls them:  HOOPALOOPS!  It's so freaking cute, i just make him say it over and over.  Then, i make him demonstrate how one plays with a hoopaloop.  He's got some mad hip swiveling skills.  Too bad he can't seem to implement them with that actual hoopaloop.

And there you have it......

Moments with Maggie and Max!

Big butts and mouthy worms,

Allyson