The "Wal-Mart Special" Birthday Bash

Is there a dash between Wal and Mart? I'm not even sure. It didn't look right as a whole word, so I went with the dash. And I could be completely wrong (in fact, I'm pretty sure I am wrong). Probably the first time I've ever been wrong (kidding). However, I've decided I'm going with what looks best rather than what's correct. So no need to correct me because I'm going with it, like it or not.

So the meaning behind the "Walmart Special" birthday bash was this...everybody was required to pick themselves up their best Walmart halloween garb for the party. Whatever was in the halloween section was theirs to ponder. What we ended up with were skeleton shirts, pumpkin shirts, superhero shirts, pajama tops and bottoms, and homemade shirts. Much cheaper and much easier than 

having a costume party!

The Fam in Their Walmart Specials...

Thank goodness for the 10 second setting on Pennie's phone to get us all in!

You can make a homemade shirt for less than 10 bucks...a men's $4 shirt at Walmart plus

iron on letters in Walmart's craft section for 3 bucks. Things got a little crooked, but

I never claimed to be a professional t-shirt maker.

Simple Food Setup...

Cups: we used cling-ons for the faces and they are reusable for the next party (target)

Straws: bright green and black zig-zags (walmart)

Swamp Juice: 2 containers of Simply limeade, 1 bottle of Perrier sparkling water. Add a few drops of green coloring and whole blueberries for the effects. Simple, easy, & tasty. 

Big hit for the kids and adults!

Every year, we've done a chili feed for Ty's birthday. This year it was his favorite paleo bacon & pineapple chili along with Ty's Mom's paleo chicken chili. Both were a hit!

The Spread...

-paleo biscuits...as close as you will get to cornbread!

-baby oranges (to look like pumpkins)

-a lazy susan filled with avocado chunks, cilantro, mozzarella cheese for the primal chili, and

fritos for the non-paleo chili.

-caterpillars...aka grapes on a stick.

Pie box-reused from our wedding

Napkins-assorted varieties, all sold at Target for $1

Dessert...Caramel Apple Bar

Tip: buy mini apples...they are so much easier to work with, easier for kids to eat,

less junk your kids will most likely be able to put on them, and a fun size for all!

The Family...

(missing: my dad, who was out hunting in Eastern Oregon)

Meet Turner...he belongs to Nick & Pennie. He's 2 1/2!

Casey & Bumpa aka Batman aka Mark (Ty's dad)

Debby (very close friend, may as well be Aunt Debby on Ty's side) 

& Kathy (Ty's mom)

Mom & Me

Pennie, Nick, & Turner

Brother & Sister

Brother & Sister

and ALL Of Us In Our Finest Moments...

Mike (our brother-in-law in the red) vs Nick

Bang your caramel apple on the ground, then eat it. I think it's a thing for luck...

And then this happened...

The attempt to put the whole body together via two outfits on two different people.

(yes, I know the tibia & fibula don't belong on the femur, but it's as close as we could get)

The man of the night and the man I love so much...

The BIRFDAY BOI!

 I may be biased, but I think you have the best birthday EVER! Not everybody dresses up on birthdays, not everybody gets buckets of candy on birthdays, and not everybody has a birthday in such a lovely time of year like it is around here. Don't get me wrong, there's lots of good things about all the other months here, but if you're going to have a birthday fall on a holiday....make it happen on Halloween!

Love you everyday, Ty!

♥Cori

A #tbt + Travel Thursday (2-in-1 Combo)

When I blog, I love that it keeps track of our life. It keeps track of all our recipes we enjoy and meal planning, which makes it way too stupid easy for me to plan week to week if we just want to repeat everything. It keeps track of our life events, our house projects, our family time, and our travels. It's a great place for us to look back at our years of marriage together via words and photos. I am blessed to have the job I do, the many days off each week, and a husband who fully supports the time I devote to this silly thing. Whether it gets read or not, we hold it close to us as our history. So if you're a reader,
thanks for that. If you're not, then I suppose you're not reading this anyway.

With all that, I figured I should do a nice little combo for today...

a #tbt, a travel idea, & the trip memories...

All. In. One.

Boom!

The Details

Need a quick weekend getaway? Well you all know we love Astoria, but we also love this little place.

It's far less busy than Seaside, Cannon Beach, or Lincoln City. It's great for kids. It's relaxing and

quiet for adults. The beaches are not packed like most on the coast. You can get some decent 

deals on large sized condos right on the ocean for a big group (family or friends). 

And you can't go wrong with all the silly, typical beach stores. Be sure you

take your kids on the train ride...always a hit for the kiddos that are super 

into cars and trains right now. Come to relax and enjoy!

WELCOME to Rockaway!

where you get some awesome views...

you can play with naked kiddos and a skim board in the freezing cold water...

where you challenge your sister to walking handstands...

where all kids get their hands, face, and booty cracks sandy...

where the whole family treats themselves to the real ice cream...

and where your heart just melts when you get to watch these kiddos enjoy their time here...

but don't head out of town without stopping in this little place...

you just might be able to find yourself a urinal and bedpan as I did!

Take off for the weekend. If you're not interested in Rockaway, then get out and enjoy

yourself elsewhere. Find a new beach to explore. We dare you.

♡T&C

More Than Just A Ski Run

Back in the day, my dad use to make my brother and I ski before we could do anything else (i.e. tube, wakeboard, etc.). We weren't huge fans back then. Obviously somewhere along those lines, all that changed. Neither of us would get on a tube or wakeboard if a ski was in front of us. So Dad, you did good. And as much as we didn't love that before, we wouldn't change that for a million bucks! Well, maybe Curt would but I've never actually asked him. Somehow I highly doubt it though.

Those ski runs back then didn't mean a whole heck of a lot since we were terrible, but it only prepped us for those future ski runs. And those ski runs now...they mean more than just jumping in the water and getting pulled behind a boat.

*They mean early mornings. Mornings before most people are awake and/or off to work.

*They mean new skills. "Pull to the hip." "Cut all the way through the wake."
"Stop bending at the waist."

*They mean day dreams. Dreams of pulling to the hip, a giant rooster tail, or being parallel to the water.
*They mean new ski gloves. Because I've learned the hard way without them.

*They mean wipeouts. Wipeouts that half the time we wish we had on tape because some of the crazy ways we've taken a spill.
*They mean learning to finesse backing down a truck with a trailer.
Let's just say some people are better than others. (One hint, I've got some practice ahead of me)

*They mean injuries. Pulled muscles, headaches, day-after stiffness, & large bruises.
You name it, we've all been there.
*They mean triumphs for the newbies. One ski or two, you were setting records for getting friends/family up for the first time this year!

*They mean big breakfasts at Mom & Dad's after some good ski runs. GF pancakes, sausage,
and eggs. A typical Dad breakfast.

*They mean family time. Father-daughter time, brother-sister time, father-son time. And sometimes we could get a few others in that mix (sister-in-law, aunt, or friends).

*But in the end, each of those ski runs, each of those wipeouts, each of those lessons learned, and all that family time...they mean the world to me.

So as we end the season (although there is a possibility of getting a few more ski runs in this month), I think about every run that got better, then worse, and better again. I think about all those times we had big homemade "Dad" breakfasts afterwards. I constantly think and actually can feel my muscles tighten in the way they should when I pull to my hip or pull myself across the wake. And while we're in the off season, I will think about how every time I went out there....I got to enjoy the ride.
And for that alone, I am truly blessed!

And to those who made their one time showing on the river for a ski run. Good job ladies!

To all the rides and time together during the 2014 ski season....you've been good to us!

Happy Birthday Dad! We love you to the moon and back!

♥T&C