Luck o the Irish

Be prepared folks...this post is bound to contain some green! The Packard house is fresh off our St. Patricks Day Extravaganza... boy did we have a blast. Early in the week I had decided it might be fun to invite a couple of boys over for St. Pattys, you know celebrate the awesomeness that is the color green. Jaxson invited two friends from school and the preparations were on their way.

For the first item of business we set out to decorate the house. I am not so sure that Jaxson was as into this part as I was but he went along with it. I made a template of a shamrock and we cut out what seemed to be a bazillion shamrocks. FYI....a shamrock is actually a more intricate design and definitely not as easy to cut out as a heart, needless to say, only one poster board ended up getting used instead of two! I had assumed that the stores would be brimming with green things for the even but I quickly realized that this is a holiday geared more towards adults than children! We put on our creative hats and I would say it turned out better than any dollar store swag. Jaxson worked on making a rainbow chain and a pot of gold. Our house may look like it was attacked by a kindergartner with a bunch of paper and scissors but ya know, there is no other way that I would have it. I love having a home that is unique and looks lived in. Memories are definitely being made here.

The rest of the prep was fairly simple. A quick trip to the dollar store was just the thing to get together some pretty awesome green themed gift bags that included bubble wands, pencils, race cars and glow in the dark necklaces. These gift packs came together in about three minutes for under ten dollars and the boys loved them. I planned on making a more in depth dessert with a bit more finesse but alas a 16 hour shift left me a bit to groggy to bust out anything complicated. I simply added food coloring to white cake mix and baked it up in a mini muffin tin. Fast, easy and awesome! (I am realizing how much I sound like a craft blog....sorry)



The boys had a fantastic time. Upon arrival I sprayed their hair green which was a HUGE hit. They also had buttons and green headbands to wear. We fed them green pancakes, eggs and milk. One of the boys was distraught at the thought of green milk...no worries I let him have regular. They were so excited to be together that eating was really not a main priority. Boxes from my work served as the perfect creative ground for some awesome leprechaun traps. One boy in particular was really into making his trap. I am so going to have him over for craft time with me again. Andrew spearheaded the shamrock hunt that lead to our pot of gold. The boys put on their glow in the dark bands and danced in the closet. The pics were AWESOME! Then after blowing some bubbles outside it was time to go home.



Sounds like a whirlwind right? Well it was. Andrew looked at me at one point and said "I cant imagine having 3 boys." He and I really bonded over this party experience. It was fun putting something together without the pressure of a birthday. I love how Andrew never takes himself to seriously. The boys loved Andrew dressing up and acting a fool.



We survived the day with only one minor injury. Basically, our condo is ghetto and in the closet the tacking strips for the carpet are exposed. One boys in the excitement of finding the pot of gold scraped his knee. Wish I had a green bandaid!


I cannot wait for our next party adventure!




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The best things in life are free

This week absolutely flew! Where the time went I will never know... probably to the same location as all my missing socks. Anymore that is about how life goes, here one second and gone the next. In three months my sweet Emilee Pearl will be ONE! *eek* I get to remember the importance of living in the moment and cherishing my experiences. So much of my life was spent looking forward to the next big event. You know the sweet 16, turning 21, graduating college and getting married. Now that I am a quarter of a century and the big events few and far between, it is time to find a few roses to smell....right?
One reason why this week past so dashingly fast was a trip to Seattle. We left Saturday after I got off work and came back on Sunday night. Not long enough or ideal....but so glad we could go. The purpose was to see the Liljenquist family as well as Ric who was at University of Washington Medical Center. I was so blessed to be able to get low census, which allowed me to leave work early. Up until the day of I thought I was not going to be able to go. It has been nearly two years since I last saw my sister in law and for me that is just to long. I personally wish everyone could enjoy the sweet easy friendship that we have. She is the type of person that when we first met, I felt that I had known her forever! Dearest Maggie....I love you girl!
Anyways, I got to snuggle my sweet nephew Colby. His sweet smell and soft skin was soothing to my soul. Call me bias but boy is he handsome. As an interesting aside, I find that it is easier to take care of a crying baby that is not my own! I think it stresses me out less because I know that if I cant get him to stop, well there is always someone else to give him to. I loved the baby cuddles and again was reminded just how fast my baby is growing. Also, just about how much I do not want another baby right now.
Maggie, Jake, Andrew and myself stayed up much to late talking about this and that. I was happy to learn that Jake and I have a lot in common....i.e our conservative views. I think this will really come in handy at family reunions! :D Kennon and Jaxson were in the T.V room getting spooked out by all of the lights. I had thought that they were both getting scared and went in to lay down with them as it was 11:00 pm and time for bed. Come to find out Jaxson had been teasing Kennon telling him that there were Indians in the room. Oh man, poor kid. As for Jaxson...what am I going to do with him?
In the morning we were woken much to early by some very energetic boys. I sent them in to watch a movie and went back to sleep. Staying up late talking and a deflating air mattress made for a really long night. Would you believe that the kids were actually watching t.v when we finally got up. Oh but let me add the part where they got out a very expensive paint set and started painting pictures, the table and the cat. Luckily everything came off and Andrews family is laid back.
For the sake of my posterity I will say that I never ended up getting ready on Sunday. In my head I felt that if I got up and ready the day, it would go faster. In hind sight, that is pretty lame sauce and I should really have made the effort! Dressed or not the delightful conversations continued. The kids played without disaster striking. Maggie made the bomb cookie dough and let us actually eat some dough. (now you see what I like her!) Jennifer and Madison came over and the afternoon ended with a delish lunch.
We were able to visit Ric twice while on the other side of the mountains. It is hard to put words to the visit or to describe it accurately. I am thankful and acknowledge my Heavenly Fathers hand in all things. I have learned all to well over the past two years that he, not I, is in control. With that being said, Leukemia sucks. Watching someone you love struggle....sucks double! With that rant out of the way I will tell you that Ric looked 100% better than the first time we saw him. I prefer looking at patients/ people who are breathing well on their own!