Yes we DID!!! Woooo Hoooo!!!

Wow! Can you believe it?!!! We did it! America finally woke up and elected a President for who he is and what he can do for our country! They didn't look at the color of his skin but instead at the strength of his character! It's amazing! I have never been so happy and proud to be an American as I was on November 4Th (and now). I feel we picked the right man for the job. Obama has a wonderful calm to him, there seems to be no arrogance. I know he will surround himself with the right people. I don't understand how anyone can look at him and hear him speak and think that he would want anything but the best for our country. He has a tough road ahead of him but I'm confident he will navigate it successfully with a calm intelligence and grace.

I was very inspired to get involved this year. I went out canvassing for him, and woke up early on election day and put door hangers on people's doors who hadn't voted yet. I also worked at our local democratic headquarters making phone calls for our local congresswoman Dina Titus. Thankfully she won as well. I took Calvin to see him at one of his rallies before election day. It's very moving to see him speak in person. My friend Sandi and I went to the big Democratic Party Celebration and it was great. There were so many people completely overwhelmed with joy and excitement. This is what I love about Barack Obama.........he inspires people. He makes us realize that if we really want to make something happen we can. I sure hope our country can come together as one now. As he says.........there isn't a Red America, or a Blue America......there is the United States of America! Although, it was quite a thrill to finally live in a Blue state. (((wink wink)))

OK, so moving on! Halloween was a bit uneventful around here. The neighborhood has so many foreclosures in it so it wasn't very festive. Zach really isn't into getting dressed up. As you can see in the slide show above......he tried on 2 different costumes. He hated the monkey suit......Calvin did at his age too. We decided on the Fireman costume. I still can't believe I let my kid wear one of those stupid costumes with a tacky plastic mask! I really am disappointed in myself! I swore I would never do that! I feel like a failure! Calvin REALLY wanted to be a Transformer so I broke down and got it for him. My friend Sandi's husband, Eddie, brought their little boy Christopher and as you can see from the picture he wasn't a very happy Superman. I think with all the anticipation of the Election, my heart just wasn't in it this year. Next year will be better.

Calvin has lost 3 teeth now. Two on the bottom and one on top. I swear I think he's pulling them out for money from the tooth fairy. Every time I turn around he has another loose tooth. Between the tooth fairy and good behavior rewards at school the kid is racking in the cash...and breaking my bank!

Dwayne's family came in to town last weekend. It was his Mom Lynn, sister Leah and her 3 kids and husband. Lynn and his niece Lena stayed with us, while the rest stayed at a local hotel. All of us but Dwayne, Lynn, Zach and baby Lili went horseback riding out at Bonnie Springs where my father Tim does trail rides through Red Rock Canyon. It was so much fun! Calvin really enjoyed it, he didn't stop talking the whole time. Us parents also got to go see the Cirque du Soleil show called LOVE (done to Beatles music). Oh my god! It was Fantastic!! What an amazing show! We highly recommend it if you ever come to town. Thank you! Thank you, Lynn for the tickets and the night out! It was a wonderful visit with everyone, lots of love, laughter, wine and celebrating of Obama's victory!

We finally have official news on the house. As of this Friday the bank will take over ownership. We aren't very happy about packing but we're happy to be moving out from under this financial mess that isn't even ours. We found a great house not too far from where we are now. It's a 3 bdrm 2.5 bath with a huge bonus room above the 3 car garage, that will be the boys playroom. The boys will share a bedroom so we will still have a guestroom for anyone who wants to visit. There's a balcony off the master bedroom with great views of the mountains. The best part though, is it's got a really nice sized backyard, it's on a cul de sac and it's only a short walk down the road from my friend Sandi! Hopefully we get the keys tonight! I need to walk through it and visualized where all my crap is going (and most of you know I have A LOT!)

So, I think that's it! It's going to be a very busy few weeks for us! I have so much packing and purging to do, I'm exhausted just thinking about it. It will all be worth it in the end to finally be organized and settled for a while. Then we have December with Calvin's birthday and Christmas.....uhg....what was I thinking having a baby so close to Christmas? Apparently I wasn't thinking at all! I'm pretty confident I will be unpacked in time to make my Christmas cards and hopefully more calendars.

Until then I'll be working like a crazy lady getting my house in order. Hopefully the stress of it all will help me lose the jelly belly that I have jiggling around my waist!

Love to you all! And, Cheers to Obama and a brighter future for us all!