I'm Mad at Garth & Oprah..

Well 2 big things happened in my life this week.. 1) I saw the latest December issue of the Oprah Magazine.. and of course it featured one of my favorite things.. HER favorite things! Now listen.. I've kinda been upset with Oprah since she left TV. I enjoyed that TV show. I looked FORWARD to it each day.. then she flies off and buys her own network and I still have a hard time finding that dang channel on Cable! But.. I've caught a few episodes of "Where are they Now" and "Oprahs's Life Class" and its made me forgive her.. BUT.. then she puts out Her favorite things, which makes me angry with her all over again!! .... Why? BECAUSE I CAN'T AFFORD 90% OF HER FAVORITE THINGS!.. Oprah needs to put out an edition of "My Cheapest Favorite things" and then it would be more realistic for me! I mean who can afford $700 GOLD Dr. Dre Beats? Come On Oprah.. Come on.. Here's the list if you want to see.. Oprah's Favorite Things 2014. 

I like to look at these things to get gift ideas.. but so far there is no one that is worth THAT much money on my Christmas list! lol.. Not that I wouldn't love to get them those things, I would.. but with twins, childcare, and a house payement.. just probably not happening. However, I mean these are some of the coolest things ever, but right now, my face is not worth $93 face cream.. dangit Oprah.. bring it down a notch, bring it down..Even a PEN.. a writing utensil.. is $36. I would feel terrible if I bought a $36 Pen and then Cross threw it out the window, or I lost it..  I can tell she's trying to throw us a bone with the Nate Berkus Plates from Target.. But how many of us really need little tiny plates that don't match any of our other dishes?? Then she will put stuff on there that I really want.. Like Comfy stuff, which for me at this point in my life MATTERS.. I want some delicious, soft PJ's, or Tee Shirts.. or fluffy house shoes.. But can I have those? Hell no. The PJ's are $155, The House shoes are $120  and the T-shirts are $214 for 3.. Or how about some yummy smelling Candles? $240 set.  I obviously need richer friends.. lol. Nail Polish is $144.. Oprah, I'm probably just going to go to CVS and get it for $5.. If I ever do get rich and famous, the first thing I'm going to do for Christmas is buy things for my peeps off Oprah's Favorite things! But anyway.. There's the list, so enjoy, wishful thinking right?!?!

Okay, the 2nd person I'm mad at is Garth Brooks.. I spent 14 years, or however long its been waiting for Garth to make his comeback.. Sure he's thrown us a bone with the "Scarecrow" album, and done a few shows in Vegas.. Ok. fine.. but we were all waiting for the Big comeback.. Well we got a special glimpse when he did Good Morning America and Sang "Mom".. it was so good.. he cried, they cried, I cried.. it was awesome and sweet.. and exactly what we expect from Garth. True feelings and emotion when he sings, connecting with his audience.. it was awesome.. So When Tuesday Hit (the day of the "Man against the Machine" release) I was ready.. I was going to go download the whole album.. Listen at work.. review on my way home.. I. Was. Ready. ... But then I remembered.. Wait.. Garth Hates Itunes, Pandora, Spotify, and anything like it.. So where in the heck do I even GO to GET his new music??..

Google to the rescue.. I google and realize that Garth has started his OWN music streaming service called Ghost Tunes.  You can go there, sign up for free, and download his new stuff.. BUT.. its not very easy to understand. Like if you buy it and download it, where does it go? Not to your Itunes apparently.. So Far the only way I have found to play the songs and listen is to go to the website and do it that way. It tells me I can download it, but I have no idea where it download.. The beauty of Itunes is the ease of it.. You click 'buy' and then its in your Itunes. Simple. This is NOT simple, and it really provides NO directions.. Plus the website, ATT, and apparently my Iphone are all janky and it only plays half the time I press play.. So its NOT ideal. Sure as a former radio person, I get the point of "Preserving the music" where people can't steal it, and artists get paid.. but you have to make the process easy or people won't mess with it. Thats why People are not buying CD's anymore.. so much easier to just click 'buy' and listen online and be done with it.. So while I understand what he is TRYING to do.. He's irritating the people who love him the most by not being able to easily get to his music.

Now I will say this, Ghost Tunes makes it where if you buy it once, its yours.. Unlike Itunes, you can burn it to a disc (if you ever figure out where to download it) as many times as you want and on as many devices as you want, and the money paid actually goes to the artists.. so those are both good things.. So many once he works the kinks out if it, it will be ok.. but right now its a pain. Taylor Swift has decided to do the same.. so we'll see how this all shakes out.

In other news with the twins, all is good. We had a great Halloween. We took the girls to Northpark Mall for Trick or Treating, then to Laura & Terry's House.. They had a great time. Cross was dressed up as her owl JO, and LL was a sweet Pink Monster. They didn't really get the concept of Trick or Treating.. but they did enjoy their first sucker! We had a great time! After Halloween on that Saturday Gigi & Papa came up and we took the girls to the Parkhurst Pumpkin Patch.. They had fun petting the goats and roaming around. This is a great time of year! Here's some pics..

 Don't get so excited for Trick or Treating Girls! Calm down!! 

 Still not that excited.. but also not upset about being in puffed Costumes. 

 Man, she was a really cute Owl. She liked wearing this and patting her puffy belly! 

 Handful of Monster and Owl! 

Daddies Pink Monster! 

 Sweet Church pics

 Following our favorite guy.. daddy! 

I was Marie Antoinette for work party.. Cross enjoyed this.. 

Fall is All Up on Us!

We have had A Great couple of weeks enjoying all the fall activities going on around us. We have visited Pumpkinville at the Myriad's Botanical Gardens.. It was a lot of fun, but it was 89 the Saturday we were out there.. which is ridiculous for Late October! Only $3 to get in there.. But the girls like walking around, picking up gourds and climbing on stuff. They are at the stage now where just being free, running around, and climbing on and off things is like the best day ever. 

We Also went to TG farms in Newcastle. Its a BIG place, and its pretty pricey ($10 per person, even if you are a newborn) But its worth it.. a TON of stuff for kids to do. The girls went into the petting Zoo and hung out with the Goats. Cross would laugh when the goats jumped up on top of their shed. She thought that was hilarious. LL didn't like the goats as much. She liked going up and down the hay slide. They put a cattle ramp up to a slide where the girls could climb up the ramp and then slide down the slide. They LOVE all slides at this stage. Its hilarious.. they will go up and down it 324 times and not get tired! 

They also have pig races, a haybale maze, corn maze, a duck pond, and a TON of places to pose for Fall pictures. 

Cross loved the mini pumpkins. She took two of them and carried them around with her as she was walking. For some reason the pumpkins made her laugh with joy. 

Londyn really just liked walking around. She would go over a little bridge and liked to hear the sound of her shoes on top of it. Everything is a new sound and a new adventure. She liked going out on the deck and looking at the ducks in the duck pond. She also liked climbing on the haybales and sliding. 

We are going to go to another Pumpkin Patch this weekend with Mom & Steve. They are coming up to Trick or treat with the girls, so we are going to go to Parkhurst Pumpkin Patch in Arcadia. Everyone says its so much fun. I think Cross will want to ride a Pony there.. And LL will enjoy the Fort. She loves squeezing her little body into places. We always look up and she is hiding behind a chair or something funny like that. 

Everyone thinks Cross looks like me in this picture.. Well obviously, because she has huge, giant, sunglasses on.. lol. But you can tell she is obviously a fan of herself, and hey, I can't blame her for that. She is the happiest girl! After the Pumpkin Patch we went and met GT & Nana for awhile. The girls went upstairs in the Theatre Room and watched a GIANT version of Peppa Pig, so they thought that was fun! Then we all went to dinner. We chose Cracker Barrel and Cross fell in love with a giant Toad there.. I tried to put it back and she started to Cry, so GT got it for her, lol

She carried him all around that night.. and brings him to the living room to play each morning.

As you can see, she's still carrying that Owl.(JO).. yup, she loves loves him. We went to the farm a few weeks ago and forgot him and turned around and drove back to get him. Its THAT bad. If you put her in her bed without him she makes the saddest little cry.. Pretty much the same cry I would make if you put me to bed without my blanket.. lol.. So I can't judge her, because she gets it from me. She also has a freakish love for weird things. I have an old Wooden Indian Man that my dad gave me. I keep him on the porch of whatever house I live in because I swear he is a protector.. MJ is creeped out by him and insisted he live outside, because he was INSIDE the house.. I introduced Cross to him one day and she loved him.. Everyday now when she see's him outside, she goes up and gives him a hug, and pets him. 

See, its weird.. but she loves him. She also has befriended a Gargoyle named "Hans" in my bedroom. She goes to him and pets him everyday.. MJ just says "Man, she's so weird like you" Lol.. So I can't say much.. 

 We have been spending a LOT of time at the Church Playground these days. Its SO perfect for Toddlers. First, its gated, so they can't escape, and second they have a "little' playground that is perfect for Toddlers.. Its not too high off the ground and its hard for them to fall off of it. My girls LOVE it.. They climb and slide and run and crawl. We try to go there a couple of times a week.. after church and then before Small group on Wednesdays. They LOVE their time there.. We went last night and I was shocked at how they don't get tired! Cross just kept going and going up and down and down the slide and running.. Endless amounts of energy!

Last weekend we went to Cousin Joe's 2nd birthday in Weatherford at my Sister Lexi's house. The girls had a great time because we just let them run free in the backyard. They loved going up and down his slide..and there was a trampoline, so they loved that.. Then Lexi served Fajitas, so of course they were IN on that! They love Mexican food! It was all fun and games till Cousin Joe drew on Crosslee's face with a purple marker, lol.. You can tell by her face that she is shocked that this has just happened! 

We all had a great time. The girls got to see everyone and eat some birthday cake. They also loved coloring with giant crayons so we had to get them some of those when we got back. Life is so much fun for us right now. Each day is a new adventure with the girls, and if you have seen their pics, or been around them much, you know that they are just endless barrels of energy and SO much fun right now. Cross is saying all kinds of things now.. She is a little Parrot. LL is starting to stay more each day. Cross has learned how to jump. She doesn't get very far off the ground, but in her mind she is jumping to the sky! They are climbing into chairs now and sitting in 'big' seats.. They still love the farm and playing. They could stay outside all day. Leslie (The nanny) has finally just succumb to the fact that they want to stay outside ALL the time. So we just let them go out there and play. They like their backyard, and Banks and Payslee are good babysitters!

They both still love walking in the Cow Pasture.. and the Cows like them too. Its truly such a blessing to have so many fantastic places they can visit and enjoy. They have so many people that love them, and so many places to visit! They have a great life, and so do we.. So blessed!

We have been reading a book in our Small Group called "Changes that Heal" by Dr. Henry Cloud. Last night MJ and I taught the class, and it was really fun. Its a really good book about setting boundaries around toxic people. Its been an eye opening experience to read, but very helpful. MJ is also a part of a Mens Bible study that meets early on Wednesdays and he has really been enjoying that as well. WE just love our church!

I know I'm partial because they are mine.. but man, My girls are beautiful! Londyn looks like a living doll, and Crosslee's spirit matches her joyful face! So Thankful they are healthy and happy babies.. Now 17 months old!