tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86352138383175857322011-06-14T19:46:32.284-07:00Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.comBlogger281100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-81827819379245264302008-04-08T13:29:00.000-07:002008-04-08T13:37:58.310-07:00

Some of you know, and some don't, but my babysitter Abby and I sent in an audition tape for Biggest Loser. They announced that they were doing couples again and it just seemed like the perfect time for both of us. We worked so hard on the tape and made it really unique. Well, I just found out that their next season of couples is going to be Couples: Family! They decided to only take blood

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-75229411449577180342008-04-08T13:14:00.000-07:002008-04-08T13:29:17.862-07:00

Take me out to the.....BALL GAME!Ya!!! It's that time of year again and we are so excited. This year, both Ben and Laura are playing ball. Fortunatly the weather has accomodated us with only slight snow flurries here and there. Despite some minor hick-ups with uniforms and what not, the league seems to be ready to go and we couldn't be happier.Ben is playing his third (and final) year on the

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-13031928650087546602008-04-08T12:43:00.000-07:002008-04-08T12:56:34.762-07:00

Ok, so AutoCAD has been going for a week now. The first 3 days were HELL! I called my academic advisor and told him I wanted in a new class. He encouraged me to stick to it for a couple of weeks and if I still felt the same then we could talk. I'm so glad I listened. It's still hard, don't get me wrong. It feels so good when you accomplish something that you were ready to give up on. I had to

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-19591323439697559242008-03-27T10:14:00.000-07:002008-03-27T10:33:22.162-07:00

Well, I'm on the final stretch for school. I have 4 more classes (including this one) and should be done by the end of summer. AutoCAD (automated computer assisted drafting) is difficult to say the least. To learn all that I'm supposed to in 5 1/2 weeks is almost unreal. I'm looking into taking more classes in this later, to ensure I learn all I can. It is the way the experts create drafts now,

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-7099158056558973832008-03-26T20:03:00.000-07:002008-03-26T21:37:19.110-07:00

Easter this year was so warm and wonderful! After the mad snow storm for last year's Easter, we couldn't wait for a warm, clear holiday.Dylan was big enough to really enjoy the day this year too. It was so great! When he went out to look for eggs, he ran right past them and made a dash for a baseball and threw that in his bucket! Too cute!Laura insisted on a pink dress. The white dress with pink

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-20552130626602421722008-03-26T07:31:00.000-07:002008-03-26T07:50:22.596-07:00

Oh how I can't wait to kiss on these new babies! The long awaited arrival of the Gifford girls came on March 20, 2008 at 1:40 and 1:50 am. The first day of Spring and the day before our beloved grandma Helen's birthday Baby Sophie came first (Sophia Eleni - Greek in honor of Michael's heritage....Eleni meaning Helen) and came out screaming. A tiny 4lbs, 3oz but full of vigor none the less. Next

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-63630349103986801752008-03-11T06:21:00.000-07:002008-03-11T06:45:21.637-07:00

I've been so busy and what else is newGood days,Bad days,I've had a few.Still taking classes and working hardLate nights,Bright lights,For a good report card.Kids have been sick almost all WinterStuffy noses,Aching ears,It almost seems sinister!I've applied for Biggest Loser Couples too,Funny skits,Revealing tales,Hoping to make my old body new.The house work never seems done,dishes galore,

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-8786474976873020992008-01-05T08:34:00.000-08:002008-01-05T08:46:32.187-08:00

1946 VersionSleigh bells ring, are ya listenin'?In the lane snow is glistenin'a beautiful sight, we're happy tonightwalkin' in a winter wonderland!Gone away is the bluebirdhere to stay is a new birdhe sings a love song as we go alongwalkin' in a winter wonderland!In the meadow we can build a snowmanthen pretend that he is Parson Brownhe'll say "Are you married?"we'll say "No man!But you can do

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-28106192264322033352008-01-04T21:29:00.001-08:002008-01-04T21:44:21.719-08:00

What boy can't, right? Well, Dylan has his moments when he can put away as much as the rest of us. His favorite is spaghetti. Tonight, he ate Tortilla soup and loved every minute of it, saying, "mmmmm" the whole time. There are some things he's still not too keen on. Chicken is one of them. As funny as it seems, I can't get him to eat a chicken nugget for the life of me. Give him a fish stick and

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-90432523472451774772008-01-04T21:06:00.000-08:002008-01-04T21:29:15.468-08:00

Some of you know, and some of you don't, but Ben was named after a character in a book called 'Benjamin and Tulip'. It's a children's book that I used to read and create voices for the characters. It's a funny story and is very cute. Sweet little Benjamin (who is a raccoon) gets pummeled by Tulip (another raccoon) while sent out to the store to get a watermelon. His middle name is Paul, after my

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-32832228599813230542008-01-04T20:20:00.000-08:002008-01-04T21:05:44.778-08:00

That is a quote from one of my favorite movies, 'Meet Me In St Louis'. I know it's awful to say, but I love Halloween! It kicks off the season. It's almost exactly the day the air turns crisp and all the leaves have turned. It signifies wonderful memories for me. When I was really young, we would dress up, usually borrowing from the costumes at the Conservatory where Michelle received her guitar

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-81642416348013547972008-01-01T07:30:00.000-08:002008-01-04T19:46:32.178-08:00

I think my favorite thing about this time of year is the Christmas programs. This year, there were some "new additions" with Laura and Hayden in school. Our school splits up the programs into two nights to accommodate all the viewers in theauditorium. Fortunately, Ben and Laura were on the same night! Hayden (Jenny's son) was the next night, so we were able to go to that too without any

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-63899614119517202872007-12-23T07:19:00.000-08:002007-12-23T07:32:30.096-08:00

It's been a while and for a ton of great reasons, but I wanted to start back up with saying I went back and finished drafting. I had to quite the first class and re-enroll. The instructor was horrible and we all just continued to be sick. Anyway, this second class went better. I think I just felt more determined. It was just as hard, but I knew how to plan my time better. Anyway, here is a sample

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-7249673093646466612007-10-14T07:51:00.000-07:002007-10-14T08:01:07.559-07:00

Ok, so it's week 2 of my drafting class. As stated in the previous post, I'm behind. This week was puked on quite literally! This class is by far the hardest yet. We are pretty much expected to be full blown draftsman by this week!!Pictured at the left are 3 rooms of my house. I had to measure every wall, door, window, nook and cranny of these rooms and draft them. Those who know my house, know

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-43665447491012208752007-10-14T07:33:00.000-07:002007-10-14T08:02:02.136-07:00

Ok, I need to cry for a minute (and stretch out my hands!). This week has been horrible! The whole family (minus Laura!) has had the flu. Needless to say, I feel like if I see or smell any more puke, I'm going to die.Anyway, because of being sick and taking care of sick ones, I've fallen behind on everything! My laundry, housework, school work...everything! I've managed to stay up on the Lysol

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-29464554588684154962007-10-06T16:26:00.000-07:002007-10-06T16:42:08.168-07:00

I have made a wonderful discovery this year. It is truly wonderful for those of us who love vegetation, but lack a green thumb.Shortly after Halloween last year, we got a pretty good sized snow storm. By that I mean, it stuck and covered plants, bushes, the ground and more for about a day or so. Well, after Halloween, our pumpkins were in a horrible, rotted state. They looked like little old men!

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-20403354984037899472007-10-06T15:50:00.000-07:002007-10-06T16:26:26.220-07:00

I can't write poems, or maybe I could express how much I love fall! Even the name, or true name, Autumn, is wonderful to hear and say. I'm not sure if it's all the colors that I love - the golds, reds, oranges, browns, or maybe the crispness in the air. There's the time change and being able to sleep in an extra hour, the fluffy socks that you get to pull out of storage, the Indian Corn....it's

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-40177635578752693672007-09-29T08:54:00.000-07:002007-09-29T09:11:24.149-07:00

Those of you who have seen Dylan in person, know how thick and long his hair has been. Almost since day 1, people have commented about Dylan's hair. It styles itself, it's so thick, it's so dark....all comments I've heard about Dylan. Well, my baby looks like a little man now! I cut his hair!I started with clippers on the side and back and planned on keeping the top a little long by using

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-66032131975648767492007-09-28T22:10:00.000-07:002007-09-29T08:53:48.927-07:00

On September 1st, Dylan turned 1! I can't believe how quickly the time flies. And yet it seems like ages ago that I was pregnant. As you can see, Dylan had no problem digging into his cake. He was very mythodical about the whole thing. He did a lot of eating. Then a lot of playing. All the kids got a little lick of the frosting. As you might imagine, he was pooping green and purple for the next

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-61752110903695958092007-09-28T21:31:00.000-07:002007-09-28T22:09:48.142-07:00

Back to school time brings all kinds of excitement in our home. There's the clothes shopping, picking just the right snacks for the lunches, waking up early and going to bed early. This year was that and more!Ben started 5th grade this year. Yes, I can hear all of you saying "Oh my gosh!!". This was a wonderful prospect to him because it means getting older, having a little more freedom, and of

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-81804930792626770372007-08-19T09:14:00.000-07:002007-08-19T09:25:53.248-07:00

All my kids love the water. They have since they were little babies. Maybe it's that we always play in the tub, or maybe that water can do so much and it's fun to look at. I don't know. But Dylan is no exception! I usually put him in the bath with Laura I do have to turn his back to her though for a very important reason. He SPLASHES like a whale!!! The whole time he's in there he's either

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-80058717901580043972007-08-19T09:00:00.000-07:002007-08-19T09:14:04.372-07:00

Well, I'm done with drawing!!! With the class at least. I still plan on keeping up on interior spaces and perspectives. But I am not planning on staging any more still lifes for a long time! So this is my final drawing for the class. It is of Dylan's room. Well, I guess I should clarify...it's how I WISHED Dylan's room looked. It's right as far as the arrangement of the furniture, windows and

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-87223428218070664962007-08-10T21:57:00.000-07:002007-08-10T22:13:34.588-07:00

Well, my drawing class is coming to an end. I've learned so much in just the 5 1/2 weeks. I'm in a class with such talented people it's actually been very humbling most of the time. So I thought I would show you all how far I've come. The first of these is an assignment where I had to show the different "shade values" in my drawing. It's almost like on a selvage of fabric where you see all the

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-53182023416622577212007-07-14T10:29:00.000-07:002007-07-14T10:35:18.069-07:00

Laura's laugh is soooo funny! It's hardy but girly at the same time. She loves to laugh, but loves to make others laugh even more. I have to say her whit and timing is unlike any other kid her age (well, accept maybe for Hayden). She comes up with the funniest things! But you almost have to hear HER say them to really appreciate it. My mom and dad always say I was funny when I was little, but

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-81271637502903249942007-07-14T10:25:00.000-07:002007-07-14T10:29:34.811-07:00

Well, for my drawing class we had to take our original sketch and enhance it. We had to add shadowing, details, background...make it look more like a real drawing. This was such a challenge for me! The dimensions are all still so new. To add so much detail was time consuming. I do think for my real first attempt at drawing it's not too bad. I am loving all that I'm learning though. I wish we

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-87470338099294561502007-07-12T15:31:00.000-07:002007-07-13T09:13:44.229-07:00

OK, so two of my sisters now have blogs. I could sit by idly while they have all the fun, or I can follow the trend and start my own. So here I sit....starting a blog. My first thought is what in the world do I have to say? What could I possibly share? So this blog is dedicated to my sisters! There won't be anything super great or profound here. Just pictures of my wonderful kids, and occasional

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-79025258387579868442007-07-12T06:00:00.000-07:002007-07-13T09:14:19.621-07:00

Oh my aching back! This kid is so big! I think he is sollid beef and muscle! At his 9 month appointment, he was 29 1/2" long and 23 lbs. Yikes! Anyway, today he was rolling around and "army" crawling everywhere. He was so cute I just had to take a picture. Well after the first shot, he realized what I was doing and started kind-of posing for each photo. Here's what he looks like now!

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8635213838317585732.post-72022730946712887132007-07-11T08:35:00.000-07:002007-07-13T09:12:36.390-07:00

Some of you know that I'm taking an Interior Design course online. Well, this session, I have a drawing class. My mother and a sister or two can draw....I can NOT! I was pretty excited for this class because I've heard everyone can learn to draw. So I get the books, and tools (pencils with funny names, sketch pad, etc) and I've been staring at them ever since! When your in these online classes,

Katie Friendnoreply@blogger.com1