Sausage Party

Guys can turn anything into a get together, trip to the dump, cleaning out the garage, a football draft, a golf tournament and the most manly of all get togethers is the sausage making party.  To provide food for your family and touch raw meat must speak to the inner cave man inside my husband because he loves making sausage.  This year we made it a family event and the kids came out to help turning it into another great memory.  The day started off with a coffee and sandwich run to Tims.  

 One of us is too cool to wear a coat.  

 Feeding 7 people for under 30 bucks and mom has her coffee.

 When we got to the farm the preparations were already under way for Yummy hamburger soup.

 A little something extra for the coffee.

 My friend Mrs K is a true pioneer woman and was cooking and baking for the whole crew.

 The finished product.  I will have to ask her for the recipe if I ever want to make it.  Pat never uses a recipe.

 The kids played.

 Finally walls that are ok to draw on.

 Kelsey manned the crank all day long.  The guys said the kids were awesome.  Glad to hear your kids are good workers.

 Ahhh the plaid jacket so manly.  I have spoke lovingly of it in the past  Plaid Dad

 The most touching moment of the whole day. The fourteen year old that didn't want to get out of bed on a Sunday is up and at it and working, wearing Dad's jacket and here there are sharing Blackberry pins.  Yes I broke down and let Levi get a Blackberry after a year of pestering.  If I had $1 for everytime he said Blackberry his bill would be paid up for a decade.  (I know Pat will make some comment about side profile pics)

My friend Mrs K got sick of seeing Levi's pants falling down or rather seeing his boxers so she gave him a piece of Christmas ribbon to tie up his pants.

 The delivery man rides a bike.

 Lunch Time!

 My friend Mrs S and her awesome Treatsa Pizza

 While the boys worked we had a makeover!

 What?  No one called Cinderella in from the sausage making.

 My awesome friend KP who looks stylish even when washing up sausage dishes.  Jealous!

 The secret recipe held up on a saddle!

 My friend taking pity on my kids who don't have winter gear to go sliding.

 The clean up

 Our friend who traded his boots for my dress shoes so I could take Ellie for a slide down the hill.

 Do I need to say anything?

 The kids sliding.

 The hole I had to crawl through to get her to the hill and then I think there was an electric fence in the way so I gave up.

 My oldest and youngest.  Warms my heart.  Another awesome family memory.

What would happen?

If the school shut down for a week and the kids didn't have any activities and it was too cold to go outside for 10 days what would happen?

Kids will fight, scream. punch, kick, whine. talk about how bored they are and make life very miserable.  Leading mom to run away from home for a large Carmel Machiatto 1% no whip followed later by glasses of wine at splurge group.  (Minute to Win it... so much fun and so many moms wearing lulu lemon!)

What would happen if this guy shows up for supper?

You better know the heimlich maneuver because the kids will spend more time laughing than eating.  

Except Pat he is completely imune to it from working with him for years. 

What would happen if you plan on doing a day or two or work and then going to you mom's house for a visit and the five year old has a temperature of 104.4 and the baby barfs in her crib?  You don't take the kids to the sitter rather to the doctors which means you have to scramble to do your work and you cancel your trip to your mommy's.
(This is Carson sleeping at the table waiting for KD after the doctor's office.  We love the banana medicine!)

What would happen if the kids rally to still go on the trip and promise to clean the house and pack all the bags and skates while you run to the office and finish the things you need to get done?  

The 14 year old will play video games in the front room instead of picking up the play doh and doing the dishes and will pack his bag of clothes and then not bring them.  The five year old who may have been delusion with fever packed his own clothes which consisted of four back packs containing a total of 35 shirts and one pair of socks. No pants, gotch or pjs.  If nothing else he is thorough.  35 shirts for a 2 day trip.  The seven year old would pack the skates and sticks for the rink and would pack one of his Dad's skates which doesn't make Dad happy as he has two hockey games.  Guess he will be skating in circles.  

Here's the real question what would happen if I got a Nanny?  I would like to know the answer to that one.  

The trip we have been waiting for and planning for years had finally arrived.  There had been plenty of preparation go into every detail.  The shoes were waiting by the door we knew there would be lots of walking.  

 We left the winter coats behind and instead opted for the 16 of us to all wear Rider Hoodies on the plane.  I am usually an optimist but I questioned whether we should make the 2.5 hour drive to Saskatoon without a winter coat in the van with the January weather.

 Time to get up and go to the airport.  We were all worried it would be Carson who was left "Home Alone".

 Wheeeww he made it.

 Sleeeepy!

 Well no wonder it was 3:30 in the morning.

 Thanks to the camp director Patrick we were there an hour before the window opened.  We were thanking him later when the line was huge and we were first up!

 Try to keep a 2 yr old happy at four in the morning at the airport...

 Play push the baggage cart and try not to take out any one's ankles.

 How about Duck Duck Goose.  
 And run.... Hey why is no one following me?

 Picture time.  All the grand kids soooooo excited to go.

The DSs and DSIs came in handy.

 Paparazzi.

DS and doo doo

 Planning the trip.

 We made it to Minnesota and there is still lots of snow.  Uncle Slim won the pool that I would lose my purse by noon on the first day.  But luckily I found it!

 How big is the plane?

Who wants this DS after I rub a booger on it?

 So cheery!

 So Sleepy.

 Aunty's extreme airport makeover.  The hair.

 Nails

 Lippies

 mmmmmm

 Hands

 Back to the DS

 Here we are in Florida.  Disney this way.......

Everyone was so nice and so happy to see us!

The bus to the hotel was all Mickey.

The first glimpse of our hotel.

Grandma and Grandpa had been waiting anxiously for hours!

It had been a long time since we all saw eachother.

Levi's video recording was a lot like the Blair Witch filming kind of shaky.

Doesn't this just say it all?

The whole gang in the lobby while the parents check in. 

Grandma and Grandpa thought of everything including wine after hours of traveling it hit the spot. 

Everone in the pool!