Just a quick post!

I have so much to write about, but I have NO time! I'm in the middle of getting us all packed to go to Virginia for Christmas! We're driving up to Dallas tonight and we fly out from there tomorrow! Eek! When I get a chance (which realistically might not be until we get back from Virginia), I'll write about our visit with Jason's sisters - Rachel, Danielle and Joanna. They just left yesterday morning. It was so much fun having them here! For now, I'll leave you all with a picture of us girls at Sea World. Merry Christmas!

We love you Santa Shamu!! ;)

Something worth posting...

This was forwarded to me from my friend Anne-Marie. I thought I'd post it for anyone who'd like to take a look. Please remember to keep our troops in prayer! Of all the gifts you could give a U.S. Soldier, Sailor, Airman, or Marine deployed in harm's way, prayer is the very best!!

As I reflect on this photograph, I see once again that not all the brave leave the
'home of the brave' to enter battle; some are required now to be the brave of
the home. It is said a picture is worth a thousand words but this one leaves me speechless and with tears in my eyes.



We have a long list of good friends whose husbands are deploying to Iraq next month. One of the wives sent me this. We feel compelled to send it on. Your prayers are deeply appreciated. These guys deserve our love, our hugs and most powerfully, our prayers.



Prayer Request: I understand that life in Iraq is very difficult to bear right now. Our troops need our prayers for strength, endurance and safety. Please stop for a moment and pray for our troops around the world.

'Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us. Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. Amen.'

Christmastime!

It's Christmastime! Only 2 more weeks until the big day! Christmas is one my favorite times of the year! Not only is it a time when we remember and celebrate Jesus' birth (the whole reason for the season), but it's also a time when families gets together, Christmas lights and decorations are rampant and it's acceptable (if not expected) to gain 5 pounds from all of the cookies and yummy treats. And who doesn't enjoy giving presents?! I just wish we had more money, so we could go crazy and buy everyone presents (and great ones at that)! It's also the time of year when we watch The Grinch (with Jim Carey) over and over...AND OVER!!!! We love that movie!

This year we're heading out to Virginia to spend Christmas at Jason's Mom and Dad's house. It's always a lot of fun spending Christmas at the Capras - not only because Jason puts together a spectacular Capra Christmas complete with games, Capra trivia and prizes, but because it's so full of people! I wonder how Christmas at the Capras would have been if Jason's parents hadn't chosen to have such a big family... There are 12 kids - three of which are married. Tony and Angie have 5 kids, Jason and I have 2 kids and Rachel and Nate are still somewhat newly married (but I'll be expecting some nieces and nephews soon - so hurry it up!). So if we were all to make it to Capra Christmas this year - there would be 25 people (counting James' girlfriend)! Isn't that crazy?! No wonder there's not enough hot water, bath towels and toilet paper to go around when we all get together! :) Jason and I have been married for almost 11 years and I still don't know how Jason's Mom does it! I'm already getting worn out trying to keep up with a messy house and neverending laundry - and I only have 2 kids! What the heck?!

Anyways - Tony was deployed to Iraq last month, so he won't be here for Christmas. Rachel's husband, Nate, is also in Iraq until sometime this summer, so he won't be here either. And James' girlfriend is only visiting for a couple days prior to Christmas. So that only leaves 22 people. ;) I can't even begin to imagine what Christmases will be like a few years from now... The rest of the Capras (Jason's brothers and sisters) could all easily be married 8 years from now. Tony and Angie are finished having babies now and Jason and I are hoping to have more, but let's imagine that we still have 2 kids by then and that all the remaining Capras are all married and have just 1 baby each...that would make 43 people under one roof!! That's not counting the extra kids Jason and I hope to have before then or any additional babies the rest of the Capras might have by then! Isn't that insane?! We'll have to rent out a hangar just to fit us all in one place!

For now I thought I'd write about what we've been up to since Kristin's birthday. With Kristin's birthday in between Thanksgiving and Christmas - it seems like I'm always running nonstop from a couple days before Thanksgiving until New Year's Day. Sheesh! It's exhausting!

So after Kristin's birthday, I started the grueling (yet loving) task of baking Christmas cookies, preparing packages for the mail, filling out, addressing and mailing all of our Christmas cards/pictures and decorating the Christmas tree. Don't get me wrong - I love doing all of these things, but for some reason it's so stressful! Probably because I'm trying to do all of it at the same time and get it all done at a ridiculously early date (while taking care of Jason, the kids and the house at the same time). Making a million batches of cookies is no easy task when your kitchen is as small as mine is. It's pretty sad when you have to use your washer and dryer for additional counterspace! Rrrrr... Oh well. We may have a small extremely old house, but you can't beat the security of living on base with guarded gates and miles upon miles of barbed wire. Ah...I love barbed wire. I wonder if we'll ever be able to handle living off base? ;)

Ah...rolling out cookie dough is much easier than rolling out pie dough.


I let Kristin-poo help out with a couple cookies.


She's so proud of herself...


"Wow Mommy! You did it!"


When we were all done rolling cookie dough balls, Kristin said, "I hope you had a good time having me make cookies with you." What a cutie...


Katie and Kristin playing with Daddy before we decorated the tree.


Katie and Kristin


How sweet...


Katie watching Kristin and I decorate the tree


Me and Kristin decorating the tree


This is so much fun!


Kristin making funny faces at herself in the Christmas ornament


She was mesmerized by her reflection... ;)


Jason doing his part...


Ah...finally finished. Apparently it was too much for Kristin...


Kristin and her wishlist (she isn't asking for much is she?) ;)


The newest addition to Jason's outdoor Christmas decorations (one of his favorite presents from Rachel and Nate last Christmas).


Kristin and Darth Santa


For now we're looking forward to three of Jason's sisters coming to visit (Rachel, Danielle and Joanna). They get here Friday night and they'll be here for 6 days! We can't wait!
I hope everyone has a great Christmas and a very Happy New Year! Be on the lookout for my upcoming story on Capra Christmas 2007 - arriving late December! ;)

Kristin turns 4!!

I can't believe it! Our little Kristin-poo is now 4 years old! Where did the time go? I wish I had kept a blog back when she was a brand new baby, so we had a log of everything we've done with her up until this point. Sniff sniff. I hate having regrets!! :( Oh well - I guess all that really matters is that we love her and we have thoroughly enjoyed having in her in our lives. Don't get me wrong - she can be VERY annoying at times, but what kid isn't?! She's growing up so fast! Soon she'll be in school and she'll forget all about me. Ha! Like that could ever happen! Seriously - who could forget about me? I'm great! ;) I am amazed though at how much older she seems now. It's like it happened overnight! She didn't seem so old when we brought Katie home from the hospital 8 months ago (like I would have imagined her to seem compared to a tiny little baby). It only seems like she's gotten older and bigger within the past few weeks. It makes me want
to cry!

Me and my Kristin-poo


Anyways - our little cutie turned 4 years old on November 25th (3 days after Thanksgiving). First thing that morning, we headed over to the portrait studio to have our family picture taken (like we do every year). After a horrible session, we bought our crummy pictures and headed back home to get ready for Kristin's birthday. Kristin said she wanted cupcakes instead of a cake, so I made cupcakes the night before. I wish I hadn't asked. I would rather have made a birthday cake. Of course a cake takes more work to decorate, but cupcakes look so boring! I didn't try to convince her otherwise though - because I was exhausted from just having done Thanksgiving and we were still busy entertaining Michael. But now I wish I would have just sucked it up and decorated a cake instead. She had a Tinker Bell themed birthday party with just the four of us. She ate half of a cupcake and then she was ready to open presents. She was thoroughly excited about opening her presents this year! Last year she'd open one present and want to stop and play with it before moving onto the next present, but this year she was ready to go to town and rip them all open and then play later. Greedy little girl. ;)

Jason and his little women


Cheese!!


Kristin blowing out her candle


Jason sneaking Katie her first cupcake...


Nothing beats a good party favor...


It doesn't take much to amuse Katie...


"I've always wanted this! Thank you Grandma Christie and Grandpa Neil!!"


"Thank you Great Grandma Jackson!!" I don't think Katie is enjoying someone else getting all of the attention...


"I've wanted this for so many years! (Ha! I think these have only been around for a few months. Months must seem like years to toddlers!) Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Capra!"


"I love Little Einsteins! Thank you Mommy and Daddy!"


"Oh! Stuff for my new pony house! Yay! Thank you Mommy and Daddy!"


Of course the camera battery died and I didn't have any new ones to replace them, so we didn't get any pictures of her last couple of presents from us. We also got her a sink and cupcake baking set to go with her cottage and Prince Eric and Princess Ariel stuffed dolls (that she has been wanting forever).

The next day we put together Kristin's cottage - which she rarely comes out of now...


She looks so girly in her little house...


All in all - little greedy girl had a great birthday and she loved all of her presents. Hopefully this next year won't go by as fast as this last one did, so we can enjoy what little time we have with our little cuties...while they're still cute. ;)

Turkey Day 2007

It has been two whole weeks since my last post! I've been so busy! But now that Thanksgiving is over, the Christmas cookies have been made, packages mailed, Christmas cards sent, Christmas tree decorated and presents wrapped - I can finally relax! Aahhhh... I feel much much better now. I was starting to get a little overwhelmed...and when that happens, meany-poop Tricia gradually emerges. But now that all my crazy errands are finished, I'm back to normal...for now anyways... I'm sure I'll be back into my frantic crazy mode in about 2 weeks when we start getting ready for our trip out to Virginia for the week of Christmas. Gulp... I love to travel. I just hate preparing for it. It used to be a lot easier back in the day. It's amazing how much more stress is involved when you have little kiddie-poos to pack for. Eek!
Okay - enough rambling for now. Onto Thanksgiving!
The day before Turkey Day, Jason's brother, Michael, drove a horrendous 8 hours to come spend Thanksgiving with us. He came right from work. It was very sweet of him - especially since he could have easily driven only 2 hours and went to our Aunt Shelley and Uncle Jim's house in Dallas. I was looking forward to having another mouth to feed this year! Last year our leftovers lasted a whole week!
Anyways - I got to work on baking the pies, making the cranberry sauce and drying the bread crumbs for the stuffing the day before. I must admit...I hate baking pies! My Mom makes it look so easy. Actually she makes the entire Thanksgiving feast look like a piece of cake, so you can imagine how furious I was last year when I prepared my first Thanksgiving meal! I was expecting it to be just a regular day in the kitchen complete with beautiful pie crusts, fluffy mashed potatoes and everything ready all at the same time. Pssh! Whatever! I think I called my poor Mommy 100 times - at least! I'm pathetic - I know. At least I'm woman enough to admit it! ;) I felt a little more confident about preparing our feast this year (with one whole Thanksgiving feast under my belt), but it was still stressful. You really need more than just one day a year to practice baking pies! I do at least! The same goes for cake decorating! Making the turkey is no walk in the park either, but I think it's a lot easier to roast a turkey than it is to make pretty pie crusts!

Cooking homemade cranberry sauce. It was a wee bit tart, but it was okay.


Ugh... I don't like making pie crusts...


So far so good...


Maybe making pie isn't so bad after all...


I take that back! Stupid skimpy crust! I hate making pie!


I tried to cover up my skimpy crusty with some decorative leaves, but it was of no avail...


During this time, poor Jason decided to get sick. We thought it would blow over, but it didn't. He remained naseous during the whole Thanksgiving weekend. I don't know who I felt more bad for - Jason for being sick or Michael for having to spend all his time with just me and our little annoying kiddies while Jason slept most of the time!
Michael made his grand entrance around 9pm the night before and Jason tried to come out of the bedroom for a little while to visit with his brother, but it didn't last very long.

Michael's jubilant arrival to the Capra house


The next day, I made sure to only provide a few measley appetizers and drinks while I finished cooking. The secret is to keep people somewhat hungry, so they only THINK the food is great (when really they're just starving and will eat just about anything put in front of them). Uh-oh - I just revealed my secret...eh hem (cough cough). Forget I said anything...

Michael thinking, "I drove 8 hours to spend time with this sick boy..."


Mmm...appetizers!


In between my cooking sessions, Michael and I played a mean game of Scrabble (which of course I lost) while Jason slept. Jason woke up a little while later and forced himself to go outside and put up a few Christmas lights. Did I mention that this is the first time EVER in all 10+ years of marriage that Jason has ever put up any outdoor lights?! It was a momentous occasion. I don't know why he decided to do it now - when he was feeling so bad. I appreciated it even more though (knowing that the poor guy did it while holding back the urge to throw up). How sweet... ;) Kristin even took time out of her busy schedule to show Michael how to play Cooking Mama on the Nintendo Wii. I don't even know how to play that dang thing! What the heck?! I can't let my 4 year old surpass me in technological knowledge/gadgetry! I can't! And I won't! Okay - so who's going to teach me how to play that dumb game, so I can challenge her to a cookoff? ;)

Meany-poop Michael beating me at Scrabble


Sick boy sleeping the day away...


Sick boy putting up Christmas lights


"Good job Uncle Michael!"


Some time later, the table was set, prayers were said, a bottle of wine was opened and we began eating our feast (Katie slept through it - she's so anti-social ;) ). Michael did the honors of carving the turkey. I wasn't about to have sick boy touching my roast beast! ;) Jason did his best to keep his composure for the time being, so he could partake of the feast with us. He even threw in a couple of jokes here and there and started talking about his plans for Capra Christmas 2007, watched a movie with us (while trying to eat the assortment of pies I put on his dessert plate) and then went back to bed on a naseous (and now unpleasantly full) tummy.

Snore... Your Thanksgiving feast is of no interest to me.


I think they're ready to eat...


Let's eat!


This year's carving king


Tricia thinking, "Oh I hope he doesn't breathe his sick germs on any of the food..."


Cheers!


Sophistication at its best... ;)


Ah...no more cooking... It's time to relax...


Hmph! Not only did I cook, but I have to clean up too! :(


Look who decided to wake up...


He doesn't look happy...


An assortment of fattening desserts...


Michael stayed with us for another 3 days before he headed back. Poor Jason was on call at the hospital the night after Thanksgiving, so Michael decided to make me and Kristin dinner (a dish he knew Jason would not appreciate because it included eggplant). I think Michael is an anomaly to the Capra family - because he is the only Capra who seems to eat anything. He even eats foods that I won't (and there really aren't many of those). Anyways - I have to be honest. It was very very strange to have a man cooking in my kitchen. It has never been done (and it probably won't ever happen again - unless Michael or some other male Capra comes to visit). It just wasn't natural - in my kitchen at least. ;)

It's just not natural...


Brilliant!


After the kitchen was destroyed (because that's what Capra men do when they're let loose in a kitchen...except for Uncle Jim), we sat down to a yummy dinner that didn't have a name. Michael said that it came to him..."in a dream...a vision if you will". :) He's so silly. Anyways - it was delicious! The horrendous mess in the kichen (that I cleaned up by the way) was well worth this tasty creation. Mmm hmm... You're probably wondering if I wish Jason enjoyed cooking like his Dad and other brothers. Well... I'm not sure. If it weren't for the mess in the kitchen - I'd shout a most definite "Yes!" But we all know that a messy kitchen is inevitable (when a male Capra is in the kitchen), so I think I'd be happy if he enjoyed cooking maybe just two or three meals a year. ;)
Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!