Way, Way Back In 1992...

Sixteen years ago, I went to pick up Paul from his flight-- he proposed to me right there with a dozen red roses in one hand and a diamond ring in the other, at Seatac International Airport in Seattle.
Most important question I've ever been asked.
Best answer I've ever given.
He's still the funnest guy I know.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas!!

We were dreaming of one, and wow did we get a completely White Christmas this year!! (The frosty view from the front glass door--brrrrr......)

Smiley sisters ready to do some serious opening...

Sorry about the freaky/ glowy kitty cat eyes, but as soon as the little boys were done wearing this fantastic bag on their heads, Zeke just has to crawl inside...

This is Chilly Cael with freezing fingers two days ago, before the snow drifted. I'm thinking it may be time to invest in a few more pairs of gloves; apparantly the sock he was wearing on his right hand didn't quite make the cut...

Hope this day was wonderful for you!! Merry Christmas!!

Happy Birthday Little Bro!!

This is the kind of fine photography you get when the family scanner decides not to cooperate...oh well!! Today is December 20th, which means that exactly 34 years ago, I became a big sister to my little brother, Aaron!! What a fun early Christmas present he was that year (actually, I think he was supposed to come about 3 weeks earlier when he was actually DUE-sorry about that, Mom, especially since her first babe was also 3 weeks late-oops...)--Birthdays are fun, brothers are fun...Happy Birthday, Aaron!!

So Good To Go, So Good To Come Home...

What could possibly say "time for some super serious Goff Family Fun" more than fantastically coordinated rental shoes??













Perhaps it could be sharing the spotlight with "That Guy"--you know, the one who needs neither shirt nor shoes to boldly run back and forth along the beach, always a great idea in the 55 degree salty ocean air...








This is exactly the look I was going for here with Cael and Kylie posed in front of the castle (if you need any tips on how to have 3-year-old boys not look into the camera and also touch their nose at the same time, I can totally hook you up--I do seem to have a knack for this sort of thing)...









Now really, nothing says family fun like the taking of more pictures!! Paul is expressing his request that I just keep taking more and more and hoping that he can be in each and every one of them...(Uncle Kyle, Cousin Brody, Morgan, Cael, Handsome Paul, Kylie, Curtis, Super Sis Kari, Cousin Cole, Cousin Jack, and Kendell)









Now Riverboats--that's got to be what it is that really brings families together!! As a little bonus, all of us in the picture are almost actually looking in the general direction of the camera!! Progress, or perhaps Mr. Cael just wasn't able to get his cute little mug turned away quick enough...

So fun to be together and to have my #1 sis, Kari, and her cracker-jack troop of boys join us--good stuff that just might need to be done again, hmmm...

Welcome Home

It's always fun to go away and come back, especially to this!!

Birthday Girl

Happy Happy Birthday to my darling girl, Miss Morgan who is now a 12-year-old lovely lady!! (This is what Morgan looks like at 7:50 am in the "breezy" backyard holding an old window frame--what a super sport!!)...

This is what Miss Morgan looks like with her very own birthday pina colada (virgin, of course) at the restaurant with just mom and dad, oh it is good to be the birthday girl...

This is Miss Morgan (and her cute dad) feeling so stylish in her new brown wedges from Gramma Sharlene and also anticipating one phenomenal club sandwich coming her way at her dream culinary establishment, Iggy's (for the record, everything was very birthday appropriate and delish)...

No, this is not what Morgan looks like, this is what Miss Kendell looks like (I'm sure she was thinking good thoughts about Birthday Girl Morgan) at 9:00am after receiving her Principal's Pride award for great work in 5th grade, and the red pants/ blue shirted blur would be 3-year-old #1 and the blue pants/ red shirted blur would be 3-year-old #2, who, as you can see, were not at all anxious to break free of the Principal's Pride festivities. As it turns out, the white triangle-shaped book stands on the library shelves (that were intended to showcase special holiday books) can also double as super-fun hats for little boys!! I just love learning new things...and I LOVE LOVE LOVE MY BIRTHDAY GIRL, MORGAN!!

Pre-Turkey Day Jitters

For starters, Cael is totally into this "help mom in the kitchen" thing! And, by the way, cream cheese and whipped cream do make a tasty combo--Cael approves! And if you are wondering if Cael can also help you with your nails, he is very stealthy when it comes to finding the nail polish (even when it is hidden in a "special spot"--**note to self, find new "special spot") and uniquely/ disturbingly skilled when it comes to applying the polish to his own nails, so think how he could do with yours...

I went to this little movie 2 nights ago, I'm not sure that that many people have heard about it (no, it actually was not "Bolt")--my biggest beef with the show was all of the randomly growing purple pansies in the forest, which I did not find to be entirely believable. Mr. Goff found it incredible that I could completely accept the whole vampire/werewolf premise, but balk at the springy flowers ( for the record, he held down the house while I went to the show with some fun/ funny friends--he was very happy to let me go with people that were not him). Anyway, while I was away, Cael decided he had something against muffins in their entirity (lucky for me, though, the bottoms make such a nice presentation)...

That brings us to tonite, with Curtis getting almost all the way out to the garage fridge with this Thanksgiving's particularly delicious offering of "Yum Yum Yams"--oooooopppps... Accidents do happen (not everything spilled and we are quite thankful for paper towels) and fortunately, this was a very large batch, that is now not quite as large, but still enough for the sweet potato lovers tomorrow...

Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours, may your yams be plentiful and your muffins complete!!

Pathetically Tragic/ Tragically Pathetic...

So three whole days ago, our favorite modern-day invention (it's at least really really high on the list of faves) the DVR went out!! As in broken, no more worky, nothing, all gone, nada...the 100 hours of quality programming that we have carefully recorded and managed, completely kaput--never to return again--aaaagggghhhh !! Gone are the 20 episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (Cael can be a bit choosey when it comes time to pick the one he wants to watch and the rest of us want to be prepared), the 2-minute segment of the Cheetah Girls wishing us a "Cheetahlicious Christmas," the Mythbusters with the Diet Coke and Mentos experiment, "The Subject was Noses" episode of the Brady Bunch where Marcia gives the line "something suddenly came up" to that nice Charlie when the Big Man on Campus, Doug Simpson, asks her out for the same night, only to have Doug Simpson dish the line back out at her when an unfortunate throw of the football results in Marcia's swollen nose (classic), the series finale of my beloved Gilmore Girls, not to mention the grilling of a Thanksgiving turkey with an apple/cranberry/sage marinade and mulled cider by Bobby Flay --all of these visual treasures are gone, gone, gone...so sad, sad, sad...

But guess what our BFF, the UPS man brought today--HOORAY!! Now we can start fresh and record a whole bunch more things and rewind them and pause them and watch them whenever we want--aaaahh!! It is an amazing thing, but during the dark days of the "NO DVR" we actually just had the TV off because who needs commercials and who needs to be constrained by shows being on only at certain times and that is it? The bad part about the whole deal is once you get a taste of the Tivo, you're not going back--so pathetic but true. Now I just need the Pillsbury Bake-Off 2008 to be on again...

Turkeys and Toothpicks...

Good news--if I were a turkey with arms instead of wings, not to mention the super-styling wardrobe, this is exactly what I would look like...

Here is my Kylie--she has been a sweet and thoughtful girl helping me the past 2 days as her mom has fallen prey to a weasley eye allergy. All the years we lived in Washington, nary a vision problem (well, just a little) for me. But ever since we've been in the Beehive State, I have battled some unknown something that makes my eyes (usually just one of them) ultra red, light sensitive, painful, unable to wear contacts--actually unable to be opened at times. It is a bummer, but it usually lasts only a few days once or twice a year, and for that I am extremely grateful!! Anyway, I have been a glasses+sunglasses wearer for the last 2 days and that is always a solid look...

To help me on the road to recovery, Miss Kylie made me this fabulous get-well card with what may be the most fantastic/accurate artist's rendering of my likeness ever--"Me and Toothpick Mom!!"

I've got this girl trained so well, she can totally stay...

Too much Time on My Hands

Here's me and my Cael and some little green men. I love being a mom. I love my kids and I love being my kids' mom and I am thankful to be able to be home with them at this stage of my life. I so appreciate my husband picking up some extra work hours so I can do this. The stage I am at is what I would call BUSY--it's great, and it's busy. I have my 5 children and my sweet neighbor's little boy who is 3 (she passed away in September). I am serving as the Relief Society President in my ward (the Relief Society is the organization for the women of the LDS Church)--our ward is wonderful and has definitely had quite a round of challenges, especially in this last while. I am thankful to be able to serve in this calling and so thankful for a supportive family and I am also thankful for the knowledge that with every call, there comes a release...Anyway, between football for my oldest, my husband coaching football for my oldest, basketball for 2 of the kids, dance for 3 of them, school for 4 of the kids, trying to help in the classes of the 3 in elem. school, trying to help two 3-year-olds who are both the youngest adjust to being together a lot and playing "joyfully", then the other family, house, neighborhood, homework stuff plus trying to help the lovely 130 ladies in Relief Society, I definitely feel I've got a few things on my plate, I'm not "unbusy." So the other day, when one of my children's newer friends was at our house, it went a little something like this:

Kid friend: "Can I have some of what you're making?" (I was finishing a batch of muddy buddies to take over to a family in our ward whose dad/grampa had just passed away. Chocolate has universal comforting properties...)

Me: "Sure"

Kid Friend: "These are good--it seems like you are always making something when I am here."

Me: "I think you're always here when I'm getting dinner ready, so that's probably true."

Kid Friend: "You know what I think? I think you've got too much time on your hands!"

Yes, Kid Friend, that's it! I have got too much time on my hands, and thank you for pointing that out to me as you eat my muddy buddies that I so graciously shared with you. I look forward to more fantastic insights...

That took me back to an incident a few months ago: I thought I was being "fun mom"-actually, I thought I was "super fun mom" while my kids were off-track from school. My 3 girls and 3 other friend girls (who didn't want to be at home by themselves) were all there and I got them all set up for a fun kitchen project with aprons and individual dishes so they could all participate and have a fun afternoon activity! I thought we were doing great when one of them asked one of my girls why I didn't have a job, because I really should be at work. Aaah, another super insight! Oh well, sorry to disappoint, little lovelies. Meanwhile, I'll just try to make sure that you have a nice (and fun) place to be with snacks and band-aids when needed. It's so nice to have "fun mom" appreciated...

Maybe I'll actually get this all figured out someday, as I do it all again tomorrow...

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!

Yes!! The most wonderful time of the year is here!! The time when those thoughtful, industrious people at the M&M/Mars Company produce, package, and deliver these lovely little delicacies to Target and not only do I get to purchase them (with a cheery smile on my face)--I get to eat them!! It was last year (I think) when I picked up a package and was expecting the same tasty minty version of the regular plain M&M's as the bag was opened on the drive home fromthe store. Not only were they bigger, cuter, and tastier than before, they were/are all the way around fantastic!! And now they are back on store shelves!! Hooray for me/ I'll have to get "more running" on my list...
**Disclaimer--if you are not a fan on mint, perhaps you may like the M&M's with almonds (yum) or with peanut butter (also yum), and you can never go wrong with the classic peanut and plain. If you are not a chocolate person, you may be able to get Kari to share some Nibs with you...

So here's the lemon part--Cael, Zander, and I were up at the school media center (uh, library) to see Miss Kylie receive a "Principal's Pride" award for her fantastic report on bats (did you know that a bat could die from being startled out of a deep sleep? I probably should do more of a thorough fact-check before I start tossing out nuggets like that one...). It was getting a little lengthy and Kylie was toward the back of the recipient group. I was attempting to entertain the 3-year-olds with fabulous literature and "Cars"-shaped Teddy Grahams when poor little Zander got a little sick and tossed his cookies, literally. We did see Kylie receive her award and notified the lucky maintainance man, Sean. We got home, had another round of cookie tossing, freshened up with a bath and jammies. Cael was thrilled to get to wear "empathy pajamas" and eat popsicles--best day of his life!! Even better, it turns out that our bar stools work great as a choo-choo train, that's the lemonade...

Good times getting together with ou Madsen cousins this weekend!! Lots of hugs and 2 questions--1.) Could it be that Cael is in pajamas again? and 2.) Could we get more things magneted to our fridge??

November Nuggets...

Translation: game is going very well (we like these kind of games)...












Loved the beautiful fall day with the crunchy crunchy leaves (not to be confused with regular crunchy)...











Love the supportive sisters-- especially those sporting smiles and striped earrings...












So thankful for siblings with special linguistic skills-Cael was asking for a show about a chocolate chip, and while it sounded tasty, I had no idea what he was talking about. Super sister Morgan came to the rescue with her translation--"Alvin and the Chipmunks meet Frankenstein!" She was right on the money-how did the mother not come up with that one??






No, this is not a refugee tent village in a faraway foreign land, it is our brand-new Chick-Fil-A with the first 100 customers (over age 18) getting ready to stay the night with their official wrist bands on so they can be there for the roll call every hour until 6 am when they each get to receive a little box that holds 52 free combo meal gift cards-wow!! The Goff's actually opted to stay home snug in our warm beds, but we did come to visit and bring a heater to our good friends, The Howard's and Debbie V., who arrived at 11:30 am and then spent an awesome afternoon, night, and early morning (they know how to commit) in the snow and now can enjoy chicken nuggets, chicken sandwiches, and fountain drinks throughout the year. They completely earned their bounty on the coldest night of the season...Way to be, guys-can I get a what-what??

Having Wonderful Time...

Don't these two look so bummed out to be playing in the freshly-fallen snow? Cael was completely thrilled to wake up to this fluffly white discovery...

It's so good to be 3...

Granny B just might be smiling down on me...

Here it is--my first grand autumnal homage to my cute Gramma Bev...
"DINNER IN A PUMPKIN"
That's right- it is dinner and it is absolutely in a pumpkin!! My Gramma Bev made this seasonal delicacy for us years ago and sent me the recipe (numerous times) years ago. (I may be slow, but I am sincere...) The fact that we dined on our meal of stuffed orange squashy goodness at the end of Fast Sunday may have contributed to its tastefulness, but 7 out of 7 Goff's approved wholeheartedly!! We will definitely go for a repeat performance next Halloween...


Oooohh, delicious!! On the thumbs down side, there was no Gramma Bev homemade strawberry-rhubarb pie with the perfect crust to round out the meal!! I do know where Marie Callendar keeps her pies and I guess I could settle for a piece of one of those. Perhaps Bev's magic pie skills skip a generation or two and one/ all of my girls can inherit them?? Not to say that my mom doesn't make a mean pie, because she does. And by "mean" I'm saying delicious and I'm also saying that pies are not my forte--eating pie,yes; making pie, sadly no. On the thumb's up side, did I mention that I made dinner in a pumpkin??

Goff Ghoulies...

The Enthusiatic Go-Go Girl...

The rough and tough pirate...

The "eat the donut off the string" awesome girl...

Happy Halloween!!

(and now it's November...)

Halloween Hoopla

So here we are for the annual photo of the costumed cousins!! Cael had had quite enough of the Buzz Lightyear suit (we're just happy he hadn't had enough of clothes, in general) and so he was the orange t-shirted happy cousin...




Mr. Curtis was "partly cloudy with a chance of rain"...






Please tell me that you see a platter of pumpkins here...

The lucky duck Jr. High kids had a day off on Halloween, so Curtis got to come see the Costume Parade at the elementary school. (Notice my good friend, Captain Jack there on my left- a kindergartner stopped in front of us and said "Oh! It's Johnny Depp!!" Yes indeed, Johnny is quite something...)

And Mr. Curtis can now check this one of of his "life list"--he got to carve a puking pumpkin, an absolute dream come true!! He knew his jack-o-lantern was a total success when one of our first trick-or-treaters came by and said "that pumpkin looks like he's throwing up!" Right on...

I'm available for parties...

Backyard haircuts (in the chilly autumn "breeze") just work out great for all parties involved!! I really seem to have quite a way with the scissors and I do think I have found my true calling-at least everyone leaves with a smile on their face...

Simple Joys (fall edition)

So this first one is the farthest thing from a "joy"- I was chatting with a friend at church yesterday outside of the nursery, as Mr. Cael had no interest in attending and playing with his peers, whatever...Cael basically stayed in my pocket, but then ventured right across the hall to the bathrooms where he got his fingers caught in the hinge side of the bathroom door-OUCCCHHHHH!! His poor little fingers looked "not good," but fortunately with some cold running water and serious TLC and the good fortune (??) of being squished between his knuckles instead of on his knuckles (eeww), he is on the mend and is going to make a full recovery! Amazingly, or not amazingly, his biggest concern after the initial painful shock of squishy and tears, was to peel the loose skin off of the back of his dented fingers. He had to do that immediately so that he could continue to live on this planet (maybe just a little OCD??)...

This is the good stuff here-3 year old humor is the best!! These 2 could not have been more pleased with themselves and their clever use of Mr. PotatoHead props (fyi- we've got Darth Tater and Donald Duck going on here)!! It's pure comedic gold...








This absolutely makes my fall!! We have been waiting 4 long years for our burning bush to burn....








This is the "did she actually mean to take a picture of that?" shot and she actually did- this is my new ironing board cover that I did this weekend, compliments of cute Nadine at Material Girls Quilts(thanks Nadine!!). I was a winner of a blog comment contest she did and I do love my ironing board! This was a fun and quick little project-I still don't really want to use the iron, though...