Update

Sorry it has been awhile since my last post but there hasn't been too much excitement around here.  

Both of the kids are doing really well.  Emma just blows me away with her vocabulary.  She not only knows where all of her body parts are but she names them too!=)  Both she and Tyler have been doing a lot of pretend play together so come Christmas time the two of them are going to be in heaven with the arrival of Emma's deluxe kitchen.  She is still over the top obsessed with all things girly.  She always has a bow in her hair, a necklace around her neck, and some princess memorabilia in her hand.  

Every once in awhile my arms get lonely for a baby but then I think, "Good God, are you nuts!!!!!  Do you really want to go through all of that again?"  and I snap right out of it.    Babies are sweet and cuddly and wonderful but they require 100% of your time and attention.  It is really nice finally having toddlers who can be left alone for a few minutes while I grab a quick shower.

Last weekend we went to the Oro Valley Christmas Parade.  It was kind of a sad parade but the kids really seemed to enjoy themselves.  We found a spot that was not at all crowded so the kids were able to wander around while we waited for it to begin.  They had a hard time staying still and both seemed to want to be in it more than they wanted to watch it!

They finally spotted the beginning after a long wait.

Here he is taking pictures with the toy camera that he got there.

After church and naps on Sunday we drove up to Chandler to visit our friends and tenants Alan and Gretchen.  Grethen just had a beautiful little boy named Carson.  The kids were excited because the swing set is still in the yard and so is their sandbox--we never moved it down here because of our scorpion problem.  Our little daredevil, Emma just bailed off down the slide without a care in the world.  There was one stressful moment to the day and that was when Berkley, aka Marley, grabbed Emma's Cinderella and ran off with it in his mouth.  Everyone started yelling at once so the poor dog thought it was play time.  We did manage to get "Ra" back but he got banned to the crate for the remainder of the visit.

It has been pretty chilly the last few days and we have even had some rain.  It is nice to be able to dress in the few cold weather clothes that we have.

Marshall also enjoys it because both of the kids will cuddle up with him on the chair or couch for a little football viewing.

A Mom's work is never done!

You may have seen this before but it made me smile this morning and I thought that I would pass it along to my fellow moms out there!  

Click here to view

Have a great day and know that you are an amazing mom!=)

Our first Santa sighting

Santa was at story time today.  They announced that he would be coming a few weeks ago so I made sure it was on the calendar so that we would not miss it.    Emma has learned to say Santa and Ho Ho Ho and we have been reading lots of Christmas stories so the kids were both very excited.

As you can imagine every child under the age of five in Oro Valley that was not at daycare was in attendance.  I felt so sorry for the poor Santa because it was crowded and hot.  He kept saying, "I forgot how warm it is here in Arizona at Christmas time:" as he was sweating his ass off in his costume!

Both of the kids were big eyed as he entered the room but neither of them really wanted to get too close.  He was a good Santa and sang songs and read to the kids.

I tried to get them to sit on his lap but Emma freaked out so I didn't push her.  Tyler said he would talk to him but that he was not going to sit on his lap.  He visited with him for a minute then as we walked away he looked at me with big panicky eyes and said, "Mommy, I forgot to tell Santa what I wanted for Christmas!!!"  I told him that it was ok and that we could just write him a letter and tell him.  I tried explaining that it was so busy there that Santa might forgot or might not be able to hear him so a letter would work great.  Tyler wasn't buying it and started to get worked up so we went back over and managed to sneak a quick visit in while a mom was fixing her daughter's hair for their photo op. He told him his wish and all was right with the world.  

I really am not sure that I am going to take them to the mall and do pictures this year.  If they wouldn't sit with him at the library I REALLY doubt they will do it there..and besides the Santa at the mall charges $25 for a stinking picture!

Tyler is funny!

Tyler has developed quite the sense of humor lately.  I have noticed that he really enjoys making people laugh.  He often says things that he doesn't realize are funny at first, but as soon as we laugh he grins his little "oh, I meant you to laugh at that grin".  It always amazes me what his little mind is thinking.

Here are a few of his funny moments of the past week or so.....

--Emma was acting silly one afternoon and I called her a silly goose.  She did something else cute and Tyler looked at me and said, "Mom, Emma sure is a piece of work!" 

--He and I were face to face and we were giggling about something when he looked at me and said, "Mommy, why are your eyes cracked?"  (He meant the crow's feet!)

--He did something that was naughty the other day and when I asked him if he thought Elvis (the elf) would be happy about it.  He said no, but then looked at me and said, "Mom, if Elvis isn't happy with me then why is he still smiling?"

--One of Emma's favorite words is poop.  As soon as we go outside she makes it her mission to find all the wiener dog poop in the yard.  I try to clean it all up, but on occasion I miss a piece or two.  Yesterday after I had already cleaned it up Emma spotted a piece and was yelling, "poop poop!"  I told her to leave it alone and go play...I went back to reading my magazine.  The next thing I hear is Tyler quietly saying, "Hey Emma, poop is really yummy."  You never saw my fat butt move so fast!!!

--Marshall was playing with Tyler and then Tyler came over by me.  Marshall wanted Tyler to come back over by him so he said his name.  Tyler turned around and said, "What do you want old man?"  (That one could be my fault!=)

Tyler is a crack up and I am entertained by him each and every day!

Family Pictures

I got all my Christmas cards done and mailed so I thought that I would finally post the family pictures that we had taken.

Click here to view them.  

I know that I am biased beyond all belief, but I sure do think those are some cute kids!=)

Welcome back Elvis

Just like the commercial says, "having children changes everything".  My first Christmas as a parent I decided that I was going to start some traditions that we would do every year and that hopefully my kids would cherish and continue on with them when they had their own familes. Some of the things that we do are....the kids get to open a present on Christmas Eve...this present is ALWAYS going to be new pj's so the pictures look good in the morning!=), Santa brings ONE gift (after all, he can't carry too much in that sleigh (the rest are from mom, dad, and family), Santa leaves a bell from his sleigh along with a thank you note for the milk and cookies, we are going to have birthday cake for Jesus, and Elvis hangs out at our house for the month leading up to Christmas!!!  Yes, you read that correctly, I said Elvis hangs out here at my house!=)

Elvis is the name that we gave our Elf on the Shelf.  My sister, Marie, gave him to us last year. The Elf on the Shelf is a book that she got that basically tells the story of this elf that comes to your house and watches over the kids.  He flies to the North Pole each night to report to Santa about the kid's behavior.  The next morning he is sitting somewhere different so the kids KNOW that he left and returned!  He sure helped to keep Tyler in check last year!=)

We got the tree up today.  I decided not to spend my holiday season yelling at the kids so I didn't hang up all my good ornaments and went easy on the decorations.  I let the kids help decorate the tree that went out front and they were good watchers when Marshall put up the tree.  Tyler did help me with some of my family ornaments before he went to bed but I finished the rest after the kids were asleep.  

Happy Thanksgiving

Marie came to stay with us for this week so we had lots of fun with her.  Tyler is quite concerned about the fires in CA so he has been trying to convince her to move here to Tucson where it is safe...keep your fingers crossed that his big blue eyes will be able to convince her!=)

On Monday we all went went for a walk, it was pretty cool in the morning so I bundled the kids. They got quite a kick out of having to wear gloves.

My friend, Marie, had a hair appointment on Monday so we watched Evan for a few hours.  I guess since I already have Tyler married off I might as well do so with Emma.  Here are she and Evan having a quick smooch!=)

Tuesday we went to the Y in the morning and then dropped Tyler off at school.  Marie and I went home and showered and she, Emma, and I went to the grocery store.  After we had lunch and got Emma down for her nap Marie stayed here while I went to Target to get some Christmas shopping finished up.  She even helped me wrap everything I had bought.  Have I told you that I wish she lived here?!!  That evening Marie and Tyler did some baking, he enjoyed being her big helper=).  

Wednesday we again went to the Y, but when we were finished instead of going home we went to stand in line at Costco for pies and rolls.  You might think that sounds crazy, but there is only one Costco on this side of town and when they run out you are pretty much out of luck. When I called the night before to find out what time they opened I was told that there would be at least five hundred people through the doors the first hour so I should get there early.  The kids were very patient and we scored enough rolls for our Thanksgiving dinner.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day with our friends the Valenzuelas.  They have a big family and always include in-laws and strays like us.  There were about 48 people at dinner.  The kids did awesome.  Tyler got a bit revved up toward the end of the night but I think drinking soda and eating a plate of cool whip had something to do with that!=)

This was the first year that he sat at the kid's table and didn't require me being right there next to him.  He loves playing with all the big boys and they are so good to him.

Emma was also fascinated with all the pretty "big girls".  

I have so much to be thankful for.....two beautiful healthy children, a kind, caring, funny man who is not only my husband but also my best friend, a wonderful family, and supportive friends. I am thankful to God for such a good life.  I hope that each of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I love you all and am so glad that you are in my life.

PS-I got my picture CD but I decided not to post any until after I send out my Christmas cards!  The pictures came out great.  I am so pleased with them.  Here is a tiny sneak peak!=)