Christmas

We had an amazing Christmas. Sean worked Christmas Eve and through the night which was VERY lonely, but he was able to be home on Christmas so we were grateful. In fact, the kids decided to sleep in (which was like a little Christmas miracle in itself) so Sean got home before they even woke up.

She-She didn't want to come down to see what Santa brought at first. She had been up in the night with a low fever and was content to lay in her bed. We had to almost BEG her to come down so we could start the festivities. But, once we got going, it was so much fun.

Both kids loved ripping off wrapping paper. Bigdog was an excellent help at getting everything unwrapped. We noticed that She-She was very careful when unwrapping anything that belonged to her, but wasn't shy when it came to destroying anyone elses wrapping job.

We had so much fun just being together. It was a thrill to experience that little kid Christmas excitement through Bigdog and She-She. It lasted the whole day and they sure kept us busy.

Santa filled the stockings but didn't leave any presents under the tree. Mom and Dad gave one or two small presents. But WAIT! What is that in the garage! (we moved it outside later)

Santa left a whole swing set in the garage! And let me tell you. I know the elves had TONS of fun putting it together. In fact, sometimes I think the elves might have a hard time giving the credit to Santa when THEY do all the work.

Now, I bet you are wondering, "Do you have some extra kids stashed somewhere because that is an awefully big swing set." And all I have to say is that old Mr. Claus is an amazing guy and this swing set was the most efficient (cheapest) way to go. Even more so than the smaller versions. So this was the big gift that the kiddies recieved.

You also might be thinking, "Hmmmm, it looks COLD out there." Why yes it is! But She-She is a huge fan of swinging and can't get enough. For the next three days she braved the 21 degree weather to play outside for at least a half an hour. Then a snow storm came. But we cant wait until the snow melts again-and even better- until spring is here.

So, we ate good food all day, played with toys, froze outside on the swing set (in a good way), remembered the true meaning of Christmas, and just had a really great time being a family.

Yay For 6 Years!

Happy anniversary to us! In six years a lot has happened. We earned two bachelor degrees, one doctorate, we moved twice, had two kids, bought a house, made it through med school and started residency. Wow. And more in love than when it all began.

This picture looks ancient because the quality is really bad. It was taken at beloved Mountain Plaza a day or so after we got engaged .

Here is one of our official engagement pics.


And the big day at the Mesa Arizona Temple

What more can I say? We are happily married. :)

Here are some pictures we took in honor of Christmas. Can I just say it is so hard to get a good picture of these little monsters? I know it is the same with all kids. How do you get them to smile, NICELY, at the same time. Actually, it is impossible. Not to mention I am not very good with a camera (more on that later). But- they do look spiffy in their Sunday dress!

Bigdog is staring at spiderman lurking on the ceiling above She-She...I guess.

She-She is comforting her baby Kira.

Daddy is making funny faces.

This might be the winner. They both are looking at the camera in a calm way.

And a dose of sweetness. She-She got this coat from her great grandparents. Very cute.

Mixing Bowls

I was putting away dishes and left the cabinet unlocked...

Caught!

Making Dinner

"Oh! Now this is a good idea!"

It looks like so much fun, how can she resist?

At Our House

First of I want to address an issue I have been thinking about lately. It is this. Why do my kids never have clothes on. Actually, it is mostly She-She. Ever since she was little she hated wearing clothes. And in the hot Tucson weather I felt bad forcing her into anything but a diaper. Now, three years later, she still refuses to wear pants. If I get her to put them on in the morning. She'll do something like purposely spill water on them, "Uh, oh. My pants are wet. I better take them off!" I have been pondering this delima because so many times I want to post pictures and either She-She or Bigdog is not fully clothed. It seems innocent but we are trying to stress strict levels of modesty so putting pictures up for all to see is not the best example. Anyway, how do you get your kids to keep their clothes on?



Here are some recent pictures. She-SHe and Bigdog having a tea party. This is almost a daily event in our house. So if you are ever interested, She-She is a wonderful host and you are invited.

Now the latest weather report. A few weeks ago we got a nice snow storm and cold front. We got 14 inches of snow and for over a week the highs never got above 24 degrees. When Sean would leave in the morning it would be around -2 degress. Once it was -7. This meant the snow was very dry (no snowmen yet) and didn't melt. I think it did evaporate a little. Then we got a second storm and temperatures were warmer so finally it was the big day. Here is the the person of honor, made out of snow, standing in our back yard. After Sean had thrown some snowballs, scared She-She inside, and tackled me a few times, we went in and had grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. This was followed by warm showers and a tea party where we practiced throwing chocolate covered cashews in the air and catching them in our mouths. It was a magical day.

My Boy

Bigdog turned one! What a big kid. His latest favorites are hiding under a blanket to play peekaboo, and putting toys/blocks/whatever in and out of containers or baskets. He is very good at talking-we just can't understand what he says. He does say mom and dad. I have also heard him say uh-oh, cheese, and boo. As for walking, he is not interested AT ALL. He has been crawling for so long and is very fast. Why walk? He is very active so I thought he would walk early, or at least before She-She did (at 13 months). But he is perfectly happy to buzz around on his knees. I am now thinking that he might wait longer than She-She because I just don't see him walking within the next four weeks. He doesn't even stand on his own.

Anyway, here are pictures of his big day.

This is the face we get when the camera comes out. His cute scrunchy smile.

He has two teeth on the bottom and just cut two more on top

Like the drool?

He is so happy he got She-She's mirror.

The lettering on the cake is made of Air Heads. Note: I thought it would be so easy to cut these out with a pizza cutter-it was NOT! Airheads are either REALLY sticky or very hard. There is no inbetween. I was imagining playdoe...not so much.

He has no clue what is going on

This is Bigdog putting the candle out...with his fingers. Oops. We weren't fast enough and he grabbed the flame. I dont know if it burned him. He just looked stunned but didn't cry. And didnt want to touch the cake after that.

Finally, with some persuasion, he ventured to touch the cake again. Then decided he liked frosting. YUM

Happy Birthday Bigdog!

Magical