Lately...

Lately we've been busy getting ready for Christmas. I've almost gotten all my Christmas shopping done and wrapped. Lillie found the trampoline that was going to be pretty much the only thing the kids were getting this year a week or so ago. So, we've put it up in the yard and the kids have loved jumping on it. Good call on the tramp! Henry has still managed to fall off twice, but has not slowed him down. This weekend we finally got around to putting up some Christmas lights on the house. My kids LOVE seeing the Christmas lights around the neighborhood and town. It's still warm enough in the evening to go on walks and check out the lights. SO FUN! That is one good thing about Californians. I don't know if it's because it's not too cold and so they'll stay outside longer to put up all their lights or if it's because they're trying to compensate for the lack of winter weather, but there are so many decorated houses around us. It's great! We had our ward Christmas party on Saturday and Santa was there walking around during dinner to give candy canes to the kids. Henry ran straight over to him and gave him a big hug when he first saw him. It was cute. He is crazy about Christmas. He asks daily if Santa's coming today. He boasts about being on the "naughty ist" as if that's the cool thing to do. He is always talking about the Buzz Lightyear gun that Santa WILL bring him. Anyway, there was a really impressive program at the party and Lillie held the star during the Nativity Song. We were lucky enough to be able to get some time off, so we will be driving to WA for a week to spend Christmas with my family. It's been a long time since we've been there for Christmas, so I'm really excited. Well, excited for everything but the drive. I'm just worried about the road conditions. Fingers crossed! Lillie had her last day of preschool last week. We had to take her out because it was too expensive. She loved it and I loved it, but we just couldn't justify the price. So we'll be having school at home instead. On the last day as we were driving home I looked in my rear view mirror to see silent, giant tears rolling down Lillie's face. It absolutely broke my heart. She is quite the social butterfly and will miss preschool.

Happy Thanksgiving 2012

Today I am so thankful for my little family. I feel so blessed to have the three of them in my life. They bring me such happiness and joy, I often wonder how I got so lucky. I love you guys! I am also thankful for Eric's and my family, I wish that we were able to spend today with them. But I am so grateful to have friends who are celebrating Thanksgiving with us, the Thomas' have been such a blessing for us and our kids. I don't know how we would have survived living here without them. They're awesome. I am thankful for Eric's job and that I am able to stay home to be with my kids, I love it. And most of all I am thankful for a loving Heavenly Father. Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

Merry Christmas!

This Monday we traded off picture taking with our friends. This is the best one of us. Both Lillie and Henry had their moments of not cooperating, so I'm very glad to get ONE. Just need to photoshop out a few crazy stands of my hair. This will probably be the Christmas card. Send me your address if you want one. :)

Christmas Outfits

My kids wore the Christmas church clothes that my parents sent them today. They looked soo cute in them, but wouldn't cooperate enough to be in a picture at the same time. Sometimes we struggle.

My Birthday Pic

Sunset of my Life

Took this picture on Monday at Wall Beach. It's kind of a metaphor for my life. The sun is setting on my 20's. Last Friday I turned 29 and for the last month or so I've kind of been freaking out about oh no, the past 9 years were supposed to be the highlight of my life?? I've felt like the last 9 years were all school, school, school and poor, poor, super poor. So I've been worried about what I needed to do to make this next year the best ever. Now that I've had my birthday (and am therefore, older and wiser), I've decided that my life so far has been just fine, great even, and that anything to make this next year awesome would be really expensive and therefore out of the question. It is a pretty sunset, though.

Finally, Halloween 2012

Our New Fave Beach

Saturday evening we headed out to Wall Beach, a beach on the AFB. The beaches had just reopened after the unfortunate fatal shark attack that happened earlier this week just down the coast at Surf Beach. We didn't know much about this particular beach but the weather was so hot that day that we knew we'd better take advantage of it. Wall Beach is our favorite kind of beach: kinda rocky, with cliffs, and tidepools. We found starfish and urchins and dead crabs. It was so beautiful and of course we didn't bring a camera, so we used Eric's phone, which is why the pics are so blurry. Best thing is that it's only 15 minutes from our house! I hope this hot weather continues just a little longer so that we can get back there again.

Pumpkin Carving

It's finally close enough to Halloween to carve our pumpkins!  Talk about a wild Friday night, right?  Anway, Halloween tunes played courtesy of Pandora while we tried to not cut ourselves with the knife or touch the slimy innards.  Lillie's pumpkin face was an original, designed by her (cut out by her dad, obviously).  She was particularly proud of how her jagged teeth turned out.  Very scary.  Henry's attention span was about 3 minutes, so I worked out your typical jack-o-lantern expression solito.  I think he approved though.  Good times!

Trunk or Treat 2012

Wolf on the Prowl



Showing his Beastly Side

Bean Bag Toss

Red Riding Hood, Granny, Wolf and Woodsman

Close up of Henry's Chocolate Mug

Avila Farm and Beach

Last Friday, Eric had work off and because he was going to be spending that night and Saturday morning on a scout campout, we decided to make most of the day by heading up to Avila Beach.  We first stopped at farm to feed the animals, eat icecream and cobbler, walk out to the orchard and pumpkin patch and stock up on apples pulled straight from the tree.  After that, we went out on the pier to watch the pelicans and seals play.  The weather was so hot and of course we dressed in jeans, so we were sweating, but I'm not complaining.  It was heavenly.  And it forced us to play in the freezing cold Pacific afterwards.  So lastly, we headed to the beach to play in the water and sand.  Lillie found cool shells and rocks and Henry spend the entire time rolling around in the sand.

Henry hurt his ankle on the slide at the park the day before and was limping around a little so we thought it would be faster to have him ride in a stroller.  He loved being in that thing.

Obviously this was not me taking this picture.  I would never let my kid touch a wild animal.  It is dangerous and germy.  Eric said the pelican didn't even move.

Sunbathing Harbor Seal

Also a picture not taken by me.  I don't like getting close to wildlife.

These security guys came by and sprayed the seal until it got back in the water.  He did not like it and was growling loudly.

Yes, I am that white trash parent that lets my kids run around in their undies at the beach.  It was sooo hot, you had to get wet.  You just gotta do what you gotta do.

As you can see, Henry is wearing a princess pull-up (leftovers from Lillie).  We are potty training and he's doing quite well.  He went the whole day without wetting his pull-up and went on a public toilet for the first time.

Ready for Halloween

Finished the last details of our Halloween costumes for this year. Whew, so glad to be done with those. If you can't tell, Lillie is Little Red Riding Hood and Henry is the Wolf. He does a pretty mean howl too. I was happy to see that he'd even wear his costume, especially the hood. Let's hope they're still compliant on Halloween night.

Family Photos on Biloxi Beach

My crazy talented friend, Krista, took pictures of our family before we left Mississippi this summer. She did such a great job, my kids were NOT easy to photograph. These are some of my faves: