Nativity

We had a fabulous visit with family this past weekend. We attended a gorgeous display of over 1000 nativity scenes from around the world.

There were so many beautiful ones, it's hard to name favorites.

This live one made up of our kids and some of their cousins will be one we won't soon forget though. It was fun for all and very cute!

Proof...

It snowed in Austin last week. Here's the proof.

We saw it, falling down in thick flakes! Our kids ran and played in it with delight. It lasted about an hour, then it stopped. Nothing stuck. That's ok though, because it was a fun treat while it lasted, and then the sun came back out.

We sure love living in Austin!

Front yard fun...

Everytime we get near the door, Cameron is ready to go outside. He just LOVEs to be outside. So, this day we just lingered and I let him wander around to his hearts content.


He wanted to climb trees, so we did that. He collected rocks, picked up sticks, dumped out our cats water dish, and l00ked f0r bugs.

It was a good time. He's quite the little outdoorsman. :-)

Appreciation

My kids celebrated Veterans day recently. Austin joined other uniformed cub scouts in a flag ceremony at the school assembly. Brooke wore her patriotic red, white and blue clothes. Cameron and I stayed for the assembly to snap a few pictures and I'm so glad we did.

Veterans day is a holiday that I don't always acknowledge the way I should. I was grateful for the opportunity that the school gave me, to remember and honor the men and women who have sacrificed and those who continue to fight for our country and our freedom.

I thoroughly enjoyed the heartfelt tribute to our nations heroes. The music, the visiting soldiers and veterans, the flag ceremony were all part of a very patriotic morning. I'm thankful that my kids attend a school where their country is honored, freedom is cherished and the veterans were remembered. I know I would not have done them justice if I had tried to convey the importance of this holiday at home.

I'm proud to be an American and so glad my kids are too!

Grounded

Last week, my kids were melting down and got in a big argument with eachother. As a consequence, they were sent to their rooms. When they continued to be mad and cry, etc... I went so far as to "ground them." They had to stay in their rooms the entire afternoon and evening.

The poor children didn't even get to come out of their rooms for dinner.

Aren't I a mean Mommy?

Of course I fed them. I brought it to them in their rooms. Hmmm, punishment for them, or more work for me?

Regardless, I had to follow through with the punishment. So, they ate in their rooms, did homework in their rooms, laid on their beds, messed around, etc.

As seen in the pictures below, they were really sad about the whole thing . . .



Brooke set up a cute little "tea party" for her dinner and it was so much fun that Cameron wanted to join her. What a punishment, to get to break the regular rules of not eating upstairs and have a party with her stuffed bunny and little brother. :-)

Austin had it pretty rough too. He got to eat as he lay around in bed, in his underwear, reading a book and having time to himself. Isn't it supposed to make you unhappy when you get grounded?? They were so mad to be confined to their rooms and then they realized that is was not so bad.

In the end, I think my mission was accomplished though. There were no more arguments in our house that evening. The down time did them some good . . . I hope.

Can you say Pack Rat?

Ummm, I'm actually a little embarrassed to admit this, but found it humorous enough to record for the memory.

I went into my closet this morning and noticed that I really needed to do a little organizing of my things. I decided to start with a couple of purses/bags that are out of rotation. I use a purse for a few months and often get bored and switch it out for a different or new one. When I make the switch, I'm not always great at cleaning the old one out COMPLETELY. I usually take my wallet and a few necessities and leave the rest to be cleaned out later, when I have more time.

Luckily I had the time today. Imagine my surprise when, between 2 purses, I came across...

$180.00 - yes, $180.00 dollars, not including coins, which there were plenty of.

(I had collected most of the money as reimbursement for various school things that I covered last school year and then never deposited!!)

I also found -

4 unused gift certificates for stores and spas. :-) I actually realized that these were missing, so was very happy to recover them.

13 different lip glosses - good lip glosses, several of them my favorites from VS. And I thought my daughter had been swiping them!

5 tubes of chap stick - Why do I continue to buy more? Oh, because they were lost in the black hole of a large unused purse and we couldn't find any when our lips were chapped.

9 lip liners. No wonder I have been down to the same one for quite a while. I thought it rather curious that they had all disappeared.

2 cases of eye shadow, 2 eye brow pencils, and my favorite mascara

2 containers of concealer make-up and a compact of powder. (it's like I went shopping for make up!)

2 pairs of nail clippers and some tweezers - we are always in short supply of these around our house, little did I know they were hiding here all along.

A stash of about 15-20 pens & pencils.

The list goes on and on. There were lots of other useful items such as hair clips, pony tail holders, business cards, granola bars, crayons, receipts, thank you notes, and plenty of trash to get rid of.

I really surprised myself with the amount of valuable stuff that was shoved away in an unorganized closet. It motivated me to:

A: Keep less junk in my purse. Like, seriously, I think one lip gloss can do the trick.

B. Clean out my bags more thoroughly before making the switch to the next one

C. Use smaller purses, because hello! I tend to fill them with stuff that just ends up lost in there.

D. Clean out my closet more often, who knows what valuables lay waiting for me to discover them!


Anyway, now I'm gonna go put on some of my new make up, go shopping with my gift certificates and make an appointment to use my spa gift! It's like my birthday! Hooray for the benefits of cleaning today. :-)

I love this town

I just have to say that I really love where we live. We've been so happy here and it's for lots of great reasons. I particularly love the community feel that we have here. We had a great time going to some local shops that were hosting trick or treating and running into friends and neighbors. It's nice that those sort of activities still exist in communities and we're so lucky to live in one.

Showering my sweet friend

It was both my privilege and my pleasure to help throw a baby shower for my dear friend who is expecting a precious baby boy in a few weeks. We had fun celebrating with her. Babies are wonderful and the end of pregnancy is certainly a reason to celebrate!

We reserved a pavillion at a great new park for the occasion. We had plenty of good food and lots of good friends. What could be better? It was a gorgeous day and everyone seemed to enjoy the great outdoors.


The shower was fun, she's all stocked up on diapers and now we just have to wait a few weeks... can't wait to meet the little man!

Sticky situation...

I have decided that two year olds aren't terrible, they are just really curious. Case in point... Cameron got a hold of a bottle of wood glue this week. (compliments of Dad leaving it out.)

He wasn't trying to be terrible when he took the lid off. He was just curious. He wondered what would happen when he dumped the stuff inside out. He found out that it was really sticky. He promptly called it my attention and asked for some assistance. :0)

I tried hard to get it all washed up as quick as I could, but still found out that glue dries rather crunchy on carpet if you don't get it all out. ( I thought I did get it, but judging by the crunchy carpet, I didn't.)

I learned a couple things that day.

First, Cameron is quite curious, not terrible, but quite a handful at 2 years old. I need to keep him a little more engaged so he doesn't keep finding things to get into. He's still really easy to love though and cute even when he's naughty!

Second, we should really not keep carpenter's glue out within the reach of little ones.

Third... well, I'm going to need to limit my computer time, because all of the mischievous things that Cameron has done lately seem to happen when I'm online checking my email or on Facebook or something of that sort. It's easy for kids to make messes when Mommy is distracted!

And that's my cue to get off the computer...

Slipping through my fingers all the time...

I love watching them grow, but I sure wish I could slow it down some times!

Cameron is getting to be such a big boy!

Fabulous Family Night

Every now and then, we have one of those days, or moments, or evenings that is just perfect and that we remember forever. This month we had one of those evenings with our family. After a relaxing family evening by the fire, and great lesson together, we all headed outside to the backyard. We played a make-shift game of "baseball/T-ball" with everybody. It was SO much fun!
The kids enjoyed a fabulous treat of candy apples and we played and played and played together.

Everyone had a great time. They've been asking to duplicate the night, ever since we had it.

The teams were boys against girls, although Cameron decided to join both teams and helped us out by hitting the ball, then going after it and getting it himself. It was hilarious and so fun to watch.

Thanks to Dad for the candy apples and the coaching.

Thanks to the kids for being so awesome.

We love spending time with them. We love playing with them. We love teaching them.

This evening was special though, we had such a great time together.

It's one of those memories that we'll cherish forever.

We have our share of family nights that are challenging. We keep trying though and nights like this one, are the ones that help us realize how precious the time with our family should be. So we tuck this memory away and we keep trying to make all of our family nights so special.

My "sweet" son...

I made you some brownies Mom!

My sweet Austin is so thoughtful. He loves to do special little things for us. He can often be found in the kitchen on a weekend morning, whipping up some breakfast for the fam and bringing it to his sleepy parents in bed. He likes to cook! I knew that and have tried to encourage it.

I was still surprised by his sweet gesture last week though. I was in the other room, working on a project with Brooke and could hear Austin doing something in the kitchen. He came over and smiled at me, begging me not to go in the kitchen. I agreed and honestly thought he was doing the dishes for me until I started getting whiffs of yummy smelling brownies in the air.

Austin had baked up some brownies for his chocolate loving Mama and was quite pleased with himself. I was pleased too actually, they were delicious! I was so impressed that he not only knew exactly what my favorite treat would be, but he knew how to make them, bake them and clean up after himself! He insisted that I have the first one and then asked me to please have one more before we rushed off to Cub Scouts.

Those were some good brownies! I ate way more than I should have over the following couple of days, but the pride in my little man's eyes was worth every extra calorie, that's for sure!

I sure love this little guy. He's more and more like a young man every day. Stay little Austin!! I'm not ready for you to grow up. (Although, I do like your baking!)

Day at the Park

Rocky Mountain National Park, that is.

We could have spent a week here and not been sick of it. This is a gorgeous place and we were there at a gorgeous time of year. It was lots of fun for everyone. It helped that we had great company, of course!

I'm only a little jealous that my husband gets to go back and see the fam and the awesome scenery. OK, I'm a lot jealous. Too bad he's sick and won't be able to enjoy it as much as planned. Hope he takes lots of pictures!! ( and gives lots of hugs, with a mask on, of course.)

Summer fun at Grandma's House!

Brooke was in constant pose mode at Grandma's house this summer. Everywhere we looked it was beautiful and "perfect for a picture." So, she smiled and posed and smiled and posed. I'm so glad she did, because it's fun to remember what a gorgeous day it was and what a precious daughter I have!

Cameron had a ball this summer exploring the great outdoors at Grandma's house this summer. He got to climb, throw rocks, pick grass, feed the goat, pet the dog . . . and the cats. He had a ball just being free to play and run outside in the gorgeous Colorado summer weather.

Can't beat that view from Grandma's front porch and back yard huh?

Yep, broken.

As strange as it sounds, my fragile little princess actually broke her toe sitting in a chair yesterday!

She twisted it just right and her little toe got bent backwards. I knew she was hurting, it was obvious by her screaming. I honestly thought she'd forget about it though. A bath, an ice pack, propping up on a pillow and some ibuprofen later, she wouldn't even let me touch it and definitely wouldn't walk on it.

Certainly, she just needed to rest. You know how kids can overreact when they're exhausted. I made sure she stayed in bed and got plenty of sleep last night.

I was quite surprised when she still wouldn't walk on it this morning, and cringed when we tried to examine her. She said it still hurt really bad and that she thought it was "fractured." I was skeptical of that, but decided we should have it checked anyway.

Well, it turns out she was right.

A few hours later after visiting our friendly neighborhood clinic and having some x-rays examined, it was confirmed that she indeed fractured her little toe. She called it like it was & I will not doubt her again. :-)

I'm still a little baffled, but thankful that it wasn't anything more.

She sure loved looking at her x-rays!

A nice surprise!

So there I was, standing at the kitchen sink (in grubby sweats, no doubt) washing dishes while Cameron helped, of course. John had left for a trip to Houston, so it was just me and Cam. I wasn't expecting anyone, so the sudden repeated doorbell ringing was certainly a surprise!

I'll admit I was a little creeped out when I went to look out the window and saw no one at the door. (My mind began to wander back to episodes of "Criminal Minds.") However, upon further investigation, I discovered that indeed it was not a stranger lurking at the door, but a lovely delivery that my thoughtful husband (& son) had dropped by on their way out of town.

It was a wonderful surprise. The flowers have blossomed beautifully and have continued to brighten my day for many days. There's nothing quite like being thought of, just because someone thinks you're special. It meant a lot to me and was definitely worth remembering with a picture.

Thanks honey! That was an awesome thing to do. :-)

Look Who's two!

Cameron turned two and we were all very excited to celebrate with him!

The kids lead the way with decorating the house the night before, so Cameron could wake up to birthday festivities.

We didn't have a big party, but we certainly made him our prince for the day. He even got a nice visit from friends. I don't know that any other 2 year old boy is loved quite so much.

Austin and Brooke helped decorate the cake for Cameron with farm animals and tractors, complete with a road made of smashed graham crackers.

Cameron loved it, in many ways. :-) He liked the toys enough that he licked them clean and the cake wasn't bad either.

In fact, Mommy made a teddy bear cake in addition to the other one, so there was plenty of cake to go around! Cameron was thrilled that he was allowed to eat it his hearts content, and he certainly did that.

We got Cameron his own scooter for his birthday and he LOVES it! He hopped right on and started scooting all around the house. He rides it all over the place and lately he even likes to give his toys rides on it with him. It's very cute.

Cameron has grown up so much this past year and developed into such a funny little guy. He's a great blend of cuddly and energetic, articulate and baby-talk, sweet and sassy. It has been such a fun time to watch him grow and learn. He's a full fledged toddler now and still makes us laugh out loud every day. He's adorable and wonderful and we all love him so much.

My favorite Cameron word that has come and gone this year is:

"wowie" = shower ( now he just calls it shower, and he really loves to take them)

We really love the way he will look at us with his trademark mischievous dimpled grin and turn his eyes up, looking to the side like he's planning something wonderful. It's hilarious and precious all at once.

We love the way he cuddles, and kisses and still rubs his belly when he says please("cheese.")

We love the way he says, "watch me dive" and then points his hands in front of him before he jumps off the couch.

We love his obsession with shoes and being outdoors, petting the cat, looking at birds or examining bugs.

I love how he snuggles up to stuffed animals and says, "awwww."

I love the gleeful smile that lights up his face when he comes aross his blankie. I love watching him snuggle up with it and giggle.

I love Cameron's emerging personality, indepencnce, and sense of humor. He is wonderful and precious and I'm looking forward to many more years of being his Mama.

Happy 2nd Birthday little buddy!

As an added bonus to our lovely Colorado trip, we got to celebrate Cameron's birthday again with family. He shared a celebration with his older cousin and had a fun time being honored and smiled at by everyone as he opened his gifts. The little guinea pig shown in the picture was a big hit. He still plays with it all the time. :-)

Happy Birthday Cameron! We love you!

I'm back... I hope

A friend of mine recently said that she had taken a leave of absence from her blog. It sounded all too familiar and I realized how long it has been since I've found the time to post.

When things get so busy that I can't even get phone calls or quality time with my kids in, blogging has to take a back seat. However, since this is my way of documenting memories, it's important to me that I stay more current than I have lately. I needed to get back on the wagon. So, here I am, on the blogging wagon. :-)

It seems like I blinked and summer was gone. So, as hard as it might be, I'm going to attempt to re-cap some of the highlights in my next few posts. These will include the 4th of July, Cameron's 2nd birthday, our trip to Colorado and visit with family there, Austin's 9th birthday, the beginning of school. . . see how fast it goes??

We had a lot of nice family time this summer. We played, we swam, we ate yogurt a few times :-) and we enjoyed the break from the schedule. Now we're back in the swing of things and fall is upon us. We're excited for this fabulous time of year and all that comes with it.

Here's to crisp mornings and playing outside on cool afternoons, scarecrows, changing leaves, pumpkin carving and trick or treating. Here's to fall! We love fall!

Face Painting fun...

I am soooooo far behind with my blogging! The updates will follow, slowly but surely, I hope. But for today, here are some cute pictures of the kids all painted up by our talented friend Michelle. The kids had a good time, and were very sad when they had to come home and shower away all their lovely paint!

You can check out more of what Michelle does at: www.onthespotbodyart.com

Milestones

It's bitter sweet, how kids grow up.

Here we are cheering them on every step of the way and then one day we look at them and discover how much they've grown up.

This week was a week of milestones for Brooke, in particular. . .

After MUCH anticipation and eager wiggling, she lost her first tooth!!

Luckily we got some great pictures because, much to her dismay, she somehow "misplaced" (aka Lost) her tooth before we could even

get it under her pillow for the tooth fairy.

The house has been scoured but, sadly, the tooth is nowhere to be found.

Brooke is convinced that the tooth fairy came and collected it,

since that is the only reasonable explanation, of course.

She didn't get to leave it under her pillow, so if we don't find it soon, we've decided that Brooke will leave a note and a picture under her pillow instead of her tooth, and hope for a prize. I'm sure she'll get something special. :-)

Her other milestones this week went hand in hand . . .

Anyone who knows Brooke well knows that she has been an avid thumb sucker all her young life. It made her a very happy, content baby and always a sweet quiet toddler. However, as she's gotten older, the addiction has gotten harder and harder for her to shake. ( and believe me, we've tried.)

Kindergarten came and went and she was still struggling with giving it up. I sucked my thumb until kindergarten, so I had hoped that she would stop after starting school, like my Mom says I did. But no. (although she never did it at school)

She really wanted to stop, but our attempts had been unsuccessful.

Well, about a month ago, at the beginning of summer, she began begging to get her ears pierced. After some thought and discussion, we decided that we would let her get her ears pierced if she was able to stop sucking her thumb. We helped her make up a cute little calendar and she began keeping track of the days that she went without sucking her thumb.

It was a real challenge for her and it took about a month, but she was bound and determined to do it this time and she has been very successful.

There have been a few slip ups here and there, but this whole week she hasn't even sucked it at night to go to sleep.

That is a HUGE accomplishment, and of course, needed to be rewarded.

So . . .

After much begging and pleading and then begging and pleading some more, I finally followed through with the promise of getting her ears pierced tonight.

She had plenty of support from special girlfriends who've been cheering her on and encouraging her to reach her goal.

There were some tears, a few more than I expected, actually, which broke my heart. She recovered quickly though and was

off to shopping, playing and dessert in no time.

So, it's official, she's a big girl.

My little Brookie is growing up.

No more sucking her thumb, got some birthstones in her ears and grown up teeth are making their way into her pretty little smile.

I sure do love that girl.

As much as I'll miss my "baby" girl, I am certainly enjoying my little girlfriend.

Last day of school

I know it's been a month since we got out of school for the summer, but I haven't had a chance to write a little note about the kids fun last day.

We enjoyed a very cute program and Kindergarten graduation with Brooke's class. She had such a great first year of school. She has grown into such a mature little girl from the fragile pre-schooler I sent into class last fall. I couldn't have asked for a better group of kids for her to form friendships and learn with. Her teacher was wonderful too and we're definitely hoping to go through her class again, because she's moving up to 2nd grade! Hooray for kindergarten and Brookie's successful year!

Austin's class had a sweet ice cream sundae party and awards ceremony. Everyone enjoyed the little movie I made of the kids throughout the year, which was fun for me. I made the movie put to music that the kids had been singing in music class all year and it was so cute to see them all sing a long. We presented our teacher with a great big class rug that we'll use in our class room next year. Lucky for us, we get to loop up with our fabulous teacher into 3rd grade! Almost the entire class is going to stay together, so it'll be a nice smooth transition / reunion in the fall. The class presented me with a cool gift basket full of games and treats to enjoy with the family. It was very thoughtful and we've been enjoying all the prizes that were inside. I'm still trying to recruit a new home room mom though, I'm not so sure I'm up for doing it again next year! :-)

The last day of school was fun, fun fun, as it should have been.
Most of all, it was awesome because it was THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!
We're so happy to be enjoying summer together!