decorating the christmas tree

last night for family home evening we finally decorating the christmas tree! and it was so much fun because kate actually had fun doing it (and she only shattered one bulb!) unfortunately, she wasn't in a very good picture taking mood....we tried to set her in front of the tree but the only thing she wanted to do was slide on her fleecy bum on the hardwood.

she is one silly girl!

its beginning to feel a lot like winter!

right after thanksgiving the weather turned cold here! its FREEZING!! and it makes it feel so much like christmas time. (okay, so the freezing part is a little bit of an exaggeration since its in the 70's still....but the nighttime lows are in the 40's and that always makes you feel like its cold when you get dressed in the morning!) so kate has been able to wear her cute sweater handmedowns that we've been waiting forever to wear!

(last sunday we had the missionaries over for dinner and the elder from alaska pointed to our gas fireplace and asked if we ever used it! of course we use it!! it gets COLD here!! hee hee)

dani and our thanksgiving tradition

it was so much fun to have dani here for thanksgiving. kate was in HEAVEN! on the day after thanksgiving we went bowling,but i as is our family's tradition. its been a long time since kate went bowling and it fascinated her. but it also frustrated her. she hated that she couldn't pick up the ball because it was too heavy!! but she wanted to be right in the action. she would stand right behind everyone as they bowled and then clap for them when the pins fell.

we had a lot of fun and we miss you aunt dani!!

happy thanksgiving!

I just realized that I really didn't take too many thanksgiving pictures...and the ones I have are pretty random! we started off the morning with the boys going to play football and us girls cooked and watched the macy's thanksgiving parade...and kate fed the dog!

(we're dog sitting the fattest and laziest and loudest snoring dog that I've ever met!) but kate loves him and when I was over watching tv, we started hearing the clinking of dog food going into her metal dish. kate was reaching her hand in the bag and pulling out tiny handfulls of food at a time! besides the fact that I think dog food is DISGUSTING, it was pretty cute.

the only other pictures I got were of kate helping grammy make rolls. she had a lot of fun with the flour!

as everything was going on, I couldn't help but think of what next thanksgiving will be like....where will we be living?!? will we be somewhere out all by ourselves?!? it made me very thankful to be so close to family!! we are very blessed!

snow!!

I really can't express in words how much kate loved the fake snow at the mall...but I think these pictures do a good job of it!

santa, on the other hand....

santa claus is coming to town

yesterday I took kate to go see santa and it was really fun. our mall has something new this year called "santastic" and they had all these switchbacks for the millions of kids that were going to flock to see santa. luckily, I went on a work day before thanksgiving so we were literally the only people there. the first thing you do is go to this big mailbox and when the lady tells you to open it you either put your letter to santa, if you brought one, or just say a wish in your hand and it gets sent to the north pole on the north wind. so when you open the mailbox, fake snow flies out at you and it makes a wooshing sound like it took it to the north pole. kate was very frightened. (oh yes, and there was a camera there to capture the moment!) then you go to the naughty or nice meter and push a button and it tells you if you were naughty or nice. kate was nice, so she got to sit on santa's lap. santa was so friendly and wasn't just like "smile, now get off, next" he let us take our time and take lots of pictures. I have a few on my camera of her screaming (of course) and then santa suggested I get in there too. his chair is extra big (just for this, I suppose) and so I sat next to him. luckily, I had looked halfway presentable that day since I had to be in the picture too!! oh kate! if only she was a little older, I think she would have really enjoyed everything. her favorite part was the fake snow that they made and it fell on the line. she just LOVED it! (I'll post pictures of it soon!)

kate's friend

I really haven't done a great job of getting kate around kids, so I was really excited to babysit for my friend in the ward this morning. her daughter paige is 2 1/2 and is the best friend that kate could ever have to get her used to having friends. she is so patient and just shares everything without question. they are in nursery together and when I used to go in with kate, paige would just come up to her and try and share toys with her and was so friendly. I thought it was kind of funny because one of the nursery leaders would see paige doing something and think she was taking a toy away from her, when really she was trying to get her to play with it. she is just so cute and it was so fun seeing them together. kate did a lot of watching, but they did their fair share of running around also.

it was a fun way to start the day....that ended up sour.

on a different note, hilary had asked, so I thought I would give a little "wahoo" for the fact that we're not taking kate with us to new york. the plan as of now is to have ryan go to virginia first, interview, take a train to new york and I'll meet him there for just sat-tues so we can look around and interview before we fly back. its a LONG flight from tucson to new york and I just know kate would not handle a long flight/short trip very well at all. (and it will be nice to explore new york on our own!!) so WAHOO for having my mom right here (even if it means getting yelled at for my messy room every once in a while) who is willing to watch her basically that whole week when we're gone and then when we both come back and work the next few days. we're so lucky to have her close by! thanks mom!

AHHHH!!!

today was crazy. I seriously am so overwhelmed with getting everything done before christmas...I have a ton of rehersals in the next 2 weeks for my orchestra concert, lots of shopping/planning what gifts to buy, christmas cards/pictures, trying to fit in midwife appts and sonograms, my husband being gone or working basically between thanksgiving and our trip to washington for christmas (and me being gone for a few days to new york with him!)....oh man, I am so overwhelmed I feel like I can't even make lists to organize it!!

to top it all off I went to the mall today to pick up a christmas present and shop for christmas card picture clothes for mommy and daddy.....with a very crabby no-nap baby....and I lost my wallet!!

so now I get to add a few hours at the dmv for a new driver's license, having no debit or credit cards because they are all cancelled and I'm awaiting new ones, and the fact that I got my new cool bar code temple recommend all set and haven't even used it once before I go do the interviews to get a new one!! sigh....

did you know?!?

did you know that it is in the 80's here? always sunny and always warm...once the sun comes out (its a frigid 58 our right now with no sun!) it is so gorgeous here every day. did you know how perfect that is for my wardrobe? and for kate's? she is still wearing her 12-18 month clothes that she was wearing this summer! saves me some money. I keep forgetting that its cold everywhere else and today this just hit me.

did you know that ryan has interviews in virginia and new york next month? we are trying to jam everything in between our work schedules and our christmas vacation that starts dec 14! I'm totally freaking out. (excited to go to new york, but freaking out about if its going to work!) we took ryan to get a suit (long overdue) at men's warehouse and he said he felt like he was on the show "what not to wear" where they make fun of your clothes and make you dress totally different. the man actually did make fun of the church shoes ryan brought in to try with his suits. but he looked very handsome and professional in it. and he is about to send in 6 more applications which might mean a bunch more interviews....and plane tickets!! eeeek!! (ryan, I am so proud of you!!)

did you know that I am 25 and I still have my mom yell at me for having a messy room? it was particularly messy last week. but in my defense, ryan is sleeping when I have days off to clean in my room so what ends up happening is I just throw clean clothes in baskets in there and anything else that goes in my "house" gets thrown in there so we have a mess! but its still sad to have to get yelled at for it! I'm a grown up....right?!?

did you know that I still haven't finished my quilt I started a million years ago and got all excited about and haven't talked about since? but I have a means to an end...or at least the next step! I'm going to have someone quilt it for me and I'm excited. now if only I can pull everthing together and get it going!

did you know I'm craving pumpkin cranberry bread right now. I think I'll make some this week....

how 'bout them wildcats?!?!

WOW. and its not even saturday yet! I love college football! go cats!

shopping meltdown?!?

we were at target the other day to pick up a few small t hings so I went cartless. kate was just walking around behind me, cute as can be. we were in the makeup aisle and she found some nail polish and picked it up and I said "kate, put it back please" and she put it right back. then we were in the deodorant aisle and she picked up some deodorant and when I was about to walk away I said "kate, put that back please" and she put it right back! I was so impressed with how well she was minding her mommy! but then we were in the checkout and I was in the middle of trying to pay and everything and right at her eye level was a mini magna doodle, like one she has at home. she got so excited and she picked it up and was bringing it over to me and I braced myself...(if anyone can actually believe this, I was a tantrum thrower. I have heard so many stories of major store meltdowns...probably exaggerated!! hard to believe I know. could it run in the family?!?) I could see it all in my head. uncontrollable sobbing. maybe laying on the floor kicking her feet. this was her first true test. I said "kate, please but that back".....and she turned around a put it right back!! happy as can be! I was stunned! pleasantly stunned! let's see how long this will last....teenage years?....

kate's new hair do

this little booger wouldn't stand still or smile for any good pictures, but I wanted to get her cute new hair do! (even if she looks half asleep in this one!) she was sitting at the kitchen table with me and I was admiring how long her hair is getting and I decided to give it a try! its a nice change from the pigtails she usually gets right on top of her head! yesterday at church she had the on top of her head pigtails and the lady in front of us asked what my trick was to have her sit still while I do her hair. the truth is, my trick is giving birth to the most patient baby. she is so good at letting me brush her teeth and doing her hair! I'm so lucky!

our first just girls date night!

last night ryan was camping and mom and dad went out on a date so it was only kate and I at home....so we had our first girls only date night! we snuggled on the couch and ate popcorn and pizza and watched ratatouille. (it was our first time seeing it.) kate usually isn't much of a tv watcher, but she did a really good job snuggleing and watching it. I think it was a mixture of tiredness and a love of popcorn. oh, it was so much fun! and it made me look forward to many more girls nights! and after she went to bed, I got 4 scrapbook pages done! wahoo!

yesterday

yesterday kate, grammy and I had quite the adventure and I laughed when we got home because everything we did you could read on kate's shirt! (so of course I had to take a picture!)

because kate is a little behind with talking, the dr referred us to an audiologist to have her hearing checked. ryan and I were wondering what kind of test they were going to do....I already know she gets excited when she hears the phone ring!)...and we were definately wondering if our hands off baby was going to handle it. the first thing they did was have me sit in this tiny soundproof room with her on my lap and they tried to stick these speakers in her ears and I had to hold her hands down so she wouldn't pull them out (after the 5th time she pulled them out!) she hated it. she calmed down a little because there was a guy in front of her blowing bubbles, but when the audiologist started talking to her, she totally freaked out! she didn't like the little voices in her head. so she couldn't test the ears individually. she took the speakers out and had this speaker in the corner of the room that she would make sounds out of at different levels and a minnie mouse would light up in the box below it. they were testing to see if kate would turn her head to look when she heard the sound....and she did! so hooray! she can hear!...out of one ear at least. but they want her to come back in december to test each individual ear tested which requires the speakers in her ear. so I bought some ear plugs and we're practicing. she thinks she's really funny walking around with big purple ear plugs in her ear! anyways, so thats where the big round sticker that says "I had my hearing tested today" and a bear wearing a shirt that says "I love my audiologist" on it!

after her appointment we went to olive garden for a yummy lunch and she gobbled up her speghetti....and got it spotted all over her shirt! (its hard to see in the picture)

and then on the way home, we voted! it was tucson mayor and some city council people and a couple of propositions. mom has made me feel guilty ever since because I voted no for a salary increase for the mayor and city council members. $1000 more a month seems a little ridiculous to me! and apparently others thought so too because it didn't pass. so thats where the other 2 stickers come from!

(and ps, she's holding some mail in her hand....thats her favorite now. she loves junk mail and begs for it whenever you go get the mail. she'll sit and look at it like she's reading it!)

the best part of mexico

our most exciting adveture in mexico was chartering a boat out to bird island with captain ron as our driver. (I have seen bits and pteces of that movie on tv, but I didn't know what it was called and was confused when people started calling him that. but he really did resemble him. mom has a picture of him....he was a very nice and friendly guy!) it was about an hour ride on the boat and kate did pretty well on it. when we were on the way we saw some dolphins and the boat driver took us around them a couple of times to see them. it was amazing! unfortuately, I didn't get any good pictures of them because I was in the back of the boat so I'm going to have to get some from dani!

we all had different ideas of what we thought bird island was going to be like....most of them involved a dock and a place to walk around! but nope, it was a TINY island that was really rocky and really....poopy! see all that white? the island didn't come that way naturally!

along with birds, the island has a million sea lions all just laying around. we were driving around the island and they were just covering it! the boat driver anchored the boat in this little cove area and he had snorkel gear, a kayak and this big blow up floaty thing. the one thing he said to us was "stay about 2 feet away from the shore!" 2 feet, thats it!!

the boys went out first and you could see the sea lions getting so close to them!

all of us girls were on this floaty thing, but then I decided to get brave and get in the water. so jen and I kayaked out to meet the boys....and the sea lions. (dani was kind enough to stay back with dani, but she later got brave and came out to see the sea lions also!)

as you can see, they get really close!! we think they were defending their territory. all these medium sized ones would swim really close to us (devin actually touched one) and then they would swim away really fast all at once. ryan had a huge one jump out of the water right next to him to intimidate him, and then swam right up to michael and did the same thing!! (needless to say, they were both intimidated!!)

this was my close call. and here are a few videos from our little adventure! we're really glad that we did it! its not every day you get to swim with sea lions!

our halloween in mexico

halloween is one of my favorite holidays of all time, so it was kind of a bummer not to have it "traditionally"....but really, can you be bummed when you're in mexico? so we spent all day long swimming and hanging out around the pool and by the time we finished dinner and headed back to our room, kate was pretty exhausted!! but I put her in her cheerleading outfit anyway! (I wouldn't be a good mom unless I got at least one halloween picture, right?!)

wow, that is one funny looking cheese face! (sometimes it backfires!) once we had her dressed, we took her out into the hall so she could trick or treat at least at one door!

she had no idea what was going on, but she saw the chocolate and got excited! with as fast as she gobbled up that crunch bar, I was glad we only knocked on one door! (she was one happy baby, though!)

once we cleaned up the chocolate, I put her in her halloween pajamas (they were really pants that she would have been wearing all day long if she hadn't been in her swimsuit....and they were cuuuute!)

(again with that funny cheese!)

and then she went to bed. we had about 15 minutes of halloween....but it was fun! I did miss the smell of candles burning in pumpkins...thats one of my favorites...but there is always next year!

to be continued one last time....I saved the best part of mexico for last! so be excited!

hip hip hooray!!

guess who is officially 18 months and had her first full day of no mommy nursery!! thats right, its my big kate! I wanted to take some pictures this morning but I couldn't get any good ones because there was a roadrunner walking 10 feet away from her around our front porch and thats the only thing she wanted to look at. its a shame because she's getting really good at responding when I say "hey kate, where's the cheese?!?!"....like in this picture

can you see the cheese? I LOVE it when she gives me that cheese!! and I took that picture in the bath this morning to show off her cute tan legs from mexico! they weren't sunscreened as much as the rest of her! I guess she has more of my skin than ryan's after all!!

anyways, back to nursery. I was able to leave without a scene and everytime I peeked in at her she was playing nicely. there were only about 4 others in there with her today...its a pretty small nursery! the teachers said she cried a few times but she did well overall!! WAHOO!!! this is a picture of her first nursery project that she brought home:

by the time we get home from 1:00 church she is pretty beat and grumpy...which is why I couldn't get a picture of her holding her little tamborene! ryan says when he went to pick her up they said "by the way, she's a lefty!" yeah....we know!!

anyways, hooray for nursery!! hooray for teaching lessons without kate running around!! hooray for FREE sundays! WAHOO!!!

a week in mexico

we left last saturday with 2 cars full of people! jen, michael and dani all flew from utah to join us for the first little bit of our vacation and we were so excited to see them. (you know who kate was the most excited to see, of course. she is just in love with dani!) it takes a little over 4 hours to drive down to the mayan palace in peurto penasco....or rocky point, as everyone calls it. we couldn't check in until 5 so we spent the first night just getting settled. the next day we headed down to the pools. kate was just in HEAVEN. I loved all the shallow parts that this pool had so she could just walk around and have fun. she also loves the beach and the ocean...although she hates the taste of it.

you can see the boys in the background there snorkeling. there wasn't a ton to see right off the coast, but they had fun. and we were pleasantly surprised to see devin in there again after being stung by a sting ray last year.

and apparently we can't escape mexico without someone being stung. see baywatch michael up there? he started running in as fast as he could and we were thinking "geez....he's going to get stung! he needs to shuffle his feet!!" little did we know that he was already stung. ouch michael! this was on their last day here, though, so he had already had all the fun.

this is one of my favorite parts of meixco. virgin mango danqueris!! mmmm!!! I drank one almost every night. they had pina colada and strawberry too, but I'm a mango person. and of course there was a gorgeous sunset every night. the place where we ate dinner (and drank mango danqueris) was right along the beach so we got to eat and watch the sunset a couple of the nights.

as we were taking pictures, someone said "don't you already have a family picture just like this?" yeah....I guess we do....from oregon! but its not our fault that we keep going to these gorgeous sunset places! so we took advantage of it!

to be continued.....