Adventures in AZ

The kids did a lot of fun things on our Thanksgiving trip to Arizona.

They got to see Santa...

Play with cousins...

Ride horses...

Discover girls...

And pose for a TON of pictures!

Not to mention seeing ALL of their grandparents and having so much fun with the family. We enjoyed it so much and can't wait to go back in January when Uncle Jon comes home!

Why siblings are worth it...

Okay, so I know I have a million siblings and they are ALL worth it, but sometimes when you are taking care of two little ones all day and they don't seem to interact that much, you start to wonder if they will ever be friends... This weekend they completely clicked! She is Mason's biggest fan (besides me, of course) and he was making her laugh uncontrollably all weekend. In these pictures, he is diving onto the couch near her feet over and over again and she cannot stop cracking up! Roland and I can put on a freaking circus and she never laughs this much, but Mase can just give her a look or make some silly noise and he is the greatest comedian on earth. (Please excuse Mason from being much of a presence in these photos... This was right between bath and bedtime and we hadn't quite gotten to the "getting him into his PJ's" segment of the evening when all the fun started happening... he promises to be fully dressed in the next pictures.)

Their first "taste" of autumn (LITERALLY for her...)

These are some quick shots of the kids in our front yard... As you notice, Ava was too obsessed with grabbing and trying to eat the semi-wet colorful leaves for me to get a good picture of her face. Most of the time, she was just staring down at the covered ground. Anyway, we had fun throwing the leaves around!

Could she BE any happier??

This little angel is amazing! She is a smiling, happy, laughing little joy and we are so grateful to have her. From day one, I just felt that she was a peaceful little girl, and she really is. Don't get me wrong, there's some serious drama at times, but mostly she is almost the definition of content. We love her to pieces!

Daddy's Girl

These two are crazy about each other! Every day, Ro finds a new way to make her laugh and she can't get enough of him. There really is something about a Dad and his little girl...

Super Sappy Mommy

So, I know this picture may not be all that great to you guys... Yeah, it's a little blurry, the kids have red-eye issues, they aren't looking at the camera, they both have a bit of an uncharacteristic underbite going on... But to me, it's PURE bliss!!! This is the first picture that I have of the two of them together (after many attempts, believe me!) where you can tell they are having fun together. Oh I have pictures that look like he is choking her and many pictures where she is just a blob sitting there with no emotion at his feet, but when I look at this picture, I see two kids who I hope will be friends forever! Lately, all she is doing is looking around the room trying to spot that guy who runs around all the time but sometimes comes over to play peek-a-boo with her. He can make her smile at any moment now, which in turn makes us smile. So I thought I'd share this perfect picture (in a mom's eyes) with everyone and hope you can see the love in it, too!

Those Eyes...

Yesterday after church, Mase was rubbing his eye frantically... I asked him what was wrong and he kept saying "I need to get it out!" so of course, I looked in his eye expecting an eyelash or a speck of dirt or something worse, like a sliver... I didn't see anything, so I asked him what he was trying to get out and he said, "My teacher said I have a sparkle in my eye!"

Cover Girl

I always dreamed of having a little dolly who I could dress up and play with... Sometimes I am certain she gets sick of me changing her outfits so much, but they don't fit for very long! Anyway, I think she likes being a little dog WAY more than that scary elephant...

Wasting Energy...

Who am I kidding, this kid will NEVER run out! We had a great time at the park, though!

The Frightened Elephant

So I tried Mason's old Halloween costume on Ava, and she seriously looked like somebody was in front of her trying to steal her tusks or something! Actually, after thinking about it, I believe we have this exact picture of Mase from when he was an elephant. Spooky. Anyway, she will have to skip the drama this time as she will not be dressing as an elephant this year, but she will be a cuddly dog. This was all orchestrated by Mason, who was supposed to be The Big Bad Wolf this year and she was going to be one of the three little pigs.
Well, I overheard a funny conversation between Mase and a new friend he met at the park (a big 3-year-old you could tell he wanted to impress)... The kid was telling Mase about his Halloween costume and Mase said, "Oh yeah? Well, I'm going to be CAPTAIN FEATHERSWORD for Halloween!" So this kink in my plan led to a new one, which involves the four of us (Ro and I plus Karen and Tustin) in some bright colored shirts and funky belt buckles. Oh and Laney as Dorothy the Dinosaur and Ava as the lovely Wags the Dog. Gotta love the Wiggles! Mmmm, I think I'd like some fruit salad now...

Recording History...

So, I grabbed the camera today to take a few shots of Ava as she was doing a great job with tummy time. After I uploaded them, I had to take a second look after I noticed a small, bare leg in several shots. You see, he is finally potty-trained but that often means running around in just his skivvies (if we're lucky). Some pictures are better with some hidden amusement in them, right?

Utah- Fun in the... RAIN???

We just got home from a fun little vacation to Salt Lake City. It was awesome to hang out with Jeff, Linz, and Lauren one more time before they have their new baby girl. I know these pictures look all sunny but the day after we got there the weather shifted and it was mostly cold and rainy. We still had fun, though... you can see the kids had a BLAST together (as usual) and Jeff and Ava really bonded. It's funny how even after a few months apart, Mase and Lauren never seem to miss a beat and continue with their wonderful bestfriendship! We hope it's the same for Aves and her new little cousin.

Tapefaces!!!

Any of my silly college friends (or brothers and sisters) could vouch for my love of "the tapeface". It gets me a little hysterical to see somebody's face completely change after the application of a little scotch tape. These two were the perfect unsuspecting victims and I absolutely adore their little pig noses. Mase and Laney cracked up at themselves after looking in the mirror, too. A good time was had by all (including me and Kare who just about died laughing when Laney was helplessly drooling because she couldn't shut her mouth).

Miss Sunshine

What a happy birthday surprise for Ro to be able to play with our little wiggler on her changing table this morning and have her give him THIS reaction. She really smiles when he gives her lots of kisses. And I know, she looks too small to be in that exersaucer thing, but the girl LOVES to stand up... So she got a little exercise today by herself. It was a fun break for our arms as well as an exciting thing to watch. I honestly didn't think I could possibly get as excited about my second baby's "firsts" as I did with Mase, but I was so wrong... She makes us smile and laugh and be SO thankful for our babies every day!!!

My little cake-making helper!

I always thought it would be fun to have somebody to "lick the beater" like I used to when I was a kid. I don't know who had more fun (or who ate more batter), Mase or me. Anyway, the finished product was a beautiful chocolate birthday cake for Daddy, complete with confetti, bowling pins, and the LONGEST candles I've ever seen. He was so happy to pick all of the decor at the store... In Mason's words, we had a "super blast!"