Dance Lessons

Since Olivia began taking tap/ballet lessons, she is the resident pro. She loves playing dance class and of course Izzy is the only pupil. I caught this lesson in the middle, I wish I got it all on video.

Happy 1/2 Birthday Daddy

On the 28th, Daddy turned 30 1/2. The girls and I baked him 1/2 a birthday cake and celebrated for Family Home Evening. I think the girls love 1/2 birthdays almost as much as the real deal. Izzy practiced singing happy birthday all day so that she would be ready when he came home from work. We love you Daddy!

I love watching them sleep

One of my most favorite things to do is to watch my babies sleep. I wonder if they will ever get too old for me to sneak into their room and just sit and watch them sleep. They look like such angels, all the times that they drove me nuts today or did crazy things just disappears. Olivia tonight was extra cute, she fell asleep in fleece jammies, a robe, fuzzy socks on her hands, under two blankets and an entourage of stuffed animals all around her...not to mention, sitting up. I couldn't resist the picture, but I think I need to take a few layers off or she might melt in the night.

Bike Ride

The girls got new bikes this year. Izzy is dying to get a real bike with just two wheels and pedals, but she isn't exactly coordinated enough to work one. So, Santa brought a push-a-long big wheel that she can take outside. She loves it! Also, Nana and Papa got the girls a 'boot scoot' bike which is a balance bike, a bike with no pedals but also no training wheels. They run their feet along the road, and as they get going fast enough, lift up their feet and learn how to balance themselves in motion. We had a great bike ride and I'm sure many more to come throughout the winter.

Olivia's new digital camera

Santa brought Olivia a fantastic digital camera this year. As soon as she opened it up, we began taking pictures non-stop. I think she takes after her mom. Once she filled up the memory in the camera, she told me that now we need to put the pics up on the blog. So, here are a few of the pictures (she wanted all147 of them, but I said to pick five.

Thank you Nana!

Nana surprised the girls with two beautiful hand-made stockings when they came out to visit. These are absolutely gorgeous, and the girls just love them. There is so much detail on each stocking, it is unbelievable. You are quite talented Nana, thank you so much for your thoughtfulness, we couldn't ask for cuter stockings!!

Choosing Christmas Gifts

During quiet time one day about a week ago, Olivia was chatting with me on the couch. She said, "You know, mommy, if I was getting people Christmas gifts, this is what I'd get them..." I had thought about taking her to the dollar store and letting her pick a gift for everyone, but then her heartfelt response made me spend a bit more... "I'd go to the fabric store and buy that Ariel fabric that we saw last week and make Izzy a blanket because she likes Ariel. I'd get Daddy a star wars toy because those are his favorites, and it would be C-3PO because he has a big poster of him, so he must like him the best. I'd get you some new lotion because you used all of yours. Since Nana and Papa are coming, I'd get Nana listerine strips because she likes those all the time, and I'd get Papa a big thing of popcorn, because he really likes eating popcorn." I was so amazed at the thought that went into this, that of course we had to go out and purchase the gifts. I was even more amazed that at the age of 4, she didn't pick out a gift that she would get herself, she was only thinking of giving to others, and stuff that she really thought that person would enjoy. After we purchased the gifts, she got to help wrap each one, and painstakingly wrote each person's name on each package. This morning as we all opened gifts, I think she was most excited to watch everyone open hers. She hovered over them as they ripped off the wrapping and watched their every expression. It is hard to describe in words, but I was so touched at my tiny baby growing up and being so thoughtful. I love you sweet Olivia!

Ode to SUSHI

It is Christmas Eve, and when we woke up this morning, we had a startling discovery. Our beloved beta fish, SUSHI, that we've had for about a year and a half was belly up. He has been a great little pet, and lived in a blender on our counter so nicely, sometimes we would forget he was there....literally (I'm surprised that he lasted a year and a half!) I think that this could be a real tragic happening in our family, except that flushing dead fish seems to be a fantastic activity for two toddlers, and they enjoyed it immensely.

Thank you SUSHI, you will be missed, and I'm sure replaced soon.

The new project for the house

We always love it when Papa and Nana come to visit because Nana makes us really good food, and Papa always does projects around the house. Since we're expecting baby number three and didn't really plan on being in this house this long, we need to make a few adjustments before the little guy comes. One project was to put a closet into the playroom. Of course, anyone who knows Papa, knows that he started on the closet the day he got here, and finished it within the first two days of their visit. It looks fantastic, and we LOVE the extra storage. Thank you Papa!

Thank You Papa

I guess you can't teach an old dog new tricks, but that old dog can teach your kids some tricks. We're having Nana and Papa in town for Christmas, and Papa is really trying hard to indoctrinate his sweet, innocent grand-daughters how to be "Papa's Girls". Thank you Papa.

Jingle Bells

We sing a lot of Christmas songs non-stop during the holiday season. I've tried multiple times to get their singing on video, this one was the most successful.

Gingerbread Houses and Santa!!

We had our Christmas party at preschool today. Everyone decorated gingerbread houses and got really into it. Izzy only wanted to put M&Ms on her house, but I was able to con her into putting some other candies (she is such a choco-holic). Olivia loved decorating, and was the last one still working on her house.

The finished masterpiece! Yes, there are two santas, she wants DOUBLE the presents!
Izzy feels that she has to say "CHEESE" in every picture and holds that face until you take the shot. Who came up with that saying anyway?
Santa even made a surprise visit! We were so excited. Not everyone would get near him, so there aren't as many in the picture. For the first time ever, Olivia was willing to sit on his lap (with one of her friends on the other side, she wouldn't do it alone) and told him what she wants for Christmas; however, it is a totally different list that what I've been hearing for the past few months! Which one takes precedence: the written letter to Santa or the spoken conversation?

Olivia learned a new trick!!

Olivia learned an amazing skill recently, just watch the show!

Those precious moments

You know when you just want to freeze time and keep your kids in a certain spot forever? You don't want them to get any older, learn anything new, change any cuteness at all? Shayne and Izzy were reading last night, and he probably could have sat there for hours going over the one book with her. It was too precious that I had to get a little video.

Yummy!

At what age do we stop doing this? I guess for some the answer is NEVER...
I love having kids because they make you see all the joy and fun of the little things in life.

HAIRCUTS!!

Izzy had her first ever haircut! OK, it was more a trim so that she didn't look so mullet-ish (although Shayne swears that mullets will make a comeback). She held perfectly still and loved getting her hair done!

Olivia said that she was sick of long hair and wanted it really short and stacked in the back. Since there isn't too much to work with, stacked in the back probably wouldn't work, so we went with a bob, but she loves it. She swears that she looks like a different kid.

THE FINAL PRODUCT!!
You can't tell too much, but our girls don't have a lot of hair, so I am having trouble getting a shot that really shows the new style.
BEAUTIFUL GIRLS!!

The Joys of having a Preschool Room

Since I teach preschool, we have a room dedicated to art projects, glue, lots of tape and markers, and SCISSORS! I hadn't noticed the girls for a while (which is always dangerous), and found them happily cutting my construction paper into tiny bits with decorative scissors. Do I leave scissors where little people can easily get to them? NO! However, with a chair, some books stacked on that, and a four year old, pretty much everywhere is attainable...
I'm just glad paper was the only thing we were cutting!

Putting up the Christmas Tree

We decorated our tree for Family Home Evening last night. We had a night full of Christmas stories, lots of hugs (as you can see in the picture), and the girls took turns perfectly placing each and every one of mommy's very breakable ornaments on the tree, it was the perfect day... Actually it was really chaos. They did take turns putting up all my breakable ornaments, but half of them fell from the top to the floor amid mom's gasps and groans (I'm just really glad we have carpet underneath the tree). Daddy doesn't trust them (or me for that matter) to put up his Star Wars ornaments, so he had to work a lot longer than us. The only reason they are hugging in the picture is because I threatened them with their lives if I didn't get a cute picture, and I think they were trying to find a safe place away from mommy in each other's arms. I spent most of the night repeating my new mantra, "I am working on patience, I am a patient person..."

**WARNING**
Step ladder, two toddlers, Christmas tree and lots of ornaments.. DON'T MIX!

We do have a tradition that every year when we put up the tree, everyone gets a new ornament. The girls are huge into princesses right now, especially Ariel, so they both got an Ariel ornament. Shayne, of course, got a Star Wars ship ornament, I couldn't tell you what it was, although I'm sure I should know, and my ornament is still getting made, it's a ball with our family picture on it. Christmastime is so much fun!!

Reverse Peer Pressure

Peer Pressure can be a great thing. It can keep your kid behaving when they are in church because all the other kids are. It makes them want to learn to use the potty because their big sister does. However, when I babysat Evin, the girls seemed to feel all sorts of peer pressure from this 11 month old, and had to drink from bottles, crawl around the floor and now want to sleep in bassinets. Go figure...

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

We all love Christmas stories, so as soon as it hit Thanksgiving and we got the OK from daddy (he's scrooge about Christmas until AFTER Thanksgiving), we started reading Christmas stories. The girls could stay up for ever reading and reading and reading. This one is one of their favorites, Izzy can even repeat almost all of the reindeer names.

Feeding the Birds

Daddy loves birds, and wants his girls to love them as much as he does. When we went to the zoo as a family, all three were pretty excited to go to the bird exhibit and feed the birds. The girls were a little wary at the beginning, but eventually, I think they started warming up to daddy's point of view concerning birdies.

So Thankful

Nothing like Thanksgiving, to make you reflect on the blessings in your life. I really do feel blessed with all that I have. I am so grateful to have my family. Shayne is such an amazing man, and he is the perfect counterpart to me. He is always calm when I am not, he can read my emotions even when I am totally being a girl and puzzling (that one took a lot of practice I think). He takes care of our family so well. I am thankful for my two beautiful girls who are the light of my life. Being a stay-at-home mom can be a challenge, but I am so grateful for the opportunity to do it. I love that I don't have to miss a thing in their lives, and I get all the after-nap snuggles. I am grateful to be the one to hear all the quirky things they say and watch all the facial expressions. I am grateful to be close to extended family on both sides. I love that my parents and siblings have all stayed close, and I really couldn't ask for better in-laws. I am so grateful for fantastic friendships near and far. Not having family nearby can be tough, but such great friends is a lifesaver. I am mostly thankful for my Heavenly Father and Savior, for their love and guidance, and the knowledge that I have that my family can be together forever.

Yes, sometimes it does rain in Arizona

Amazing, I know. But whenever it does rain, we take advantage of it and go outside. Not really enough rain to jump in puddles or anything, but they at least get wet...OK, damp a bit.

Family Time at the Park

It's a rare day when we find ourselves all at home on a weekend with cool weather outside and no commitments for anyone. So we decided to pack a picnic lunch and head to the park. Now that Daddy is done with school, the girls love bringing him to any and every outing. Whenever I tell them that we're doing something, their first questions is always, "Does Daddy get to come too?" I love that they love their daddy so much, and now after a long time of an absent daddy (what with working full time and school) they have him back again. It is so fun to go places as a family. I think we all took it for granted before Shayne went back to school, but now we cherish every moment that all of us are together.Izzy and mommy on the swings. I'm the really cute one in pigtails, so she must be the huge pregnant lady.Feeding the ducks and geese at the fish pondOlivia's new skill...hanging upside-down on the bars. I would like to say that I demonstrated this trick for her, but the big belly wouldn't even let me get my leg over the bar.

Who Eats Pennies?

Apparently lots of people, including my two-year-old. We had an extremely busy morning, and I was excited to put the girls down for some much needed quiet time and to have some alone time to myself, when I heard choking in Izzy's room. So of course I freaked out and ran in there. When I started fishing around in her mouth, I got out 6 pennies! No idea where they came from (doesn't everyone let their two year old sleep with pennies in their mouth?), nor do I have any idea how many were there to begin with! Olivia never swallowed anything weird, so I had to call the doctor to see what I should do. The nurse thought it was quite funny, and I'm sure some day I will too, but she said as long as nothing was stuck in her throat, I just had to count the pennies as they came out to make sure that they all came out. I just have to squish through her poop for the next three or four days hunting for buried treasure. One problem, how many made it down before I got there? So, the doctor sent us for x-rays to see how many got in. Izzy was loving this the whole time because now she didn't have to take a nap and she had Mom at her beckon call. All the nurses at the x-ray place gushed over the girls (maybe because we were the only people in there under 50), and Izzy thought the whole experience was fantastic, until they strapped her into this clear plastic brace with her arms above her head. That was the end of the fun. Plus, being pregnant, I couldn't be in the room with her when the x-rays were taken, which made her even more mad. Afterwards, the x-ray tech showed the girls the x-rays (which was quite exciting because they had recently watched a Curious George episode where he breaks his leg and gets x-rays) but told us she couldn't explain any of the findings to us, we had to wait for the doctor. A few hours later, the doctor called to tell us that there were NO PENNIES inside her. Hallelujah! No poop squishing for me, and no more loose change around the house. However, Olivia was quite bummed because her Papa told her she would be able to find some money that she could spend coming out of her sissy's bum!

Horsey Rides

The girls love getting horsey rides, but Shayne and I wear out quickly. They've resorted to trying to give each other horsey rides when mom and dad are too tired. However, it doesn't quite work out how they imagine it, I'm sure.I'm kinda scared Izzy is going to get squashedThis is what it usually ends up like

Or like this

Rice Krispie Treat Commercial

Have you ever seen those commercials where the mom or Grandpa is making rice krispie treats with the children, and it is this room full of love and soft music? There is usually a tiny smudge of marshmallow fluff on one of the children's noses as they patiently take turns stirring the treats with the wooden spoon. There is also some over-voice talking about taking time for the little moments... SO NOT HOW IT REALLY HAPPENS! In order to make sugar cookies, it took us two full outfits, one for getting flour all over as we cut out the dough, and one for getting frosting all over as we decorated. It also took about four jars of sprinkles, which I don't know why most sprinkles don't have a shaker top, they are just an open jar which dumps out the entirety in about .5 seconds. I could see the disaster happening before we even started dumping, but of course my children are entirely independent and will not have any help shaking (the commercial showed grandpa and grandson stirring together, but mine refuse to let me help with anything when we are cooking together.) Also edited from the commercial is the mom yelling at the kids to get off the table, stop eating all the dough, get the frosting knife away from their sister's hair, don't take a bit out of every cookie we frost, etc. etc. YEAH, I'M ENJOYING THOSE LITTLE MOMENTS...

Happy Anniversary Babe!

It's been seven fantastic years since Shayne and I were married in the Oakland California temple. I still remember that day perfectly (although some of the days since are kind of a blurr). I am so grateful to my wonderful husband for picking me to be his eternal companion. He is such an amazing man, someone who makes me want to be better, a fantastic example in so many areas. Life has only gotten sweeter since that November day in 2001, and I am so grateful for all the blessings in my life. I couldn't ask for more in a husband. He is so loving, patient, kind, considerate, funny, romantic, the list goes on and on. He would sacrifice anything and everything for his family and I am so grateful for his dedication. I love you so much sweetheart. Happy Anniversary!

It's finally cooling off!!

It's the middle of November, and finally cool enough to go outside. After four months of having to stay inside, we were chomping at the bit to get outside. We took a little trip to the zoo and spent hours and hours there because it was such nice weather. The girls are loving going to the park every day, riding bikes, and just playing on the swingset out back.

Happy Birthday Isabelle!

On November 1st Izzy officially joined the ranks of two-year-olds. A few days before, she figured out that her birthday was coming, and she would remind us all and sing us the "Happy Birthday" song that she wanted sung to her on her big day. However, whenever you ask her how old she is, she would say four. No matter how many times we corrected her, she still believes that she is four. We invited another family over to celebrate with us, and that was just as exciting as turning two. She got to pick out her cake (which of course was princess Ariel) and happily awaited the big day. We were so surprised when she officially turned two, that we didn't have a day full of tantrums. In fact she handled all the attention and excitement extremely well. She shared her new toys (most of the time) and was just happy to have some friends over. It was a pretty low key birthday from our perspective, but it was perfect for her. Izzy's one year old year has been so much fun, I hope this coming year will yield as much. She has such personality and spark, she always keeps us laughing. Shayne will do anything to score some snuggles and love from his little princess, and she gives it out quite freely. We feel so blessed to have this little girl in our family.

Spoils of Trick-or-Treating

The girls loved Halloween. Even Izzy couldn't wait until after dinner to put on costumes and go trick-or-treating. I think it helped that they have been practicing for the last two weeks. Olivia would go behind a closed door and Izzy would have to knock and say trick-or-treat in order to get something put into her bucket. Well, all the practice paid off because the girls got a HUGE haul! They went out with Shayne for about an hour and came back loaded. Of course mommy had to do the "poison checking" (which is what my parents did when we were little) and all the delicious chocolates needed "extra checking" (which again is what my parents did when we were little) and somehow never made it back to the girls' buckets. After the candy gorging, we experienced the hyperness which I'm sure every parent loves. Then came the meltdowns, and eventually bed. Another holiday come and gone with all the glory the girls could muster.

Olivia's "Quiet Time"

Since Izzy still naps, and mommy still need time without children, we have "Quiet Time" in which Olivia lays on my bed and can watch a movie. Of course, she has an entire entourage whenever "Quiet Time" comes complete with tons of dolls, blankets, toys, and recently a random box from Costco. I had to get something from my room during "Quiet Time", and found her fast asleep inside the Costco box.

The girls get into the election

We've been watching a lot of the SNL parodies on the election this year, and I had no idea how much the girls liked them, until I left the computer to do something and came back to them dancing to the music. They totally got into it!

Arizona State Fair

Everyone says that it's a bit late in the year for a State Fair, but it was still in the 90's throughout the day and way too hot! I couldn't imagine going any sooner. We went with the Haverkamps, and of course ate way too much junk food, rode every ride possible (well the kids did anyways), saw the animals, spent way too much money, and loved every minute of it (except during the temper tantrums, I can't claim that I loved those). Here's a few pics from the event.Izzy, Danika, Olivia and Hentin posing for the camera after the ferris wheel.

Sharing a Grande shaved ice.

Who's driving this thing?

Olivia and Daddy on the log ride. Izzy was too short to go and was very disappointed.

Wow, now that's a HUGE slide!