Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow...

Merry Christmas! Hope you've all enjoyed the holiday as much as Ben & Zach!

The Christmas Pickle

I wasn't familiar with the Christmas Pickle tradition until Joy told me about it. Any wacky tradition involving the hanging of a pickle on a tree is good in my book. I had some leftover salt dough that I used to make ornaments for the boys to color, so I used it to make a pickle.

I found a tricky spot to hide the pickle on the tree, and had fun watching Dad, Mom, Connie and Joy try to find it. Joy was the lucky winner and landed herself the lovely pickle ornament and another little gift.

We let Ben and Zach open a gift before bedtime. Last year for Christmas I made them both animal blankets. They loved them so much, that I made different animals for them this year. Ben was too busy with the Swiffer Sweeper to care much, but Zach seemed to have enough enthusiasm for both of them.

Darius and I kept busy the rest of the night by putting together a table and train for the boys. It was a big project, but I enjoyed doing it. I think the adults had a lot of fun playing with the trains after it was all put together.

Happy Holidays!

Make a Smilebox greeting

(yeah it's supposed to be Happy Holidays from Alaska, not Alas!)

Santa Abuse

Over the weekend, Darius and I attended his work holiday party. There was a gift exchange and we wound up with a Ben & Zach-sized-Santa. Zach thought Santa was funny and had a lot to say to him at their first meeting. Ben kept his distance and if anyone would nudge Santa closer to him, he'd back up several feet.

It only took a couple of days before they were dragging Santa around and roughing him up. I was in the kitchen doing dishes when I heard loud thuds coming from the living room. The boys had pulled the cushions off the couch and Zach was throwing Santa over the side...repeatedly! He must of tossed him over a dozen or more times.

The high-pitch screeching is not a bird...it's just Ben.

Okay, maybe snow won't kill me....

Yes, I'm anti winter and very anti snow. I'm ashamed to admit that I'm terribly selfish this time of year. I dislike being out in the snow and cold so much, that I'm perfectly willing to stay cooped up for several days at a time without leaving the house. This of course is unfair to my boys. Maybe by openly admitting my selfish ways to everyone, I'll be forced to make amends for my behavior.

I knew after looking outside at the beautiful weather, time was quickly ticking by on an unfortunately short day. It's only a little after 3:oo as I'm writing this and the daylight is almost gone. The time had come to try another attempt at taking my boys outside in the snow.

The task of getting all three of us ready to go outside is usually enough of a reason for me to quickly change my mind. It makes me tired just thinking about it. I won't go into details...any of you that have bundled up yourself and small children, know where I'm coming from.

The three of us made it outside with hardly any whining and I started to feel optimistic. Once Zach and Ben were down from the porch they were pretty content to walk around "the yard", and take a few rides in the sled. Of course they both hate wearing their hats and mittens, so they were quick to come off. I wish I was somehow able to reason with them, so that they understood that by wearing mittens, their hands would stay warm AND dry! They really didn't like touching the snow, which I completely understand.

Our time passed by very quickly, and I was amazed that we spent almost an hour outside. I almost hate to admit it, but it wasn't that awful being outside in the snow and cold. Imagine that!

This eagle's cry was so loud that I thought it right behind me. Turns out it was in a tree behind me...close enough eh?

Jolly Old Saint Nick

Last night while Joy, Mom, Dad and I were playing a game, Dad got a phone call from someone looking for a Santa Claus. Dad was in the process of saying no to the gig, but then the rest of us got the gist of what he was turning down and we talked him into doing it. Within the hour he had a full Santa suit. We dressed him up and he fit the part so well!

We thought since Grandpa was playing the part of Santa, Ben and Zach would be down to sit on his lap for a photo. We even broke out early gifts and candy canes to sweeten the deal. They weren't having it, but we managed to get one decent photo.

December in Review

It's mid December already....really!? I can only speak for myself, but it seems like one of the unique things about living in Cordova is the way that time passes here - very s...l...o...w...l....y! I'm sure part of it has to do with being cooped up most days with two energetic little guys, and trying to think of new ways to pass the time - but it's also just a slower pace of life here. You may laugh, but one of the most exciting events of my day (if I get out) is picking up the mail from the post office.

Well, despite the slower pace of things, I've had a recent taste of time sped up. The past couple of weeks strangely passed by very quickly.

My parents had been out of town over the Thanksgiving holiday, and Joy had been gone since we left for Louisiana in October. They all arrived back on the same day during the first week of the month. It was nice to have everyone home.

A few days later we celebrated Darius' birthday on the 4th. It was a quiet day with the exception of Zach running a fever. During dinner we thought we were going to have a repeat of his birthday from the year before. Long story short, most of the house got sick with a stomach virus, and Zach's bug peaked during Darius' birthday dinner. Poor little guy started projectile vomiting...all over me of course. Unfortunately later on Darius got sick and then it was like a domino effect. Lucky for us this year, Zach's burps didn't produce anything but air.

Hanging out with Daddy on his birthday

Zach's fever lasted a few days and after the fever passed, a rash broke out on his face, chest, and back. I ended up taking him in to see a doctor. Turns out that he had a case of Roseola. Darius and I had made plans for a quick trip to Anchorage, and were almost ready to cancel, but Zach was through the worst of his sickness and Joy was okay with watching him while we were away. Thanks again - Joy, Mom and Dad for taking care of the boys for us!

Being in Anchorage, or pretty much any town outside of Cordova, is a little strange. It's nice to have the shopping and eating options that we don't have here in Cordova, but it only took a day of shopping and eating out before we were ready to come home. On the flight home we sat next to each other and watched a beautiful sunset, just as we did on our wedding day in Key West. It was a nice break for us to get away together. Love you Darius! Two years down and a lifetime still to come.

Christmas Tree

Our Christmas tree last year was a bit of a Charlie Brown tree. It was sparse and a bit anemic when it came to supporting ornaments. I don't think any of us (with the exception of Darius) even cared to put up a tree in the house this year.

Several weeks ago my dad took the boys and I for a ride out towards the airport, to cut tree boughs to decorate the back deck. While my dad cut the boughs, I watched the boys run up and down the road (yes, it was safe) and try to pry frozen rocks off the road to suck on. We both noticed the same tree along the side of the road and Dad cut it down. Our plans were to put it up outside on the deck and decorate it with lights.

Darius was opposed to having the tree outside, so we ultimately put it up inside. What possessed us to do it the night before Thanksgiving is beyond me. We didn't get started until after 10:00 and were up past 1:00 before we finished. I will admit that I'm glad Darius took charge and insisted we do it his way because the tree turned out beautifully.

I was a little concerned with whether the boys would leave the tree alone. Last year the tree was barricaded behind furniture, so it wasn't an issue. So far so good. It helps that the needles are claw like and uninviting. Their initial reactions to the tree were adorable. Ben woke up early Thanksgiving morning, just after we had finished decorating the tree. Darius couldn't resist getting him up to show him. Ben's eyes got all wide and he had the sweetest smile on his face. Zach's first look was the following morning and he was very vocal about the tree. He oohed, ahhed, grunted and I'm pretty sure he was screeching something that sounded very similar to tree.

Darius - thanks for not giving in. Yes, it's more taxing on me for the next month to keep it intact, but it's already been worth it. I can't believe I can be such a stinkin scrooge sometimes...we won't even start on the subject of Santa....

Thankful

Darius, Ben, Zach and I spent a quiet Thanksgiving here in Cordova. Most years my family will all get together in Utah for Thanksgiving. For the size of my family (31...soon to be 33) I'm impressed that we're able to make it happen....well, most of the time. We still had a nice day, but we're disappointed we missed out on seeing everyone.

Darius and I kept the day pretty simple. We took our time cooking and it ended up being a very relaxing day.

To our family and friends - We're most thankful for all of you! Hope you enjoyed the holiday.

We've all been there...

For Honey

I'm sure many of you have received 'that' type of phone call, when you find out something unfortunate has happened to someone you love....your stomach drops, a knot instantly forms in your throat, your mind starts to spin, and you can feel the tears beginning to well up in your eyes. In the end you can only hope the news is more positive than not.

We're so very grateful tonight that the news we got yesterday favored the good, and that our Honey is okay. We wish we were there to offer our support in person, but please know how much we love you, Honey. Our thoughts and prayers are with you!

Ben & Zach may not fully understand how special Honey is, but they will someday. Until then I can only encourage them to share their current loves with the people that love them. So, I sat them down this afternoon and encouraged them to color pictures to send to Honey. They colored some, but preferred chewing on the crayons instead. I even offered them rainbow colored Goldfish crackers as an alternative to wax, but they just switched off between the two. Oh well..it will be interesting to see if there are any specs of rainbow in their poo.

Honey, you're artwork is on the way...get well soon! We love you so much! You give us an extra special reason to be thankful this Thanksgiving!

Frosty Litter

Have I mentioned before how much I dislike winter, and especially snow? Despite my negative feelings toward the season, I was prepared to make the best of it this year. The boys are older and upright and I thought they would be game for playing in the snow this year. Boy was I wrong! I guess they share my distaste for the messy fluff.

We lasted for probably five minutes or less before the meltdowns started. I can't say I blame them, but I'll still try again. Otherwise, it's going to be a very long winter!

Puddle Problems

Snow has returned...sigh. Our days of playing in our favorite puddle are on hold until it rains, or we get a nice enough thaw. Ben probably won't mind the wait. His last encounter with the puddle ended on a sour note.

Before

After

XXVII

I'm one very happy New York Yankee fan tonight! I have absolutely loved watching the Yankees throughout the playoff series. It's one of the reasons I love October/early November so much. What a great World Series matchup between the Phillies and the Yanks. I was kind of hoping for a game 7. What an awesome night for Matsui...6 RBIs! And to watch my favorite player (Andy Pettitte) pitch the winning game...it doesn't get any better. Congrats Yanks on your 27th World Series Championship!

On the Bayou

Darius’ vacation time got switched from Dec. to Oct., so we visited Louisiana earlier this year than we had planned. It was mine and the boys' first trip there, and it was nice to see where Darius grew up.

We stayed with Darius’ mom and her husband Alfred (Nini & Papaw) in the same house which Darius lived in growing up. I got a kick out of looking through old photo albums. It was fun to compare Darius’ features from when he was young, with those of Ben’s & Zach’s.

The boys immediately made themselves at home. Zach found a Tonka ambulance that he immediately took ownership of, and Ben made quick friends with Papaw.

Margaret saved several things from when Darius was young. She has his old rocking chairs, Dapper Dan doll, rocking horse, and GI Joe doll and Jeep. Ben and Zach had fun playing with all of their daddy’s stuff.

Darius has a lot of friends that still live in and around Monroe. Unfortunately we didn’t get around to see everyone we wanted to. Sorry to those of you we missed! For the friends we did manage to see...thanks so much to all of you for having us over in your homes, or taking the time to meet us out, under short notice. We really enjoyed seeing all of you!

Darius made sure we took advantage of the shopping and eating options that were available to us. Margaret and Alfred were wonderful to watch the boys for us, while we got the shopping we needed to do out of the way. We ate great food from some of Darius’ favorite places. We must have had pizza/muffulettas from Johnny’s Pizza at least three times.

In Darius’ backyard there are three huge pecan trees, and we came at just the right time to gather the pecans that had already fell. Darius’ old hunting buddy, Barkley, kept us company while we picked up the nuts. Darius had told me before that his dog liked to eat pecans, and sure enough we could hear him cracking hulls as we worked.

On the last day of our trip, Margaret and I took the boys to the Louisiana Purchase Zoo. It had rained just before we went, and when we got to the zoo, there was only two other people that we saw there besides the zoo employees. It was so nice to have the entire place to ourselves, and it was the perfect sized zoo to get in and out before the boys lost interest. The boys enjoyed seeing all the animals…especially all the monkey exhibits.

After the zoo we stopped at a pumpkin “patch”. The boys had fun trying to move the pumpkins, splashing in the puddles, and playing with the wagons. We had hoped to find small enough pumpkins for the boys, that we could take home with us, but they were all sold out.

We had a nice stay in Monroe. Margaret & Alfred, thanks so much for all you did for us to make our stay comfortable. And thanks for watching the boys for us when we had shopping and errands to do…what a difference it made to be able to get things done in half the time.

Our trip home went well right up until the end. The boys did really well on all the flights, but unfortunately I picked up a bug along the way, and it wasn’t until yesterday that my voice came back and I started to feel human again. The boys ended up sick with me and we all missed out on Halloween. I did make an effort to make their costumes, but it was just one of those days that nothing would go right. It’s too bad…they would have made a cute Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum. I’m lucky that they’re still young and didn’t know what they were missing. Sorry little guys!