What, Christmas is Over?

  This December has been such a busy one that it seems to have just been a flash in my mind.  Finishing another semster, finding a new apartment, packing boxes and traveling for Christmas must have been enough to put this month into hyper-drive.  Luckily we have found time for the girls to see as much family as possible in 2 weeks, and we've all had a great time. 

  But, now it's time to get the show on the road.  Let's start moving out some of those boxes stacked high in our old, cramped, cockroach palace and get our FINAL semester going.  Whoohoo!

  Thank you to everyone we've been able to visit this Christmas for feeding us, housing us, spoiling us, or simply keeping us company during this hectic and somewhat confusing couple of weeks.  I promise there will be an e-mail updating everyone of our new contact info.  And of course this post would not be complete with out the classic Christmas Morning pics of the girls.

Audrey with her "Barbie 3 Musketeers" from Santa

Lexi rocking out with her Santa gift

* Hang tight this next month for updates, since we won't have internet until the middle of January.

Little Lady

So, Audrey got her hair cut today.  A friend of mine from church does hair and she did a really great job.  Audrey's been excited for the last week, ever since I made the appointment.  It's cut in a cute bob that flips under and her hair looks so full now!  My friend put "glass" in her hair to make it shine, taught Audrey a few things she can do to her hair by herself (since I'm not allowed to touch it), and even showed her a trick to get rid of static (use a dryer sheet).  Since we've been home Audrey has stopped in front of every reflective surface and she now carries a dryer sheet with her at all times.  I've even caught her shaking her head a few times and bouncing her hair.  That's my Little Lady.

A Fairy Good Halloween

  What can I say?  It was another successful Halloween.  The girls had a great time and Mom and Dad's closet is now stocked with candy!  This year Audrey was a *Pink* Tinker Bell (thanks to Gramma Tini!) and Lexi was Abby Cadabby (thanks to Gramma K and the internet!).  For those of you not up to speed Abby is a fairy-in-training from Sesame Street.  They both were really cute and they loved having the make-up put on and kept asking for more spray-on aersol glitter.  I'm sure my lungs look festive as well after accidentally inhaling half the can.  Trick-or-Treating quickly became Lexi's forte and as long as someone would hold her hand she would walk up to the creepiest of houses.  There's a picture of her and Tim at that house, but it just doesn't do it justice.  There were flashing lights, fog and a freaky soundtrack.  Audrey on the other hand made it about 30 minutes before she was crawling to the stroller insisting that she was too tired and didn't want any more treats.  Next year it will be fun to see if those contrasting moods have continued.  The holiday is barely over and the girls are all ready planning next years costumes. Audrey wants to be a sparkly good witch with a purple jacket (really it's all about the accessories to her) and Lexi says "Halloween I scary!" All I know is that the girls better use these wings and wands till their ragged because if we ever have a boy they will quickly become obsolete! I imagine we would move on to swords?

Flicks 'n' Treats

  This past month I decided it would be fun to make a new treat every Friday for our family movie night and watch halloween movies.  We all had a lot of fun with this; especially Tim, all he had to do was get home in time and enjoy!  But I found that it was great one-on-one time with Audrey and she learned some new skills.  Just check out her egg cracking action!  I'm sure you'll notice that Lexi's help was staying out of the room or eating the unfinished product.  But, I was suprised by how helpful she could be as well.  She loved putting the Reese's Pieces on the Sugar Cookies.  I would just assign a cookie to her and she would load it up until there was no more space, then I would direct her to an empty cookie.  She was so proud of herself!
   If I'm still feeling crazy in December we just may do this again!  And for those of you who may want to know, here's what we did: Fern Gully & Caramel Apples (to get into the fairy mode I suppose), Max & Ruby Trick-or-Treat and Caramel Corn, Casper and Sugar Cookies, Harry Potter and Brownie Sundaes, and finally The Nightmare Before Christmas and I.B.C. Rootbeer and Pizza (yes, I got lazy but it was yummy).

Take a Seat (Just Don't Forget to Flush)!

What is it about toilet training that makes it such a grand event?  I work so hard to teach the girls about privacy and personal space but, once Lexi says she wants to sit on the potty we all follow her in and it's an instant party.  Yesterday we sat for half an hour singing songs about what we like to do on the potty, telling terrible knock-knock jokes and finally celebrating a productive end to our gathering.  I love that she's starting to experiment with being a "Big Girl" but why is it that now I pull out the camera and have to snap a shot with her pants down?  I can only blame this silly blog and darn ol' technology.  I can't remember ever taking pictures of Audrey taking care of business.  And even though my parents have some very cute toddler pictures of me in the bath and washing the car in just a diaper I don't recollect any toilet shots.  The plus side to all this is the future embarassment these pictures can bring.  I will immediately file these under "for first date".  And since I know I will be sitting through hours upon hours of more songs and knock-knock jokes, could someone please teach the girls a few that at least make sense?

Lexi: "Knock-knock?"

Audrey: "Who's there?"

L: "Sock"

A: "Sock who?"

L: "Sock whooo!"

A: Starts cracking up

Mom: "How's it going down there? We done yet?"

"I want to be 90"

Says Audrey from the backseat of Grandma's car.  And who wouldn't?  You get to dress-up however you want (preferably with purple cowgirl boots), eat a fancy lunch, have the biggest party a four year-old has ever seen, see lots of family and friends, and nobody can tell you that you've had too much cake!
  This last Saturday was my Grandma Carl's 90th birthday party, her actual birthday being this Tuesday.  We were fortunate enough to be in Grass Valley for the party and share the exciting day with Grandma.  Not only do I see it as an accomplishment that she made it to an impressive 90 years old (I hope those strong genes made it my way) but, it was even more impressive to see how many people would travel regardless of distance, health or other circumstance to celebrate with Grandma.  Of course she's not "Grandma" to everyone who was there.  She had friends she's known and kept in touch with since elementary school and friends who have happily become family through marriages.  And of course Audrey and Lexi weren't just there for the cake, though it sure kept them quiet and still when the time came.  But they were excited to do something special for their Grandma and get to sing "Happy Day" at the top of their lungs.  We're also grateful to Grandma for giving us the chance to see family that we just don't get enough of and meeting a new little cousin/niece for the first time.  I'm so thankful to my Mom for putting this plan into action and getting everyone else on board.  Grandma's not one to want the attention on her, but she seemed to love every moment of it.  I'm positive that smile didn't leave her face all day.  And if you watched carefully as she left the party my Dad actually had to hold her arm so she didn't accidentally float off, she was that happy.  It was a great, although rushed, weekend and we would make the drive again.  Road construction, previous post and a/c going out all included!  Happy Birthday Grandma!
  Yes, there are a lot of pictures.  Thanks, Dad and John for the fine collection of pictures to choose from.  No, don't feel like you have to watch the whole slide.  Just remember, I had 170 + to sort through!

Have You Ever Wondered?

No pictures with this post.  But I do have a thought I wanted to share with you all. Have you ever been driving through Nevada and start to wonder, "How do I know if this brothel is any better than the two I just passed and the three more I will soon pass?"  I (unfortunately) have your answer.  Yesterday I was driving home with Tim and the girls from a wonderful weekend of family when Audrey says "I have to go to the bathroom."  Naturally, she couldn't have said that 5 minutes earlier when we could have stopped at Eddie World, used clean facilities and possibly even talked Tim into some ice cream.  Plus, we were trailing a Semi who was making good time, so those 5 minutes got us pretty far from our desired Eddie World.  We stopped at the first mini mart we could find.  As we pulled up to the bright pink Nevada Joe's we noticed a smaller building just behind.  "The Cherry Patch II"  Apparently the original Cherry Patch was pretty successful.  But, successful or not we just couldn't bring our selves to take our innocent little 4 year old in Nevada Joe's, bathroom emergency or not.  We're trying to teach our girls to aim higher in life.  So, we strapped her into one of Lexi's diapers and we were out of there with the smell of burning rubber following!  And now back to my original thought... If a brothel can ever claim multiple establishments it must do the job right!  Gosh, isn't traveling with the family great? 

I promise that by the end of the week there will be pictures (I'm talking about the family visit, not of the Cherry Patch II).  So check again soon for a new post!

Party for the Birthday Girl

OK, so I wouldn't actually call it a "Party". Maybe "Slightly Festive Family Dining". We decided we would have to be crazy to invite people to a party for a tantrum stricken two year old, so Tim brought home pizza. Smart choice! I would say it was a peaceful evening, except it wasn't. My cake had failed miserably (again) and the girls were so wound up before Tim even got home that it was all just craziness. But, Lexi had a fun time.

So, the cake... Once again I had trouble with melting frosting. I don't know what the deal is. I cooled the cake and kept the frosting in the fridge. But when I started with the pink frosting I quickly noticed that this was what I will forever more call a Pepto Bismol Mess. And for those wondering, no, it's nothing like the "Honeymoon Pepto Bismol Mess". Eventually, I decided to just go with it and attempted "Splatter Frosting". I have to say, it worked for the occasion.

I guess all that we have left to do is wait and see what adventures being two has in store for us!

Happy Birthday Alexis!

Lexi is 2 today, yay! And she's been walking around the house singing "Happy Day Me!". Alexis has been such a sweet, energetic, fun and loud addition to our family and I'm so thankful that she's my little girl. Her birth was quite the way to say "Welcome to a new life in a new city far away from your family where your husband has no job and will be hiding away in a library for the next three years!" But, trying to keep up with Lexi has made the time fly by. It is so much fun to see how much she is able to interact with her big sister and how much she admires Audrey. As she gets older she is becoming such a great sister and companion for Audrey and I love watching them giggle together. She is growing and learning so fast and it is quite apparent that I have yet another child with my temper. She really knows how to glare and has a great throwing arm, especially when she's mad.
I have included some fun pictures of the last two years and a list of the things Lexi has taught me thus far.
Happy Birthday Lexi!

Lexi's Lessons

Don't think that just because you've done it before you know what you're doing

From the moment they take their first breath (maybe even before) they have a personality all their own

Don't let the sharpie out of your sight

Don't let her out of your sight

Let a sleeping dog (Lexi) lie

Don't bother vacuuming till she's really done

Don't try to be nice and let her comb your hair, it hurts a lot

Never leave the house without blankey, no matter what's stuck on it

The smell of peanut butter lingers for a long time, but not as long as spoiled milk

One glue stick can be hours of fun

Even though the Librarian says it's OK that your child's ear piercing scream has broken a few of the patrons hearing aids and shattered a window, they don't mean it and it's time to leave

A grown, mature adult can have a beef with a fictitious children's cartoon character... Dora

But, Elmo, Abby and even the whole Blue's Clues gang are welcome to drop by whenever they want

She does have a sense of humor and she knows exactly what she's doing
i.e. she knows exactly where the overdue library book is

Be careful of what you teach your child to say... "Shake Your Booty" can be cute after a bath, but not while the Sacrament is being passed

If she is hungry, mad, or just bored do not let her near Audrey, she will bite, she will break the skin

Even after a day of stinky diapers, playing in the mud, putting on too much sunscreen, spilling food all over her clothes, and constant morning/pickle breath at the end of the day you can still smell the "Little Girl Scent" and it's the best thing

Little girls are a lot more fun than I thought they would be

I'm pretty lucky

Shuffle Step...

This last week Audrey finished her ballet and tap class with Ms. Gayle. For her last class parents were invited to watch. Audrey was really good at remembering all the positions and steps. And even though she wasn't the most coordinated girl there, I have to say she was the cutest and had the most spring to her step. She wants me to sign her up for another class. But she made it clear that after one more class with Ms. Gayle she is ready for a class "on stage"! Are we ready for recitals?

Demonstrating her shuffle step

The teddy bear walk

Mt. Charleston

This weekend we finally made it to Mt. Charleston for a hike. It was so pretty and surprisingly green! We walked a short trail called "Robbers Roost". It has these really cool caves where, legend has it, thieves would hide with their stolen goods taken from pioneers on their move West. It really would be the perfect place to hide, but it made me a little anxious seeing my little girls crawling into these dark holes. I just knew some creature would jump out and eat them up! We're so happy to be discovering all of these great things to do as a family in this barren desert!

Audrey tried many different poses for this one.

Lexi loved sliding down every rock she could find.

I'm surprised she didn't rip her pants.

You can't see it in the picture, but Audrey is climbing into another hole in the cave.

I'm yelling at both of them to get out of there!

Our Pioneer Children Sweat as They Sat!

Nope, no singing and very little walking! We went to our Stake's Pioneer Day parade on Saturday. Lots of fun, sugar and heat! My favorite part was Lexi and I playing in the water while the fire department next door sprayed everyone off. Tim said it looked like they were trying to stop a riot or protest! The girls enjoyed all the treats. Tim was the best on the stilts. And now I'll let the pictures say the rest...

Thank You Library!

The girls have all ready finished their summer reading program and they got some of the coolest prizes! For finishing their summer reading logs they both got free Ben and Jerry's ice cream and a free visit to a big "bounce house" place that Audrey now calls Bounce World. We decided to use all of our coupons on Friday and had a really fun girls day out. As normal Lexi was a bit more adventuresome than her big sis (the pink spec on top of the huge slide is Lexi, she climbed it herself) but we all had a great time. And as the pictures show it was a very exhausting day. Audrey now wants to do this same thing every Friday. We are so lucky to have such an awesome library to do such a great program. I wish they had winter, fall and spring reading programs too!

Happy Birthday Tim... Take Two

Tim's birthday was Tuesday and the girls and I had the evening all planned out. They made cards for him and we would surprise him with his favorite dessert (coconut cream pie) after dinner. I even made the pie myself! Before Tim could enjoy his evening with the girls he had to pick his car up from the shop, again. As we were eating dinner the phone rings, it's the bishop for Tim. Apparently there was a meeting he forgot to tell Tim about (he's just been called as Executive Secretary). Tim stuffs what food he can fit in his mouth, puts his tie back on and he's gone. Audrey was very upset that our plans were cancelled so I let the girls stay up and wait for Daddy. When he finally got home it was time to put the girls straight to bed. The next morning Audrey decided it could be Daddy's birthday again on Wednesday. I didn't tell her that he already opened cards and ate some of his pie. But that night we lit a candle, although Audrey thought he needed all 28 on the pie, and sang to him. Turns out Audrey hated the pie and wouldn't eat it. Lexi loved it, but we think she's allergic to the coconut. That's all right, more for Tim! In the end I think Tim enjoyed his birthday and he loved the artwork the girls made for him. We love you Daddy/Tim! Blowing out his candle

The Artists making Dads cards

The 4th

This was our first Fourth of July by ourselves. No Grass Valley Parade or laying out on a blanket watching the fireworks. Even though it was very different than anything I'm used to, it was fun starting some of our own traditions and enjoying something new with the girls. Our ward had a flag raising ceremony (inside) and pancake breakfast. That was nice, and it meant I didn't have to cook or clean up in the morning! When we got home we made ice cream. When Audrey saw me heating the milk on the stove she was pretty sure I was doing it all wrong. But by the end of the day it was ready, and REALLY good!

After we rested a while and the ice cream was ready for the freezer we took the girls to the pool. It was so busy, but well worth it on a 100 plus day. Since taking swim classes the girls are both really comfortable in the water. But, no doubt about it; Lexi is our risk taker and Audrey our risk assessor. Lexi was going down the little water slides and climbing in play tubes while Audrey was staying where she felt she had a bit more control. Audrey was very cooperative, posing in the pool, while Lexi was too fast in the water to try to take a pic. When it finally got dark enough we took the girls outside and did some fireworks of our own. Lexi loved the little"Pop-its" that you throw and really got the hang of it. She also enjoyed the sparklers, but always wanted to hold them from the wrong end. While everything was just too loud for Audrey she finally admitted "well it is kind of beautiful". Tim got some of his own fireworks to play with too and we could even see some big ones from the casinos close by.
Even though we missed everyone that has become part of our Independence Day routine it really was nice to do something new and hopefully start some new traditions that the girls will remember when they are older.

Party Time!

What fun to be 4! Here are the pictures from Audrey's birthday. Saturday Audrey had a party at the park with a couple friends. They had fun playing in the water and eating cupcakes. Her party was butterfly themed so, of course, she had to dress like a butterfly. She has been so excited she has been inviting kids at the grocery store or rec center for the last two months. Although none of them came, a little girl she met that day did join the party. We never did get her name.



On Monday we had a speedy celebration at home. Tim had to go to a meeting in the evening, but first brought home pizza and watched Audrey open gifts and blow out her candles. She was so enthralled with her wonderful gifts she barely noticed Tim leave the house. Thank You everyone for the fun and thoughtful gifts. You really helped make Audrey's big day very special!

Notice Lexi grabbing for the cake?

Birthday Girl

Happy Birthday Audrey!

Can you believe it?! Audrey is 4 years old today! She is such a blessing to our family. And I'm happy that she was the beginning of our growing family. She has taught us a lot (which I talk about further down the page), and while I can't say I enjoy every moment I spend with her the good ones definitely outweigh the bad by far. She is such a wonderful big sister and help to us. I love her positive attitude and her sense of humor. My little "girly girl" is going to be a lady before I know it! I will soon add an update of the days festivities, but until then I hope you enjoy the slide show. It was so much fun to put together and reminisce a bit.