Giving Thanks!

As all of you know this time of year is very busy, so I’m just going to try and hit the highlights since my last post. 

We flew to California for Thanksgiving, and it was so wonderful to get to spend so much time with family and friends out there. It was especially great that Maxwell got to meet his Great Grandma Sandy for the first time. We took Noah and Amelia to Disneyland for three days, two of which Max stayed home with Grandma Nancy so that she and Grandma Sandy had a chance to spend some one-on-one time with him.

We missed you Aunt Shelley!

Very thankful for amazing Great Grandma's!

Amelia made a new bestie, cousin Gabby!

Jack, Max and Noah on Thanksgiving.

Amelia has been talking about going to Disneyland for at least the last eight months, so you can imagine her excitement when she finally got there! I really believe ages three through five are the most fun to take kids. She got to meet five of the princesses including Princess Aurora, who is her favorite, on two separate days. She was beyond excited to meet Jack and Sally, from the Nightmare Before Christmas; we waited in line for over 45 minutes. Amelia told Jack that Oogie Boogie was mean and that she saw him in his house (the newly renovated Haunted Mansion). Her two other favorite characters were Woody from Toy Story and Genie from Aladdin.

We were so excited to see our friends, Chris and Katie Delgado and their two adorable kids!

Max had just started saying “Dada” before we left and while we were out there he added “Mama”, “dog”, and “cat” to his vocabulary. He has always loved Lucy, our pug dog, and since coming home he follows her around everywhere just saying “dog” over and over again. The week before we flew out Max came down with a temperature of almost 104 degrees, after 24 hours of it not going down we took him to the ER. He was very dehydrated and ended up getting two IV bags and antibiotics through an IV. They never figured out what was causing the fever but after seeing him go through that it really made me feel for those that have very sick children and what that must be like.

 

We call this Max's Klingon face.

Mike took two weeks off before he starts a new study and will be traveling again, something he hasn’t had to do in over two years. Unfortunately, one day into the second week Amelia started throwing up. We were hoping it was just something she ate, but, alas it has made its way to all of us except Max. 

Last, but not least, Noah got his braces put on today!

Arrrg, Matey!

October was a very busy month for our family; we had A LOT of Halloween activities!  I think the kids got to wear their costumes at least five or six times.  We’ve never done a family theme for costumes.  However, this year it happened, thanks to Amelia.  Based on her obsession with all things “princess,” I assumed that’s what she would want to be for Halloween . . . so, you can imagine my shock when she told me she wanted to be a pirate!  I immediately jumped on board, happy to get a break from princesses.  I found her the perfect pirate costume (complete with boots!) at the local children’s consignment shop.  It worked out nicely that Noah wanted to be Captain Jack Sparrow.  I figured I needed to think of something for Mike and me that would tie into the pirate theme, so I came up with Peter Pan and Tinker bell.  Amelia was Captain Hook, and Max made a perfect Mr. Smee.

I love this time of year, especially after living in the Texas heat the past two years.  It feels so amazing to wake up and go outside and actually feel a little chilly.  I am very excited for the holidays; we’re going to Orange County for Thanksgiving to see all of Mike’s family and our friends out there.  It’s been way too long since we’ve traveled there to see everyone!

Noah and Amelia had a blast at the pumpkin patch!

Our 1st annual cul-de-sac pumpkin carving party!

Max was a huge fan of the dry ice.

Max is a busy little guy – he is trying to pull himself to standing any chance he gets.  He takes a lot longer to fall asleep in his crib, because that’s one of the easiest places for him to stand.  He’ll pull himself up and bounce for the next 20-30 minutes.  He recently discovered that he can make his tongue click, which he finds endlessly entertaining, as do the rest of us.  Other than trying to stand, being the “Johnny Jump Up” is still his favorite past time.

Max's first hair cut!

He loves to give himself kisses in the mirror!

Kids? What Kids?

Mike’s work had a retreat at the J.W. Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn that we were lucky enough to attend, thanks to Mike’s mom, Nancy, and her best friend Patti . . . they flew out to watch the kids for the four days while we were gone.  It was the first time since our honeymoon that we stayed in a hotel together without kids!  There were different activities that we could sign up for each morning, such as hot air balloon rides, repelling, kayaking, going on a cattle drive, etc.  We opted for sleeping in; sounds lame, but I cannot tell you how nice it was to not have someone asking for cereal at 6am.  Mike attended seminars in the afternoon, so I got to lay by the pool, go to the spa, or take a nap.  I should probably feel like a terrible mother because people kept asking if I was missing the kids, and I could honestly reply “No.”  Don’t get me wrong -- I was excited to get back to them after the end of the four days, but it was great to have the opportunity to have some “alone” time.

Noah and I met up with Mike and some of the members on his work team at the Texas State Fair one evening this week.  One of the team members is leaving; they usually have a goodbye dinner but thought that going to the fair would be more fun.  We had never been to the fair before, and I did not realize how “sketchy” it is in that part of town .  After driving in heavy traffic for well over an hour, I was about two minutes away from the parking lot, when a car cut me off.  I had to make a sharp right-hand turn that resulted in blowing out my tire.  I pulled into the first available parking lot, which thankfully happened to have a car repair shop.  The staff was nice enough to change the tire for me.  I only had to wait about 10 minutes before Mike arrived to help me.  However, the comments made by bystanders in that short time period were nothing I care to repeat here . . . worst of all, the comments directed to me were in front of Noah.  Luckily, once we got to the fair, we had a lot of fun (especially Noah).  We ate way too much fried food and went on too many rides, but it was still a blast!  

 

Max has his bottom two front teeth!

Half Way to an Adult

We celebrated Noah’s 9^th birthday on September 17^th.  It’s hard to believe it’s been nine years since Mike and I got to hold him for the first time.  It’s even harder to believe that in another nine years he will be 18 years old!  I’m guessing the second half will go even faster than the first. When I started the journey of motherhood over nine years ago, I cannot express how scared I was . . . but, like any journey, you learn lessons along the way and your confidence builds.  I know I’ve done at least some things right when I look at the person he is turning out to be.

 

On his actual birthday, I woke up early to make him a stack of pancakes (something he has always thought was awesome) with a candle on top.  He made his wish and blew out the candle as Amelia and I sang “Happy Birthday.”  One of the things I love most about having kids is how excited they get over the little things in life.  The day before, I took Noah to the grocery store with me and let him pick out a “Lunchable” and some other goodies for his lunch.  I also let him choose a 12-pack of soda for his consumption only, who would have known grape-flavored Fanta could make someone so happy!  What made me happy was that weekend, while all the kids and grownups on our street were hanging out together, Noah asked if he could share his soda with all the kids. 

The night of his birthday, we took him to our favorite burger joint (the Twisted Root) in a neighboring town, where he got to open some of his presents and eat a yummy Oreo shake.

This past Saturday, we had a birthday party with some of his friends at a local place where they offer bowling, laser tag, and arcade games.  What made it really cool was Radio Disney was there next to our bowling lanes offering cool prizes for the kids if they danced and could guess the names of popular Disney show theme songs.  In total, all ten kids won an extra $10 to spend at the arcade.

Amelia and I played glow in the dark mini golf while the others were playing laser tag.

The hamburger cakes were Noah's chose!

Noah and I finished off his birthday weekend by going to a Broadway musical with my friend, Susan, and her two boys who are also friends of Noah's.  We saw "Peter and the Starcatcher."  Both Susan and I read the book to our boys, so we were all excited to see it on stage.  It was good, but I think we all agreed we liked the book better.

We love you, Noah.  Thank you for making us better people and for being such a great example to Amelia and Max.  You are a wonderful son, an awesome big brother, a true friend to others, and you have amazing character!