Little Sister

Big Brother

It's begining to look a lot like Christmas....

I've been trying to figure out this year how to help Emery enjoy all the fun and meaningful parts of Christmas and not just focus on getting gifts on Christmas morning. I think doing family traditions are something kids love and will remember far longer than toys. If you have any ideas of some Christmas traditions I'd love to hear some more ideas! One of the things we are doing is reading a Christmas book each night. I wrapped them up and put them in this tote by the Christmas tree.

This year we got the "Elf on the Shelf" book. It comes with a little elf for your house to watch you. Each night he goes back to the North Pole to tell Santa if you've been naughty or nice. In the morning he comes back to your house and finds a new place to sit.

The countdown to Christmas!

This year we won't be home for Christmas so I didn't want to buy a tree. But, my AWESOME friend Julie saved the day and let us borrow an artificial tree she had!

Emery loved decorating it!

So now our house really is starting to look like Christmas!

And in other news, miss Lucy is on the verge of crawling! She sees the tree. She wants the decorations and lights. She is creating a master plan as we speak!

Thanksgiving in Florida!

This year we went down to sunny Jacksonville, FL to visit my sister Andrea and her family for Thanksgiving. It took us about 8 hours (including stopping a few times) to get there. Yuck! We were so glad to get out of the car! But, I'm so glad we went! The weather was AWESOME (70's and 80's) and so was the food and company!

This is her backyard. Ah, so nice!

Slaving away in the kitchen ;)

While Andrea, Lucy, and I stayed home the Men and kiddos went to the Alligator Farm for a turkey feeding!

Lucy was working on getting into crawling position.

This girl is going to be mobile very soon! Oh no...

Ready to feast!

I am thankful for so many things this year. The top of the list would include family, friends, good health, and the gospel. Hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving too!


Emery went fishing for the first time right in my sister's backyard! He caught 4 fish!

I like to shop

I have a confession to make. I like to shop. Yes, it's true. And I LOVE to get a good deal. Enter: Old Navy. Truth be told, they have one of the best sales a few times a year. It's the "Extra 50% off already marked down clearance sale". And for some reason, this time there happened to be a 30% off your entire purchase coupon floating around the internet that overlapped a few days with the sale. End result? This:

What it boils down to: I paid $98 for $560 worth of stuff! Thankyouverymuch. I heart Old Navy. My favorite buys? 98 cent yoga pants and 37 cent t-shirt.

November pictures

This moment in time: 6 months old

Age: 6 months

Weight: 14.25 lbs (17 %)

Height: 27.5 in. (96%)

Hobbies: Making noises, playing with toys and with Emery.

Skills: Sitting up, sleeping, reaching for toys, and eating new foods

What I'm in to: Watching Emery, being outside, eating, and putting everything into the mouth

What I'm not in to: diaper changes, Emery walking away, Mommy walking away, and riding in the car when it is dark

Foods: rice cereal, squash, sweet potatoes, green beans, pears, peaches, and bread.

What I'm saying: Ba ba ba, ma ma ma, da da da, la la la etc.

Sleeping habits: 11-12 hours at night, 2 naps during the day ranging from 30 min to 2 hrs.

Favorite songs: I love to see the temple & I am a Child of God

Other things: No longer sleeping with a paci or swaddle; which means flipping onto tummy to fall asleep.

This moment in time: 4 years old

Age: 4 years old

Weight: 40 lbs. (82 %)

Height: 42.5" (3 ft. 6.5 in.) (91 %)

Hobbies: Riding a bike, playing with Lucy, pretend play, and games.

Skills: Writing and typing name, riding a bike, setting the table, and helping keep Lucy happy.

What I'm into: Watching shows (Calliou, Chuggington, Special Agent Oso, The cat in the hat, and Sid the Science Kid etc), helping with everything mommy or daddy is doing, going to the library/park/store/Giggle Bugs etc, doing things independently, asking why, what, how, visiting Grandma and Grandpa, and playing with Lucy.

What I'm not into: Trying new foods, being quiet, going to bed, getting shots at the doctor.

Foods I like: Most things; favorites are fruit, cheese, pop tarts, and treats!

Foods I refuse: Chocolate, "meat" (except chicken nuggets and hot dogs), jam, syrup etc.

Favorite songs: I am a Child of God, The family is of God, I love to see the temple, Jesus once was a little child, the ants go marching, and silly songs.

What I'm saying: "If you say that again...", "Why?", and "Is it tomorrow right now?"

Emery said..

Emery: Mom, where is the sacrament?

Mom: We have the sacrament at church.

E: Why?

M: To help us remember Jesus.

E: I saw Jesus at church today!

M: You did?

E: Yeah. He was in the clouds. With the trumpets. I saw the picture on the wall.

M: That is a beautiful picture.

E: I wish I had a trumpet.

Happy Halloween!

We had lots of fun things to go to this year to celebrate Halloween! First was the Halloween party at the mall. Lucy was a cute pumpkin and Emery was a ninja!

At the ward trunk-or-treat Emery was a race car driver!

Then on Friday Emery was invited to a fun Halloween party at his friend Sam's house. He dressed as a firefighter!

The boys colored a pumpkin sheet, made spider hats, popped balloons with candy inside....

And even had a doughnut eating contest!

He are the boys. We had Zorro, a dragon, a firefighter, a chick, and a ninja-turtle (who didn't want to be in the picture).

When Saturday finally arrived for trick-or-treating, Emery decided he wanted to be the race car driver again. And Lucy couldn't fit into the pea pod costume I had for her, so she was a ladybug!

And I'm sure that is the cutest little ladybug I've ever seen :)

Happy Halloween!