Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to everyone! This truly is a beloved time of the year. Soft twinkling lights, smiling children, and hope seems to burn a little brighter and everyone is a little kinder.

Yesterday was spent over at my parents' house. Ava and Norah loved seeing their tree and wondered which presents were for them. Dinner was fabulous, followed by a dessert I remember from my childhood - peppermint ice cream served in homemade chocolate cups. Ava and Norah still aren't up to having a full Christmas Eve type "program," (with them still being so young) so their bedtime story was the account of the Nativity from the New Testament, of course followed by a reading of The Night Before Christmas.

Ava was so wired that we could still hear her rustling around in her room at 11:30 pm. But that didn't deter Mason and I from setting up "Santa's presents." For Ava it was the Cherry Blossom Market complete with play food, while Norah's was a baby doll with a stroller and carrier.

We were all so tired that Ava didn't wake us up until 9:30 am. Of course we didn't know how long she had really been up, LOL! We asked her if Santa came, and she said, "No" but then we asked her if he had left presents, and she coyly said, "Yeeeeeeeeeees....." She and Norah were excited to see the bounty that Santa had left.

The toy of the day for Norah was her battery-operated puppy. You know those yappy things you see tied up outside the front of toy stores? Well, she's totally in love with it. She carried that thing around all day, and ran away every time Ava asked to see it.

Ava on the other hand, spent equal amounts of time between her market, her RC My Little Pony Scooter (although Norah had fun making it do donuts - no joke!), and her books and other toys. My parents came over later in the day for more presents and dinner. It was a fun day all around.

I think tonight we will all sleep soundly. :)

Night in Bethlehem

Last night we took our girls and my parents to see Santa Clara First Baptist Church's production of "Night in Bethlehem." I must say it was quite a sight! The participants had wonderful costumes, the animals were amazing (complete with camels!), and the Roman guards were definitely cranky.

Facades and booths were erected to look like the town of Bethlehem - complete with a census taker, the inn, and facates of what life was like long ago - brick makers, bakers, woodworkers and wool-weavers to name a few. Ava and Norah each had a bracelet made for them.

The wise men and shepherds each had their own dramatic scenes outside Bethlehem, then entered the city to seek the newborn King. Mary and Joseph too were seen entering the city, cast away from the inn, and finally settling at the stable. It was very well done, and we highly recommend it to all of our local friends. It was a wonderful way to help celebrate the season.

One of the wise men's camels

The donkey at the entrance to Bethlehem

Norah and me outside the entrance.

Ava having her bracelet made.

The Nativity.

Favorite Holiday

Yup, that's right - Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. A time for great food, friends, and family. It's a holiday that everyone can enjoy, regardless of religion or nationality. This year I'm thankful for many things, but here are the ones at the top of my list:

-I'm thankful for my wonderful, loving husband, and our two girls. And I'm thankful for one on the way! (although we don't know yet if it's a boy or a girl).

I'm thankful to live near family, and that my girls can grow up near grandparents.

I'm thankful for my dear college friends, who even though they all live in other states, we remain close through email and phone calls.

I'm thankful for the many miracle babies I've seen born to many of my friends recently.

I'm thankful for this free country.

I'm thankful for the MLP community! It's so fun to have others share in the joy of collecting.

So huzzah for turkey and other fixins', let's get together with those we love and find joy in being thankful. :) Oh, and here's a little turkey, California style!

Halloween, pumpkins, and babies

For Halloween, Ava was a witch and Norah was a black cat. They were really adorable. They were even more adorable trick-or-treating. Norah would say "Thank-you, bye-bye!!" once she got a piece of candy. Ava said "Happy Halloween!" most of the time.

We had our Halloween party again this year. Fun was had by all, and I would have pictures of it, but our camera was stolen earlier this week (along with my iPod!). Bummer, I know. We replaced it though, and at least I was able to take more pictures of the girls' costumes.

This year we carved pumpkins as a family for the first time. One was a traditional jack o' lantern, and the other was the silhouette of a cat.

But our most exciting news is that we are expecting our third baby! I had an ultrasound on Monday to confirm the pregnancy, and I was further along than I thought by about a week. My due date is May 12th. I know Mason wants a boy, but in all honesty I think I'm having another girl. But we'll be happy either way. This time around my cravings have been for Cheetoes. Before this, I can't remember the last time I ate Cheetoes!

Costumes

Last night we finally nailed down what Ava was going to be for Halloween. After weeks of her going from being a pony, to June from Little Einsteins, to a wolf, to a baby buffalo (no joke!), and then back to a pony, she finally settled on something. And being the cutesy parents that we are, Norah's costume will go along with it. Hers isn't the same as Ava's, but they do go together. I figured next year Norah can have more input on her costume. :)

This morning was spent gathering up all the items for the costumes. I won't say what they are because I want to reveal it in photos. But I think they'll be super cute. Hey, what little kids aren't cute in their Halloween costumes?

Hooray for autumn!

I just have to say that I'm sooooooooo glad it's autumn. It's my favorite time of year - the beautiful colors of the leaves, the crisp air, the cool nights, and of course so many holidays to celebrate! (And I get to go crazy with the decorations). It's one of my dream vacations to visit New England during this time - the trees look absolutely gorgeous. Now I just need to get into baking mode...

Pastimes

Today Ava wanted to play that classic of all outdoor games - hopscotch! We took out the chalk (even Norah attempted to help) and made not one, but TWO hopscotch games.

Ava really got into it

Norah, not so much

But Norah was into all the items that Ava brought out as "pebbles" for the game.

I think Ava was attempting to try and just make one giant hop over the numbers. Look at all those "pebbles!"

Celeb Look-Alike

So after I dropped Ava off at preschool, I noticed that my front left tire was still leaking air. Mason had patched it up on Monday, but I decided to just take my car in and get a new tire. While I was waiting with Norah (I ended up getting ALL new tires), another customer came up to me and asked, "Do you know Steffi Graph?" The name sounded vaguely familiar. Then he said, "You know, Andre Agassi's wife? Well, you look like her!" I think that's the first time anyone told me I looked like a celebrity. So who do you look like?

Birthday Dedication

For Mason's birthday, I gave him a super-special dedication on my pony forum, the MLP Arena:




So today's Pony of the Day is especially for him, LOL! At least I chose a manly trucker pony for him.

Ida - HO!

Last week we took the drive up to Idaho to spend time with Mason's family (his sister, her family, and his parents). The drive went better than I anticipated. Although our kids barely slept through those 14 hours (Norah took two catnaps and Ava finally conked out for the last 20 minutes as we rolled in to Pocatello), it went well! I think it was mainly due to the portable DVD player.

Once we arrived in Pocatello, Norah fell to the ground at Pam's house as if to say she was glad to not be in the car! Pam's kids took to showing her how to travel up and down the stairs right away.

There was so much to do at Pam's house - jump on the trampoline, ride the Power Wheels and bicycles, play basketball, and of course, the air hockey - even Carter and Ava had a round!

After a few days in Pocatello, we headed up to Driggs to view our condo. While up there, we visited the Grand Teton National Park and hiked around Jenny Lake. With one teenager, one kid, two 3 year-olds, and a toddler, there were no complaints! Amazing! Everyone took turns carrying Norah, Ava, and Carter at some point. The scenery was spectacular.

On our last day in Pocatello, we went waterskiing. While it was fun, it wasn't the best idea since Mason and I were SORE to the bone during our drive home! Ava and Norah were a bit crankier on the way home, but we were glad to have visited our family there.

Five Guests

This morning there was some excitement as we had five little visitors waddle into our garage. Mason had the great idea of feeding them (of course then it was difficult to get them to leave!) Norah thought they were great, as she tried to catch one, but Ava ran back into the house crying. I guess they were intimidating to her!

Jewelry Box

Today my parents dropped off the last few boxes of my childhood things from their garage. I was weeding through them when Ava came over to see. She pulled out my old jewelry box - the kind that played a song while a ballerina on the inside twirled in a circle. She hugged it and wanted to take it to her room. After a few minutes, I went to see what Ava was up to, and she had placed the jewelry box on her table and was watching the ballerina dance. I asked her if she liked the ballerina, and she told me that is wasn't a ballerina, but a princess! I then told her that the box was mine when I was her age. She then pointed to the figure and said, "That's you Mommy. You're a ballerina!" I just wanted to melt. :)

Junior Museum Time

Today we took Ava and Norah to the Junior Museum in Palo Alto. There were fun things for them to explore - magnets, how green energy works, machines powered by tennis balls and a tunnel among other things. The best part of course were the animals. The zoo was small, but there were reptiles, sharks, fish, ferrets, raccoon, bats, and all kinds of fowl to behold. We got a surprise when the peacock decided to fan out his beautiful plumage. I had never seen a peacock do that in real life, so that was a fun experience. (He then tried to intimidate the rabbit that shared his pen, but the bunny looked as if he had seen the peacock do that one too many times). Of course I forgot my camera!

I've Joined the Ranks

I've finally done it! I'm now officially a blogger. Will I become more eloquent? Funnier in my delivery? Who knows - at least I can now (hopefully) keep track of the events that are my life. And post pictures of my husband and daughters.