Christmas, by Justin

December flew by and since we are already into January, Justin is going to update for me. This was the end of our 2009.

Justin: Thanks Mom. Here's the scoop.



Christmas Eve we continued a fun tradition and let everybody open up a present that mom and dad chose. Once again, we got pajamas. Mom had some leftover fabric from dads blanket and shaped up some PJ pants.


After many arguments about who got to write the note to Santa Claus we made the decision to let everybody write their own.
Leaving Santa and the reindeer with a plethora of treats we all went to bed to let visions of sugarplums dance in our heads.
If you can't see I asked for a cell phone and a mini fridge for my room. Brit asked for a bed set. Alex asked for a surprise gift and Amanda asked for a real magic wand that really works.


Waiting for dad to turn on the music.


Amanda's art set and comic book.


Alex's Millennium Falcon Lego set and comic book.


Brittany's bed set and comic book.


My Dutch Oven and comic book



Dad also made Amanda and cousin Nicole a giraffe bank.



Amanda also had one other wish. Bendaroos, as seen on T.V. ( Way too many times in my book.)
Upon receiving them she burst out and in her excitement repeated the whole commercial. This was not even planned this is what she calls them.

The rest of our day...

Haircut...

While swimming after Thanksgiving I realized how long my boys hair really was. I figured if I could put his hair in a pony tail, it was time for a cut. As much as it pained me to get rid of his curls, here is my boy post haircut. Perhaps not the best picture to show but I cut off between 1 and 2 inches! My little boy is growing up!

Thanksgiving...a bit late

Thanksgiving saw us in Oregon to visit family. It was my brothers 40th birthday so we had to help celebrate! The kids had a great time playing with cousins, got hardly little sleep (are still trying to catch up) but hung in there.

Mark was showing me the cool stuff a Droid does.
A little after dinner add perusing was a challenge with little ones around but we got it done.
Funny thing about this picture is that it is suppose to be of the the pies but really like Brit's expression to her brother.


We went swimming and played at a indoor "pump it up" bouncy house facility. It was really fun and my kids schooled me in teh obstacle course.





My brother and I walked away with burns on our elbows and Aaron had a sore shoulder. Ahh, the joys of aging.


Christmas Wonderland,

With December comes concerts and performances and parties. This year Brit and Manda are in dance and had their performances this last weekend. They were so incredibly cute (if I do say so myself). Have a watch and enjoy a little Christmas cheer.

We are officially pending

Things happened quickly this week. We received an offer on our home after being on the market for about two months. We countered and they accepted and now we are officially pending on the sale of our home. It has been a great home for the last seven years, we are just starting to burst at the seems and need a bit more room.




With our home officially pending, we turned around and made an offer on another home in Ferndale. The sellers countered our offer and we accepted Saturday afternoon and we are officially pending on that house too! Now we just have to wait for inspections and hope that both homes close on the same day. The move will be quick and chaotic, but we are excited! The house is less than a mile away and we are not changing schools or wards. We narrowed our choice down to two houses, and decided on the house that has more outdoor options. It is located on a dead-end street leading to a cul-de-sac and backs to a maintained green space that includes a 1/4-mile walking trail around a small pond. The house has about 700 square feet more than we have currently and has (or will have after we convert an office) 5 bedrooms. I (Aaron) am most excited about the bigger garage. I no longer have to back the car out of my workshop to start a project! If you are interested in seeing the listing give us a call!

A Solemn Occasion

Last Thursday, Nov 12th, my kids and I were able to participate in a solemn but awesome experience in town. Nov. 5th the first county resident was killed in Afghanistan. He was a 2006 graduate from the high school. Maybe it's a small town thing but thousands of people lined overpasses and main street as the motorcade carried his body to the Mortuary. As the motorcade approached there was silence and reverence. What an amazing experience. Maybe it was even more meaningful because it was the day after Veterans Day, or maybe because there was such community support. My heart goes out to the family. I love my country. I am grateful for my freedoms and for those fighting in America's name. I was sad to not have my camera but quickly realized all the people perched on rooftops and knew I could never match theirs. Flags everywhere. Love of country everywhere. It was awesome. Here is a link if you are interested.

All Hallow's Eve

It is that fantastic time of year where we decapitate gourds, scoops out their guts, and free the images that are trying to get out. This year we had to contend with Darren who had no problem sticking his hands in the guts and smearing it all around the table top. We gave up trying to keep the kid off the table top and just accepted that it was easier to control him if he had his hands wrist deep in the goo.

Here are the final products of the evening. I love digital photography that allows me to take 30 shots in the dark until I find a picture that I like. From left to right: Darren's, Alex's, Amanda's (up), Aaron's, Justin's, and Brittany's.


This year Justin went to a party instead of trick-or-treating and Darren stayed home. So here are the costumes minutes before we walked out the door. The weather was supposed to be rainy and windy, but we had a moderate evening with a clear sky. What a blessing! No extra fat coats stuffed beneath costumes were required! We walked until our legs were tired and came home for an evening of swapping chocolate. Let the sugar rush begin!

Life Happens

OK, I decided that since I really enjoy looking at my friends and families blogs I should update mine just in case they like to look at mine! We have had so much going on lately. Hopefully all the staying busy will keep us out of trouble!

Activities:

The beginning of Oct. Justin and Dad took a quick road trip to Utah and attended General Conference. They had tickets to the Sat. morning and Priesthood sessions. They were excited to have the opportunity to go to a BYU football game on Friday night too! Go Cougars!


They stayed at Carl and Devin's (thanks guys!) and even got to meet up with my bro. and nephew Ken and Brenden. The days were filled with activities and I had two tired boys when they got home.


Thanks Carl and Devin for the b-day cake and present!





Justin and Brenden in front of Pres. Hinckley's grave.

We celebrated Justin's birthday too this month! Yeah, he turned 12 and was ordained a Deacon. Thanks Moms and Dads for making the quick trip to participate in that. We love you!





The kids decorated Justin's room for him. Everyone was a little goofy and kept asking Justin, "Can I have your old one?" When he got a new wallet and ihome clock radio.

Darren loves to climb on the table. Apparently this day he was feeling a little bit fruity too!

This other picture? Oh he ate 2 markers. I was glad they were washable...and he only got one spot on the carpet! It is SO hard to keep my carpet clean/unspotted when trying to sell! Today I am cleaning it again! I will be so happy when this is over!






OK, enough of my lame picture formatting. This is what happens when I try to do a blog update with 2 toddlers at my feet.

Moving backwards and in no particular order, we had the 1st day of school. The house is quieter but I get to have Amanda home a few days a week because she is on an alternating schedule.

I love this pic because of Alex's face. He really wasn't happy to be starting school. He likes it now.

We went to Birch Bay and had a Bonfire...without Daddy. Beautiful evening and lots of fun.

AJ constantly shows us how cool he is

And he is a good brother during soccer games to take care of his little brother so we can watch his sisters.

Haven't got a good pic of Brit yet so here is Manda.
Darren learned how to swing all by himself! No he waits for no one and loves to be outside.

We also picked apples as a family at a nearby orchard. Had tons of fun and ended up driving to another farm and picked hazelnuts!


you could eat as many apples as you wanted in the orchard. We all ate at least one!
They even gave us carts to carry them back to the car. The kids took turns riding in and pushing. Twas a great day!

One Last Thing

Justin started cross country this year in middle school. He is doing great and I love to watch him run. His last meet he took more than a minute off his time! Great job Justin! His last meet is tomorrow.

Life is great. We have been pretty healthy so hope to avoid the big flus and colds that are quickly spreading. Make it a great day!