I Have Been Good, Santa

Last Thursday, our family went to see Santa at Disneyland. What a fun trip! We were second in line to see the big guy, and the boys were so excited! Caden wanted to keep what he was going to ask for a secret from us, so when he talked to Santa, I tried my best to hear his request. Vance wants a firetruck, and Caden...well, he wants a robot. Not just any old robot. He wants a robot that "can control Mom and Dad." Who knew?

Vance really wanted to be in the Jedi show, and Caden did not, but they picked Caden to be in it! Vance was very sad. We were so happy for Caden! He fought Darth Vader, and he got to use the force on two stormtroopers.

Vance was so excited to see Tigger. "Tigger! Tigger," he shouted. Auntie Talicee spent the entire day with us, and Uncle Micah also hung out for a little bit. Then, we got to see him in the Christmas parade and Fantasmic.

We also saw Grammy at work leading the marching band and training a new guy. I love Disneyland at Christmas time. The castle is gorgeous with all its lights. Disneyland truly is magical at this time of year.

October Birthdays

Our birthdays this year were a lot of fun. Caden requested an ocean party. I thought he meant an ocean-themed party, so Aunt Calee made an awesome shark cake, and Grammy and Aunt Talicee put up fish decorations and planned fun ocean-themed games (my favorite was "Get the Tail Off the Seahorse"). As we were driving to Grammy's house, Caden started crying, because he thought we were having a party at the ocean- not about the ocean. Fortunately, he still had a great time!

Vance wanted to celebrate his birthday with his best friend, Jacob, at Pretend City, which is a big children's museum in Irvine. Those two boys had so much fun riding around in the pedal cars!
Calee did a fantastic job on Caden's cake! He (and I) appreciated it so much!

Vance and his new tool set.


.I thought Grammy was going to pull Caden's arms out of their sockets. I don't think that they ever popped that balloon.

Halloween

I made the boys' costumes this year. Caden wanted to be Obi-Wan Kenobi and Vance wanted to be a pirate. The fabric store didn't have a pattern for any Star Wars costumes, so I had to figure it out on my own. Vance wanted a fancy pirate jacket. Thankfully, I was able to get all of the fabric from the remnants bin or the sale rack. It cost the same as it would of if I were to buy it, but I had more fun. Also, for their boots, I just covered their rainboots with the appropriate fabric- cheap and easy!

We actually carved the pumpkins this year! Last year, we got so busy that they remained uncarved. Caden designed his own.

Archery

At Mom's birthday, Caden had his first archery lesson from my brother Billy and Tevye. He hit the center of the target on his first try!

Our Soccer Star

Caden made the first goal at his first game. We later found out that he had no idea that he had scored a goal. He was just happy to have a chance to kick the ball. Doesn't he look cute in his uniform?

Caden in the First Grade

First day of school.

He is still enjoying it.

Un Templo en Concepcion!!!!

I was so excited to hear President Monson announce that a temple will be built in Concepcion, Chile! This is great news! Right now, there is only one temple in Chile (Santiago), and the members from our mission area had to travel very far to get there. I know that they are grateful for this blessing.

Eventful August

August turned out to be very busy for us- two weddings and two weeks of vacation. Tev's sister, Michaela, was married on the 8th, and his brother, Micah, got married on the 22nd. Sandwiched in between those two events was a trip to the American River in Sacramento, one and a half weeks in Utah, and a drive up to Idaho. Tevye was only able to join us for the first week (of course, he wouldn't miss the river rafting) and the two weddings. My mom-in-law and sis-in-law (Talicee) stayed with Caden, Vance, and I for the entire vacation. We went to Education Week at BYU, did some sight-seeing in Salt Lake, and got to visit with some good friends. I loved that the boys did so well on the trip- Caden was such a trooper and so helpful! Vance tested my patience, but he was a good boy. I really enjoyed the pioneer town at the "This Is the Place" monument. The boys got to ride a train, dip candles, and make clay marbles. I got to test out our new camera. Education Week was also fun. Thanks to Kree and Talicee for sacraficing class time to watch the boys so I could go to some classes!!!!

My Three Electricians

Today was one of the rare occasions when Tevye could bring the boys to work with him, so we dug out their Reilly shirts, and off they went! They came back happy, and I was happy to have a little break.

Do You See What I See?

We usually don't eat eggplant, but when I saw this one at the store, I had to get it! Do you see the face? It has kind of a Bob Hope nose. Any ideas on how to cook it? I will be sad when I have to say goodbye to Mr. Eggplant.

8 Years of Wedded Bliss

Happy 8th anniversary to Tevye and me!
Tevye, you are a great example to me, and I still thank Heavenly Father for allowing us to be companions! I love you!

Update on Caden

I have been sick throughout most of June, so this post is a bit overdue. On June 12, Caden finished kindergarten. I can't believe how fast the school year flew by! We will really miss his teacher. She is such a great teacher and terrific person! Next year, she will be teaching sixth grade, and even though that will be a very different experience from kindergarten, I know that she will excel at it. Caden did a wonderful job in kindergarten- he is so smart, and he always got awards in math and reading. I loved helping out once a week in his class, and I quickly developed an affection for his classmates. One of my favorite memories is of Caden and some other friends playing Rock, Paper, Scissors at the lunch tables every day.

Now, here is some exciting news- Caden doesn't have to wear his eye patch any more! His left eye is no longer lazy, and he sees perfectly with his glasses on! He never complained about wearing the patch, even when it would leave raw patches on his skin when he pulled it off. We love Caden so much, and we are so proud of him!!!!

Vance Strikes Again

He found the permanent marker- need I say more?

I love this!

Here is a video of Jon Schmidt (piano) and Steven Sharp Nelson (cello) doing an arrangement of Taylor Swift's "Love Story" and Coldplay's "Viva la Vida."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0v3d6SFcDys&feature=player_embedded

Stop to Smell the Roses (by the Rununculus)

Last Saturday, my parents and I took the boys to the flower fields in beautiful Carlsbad, California. Open from March through Mother's Day, the flower fields are acres and acres of brightly colored rununculus planted in wide bands of color. On one side of the field they even planted them to look like the American flag. While we were there, Vance took advantage of our walk through their little rose garden to literally "stop and smell the roses." A great blues band performed, and there was an arts and crafts festival. One of my favorite activities from last year and this year was our walk through the sweet pea maze. The walls of the maze are made entirely of sweet pea plants, and the fragrance was divine! The boys loved the tractor ride, of course, and playing in "Santa's playground." I love Carlsbad! It would be nice to live there some day.

Christmas in April

Every Christmas season, we have a tradition of making a gingerbread house or gingerbread cookies. This year, my sweet visiting teacher, Betsy, gave us a gingerbread train kit. Even though we were very excited to receive it, time just slipped past us last December, and I didn't follow through with our gingerbread tradition. Well, since the experation date for the train is marked for the end of this month, it was now or never. The boys and I had a lot of fun putting it together, and it was so much easier not having to make anything from scratch! Thank you, Betsy, for this fun gift!

I don't know why this picture won't turn.

Mr. Independent

Vance has never been one to let others help him with anything. He wants to do everything by himself, and the result is usually a big mess. But, Vance, I applaud you for your efforts. Last night, he helped himself to a snack, unbeknownst to the rest of us. Maybe I should have been mad, but it was just too funny, and I was proud of him for taking initiative.

A Surprise Visit to Papa "Tractor's" House

My dad's birthday was last week, so I took the boys down to the property this past weekend for a surprise visit. Vance loves to ride the "tractor" there (it's actually a lawn mower), so my dad's nickname from Vance is now "Papa Tractor." Caden loves to play on my mom's computer and WII in the trailer. Even though we have the same at our house, I think the cute trailer environment makes it more appealing to him. It is neat to see the new house take shape, and with the newly added stonework, it is starting to show personality. The area is so pretty, and I love watching the squirrels and the many species of birds. Mom has done a great job making the trailer feel warm and inviting, and I love the mini gardens and water features that she has set up all around. Here are just a few of the many pictures that I took this weekend.

This and That

Eden, Rick, and Lincoln came down for a short visit last week. I didn't fully realize how much I missed them until I saw them again. Lincoln is growing up so fast, and he has the cutest fake smile for the camera when someone tells him to say "cheese." Caden really enjoyed seeing his little cousin. Lincoln enjoyed sitting on my lap and playing the piano for a few minutes (He looks sad in the picture, because he just hit his head on the piano).

This past Saturday, we went with my family (minus Emilia and Scott) to the Bass Pro Shop for lunch to celebrate Dad and my brother's birthday. They were each buying new bows, so most of the time they were hanging out in the archery section. The rest of us just tried to kill time while we waited for our turn to eat in the restaurant (it was a ridiculous hour-long wait).

As spring is arriving this week, I have had a desire to play Mozart's works on the piano. I don't know what it is about his music that reminds me of spring- perhaps, it is the light, bouncy melodies- but this time of year doesn't feel right if I don't get a chance to sit at the piano and stumble over some of his works.