Seeing Santa...Again

Saturday we went to Newport Beach to finish the shopping and have Christmas with Preston's family. (They are spending Christmas in Utah this year)  First we saw Santa at Nordstrom and then we went to see him at Papa's dealership.  All three times Wyatt has seen Santa this year, he has asked for something different!  At least Emerson always asks for the same thing, a motorcycle.

Some Christmas pics from the past few weeks

Wyatt decorating the little tree in his bedroom
Holiday baking with mommy
Wyatt singing in his school Christmas program, "The ABC's of Christmas"
Decorating the gingerbread house

8 years!

Today is our 8 year anniversary.  We celebrated Friday night by staying at the Desert Springs resort in Palm Desert.  This is the big tree in the lobby.  I got to spend the afternoon at the spa and then we went to dinner and did a little Christmas shopping.  It was great!

Santa

Last night was our ward Christmas party.  Wyatt did a great job singing in the program and then they got to sit on Santa's lap!

Happy Thanksgiving!

The night before Thanksgiving, all the boys had a sleepover at our house.

It rained all night and when we woke up, we saw this rainbow from the backyard.

The feast!

This weekend we went to Newport for cousin Truman's baptism and baby Adilyn's blessing.  We got to stay at the Balboa Bay Club, which is always fun and the kids love.  We had a great time and it was fun to see everyone!

Palm Springs

Last week my parents came for a quick visit.  One day we went to Palm Springs to check out the JW Marriott resort there.  (My dad has worked for Marriott for over 30 years, and Matt and I are going to stay there for our anniversary next month.)  They had these cool little boats that took you on a tour of the resort.  It was an amazing hotel.  Then we went down the street to Kobe for dinner.  We had a great time! 

Halloween!

Carving the pumpkin with Daddy
Frankenstein and Dracula
The ward party, the green make-up didn't last long.  We didn't even bother on Halloween.
Wyatt's school's "storybook character" parade
Peter Pan

Knott's Scary Farm

Last night Matt and I went on a date to Knott's Scary Farm.  There were 13 different haunted houses and people dressed up all over the park that try to scare you.  But the scariest part was the roller coasters!  I haven't been on a real roller coaster in about 10 years and now I remember why.  We had a lot of fun though and the kids got to have a sleepover at Grammy's!

Awards Assembly

The other day Wyatt's school had its first awards assembly.  Wyatt was chosen as one of the few kindergarteners to receive an award.  His was for being an "Excellent Kindergarten Worker."  His class also has the rainbow club.  As soon as a student passes off all 30 of their sight words, they are in the club.  Wyatt was the second student in his class of 34 to make it in the club.  (The first was the teacher's daughter.)  We are so proud of how well Wyatt is doing!

Pumpkin Patch Time!

Yesterday we went to the Pumpkin Patch with all the cousins. It was fun, but it got so cold. We were all freezing! The kids had a great time and we got some great pumpkins!

New Jammies!

The other night we finally had some cooler weather, so I let the boys wear their new skeleton jammies that glow in the dark.  Aren't they cute?  They were so excited.  Unfortuneately, it is hot again so they are back to Batman and pirates.  Hopefully we get some more cold nights before Halloween!

Pickin' Apples

Today we went to Oak Glen, one of my favorite places to go in the fall.  It is up in the mountains and they have tons of apple farms where you can pick your own apples and get all kinds of apple goodies, like apple pie, cider, cider donuts, etc.  There are lots of fun little shops and places to eat lunch and lots of things for the kids to see and do.  The boys loved picking the apples and then Wyatt saw this boy with his snake and got to touch it.  He loves that kind of stuff.

My Little Public Speaker

Today I have to brag a little bit about Wyatt.  He gave his first talk in sacrament meeting for the primary program and did such a good job.  He spoke loud and clear and slow enough that everyone could understand every word.  The whole audience even laughed at his little joke.  These are just a few of the comments that people said to me afterwards:

"He is definitely a future bishop."

"He was the cutest part of the whole program."

"He is too little to speak that well."

"He is five going on thirty."

Way to go Bubbies, we are so proud of you!

Happy Birthday Emerson!

Today Emerson turned two years old!  We had a little Elmo party at Grammy's house.  He loved being the center of attention and opening all his presents.

1st Day of Kindergarten!

Today was Wyatt's first day of school.  He has been counting down the days for the past two weeks.  His best friend jacob is in his class which helps a lot.  He says he is most excited to do science and he is excited for homework.  I fought back the tears until I got in the car and then I shed a few.  My little guy is growing up!

Family Reunion

This past weekend we had a family reunion in Durango, CO for all of my mom's side of the family.  These are my grandparents, John and Wilma.  They have 13 children, 49 grandchildren, and 77 great grandchildren!

This is the tree in their front yard that us kids all grew up climbing.  It was fun to see my kids climbing it.  (Wyatt with his cousin Jaxson)

Emerson and cousin Allie

This is the famous train that runs daily from Durango to Silverton (an old mining town)

Matt with my brother-in-law Tony and my uncle Wade at a bbq at his place on the lake.  Matt wanted me to be sure and post this picture.  He had fun talking with Wade.

Beautiful Durango

We happened to be in Durango at the same time as our good friends from Hemet, the Heplers.  We met at their family's place in the mountains and then rode rangers up to the top of this mountain to explore some mines.  We were so far from civilization and it was definitely one of the top 5 most beautiful places I've ever been.

SeaWorld!

Shamu

Wyatt's favorite part was whenever he got to touch something (stingrays here)

The Tide Pools

Thanks Grammy for the wonderful day at SeaWorld! (We missed you Truman)