Meg and Matt Visit!

Have I mentioned how much fun we had over the holidays? To top it all off, Meg and Matt came to visit us just after New Years! Matt had some school business to attend to, but we got to take advantage of having Meg around for an entire week!!! We kicked off our time together by visiting one of our favorite local vineyards, Martin Ranch. Not only did we enjoy a picnic and good wine, but we worked on our rock-skipping skills.

Ross was at the Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas most of the time they were here, so Meg and I got to have some good, girl time when the kids were asleep or away. When they weren't, Meg was amazing with the kids. She read and played with them while I fixed their dinners. She helped them get ready for school in the mornings and helped tuck them in at night. They got lots of attention and love! Matt joined us toward the end of the week, and they decided he was hilarious. They simply adore them both!

We hope to see them again soon!!!

Christmas & New Years with Pop

It's Super Bowl Sunday, and I'm home sick while the rest of the family is having fun at our friends' house. I decided to make the most of the down time and finally finish my Christmas blogging!

My dad, also known as Pop around here, arrived the day before the Rodriguez/Taylor family went home. After they left, we exchanged gifts. There were lots of smiles and laughter as we enjoyed spoiling each other a little. Audrey LOVES stuffed animals, so you can see how excited she was to get this penguin Beenie Boo. I love how sweetly she was sharing it with Jackson too.

We spent the a lot of our time together just hanging out, playing games, and doing a little hiking nearby. It rained almost everyday over the break, so we were grateful to spend a little time outside!

On one of the rainy days we made our way into San Francisco to visit the Exploratorium. Everyone had fun playing and learning. I didn't get a picture of it, but one of the favorites was an exhibit that showed you what you would look like if you had a perfectly symmetrical face by flipping an image of half your face. Some people didn't look much different at all, and others looked really funny! We also made tornados, learned about engines, danced to some cool colored videos, and so much more.

For New Year's Eve, I threw together a last minute party for the kids. We hung balloons displaying the hourly countdown. We sped up the count down by starting at 6 PM and celebrating every half hour. At each "hour" the kids would pop a balloon and open a bag of clues, which eventually led to surprises and games. It was a fun way to pass the time, have some good conversations about everyone's values and perspectives on life, and to laugh and play the night away! We were disappointed to learn we couldn't watch the ball drop at midnight Eastern time, so we found an online countdown and put the kids to bed. The adults played more games and did a traditional cheers at midnight.

My dad also spent some time sketching with the kids while he was here, giving them tips, and inspiring them to try new things. After he left, I asked Jackson what his New Year's resolutions/goals might be for the year. He said he wanted to exercise more, practice being a good doctor, and become a good sketcher. I think Pop left an impression!

There are a few more pictures in the album.

Christmas with the Taylor/Rodriguez Family

We had the most wonderful Christmas season this year! We had family at our house for 3 weeks straight with a maximum of 10 people sleeping at our house at one point, which might sound overwhelming to some, but it was SO much fun and such a blessing in so many ways. Living in California with most of our family in Louisiana and Texas, but also spread from Connecticut to California, means it's harder to get together. Having so many people willing to travel to spend time with us was amazing!

The same day my mom left town, Susan, Leslie, Philip, Mitchell, and Taylor arrived! Baby Taylor was often the center of attention, providing lots of entertainment and smiles. He has the most infectious laugh, which the kids enjoyed getting him to do by playing peek-a-boo. They also discovered how much Taylor loves to listen to singing. Any time he would fuss, they would start singing him Christmas songs and lullabies, which quickly calmed him down. The kids were also entertained by playing with fun Star Wars apps on Uncle Philip's phone!

Their first full day here was mostly spent hanging out. However, Audrey had a gymnastics camp to attend, so Leslie and Philip took Mitchell and Jackson to see the new Star Wars movie. This was Jackson's second viewing of the movie...we went as a family for Ross' b-day while my mom was in town.

We spent most of Christmas Eve visiting, preparing food, decorating cookies, and playing. We got a few pics of the kids before we left for church. They did amazingly well in the service and loved lighting candles and singing "Silent Night." When we got home the kids all put on their matching Moosletoe pajamas, and Jackson led everyone in singing a few more Christmas carols.

After a few more group photos under the tree, the kids laid out their cookies for Santa. Jackson read everyone a book, and they snuggled into bed, anxiously waiting to see what Santa might bring!

Christmas morning came early and was over quick! Jackson and Audrey were both beyond excited to find their most wished for presents under the tree. They both asked for Bitty Babies because they both LOVE taking care of babies! Then the chaos of gift unwrapping began. Before we knew it, we were done and had piles of paper and presents everywhere! We took a short break for cinnamon rolls and our traditional egg casserole somewhere in the midst of the gift exchange.

It rained most days during their visit, so we were grateful for a break on Christmas day. We took advantage of it by driving to Woodside, CA for a hike. It felt great to be in the beautiful outdoors! Even Taylor wore himself out, and fell asleep in my arms by the end of the trek. After our hike, I drove Leslie, Philip, Mitchell, and Audrey along the "skyline" where we enjoyed some picturesque views of the Bay Area.

The next day we made our way to the Dell'Osso Family Farm for a little winter delight. We started the adventure with some snow tubing. It was a blast! We had tickets that let us go down the slides as many times as we wanted for 90 minutes. Mitchell wasn't much of a fan, but Jackson and Audrey didn't want to stop! They rode with us on double tubes, as well as by themselves in single tubes where they could spin in circles. Every ride ended with a huge grin and often some belly laughs.

While we were busy tubing, Mitchell and Leslie did some ice skating, which Mitchell loved! We all did a little snowball throwing, and the kids did some pillow jumping and roller coaster riding. I'd say it was a successful day!

My dad joined us that evening, and the Taylor/Rodriguez family headed home the next day. We were sad to see them go, but we enjoyed every moment they were here! There are several more pictures in the album!

Christmas with Nana

My mom came for an early visit for Christmas. She held down the fort while we took the kids to see the new Star Wars movie on Ross' birthday. It was awesome! We wrapped up the birthday celebration watching the Cowboys lose another game this season at a great new restaurant in the area. Despite the loss, I think Ross still had a good day.

We celebrated Christmas with Nana the next day. We exchanged gifts and visited Santa at a house down the street from us. There were lots of lights, hot chocolate, cookies, and presents, as well as laughter.

Her last day here we had a great time just hanging out and playing!

The Perfect Tree...for this year

There are quite a few tree farms near us in CA, so we took advantage of the opportunity and cut down our first Christmas tree as a family this year! It was fun to walk through the farm and find just the right tree for us...or so we thought. We found a tree with the perfect shape. We cut it down, took it home, and then remembered we have shorter ceilings than we remembered! After removing a little from the top and a little from the bottom, we had the perfect Dr. Seuss tree. I love it! We also got a smaller tree for the kids. It's a little bigger than we've gotten in the past, but they were still able to carry it, decorate it, and make our house a fun celebration of Christmas!

Thanksgiving in Leakey

We traveled to Texas for the week of Thanksgiving this year. The trip started off with an exciting ride around the ranch...until the Polaris died. Then we had fun attempting to push it back to the house. We eventually gave up, but both kids did their best to help! We ended up walking back and towing it later.

Tuesday was our nephew's birthday. Mitchell turned 6 while we were there, so we got to join him at school for a little celebration with his friends!

We also got to meet our newest nephew, Taylor! He is 4 months old now, and he is so sweet and wonderful! We all loved getting to hold him, play with him, and make him laugh and smile. Both Jackson and Audrey were amazing with him. They really love both of their cousins!

Despite a little chill in the air, the kids decided to play in the river. They got a little wet and had a ton of fun!

It was a wonderful way to spend our Thanksgiving week!

There are more pictures in the album.

Fall Soccer Season

Both Jackson and Audrey played soccer this Fall. They had a blast. Audrey was very competitive this season and loved the games her coach played to teach new skills. He involved the parents too, which made it fun for everyone.

Jackson had a great season too. He loves to play defense, and he did a great job watching the field and figuring out where to go and what to do. Of course, he still likes to play around on the field a little too. It's starting to look like real soccer though and was so much fun to watch!

There are more pictures in the album.