Merry Christmas!

Christmas morning was a blast! The first bonus was getting to sleep in until 8 AM:) We were slow to rise, but excited to bust into all the gifts. Ian had no problems warming up to the unwrapping experience - each gift a new distraction! Gift bags were his favorite because all he needed to do was turn them over and surprise! We received many wonderful gifts and spent most of the day playing with our new toys.

We did head out before Ian's nap to take him sledding. What a joy! We got bundled up (thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Andrews for the new coat!) and headed to Garden Acres Park - only a few blocks from our house. I haven't been sledding since I was in college and I forgot how much fun it is. We all loved it and had the hill all to ourselves. Ian wasn't sure what to think at first, but by the end of the first run he was shouting, "More!" After a few tries, we let him go by himself toward the bottom of the hill. He loved it! Thanks to Grandpa Conkright for the awesome sled!

Taking me back

I love Christmas - once I get over the hustle and bustle of it all, I truly love it. I have fond memories from childhood and I hope to pass that along to Ian. Last weekend we bundled up in the car and headed out in seach of Christmas lights - complete with delicious hot chocolate! I really wanted Ian to wear his PJ's, but he thought that meant bedtime and wanted nothing to do with it! Atleast I coaxed him into wearing the antlers long enough for me to get a picture. He would rather chase Apesen around the house and try to put them on her, but she likes them even less than he does!

We drove around for about an hour looking at a few houses. Our local paper publishes a listing of local homes worthy of a peep. Well, some were worthy anyway. It was so cute to hear the "aaaahhhhs" from the back seat as we passed by the homes. Now each night on our drive home he points and shouts "lights" as we drive thru downtown. It is too cute!

My great aunt and uncle would always decorate their home for Christmas. It was over the top and I always looked forward to the drive to New Market to see it each year. It was so much fun and I can only imagine the hours of work that went into creating that winter wonderland. We saw a couple of houses that came close, but this was my favorite. My photo isn't that great, but you can atleast tell that they left nothing untouched.

Ian has also picked up a new hobby - he loves to vaccuum! And to think this is the same little boy who was terrified of the vaccuum as a baby. He would cry everytime we had to break it out. I got this video the other morning and I just couldn't resist sharing it!

Getting ready for Santa!

It is such a busy time of year - get your tree, decorate the tree, buy some gifts, wrap your gifts, visit with Santa, buy more gifts...it seems to never end - until December 25th actually arrives. We are excited for Santa in our house this year. Ian squeals with delight whenever a package arrives at our door, but is quickly saddened when he is told we have to wait to open it:(

We headed out a couple of weekends ago to get our tree. I like getting our tree early because I want to have a few weeks to enjoy it! We headed back to Flower Bin since we have had such good luck in the past. I have to admit I was a little disappointed in their selection this year. It seemed like every tree I liked was $100 and they typically have a good selection of affordable trees. Not so much this year. Oh well - it was also colder than I thought it was and I was feeling like the worst mother ever because my child was not dressed appropriately. We did some quick browsing and picked the first one in our price range. We all needed to get out of the cold! Ian didn't mind though - he was having fun catching snowflakes on his tongue.


My co-worker told me about this mixture she used on her tree last year to help preserve it and I wanted to give it a try. Our tree is usually dried out by Day 2 so I figured anything that might help us is worth a shot. Maybe you'll want to use it next year on your tree:

2 gallons hot water

2 C. Karo syrup

2 oz. bleach

2 pinches epsom salt

1/2 t. Borax

1 t. Chelated Iron

Combine these ingredients in a large bucket and let your tree soak for at least 24 hours. Ours ended up soaking for almost 48 hours and the mixture even froze a bit in our garage. Didn't seem to matter though. We truly noticed a difference - especially in the first week.

Ian was very excited to help us decorate this year! We decorated in phases just because it was too exhausting to try and get it all done at once when we had to keep all eyes/hands on him. It was fun though! We put the lights on first and Ian helped Daddy put the star on top before heading to bed. The next night we tackled decorations and our countdown to Santa. At first I didn't like our tree - it is the shortest tree we have ever had and it just wasn't that pretty. But you'd never know with a few strands of lights and some ornaments.

As if decorating a tree wasn't enough to cram into one holiday weekend we also decided to take Ian to see Santa. Last year we took him to our local mall and while that was fine, the cost of the pictures was ridiculous. I decided this year I would try to be more proactive. Thus, Bass Pro Shops for a free photo with Santa! I saw an ad on TV and thought we should give it a shot. When you arrive you get a Bass Pass which gives you a time to start lining up. Fortunately, we got there rather early but it was still a 3 hour adventure by the time all was said and done. They had a Santa's Wonderland to entertain the kids while waiting for their picture. Most of it was geared towards older children, but Ian did enjoy playing with the fake snow and hanging out in the snowball tent. That is until one of the older kids knocked him down - it was game over at that point. So, we ventured throughout the rest of the store. It is huge! Ian loved the Arctic Cat display and all he wanted to do was climb on each one to test it out.

Finally at 10:30 it was our turn to get in line. I knew this was going to be the toughest part because there was so much activity around and he wasn't interested in waiting. I tried to appease him with snacks and that worked for a little bit. The line did go quicker than I thought it would and after all, I was doing this for a free picture so it wasn't like I could do a lot of complaining. I thought they did a great job organizing it so you didn't have lines wrapping around the entire store. Plus, there were tent displays and a giant aquarium that helped entertain as well. We were rapidly approaching nap time and I just kept praying that we would make it in enought time and sure enough - as soon as Casey sat Ian on Santa's lap he knew what to do! Smile:) All the craziness was definitely worth the free picture with Santa and his reindeer!

Ian is an absolute joy these days - his vocabulary is exploding and so is his personality! It is so fun to have these little conversations and know that he is getting exactly what I am saying. It makes you want to be a good role model because you know they are absorbing every word, action, etc. We bought him a backpack a few weeks ago and he loves it. I love this picture of him, waiting to go to Kristin's one morning while Aris was visiting. He had to show her his new dinosaur backpack! He wants to see everything - making sure not to miss a beat. It is fantastic! I look forward to new adventures with him everyday. I love seeing the world through my child's eyes.

As you can see, the potty is the latest and greatest in our house! We busted it out a few days before Thanksgiving. Ian has really started to show an interest in the potty and loves reading his books about the potty. We aren't in any kind of training mode just yet - just breaking the ice if you will. He likes to sit on it from time to time, but mostly he loves that he can use it as a stool to get to all the goodies on the bathroom counter. Man, he has a serious reach! I guess I should look at it as a motivator to stay clean and organized. Right...

For those of you wondering when I was going to finally bite the bullet and get his haircut, your time has come! I know why I waited so long - I just couldn't bear the thought of him truly looking like a little man:( Sappy, but true. He did such a great job! We couldn't believe how calmly he sat there while Mike the Barber trimmed his baby locks. He was so into it. All the men in the barber shop were charmed by him as well. I made sure to get some pictures and some locks for the baby book! For a minute I thought I could just trim his hair on my own - I am so glad I quickly talked myself out of that one. Ha! Not only did he get his first haircut, but he also got his first sucker. A win-win for all.

I love the amazement in his face...

We are halfway there!

And after...what a cutie! He was probably wondering what all the fuss was about - he just wanted some snacks!

Grandpa Conkright was in town for Thanksgiving. He stopped by on Saturday and Sunday nights to visit. Ian was happy to see him! Grandpa won't be here for Christmas this year so he brought our gifts over early. Ian was the luckiest though because he got to open a present early! He knew just what to do when Casey brought it up the stairs. Christmas and his birthday are going to be so much fun this year!

His first snow sled...now all we need is the snow. I am sure it won't be long before it is here. Casey and I spent a few minutes gliding him across the living room and he thought that was the best. Oh just wait little man, it gets so much better than that!

We avoided Black Friday, but were pleasantly surprised to learn a lot of stores still had good deals on Saturday and A LOT less people. I was able to get a lot of our holiday shopping done this weekend. Now if the gifts could just wrap themselves we'd be all set. Anyway, we stopped at Culver's for lunch and I couldn't resist taking a picture of Ian in this bib. He needs a shirt with the same logo, "I'm as cute as a Butterburger is delicious!" I love Wisconsin.

A little bit of the Northwest...

We recently had our friends Aris and Chris in town from Salem, OR. It was so great to see them! The last time they were with us was February 2007. The best part was that they finally got to meet Ian:) We had so much fun together and Ian warmed up to them nicely. The weekend Chris was here we cruised up to Estes Park on Saturday. It was sunny when we arrived, but by the time lunch was over the snow clouds had rolled in and it was about 10 degrees colder. Brrrr! We got a few inches of snow on Saturday night so that made for a great football Sunday! Plus, everyone was starting to get Casey's cold and didn't feel up to much. Funny story, well sorta - last time they came to visit I was sick and got Chris sick. This time Casey was sick and got Aris sick. We had to work during the week so Aris just hung out until we got home at night. I was able to take a Friday off to spend with Aris - it was so nice to have a girls day...the 3-day weekend was also a bonus!



Casey had Saturday off and it was gorgeous! Sunny and 65 degrees. Can't beat it. So we headed into Boulder and cruised down Pearl St. It was nice and Ian had fun being able to run all over the place. We had lunch at Pasta Jay's - yum! Ian was such a big boy sitting at the table with us in his travel seat. That thing is so handy! He enjoyed making faces at the people next to us and playing with his food:) It was a late lunch though, so we were stuffed and tired by the time we got back home. Ha! Ian helped us burn off some energy though...

Aris had to head home on Sunday night. We were sad to see her go - Ian really missed her on Monday morning and waited at the top of the stairs for a few minutes thinking she would be up any minute. It was the sweetest thing! I miss my friend and am so glad to have had that time with her. We got to just sit and talk about this and that, not worrying about getting off the phone to get the dishes done or do the laundry. It was so wonderful to see her smiling face each night when we came home from work and Ian loved having someone to show off his tricks to. I am not sure when we will see each other again, but I am just hoping it isn't 3 more years.

Ian got an early Christmas gift in the mail this week - a new hat from Grandma Andrews! It is a bigger version of the apple hat she made for him as a newborn. This one has a ladybug on the leaf though - it is too cute for words. Thank you, Grandma!

Music and More

Saturday AM we headed to music class - the kids were fabulous in their costumes! There was a black cat, a lion, a monkey, and a couple of fairies amongst the group. Of course, our favorites were the flower fairy and the garden gnome! Ella and Ian enjoyed the class, as usual. They love to sit in the middle when they break out the instruments and test all of them out. Ella was feelin' the beat and got her groove on during a couple of songs!


It is always fun to watch the kids when Miss Kelly brings out another box. They can hardly contain their excitement, eager to find out what is inside. This week it was drums!! Ian was so excited. He wanted to grab all of them, but was okay with settling on two.

Later that afternoon we invited a few friends over to help us celebrate Halloween. Kate and Colin brought Ella - Ian was so excited to have a playmate. It is wonderful that the kids are at an age where they can play together. So much fun! Maggie, John, Uncle Jon and Heather joined us later for some pizza and snacks. We had candy to pass out to the trick or treaters, but we didn't get many. No worries for us though - we got to enjoy the leftovers! We put the kids in their costumes again so Uncle Jon could see Ian as the little gnome. Isn't he the cutest? I just wanted to cuddle with him all night. I was shocked that he kept his hat on for most of music class and when we put the costume on him at home. I think the dry run helped - I'll make a note of that for the future!

After the costumes came off it was time for PJ's. The kids had a blast hanging out in the basement. Ella loved Ian's chair he got for his birthday. She just wanted to sit back and observe (probably the full belly of chips and cookies;)! The kids did a good job of sharing the toys. Ian and Ella both loved the truck Ian got for his birthday. Ian was such the gentleman and pushed Ella around since she can't quite master moving herself along. It was so cute!

I think Ian's favorite part of the day was the tunnel! Ella brought over her portable playset and Ian was in heaven. He loved it! I think we scored a great idea for Santa...

Happy Halloween - from our gnome to yours!

He's adorable! I am so happy with how his costume turned out and impressed with my first attempt at a homemade costume. He has no patience for the hat and beard so it was some quick action from Daddy on the camera that scored these gems. I wasn't surprised by his dislike of the hat/beard combo, I wouldn't like feathers on my face either, but it won't stop me from trying to get him in full costume!

We wish everyone a safe and Happy Halloween! Hope you get more treats than tricks...

Octizzard

Last weekend Casey and I were blessed with a date night. Ian had the pleasure of hanging out with Ian and Jessica (a student that works for Casey and his girlfriend) while we headed to LoDo for a 40th birthday party. We felt so grown up having an actual babysitter that wasn't our close friend or family member - ha! I love this picture of Ian and I...

Chaney Cooper had her 40th birthday party at the Oxford Hotel in Denver. A gorgeous place! I used to work with her husband, Ted, at Rogue Wave and now I work with her at Level 3. I promise I am not stalking the Cooper family:) It was great to see my old Rogue Wave peeps and catch up with them. I have had lunch with Ted and Chaney a couple of times, but haven't seen Faelynn or Alex since I left. Everyone is doing great! It was great company, good food and a fabulous cake! Casey and I headed out to check out a couple of other bars in the area before heading home - especially Swanky's, a Packer bar. We enjoyed a couple of Leinie's Originals before calling it a night.

Faelynn, Me, Alex, Ted and Chaney

It almost always snows before Halloween. We're used to it, but Wednesday we got a little more than we bargained for! It started snowing Tuesday night and didn't stop until last night. It was intense. We got up Wednesday AM a little earlier so we could all make it to our destinations on time. I never thought about calling work to see if we were open - it was just a little snow. Guess not! I got to work and realized we weren't open. Yay for a snow day! Casey had the day off so we took advantage of our time together and ran our errands before picking Ian up early at Kristin's. I couldn't wait to get him bundled up and out in the snow. He wasn't sure of all the layers at first, but he caught on quick. The snow was almost up to his waist in the backyard. He didn't want to walk without holding my hand though. He was smart enough to know a face plant in the fresh powder wouldn't be a good thing! He was determined to make it to the swing so we hobbled along, but he could barely fit in it with all of his stuff on. It was so cute! We couldn't stay out too long because it was cold, but Ian sure loved his "first" snow!

We were also thankful for the extra family time. Of course, Thursday was worse but the office was open so I made the drive in. It wasn't too bad, but my motivation was low. Not many people were there so I was able to get caught up from the day before. Plus, the snow day helped make the week go by faster! Now we are amping up for Halloween. Ian is going to wear his costume to music class tomorrow - it will be fun to see what all the other kids are wearing. Later in the afternoon we are having some friends over and Ian gets to hang out with Ella. Exciting!

Lights out!

Stacy and I returned from lunch today to learn there was no power on the entire campus. It was very bizarre. We waited it out for almost 2 hours until we were told to go ahead and go home. I was so excited to pick Ian up early at Kristin's! It was overcast and chilly out so we had some fun indoors. We made our Halloween pumpkins:) Ian has a witch pumpkin this year - easy enough. No carving and done in one minute. I'll take it. I busted out the Sharpie for mine. Nothing special, but I had to draw something on there. They aren't my best work, but it will do for this Halloween season. I will miss roasting pumpkin seeds this year. Maybe next year we will be able to carve some pumpkins. I can't believe we are only a couple of weeks out from trick or treating! Stay tuned for Ian and his super cute costume...

Jiggity Jig

Memories are funny. You never know the moments that are going to stick with you. Of course, some are obvious, but I'm not talking about those. I'm talking about the little things. It doesn't seem significant at the time and may not even come up as a memory for years later. Sometimes we have no idea why we even have certain memories, they are just there. Like the little jingle my Mom would always sing when we pulled up at our home after a little roadtrip, "Home Again, Home Again, Jiggety, Jig." Sometimes, I find myself singing it to Ian when we pull into the driveway and wonder, "Will that become a memory for him?"

We headed back to Crawfordsville, IN last week. A dear friend of mine, Bekah, got married. We went to high school together and have kept in touch throughout the years. Not as much as I would like, but life happens and you do the best you can. It was an honor to be invited to her wedding and it was such a wonderful ceremony (the party was great too;)! Bekah is an opera singer and comes from a very musical family. Her father and brother both sang during the ceremony and reception. We also got to enjoy Bekah's voice - she surprised all the guests and her groom! It was a lot of fun seeing old friends and catching up. It has probably been close to 10 years since we have all been in a room together (mainly my fault since I missed our 10 year reunion). We didn't skip a beat though - this time we were just sitting around talking about our kids and realizing we are our parents. Oops - that wasn't supposed to happen! Everyone is doing great though and it was a priceless memory for me. We were able to snag the beautiful bride for a quick photo (her little brother, Luke, had to jump in the photo too) - awwww...we're all grown up. Mr. Menard did a fabulous speech - be brought the whole place to tears! He began his speech by looking at Gino and asking, "Did you love her the first time you saw her?" and then he looked at the crowd and said, "Yeah, me too." Wow. It was a fabulous night with great food, great music, great company and best of all...great dancing!

Brandi Plant, Me, Bekah Cerro, Joy Wilkinson, Julie Hess and Luke Menard

Julie, Lisa Schwartz, Michael Plant, Joy and Me

Joe Peacock and Me

Ian had so much fun with Grandma and Grandpa! It rained the first 2 days we were there so that was a bit of a bummer. They have a great backyard and he couldn't wait to get out and play. However, the rain did make great puddles! He couldn't resist breaking in the rain boots.

We met up with friends on Friday night for dinner and drinks, Saturday I had lunch with a good friend (Heather) and got to meet her daughter, Tanner. Ian and Tanner had fun playing together! The wedding was Saturday afternoon and evening. Sunday I enjoyed lunch with Stacie and her family on Sunday, then spent the rest of the day seeing family and friends of the family. We were able to stop at my cousin Lisa's Sunday night and get a tour of her new house. Congrats to them!

Erica Green, Kasey, Joy and Me

JD Flynn

Joy and Joe Gates

Heather Penwell, Tanner, Ian and Me

Ian and Tanner

Stacie Elliott with Ian and her son, Wyatt

It was an exhausting 5 days, but so worth it! Plus, we have to start paying for Ian's travel in January so this was his last free ride! Our cross country jaunts are sure to decrease now. We got our money's worth though - in his first 20 months of life he has flown 8 times and been to 7 states. Wow!

A couple of weeks ago, Kate told me about this cool music class that she was taking Ella to and invited us to join her. We met them this morning for our demo class (plus shopping!) and the kids had a blast! Ian and Ella are the youngest of the group, but that doesn't stop them from diving right in to all the excitement. It was really cool to watch them interact with each other and the other children. I figured Ian would enjoy it because he loves music time at Kristin's. She always says that is how she can tell when he is sick because he doesn't want to participate:( He observed for the first 10 minutes or so and then he jumped right in. The class is about 45 minutes and at the end they blow bubbles while singing their goodbye song. All the kids love the bubbles! I think we have a new Saturday morning routine...