a cold morning bike ride

this morning, i went to take ava to preschool and i couldn't find my car keys anywhere. i assumed jason took them with him to work on accident. i tried to to get a hold of several times but had no luck. so, i piled my kids in the bike trailer. bundled them as good as i could. and headed out into the cold morning. luckily, ava's school is right in the neighborhood so, we didn't have to go too far. come to find out, my keys were under my couch cushion the whole time! at least i can say i got a little morning exercise session in :)

our elf on the shelf

i think my kids have been acting a little naughty lately because yesterday morning this tiny elf dressed in red was hiding up on our crown molding.

santa was sending my kids a message: you better straighten up because i'm watching you.

our new little elf friend has been doing his job quite nicely.

my kids have been acting much better and are so excited by the presence of this little north polean in our home.

we read the book that he left for us with all his rules and stuff and after much deliberation, decided on a name.

the name they agreed upon is..... (drummer roll)

charlie red.

i guess they like the name charlie and since he's dressed in red, he acquired a second name.

we are so thrilled that charlie red has come to stay with us and look forward to him visiting us in christmases to come.

ward christmas party

we had a cute little ward christmas party this past weekend.

there was a dinner followed by a nativity where the girls dressed up as angels and the boys dressed up as shepherds.

they sang some christmas hymns and showed off their sweet faces on the big stage.

eden was not one bit shy.

ava tried to blend in.

and jack was bored.

the night was not complete without a well-known visitor from the north pole.... saaanta!

(exclaimed in the same enthusiastic way as buddy the elf)

the kids were overjoyed. i mean, what can i say, after all it was santa but ava was pretty sure it wasn't the real santa because she said that his beard was almost falling off.

i guess we'll never know.

it's my birthday (yesterday) and free food

(my free breakfast and dinner)

it' true. i celebrated another birthday. so, if you are wondering, that makes me a 31 year old. it's so crazy to think that i am that old. i still think i am a teenager in high school who just watches a bunch of kids everyday and waits for her boyfriend to get home from work so they can hang out and stuff. one day i will realize that none of that is so and that i am really this old woman who pretends she is a lot younger than she is. but until then, i will just continue living in my own little dream world.

however, one benefit to celebrating a birthday here in gilbert, az is the free food from our very own joe's farm grill (also associated with joe's real bbq and liberty market). all three of these unique little eateries give you a free $10 meal on your birthday. and if you play it right (and have a stomach the size of a dinosaur) you could get a total of 9 meals free (and counting if you go back for dessert or something). i'm not sure if this is how it's supposed to work but, nobody is telling you you can't. hmmm. so, if you are celebrating your birthday and you live you here and you didn't already know about this, head on over to joe's and get your free meal(s).

9 month old jonah

dear jonah,

it's crazy to think you are already 9 months old.

that means you have been out of my belly as long as you were in my belly.

you are such a sweet baby and i get excited each day knowing i get to hang out with you.

you love playing with your brother and sisters.

you love seeing your dad come in through the door and hearing his voice when he gets home from work.

a big smile appears on your face.

you have the prettiest blue eyes and the longest lashes.

most girls are jealous of you because of this.

you are crawling around now and love to explore your house from a whole new perspective.

more like a hands on perspective.

you love big people food and hate formula.

your favorites are cheerios, gold fish, fruit loops and gerber puffs.

anyways, i just wanted to let you know that you are are such a joy to have around and i can already tell you are going to be quite the charmer.

love,

your mommy

eden turns 3

eden began her third year of life on december 1, 2011. she celebrated by having a couple of her friends over to play and decorate chocolate cupcakes with pink frosting and sprinkles. our neighbor, mia, who we have adopted as our children's other grandma, got eden dora jammies for her birthday. she insisted on wearing them all day. and why not? after all, it is her birthday.

at night time, she made a wish and blew out candles on her "best day everrrrrr" cake. (aka Tangled) she then opened her present from me and her dad which was a rapunzel doll and pascal the cameleon. she was in heaven.

eden is hilarious. jason and i laugh every day at that girl. she can be very stubborn and strongwilled but she makes life interesting and keeps us on our toes. she loves tangled, dora, babies (especially the real one, jonah, who she thinks is actually her own baby), she loves dairy foods, playing outside, iphones, ipads, playing with ava, singing, dancing, her 2 pink blankies, her dad, and being around her family. we are so blessed to have eden in our lives.

happy birthday eden.

we hope you had the best day everrrrrr.

decorating the christmas tree

it's the most wonderful time of the year. it really is. there is nothing like getting ready for christmas and decorating the tree while listening to some christmas tunes. the kids are so giddy and full of christmas spirit. i love seeing all the ornaments that my kids have made throughout the past years and the ones they have received on christmas morning. (every year they get a new one in their stocking). they get so excited seeing them too. our tree is just a hodge podge of this and that but when its all done (and after i have moved the majority of the ornaments from the lower third up to the remaining two thirds since my kids can't reach very high) it looks better than any old fancy tree adorned with matchy matchy ornaments. i love it. it feels like christmas to me :)