Winter

Near the beginning of the month we had a little over an inch of snow. It didn't get above 30 for a week or more, plus it snowed very, very lightly over a couple of days so the snow didn't melt. There was enough snow on the golf course to go sledding. Barrett had a nasty cough and didn't get to go but Darren took Becca and met some friends up there. They were out for 2-3 hours sledding, playing and roasting marshmallows. The second day, there wasn't as much snow on the bigger hill so they went to another hill. The hill sloped down to the right so Darren wasn't concerned about the pond. Well, Becca and her friend went down the hill and instead of turning with the slope they headed right towards the pond. Darren is yelling at them to fall off while they're happily careening towards the pond. Darren is running after them and they slide right onto the pond...frozen! It didn't crack but Darren was still nervous what would happen if he got on it. Luckily, it had been so cold for long enough and it was a small enough pond that it didn't break. Needless to say, they didn't try that hill again. Darren got some pictures on his phone, however, he dropped it in coke so I'm not sure if we'll ever recover those pictures.

We have a group of friends who get together once a month for game night. It varies from 4 to 8 couples. Sometimes we combine the kids together, get a couple of babysitters and have them at one house and we go to another. Well, we picked the weekend of Disciple Now weekend for the teenagers here, so, we decided just to have the kids here while we were here. Luckily we decided to do that because about an hour after the kids arrived, the girls came running in saying Becca is throwing up. I didn't think she was really sick (see my Christmas post about the airplane ride); I thought we were having deja vu. I put her in my room and we commenced our evening. I checked on her every once in awhile and she did end up having a stomach bug. I felt so bad for her. Eventually, she was up every 20 minutes for hours..until 3:00 in the morning. I felt horrible and so wanted to do anything to make her stop. We were both miserable...I was so glad when it was over.

We sometimes have schizophrenic weather around here, but I had not seen anything like this before. Check out this video. 5 minutes or so later in was lightly raining. 10-15 minutes later, it was doing this.

Well, it snowed again this last weekend and Darren got a couple of pictures. This time, we took Barrett outside in our front yard. We got 4-6 inches (I've heard different reports) so Barrett wasn't really sure he liked it.

This video is at the golf course, Becca and her friend are the second sled coming down.

As a side note, I follow several couponing blogs that help me save money, show me where some of the best deals are, let me know when something is on a huge sale and give away things. I've signed up for giveaways that interest me and I finally won! I never win anything I enter so I was ecstatic! I got my stuff in today. It doesn't take much to make me happy. I love "school supplies", so I was excited to get this. The only thing is I was hoping the notebook would have been a little bigger. I was wanting to use a really cute book for my preschool/nursery job, but I will put it to good use. I got this from the blog www.frugalcouponliving.com

Growing boy

Barret is growing so fast. I really wish he would slow down. He is so sweet and enjoyable but now I'm having to really watch him. He wants to climb on everything. Becca has a little table and chairs and Barrett likes to climb on the chairs, stand on them and then climb on the table. So, we keep the chairs lying down on the floor because he hasn't figured out how to put them up so that solves that climbing problem. Next is the bathtub. He loves baths and water. When it's bathtime, he like to lean over and touch the water coming out of the faucet and he loves it when I wash his hands. It started when Becca would take a bath and he would try to reach down and touch the water. Then he got a little better and would hang over the tub like this:

Well, this week it happened; he went in. Luckily he went in slowly and there was no water. He justs likes doing it now even with no water. So now, he's not allowed in the bathroom unless mommy or daddy are able to watch his every move. Next is the beds. The other night he wandered into Becca's room but the lights were off so I figured he'd come out. Well, I went in there and he was smack dab in the middle of her bed. She has a headboard with shelves so luckily he hadn't climbed on there yet. With hard work and commitment, he can climb on our bed or Becca's bed. He puts his little foot on the railing and grabs ahold of the sheets and pulls himself up, I think he may put his foot between the mattresses for one last push. I've seen him turn himself around and go down feet first but not always, so now Becca's door has to be shut. So, every door in our house is shut...(laundry room too because he wants to play in the dog bowls), except his door which is the only room other than the kitchen and living room he can't get in trouble in.

Doesn't he look like he could be trouble?

And for you watching enjoyment, this is my daughter trying to keep up with Glee's version of "Put a Ring on It". Pardon the videography, I was doing it with my camera but couldn't back up far enough to get her whole body so ended up doing it sideways...forgot you couldn't turn it around like you can pictures. Hope you don't end up with a crick in your neck.

Christmas, part 2

Arizona was nice...a little cooler for them in the 50s but nice for us. We just had a good time relaxing and hanging out with the family. As you can tell from how often I blog, I don't always get much time on the computer. So, it was nice to be able to catch up and clean up on e-mails; I didn't feel guilty that I wasn't doing housework or laundry or anything else, plus Becca would just as soon play with grandma than me anyway. I got my e-mail inbox down from 6 or 7 pages to 3. Becca and grandma walked almost every day, if Barrett was awake, we all got a walk in as well. Darren was able to play golf several days which he hadn't done in months. The first night there, Darren's brother came over for cards. One thing we like to do is play cards; when it's just the 4 of us, we play hearts of which I rarely win but it's still fun to play. Darren's family plays schafkopf (shofscup is how they pronounce it)...it's like sheepshead if anyone knows that. I have no idea how to play; when we got married 14 1/2 years ago, I was told it takes a long time to learn and figured I'd stick to hearts. It looks fun however and they have fun.

We went to a place close by where they have skydiving and a wind tunnel. We watched the skydivers for a little bit, then went into the wind tunnel area. Militaries from all over including ours use this facility to train. Darren was going to go in but they were booked for the next several days. We watched the others and it looked fun. We only watched for a little bit because there were some military people there and we are not allowed to be in there while they're training. Check out their website: http://www.skyventureaz.com/default.aspx

Christmas day we hung out with the family. We had great food, then Becca handed out presents. It was actually a little warm that day, almost too warm for long sleeve so we sat on the back patio for a little bit. It was a nice relaxing day. Darren's sister-in-law, Becca, and I went to see Alvin & The Chipmunks 2 at the movies. It was really cute and it was fun going to the movies with Becca.

Becca being goofy--those are sleeves tied around her neck

Becca helping

Some friends we knew from Nashville had moved out there several years ago and we try to meet up with them while we're there. They have a daughter that's 4 and a son who's almost 2. We hung out at their house and surprisingly there were not any fights amongst the kids; they really got along well.

My child does not mind being in front of a large group of people and is fairly fearless, she'll try almost anything. Darren's brother has a 2-seater airplane and Becca went flying with him all by herself. She had a good time.

The last night, we hung out at his brother's house. They grilled out and we watched some football. Rhea was so sweet to make a birthday cake for Becca & Barrett; she put 5 candles for Becca and 1 candle for Barrett. Becca doesn't have problems being the center of attention and getting a little cake to boot.

Becca liked their dog because it actually played with her...unlike our dog

The flight home, I made sure we had plenty of snacks but still thought we'd have time to get something quick at DFW. But do you think things could go completely smoothly? When they announced we were coming in to gate A22 (or something close) and our connecting flight left from A29, we thought we were doing pretty good. Well, there was a plane at the gate so we were being rerouted to A16 and we had to wait a little to get there. We're off the plane and going fast to the gate so we might have a little time when I asked Darren what time it was. That's when he realized he left his phone on the plane. He dumps his stuff on the floor and hightails it back to the plane. Now I'm here with 2 kids, tons of stuff in the middle of the walkway at DFW. Finally, I slowly move our stuff over to the side. There was definitley no moving anywhere without help. Finally Darren comes back and we're going as fast as we can and of course Becca's tired; we finally get to the gate and they're making the last call...no one is sitting waiting on the flight..just us. Again, missed lunch but thanks to grandma, we had plenty of things to eat. At least there was no throwing up on this trip. Darren dropped us off at home then headed to the bowling alley...it was his league night.

Barrett's birthday and Christmas part 1

Barrett's first birthday was really low key. I know it's a big deal but it's also one he won't remember. With the hectic December schedule and having just done Becca's party the weekend before, we decided to do something small. We invited a couple of babies and their families over to play. Because kids schedules are never completely set, the party started a little later which worked out fine. One of the babies couldn't make it but his mom and 3-year-old brother came. Another baby and his 2-year-old brother came with their parents. The kids played a little, then we blew out candles and had cake. That was the exciting day of Barrett's party. Because we weren't doing a big party, I decided I could at least make a cool cake. It wasn't terribly hard, just a little time consuming. I was very proud of it though...so cute. It was a barn with chick, sheep and pig cupcakes. Barrett was so cute opening presents. He did get the hang of it but he preferred ripping the paper and then covering the present back up.

Tuesday morning the 22nd, we woke Becca up at 5:30 to get ready to go to AZ to visit Darren's parents aka Grandma and Grandpa as well as Darren's brother and family. We left the house at 6:00 a.m. to drive a little over an hour to the airport, park the car in long-term parking and get to our gate in time. Becca doesn't always like to eat first thing in the morning but figured we'd get something in the airport or at least on the plane. Well, we got to the gate in time to hear early boarding. So, we just decided to wait to eat until we got on the plane. Well, with all the cutbacks, not all flights offer food. We got something to drink but luckily I brought some fruit snacks and some cheerios so Becca and Barrett got something to eat. Okay, so we can still get something to eat at DFW if there's enough time. But, not if you have to go from terminal A to C. They were already boarding by the time we got there and Darren didn't figure we'd have time to grab something quick and I've got a 5-year-old complaining that she's hungry. Well, I found some puppy chow someone had given us so she ate that. Luckily, this flight offered food...for a cost but it was worth it. Becca wanted milk and we got some cheese, crackers, raisins and nuts. Barrett fell asleep and Darren was holding him. We had just gotten our food and I was putting everything on my tray because there wasn't enough room with Darren holding Barrett and I didn't want Becca to spill anything. You know how small those airline seats are and the trays are pretty much against your body. Well, I look over at Becca and she has thrown up all over her shirt. Great! How am I going to do this? We got the flight attendants to get us paper towels and a trash sack. I did my best to clean her up with that. Luckily again, I had a change of clothes. I had to transfer all this food and drink we'd already opened and poured onto Becca's tray so I could reach my bag and get her clothes, then transfer everything back to my tray so I could change her. When I had Becca stand up, she started freaking out because it was on her pants and all over her seat. Anyway, I got her all cleaned up with new clothes, the flight attendants gave us a blanket to put in her seat so she wouldn't sit on the wet seat and we were doing okay. It was a little like a comedy however with me moving the food and drinks several times to reach things to get her all settled. Well, I made sure she promised to let me know if she wasn't feeling well and I had the airline bag all ready just in case. I also know what you're thinking but it didn't smell, thank goodness. That would just be the icing on the cake in such a small space. We made the rest of the flight just fine. The crew got another seat to switch out after we got off the plane.

Luckily, Darren's mom had made sandwiches for us to eat on the way home. We flew into Phoenix but had to drive about an hour to their house. I was nervous all the way there because I just knew Becca was going to throw up in their car; I still had the airline bag ready and asked her several times how she was feeling. She never got sick again. I think it was lack of sleep, food, the excitment and the flight just worked against her. Next time, I bring PLENTY of snacks.

Becca's birthday

On Becca's actual birthday, the 10th, I brought cupcakes to her school, mostly because it was her birthday and we weren't inviting most kids to her party (only because we can't invite everyone), but we also had a church staff party that night. We were having her party on Saturday so didn't feel too bad leaving her because we were still going to let her open presents from us and some others that were sent. But, running, just a little behind as always, Darren came home later than hoped, I was finishing up cooking and getting myself ready, we weren't going to have time for presents. Becca of course remembered I said we could do presents. So, I let her open 1 before and promised we would open the rest when we got home. She was satisfied with that, thank goodness. That helped alleviate some of my guilt. We had a good time at the pastor's house. Everyone brought some really good food. I had a dessert sample because I couldn't choose, then we did a dirty santa gift exchange. Someone had a cute snowman glitter 'lava lamp' nightlite I thought Becca would like. When I took it, I told everyone it was Becca's birthday. A couple of people thought about taking the nighlite but thought they wouldn't hear the end of it if they took something from a child. So, Becca was excited when we got home. As promised she opened the rest of her presents and then had to go to bed to get up for school since it was already late.

We braved Chuck E Cheese this year for Becca's party. It wasn't as bad as some Saturdays we've been there. We had a mishap free birthday this year. She chose Scooby Doo for her theme. I'll hand it to Chuck E Cheese, they really do a lot for the kids. Becca got extra tokens, parade around the tables, dance with her friends & Chuck E Cheese, a chance to go in the ticket machine, etc. She had a great time with her friends.

The next day, on Sunday, our church had an evening of praise where all the different choirs sang, individuals sang or played an intstrument, etc. You know how there's always 'one of those' in every group...I got her. I'm trying to round up a better video, but for now, just watch her after the first song. She give a big thumbs up, big waves, and a loud whisper to her teacher, "that's my mom!"

She also had her preschool program at school. She was not as animated there, maybe because it was a much bigger group. They actually combined both preschool groups for the program. I really enjoy this age where you can see them perform; I enjoyed both.

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Becca & Barrett both had their checkups that week as well. Becca is in the 97th percentile in height and weight and Barrett is in the 50th for height and 25th for weight. It's funny, Becca has always been tall for her age and so far, Barrett has always been average. I think it would be funny if they ended up at about the same height, although may feel a little bad for Barrett.

Trip to OK

At the beginning of December, I decided to head to Oklahoma. I wasn't going to be able to spend Christmas with my family so it gave me an excuse to head down there and save everyone on shipping their gifts as well. We left on Thursday and came back Monday so we had several days there. It's the first time I had taken both kids on a long car ride by myself. I'm happy to report they did great! So far, I have really good travelers...I hope it stays that way. Except soon, I'll have to deal with fighting in the backseat, but for now, they're really good. It worked out to where I stopped for lunch when Barrett woke up, then when he woke up again, I stopped for gas and let them out of their seats for a bit then back on the road. I was in T-town by dinnertime...I know, impressive huh?

The main reason I go to Tulsa is of course for q-time with my family,however, some of the other reasons I enjoy visiting are no longer there...Tippins (who had the best french silk pie ever!) and Egg Roll Express who had the best Chinese food. However, I did get to enjoy Mazzio's, Braum's, some good Mexican food (I'm sorry, but it's a little bland and tex-mexy around here), and some frozen custard. Why frozen custard has not made it out this way, I'll never know; anyone want to invest in one? There were a few other places I didn't make it to, but that's for another time when I'm there longer.

I did a little shopping while there because I didn't have all my shopping done. Before heading home for the kids' naps, we decided to run into Toys R Us because I had coupons. It was cold and I was in a hurry and Barrett took his socks off again. So, I put everything down, put his socks on, bundled him up and ran into the store. We're getting in the long line at check-out and I realize I don't have my purse. Okay, I'm in Oklahoma and the only other person who has keys is in KY. We had to call my brother to come get us and drive us illegally (without car seats) to mom's house and wait for the locksmith to tell us he's on his way. Then we drove back, illegally again, to get the car which took only seconds to 'break into'. That was a day completely wasted.

Saturday, my brother's church had something called 'Breakfast in Bethlehem'. The kids came and had snowman donuts from Krispy Kreme. They then went to different rooms to do a super cute craft...it gave me ideas for next year at our church. (I later heard another good idea...a book called the 'Advent Jessee Tree' 25 ornaments to tell the Christmas story with devotions for the kids for each ornament) So, the lady showed the kids what they were making...clay pot nativity. They could pick out the color they wanted to paint each pot and the color for their headdress. Becca and Cade were doing pretty good and then came time to draw the eyes. Becca saw the example and decided Joseph's eyes needed to be big. They didn't look too bad but I told her she might want to make Mary's eyes a little smaller. Being the good listener that she is, she made them bigger...almost the size of her head. But, hey, this is a kid's craft and that's what makes it cute. They then went to the gym to run off steam and then headed back to the chapel for 'A Charlie Brown Christmas' while waiting for the rest of the kids. The preschool director then told the kids the Christmas story. It was really a neat thing and Becca thoroughly enjoyed it.

Here is an example of the craft

Here is Becca's rendition of the nativity

Sunday, we headed to my brother's house to watch their kids while they went to a Christmas party. The kids really had fun playing together. Becca was very cute with her cousin. This is when Barrett really decided to start walking. He had taken a step or two but there was a toy he really liked there and took 7 or 8 steps at a time. Wow, he really is getting big.

This is a carboard "house" my mom has but had folded up and put in the corner for the time being, Becca and her cousin decided to go through the door anyway. Notice the pair of feet sticking out...a la "Wizard of Oz"

November

It's been a busy month...surprise, surprise. The only thing is, I can't tell you exactly what we did all month. Darren was on jury duty for the whole month. But he only had to go in a few times and was never chosen to serve on a jury.

Becca's school did something cool for the kids called Pizza & Pages. They did a reading night where they gave tips and ideas for helping your child read. Then you went to your classroom while the teacher gave you a few specifics. Everyone went to the cafeteria to get a piece of pizza and a free book for their age. We all enjoyed it.

Thanksgiving was fun this year. Most years, we have spent Thanksgiving with the 3 of us.(of course now there is 4 of us) Darren always works Thanksgiving morning so we never travel. One of our families has sometimes come to us or we have been invited to friends houses occasionally. This year, our friends, the Morgans, decided to invite the game night group (who meet monthly) and a few others to their house. There were 17 adults, 5 teenagers, and 8 kids. It was a lot of fun. We had 3 turkeys: oven-baked, fried and smoked. We got there around 1:00 and everyone left at different times. Some of us stayed until almost 10:00. We ate, played some games, watched some football, ate some more, played some more, ate some more, etc. We're talking about doing it again for New Years Eve.

One sad thing is Barrett got his first haircut. He had such beautiful blond hair. It was a little long but I was hoping for just a trim up around the ears and neck. Darren didn't like the fact that many people called him a girl. It never bothered me because he's a baby but, I still agreed it needed to be trimmed. He took him to the barber and came back with short hair all over. At first, I was sad but I like it and he's still as cute as ever. Someone said that before he still looked like a baby and his cut made him look like a big boy. Maybe that's why I was so sad...he's getting big; 1 year old in 19 days!

Before with his beautiful blond locks

After, with his cute big boy cut