pink sisters

that's what they call themselves. last sunday when scott and i got back from the er(that's another story) this is what we found.

ava still asks to for permission to go up in her sisters bed. she's been asking for months to sleep up there. really.....i'm just a bit scared. she's a pretty heavy sleeper and climbs in our bed most nights. i'm afraid she'll forget she's in the bunk. so i guess the plan was for ava to wake up lily when she wanted to get down. in the morning ava was cuddled in our bed. i was relieved to see she made it down without any broken bones. she said she tried but lily just wouldn't wake up, so she came down all by herself!

caring

she is the most compassionate, loving, caring girl i know. when asked to list examples of how lily demonstrates this character trait the list is long. she is always first at your side when you are hurt. she is careful to not hurt your feelings. she loves to show affection. she wants you to feel good. she would make a wonderful nurse, a fantastic doctor, and the best mother!

caring was the character trait at her school this month. she was chosen to be student of the month. the same month and the same character trait as last year. she said both teachers must think she is a very caring person. they must honey, we do too!

time to let go

of that fine white fuzz, the feathered fly away strands, the sweet baby mullet. at 20 months he's still such a baby, so i'm certainly not ready for him to look like a boy. and that fear has lead to the procrastination of that first hair cut. but two weeks ago i gave in. not only was i afraid for my baby boy to grow up in the matter of minutes, but i didn't want him to lose his only comfort other than me. his hair. when he's tired or falling asleep he grabs it, runs his fingers through it, he twirls it. no blankie, no binkie, only his hair. so we left it. and he's still my baby boy.

my little monkey

had her half birthday a couple weeks ago. we celebrated at polar ice. the girl shut the place down. it reminded me of my great skate days...skating until the last song was over.

the following monday she brought me home this...

she's been working hard at crossing those monkey bars for a while now. i'm proud of her.

i promise, i will soon be motivated to blog again. time is flying by and my memories are here. i don't want to lose them forever. i've got a big rewind in the works.

love day. spent with the ones we love. a visit to great pop pop's. pedis with grammy. a family movie. fondue. i took the opportunity, as uncooperative as jack is, to photograph some of those things i don't want to forget.

sweet on you

"daddy this was the best dessert ever!" if you didn't know, ava has a love for all things sweet.

last week

it rained and rained and rained. the girls got to wear their rain coats, jack got to splash in the puddles and scott got to blow up his toy. making some fun childhood memories here :)

one and a half

or 19 months....yes my baby boy is now 19 months! i missed his half birthday post since we were in chicago for my grandfathers funeral. so here's to making up for lost time.

my baby boy:
looks like daddy
still loves his mommy most
is sometimes shy
quite the charmer
loves the rain
gallops
jumps and lands on his butt
fights to get in the car but doesn't want to get out
sings everything
sleeps with buzz lightyear
wears elmo slippers all nigh and sometimes all day
does not fit in pants, they all fall off
has now thrown a lay on the floor tantrum
gives kisses, knuckles and head butts
calls on a sister if mommy doesn't come
the light of our lives, we can't imagine our family without him

ugh...

i'm finding it really hard to blog these days. maybe it's the post holiday crash or i'm just really enjoying my free time :) well jackie boy is sick this week, fever, cough and now a bugger nose. he is high maintenance when he's sick. i don't blame him but all he wants is his mama. another reason for not blogging. maybe next week i can start reflecting on our fun and exciting fall!

7/365 the only shot of the day. after bath, i seem to run out of time everyday and end up with night shots. bouncing the big flash...wants it...grabs it...we're done.
8/365 although he'd probably love to turn around, he still faces backwards. only four more months buddy.

9/365 her birdies. ava's had them since her first christmas. they followed her from her crib. she watches them every night.

10/365 just a day at the park. 11/365 he's so miserable. he's got his own thermometer right between his eyes.

12/365 one of our fish had babies. there are two, not sure if there were more but the two remain. night shot again so the little guys were to small and quick to focus.

week one

already a week into to the new year. it feels good. i am a creature of habit and need a little routine in my day. the girls are happy to be back at school and i am happy to be back at the gym.

resolutions...you bet.

1. dress up. i'm a casual girl. most days you'll find me in gym cloths...all day. if not, it's a tee and flip flops, which i love. but i also love how excited the girls get when i wear a little make-up and some heals. this year i'm going to apply make-up more often and upgrade my closet.

2. shine my sink every night (see below). so far it makes me happy :)

3. photograph more of what i love. it's why i am doing it in the first place right!

4. be positive, i will see the brighter side of things. it also make me happy :)

it's a good start i think. but now back to the 365. i'm on a roll! jack in the tub washing his mouth. he loves to wash himself and name his body parts.
she is the night owl. bedtime is often a struggle. she come out 5-10 times with some excuse not to be in bed. sometimes i get so frustrated. usually it's because i'm working. but then i see this and melt.

yep, eating rocks...he's a boy, so it's ok right?

this week i started to shine my sink. somehow this house was turned upside down over the past few months. now is the time to get it back in order.

the above image was shot with the below image! woot! woot! i've been coveting this baby for years, so after 3.5 years i did it...i purchased my first l lens. i think this guy is going to make me very happy at my next family session. too bad its baby season :)

2010

now what...

the past few months have been quite a blur. jam packed with action. we've been running nonstop over here. this month i'm looking forward to some relaxation, family time, and taking time to enjoy the things i love.

i will definitely be back to share all the happenings but for now its the start of another 365. i am going to attempt to document everyday of the year in some form...camera, video, phone. i did pretty wall last year. so here's the start...

1/365 lunch, this was a first for him

2/365 this pretty much sums up our week...jammies, wii, family

an orphan and a ballerina

saturday the girls both had performances at the surprise party (a holiday festival in surprise, az). ava has been taking ballet though the city and loves it. she got right up on the stage and gave us big waves and smiles, pretty much the entire performance :) she's so darn cute!

each season they pick one activity, lily also does dasies(girl scouts) all school year. this season lily chose musical theater. they are doing the musical annie and lily was cast as molly. she is the cutest molly ever, and quite the little actress. i never had a doubt. she is confident and loves being on stage. imagine that :) Here are a couple shots from saturday. they performed a few songs here but the musical is on friday.

here she is singing her little solo in "it's a hard knocks life".

Well, ya comin?

Where?
To the North Pole, of course! This is the Polar Express!

Friday was out third trip to the north pole. I procrastinated this year and ended up getting the tickets last minute on Craig's list. So now that we have a few trips under our belt I wanted to share some tips to help you out.

1. For best available dates purchase your tickets early. I'm talking like May early. By the end of summer all weekend are booked up. Seats C and D are best. They are on the side where you will see the north pole.
2. To stay or not to stay the night. We ended up doing a quick turn around since the girls had performances the next morning. We lucked out on the weather. The past two years there were snow storms. So.....if you don't stay your gambling on the weather. If you stay, we enjoy the Grand Canyon Railway Hotel. It's not fancy but it's nice to walk right over after get off the train.
3. The food...in my opinion, not so good. I would never do the package with the food again. It's not advertised, but you can get the hotel/train package without the food and it will save you $100, that just for diner and breakfast! We like to eat in flag on the way up. We haven't found anything great in town.
4. 6:30pm or 8pm departure. Depends on your kids. We have done both. There was no way Lily could have made it that late three years ago, but now they can all do it. If you want early you better book early.
5. Dress in layers! It's cold outside, but the train gets pretty warm. Don't forget to wear your jammies :)
6. Bring ribbon for the bells. Santa will board the train after you reach the north pole. He passes out bells to all the kiddos. Make a necklace with the ribbon to keep you from fetching the bell out from under the seats all the way back.
7. Bring your book. They will read the story on the way to the north pole. The girls love to have their own copy to follow along.
8. If it's snowing there are some great recreations areas around town. Did you know Williams has a Ski Area! They offer family tubing also.
9. For all you Canon Rebel users, bring along your point and shoot for night shots. Canon DSLR's are terrible at focusing in the dark. Did you ever try to get a shot at night and the on camera flash just keeps flickering, it's a Canon downfall (Nikon is superior in this area). You'll miss the shot or it may be blurry. I always take my p&s along.

I hope this helps someone! The kids love it every year and talk about it for months. Next year I'm getting my tickets early! We'll stay and hopefully it will snow! Please add a comment if you can think of anything else!