Interpretation of tongues

This is the (stinkin' adorable) face that we're constantly getting from Emmie these days: Our interpretation of the sticking out of tongues:
"Nah-nuh-nah-nuh- naaahhh, naaahhh!
I'M CUTER THAN YOU!"
What a lucky girl. She's not only cute, she's SMART too!

FOR REAL?

Yep. That's our backyard fence. The little bit of it you can see is on the right, the rest is covered by well over a foot of snow. That's from the TOP of our fence that has over a foot!

Where do we live, you ask? The polar tundra?

Pretty much we may as well be. Wikpedia describes it (polar tundra) as "home to several peoples who are mostly nomadic reindeer herders"....Parker would like that. He loves reindeer. We'll have to try that out next winter. For now however, we are in hibernation. All phone calls will be returned next spring.

What's all this I hear about global warming again?

Not in my neck of the woods........

Bounce bounce bounce

Where do you take a wild but fun, energetic, rambunctious two-and-half year old little boy in the dead of winter in Utah?

I found just the place! THE KANGAROO ZOO! We took Parker here this last Wednesday and he loved it! He bounced, slid, climbed, & ran, all the while exerting plenty of that endless energy he has pent up inside of him! Admission was only $6 for a great morning of fun. The only bad part was leaving because Parker of course didn't want to go. I went to a similar place about 8 months ago with some friends and our kids, but Parker was too young and needed my assistance the entire time, and six months pregnant I just wasn't into climbing plastic mountains with a (almost) 2-year-old in tow. Parker was still a little small to climb up all by himself on a few things, but he was able to do much more this time around and he LOVED it! We will definitely be going again.....I've been thinking about enrolling Parker into gymnastics to let him bounce and run around for an hour a week, but I think this may be the perfect alternative.

So if anyone's interested in a playdate at the Kangaroo Zoo, let us know, it's a date!

(Cami, Tammy & Jill we're ready to do it again! I'm not prego this time around so it won't set me into labor... :))

We're moving

You heard me right.

Our bags are packed, we're READY TO GO!

WE'RE MOVING!

It's decided, we've talked it over, and we are soooooo moving into this beautiful victorian farmhouse in gorgeous Sonoma, California!!!

Well, IF we WIN it, that is!

HGTV is giving away this amazing dream home! I REALLY hope to win it, :) but if I don't, I REALLY hope someone I know DOES, so that we can come and visit!!! You can enter to win everyday until February 19th, 2009. So hurry up and sign up, it only takes a second. Oh, and did I mention that the home is brand new and worth over $2 million? Click here to view this incredible home and to enter for your chance to win!

http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv-dream-home-2009-giveaway-enter/package/index.html
Chris and I always dream about raising our kids in a small, classy, country town on lots of land...
If YOU could live anywhere in any style of home, money being no object, where would it be and what type of home??
I don't have many complaints about where we live now, but Sonoma California is looking PRETTY GREAT if you ask me! :) I've also always dreamed of living back east in Vermont or Connecticut for some reason... we can always dream, right?

Thirty-something

Alright, so this is late, but, aren't I always?

Chris turned the Big 31 last Sunday, January 11th & Parker, Emmie and I just wanted to once again wish him a

Happy Birthday!

He is such wonderful guy and I am so blessed to have him as my very patient husband and as the father of my adorable 2 kids, who were very blessed with his adorable genes.

We LOVE him dearly and so appreciate what a wonderful man he is, for his strong spiritual side & his extensive knowledge and love for the gospel, for the hard work he puts into providing for our fam, and among many other awesome qualities, can I just say how much I love that he is the such the handy man? In my eyes, a 'real man' is a handy one. :) He's done sooooo much around our new home this last year... In the very little spare time that he's had (due to working OT to pay for a fence, and a new bedroom in our basement), he has managed to: lay sod and install a sprinkling system in our backyard this last summer, install & build shelves in a downstairs closet, put up bead board in Em's room, paint Emmie's room and our family room, he has built a number of the furniture pieces in our home, built and installed a marble countertop for our laundry room, installed cabinets in our laundry room, the list goes on and on.... and he fixes just about anything that needs it. (Including the toilet when he clogs it!:)) I can't tell you how many times a day I hear this from Parker, "Uh oh... it's bwoke. Daddy will bix (fix) it". Yep. And he usually does. I hope and pray that Parker will be just like him when he grows up. We are tremendously blessed by our 'honey'. (Whenever I call Chris this, Parker starts calling him it as well. It's so funny...)

So I think I mentioned the word "genes" somewhere above... well check out THESE jeans! Pretty sweet, ay? I found this picture of Chris with Karl Malone when he was a kid and it cracked us up! I'm not sure who has the better outfit... Chris or Karl....it's a close call. Karl looks like he is primped up like a woman, and Chris looks like he just rolled out of bed, jumped into his favorite 3-day-old, acid wash, grass stained, peg-legged jeans....

Alright, Karl, maybe YOU WIN!

Chris was just a kid, he didn't know any better. But you look like you borrowed your wife's outfit for the day... and maybe even her legs! Those are nice!

Gotta love the 80's!

Happy Birthday, Chris!

xoxo

p.s. I have no idea what in the world Karl Malone was doing in Chris' neighborhood for this picture to take place... I'll have to investigate...

All about Emmie

On Christmas Day Emmie turned FOUR months old! I can't believe how the time has flown. She is getting to be such a big girl in every sense....she had her four month check up yesterday and here are her stats:Weight: 15 lbs, 8 oz.....71st %ile

Height: 26 inches....92nd %ile

Head: 49th %ile

Little (er should I say 'Big') Em is SUCH a delight to have in our home!!! We are all in love with her, including Roxy the Dog. She weasels her way in to sit by Emmie wherever we go, as demonstrated in the above picture. She lays at her feet constantly and the getting kicked in the stomach repeatedly by Em's tiny feet doesn't seem to phase her. I guess it must be nothing compared to the abuse that she endures from the 2-year-old who chases her all day pulling her tail and inflicting all kinds of torment upon the poor little pup.

Back to Emmie... she is SUCH a SMILEY girl! We just love those big grins. Her cheeks are so chub that they bury those dimples, but they are in there, I swear! She LOVES her brother already....whenever he comes nearby her legs go crazy and she flashes her gums with an adoring smile. Parker is such a helper to pile her toys up on her stomach. She thinks any attention from her brother is great so she loves it. Lately they love to hold hands and Parker talks to her in a super high pitched voice, always saying, "Hi baby, hi baby, how'r you-ou?" It's so precious!
She started rolling over on December 29th and hasn't stop since. Every time I set her on her back she flips herself over and seems to love the tummy time. She can flip herself back again but seems to enjoy chillin' on her belly. She also likes to suck that thumb... I'm not sure I like this little habit but Chris assures me that at least she always knows where to find it when she needs it. I can't argue that point but I am still encouraging the binky.

I am thrilled to say that she is still a champion sleeper. She usually sleeps all the way from 10-5 a.m. before waking up to eat, then goes back to sleep! Ahhhh.

Did I say she is heaven-sent or what??? It is a dream come true. I've said it before and I'll say it again...I really had no idea that you could actually sleep at night for more than 2 hours at a time with a newborn.

I am LOVING it, and even more, I am LOVING HER!!!

Our family has truly been blessed by this sweet, tender, beautiful baby girl!

We love you, Emmie!!!

Where do I go to order more just like her??

Christmas in Review

Despite the craziness that seems to accompany the holidays, we really had such a great Christmas! Sitting back and watching Parker and Emmie enjoy the magic of this time of year was true joy. Okay, so Emmie being four months old is a little to young to begin to understand it all, but just having her here with us is a joy in itself. We got some really awesome presents for Christmas this year, and are so appreciative of it all! However, the most important things in life sure aren't the things. We are most blessed by those who are a part of our lives, and are grateful that we could share and enjoy the holidays with them!

There are way too many pictures that I wanted to post, and way more than you're interested in viewing, so for my own keepsake I threw them into collages...We spent Christmas Eve with the Hansens. They just completed an addition onto their home this last year which looks so great and made the holidays all the more roomy for everyone. It was a great evening and we were even visited by one of Santa's elves which I failed to get a picture of. Chris' brother, Eric and his wife Cindy and son, Atticus were in town for the holidays from Texas (top right) so it was fun to see them. Christmas morning fun!

My little brother, Steve spent the night and we all had fun watching Parker see what Santa brought him Christmas morning. He strolled into our room at 3:41 a.m. rearing to go, but that did not fly so Chris rocked him back to sleep and he reappeared 3 hours later to start the day. He was a good boy this year so Santa followed through on his requests for "Pat Pat" (Little Einstein) and Mickey Mouse toys. Emmie loved her new Bumbo chair.

Later on Christmas day we went to my Grandma's house with my Dad's side of the family. We've done this for every Christmas that I can remember. My 83-year-old grandmother is quite the hostess and such wonderful memories have been made in her home. She puts so much time, effort and energy into making the holidays and birthdays special. She is also quite the decorater... I had to take a picture this year of her dining room table (posted above). We later headed over to the Hansens once again for a fabulous turkey dinner and more festivities. It was a wonderful day - thanks to everyone for making it so great!

On Monday the 29th my Mom and Stepdad were in town and we had yet another holiday party at my Stepsister's home. It was also a fun time! I didn't get any pictures, however!

PHEW!!!

Bring on 2009...

I'm ready and excited for a New Year and fresh beginnings!

I TRIPLE DOG dare ya!!!!!

I grew up watching and loving A Christmas Story each year at Christmastime. This show is such a classic! I have to admit, that after I married Chris, between his red hair and my green eyes mixed with yellow specks, I feared that we may just reproduce a little Scott Farcas. You know, the scary red-headed bully with yellow eyes ("Heaven help him - he had YELLOW eyes!") that tries to beat up poor Ralphie in A Christmas Story. THERE, I said it. I was truly a little fearful that in mixing our genes, we'd have a small tribe of little redheads that might look like this famous bully. Well, my children definitely DON'T look like Scott Farcas, thank goodness! (I hope I don't sound mean --- it's okay to say this because I'm talking about a character, NOT a real person! (Right??) ) However, it wasn't until a few weeks back when Chris and I were watching this great movie when we realized that Parker is a mini RALPHIE!!! We were giggling through the entire movie because we were so shocked by the resemblence. Add a pair of glasses, slick his hair down, and add 7 years to his age, and, TADAH! It's RALPHIE! No joke. See for yourselves! Oh wait.

IT GETS BETTER!

Chris' brother, Eric and his wife gave thee FAMOUS lamp (I believe Ralphie referred to it as "the glow of electric sex...") to their parents for Christmas! Is that hysterical or what??? The box it came in even said "FRAG-I-LE" on it written all big. (If that isn't funny to you, you've never seen this movie and need to get with it and watch it!)

SOoooo, here is our little Ralphie, standing by the oh-so-famous lamp. If anyone knows of a casting call for the remake of this movie, we have the perfect man for the part.

Don't shoot your eye out!

Gotta love it! :)

P.S. These were the best fake glasses we could come up with....Chris' brother's old nerd specs.

You better watch out....!

SOooo, Emmie's first meeting with the "Big Man" went great. She was just pretty chill about the whole thing. No tears, and no fears! Way to go, Em!

Parker, on the other hand, had a DEATH GRIP on Chris and was holding on for dear life! It was pretty funny. I have to give it to him though, there were no tears or screams, just sheer terror. Despite his horror and absolute refusal to basically even LOOK at Santa, he DID manage to let Santa know what he expects on Christmas morning. While Chris was holding him in this stooping position below, over his shoulder Parker rattled off with confidence, "I want "Pat pat" toys" (we call Little Einsteins "pat pat" at our house), and "UHH, MICKEY MOUSE!". Of course.

Good job, Parker!

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!

As we strolled through the mall a little later, Parker started to get whiney, but he sure straightened out when I reminded him that he,

"Better watch out! Santa's watching!"

His response was, "YEAH!" and then a magical thing happened... cooperation for the rest of the outing. HALLELUIAH!

Does that line still work in January???? :)

(Pretty JOLLY Santa, ay?? Isn't St. Nick supposed to at least crack a smile? I even asked him to when I was snapping photos and the above pictures exhibit his response...or lack thereof...)

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

Who can watch this claymation version of Rudolph and not be reminded of their childhood? I used to LOVE this show when I was a kid! I DVRed it for Parker a few weeks back and was excited to let him watch it and learn about the legend of this little Reindeer.

Did he like it?

It's pretty safe to say that he DID, seeming as every morning for the last 2 weeks between the dreaded hours of 4:45 a.m. and 5:15, we feel a pull at our covers followed by a tiny voice, "Mommy, Daddy! Watch Reindeer!". (No exaggeration!) Yep, the little munchkin is so excited about his new found friend, "Rudolph", that he awakens way too early from his slumber and invites (okay, forces) us to do the same, to watch "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". We don't necessarily end up watching it THIS early in the morning, but at sometime during the day, you're sure to find this show is playing in our home. I'm tellin' ya, when this 2 year old gets passionate about something, to say our household gets on overload of it is an understatement!

Speaking of claymation, Parker and I (okay, 95% of the credit goes to the 2 year old...thank goodness.) sculpted these very, um, creative snowmen (yes, all are snowmen) in the picture of above. Parker was so proud of his masterpieces. I didn't have the heart to tell him that they look more like disfigured alien insects... hmmm. I must be such a good mom. :)

MEETING THE REINDEER

We lucked out last week when we took a family drive through the Christmas lights at Thanksgiving Point (above) and found out that in addition to the light display, they had some of Santa's real reindeer there for us to visit. Needless to say, Parker was pretty excited to meet one of Santa's real reindeer, even if it wasn't Rudolph. It was FREEZING cold outside, so Emmie and I stayed in the car while Chris and Parker went to get their glimpse of the animals. They were only gone for about five minutes, but they returned having fulfilled their mission and most importantly with a satisfied Parker.

WELL,
The tree is up, the lights are twinkling, the snow is falling....It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.... and we're EXCITED!!! :)

Next on our list?
VISITING SANTA....
we were going to go last week but I got sick....& now Parker's sick (not what I had)... hopefully we'll make it one of these days! We're running out of time!
HaPpY ChRiStMaS PrEp everyone!!!

Christmas card outtakes

Here are some outtakes from my pretty unsuccessful attempts over the last 3 days to get a good Christmas card picture of Parker and Emmie. We've done them in Christmas jammies, everyday clothes, and Christmas Sunday best, but we still haven't quite caught the perfect one. (The first two "shoots" weren't planned, I just decided spur of the moment to take some pics since they were kind of dressed alike....don't worry, I'm not putting THAT much time and energy into getting a pic that I'm happy with... :))However, I am running out of time so we may just have to make do with what we've got. They are still pretty cute so I wanted to post them so that they will be in my blog book once I print it at the end of the year.

And I am so happy that I finally figured out how to make a collage! :)
P.S. Don't worry, it's totally normal to wear a bow and headband with your pajamas!

Can we just turn down the lights, PLEASE?

Parker and I left Emmie alone for a few minutes and came back to find her fast asleep with a slight adjustment in her accessories. Hey, why use an eye mask to help you sleep when you have headbands? Very resourceful, Em. That's my girl! :)

O Christmas Tree

I just love the Festival of Trees!

Chris had the morning off of work so we went on a family outing to check out the event... Parker doing his now customary cheez-ball grinParker's favorite tree was this ball one (above). I admit, it was super cool and creative and had lots of people's attention, but unfortunately it was down the FIRST isle of trees that we looked at. Parker of course SCREAMED when we rolled him away from this fascination... and he screamed, and screamed....Chris finally looked at me, and said, "Uh, we'll be right back..." So, Emmie and I continued to check out some trees in peace. Upon their return, Parker was happy as could be.

WHY you ask? Why the sudden change in mood? Rest assured it was because he was chowing down on

THIS: Oh, the things we do and the games we must play to keep our children well-behaved (okay, semi-well behaved) in public....

Chris made it clear that FIRST came the lecture, THEN the popcorn....

Hey, whatever works, right?

On with the festival... it was a lot of fun! In case you won't be making it yourself, here is a small taste of what the event is offering this year... Emmie's favorite tree was this pink tree. Yes, she was asleep, but I'm just sure this was her favorite one.


Talk about ingenuity! I love it!

These trees are donated for many great causes and in behalf of many lost lives. It's so touching to go through and read the personal stories behind the tree displays...

Some of them were so creative... this one is made out of glass! Er, wait, maybe it's plastic...

And now for the tree you've been waiting for....

Tadah!

Our tree!

Okay, I know, it should have been in the festival. Ha.

A tree in his name

My older brother Michael was really involved with the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation. Sadly, a family friend whom we grew up with, passed away several years ago of the disease, and this had quite an impact on Michael. He got involved with MDF and did quite a bit of charity work raising money for them within the community. After his death last year, one of his friends whom he knew through MDF, invited our family to La Caille (her father is the owner), where they planted a tree in Michael's name. They were so kind to us and even gave us gift certificates to return the following year to see the growing tree and it's progress. Last Monday, Chris and I, my Dad and my little brother (my Mom and Stepdad couldn't come as they live in St. George now) were able to return for a great dinner in honor of my brother and to see the tree's development. We had a wonderful time and are so grateful to La Caille for honoring my brother in this way. It is so fitting for "his" tree to be planted in the middle of some of the most beautiful grounds in all of Utah, where big and lavish parties take place, as Michael always loved to be the center of attention at a good party....the thought makes me smile....:)

Bon Appetit!

This is definitely the fanciest restaurant I've ever eaten at. Somehow I figured out that asking for a booth and a to-go box were inappropriate... I'm not so sure how well we fit in there! We were giggling at the fact that underneath one of the entree choices it read "financing available".... Um, yeah, do you have a no interest plan for that??

It was a great experience and a fun night, and the food was delicious.

Thanks to La Caille for being so generous, and for doing something so meaningful for a family they didn't even know!

Thanksgiving

HaPpY ThAnKsGiViNg 2008! You could say that it's been a pretty strenuous year for us in a lot of ways...a difficult and often scary pregnancy, dealing with the loss of my brother, much heartache for our country... - just to name a few. But we are so THANKFUL this year be back in good health (you have no idea!), for Chris' stable job despite the economy, for our new and beautiful, healthy baby girl and our 2 year old joy, to live in a beautiful free country where the first amendment allows us not only the freedom of speech but the freedom of religion for all of us, for wonderful friends & great family! What more could we ask for? We are truly living the American Dream and have been tremendously blessed. Life sure isn't perfect, but I'm grateful for a perspective that allows us to learn from the hard times & to even be strengthened by them, and to keep moving forward with faith.

We have MUCH to be thankful for, and we are!!!
We spent Thanksgiving this year with Chris' side of the fam. We had yummy food and great company... that's what Thanksgiving is all about, right?
Above is a pic of Chris' two sisters (yes, they are sisters - they look nothing alike) and you-know-who. Parker LOVES his aunts and they are so good with him!

Chris with his brother and sis helping in the kitchen.. Yes, that is a mullet that Dustin is sporting, and yes, he's proud of it. Trust me, it's worth clicking on the picture to get a close up view.

Parker, Emmie and Chris with Great Grandma and Grandpa Lonczyna

Em with the hosts of the schindig - Grandma and Grandpa Hansen
And the excitement of the week??? Bethany and Brett got engaged on Thanksgiving Eve!

CONGRATULATIONS you two! You are an adorable couple and we are so excited to welcome Brett into the fam!

Thanks to the Hansens for a great Thanksgiving!!!

....Now onto Christmas.... :)

Jealousy mixed with extreme fatigue... the effects are brutal

Here's a scenario. What do you do when you're husbandless at church & both of your kids are crying hysterically in sacrament meeting? YOU LEAVE!!! Yep, that's right folks, sacrament meeting wasn't even halfway over today and we had to leave, as in, exit the building all because I don't have enough arms to hold both of my children at the same time (Parker apparently requires BOTH my arms to hold him.)

Parker had his breaking point today. The jealousy has been building up for three months now, and today his true feelings toward his new little sister all came to the surface. As soon as we sat down in sacrament meeting, Emmie started to cry. Well, EVERY TIME I went to pick up Emmie, Parker would start to cry and say "No mommy, No mommy!", between sobs. Well if I put Emmie down, SHE would cry (& I'm telling you, the girl has some lungs when she wants to use them). I tried convincing Parker to let me hold Em in one arm in he in the other, but he wouldn't have it. We went out into the hall and foyer THREE times in the time span of about 12 minutes to try and resolve this issue, but at all times either one or both of my children were screaming. By the time Parker threw himself on the floor in the hall and started rolling around, I knew that Parker was beyond repair & that it was in the best interest of the entire congregation for us to leave. (Just a mental interpretation I made of the passerby's "what's wrong with YOUR kids" glares in the hall.) I threw (okay I didn't throw my baby) Emmie back into her carrier and sadly marched my crying kiddos down the hall and out of the building to our car. I unsuccessfully fought back my own tears as I unlocked the car door to load everyone back in. Yes, I started crying, and the good part of the day was that no one saw me with tears rolling down my face. Ughhhhhh! ALL I wanted to do was go to church today! Does it really have to be so complicated?? Did I really just spend 2+ hours trying to get myself and 2 kids packed up, dressed, ready, fed, bathroomed and out the door just to turn around and come home a half hour later?? Oh heaven help us!

So I bet you can't guess who was literally snoring before we made our way out of the parking lot. YEP - the little man in charge. The poor little guy was simply TIRED! (an already known fact.) This 11:00 church, mixed with no husband to help out is going to be the end of me, I swear! Sad to say, but I really dread Sundays these days due to the fact that our meetings are right in the middle of Parker's naptime, and knowing that I'm going to have to do it all without Chris 50% of the time.

Just a word of advice... next time you see an obviously struggling mother, offering to hold her new baby who is perfectly content as long as she is simply held, while the poor mother tends to her cranky, nap-deprived two year old, would be a nice gesture. OR you can resort to staring with pity as she unsuccessfully tries to enable some sort of super human ability to console both of her out-of-control children at the same time....

If you STILL wonder why I take Parker's nap time schedule so seriously, reread this entire post.

OH THE JOYS OF MOTHERHOOD!

Parker's perfect plan....

Parker has adjusted pretty well to his new sister. He doesn't show much interest in her...just an occasional, "Mama, put baby down", or "Baby sad", or "Baby awake", but then he goes about his business. He definitely realizes that she's a huge inconvience for him, but I am grateful that he mostly just tries to ignore her.
A few weeks ago, we had the following conversation:

I was sitting on the couch feeding Emmie, and Parker was being mean to our poor dog, Roxy. He teases her relentlessly and it drives me crazy. After asking him a number of times to be nice to her, I finally told him, "Parker, if you keep on being mean to Roxy, she is going to have to go and live with another family who will treat her nice. Do you want Roxy to have to go and live with Jakie and Cameron?" (his little friends who live up the street, although I know they aren't dog people.) Parker sat and pondered this for a minute before his eyes got all big and he excitedly replied, "Oh! EMMIE go and live with Jakie and Cameron!", as though he had just formulated the most perfect plan.

Sorry buddy, she's here to stay.... ROXY on the other hand is questionable. If anyone out there would like a great little dog who is loyal and affectionate, just these days extremely neglected due to other little people's needs coming first in this home and horribly teased by a 2 year old, let us know. We might just consider your offer.