Making Way

January started with a little fire lit under us.  Troy and I realized that in a quick 3 months the baby would be here and preparation needed to get under way.

We decided to play a little musical bedrooms and put Brooke in the old guest bedroom and baby in her old room.  We spent a day decluttering and moving everything out of the room, another day taping, and 2 days painting.  It's amazing how quick things can get done with one is nesting!

 Brooke loves her new room!!!!!  For some reason I feel like I'm losing my little girl.  She's growing up!

P.S.  She also lost her first tooth this last Saturday.  That officially means we've got a big girl.

Once the dust settled and the smell of paint was gone, we decided to head to warmer temps and went to CA to visit my parents and celebrate Chinese New Year a week early.

Saturday, we all headed down to Monterey Park for a delicious lunch and then to a Chinese New Year street fair.  Then it was off to Uncle Jimmy's for the big celebration!!!!!!

Have I ever mentioned how much I love my family?  I realize how lucky I am to come from a great and big family.  Out of my mom's 9 siblings only 1 lives in Sacramento.  The rest live within 1 hr. 20 min. (without traffic) drive from my parents.  Out of my 21 cousins and their familys only 3 families and one cousin live out of state.  The rest live within 1 hr. 20 min. drive from my parents.  This gathering we figured out that our baby will be #40 for the great nieces and nephews.  I think that makes a grand total of 95 people on my mom's side AND we're still growing.

In attempts to make handing out the lucky money easier on "givers" a new system was created.  The kids decorated licee bags and then lined up to "trick-or-treat". 

Afterwards, the confetti was thrown!!!!!! And thrown some more...and then some more.  The kids played in it for a good 30 minutes and Uncle Jimmy even got into the action.

Amazing, the picture above, is after the confetti.  Thank goodness for wood floors.  I would like to say that was the last of the confetti but as I was sorting laundry today (in CO) I found some more.  Both Brooke and Connor were very excited to see Coco.

Sunday was spent as a day of rest and then it was off to Disneyland.  Besides a bout of carsickness, 2 changes of clothes and a 3 hour car ride, the day went off without a hitch. Both Brooke and Connor were SO excited.

First thing we saw when walking in was Captain Hook.  Brooke was all about saying hi and meeting him.  Connor, not so much.

Brooke requested the Buzz Lightyear to be for the first ride.  I would post pictures of our scores but mine was too embarrassing.  Especially after Connor found the joystick and I spent the whole ride spinning around in circles.

It was a perfect day to go.  The weather was gorgeous and warm and the lines were short.  I believe the longest line we waited in was to buy the actual tickets.  We waited maybe a max of 10-15 minutes per ride.  Some we even walked right on.

 We made our way to Toontown and Brooke was super excited to go on Go-Go Gadget's Coaster.

 Pure joy!!!!

 Connor thought he was super excited to go on the ride as well.

 Afterwards, he emphatically claimed that he did NOT want to go back on the ride.  It was too fast. 

Funny...I remember Brooke having a similar look on her face the first time she went on this ride a couple of years ago.

 

 We met up with Donald and Goofy afterwards.  Connor was still unsure of them.

Brooke also went on Matterhorn with Troy and loved it!!!!  Since the last time I rode that ride seats have changed so Brooke was by herself.  I was surprised to hear that she wasn't scared at all.  If only Thunder Mountain was open.  She would have loved that one too.

 

 Disneyland was so much fun!!!!  Both the kids did great even with naps or rest time.  I think they loved it. 

 

 Both kids crashed before we even got out of the parking garage.

 We stayed at Rachel's that night and Brooke (and Connor) played with the girls the following day. 

Wednesday, we headed back to CO.  Luckily when we landed it was only in the high 40s so it wasn't too much of a rude awakening.  When we left CO for CA it was a whopping 9 degrees!!!!.

I think we did a good job in wearing the kids out.  They both fell asleep on the descent into CO.  I love going to CA and being able to celebrate the Chinese New Year with the family.  Disneyland was a nice bonus too!!!  Hope we can continue making this a tradition.

Christmas!!!!

I feel like Christmas snuck up on us this year.  Probably because Thanksgiving was so late.

Christmas was low-key but memorable.  It helps now that the kids are older and I can see their excitement build as we get closer and closer to Christmas.  It also helps that since we didn't go anywhere this year the tree was packed with gifts that were sent to us.  :)

We somehow got lucky Christmas morning and the kids stayed contained in their rooms until 8.  We should soak it in while it lasts!

 Connor/Troy scored from Santa this year.  Connor quickly realized how to best get his shot in.

I'm so grateful that Santa communicated to Grandma that Barbie was on her wishlist this year.  Phew!  We dodged a bullet on that one.

The rest of Christmas morning was spent playing with all their loot.  We had the missionaries and friends over for Christmas dinner.  I'm getting more and more confident in my turkey roasting skills!  I wish we had a picture of the whole spread - Roasted Turkey with a Maple/bourbon glaze, yummy carrots, green beans, mashed potatoes, stuffing, biscuits, fruit with a yummy dip, a chocolate toffee cake, and a caramel apple pie.  It was all delicious and everyone walked away stuffed to the brim.

Unfortunately by day's end I was down for the count.  I couldn't swallow or talk without my throat killing me.  The next day wasn't much better.  Luckily, that Friday, I had a Dr. appt. and got some antibiotics for the sinus infection and that Troy had the rest of the week off.  

The rest of Winter break was spent hanging out and relaxing.  Brooke was "cast" in an infomercial.  She loved being primped for it and wasn't camera shy at all.

We'll just have to wait and see if she made the final cut.

The kids loved having Troy home all day for 6 days in a row.  They were spoiled with a lot of play and attention.  I loved having him around too!  Especially after I got sick a week later with the deathly stomach flu.  AWFUL!!!  It came all of a sudden, lasted 24 hours, and then was gone.  I didn't leave the bedroom at all that Friday.

Now, I'm we're on crunch time.  We've got just a little over 10 weeks before our new little guy will be making his debut.  I do have a feeling that we may be meeting him sooner than later.  We'll be playing musical bedrooms and painting up a storm.  Can't wait!

Cold Snap!!

 

The week after Thanksgiving a cold front moved in and temps were in the single digits.  Brrr!!!!  Luckily the sun was out that Saturday to somewhat warm up the back yard. And luckily, Troy was around to entertain the kids.

Troy smoothed out a ramp going down the stairs.  Brooke loved it.  Even when on her first run she went off a slight jump and landed in the rocks. 

Connor, on the other hand, had a difference of opinion.

 The previous shots were taken on different runs yet Connor's expression is the same.  Yikes!

He was happy to find a dry spot and watch all the action.  In typical CO fashion, the cold snap didn't last too long and we're basking in the sun today at a wonderful 65 degrees. 

Bonus:
The kids got to say hi to Santa.  Connor's reaction is reminiscent of Brooke's a couple of years ago.  Gotta love it!

November Adventures

Aaron and Robyn

We've had the opportunity to hang out with Aaron, Robyn, Taylor and London a couple of times before they move to North Carolina.

 The kids will miss hanging out with each other, especially Brooke and Taylor, who have been buds since birth.

 We'll miss having such good friends so close, but we've treasured the years we've been able to spend together.

 Thanks Aaron and Robyn for your friendship and for sharing with us so many smiles and good times. Best of luck on your next adventure.

 Excited to come visit you guys in North Carolina.

Gender Reveal Party

In lieu of the normal baby shower, we thought it would be more fun to make a party out of revealing the gender of the baby. We went to the doctor for an ultrasound, but looked away at certain 'critical' moments.

 We then sealed the important shots in an envelope, and gave it to our friends the Davis'. They hosted a party and packed a box with appropriately colored balloons.

 Connor was surprised merely that there were balloons in the box.

 Tracie was very surprised with the gender. She was convinced this one was a girl.

 It was a fun evening with friends, and we enjoyed the surprise. Now we just need to figure out where our little guy will sleep, what color to paint his room, what we will name him, etc. (Brooke thinks we should name him Shark!)

Thanksgiving

We had lots of great company and help for Thanksgiving. Brooke and Connor helped with the pie dough, making cutouts to adorn the top crust.

Connor was also a master sous chef in his carrot prep.

His independence is evident by his constant, "I do it! I do it!"

Tracie's parents came out for the week, and Joanna is a master at crafts. Brooke emulates as much as she can, and Connor enjoys wearing the fruits of their work.

Don't worry, the manhandled dough did not end up making into the pie.

Joanna was a big help all week. Brooke and Connor really enjoy spending time with Po-Po.

Taylor also came out for the feasting and festivities. It was nice having an extra set of arms to help string the lights outside on Friday. We even made time for a potato peeling throwdown.

Brooke was loudly cheering for me, which helped propel me to a narrow victory.

Now the food. We baked pies in the morning after the Turkey Bowl. Pumpkin pie as well as a Spice Apple Cranberry. Last leftover slice being consumed as I type.

On the savory side, the turkey was very delicious. Here it is getting the finishing glaze touches.

Connor was excited at the prospect of devouring all of this food. In reality he stuck mainly to the biscuits, but that just meant more leftovers for us.

We were so grateful to be surrounded by family on Thanksgiving. We really enjoy having people we love over to our house and sharing our love with them both through our company and our fare.

We're also grateful for this cute guy, and we are looking forward to seeing him as an older brother.

Brooke is a great girl. Very smart, personable, and engaging to both adults and kids.