Decorating the Tree

Darren & I were married at Christmastime, and for a wedding gift, my parents gave us a Christmas tree {with all the pink trimmings!}. It is rather girly, but it is beautiful & we love it. It's fun to see the excitement in my children's eyes as they open each box or look at each ornament.Xander Man in his snuggly jammies. He loves Holidays and family activities together.
The kids take turns putting on the star. This year they both agreed since this is the 1st time Grandma has been here, she would have the honor of bestowing the star.

My Mom brought this fun book about the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade for the kids. They love it since they've both actually been to the parade in New York.

Who's That Cowgirl?

My sweet Mother flew into town this weekend. She wanted to surprise the kids, so... Darren picked her up @ the airport, and they headed to Rawhide. I told the kids we were going there to visit Santa & see the lights, so they were completely excited. The workers @ one of the cafes there wanted to be in on the surprise, too. They handed her an apron & hat, and she posed as a waitress at the counter. The kids didn't quite know what to think--they kept saying, "She looks familiar..."
It was Grandma Kathie! They are so thrilled to have her here for the week.
Santa much prefers the Arizona winters... he's hanging out at Rawhide {in case you were wondering}. This year Courtney wants a dollhouse and a kitten from the Disney Store.
Two years ago on Christmas Eve, we realized the kids hadn't seen Santa yet. We headed to see him that night, where Alexander totally changed his mind about what he wanted from Santa. We tried to explain that Santa's sleigh was probably already loaded, but he was confident Santa would fulfill his wish. Poor kid. Santa already had the toys waiting at home. This year Darren insisted {wise man} to get the visit to Santa with over early to avoid last minute disappointment:) This year Alexander narrowed down his list to a DS.

November Showers Bring...

Rainbows??? We had the greatest rainstorm today. Here in the desert sometimes the dust and dirt in the air make the sky so hazy. When it rains, it clears the air and everything smells so fresh-- we love it! There was this gorgeous rainbow that spanned the sky. By the time Darren rushed out with the camera, this was all that was left of it.

Shopping!

My shopping guru girls {aka Tiffany & Krista} just posted some Black Friday ads. If you want to check them out, click http://www.black-friday.net/. Darren always works the day after Thanksgiving, so I'm probably out. I tried the 1st year we were here, but 2 kids and the whole Phoenix population got the better of me. Good luck, y'all! Elbow a pushy woman for me;)

We're Grateful for Family Home Evening!

Our kids get so excited every Monday for FHE. I just love that the LDS church has designated one night a week that we just spend together as a family. So simple, yet such a fun/crazy/great time.The ghetto Gratitude Box, where we can all {secretly} write things we are thankful for during the week. The kids can't wait to open it on Thanksgiving Day!
Tonight we talked about Columbus being inspired {1 Nephi 13:11-13} to come to America. It was fun to remember the little 1492 poem... when did we learn that... maybe 2nd Grade?

{Sketch challenge from Becky Higgins} I got out some OLD scrapbook pages of Plymouth Rock and talked about the 1st Thanksgiving. Maine gals, remember the fiber swap we did? Here are some Moda Dea fibers:}
Our 2nd Thanksgiving in Maine, we drove down to "Eat Like a Pilgrim," a reenactment of the 1st Thanksgiving at Plymouth Plantation. It was more like, "Starve Like a Pilgrim." We paid mega bucks for this teeny little meal {consisting of strained squash, Indian corn mush, a bite of turkey, cheese, and 2 grapes}. I think we ducked out early and hit a Burger King on our way home:) Back then it wasn't the gluttonous feast it is today!

The New Piano Teacher

Alexander asked me if he could give Courtney a piano lesson. He did such a great job, but got a little shy when I turned the camera on. {Courtney found one of my old dance costumes-- it's an Indian Princess with a papoose on the back. My Mother spent hours sewing this lovely work of art. Love ya, Mom!}

I Found It!

My family room is calling out for this damask wallpaper... how yummy is this?!?!

A Little Early...

I came downstairs after exercising Saturday morning, and couldn't find the boys!

They were out in the backyard, putting up Christmas lights! It sounds funny that they'd put them up in the backyard, but our house backs up to a big wash, so the best view is behind us. {View from the wash-- they have trees planted, so the bare spots are actually foliage}
Our view fence neighbors go all out {last year they kept popping their circuit breaker} so we participate, but keep it simple:)

Twilight & Temple Night

Darren & I got to have a date night at the temple & they already have the lights up! It is always so beautiful, and you don't have to brave the snow & ice to see them (which I love). We had such a nice time, and it totally got me in the Christmas spirit.
Darren went {on his lunch hour} to the theatre and bought me a ticket to see the show with the gals after our date. I brought my camera, then left it in the car-- I know!
The movie wasn't what I expected at all. I can't stop thinking about it... don't read on if you haven't seen it yet. I couldn't get past the clownish makeup! Yeah, yeah, I know they're supposed to be pale and all, but come on... the lipstick & mascara made the boys look a lil' girly. What made the movie for me was when Edward so fiercely protected Bella and of course, the kissing. The teenage girls wooed and screamed and cried in the theatre {a little much} but then there were two guys sitting behind me and one said to the other {right when he's inching in to kiss her for the 1st time} "Oh my gosh, he's totally gonna bite her face off!" That made me LOL. It was a fun & memorable night out!

4th Photo Tag

Sheri tagged me for the 4th photo in my 4th folder... This is my wonderful Grandpa Adams, cousin James & baby Courtney. It was May 2004, and my Grandparents came out to Boston to visit my Uncle Travis & his family. My brother Adam & his family came too, so it was an East Coast family reunion!

It was so wonderful to have our Maine home filled with family. We had a lobster bake, raisin soda from Canada, trips to the beach, hours of visiting out in the sun room, and tons of fun.

{I miss my toile curtains & hardwood floors!}

I tag... you know I'm so indecisive, it'll take all day to choose...

The Queen Has Spoken...

Hee hee... QuicKutz sent me this phrase & I couldn't resist cutting it out of vinyl & putting it in my scrap room. I'll post more pics when I get my curtains sewn. I'm still looking for dark brown pom-poms:)

Carded!

Courtney got her 1st library card today. She's been counting down the months until she turned 5, so it was a BIG day! She just finished signing her autograph. Sorry, my camera phone isn't by any means fabulous:)

I Love Leftovers!

Scrapbook ones, anyway. CTMH papers, floss & Stampin' Up hardware. Heidi Swapp has this cute {pink} distresser that roughs up the edges. It was like $1.50 and I use it all the time.

Mellow Cello

Alexander has the opportunity this year to play in the orchestra at his Charter School. I always wanted a son to play the cello-- it has such a rich & mellow sound. Alexander was game to fulfill his Mom's wish:)
Alexander is such a well-rounded kid. He loves everything from baseball to piano, scouts to Star Wars, basketball to orchestra, Captain Underpants to primary songs. He is already doing a great job at his new instrument & I'm sure in no time at all he'll be playing Darth Vader's march.

Alexander @ the Lighthouse

I seriously need someone brilliant to teach me how to scan a 12x12 layout!

Close to My Heart papers & a little library folder {QK, of course}This is the most photographed lighthouse in North America. It is in Portland, Maine, just up the coast from where our home was. It was commissioned to be built by George Washington, and served as inspiration for poems by Longfellow, who grew up nearby. It is breathtaking!

Brother & Sister

I love my kids!I saw the title to the show "Brothers & Sisters" on ABC and had to use something similar for this layout. Still needs a bit more journaling... I have issues with "white space":)

Howdy there, Cowgirl!

OK, these posts have been all Courtney lately-- I promise tomorrow will be all of Alexander! She came out of her room in this getup and started posing-- how could I not take pictures?
We love our Arizona cowgirl!

Baby Courtney

Yes, I realize she just turned five, but I'm trying to hold onto my baby as long as I can. I think that's why I'm being a slowpoke about scrapping her baby pics. These pics were taken in the hospital, when she was 1 day old.

Love this paper! Some girly tulle & stitching. Letters & accents are Silhouette by QuicKutz.

Better Late Than Never!

My friend signed us up for this totally fun calendar. It's cheating, though-- it was a class, so someone already cut everything out for us to copy. Karen & I finished it all in one night! {Do you think I have enough ribbon?!?}
Fun Bazzill stitching:) I just need to add pics onto each page...

I did get to try a few new things, though-- masking {the fun floral background} and I was introduced to the wonder of the Zutter {the cute spiral-binding machine of wonders}

I've Got My Rock Moves...

Sorry, we love that Pink song.

Courtney's latest thing to do in the back yard is being a "Rock Take-care-of-er." She has this elaborate process for taking care of rocks {with her imaginary friend, Jenny}. This poor girl seriously needs a sibling home to play with her.
Disclaimer: I thought this was a totally random thing she'd come up with, but I figured out where it came from. She has the new Tinkerbell movie, and all the fairies have special jobs to do to get the world ready for Spring. She's pretending her job is to get the rocks ready for Spring:)