Thanksgiving '12

Thanksgiving week was awesome this year! We spent 4 days in Las Vegas with my parents, at my sister Jessica's house.  It was short but sweet, and we crammed a lot of fun into those 4 days :)

Relaxing during the 5 hour drive!

 Such a happy reunion for everyone that first night (Jake and Mia were so excited to wear their matching "ninja shirts" that first day)

 Opening her spoils from Omi and Opi :)

Mia and Violet are becoming great little buddies as they get older--Just like their big brothers!

 The first morning: enjoyed the sunshine for a bit at the neighborhood park.

A visit with my parents just wouldn't feel right without a batch of my dads amazing chocolate chip cookies!

Nathan built a little jump seat on Sawyers new go-cart while we were there.  It was definitely a hit for all the kids.

 Thanksgiving day cooking!

 Jessica truly outdid herself with these homemade placemats. jeez, so cute!

 Ok, this picture is making me crave thanksgiving food like crazy.

My mom had an array of crafts and activities planned for the kids that weekend, all Thanksgiving related :)

 They made little Indian hats--Jake wasn't really in the mood for it, but Mia loved hers!!

 Drumming!

 We spent Black Friday walking around on the strip.  Jake and Sawyer wanted to take a picture with some ghetto Avenger impostors :) creepy. But they seemed to enjoy it!

 Enjoying the aquarium at the Forum Shops

 Jessica's yard has astroturf (fake grass), and the kids loved dragging blankets out there to pretend they were camping.  I just loved the fact that it wasnt real grass--Mia is allergic to the real stuff :(

 One night my parents sprung for tickets to see a Cirque Du Soleil show.  I've never seen one before, and it was pretty incredible!!!

 Jess got a sitter for the kids, so it was a relaxing triple date :)

classic "shoe shot" before it all started :)

 The last day we were in town, we all drove up into the mountains, and searched for a nice wintry looking spot to take a few christmas card photos. The lighting was not awesome, but we still managed to get a few decent ones, and had a great time enjoying the mountain air!

 This one ended up going on the card. 

 After picture time, we all went to a fantastic lunch buffet.  So yummy. and there was something for everyone!  Jake had a ton of pizza and watermelon, and Mia ate a huge plate of chow mien noodles. win/win!

After the wonderful weekend getaway, we headed back home :) 

Catch up post: Late fall, early winter '12

Tomorrow marks 16 weeks pregnant for me, and I'm starting to finally feel more like myself again.  Still have waves of nausea, but its so much better than before.  I thought I would sit down tonight and attempt to catch up on the blog.  When I was looking through my iPhoto pictures, I realized just how many fun little outings I'd neglected to write about, so for now I'm going to try and hit some of the highlights of the past 4 months. Here goes!

Sometime in the fall (no clue when anymore) We went to Wesley's annual company picnic. It was a lot of fun, and the kids enjoyed the 3 bounce houses, a clown who made balloon animals, face painting, pony rides, a petting zoo, and more. Wesley and I enjoyed the yummy barbeque catering that was provided :) 

Also, in the Fall, Jake took his very first school pictures. I didn't end up purchasing one, simply because I'd taken some at home that I was more excited about framing, but here is a screenshot of some of the results! (we did buy a class picture) :) 

Mia, organizing her bows.

 Like mother like daughter? Mia loves to wash Jake's hair--this picture was from the first time she did it, but it's become a pretty regular thing :)

Mid-November it finally cooled down enough for the kids to enjoy eating out on the deck.  Any day that it's above 65 degrees, this is where they love to be!

 The kids were so happy when the weather finally dropped to the 70s! I can ride my bike without pouring sweat? who knew!

 I'm in love with her little red Toms :) 

The past few months I feel like the kids have really turned a corner in terms of becoming friends. Mia is finally old enough to (almost) keep up with her big brother!

At some point in the winter, Wesley bought a groupon for a day pass to the Phoenix Children's Museum.  It did not disappoint. 

Since Wesley and I don't have family nearby to use as sitters, we don't go out on dates too often (this will change in June once my parents move out here!!!) ;) We have managed to go out a few times though, and Wesley scored points for taking me to see the following: 

I LOVE Studio Movie Grill! Not only do they constantly have groupon deals, but you pre select your seats...and get to order food and drinks throughout the movie! sign me up!

 Between fun outings and crappy days where someone was sick, life has been moving right along. I'm on a roll tonight, so stay tuned for the next post ;) 

 Why is she so freaking cute? I don't think I'll ever get used to the cuteness :)